stateofzen

Yep, I paid it ($175). Bottom line--my doc said most of the time insurance will not pay for the consultation-- they'd bill it and refund if they got the money, but in their experience, insurance usually doesn't pay so they collect the fee up front.

Hey Brian-- I noticed that V-8 has a section of cream soups in my Walmart grocery section, and we also have Pacific brand organic cream soups. It looks like they have lots of variety-- a brocolli cream soup, butternut squash soup (yum). Here is the link to Pacific's website to see what they look like: Pacific Natural Foods , and here is the V8 website: V8 Soups - Healthy V8 Soup Home Page. Any soup you can run through a blender or food processor to take out "chewable" chunks would probably work-- potato and "chowder" type soups would puree really well I bet.

It depends-- is your pre-op JUST high Protein or is it high protein/low carb? If it is the latter, no fruit and no pasta/rice/bread/potato-- even whole wheat. Mine was high protein/low carb (I could eat nothing that had more than 6g of carb per serving) so that pretty much meant meats, vegetables, and cheese.

I like the way you think Danide-- in it to win it for sure. Sorry to hear about your set-back LilMiss-- I've been there, done it-- and though it takes more time it will happen for you! Just got back from pre-op-- surgeon is ok with me keeping my Friday date in spite of my lingering sinus infection as long as my PCP clears it so I'm in to see her tomorrow. I honestly think I'm good to go. So I'll be checking in at 8:30 Friday morning-- whee! Now I'm going to go take a nap. This clear liquid thing is sapping my energy.

You want the best surgeon, as long as you like him/her and feel a sense of trust since you'll be dealing with this person for a very long time for follow-ups. I'm just curious-- what's the rush?

First day of clear liquids today-- and how lucky do I feel that I only have 3 days of liquids vs the 2 weeks some of you have had :thumbup: I will remember that every time I think about throwing myself a liquid diet pity party! But. . . . I'm officially in the 250's now-- and that hasn't happened in 6 years. Whee! It was my goal when I set my surgery date to lose this much before the surgery and it feels great to have done it. How is exercise going for everyone? I think this is the area that I may struggle with, knowing myself. It seems like the "super" losers with the band all exercise a lot so I've decided I'm going to as well. But folks, exercising when you're fat does not feel good. Skinny folks (like my husband) are always all "exercise makes you feel so good!" and it makes me want to beat them down- hahaha. Anyway, what's your exercise routine?

Other than protein shakes, on my high protein pre-op regimen I did a lot of chicken salad (no bread, but you could wrap in lettuce)-- canned all-white meat chicken with light mayo and brown mustard, sometimes I'd add some almonds or walnuts for crunch and extra protein Any lean meat, grilled or sauteed in a little amount of olive oil-- I would often add some mushrooms, onions, and garlic for extra flavor and serve with a salad eggs are great for protein-- some people use egg substitute but my doctor recs the real things Because my doc told me not to worry as much about fat content as I did about keeping protein up and carbs down, I also kept a lot of turkey pepperoni and regular cheese around. It was good for a quick snack, or sometimes lunch and I'll tell you, a few small cubes of cheese works wonders for my hunger. Your doctor might not allow full-fat cheese but low fat or fat free is probably allowed and cheese is a good source of protein.

The psych eval is nothing to be nervous about. I had a 20 minute chat about the surgery and my expectations/how to deal with stress/ any worries I have (I talked about worrying about finding time to exercise, for example). Then I took a paper and pencil test. The psychologist is not looking for reasons to deny you-- I promise (I'm a psychologist). They are just making sure you don't have some really serious issues that would make the risk of the surgery not worth it, and they are there to give you some feedback about how to cope with changes or problem solve for any fears you might have. I think the worst thing you could do is get nervous and try to fake perfection-- it's not expected, or believed :thumbup:

Oh, husbands! I've got one too I think you just have to be direct and tell him what you would like for him to do to support you, since he is clearly interested in doing that, and the things that are really mentally unhelpful to you right now. You're not looking for a food coach, and I'd tell him that straight up when you're not angry because he just did it But there might be other things he could help you with that might make him feel useful-- like maybe going on walks with you and being your exercise partner, or agreeing to temporarily restrain from eating your biggest trigger foods right in front of you. Sometimes people (especially men in my experience) have a hard time just listening and being a support that way rather than trying to jump in and "fix"-- so maybe you can have that talk with him too. You have to do this. He can't do it for you and those little comments that are meant to be helpful and caring can be undermining. I guess you'll probably have to have that conversation maybe even a few times. Good luck!

Thank you danide for the kind words! pooky, I hope my doc is like yours. I haven't had a fever in well over a week so I'm crossing my fingers everything will look good. Welcome to our new folks, and good luck to our buddies getting banded tomorrow!

You're awesome Lisa. Thanks for the support and the suggestions. I am wearing a pair of pants today that I haven't worn in I don't even know how long. A long time. That makes all of this worth it to me :thumbup:

Good morning! Ok, I need to vent some fears I have now that I'm less than a week away from my surgery. It's not that I'm scared of the surgery-- I'm scared I won't get to have it as scheduled! I've been sick for a full two weeks as of tomorrow, and finishing up a 10-day run of antibiotics today. Problem is, I'm still having to take tons of medicine because I don't think the antibiotics have killed my infection (sinus)-- helped tremendously, but I still have throat and ear pain if I don't take ibuprofen or tylenol every 6 hours. I worry a LOT about what my liver must look like after two weeks of round-the-clock cold medicine, pain medicine, antibiotics, and prescription antihistamines and there is no way to know until Wednesday, when I go in for all of my pre-op work in anticipation of surgery Friday. And then there's the TMI-- since I started the antibiotics, etc., I have had nothing but the big D happening in the bathroom. You should hear my stomach gurgling through the day (or not). This just seems like a bad way to be before I even get the band. I guess the worst thing that could happen is that I have to put off the surgery for a few weeks. It would be disappointing, but not the end of the world. it's just hard, now that it is so close after SOOO long, to think it might not happen. The good news is that for the past two days I've weighed in at 261, which means I am officially down 32 pounds from my high weight of 293 a year ago, and 15 pounds down since I started my unofficial pre-op diet August 10th. I'm praying that I'll be in the 250s before my surgery, something I haven't seen on the scale in probably 6 years if not more.

