GramaLisa

Once I get banded and start to lose weight I know the first place I will lose it in in my chest. I am barely a 42C to start with. Back in my "skinny days" I was hardly a 34B. I am what they call pear-shaped and I will need to lose it in the butt and thighs, not the chest, but that's where it will come off first. I want to get a tummy tuck once I lose the weight but my DH wants me to get a boob job. Maybe I will get both! :smile:

HEHEHEHEHEHEHE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THANKS so much for THE best laugh I have had in weeks!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hi, my name is Lisa and I am only a few weeks into getting started. I had the seminar and surgeon consultation on May 17. I had phone interviews with both the pshychologist and the nutritionist. I also had a phone interview with the surgeon's insurance billing department. I received a letter from my insurance company, BCBS FED PPO, dated May 28, 2008. They said they needed more information or else they would base the decision on what they have by July 10. I only finished up my evaluations on May 29. I can call Julian at the surgeon's office but I am afraid of being a pest. So now I am just waiting to hear something. I live in Apple Valley, CA, where Roy Rogers and Dale Evans lived and died. Before that I was an "Orange County Girl." I am 5'3" and weigh 210 so my BMI is 37. I also have the following co-morbs-GERD, degenerative disk disease with joint facet arthritis in my spine, hip arthritis, stress incontinence, and high cholesterol and triglycerides. I have been taking anti-depressants for 10 years but I don't think that counts as a co-morb. I having been reading posts daily and I bought some books about Lap Band that the nutritionist suggested. I have found this website to be tremendously helpful. There are 6 women at work who have had gastric bypass but I have not been able to find ONE person who has been banded. I have already turned off one person at work by discussing my possible lap band. She's as overweight as I am. I understand from reading the books that some people will "shun" others who are actively trying to make a healthier lifestyle for themselves. That's OK with me, I didn't like her all that much anyway. I am 48 years old and have a wonderful husband of 22 years. I have a daughter age 29 from my first marriage who has three beautiful children and the fourth is on his way. We just found out Monday that it's a BOY! She will be even-steven, 2 boys and 2 girls. My husband was against it at first but we talked over our fears and I have even gotten him to read parts of the books. He's OK with it now and he asked me what could HE do to help ME! I believe that I am ready for this surgery and a new healthier life. I am pretty sure I understand the dietary guidelines. I could REALLY use someone who has experience and can guide me through this journey. Thank you! Lisa:cool2:

Great thread! I am enjoying reading them as I can relate to most of them. Things I will not miss are Lipitor Lopid GERD Zantac weighing more than my husband my mom telling me I am too fat being the "fat Grama" the autistic child I am a one-on-one aide to telling me I am fat, and she's only 7 years old and weighs 135 herself! Having to put powder under my "apron" in the summer because of the stinky, itchy sweat ugly parachute undies the godawful clothes the stores seem to think us "fluffy gals" want to wear but wouldn't be caught dead in!

Hi Kiz, I am new to this too. I had a seminar and talk with the surgeon on May 17. My insurance is supposed to cover the surgery even though my BMI is 37.2. I have enough comorbidities to qualify, just waiting to hear something now. I work as a transportation aide at our school district. I aide an autistic child while she rides the bus to school and home. Out of 50 or so bus drivers 6 have had gastric bypass surgery. Not one of them had a lap band. Of the 6, one has gained back all the weight she lost. She grazes all day long. I know this to be a fact because I have ridden the bus with her. Another one is still slim but she has osteoporosis and she told me it's because of the bypass. Another driver who once weighed in at over 300 pounds still maintains a slender body but she nearly lost her life because of it. She passed out while driving her bus because everything she ate went right through her! She crashed into a house and broke a lot of bones, mainly because of her body's inability to keep calcium in her body. Her teeth also look awful. Anyway, it's been nearly two years and she hasn't been able to return to work. The last I heard she had back surgery because she broke several bones when she crashed, several were in her spine. Those women who had bypass stink up the bathroom all the time! We have ONE toilet for about 50 women!!! Do I want gastric bypass surgery? NO WAY!!! It's Lap Band for me or nothing. My nutritionist suggested I purchase the book called Lap-Band for Life by Ariel Ortiz. I just got it in the mail on Saturday and I am almost through reading it. It's very informative and might be of interest to you. Of course you can find out tons of info on this website by reading posts. I read posts at least twice a day. Good luck with your journey. Grama Lisa

