minpinmom

Welcome! We have a lot in common, I too am from Texas, was banded on 2/19/08 and have Tricare Prime! You will learn so much here - this place is invaluable. Keep us updated as to your progress. Note - there are a TON of threads on Tricare under the Insurance Forum. Good Luck

Hey, betrthnever, we have the same band birthday! I would love to keep up with you and your weight loss - may help to see someone else loosing weight, and compare what we are each doing.

I love my bullet so much - I even persuaded my mom to buy one too (she is not banded, but loves smoothies) I have had a smoothie machine, blender, hand held blender and by far I love and USE my Bullet all the time. I would spend the money to buy a new one every year if I had to.

Wow, I am sure glad My surgeon doesn't require a catheter. That sounds horrible! Here's to you feeling better soon!

You can try calling Tricare and ask them, I know some people have had success with that. What I did is Google all the Dr.s in my area. Take those names and search them on Tricare's website. (Tricare doesn't have a search option for WLS yet, but you can search any individuals name). Once you find a Dr., make sure and call the Dr.s office and make sure they still take Tricare and also contact Tricare directly and make sure they are a Center of Excellence. It will make the next few steps much easier. :-)

I have lost 15 lbs, but so many more in inches. I can't believe I am already too "SMALL" for some of my clothes! I actually got to wear my husbands jacket! Now, I have to admit, it is oversized for him, but WOW, it was a first for me. I am loosing a lot in my thighs, arms and shoulders (kinda weird). But Hey, I will take it!

I have lost 15 lbs, but so many more in inches. I can't believe I am already too "SMALL" for some of my clothes! I actually got to wear my husbands jacket! Now, I have to admit, it is oversized for him, but WOW, it was a first for me. I am loosing a lot in my thighs, arms and shoulders (kinda weird). But Hey, I will take it!

Your post made me tear up. Congratulations on your decision. This is the best site for support and information. From the mouthes of Babes - maybe if I had children, I would have come to my conclusion much sooner.

I have been a fitday girl, but thanks to the posts in this thread about Daily Plate, I just spent all morning adding the entire months daily foods. Good bye Fitday, hello Daily Plate! I searched about 10 items that I had to manually input into Fitday and they all came up under Daily Plate. Thanks for the suggestion guys.

I have numbness in my right thigh (the top part). Mine is caused by a pinched nerve in the back - more than likely caused by my weight. However, right after surgery, I walked, kind of hunched over and didn't sit up straight and it totally aggravated it. My Dr. put me on Flexeril (which, yes is a NSAID). It loosens the muscles in my back and stops the numbness and burning pain. I am hoping that loosing more weight will stop in totally.

This is an EASY desert, and so yummy. It started off as a high fat desert made with pound cake, lemon curd, heavy whipping cream, you get the picture. Well, over the past year, I have made it so many times, I have come up with an alternative recipe and it will WOW a crowd. Wendy's Lemon berry Trifle 1 14oz Can of Fat Free Sweetened Condensed Milk 2 6oz containers of Light Lemon Yogurt 1/3 Cup Lemon juice (use fresh lemons, not the fake stuff) 2 Tsp grated Lemon Peel 1 Large Whip Cream (FREE) 1 Large pre-made Angel food Cake 1 Cup Sliced Fresh Strawberries 4 oz Fresh Blueberries (or more, but the container I get is this size) 4 oz Fresh Raspberries (or more) 1/4 Cup Slivered almonds, toasted Splenda (optional) Cut cake into 1" cubes, separate into thirds. In large bowl, combine mild, yogurt, lemon juice and peel. Fold in 2 Cups Whip Cream (or more, adjust to taste) In large Trifle bowl, place 1/3 Cake, top with 1/3 Lemon mixture, then layer all of the strawberries on top. I sprinkle a small amount of Splenda on top of the fresh fruit when it isn't in season. Repeat cake, lemon mixture and all of blueberries (and Splenda if needed) Repeat Cake, lemon mixture and all of Raspberries (and Splenda if needed) Top with whip cream Toast almonds in dry pan until brown, let cool and sprinkle on top of whip cream. Refrigerate at least 8 hours before serving.

I have lost a total of 13-14lbs (keeps bouncing back and forth). I was on liquids last week after my first fill - and I don't loose weight when I am on liquids - so that sucked, but I am starting to loose again now, and have continued to loose inches everywhere! I am wearing lots of clothes that have been too tight. :-) On the referral, as soon as Tricare gets the paperwork and starts putting it in the system, it will show up as (P)Pending. Mine was pending for about 45 minutes (I was a bit fanatic in the beginning and refreshed my screen every 2 minutes in hope of seeing it go through) Then, it changed to A (Approved) One of the happiest days of my life.