The Psych eval is probably the same for everyone (I'm a psychologist). You need a "bariatric eval", which typically includes an interview plus a psych test like the MMPI (it's a true-false test) or something similar. Not every psychologist does these eva;s, but your surgeon's office probably has a few they can recommend. I know for me, my surgeon's rec wasn't in my insurance plan, so I called around to my covered providers and just asked until I found someone who did bariatric surgery evals. You might be able to get this referral from the nurses or office staff at your surgeon's. A general note about psych evals-- don't be afraid of them. I'll tell you that about the only time I've seen people get in trouble with the psych eval is when they get anxious and try to present themselves as super perfect-- a trained psychologist doesn't expect or believe super perfection and you're just fine if you're relaxed and honest.

My doc also suggested Biotin to help prevent hair loss.

Welcome Moondarra. *shrug* It's just the way it works in the US if you want insurance to cover the cost of the surgery. Most insurance companies here put up lots of roadblocks to keep themselves from having to pay, and it seems like some insurance companies even deny the first time even if you meet their stated criteria. It's the nature of a for-profit private insurance market-- the less they pay out in benefits, the more their shareholders make and so its like any business where they try everything to cut costs to make money.

My surgeon only uses the Realize Band, so that's what I'll be getting. Though the other surgeon I considered uses the Lap Band, the actual band itself was never part of my consideration-- they seem to be the same to me :smile:

Yay for you!

Cathy- I think your doctor has the right idea on fills and I appreciate you talking about your experience. Waiting months for a fill has always seemed strange to me, but I guess you gotta go with your doc! Thanks for giving me feedback on work-- I only have one class on Monday and one class on Tuesday, so I'm hoping I can just do short work days while I'm tired.

I get what you're saying and I've been there. I took a lot of time getting myself in the right mindset (over a year) and now I'm ready. I think it's ok to put it off if you need to, but it's also normal to have these doubts. Look, I enjoy food and I don't think there's anything morally wrong with liking food no matter what this society tries to tell us (especially women). What my problem is is that I like too much food quantity wise and the lapband will help me with that. You better believe, once I'm healed and restricted and have a mental handle on what I'm doing, that I'm going to go to my favorite high end restaurants with my husband. But now I'll just be sharing a small portion of his plate rather than having an app/dinner/dessert all my own. I'm ready to like things *other* than food too. I asked myself- hey, what if I had the opportunity to move to a different country that didn't have any of my "usuals"- the food I thought I would die without-- would I pass up an opportunity just because I couldn't eat my usual comfort food? And the answer is hell no! So I'm trying to think of "bandland" as a new country, with different food than I'm used to eating, but with so many new opportunities that I don't have where I live now in fatland. Yes, it's cheesy, but it really has helped me deal with this same struggle you've described.

Yay NYsLegend! You did it :blushing: Rest up tonight and you'll be ready for home. I have to stay overnight too, which is a bummer but my husband feels better about it so I'll suck it up.

I buy the ready-to-drink EAS Carb Control shakes (17g protein) at walmart, and I get the Pure Protein Cookies and cream powder (25 g) from Target. I just tried the powder mixed with Unsweetened Almond Milk today and it was good (not as good as the same-brand ready to drink, but good enough). I know a lot of people buy other powders with higher protein counts, up to 50 grams a serving, at health food stores or online but I've gone for what's convenient and been pleasantly surprised that I actually like the taste as long as it is super cold.

I totally agree on the recovery time. I'm having the surgery next Friday and am going back to work on Monday. Unless something goes wrong, everything I've read tells me I should be fine with the type of job I have. But I see everyone else taking time off work and thinking maybe I'm crazy! Still, I've had laproscopic surgery before (gall bladder) and recovery was quick so I'm sort of counting on the same here. We shall see, I guess! Can't wait to hear from today's bandsters on the other side-- happy surgery, guys and gals!

Hey ladies and gentlemen-- so awesome to come back to see so many people banded and doing well! Sorry I've been missing and not doing my part in encouraging people but I'm a college professor and the new semester started, which means I was suddenly busy. Then, a week ago, I got sick and it just kept getting worse until now I'm on antibiotics, some other prescription med to "dry me up" (my lips tell me it's working- hello chapstick!), and lots and lots of cough drops. I'm kind of paranoid about my liver being in bad shape because of all of the meds, including the tylenol, but I have my pre-op testing two days before my surgery so I'll know for sure then if things look good. I was doing really well on my self-imposed pre-op diet (started August 10th-ish) until I got sick-- now it's been all comfort food when I feel like eating. It's definitely a clue about something I'll have to struggle with post-band. I haven't gained anything, so that's good, but as of tonight I'm back on pre-op until the big day. Anyway, yay for all of you! We're going to kick butt. Also, I think I saw something about a Christmas challenge. Are we doing something as a group?

Can your surgeon's office appeal, supplying the original 35 BMI? It seems to me they'd be willing to work on your behalf-- if you get covered, they get paid.

I've started a clothes exchange community exclusively for bandsters at Livejournal. If you are interested in joining, come check it out here:Clothes Exchange for Bandsters Everyone is welcome (and high BMI bandsters, there is already an offer up that you might like).