TexasT

I was self-pay for both band and sleeve. Paid for the band by getting a home equity loan. The interest rate was lower than other options, plus you can write off the interest on your taxes. My revision to sleeve was partially covered by insurance because I had my gall bladder out at the same time. My doc charged me $5000 for the removal of the band and VSG. I did it at the first of January, claimed the surgery fee on my "FSA plan" (or whatever they call it now) at work, where they take money out of my check tax free each paycheck. Used all mine and my hubby's for the year ($4800). So basically, I'm paying $400/month for the revision by having it deducted from our paychecks. We would have had this taken out anyway and used it for meds and any other medical expenses for the year, so I don't feel like I'm missing it.

As a "seasoned professional" in regards to WLS (lap-band 2006, VSG 2010), I can spot others who've had similiar procedures a mile away. There are a few celebrities out there right now that are suddenly very slim and are only admitting to diet and exercise. I certainly don't know for sure that they've had extra "help" in the way of WLS, but they just have that look to them that I've come to recognize that means they most likely have. I know everyone, whether in the public eye or not, has to make the decision of who to let in that "inner circle of trust" about what we've done to lose the weight and deal with the criticism or support that follows. It's just that most of us don't have thousands of people who would ever know or care. If you feel that it would benefit others to know what you've done to help yourself become more healthy, then by all means be honest. I think it's unfair myself for a public figure to say they are only "eating smart" and exercising and losing massive amounts of weight if they've also had WLS as an adjunct tool. I think they could be an advocate and show people that they shouldn't feel ashamed to get help if it will lead them to becoming more healthy. But that's easy for me to say - I'm not in your shoes! Best of luck with whatever decision you make.

When my mother recently saw me for the first time since my VSG, the first thing she said was "Don't lose ANY MORE weight!!! I can really see it in your face." I asked her what she meant, and she said my skin was much droopier than before my surgery. My sister said "Yeah, you'll need cheek implants girl!" WHAAT?? Now that I look at myself through their eyes, I can see what they mean. I'm starting to get those lines on the sides of my mouth, which I never had before. And don't get me started on my neck. The chicken wattle is there, though if I hold my head J U S T R I G H T you won't see it - ha! As soon as my daughter gets out of college next year I'm thinking about using that money that now goes to tuition to visit the cosmetic surgeon for a little lift.

Enjoy your new boots!!!

You've done so great and you look beautiful!!! Keep up the good work and you'll be at goal before you know it.

I DID buy the shake Weight, and I can attest to the fact that it DOES work. I haven't had it long, and I don't use it as much as I should, but man, my muscles hurt like heck when I do it. It comes with a DVD with a 6 minute workout. I've actually only been able to make it through the whole thing a few times cause it's so tough. My husband is considering buying the men's size after seeing how well mine works. My muscle tone is horrible now that all my fat is gone. And I'll be 50 on my next birthday, so the skin is not so taut anymore either. So working on my arms is something I'm going to try and be more diligent about. If I get super buff arms I'll post a photo in a few months.

I've been with the same wonderful man for over 30yrs now, and our sex life is better now than it was when we were in our 20's. My hubby jokes about having a "hot girlfriend" now, and I enjoy feeling sexy again. I wish I could have had the VSG when I was younger and my skin was more elastic, but I'm not too flabby from the weight loss and I love the way I look. My closet is slowly filling up with sexy lingerie as I feel more and more confident with my body. My hubby has always loved me no matter what my weight, and sex was always fine. But needless to say, when you feel better about your body you are going to be less inhibited about showing it and that makes sex that much better.

I've gotten my dissolvable B12 at both Kroger and Wal-Mart with no problem. They're pretty cheap and yummy too! I recently had blood work done. My vitamin D was low, so they put my on a 12/wk prescription for it, but they said "your B12 was through the roof!", so I guess it's working well.

If ANYONE finds ANYTHING that really works, please let us know. I took Biotin for 2 months and didn't see any difference, so I stopped taking it. My hair loss started 3-4 months post-op and hasn't let up yet. I've started trying to go longer between shampoos and don't brush it as much - which is the only thing I can think of to try and help. But that doesn't actually "cure" anything. Luckily I had tons of hair to begin with so no one seeing me would know it's thinner, but I can tell, and I can see it in my trash can when I clean off my brush. Yuck!