Hi everyone, I am in the process of being pre-approved for surgery.:tt2: I began my journey on May 17, 2008. Time to hurry up and wait as we say in my house! :thumbup: In just one teeny little hour we will find out if my daughter's FOURTH child is a boy or girl!!! She has a son and two daughters so we are hoping for a boy to even things out! I can't wait for the visit to the Four-D ultrasound place tonight. This is gonna be fun!!!:thumbup: Lisa

Hi everyone, I am in the process of being pre-approved for surgery. I began my journey on May 17, 2008. Time to hurry up and wait as we say in my house! In just one teeny little hour we will find out if my daughter's FOURTH child is a boy or girl!!! She has a son and two daughters so we are hoping for a boy to even things out! I can't wait for the visit to the Four-D ultrasound place tonight. This is gonna be fun!!! Lisa

Hi everyone, I

Hi everyone, I

OK, let's try this again. I keep hitting the wrong buttons! Hi Queen of Hearts, your post was very helpful and informative. It sounds like you are on your way to a better life! :thumbup: I have found in the last couple of weeks that talking more and more with Larry has helped. He was very scared of me having the surgery. First it was I would starve, then he would starve, then I was going to run off with a newer, younger man:sad:. Now he's good with it and I keep him posted on everything that is going on and he's accepted it. My daughter is 29, pregnant with her fourth child and seriously overweight. She is probably about 5'5" and about 240 pounds. She thought I was crazy at first for considering the surgery but now she's thinking she would like to do it after the birth of her baby. My mom is all for it. She's struggled with her weight for years, like me. GramaLisa:thumbup:

Hi Queen of Hearts, YOur

Hi again! I actually went out and bought some of the shakes and stuff today. I bought the Slim Fast High Protein powder and tried a shake today. It's really quite tasty, like a nice glass of chocolate milk. I also bought vitamins and Carnation Instant Breakfast. I figure if I will be eating differently after surgery, I might as well start learning to like the protein shakes now. If my surgeon doesn't require much in the way of a pre-op diet I might go ahead and start a liquid diet a week or so before surgery anyway. The hardest part for me is trying to teach myself to take tiny bites and chew a lot and eat long and slow. They don't call it "fast food" for nothing! LOL!!! I read somewhere that a person bought a baby spoon and uses that instead of a normal-size sugar spoon. I am going to pick up a few of those too. They should be good for the "mushy" phase of the diet. Now, if only the insurance company would say Yes or No and I can move forward...

Hi, My insurance company does not require the 6 months supervised diet and according to the paperwork from the surgeon I will only have to do the liquid diet thingee the day before surgery. Can someone please tell me what PB means? I keep seeing it on posts but not an explanation. Thanks! Lisa

Hi Wicked, sorry about that one post, I managed to hit the wrong key! Anyway, my husband was NOT my greatest supporter but once we talked over HIS fears he was OK for me to go ahead and try to get approval with the surgery. It's only been about three weeks since I started my journey towards a better life. My daughter, who is even heavier than I am, asked me why didn't I just lose the weight on my own. If it was that easy then I would be slim now, not fighting obesity. Other women at work who had gastric bypass surgery say to me I am not fat enough for weight loss surgery. Just because I don't weigh 300 pounds does not mean I am not overweight. Another woman at work who is younger than me but overweight is probably my biggest supporter. She is only 33 but she is bordering on being hypertensive. She is very interested in the surgery but she needs to see her doctor and see if her HMO can help her out. My husband's biggest fear it turns out is that he was afraid I would have the surgery and get slender and then search for a younger man! How silly is that? We have been together for 25 years and believe me, even if I got down to 100 pounds I would not be out looking for a new man.

Hi Wicked, My

Hi, I too was quiet about it at first and now I tell just about everyone that I am on the journey to Lap Band approval. I have had several responses from good to oh brother, you aren't that heavy. I am 5'3" and weigh 210 pounds. That is too much weight for my small frame! My BMI is 37, I think, and I have several co-morbidities. One person whom I told at work has asked me several questions about the surgery. She is much younger at 33 but she is hypertensive. She is considering getting banded if her insurance will cover it. She takes the BS HMO that is offered at work while I have my husband's BCBS FED PPO. I discussed the surgery with one of my bosses and she was on my side. She had Gastric Bypass surgery several years ago. Her daughter was recently denied Gastric Bypass surgery so I told her about this website and she will pass the info on. Too many people just think I can diet and exercise and get this weight off, SKINNY PEOPLE!!! LOL!!!

