pennreporter

Michelle, hope you did well with surgery. I've had a few bumps in the road with mine and had to get unfilled for a couple of months...but still not discouraged. Slowly filling it back up, but not quick enough for my pleasure. Hope you came through okay.

Trisha

Michelle, you're actually closer to my daughter's age. She's 39, was banded two years ago, had her reconstructive surgery last year and this year has her new little boy-toy :) She is 5-10 and was 280 at her highest. She's 165 and a size 10. She would like to lose another 20 lbs but she has a very active social life and is always at some party or other activity. Plus the boy-toy likes to cook a lot..:)

Good luck!!

Trisha

your insurance sounds just like mine...the whole six-month program...I personally think..only because I work with insurance companies...it's a way to ween out some folks. Some people just get fed up with the whole process. But I would have found the money somehow if I would have had to self-pay. The fill that I'm at right now, (after having 1cc removed and then .5 put back in), I don't have the restriction like I did before but this is allowing me to eat and just making me feel really full after a small amount, which I think I can live with this. I just have to journal to keep track of calories. But I was throwing up and getting stuck so much I was making horrible food choices and kind of stabilized at 168 for about three weeks, but when you're overfilled, it's amazing how well ice cream will go down...lol. At least my food choice selection now is better and can eat fruit and vegetables. Hadn't had either for almost five months.

Trisha

I'm still on liquids/jello/soup/protein/yogurt. I see surg on Tuesday. The next level is 2B...whoo-hoo which I get to add eggs and cottage cheese, but I will play it by ear (or stomach). Not having any mushies is okay right now because I'm not hungry or have an appetite. Although I can tell when it's time for something. Today may be my first day of getting in 60 grams of protein. Water has been okay but the little sips take forever to get even a small bottle of water down. I bought Panera soup yesterday at BJ's and put it through blender to get out any chunks. so we're all moving and a grooving!!

Don't know how you're keeping up with the list. What is everyone going to do when you go for your surgery? :)

good luck...it will be here before you know it!!

congratulations on upcoming marriage. What perfect timing for your band!!

Well, I survived and all is good!! I had to stay overnight because of sleep apnea, which was a brand-new rule for the hospital that no one seemed to know about. First attempt at Jello was special but all is good now. Thanks for your well wishes.

Isaviolinist,

I'm in Tobyhanna (the Poconos) and having surgery at Geisinger Danville. Because my insurance is with Geisinger, I don't have a lot of options unless I were to self-pay and since that's not going to happen..:), I guess I just have to trust my doctors (I actually get the chief of surgery and my surgeon).

I'm a low BMI patient and really had to fight for the surgery. Came down to doing the sleep test and being diagnosed with sleep apnea, which I always kind of knew and everyone else around me (family/friends) had no doubt...gee, thanks guys.

My daughter has already been banded who is 5-10 and weighed 265. She was banded Feb 08 and I can't begin to tell you the difference it has made in her life. She's actually leaving Tuesday for Houston to have her first of two plastic surgeries to remove excess skin. So good luck to you. Not sure if I will be online much the next few days.

Trisha

You're the brave one on here to post your pics. Good for you. It's taking all I can do to go get a measuring tape and take my official measurements on first day of liquid diet. I'm a habitual step-on-the-scale everytime I go by but I've put it away, and will rely on my doctor's weigh-in.

Maybe more of us will post pics also. I don't have a digital, so that's my story...lol

You know I know every person is different. My daughter has had a life long battle with weight, so her skin has almost no elasticity and she had no options. She will have a second procedure done for her arms and side/back fat next year. If I lose what I hope to lose, the only area I will need to work on is chicken arms and there are some noninvasive procedures out there that do help.

I clearly cannot afford 27k to do surgery either. That's why I jumped through hoops to get insurance company to pay for band :)

Trisha