blackcherry2002

My insurance has their covered services online. I have Tricare. They covered my lapband 100% so I'm hoping they will be helpful. Basically they will cover anything for a medical necessity. Basically they same the same about just as long as there are rashes. I'm hoping that my plastic surgeon will also work with me and put absolutely everything in there before sending it. The other one I saw sent pictures that didn't even really show any issues and put nothing else in there. I have the hardest time with getting doctors to make a big deal about anything (not just my plastic surgeons)...I wonder if it has anything to do with the region I live in

How bad were your rashes? Mine are more uncomfortable and the skin gets chafed off a bit. And during the summer it gets very sweaty under the folds and in my belly button. I guess now I'm being punished for being obsessive about making sure the area's clean though because they don't really show up on camera. Will the insurance company accept pictures that I've taken myself? And of course I pretty much avoid physical activity between my stomach and my chest because though they don't look like it, they are very heavy. About 2 weeks ago my back was so bad I was in tears lying on the ground unable to move for about 2 or 3 hours. Not how I want to be at 21 already. These, though a lot of them, seem like mild issues. Then again my mother asked to drive herself to the hospital during a heart attack so I come from a family that doesn't make a big deal unless you are bleeding or dying...

Ok so I'm going to see a second plastic surgeon (this one doesn't charge a $50 consult fee ) Anyway, first time my insurance denied me. However I don't think my surgeon then explained much of anything in the letter or whatever to the insurance. Here's the thing...they covered my lapband completely. I went from 270 to 135. I do have a lot of hanging skin, it doesn't look like it because it's being held up pretty well so it just looks like I have a fat belly still basically except that it folds hot dog style on itself as well as rolls? If that makes any sense but yeah it's really loose. And here's the reason for that and the reason I hope my insurance will cover: About 1 to 2 years before my lapband surgery I ballooned from 165 to 270...and I did it in 7 months. I had went to my gyno right before this and had her check my thyroid. She said it was fine. In fact it was 5.6 or something which is NOT in the .3 to 3 or even .5 to 5 range for thyroid. So a year later after my body was streched beyond belief, I went to get a mental health check up for suicidal thoughts. They tested my thyroid again: 22. Also, at the time I told her I thought I had PCOS. She laughed and said no I don't have and she wasn't going to test me for it. Well guess what? Yup have PCOS too. So basically my question for those of you a little bit more insurance savvy than myself...do you think I could get insurance to cover a TT since it was caused by a medical condition (almost like 'reconstructive surgery')? I do have a tiny rash problem underneath and I keep getting belly button infections on top of it all however I don't have those documented and don't feel like doing such since I'd have to pay for a dr's visit everytime I got a tiny rash, sorry but I'm a college student, it's just not possible (especially since that money goes towards dr's for my thyroid, hormonal and mental health issues).

Wow do I understand that. Unfortunately I don't think that ever goes away. I gained about 10lbs over the holidays but it's come right off again. I tend to gain that much every year but then come Spring and Summer I start losing again. I had so many ups and downs and platues with my weight loss but I went from 270 to 135, so looking back I feel good about that because I know there were times I got close to giving up. I wear a size 2/4 right now which should blow my mind or something but I swear, most days I wake up and still feel like the size 24 I was. However, the little nagging, uneasy feeling I get now from gaining 5...10...or 15 lbs is just more motivation to get back on track. I'm sorry I can't be of more help.

Ok so went to the bar with my friends the other night for my late-birthday celebration. A girl I never met, who had once made fun of me for being fat and tried stealing my boyfriend (yes, she's a real winner) was there. This was two years ago. She had told me "Go eat a cheeseburger you zamboni." Well she was drunk at the bar, go figure. She finds out who I am and will not leave me alone. "I'm so sorry, omg! you're f-ing gorgeous. You're so f-ing hot." I was flattered but I'm glad I got away from her, she's a bit crazy.

Yeah it's definitely strange. Not complaing though, I've been at 165 since last September and I started losing again about a month or two ago and now I'm down to 145, which blows my mind.

Ok so just wondering, other long-time banded people, have you had weird restriction at times? Last summer I lost a bunch of weight because I just didn't feel like eating as much, same thing is happening this summer. The issue is, when I do eat...all of a sudden I have no-go foods. I can't eat pasta, makes me throw up. For instance, just today....I've been eating really well lately, so I decided to have a few cheetos and a bag of peanut m & m's...well I felt horrible after not even eating very much. And then I threw it up. It wasn't the best food I realize, but I've never had foods I couldn't eat before...anyone else?

I was pretty invisible as well and got treated like I was an idiot. Now it's completely different.

7/28/2008 Probably not the healthiest but it was a VAST improvement over how I used to eat. I try just to be active in my day to day stuff and maybe I'll go out and do something with friends, but I don't workout regularly. -125lbs Love my results.

I actually had surgery when I was 18, whoops sorry I voted. haha. But seriously I'm 2 years out as of next month and I would have done it sooner if I could have. Best choice I ever made.

I got the band when I was 18 and I live 3 hours away from my hometown(where I had surgery.) And let me tell you, even that sucks pretty bad. haha But like everyone said just call around. I'm in a state that only has about 3 places, all on opposite corners, that do lapband and they won't touch another doctor's band so...