Hi, my nutritionist suggested Lap Band for Life. It can be bought from Amazon.com. I also bought the companion book as well. They should be here any day now. Grama Lisa

June 1, 2008 So why is my husband more afraid of this surgery than I am? :confused2: I am the one who will be going under the knife, not him! I asked him what frightens him so much and he said he's afraid I will get skinny and meet someone younger. I keep telling him I an content and not looking. Even if I got as skinny as Nicole Richie I wouldn't go cruising for a new husband. Sheesh! It's taken me 25 years to train this one! LOL!!! I am too old to join the dating game and train a new one!:sneaky::thumbup: Then he said he was afraid HE would starve! Then he said I would starve! I told him I would have protein shakes, vitamins, and eventually I can eat whatever he eats, just in much smaller portions.

June 2, 2008 It is hard to believe that 30 years ago I made one of the biggest mistakes of my life. I got married at the tender age of 18. But wait! I am NOT THAT OLD!!! I was only 10 when I got married!!! LOL!!! J/K What I really want to post on my blog is the letter I got from BCBS today. It seems as though the the ins. coodinator for the surgeon already applied for my lap band, before things were sent in such as evals. Now my ins. company wants the two evals, a copy of a sleep study, the doctor's charges, and where he does his surgery. I did the evals and the doctor has people to send in his prices and his hospital of choice. I don't know about this sleep study, no one mentioned it before and I am not sure what it is for. Sleep apnea perhaps? BCBS

June 2, 2008 It is hard to believe that 30 years ago I made one of the biggest mistakes of my life. I got married at the tender age of 18. But wait! I am NOT THAT OLD!!! I was only 10 when I got married!!! LOL!!! J/K What I really want to post on my blog is the letter I got from BCBS today. It seems as though the the ins. coodinator for the surgeon already applied for my lap band, before things were sent in such as evals. Now my ins. company wants the two evals, a copy of a sleep study, the doctor's charges, and where he does his surgery. I did the evals and the doctor has people to send in his prices and his hospital of choice. I don't know about this sleep study, no one mentioned it before and I am not sure what it is for. Sleep apnea perhaps? BCBS

Hi Everyone! I got a letter today from a Clinical Support Coodinator. She is the CSC for our BCBS Fed. Employee Program. They say they cannot make a decision until they have received more info. Judging by the date of the letter, May 28, 2008, the doctor's office tried to get approval before I did any evaluations. I just finished up my psyche and nut. evals last week on Thursday. BCBS want the two evals, a copy of a sleep study, the Dr's price, and the name of the facility where the procedure will take place. This is the first I have heard about a sleep study. I don't think I even know what a sleep study is! LOL!!! Anyway, BCBS states that upon receipt of all the information requested they will make their decision within 5 working days and provide me with written notification. If they hear nothing by July 10 they will make a decision based on what little info they have. I am guessing they will say "no" with only a little info. Lisa:rolleyes2:

June 1, 2008 So why is my husband more afraid of this surgery than I am? :confused2: I am the one who will be going under the knife, not him! I asked him what frightens him so much and he said he's afraid I will get skinny and meet someone younger. I keep telling him I an content and not looking. Even if I got as skinny as Nicole Richie I wouldn't go cruising for a new husband. Sheesh! It's taken me 25 years to train this one! LOL!!! I am too old to join the dating game and train a new one!:tt2::sneaky::thumbup: Then he said he was afraid HE would starve! Then he said I would starve! I told him I would have protein shakes, vitamins, and eventually I can eat whatever he eats, just in much smaller portions. :thumbup:

