anonemouse

Centennial Center for the Treatment of Obesity in Nashville, TN does lap-bands for $14,400. That is a surgery with no complications, of course.

I am filling out the paperwork for getting a Lab-Band, specifically the family history part. I just got off the phone with my parents because I wanted to ask them what diseases were on each side. I have a family history of breast cancer, diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, obesity, stroke, high cholesterol, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, kidney stones, and gall bladder problems. Particulary prominent on both sides is heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol. So unless I have this operation (and maybe even if I do have it), I am pretty sure I know what I will die of when the time comes.:help:

Here's an update on my situation. My mom seems to feel a little better about the surgery since she went with me to the seminar. My dad is still totally against it, but I think he will support whatever I decide. I have talked to my PCP, and he supports me and is writing a letter to my surgeon's office that they will send to insurance. I have an appointment tomorrow with my endocrinologist and an appointment on Friday with the nurse practitioner at my GYN's office that ran my weight-loss program. I plan on asking both of them to write letters for me. I figure, the more people speaking up for me, the better.

I am determined to get the band. I think I qualify under my insurance as it is, but if I don't right now, the only thing I will have to do is complete a 3-month physician-supervised weight-loss program. Usually, my insurance makes people do their program within 3 months of trying to have surgery, but I am hoping that they make an exception for me since I completed a year-long program in December of 2005. Been there, done that, I guess you could say. A lot of the people that I talk to want me to try more of the conservative efforts before I try to have surgery. I keep telling them that I know they won't work. I know my body and I know what I am capable of. I simply do not have the willpower to resist overeating without having something to help me. I succeeded with the phentermine only because it killed my appetite. Every other diet I have done has failed because I don't know when to stop eating. I eat until I feel satisfied. Not doing that makes me more vulnerable to cravings, and if I give in to those, I really binge.

I am trying to get all my stuff together so that I can have my surgery approved by insurance. I have scheduled appointments with all my doctors for this week so that I can talk to them about my plans and have them write letters to my prospective surgeon and send them my health records. I am seeing my PCP on Wednesday, my endocrinologist on Thursday, and the nurse practitioner that oversaw my weight-loss program on Friday. I am hoping they will all cooperate with me and help me get into surgery.

Ditto, except my glucophage does it for ANY meal. Getting off that medication is just another reason for me to get the band. I hate it.

I think that is what everyone else has been trying to get at. The key words are adult and consensual. A child is not an adult. An animal cannot consent. Therefore, those arguements have no bearing on the discussion. People have been trying to say that even if it squicks them (e.g., incest), as long as the two parties are both adults and are both consenting, there isn't any reason to not allow them to enter into a legal union.

It's strange. I binge when I am depressed, but the binging itself makes me more depressed because I view myself as a fat pig, so I binge some more. When I was little, I would stuff myself, go to the bathroom and throw up, and then go stuff myself some more. When you are doing it at the time, especially when you are as young as I was, you don't really recognize that what you are doing isn't correct behavior. You rely on your parents and friends to tell you what is appropriate or not. When they don't notice that something is wrong, that is when you start a really bad habit. Looking back, I know that what I was doing was not normal. But because I was never shown how inappropriate it was, it has now become second-nature and is an incredibly difficult habit to break. I don't do it to the same extent anymore (I don't make myself throw up), but I will eat until I am physically uncomfortable. My most successful weight loss in terms of pounds lost was when I was taking phentermine in a medical weight-loss program, simply because the drug stopped me from feeling hungry and craving food. It made that point where it was uncomfortable to continue eating come sooner. Of course, when I went off of it, I regained all the weight I lost, plus about 10-15 pounds. That is one reason I am trying to get the Lap-Band. My major issue with food is that I don't know when to stop when I start eating. I don't snack or graze, but I can put away an impressive amount of food when I eat.

Well, the determination process is just making sure that you meet all the requirements that your insurance sets. It is different depending on what your insurace company and plan is. Some companies have pretty rigorous standards that you have to meet and some don't.