I have had a few episodes of the dreaded PB and slime. I am pretty sure it is because I am not chewing enough and probably eating too fast. It is such a new world to get used to. The funny thing, I can eat Chicken or Salmon and not even think about eating and everything is fine, but man, let me try a baked potato, eggs, or soft fish and it kills me. I think my mind determines it is already soft - and not much to chew. It is a total unpleasant experience. I feel a tightness in my chest - then I feel like the food is coming back up, but I don't have to vomit. It is a very odd feeling the first time. The thing I don't understand, where is it getting stuck at? It is hard for me to believe it is stuck at the band, because the purpose of the band is to hold the food back for a while, so that doesn't make sense. I just don't get it. If the pain hit 10 minutes after you eat, then it would make sense that it was too big of a bite for the band, but I can eat for 20 minutes and take one bite that is too big and BAM - here comes the slime. I am trying to chew slower and take longer times between each bite. It really does seem to help. However I am a slow learner - I keep trying the food until I can get it right.

I have had a few episodes of the dreaded PB and slime. I am pretty sure it is because I am not chewing enough and probably eating too fast. It is such a new world to get used to. The funny thing, I can eat Chicken or Salmon and not even think about eating and everything is fine, but man, let me try a baked potato, eggs, or soft fish and it kills me. I think my mind determines it is already soft - and not much to chew. It is a total unpleasant experience. I feel a tightness in my chest - then I feel like the food is coming back up, but I don't have to vomit. It is a very odd feeling the first time. The thing I don't understand, where is it getting stuck at? It is hard for me to believe it is stuck at the band, because the purpose of the band is to hold the food back for a while, so that doesn't make sense. I just don't get it. If the pain hit 10 minutes after you eat, then it would make sense that it was too big of a bite for the band, but I can eat for 20 minutes and take one bite that is too big and BAM - here comes the slime. I am trying to chew slower and take longer times between each bite. It really does seem to help. However I am a slow learner - I keep trying the food until I can get it right.

Now, I am just taking a stab at this, but maybe Tricare is requiring more for those that have to prove co-morbidities. I believe I must have met the 200% requirement, all Tricare required was a letter of Medical Necessity from my surgeon. I didn't have to do ANYTHING else for Tricare. My Dr.s office had me do Xrays, blood work, pregnancy test, etc. before the surgery, but not Tricare. And all of my tests were done as pre-op, I was already approved and scheduled when I did them. When my Surgeon's office finally believed me that Tricare covers this, once they submitted, Tricare approved same day. I was scheduled for surgery 5 days latter. :-) I know a LOT of Dr.s require testing before they do it, but everyone that I know that has been approved, Tricare didn't require anything (but we also didn't have to worry about co-morbidities)

I have been banded a month and let me tell you, I forget constantly and am reminded constantly! I had my first fill 10 days ago and since then, if I take too big of a bite, or don't chew, OMG, not fun. However, I am apparently a SLOW learner - because I keep doing it! The funny thing, it always happens with something soft - like baked potato or soft fish. I think maybe I am more aware when I eat heavier foods such as chicken and Salmon and chew better. Oh well, one day I will learn!

I have a 4CC capacity band and got 1.6 on my first fill (last Monday) and feel (what I think is restriction) when I eat solids. :-)

It has been over a week, so I feel that I can write about this without being too stressed. For those of you that know me, or follow my blog, you know that I live for my Dogs. Piper, is my first Min Pin and the true love of my life. She is so spoiled, she goes everywhere with me, sleeps with me, everything. (she shared my profile picture) With that being said, I will continue my story. About a month ago, I scheduled a teeth cleaning for Piper. It isn't a big deal, all of my dogs have it done every year. They put them under for a few minutes, clean their teeth, then they get to go home at the end of the day. Well, when I scheduled her appointment, I had a nightmare that night that Piper died during the surgery, I was walking around PetSmart, holding her little body, crying and telling everyone that she was dead. It bothered me. Bad. I told just about everyone I know about the dream, and how it was stressing me out. Last Wednesday was the day that Piper was scheduled. I didn't sleep at all that night. Eddie, the hubs, kept telling me that I was getting all worked up and I needed to just calm down. This was routine, all of our dogs go through it. All true, of course, but I still couldn't get the dream out of my head. The next morning, I couldn't bring myself to take her, so the hubs graciously got up and took her there at 6:30. I was nervous all morning. Then we get the call. As soon as they stared administering the anesthesia, they lost her heart beat and had to give her Atropine to get her back. My Dr. is the very best and was on top of his game and everything is ok. However, if he hadn't noticed her right away, it would have killed her - double fold - their scales had malfunctioned that morning and weighed her at 11.5 lbs, she is only 7.5 lbs. So of course, they had enough medicine for a much larger dog. Piper is, of course doing fantastic. We are actually getting ready for a dog show this weekend as I type. However, we have a new rule in our home. If I have a bad dream about something - we are going to listen to me. Wish us luck at the Dog Show!