Hmm... I am only two weeks and one day into my weight-loss journey. On May 17, 2008 I attended the little seminar and then saw the surgeon. He sure was one self-absorbed little so and so. He seemed VERY impatient, with ALL of us. :smile: He said that my BMI was only 37 and my ins. prob. wouldn't cover the surgery.:thumbup: May 23, Julian the ins. coordinator called and asked a ton of questions. I swear, if they ask me ONE MORE TIME do I pee when I sneeze, laugh, or cough and do I want surgery for that I am going to ask if they have a surgery that prevents me from cutting one when I sneeze, laugh, or cough. LOL!!!:sneaky: Then I found out that they were trying to say I have stress incontinence, one more co-morbidity to add to the list so insurance will cover me. We have BXBS FEHB and they cover lap band if your BMI is a little low but you have two or more co-morb's. I have GERD, athritis, DDD, and hip joint pain. May 27-phone interview w/psych. She said I raised NO red flags that would prevent me from surgery. In fact, she said I 'was mentally boring.":tongue2: May 29-Phone interview w/nut. We talked for a long time. Boy, do I wish all these services were closer but it's all good. What I am dreading is the two hour trip through LA for the surgery, should I get that far. May 31, received literature about the diets, both pre-op and post-op. One great thing about my insurance is that they do not require months and months of supervised dieting pre-op. YAY!!!! June 1-Now it's just time to sit and wait for insurance approval. No one has told me what will happen once I get approved. I have no idea of what types of testing I will undergo. I have been laying off the soda pop and I am learning to like Crystal Light and Wyler's Light drinks. Now I have to start cutting out the smokes. Nasty, stinky, dirty habit anyway. Cost too much, both in the checkbook and in the health departments. That's it for now. Lisa, grama to three on and one more on the way!

Hmm... I am only two weeks and one day into my weight-loss journey. On May 17, 2008 I attended the little seminar and then saw the surgeon. He sure was one self-absorbed little so and so. He seemed VERY impatient, with ALL of us. :smile: He said that my BMI was only 37 and my ins. prob. wouldn't cover the surgery.:thumbup: May 23, Julian the ins. coordinator called and asked a ton of questions. I swear, if they ask me ONE MORE TIME do I pee when I sneeze, laugh, or cough and do I want surgery for that I am going to ask if they have a surgery that prevents me from cutting one when I sneeze, laugh, or cough. LOL!!!:sneaky: Then I found out that they were trying to say I have stress incontinence, one more co-morbidity to add to the list so insurance will cover me. We have BXBS FEHB and they cover lap band if your BMI is a little low but you have two or more co-morb's. I have GERD, athritis, DDD, and hip joint pain. May 27-phone interview w/psych. She said I raised NO red flags that would prevent me from surgery. In fact, she said I 'was mentally boring.":tongue2: May 29-Phone interview w/nut. We talked for a long time. Boy, do I wish all these services were closer but it's all good. What I am dreading is the two hour trip through LA for the surgery, should I get that far. May 31, received literature about the diets, both pre-op and post-op. One great thing about my insurance is that they do not require months and months of supervised dieting pre-op. YAY!!!!:tt2: June 1-Now it's just time to sit and wait for insurance approval. No one has told me what will happen once I get approved. I have no idea of what types of testing I will undergo. I have been laying off the soda pop and I am learning to like Crystal Light and Wyler's Light drinks. Now I have to start cutting out the smokes. Nasty, stinky, dirty habit anyway. Cost too much, both in the checkbook and in the health departments. That's it for now. :thumbup: Lisa, grama to three on and one more on the way!

Hi, my husband works for MCLB, the Marine Base in Barstow, CA. We get BCBS FED PPO through his work. So far in just a week and a half I have gone to the initial seminar, saw the surgeon directly after that, got a call from the insurance co-ordinator, got a call from the psychologist, and then a call from a nutritionist. They have told me that this is all I need to do before they send in a packet to the insurance company. My BMI is 37 but I have several qualifying co-morbidities, arthritis, stress incontinence, GERD, degenerative disk disease, and hip pain. They have told me that it may take up to 45 days for the ins. company to give the OK but that they should give me the approval. The nut. also said that with BCBS I should not have to go through the 6 months of supervised dieting that I have read about. They seem to think that our insurance is pretty good at getting approval. Now I am just waiting for approval and whatever else they will require of me before surgery. Now I just need to work on quitting smoking, cutting out soda pop and excess calories, and getting more exercise. This morning instead of stuffing my face and smoking too much I got out and mowed the lawn and weeded and raked.