All I can say is that life is 1000x easier with the sleeve, and I can't recommend it enough. I had my band for almost 4yrs and only lost weight the first 4 months after I had it. Then it was just "working" to get restriction without being too tight and not being able to eat at all. SO frustrating!!! Having the sleeve takes all the "work" out of it. You just eat healthy foods in smaller quantities, you have less hunger, and you lose weight. I'm finally at my goal weight so I'm eating whatever carbs I want so I that I don't lose any more. With the band there were so many fresh fruits and veggies that just wouldn't "go down", now I can eat them and I love it! I know if you've only had the band a short time you might want to try a little longer to make it work. But there are many people that regret taking so long to get revised, so if you can do the VSG I whole-heartedly believe you'll be much happier.

I'm sure if your doc says you can do it all at one time, then you'll be fine. I had an undiagnosed hiatal hernia repaired, my gall bladder removed, adhesions from previous abdominal surgeries removed, band removed and VSG done all in one surgery. I'm so glad I could do it this way and I was surprised how easy my recovery was. My only complication was that I developed a hematoma under the incision when the port had been. That port had been sewed in there to stay, so taking it out left a large hole that blood pooled in. This is not something most people get though, so I wouldn't worry about it. Plus, it's certainly not a big deal if you do get one. Having the band gone was SO worth any of it! Life is good now and I'm so happy all that horrible plastic is out of my body. Best wishes on your surgery!

I didn't even think to ask. I probably would have had a voodoo curse ceremony over it (if there even IS such a thing ) and then burned it if given the choice!

Carrie, I'm so sorry you're having to go through all this. I feel your pain! I know this isn't exactly ethical, but my situation worked out, so I though I would offer this up. Have you had your gall bladder checked out lately? I was having vague pains for a year and it ended up that I had gall stones. My band surgeon (who is in the Dallas area) removed my gall bladder, fixed an undiagnosed hiatal hernia, and did my sleeve revision at a cost to me of $5000. My insurance paid for the hospital and all other costs. I stayed in the hospital 2 nights. It might be worth it to have a gall bladder ultrasound to see if you have any issues, and if you do then use it to your advantage to get it all taken care of at once. Just a suggestion. I know living with the band is h*ll and I'm sure you'll be so much better off without it. Good luck!

I'm in the same boat you're in, so I feel your pain. I took 2 bottles of Biotin and couldn't tell any difference, so I'm not getting any more of it. I've seen other posts say this can last up to a year, so I'm just trying to be patient, eat as much Protein as possible, and not freak out yet.

Welcome David - I'm familliar with Ponca as I used to live in Tulsa years ago. I'm glad you've made the decision to help save your life via VSG. I used to have co-morbidities and was on several meds pre-surgery. Now I'm at goal, the co-morbities are gone, and I'm off all meds except for my Vitamins and acid reducer. Life is good! Your wife, kids, and animals will be happy to have you around longer! Good luck!

My quality of life is the best it's ever been!!! I just had my 25th Wedding Anniversary dream trip with my husband to Italy in May. My tiny booty fit in the airplane seats, I was in great shape and able to walk around 10 miles a day sightseeing, and I never felt deprived any time we ate out. I was able to drink wine, walk stairs without huffing and puffing, and try on cute Italian leather jackets. If you look at my "before" pictures you'll see a miserable woman who never thought she'd have the life I do now. Getting the sleeve was one of the best decisions I've ever made!

It took awhile to get to this point, but about the time I started eating soft to normal foods, I would feel full just like I did before the VSG - it just happens a WHOLE lot faster! If I ignore the feeling and keep eating, it will HURT and sometimes I've gotten nauseated. That taught me in a hurry when to stop. Unfortunately sometimes you don't know when you're full until you take that ONE bite too many. Then everyone has different responses to it - pain, pressure, nausea, vomiting, etc. It just takes listening to your bodie's cues and learning how to respond to them. And that takes some time.