Anyone else able to feel their port AND the tubing? At first I thought it was my port, so I thought...no big deal. Then after large meals it would stick out really far and I realized it was right above my port and a seperate bump. So then I got freaked out and I'm like..."Omg! that's my stomach" and I started thinking I ate too much and was hurting myself... But then a few weeks ago and felt it and it's long, curves and I can sort of...feel around it...pretty sure it's the tube...anyone else have this? It's sort of unusual...

wow you're tummy tuck is 12,000? It's only about $8,000 here in Fargo I believe. Even cheaper if I went to another city but...wow :bored:

I actually have an appointment for a doctor here in Fargo. But my mom had looked into Dr. Becker once before. Only problem is that living in Fargo and with school, it would be easier to have the surgery here. It depends on if my insurance covers it. If anything I'll see if they will cover it. If they don't, I'll switch to Becker maybe and try to appeal. I'm not sure:wink2:

So July 28th will be 2 years since I had lap band surgery. I'm so glad I got it done and it's the best decision I could have made. I've lost about 115 pounds...My waist at my belly button has gone from 53 inches to 28 inches..this has left some excess. The worst part about it is I don't know if I can tell the difference between excess skin and fat. So I keep looking at my stomach and see the same 53 inch belly. It's really holding me back from enjoying my weight loss and keeps me a size up because I have to find pants that I can tuck my stomach into and shirts that don't show all the lumps and bumps. I'm looking into getting a tummy tuck. But that's a bigger surgery than the lapband; it's a lot to consider. I'm also at this point only thinking I can do it if my insurance covers it but at the same time I think it's something I need to do if I ever want to be comfortable (not even in love) with my body. I was looking at before and after pictures yesterday and I started crying because those stomachs looked like mine and after they were normal, beautiful...maybe it just gave me hope. I know it probably sounds bad but if I were a mother like a lot of you maybe I'd feel better about it because it's like...yeah you know why my stomach looks like s**t? Because I created LIFE! HA! Unfortunately it was a combination of bad eating which kept me a little chubby and a stupid malfunctioning thyroid that ballooned me up and caused a TON of stretch marks. Just wondering if anyone out there is feeling a lot like me. And what do you think about the tummy tuck, think I should get it even if my insurance doesn't cover it? (Don't get me wrong I don't have BDD or anything. Though not perfect a lot of my other body parts I'm ok with. However my stomach is bad to the point that it affects intimacy and makes me self concious constantly)

May I ask who your insurance company is? My ins paid for my band completely too, so I'm wondering if they would pay for my TT. Maybe they would just take pity on me that I'm 20 and my stomach looks worse than women who give birth to 5 kids...and all I had in there was flub lol I can only hope.

well I know after I got the lap band for the first day or two I didn't have an appetite but I had an appetite quickly. I know it sounds horrible that I'm so dependent on my band but I could do some serious damage if I had a complete unfill for 3 weeks...even with having nausea.

Well the title pretty much asks it. I'm just looking into getting a tummy tuck myself and I'm worried about getting an unfill/gaining etc.

Just wondering just HOW rare it is that insurance covers plastic surgery for people that have had weight loss surgery. I'm specfically interested in tummy tuck/loose skin removal procedures rather than breast lifts/reductions but answer either way.

Well I hope that I didn't do any severe damage to my band. I had my band too tight and was getting acid...however I didn't realize it because I wasn't losing weight and was still able to eat what I thought was a lot(honestly my serving sizes are all screwed up...I think like 10 bites is a lot now.) I just got an unfill after almost 8 months...but the acid reflux wasn't everyday until recently and I took a prilosec to keep it down and that helped. I just got .5 cc's out about a week and half ago and didn't have any acid until today. I had a little bit of acid, not nearly as bad as before...and then I realized...hey! I haven't eaten in 5 hours...Anyone else only get acid when they forget to eat?

Any July '08 banders having problems getting off track? I was down to about 155 and now I'm back to 166...ugh! Anyone have any success with the 5-day pouch test?

Well I did do a round of prilosec OTC and it worked like magic. Tums and pepto bismol didn't do CRAP! However now I'm just doing 1 pill as needed-usually once or twice a week. I'm just not sure if that's safe. And yeah coffee is a BIG no-no.

I'm having acid problems lately, but I'm not too tight. And it has started gradually not suddenly. I'm thinking it maybe just due to my bad diet lately (I need to get back on things)...Anyone else have problems, think I should be worried?

See that's more of what I'm worried about--is that this is what my body wants to stay at and that it is still so far away from just being in the normal range...not that I couldn't ever get there but the work it would take to maintain there...I guess at this point it's just keep chugging along...

haha, I also had the same issue during the holidays. My weight was at 160/162 and bounced up to 167...I'm down to 157 or 158 now but that's the lowest I've ever been and it's been quite a few months since I've lost any substantial weight--not Water weight or whatever. I'm not going to beat myself up on that though as my body is finally getting back to normal again--I'm hypothyroid and since November my thyroid has been climbing, so weight loss stalled and then gained...especially with holiday eating. My meds are on track now and I"m ready to lose! lol --How tall are you by the way?