LinKo

Chrys129, I'm not far from you. Where are you having surgery?

Hi gracie969, we're almost neighbors! I'm in Millersburg. Have you had surgery yet? I'm in the 6 month pre-op period for insurance coverage. I'm going through Hershey Med Center.

I have just started the journey. But one of my concerns is that I will miss food. My husband and I eat out a lot, travel a good bit, and he plans our trips around the restaurants we can go to! Obviously, I love to eat. Thoughts, anyone? Thank you.

Thank you so much. That definitely puts my mind at ease. I've just started the process so I think I'm pretty far.from surgery.

I'm from close to Harrisburg, Pa. Anyone going to Penn State Hershey Medical center with Dr. Ann Rogers?

Many of the posts that I've been reading will have the phrase "but it's not for everyone". Could you explain what this means? Does it mean that physically, the band may not do well in some bodies? Does the body not adjust to the presence of a foreign material? Will the stomach never really accept this piece of silicone (or whatever it's made of)wrapped around it? Or does this mean mentally, some of us will never accept the fact that we cannot/will not adjust our eating and exercise habits to make the band work for us? I'm scheduled for my second informational session in August. I'm anxious to get the process started. But some recent reading from the negative sides got me thinking -- are there some people that physically cannot use the band? Thoughts?

Monkeymama: I have another session planned with a different clinic in August. shelley1057: The latest "thing" according to them was the sleeve, and they sure were pushing it. LeighaMason: My thoughts exactly! And thanks for those links. Very encouraging. Asgara: Sent you a PM, turns out we were no where near each other. Funny tho, we were told the same thing.

I went to an informational session sponsored by a hospital in our area. I was caught off guard by some of the things that were said. 1. Not many people get the band any more, and those that do, gain their weight back after 18 months to 2 years. 2. The gastric bypass and the sleeve are the "golden child" of weight loss surgery. 3. If the band has to be removed, it's a very difficult procedure. 4. Many of the people they've banded had to have their bands removed. 5. Doctors don't like self pay because first, it looks like the patient is trying to rush ahead of the insurance patients (this really irritated me because self-pay certainly isn't my choice and I'm not trying to rush anything), and secondly, that if something goes wrong, the patient could go bankrupt because insurance wouldn't pay for any corrections. 6. The negatives of the band were strongly stressed--not so much the other two. They were listed, but didn't seem nearly as foreboding as the list of negatives for the band. These were just a very few of the things she said. I was very surprised to hear all this. On the other hand, lap band is the least expensive method of WLS. Thoughts? Linda

It's funny to see this discussion because my husband and I were just talking about this very thing on the way home today. We talked about one diet that kind of worked for me, or another one that seems to work for others. I said I could probably lose some weight again, but not keep it off. He then said that if those diets truly worked, they would put themselves out of business. Meaning that people would lose the weight, keep it off, and live happily ever after. I can't even count the number of times I've gone back to WW and regained all I lost plus more. They've gotten quite a bit of money from me over the years. I'm in the same boat, wondering if it's the right thing to do. We love food, love to travel, love trying different things. If I knew I could eat what I want, only much smaller portions, I'd have no second thoughts. (That sounds very childish, I know). So I'm with you, researching and praying for peace about being banded, or looking for another way to lose.

Hal - you're doing great, congratulations! You're an inspiration to those of us that are not yet banded. I'm in the information gathering phase and have two meetings scheduled for the next few weeks with two different doctors. My concerns stem more from the idea of throwing up and getting stuck, which seems to happen to everyone at least once, to some it happens often. When I think of that, I cringe. We travel a lot and eat out often, I can't imagine running to the restroom to throw up. Please continue to post often, I'll be anxious to see how you're doing. I'm a worrier at heart, I want that positive attitude that you have! Linda

Hi Aredlie, I grew up close to Hershey, I could ride my bike there. Now living about 45 minutes away. I guess I could still ride a bike there (if I had one and could ride it and didn't have a mountain to go over)!

My dad had several strokes, then died of a heart attack. This has been one of the reasons in my "go for it" column.

Loving all your responses, thanks so much. Changing insurance isn't an option. We actually own the business and provide insurance for our employees. They pay some, we pay the bulk of it. We just changed insurance companies, but WLS wasn't even mentioned. They sell insurance packages. We could probably add this option, but out of 24 employees, I'm the only one that would need the surgery. I don't feel we could do that to our employees -- make them all pay extra for me to get the band. So, self pay will be the way to go. I haven't started the search yet, there is one doctor in the area that has a good reputation, and then there's Hershey Med Center. I will be contacting them to get some info, including pricing. I would be a little concerned that if something goes wrong, I would have to pay for whatever needs done, beyond the banding charge. I'm assuming this is a rarity, but it can happen, right? The idea of spending money on clothing is seriously a thrilling idea. I've already told my husband if I lost weight and could actually go buy clothing that looks good on me, BE PREPARED for big credit card bills. I think he'd be happy to do that, because I complain so much now when I go shopping and can't find anything. Still having second thoughts at times. I wake up in the middle of the night and think "is this really right for my lifestyle?" Then I get dressed and feel awful. Oh, what to do!!

Thank you all for the great information. Just called my insurance company to find out that there's a "bariatric exclusion" on my policy! Guess that rules out insurance paying for it. Now, on to checking into self-pay.

You are all so encouraging and upbeat. Thank you all so much!! I haven't even lost weight yet and you're making me feel young!