OK - I admit I ate this during my mushy phase, but I'm not condoning it for others :001_rolleyes:---- Deviled Ham. I know it has tons of sodium, but boy did it taste good to have just a bite or two in between the lovely Protein shakes and soups. You are actually eating meat! Looks like baby food, but that's the point, huh? I also LOVED refried BLACK Beans with white queso on top. The black beans have more Fiber and protein normally than the brown ones.

You probably won't really know the answer to this until you're at that point when the body changes stop coming and you settle completely into your new body. I'm at goal weight, and after being bigger on the bottom and in my stomach area for so many years, now I'm the opposite. My booty is gone, the stomach is flat and I realize that I have wide ribs. I finally see what my true body type is. Both halves are not currently wearing the same size either. Am I lop-sided? Yes. Is it bad? I don't think so. But after being obese for so many years, I'll take this new shape any day of the week! Amen!

I assume you're already taking an acid reducer of some kind? If not, you should be. If that's not the problem, then I'd try to keep SOMETHING in your stomach as much as possible, even if it's just liquids. If it doesn't get better soon, call your doc and see what they suggest. Good luck!

My only concern would be your getting tired while at the conference. I started back to work at my home office job a few days after surgery, but I was able to stop when I wanted to and rest. My back would get pretty tired sitting at my desk. If I had a choice, I'd wait until after the conference. But if there will be a lot of "down time", then it might be a nice chance to get away and get some rest in between meetings.

BMaloy - you should do fine with a revision to the sleeve even at your goal weight. You will most likely lose weight during your liquids only phase post-op, but should be able to put it back on it you want to once you can eat whatever you want. My BMI was pretty low when I had my revision. My doc just made me sign a form acknowledging this and that I realized I might not lose tons of weight. That was fine with me and I'm now at goal. Susan42, I wish you nothing but the best. Life with the band can be horrible, as many of us know. I was a self-pay for it and the sleeve, and believe me, it has all been worth every penny to now be sleeved. Best wishes on the insurance approval!

1.Is drinking cold liquids going to be a problem? or is that just in the beginning? because I love everything cold..especially Water !! It hasn't been a problem for me. I drank warm things in the winter, but now the colder the better! 2. How long does it really take for the stomach to be complete healed? Your doc can best answer this question, but I was on a regular diet 6 wks post-op, so I would consider myself pretty much healed by that point. 3. Can you do anything physically normal as you would do before surgery (if you were a thinner person) LoL, ofcourse after you are healed inside and out? can you do any aerobics, dancing, rollercoasters, etc?? without hurting your stomach?? (this one might sound silly) I love to dance - though nowadays it's mostly in the privacy of my own home :frown1:, and have had no problem shaking my groove thing! I've been on boats, airplanes, walked my butt off during a trip to Italy, and had lots of (married) sex. You should be able to do much MORE than you could before surgery once you've lost some of that excess poundage! Good luck!

It's amazing to me how biased these docs can be, and also how uninformed! My internist (who was my primary care) was against ANY type of WLS. When I got the band, he pretty much dissed it. Then he misdiagnosed my gall bladder symptoms last year, so I have quit going back to him. I didn't even want to get an earful about the VSG from him! I just had my yearly gyno exam, and asked this doc to please run my blood work post-op. She was happy to do so, remarked about how great I looked with my weight loss, and was very positive. My only deficiency was in Vitamin D, so I am now on a once weekly dose for 12 wks to get caught back up. As a hysterectomy patient, I'm considered post-menopausal, which has a lot to do with this - and is not completely due to the VSG. And as for not being able to stop losing weight with the sleeve - I think there are plenty of us here that DON'T have that problem!

No, my doc didn't say anything about the hernia. Apparently they are very common, and most people never even know they have them. I'm convinced the evil band :thumbup: had something to do with it, but it probably didn't. I tend to have adhesions with abdominal surgery (have had 2 c-sections, hysterectomy, band, and then this surgery). So my doc just cleaned up the ones that had formed since the band surgery. Then he applied some special material to help stop them from forming this time.