Personally, I would put her in a very nice, comfortable home where she could possibly even get her own room or suite. We all know that many of the homes that are government subsidized are not that great. When I was in high school, I took a class that let us observe nurses a couple hours a day for several days a week. One of the places I was assigned to was a lower-end nursing home. Believe me, it was an eye-opener. I know that many nurses weren't like the ones I was assigned to, but I think you are more likely to have abusive or borderline-abusive nurses and assistants at lower-end homes, and that is where the government will stick the "indigent" old people. They won't pay for the expensive ones.

Does anyone know anything about some of the doctors in Tennessee? I am wanting to stay around Nashville, Knoxville, or Chattanooga, if possible. I know there is a really good one in Memphis, but I don't want to go there for personal reasons.

Anyone know of a good decaf hot tea (or cold, for that matter)? I want to try to get used to it before surgery. Wanting just a good, black tea, maybe flavored. Not Earl Grey or citrus blends, though.

Any tips on where to find them? Right now, I get most of my tops from Target (I buy one style of shirt in different colors and sleeve lengths) and my pants from Liz Claiborne. I used to be able to wear one style of jeans from Tommy Hilfiger Woman, but they apparently don't make them any more. I am short enough (5'3") that it is difficult to find pants that are both in a style that is at least semi-flattering and short enough. A lot of plus-size shops, like Lane Bryant, don't carry much (if any) of either.:help: Most stores apparently think that as you get wider, you also get taller. At Lane Bryant, for example, even the petites are several inches too long. And if they are short enough, they are either super-baggy in the butt and thighs or a really unattractive style for short folks (you know, the boot-cut that either makes your legs look like short hour-glasses or look like bell-bottoms). Shirts are not much easier to find. I can't wear anything with 3/4 sleeves, because they look like long-sleeved shirts that are too short for me. I can rarely wear long-sleeved shirts because the sleeves are too long and the cuffs are around my knuckles. :angry So, does anyone know where to find half-way attractive clothing in women's petite sizes? Or should I just wait to look for anything until I have had surgery and am a smaller size?

I know I said I wouldn't be back, but I couldn't resist replying to something. I agree that teachers are underpaid. I feel that they should all get raises, because let's face it: there aren't that many people that would teach several classes of 30 or so students for 5 days a week for under $40,000/year. And the ones that do are either the really dedicated, wonderful teachers, or they are the ones that got into the profession because they got summers off. I am a graduate student, getting a Master's degree in biology. One of my duties as a graduate assistant is to assist a couple of professors in their education-majors' biology classes. To be honest, I have seen people that I think will be wonderful teachers when they graduate, and I have seen people that have made me wonder what the educational system is coming to, to allow them to "educate" our children. I hope that they would be weeded out, but unfortunately, many of my students were graduating seniors. I am all for trying to get professionals to give back to their education system by becoming teachers later in life. Yes, they should be required to take classes on teaching styles, but I think they could be a real benefit to students. Especially if it means those horrid students I had wouldn't be able to get a job. Seriously, I wouldn't let the kids of someone I dislike be taught by some of the people that took the classes I assist in, let alone my own kids. I could tell stories about some of them that would make you wonder how in the world they even got into college.

Don't get me wrong, I am not trying to attack you. It just burns me when people start complaining about being personally attacked when the only the only thing that is being attacked is their post. The post is not you. You posted something that was factually incorrect and people corrected you. I don't see why you should take offense at that. If you read the original thread about Perry, there are bandsters that teach in Texas, and they have posted about the "raise." People were responding in kind to your post, where you said that people were "broadcasting outright lies." If you start off a conversation with something that can be construed as being offensive, expect to be treated in an unfriendly manner. That said, I am going to abandon this issue, because nothing will come of it except more argueing.

People should research their opinions. They couldn't blame other people for pointing out the obvious flaws, then. Trying to pass off an opinion as fact can be very dangerous, especially if it is religion, sex, or politics being discussed. Speech is free, but it is also open to dispute. If you post something that is factually wrong, expect to be corrected. If you then try to defend your post, even when it is being pointed out that you were completely, undeniably wrong (and people even post their sources to prove you are wrong), expect to be either called a dummie or have it implied. You are free to share your views all you want, but other people are also free to share theirs.

