harliquinn

im Tricare Prime, ive had everything done on base and it hasnt cost me a penny.

i have to go for an upper endoscopy before i can get my band. the thought of swallowing a camera on a stick freaks me out SO BAD!:thumbup: has anyone here had an upper endoscopy? what was your experience??

so yesterday i met with Dr. Bui and it went well. very nice guy. very detailed answers to my questions. after looking over my health history and all my paperwork, he feels that i am very proactive about my goal and that i am an excellent surgical candidate. this makes me incredibly happy. he was also very pleased to see that Psyko (DH):wink2: was with me since support is a VERY big deal. we discussed the Roux-en-Y and the lap band and he wanted to know why i was insistent on the Lap Band rather than the Roux-en-Y so i explained that i dont want my digestive system cut up, theres less serious complications (staples can leak, etc), shorter recovery time, its adjustable, and the weight loss is more gradual. he agrees these are good reasons. so yeah, it all went very well. he gave me a list of things that he wants me to call around on base and schedule for. ideally i should have this list fully completed by October. checklist for bariatric work-up: Nutritional Medicine Consultation Behavioural Health Consultation LAB-fasting overnight (blood work) Radiology *chest x-ray *pulmonary function tests Pulmonary Medicine *sleep study General Surgery Clinic *upper endoscopy thats a lot of stuff to do! we are calling on monday to start scheduling things and im heading to the LAB on Tuesday for the blood work. Tuesday i also have an appointment to have a rash checked out. oh...Dr. Bui also showed me a working model of the Lap Band. CAN I JUST TELL YOU HOW COOL THAT WAS?? awesome. so freaking cool.:cool2: im still freaked out at the thought of an endoscopy. *shudders*:ohmy:

so yesterday i met with Dr. Bui and it went well. very nice guy. very detailed answers to my questions. after looking over my health history and all my paperwork, he feels that i am very proactive about my goal and that i am an excellent surgical candidate. this makes me incredibly happy. he was also very pleased to see that Psyko (DH):wub: was with me since support is a VERY big deal. we discussed the Roux-en-Y and the lap band and he wanted to know why i was insistent on the Lap Band rather than the Roux-en-Y so i explained that i dont want my digestive system cut up, theres less serious complications (staples can leak, etc), shorter recovery time, its adjustable, and the weight loss is more gradual. he agrees these are good reasons. so yeah, it all went very well. he gave me a list of things that he wants me to call around on base and schedule for. ideally i should have this list fully completed by October. checklist for bariatric work-up: Nutritional Medicine Consultation Behavioural Health Consultation LAB-fasting overnight (blood work) Radiology *chest x-ray *pulmonary function tests Pulmonary Medicine *sleep study General Surgery Clinic *upper endoscopy thats a lot of stuff to do! we are calling on monday to start scheduling things and im heading to the LAB on Tuesday for the blood work. Tuesday i also have an appointment to have a rash checked out. oh...Dr. Bui also showed me a working model of the Lap Band. CAN I JUST TELL YOU HOW COOL THAT WAS?? awesome. so freaking cool. im still freaked out at the thought of an endoscopy. *shudders*:thumbup:

i figured that might be the case. i dont have a surgery date yet (hopefully soon tho!) and havent met my surgeon yet. this was just the bariatric coordinator giving me the "lose some weight" talk. unfortunately she didnt offer anything in the way of advice. gotta love the military. im thinking of cutting out breads, Pasta, potatoes, and most but not all carbs, eating plenty of protein and just eating about 1000 calories or so a day (definitely no less than that). im just SO freaking ready for this band! i dont know how you guys could stand the wait!

i had a consultation at the surgical clinic on monday. it seemed to go well, much paperwork filled out. before i left i was advised to "try and lose weight" without being given any specifics. i have an appointment on friday for a bariatric class and a one on one consultation with my surgeon later in the day. does anyone have any suggestions on what type of diet i should follow to try and lose some weight?

i told my husband first. he was a little iffy about it and assured me that he loved me and thought i was sexy no matter what so i had to explain that im not healthy, im always in pain, i want to be happy and be able to get out and enjoy life instead of worrying about my health. that brought him around i think. i also told him that since he is the most important person in my life, i needed his support more than anyone elses. i havent got my band yet but he has been coming with me to all of my appointments and being supportive. then i told my parents, both of whom supported my decision, asked questions and researched the procedure. finally i told my friends and all but one person thought it was great news. one friend decided i just wasnt trying hard enough with diet and exercise. *eyeroll* yeah right! its been several months tho and shes starting to come around as well. so even those people who are worried or nervous or against it can sometimes come around when they realize how important the lap band is to you.

yes!! thats the one! thank you so much!

is the military lap-band section gone? ive been away for a while but now im back and that forum section seems to be missing. :wink:

thank you blessedabundant. *hugs* wow, they dont even have an ultrasound machine? its not like its a huge piece of machinery. thats totally crazy! Maggies, yes im being seen at Travis. seems they are doing the lap bands on base now but after a horrible experience with an ingrown toenail removal (they didnt properly numb me and i felt everything! D:), i would REALLY rather have it done off base at a place im considering in Sacramento. im glad to hear you mention the group class! this means im on the right track so far! i really hope the surgeons call me back soon with a date for the class so i can get the ball rolling on this. btw, congrats on your recent banding! how are you liking it so far??

