GratefulHeart

I agree - and my surgeon stresses that exercise plus what you eat combined are what help you lose weight. And both aerobic exercise AND weight training are key to success. But where did you find the exercise consultant, and what kind of form was needed to satisfy the insurance company? I found a site mentioned on obesityhelp.com - "My Exercise Plan" - that actually gives you a personalized exercise plan for a year, and they have plans customized for gastric bypass patients. While a lapband isn't a bypass, there are similarities in exercise needs. I was thinking that the exercise plan from this site (if I were to sign up for it) might suffice. I'm going to wait for my surgeon's staff to find out what they can about what the insurance company needs to know and hear. Thanks for the info!

Greetings everyone! I just heard from my surgeon's office this morning that my insurance is requiring me to attend a support group meeting, which I understand......but also to get a consultation from an Exercise Consultant? Hmmm? What's that? Even my surgeon's office said that's a new one, they haven't ever had to do that one before. I have Definity Health, which is really a United Healthcare program. The insurance is usually really good. But an Exercise Consultant? Anyone heard of that or had to do that? We don't even know what form to fill out! It appears that those are the only two hoops I still need to jump through. I had my Upper GI this morning. It wasn't bad at all! The radiologist technician and radiologist were both very good, fun to work with, and the barium drink wasn't awful. The crystals were weird. But the radiologist asked me two strange questions: Have you had surgery before? I answered that I had a hysterectomy 22 years ago, but he said that's not what he was seeing. Another hmmmm... Then he asked about the endoscopy I had a little over a year ago, whether the hiatal hernia was the only thing they found then. I answered that it was, and he gave me a funny look that made me think there was more there. Hmmmm again. He said he would write it up and fax it to my doctor by noon, and I could talk to my doctor about the results. He left so fast I didn't get a chance to ask him what he saw. Maybe they don't talk about what they see; instead they want your surgeon to do that. But my surgeon's office said he was doing surgery all day today and wouldn't have a chance to look at it until later. I don't know if that meant later today, tomorrow, or what. So it's now almost 7pm and I haven't heard a thing. I'm on pins and needles waiting to see if there's something weird inside. I wish those radiologists wouldn't drop hints like that. My imagination can make up all kinds of things! With all that said, I have calmed myself down enough to realize that if there's something really awful going on, surely my doctor will call me as soon as he sees it. No news is good news, right? Anyway, I'll try to update this thread when I hear if there's anything going on. But hopefully not and I'll be able to proceed as planned. I know I have a very large hiatal hernia, and both the radiologist and technician confirmed that they saw that. So we'll just wait and see..... Anyway, if anyone has ever had to do an exercise consultation, can you let me know? Many thanks! :thumbup:

I haven't even been banded yet, but I asked my doctor specifically about the K2O product, and he said it wasn't nearly as good as the protein shakes. I think he said that it's like drinking water. It seems to me (only my opinion, not the doctor) that since it's so watery that it would not stay in the pouch long enough to have any effect on hunger. I tried making a few protein shakes just to see what they were like (since I'll be living on them in a few weeks - hopefully), and there is a big difference between how I feel after drinking the shakes, and how I feel after the yummy but less effective K2O drinks. So maybe it's the "thickness" or "volume" of the protein that matters just as much as the protein content? Just a guess....

Super article! I love your 18th birthday party picture - you look SO happy and comfortable with yourself. Thanks for participating in this article; I hope that it helps other people realize the benefits of WLS for younger people. I wish I could have had the opportunity when I was in high school in the 1960s - but I'm so grateful to have it now. Your whole life is going to be so much better for having done this for yourself! Congratulations!!

Blessings on your surgery tomorrow! I will say a prayer for your peace and that it goes well for you. Keep us in the loop!

I am seeing Dr. Milton Owens. He has a terrific web site at Coastal Center for Obesity, Gastric Bypass and Lapband Weight Loss Surgery in Los Angeles and Orange County, California My regular doctor said he would recommend him over anyone because of the great experience his patients have had with Dr. Owens. I haven't seen him yet, so cannot vouch for him yet myself. But I have researched him on this site and on others, and can find no negatives and lots of positives. I also found his office staff to be more personable than the ones I talked to at St. Joseph's Hospital. St. Joseph's program has had some complaints too, though I can't remember where I saw them. Maybe it's my own preference to see a smaller practice than a big hospital, but Dr. Owens is (I think) head of the bariatric program at one hospital and practices at four others. His web site has all that information. They also have an online form you can fill out with your information, and they'll get back to you with what the surgery will cost you based on your insurance. So far I'm happy with what I've experienced but I've only been on this journey for maybe 1.5 weeks! When I saw my doctor my blood pressure was 160/100, so he checked my heart. We both decided it is time to do the weight loss thing, and he recommended Lap Band and Dr. Owens to me. If you'd like to keep in touch with how it's going, let me know!