My brother's girlfriend works as a nutritionist for a bariatric surgeon. She has said that she sees people that can't get health insurance now because they had weight-loss surgery. If your current insurance covers your surgery, but you have to change insurance afterwards for some reason, can you get insurance? I have also heard people say that as long as you get insurance within 60 days of your old coverage ending, the new company can't consider it a pre-existing condition and therefore deny you. I need to know because I will be dropped from my parents' insurance plan when I turn 24 next August, but I am hoping to have surgery before the end of this year, or at least before my classes start again at the end of January. I don't want to be uninsurable at the age of 24.

Unfortunately, even though I am an atheist, I still think people would find something to fight over. Religion is just one of the more popular reasons. People will start wars, whether the objective is money, power, social status, or just plain hate.

I am sure I am prejudiced. I think everyone is, to a certain extent. It just depends on how and where you were raised. For example, I was raised in a small town in rural Tennessee. There were only two or three students (no teachers) of other races at my elementary school (over 700 students). At my high school, I could count the number of students of other races on one hand (2,000 students). I think the important thing is to be aware of your prejudices and try to work through them, which I have. When I got to college, I was very consious of being around people that I had never been around. But I have tried to overcome it. On the other hand, I don't think I discriminate. By being aware of my prejudices, I have been able to work through them. What may have bothered me to a certain extent 5 years ago (for the simple fact that I hadn't been exposed to it before) doesn't bother me any more.

Maybe someone can explain this to me, because it is one of the things that really confuse me about people that call themselves Christians. You see people fairly often that say that anyone who accepts Christ into their lives will be saved and will go to heaven. But then, you also see many people that condemn homosexuality and say that all gays will burn in hell. How do you resolve the two? Which one is right? Will gays burn in hell, even if they accept Christ as their savior, or does everyone that accepts Christ go to heaven? Is one "sin" worse than another, or are they all "sin"? How does a so-called "Christian" resolve their hate for someone with the teachings of the Bible that istruct Christians to "love thy neighbor"? And to me, I classify it as hate, because a person's sexuality isn't a lifestyle, it is part of the person. You can't "hate the sin, love the sinner" or whatever the saying is.

Jeez. If I am wrong, and there is a God, then Rumsfeld is Satan incarnate. Or maybe Karl Rove or Cheney. Hmm. I'll have to think about that.:paranoid

Guys, I am sorry if I seem super-sensitive about this, but I guess I have good reason. Next to weight-bashing, atheist-bashing seems to be one of the most accepted forms of discrimination. It just REALLY bothers me when people say offensive things. It bothers me even more when they play dumb and pretend like they don't know that what they're saying is offensive.

People simply asking that question imply that my beliefs aren't good enough. It is an insult. Wouldn't you be insulted if someone comes up to you and starts quizing you about why you aren't obeying the Sabbath or praying to Allah every 5 hours or wearing a head-scarf? Somehow, Christians think it is absolutely fine to do that to Atheists.

Okay, people saying THAT pisses me off more than anything. I do not believe in God, yours or any other. I am not going to riducule or patronize you for being a Christian, and I expect the same respect in return. THIS is why I usually keep my mouth shut about religion. People make comments that they think are fine, but they aren't. They are being patronizing and insulting. This is an extreme example, but if I was a Satanist, I wouldn't ask you why you were keeping two people that love each other apart (you and Satan) because you believed in God. So yeah, if you REALLY want to see steam come out of my ears, comments like that do it.

It really pisses me off when people say or imply that only Christians are moral people. If the only thing keeping you from raping, killing, and stealing is the fear of going to hell, then you are not a good person, even if you are a Christian. People have morals because they are good people, not because of religion. Personally, I don't lie, steal, rape, or murder because I don't want to be that kind of person. Am I a Christian? No, I am an atheist. In fact, I am a little more moral than many Christians; I don't want to keep two people who love each other apart.