wow! i really hope they approve me and get me scheduled without too much fuss! we havent even started dealing with Tricare. i think its odd that the base surgeons wanted me to attend the classes even though i want to go to a surgeon off base. thanks for your help and insight!

i got a call from a doctor on base, calling to give me some info from the wonderful young doctor i saw a week or so ago. APPARENTLY, the surgeons on base didnt approve my surgery because i hadnt been to any bariatric classes. (im assuming this is to talk about the procedure, the band and the lifestyle change that it requires?) so in short, my doctor put in a referral for bariatric classes at the David Grant medical center general surgery clinic (the hospital on base). supposedly, after i attend the classes, i can get a referral to the surgeon i want off base. if this is the confusion im facing now, i cant wait until i have to deal with Tricare! :wink:

i had a doctors appointment on base 1 week ago and my doctor said i am a very good candidate for the lap band. i had an EKG and everything was pretty normal (heart was a little fast due to being nervous) but all in all, everything was fine. she said she would put in a referral to the surgeons who would call me in a 'couple days'. i never got a call back from the surgeons regarding my referral/being approved for surgery so i asked DH to stop by the hospital on base and see what he could find out. he just called me. apparently the surgeons didnt approve my surgery and they sent the paperwork back to the doctor i saw. i have no idea whats going on. apparently the surgeons left some notes for the doctor and we have now been told that the doctor will look it over and give me a call either today or tomorrow. i REALLY hope this is something stupid and easy to deal with/get past but as of right now, i have no idea. is anyone else dealing with this sort of BS? its so hard to keep my chin up when my goal seems so very far away. :thumbup:

i told my friends and family and only 1 friend wasnt supportive. she fed me some BS along the lines of, "i wont support you in this because surgery is serious and you could DIE! you just need to diet one more time and really stick with it and work at it again!" i told her, "you know what? i could die in the shower. i could die while driving to the store. i could die under general anesthesia while im having my wisdom tooth out. does that mean i shouldnt do those things? ive TRIED again and again. it doesnt work. im doing my best and im losing hope. i hope that this can help me be successful." she still doesnt support me but i have plenty of friends and family who arent being close-minded so ill be alright. stick with the people who stand by you in your decision and dont let anyone bring you down! *big hugs!*

thank you for sharing! since my mum was recently diagnosed with diabetes, im looking up information for diabetes and PCOS and i think i should definitely have bloodwork done when i see the doctor on the 25th of this month. i *suspect* i may have both PCOS and diabetes (although i dont trust the internet too much for a self diagnosis), so ill bring this up to the doctor. i really dont feel itll be too hard to get approved for it but im terrified that they will want to do the procedure on base (our base hospital does bariatric procedures) and after the absolute nightmare of pain that i dealt with once in the base hospital, i REALLY would rather be referred somewhere off base.

hi tutornmom! thank you for sharing your experience. i really hope it will be that easy for me! i called the base today to make an appointment to discuss the lap band and was told that i was due for a physical anyway so they scheduled me for the 25th of this month. i hope i can get a referral. *crosses fingers*

ooh! youre in Vacaville! im in Fairfield! its nice to see someone so close by!

im 27 years old and 160 pounds over my ideal weight for my height. :rolleyes2: ive never seen a nutritionist but have had doctors for the last 10 years or so telling me that i NEED to lose weight. ive done what feels like every diet/program under the sun coupled with light exercise (i have TERRIBLE knees). i lost weight but gained it back and then some! what do i need to do to get approved for a band? im so confused as to what the process is! my hubby is in the Air Force and we have Tricare Prime. i only have my extra weight, no co-morbidities (that i know of!). does Tricare cover everything, including fills and the pre-surgery diet that im reading about? or only the procedure itself? or only part of the procedure? i have no idea what im doing. :hurray: any help/advice is very greatly appreciated!

im looking thru a list of surgeons in my area and so far, shes my top pick. has anyone else been banded by her? good experiences? bad experiences? feel free to share any info! thank you. Edit: i ran her name thru the search function and see that several people were banded by her but someone said she was unprofessional/bad. has anyone been been banded by Dr. Paul Cirangle in San Francisco or Dr. Jossart? im just looking for a competent, friendly surgeon in the SF/Sac area so please feel free to recommend someone!

i KNEW i was forgetting something! im in California. the SF bay area. my hubby is in the Air Force. im in the process of making an appointment with my GP actually but its so hard to get thru to anyone. their phones are apparently very busy. i hope i can get thru soon.

hi, my name is Harli and im looking to get control of my weight. im 27 years old, 280 pounds and a vegetarian. my mum was recently diagnosed with diabetes and a heart problem and she recently lost her father (my grandfather) to heart and lung issues. there is a history of obesity and diabetes in my family and i really dont want to end up going down that road although i know im not far from it. ive tried Alli, Atkins, Weight Watchers, generalized calorie counting and more and i really feel like ive run out of options. i have terrible knee problems. dislocations seem to be a common issue for my poor knees so working out is difficult and painful. ive done some research on the Lap Band and im hoping it will help me to reach my weight loss goals so that i can live a more active, happy lifestyle. but to be honest, all this talk of band slippage scares the heck out of me! is slippage really common??