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Does anyone have HealthNet? I'm waiting for my approval. Surgeon's office sent it in a few days ago. I don't know how difficult they are. Let me know. Thanks. Emily

hopefullystillwaiting, I don't understand. Your doctor is telling you that you need to go through this again. That doesn't make sense. If you have been struggling with your weight for six years and have a lot of it documented then you shouldn't have a problem. Where are you from? and Explain who is telling you this. Your doctor or surgeon? Is the eight months of documented supervision recent or from six years ago? I'm a little confused as to why they don't try to put it into your insurance to see what happens.

No problem. I'm from Westchester, New York. Believe me, I wanted the lapband so badly, that I was self pay right up until 3 days before the surgery. That's when my appeal was overturned. Thanks to Kelly from obesitylaw.com. Good luck and best wishes to you. Let me know what happens with Health Net.

Hi brknbck, I haven't been on this post for a pretty long time. Your response came to me via e-mail. The answer to your question is absolutely yes!! They gave me a very hard time. I appealed twice and then I hired Kelly from Obesity Law. In two weeks it was overturned. Health Net will ask that you have atleast 6 months to a year of weight loss supervision with your MD. I had a year of supervised weight loss with a nutritionist and I went up and down in my wieight. They at first said my BMI was lower than the criteria, however, Kelly got that overturned because I also has other health issues, i.e. high cholesterol etc. It was a four month process for me, but it was all worth it. I love my lapband. I am going on a year in September. I've lost 35 pounds which is not a lot in comparison to what others can do. I don't really diet, I just eat a lot less than I ever did. Do what you have to do and if Health Net gives you a difficult time, appeal it and if need be hire kelly from obesitylaw.com. She was instrumental in the entire procedure. Any other questions, please let me know if I can be of any help. Good Luck!! Emily

Hi, I haven't posted in a while. How did you know your port was infected? Did you have pain? swelling? My port has flipped and it causes me pain after I eat. It needs to be corrected.

Hi Mom, Sorry I'm posting a day late. I'm up 1 lb. I'm having a bad two weeks. I absolutely need another fill. I feel like I have no restriction. Thanks.

Hi Joyful, Welcome to LBT. I too am from NY. I had my surgery 7 weeks ago at Lenox Hill Hospital. I have to agree. RNY was too extreme for me. Changing the anatomy of the stomach and intestines is very scary. The weight loss is a little slow for me but, I honestly believe thats because I'm not trying as hard as I should. I wish you the best of luck. Keep us informed.

Zero loss for me this week. Hopefully when I weigh in Wednesday at Weight Watchers, I'll have a loss.

Hi all,, Paula, when I read your post something stuck with me. You had said if you are able to eat a whole sandwich you may not have enough restriction. I think that may be the case with me. I had a fill about 3 weeks ago, and I'm losing but very slowly. I can eat a whole wheat sandwich with very little problems. Sometimes the bread gets stuck, but it eventually passes and I finish my sandwich. I don't understand the "restriction" thing. I eat and eventually I just feel full... Pressure and pain around my stomach. I basically can eat anything I want. I just have to eat slowly and chew chew chew. Is it possible that I may need another fill? I'm eating less than I have ever eaten in my life. I haven't gained weight since the band, but I either stay the same or lose a pound or two in a week. Let me know your experience. And of course anyone else who would like to comment. Thanks. Regards,

Awesome!!! Congratulations!!

Huberslave, I had no pain other than a little discomfort around my port area. I didn't take any pain pills or any tylenol. Overall, it was pretty easy getting back to myself. I did take two weeks off from work. I was tired for about 2 weeks. My energy level came back within three weeks. I started working out during my 3rd week without a problem. As far as restriction and fullness. Before my fill, I got a cramp in my stomach and I felt pressure if I ate too much for the band. Before my fill, I was able to eat everything just less. Now that I have a fill, bread and rice are a little tough for me. Fullness definetely feels differently now that I had the fill. I get pressure in my upper stomach and I sometimes feel like I have a lump in my throat. It does subside. I am sooooo happy that I had the surgery. Overall, no problems to report. Thank God, everything is great so far. Good luck to you.

When I ate less than 600 calories, it was very hard to lose. Once I increased my calorie intake to 950 - 1100 calories, I began to lose. The first two weeks I had lost an easy 10 lbs. It then slowed up until I went to solids. I find I lose an average of 2 lbs a week since then.

What is your calorie intake?

Hi Mom, Down 1. Sorry I didn't post yesterday. I forgot. 213

Hi Maggie, Just caught this post. It's very interesting. I was denied twice from Health Net and I decided to call Kelley Lindstrom. While she and Walter were working on my 18 page appeal letter, I decided to go self pay. It turned out that the letter Walter wrote to my insurance company got my appeal overturned. Five days before my surgery, I got it approved through insurance. That was a $23,000 savings for me. Thank God for them. I can't say enough about Walter and Kelley Lindstrom. They were just wonderful. The appeal letter they sent was just unbelievable. So to all who are in the appeal stage... Don't give up!! Good luck.