It has been over a week, so I feel that I can write about this without being too stressed. For those of you that know me, or follow my blog, you know that I live for my Dogs. Piper, is my first Min Pin and the true love of my life. She is so spoiled, she goes everywhere with me, sleeps with me, everything. (she shared my profile picture) With that being said, I will continue my story. About a month ago, I scheduled a teeth cleaning for Piper. It isn't a big deal, all of my dogs have it done every year. They put them under for a few minutes, clean their teeth, then they get to go home at the end of the day. Well, when I scheduled her appointment, I had a nightmare that night that Piper died during the surgery, I was walking around PetSmart, holding her little body, crying and telling everyone that she was dead. It bothered me. Bad. I told just about everyone I know about the dream, and how it was stressing me out. Last Wednesday was the day that Piper was scheduled. I didn't sleep at all that night. Eddie, the hubs, kept telling me that I was getting all worked up and I needed to just calm down. This was routine, all of our dogs go through it. All true, of course, but I still couldn't get the dream out of my head. The next morning, I couldn't bring myself to take her, so the hubs graciously got up and took her there at 6:30. I was nervous all morning. Then we get the call. As soon as they stared administering the anesthesia, they lost her heart beat and had to give her Atropine to get her back. My Dr. is the very best and was on top of his game and everything is ok. However, if he hadn't noticed her right away, it would have killed her - double fold - their scales had malfunctioned that morning and weighed her at 11.5 lbs, she is only 7.5 lbs. So of course, they had enough medicine for a much larger dog. Piper is, of course doing fantastic. We are actually getting ready for a dog show this weekend as I type. However, we have a new rule in our home. If I have a bad dream about something - we are going to listen to me. Wish us luck at the Dog Show!

I cant believe it myself! The first week, on liquids, I only lost 3lbs, the rest has been in the past 2 weeks and I am actually eating, getting full and staying full. I can't believe this really works (for me). I was so scared I would be one of the ones it doesn't work for.

Cool, I didn't realize there were 2 different ones that were 4CC - so I looked at my documentation and I have the 9.75 Inamed. Thanks for the clarification. Oh, and right now, I have 1.6 in mine (had my first fill on Monday)

I have an Inamed 4CC. He doesn't decide what he is going to put in until he is in the surgery and sees the size of your stomach. He said most women have small stomachs and he uses the smallest band. Even with mine empty, it was already "tight" because it was smaller (to my understanding). I asked him about the different sizes and everything, he smiled and said not to worry, he can get me as restricted as I want with any of the bands. (one of the girls I met at my Dr.s office, has the 4CC band, and had like 1.2 put in and she was completely stopped, couldn't drink or anything) Her perfect fill was .something.

I love Lane Bryant - I NEVER buy anything at full price, I ONLY shop on their Clearance racks. I worked their ages ago - and we HAD to buy/wear their clothes. We got 30% off, but dang. Some of the LB stores have suits (Kasper and such), I trained for 6 weeks downtown Houston at one, and we were having a Suit sale - we were required to wear the suits (for that season) every day - They were 200+ each. That bit bad. I also love their lingerie section.

lol, my hubby doesn't snore and ALWAYS wears earplugs. When he told me I couldn't believe it - I thought I would have to loose a LOT more weight to see anything like that happen. To tell you the truth, if I didn't loose another pound, the surgery would be worth me not snoring. I really had a hard time dealing with that. (I would stay awake at other people's homes because I didn't want to chance them hear me snore) No one knew just how deep the embarrassment was - I feel like a HUGE weight has been lifted!

I snore no more! I can't believe it. I had SEVERE sleep apnea and had surgery to correct it back in ~1994. It was a wonderful success, however, about 2 years ago, I was battling Strep throat and Bronchitis and was SUPER sick for about 2 weeks. I started grinding my teeth, talking in my sleep and snoring. When I got better, the talking and grinding stopped, but the snoring continued. I hate to snore, it is so embarrassing. However, my husband told me that I haven't snored in a WEEK! Can I get a hoorah!