I am in So Calif also and have UHC with the 90/10 insurance. My doctor is not in the preferred network. For me I just have to pay the 30% instead of 10%, and my dr. said that would be $1700. I don't know if that will include anything else (like repairing a hiatal hernia, which I know I have), but my family practice doctor recommended him to me, saying that he's never had a bad report from his surgeon. So it may be that your insurance will only cover 70% of it instead of 90%....it may still be affordable. My husband is in agreement with me that the cost isn't that bad, and the surgery is too important for my general health to forego because of the extra cost. Hopefully you'll find that either the cost isn't awful with 70% or that another surgeon will work for you...keep us posted!

Greetings! The first thing to do is be sure you know what your insurance will or will not cover before despair. It's so much easier to handle when you know what the obstacles are, rather than reacting already to what they might be. For example, on the five-year thing, I thought I understood that it was five years struggling with weight with little to no success, not five years with a BMI of 40. Some insurance companies (like mine) don't require more evidence if you have a BMI of 40, regardless of how long you've had it there. Others require more evidence if your BMI is below 40. So - try not to despair - find out first what your insurance companies covers and go from there. I have not yet been banded, but heard that my insurance will cover 70% of the cost because my surgeon is out of network; but they will cover it. After they found my BMI to be something like 41, there were no further questions. I'm still in the stage of getting all the labs and pre-work done. But my husband is in favor of it, my MOM is in favor of it (hurray!), my sister is in favor of it, and it appears that the doors are opening slowly, even though I'm not sure what I'll find when I get there. But keep on trudging forth until you get to an obstacle, then figure out what to do to get past it. Keep us posted!

That was very beautifully stated, and I appreciate the sentiment and meaning very much. Thank you for writing this and posting it.

Seems like a million years ago, but when I was thin (briefly, like for six months out of my whole life after Weight Watchers), not only did my tailbone hurt, but the bones in my back scraped against chairs and I had little tiny scabs on my back where I had rubbed my bones against a chair back. Takes getting used to losing the padding. That was like 35 years ago but I'm looking forward to that day after I get banded and lose all this weight. I found that sitting in different ways, or shifting my position often enough took care of the tail bone pain for the most part. Good luck making adjustments!

Does anyone have any experience with either Dr Milton Owens in Southern California (San Diego, San Pedro, Torrance, Hawaiian Gardens, etc.) or the Bariatric group at St. Joseph's Hospital in Orange, California? I had a hard time finding a nutritionist and psychologist that Dr. Owens' staff is asking me to find, especially those that might be familiar with Lap Band surgery. So I searched hospitals that are covered by my insurance and found St. Joseph's. I sent them an email requesting information, but it was the end of the day and I haven't heard back yet (didn't expect to). Dr. Owens' office didn't give me any referrals for a nutritionist or psychologist, which I found odd, and they didn't tell me which form they would need to fill out to get me approved for the surgery. Is it a standard form? Or maybe I misunderstood Dr. Owens' office and I'll get the forms when they send me the patient information packet. Anyway, I'm in South Los Angeles County, almost Orange County, and would probably see either Dr. Owens in Orange or someone unknown at the Bariatric program at St. Joseph's. One difference is that I believe St. Joseph's would be covered at 90% and Dr. Owens is covered at 70% by my insurance. But the money is not as important as the doctor-patient experience. Many thanks for any thoughts you might have! Deana

Thanks - I know that small hernias are easily repaired; I heard that mine was very large. Hoping that won't make a difference. From your profile it looks like your banding was yesterday - was it? If so, how did it go?

I haven't even seen a lap-band doctor yet; my regular doctor just referred me two days ago. I'm just learning how all this stuff works. I'm hoping the surgery will include fixing a "very large" hiatal hernia that was diagnosed late last year. I don't know much about it, just know that it's time to have it all fixed. I have high blood pressure for the first time in my life and am anxious and ready to get this going. Looking forward to watching and waiting...and participating! Thanks a bunch!