Veggestyle, I honestly believe your family has all good intentions. They're worried about you having surgery. You can't blame them. Your family is your family and your mom and sister are very worried about you going through an elective and major surgery. They don't understand. I don't know your relationship but, to say that jealosy may play a part, is disturbing. They're your family. I can understand both sides. Don't be upset with them. Try to educate them and give them as much information that you can find about the surgery. When I told my mom about my decision, I asked her to come to the support group where the surgeon was going to speak about the surgery. I even had her speak with the surgeon herself. I did this to alleviate her anxiety. After that, she was more comfortable with my decision. She was very nervous for me and tried to talk me out of it in a loving way. I totaly understood where she was coming from. She loves me very much and worries about me. I didn't tell my sister until after the surgery b/c I knew she would be upset and nervous for me. I told her while I was in the hospital after the surgery had been done. I would make an appointment or seek a support group on LapBand and bring your family. That may alleviate some of their anxiety. Try to put yourself in their shoes. I can truly understand how they feel. You will do just fine. I wish you all the luck in the world. You will be so happy with your decision. Good luck.

I had my first 1cc fill on Wednesday. My surgeon told me I had the medium band as well. 10cm which holds 4cc's. Before my surgery, my surgeon explained the positives and negatives of the band. He told me that a very very small percentage of people who have had the band placed, never feel restriction. There's no answer to the reason for this. I asked him if I would feel restriction after the 1cc fill that I got yesterday. He honestly said he didn't know b/c everyone is very different. He explained: The band is different for everyone. That also goes for the types of food people could eat. Some bandsters can eat foods that others can't. Some bandsters feel restriction immediatey after surgery and continue to feel that way until they hit goal. etc. etc. All bandsters have different experiences with the band. I'm sorry that this has happend to you. I would however, look into this before you think about another surgery. Maybe you should think about getting a second opinion by another surgeon. Good luck.

Hi all, I had a 1cc fill today. It wasn't pleasant at all. As a matter of fact, my surgeon pricked me twice and it hurt really bad. He kept pressing on my port really hard to feel where he was going to inject me. I'm still a little sore by my port especially if you press on it really hard. I let out some yell when he finally got the injection in my port. I'm not happy at all. I'm a little disappointed with my surgeon. He rushed me out of the office b/c he had to get home. I had some questions for him today and he rushed giving me answers. As I was asking him a question he was walking out of the office, and answering my question, his back towards me. I'm a little annoyed. I was confused about the size of my band. Last month I asked him the size of my band. I had sworn he said 10cc band. I thought that meant my band can hold 10cc. He told me today that my band can hold 4cc's. I hate feeling rushed. Can someone explain to me the sizes of the band. And what it means exactly. All he said to me is that there's a small, medium and large band. Anyway, I'm excited about getting my first fill. I hope this will give me some restriction. Hope everyone is doing well with the x-mas challenge. Talk to you soon.

Thank you sooo much for sharing. It means a lot and it is very helpful. It's also great to read how happy you are with your decision. You've done an amazing job. AWESOME!!:clap2: :clap2: You are also an inspiration to many. I'm 6 weeks out and feeling great. I am so happy that I got banded. It absolutely keeps me in check. Reading your story inspires me so much. I can't wait to be where you are. Keep it up. Wishing you the best! Regards,

I absolutely did not get in 1200 calories. During the mushie stage I consumed 500 -600 calories per day. I felt I would have had to eat every hour to get in 1200 calories. The other problem was that I could not get that much food down at that time. I just made sure I took two flinstone Vitamins daily. I don't know how long before you start solids,but once I started eating a normal diet, I was able to eat a lot more. I now eat 1000 calories a day. I could eat more, but I choose to stay on a 1000 calories/day diet.

Hi Mom, 3 lbs down.

I had a cath put in while I was under. I had it taken out the following day. It didn't hurt but it was extremely annoying. That was the one thing I didn't like. I usually get urinary track infections after a cath. I was lucky this time.

Congratulations to all of you. What amazing stories. I can't wait to be where you are. The best of luck.

Hi Dessia, I was planning on having surgery in July so that I didn't have to tell my principal or co-workers. However, it didn't work out. I had it done in September. I told everyone that I was having hiatel hernia surgery. It seemed to work. I came back two weeks later and everyone asked how I was feeling and that was it. Even as you lose weight, it's not a big deal. I've been telling everyone who has noticed my wieght loss that I'm eating less and I want to be healthier. If I had Gastric Bypass, then it would have been hard to tell that story b/c the weight loss is sooo quick. I wouldn't worry about a thing. It's your business. Relax and don't get yourself worked up. Come up with whatever story you feel comfortIable with and stick with it. That's what I did and it's not an issue at all. Good luck.

Hi Melissa, You're doing great! There are days my port hurts me too. It usually bothers me when it's rainy or humid outside. I notice it also bothers me when I work out. Oh Well...I'll get used to it. Eating is going well for me as well. Softer foods definetely work better. There are days my band can handle all foods and then there are days where I'm eating lighter than normal b/c I don't want to have that terrible pain in my stomach. I ate grilled chicken over salad for the first time today. It was ok but, It was a little dry. Good luck with transitioning to solids.