LEXUS86985

Awwww I'm sorry about your mom!!! My mom had the same situation a little over four years ago. Pain in the knee that turned out to be lung cancer that metastasized to her femur. Luckily it was caught in enough time to put a rod in her leg to keep her walking. That surgery actually isn't that bad!! Maybe a week between the hospital and rehab and she was home. Obviously she had stage IV cancer and she passed away 6 months later but for the moment I think you should go ahead with your surgery and later on you can be there for her!! Believe it or not it's more comfortable to stay in the garment. My doc told me not to take it off for 72 hours. I kept it on for 6 days until I saw him for follow up. At that point he said I could shower so when I got home I took it off and showered. It was washed but took a day to dry. I had another garment I bought at kohls but it sucked!!! I guess once the bandages are done and stitches heal I can get something different. I have a Veronique garment style #853..... It unzips down both sides. It's a size 4x so it cost $150. When they measured me before the surgery I was a 5x but since I was having actually tissue removed the dr wanted the smaller garment. Fits perfectly!!! Do you have everything prepared for after??

I'm actually not near my goal weight. I lost 130 lbs and kept it off the past 2 years. When I asked my pcp for the referral I told him I just wanted a consult to see how much more I would have to lose. He told me it's not about a number it's when I was ready. Maintaining my weight loss was key. He felt I was ready and I will feel much better having it done. I expected the dr to tell me I needed to lose more weight. He never said that.... Instead congratulated me for losing weight and saying how proud he was of me!!!

I was banded 4 years ago and had a TON of clothes to donate!!! Some items I still haven't parted with! I just had plastic surgery and have 2 more bags ready to go!! I also have a bin of clothes I need to try on once the swelling goes down!!! It's all a part of the journey!! Everyone knows to get me visa gift cards for Christmas this year!!! :-)

I'm only at 8 days post op.... The thought of having to work.... Right now I couldn't. I had a pretty significant amount removed... 14lbs. My incision goes from hip to hip!!! I can't even change the dressings myself. The first two days are horrible!!!! Take the pain meds round the clock!!! I chose to go on liquids to cleanse my system before the surgery. I stayed on liquids after ... To be honest I didn't want to deal with pooping. Lol I'm take less pain meds but still need them!!! If you can afford two compression garments go ahead and get an extra!! It takes a while for the garment to air dry and you need to stay in it!! Get lots of pillows... For your back and under your legs!! A cup with a tight lid and straw is perfect for drinking in that position. Ginger ale and crackers for the ride home!! I have a wicked red rash basically everywhere from the garment.... Benedryl cream helps a bit!!! Good luck!!! Just be prepared!!

I really didn't tell anyone until I actually scheduled the surgery. Everyone has been very supportive!! If there is anyone negative in your life they are jelous!!! Yes we lost weight but this is NOT cosmetic surgery!!! It's reconstructive!! I still had a lot of fat along with the skin... Huge panniculous!! So it's obvious that I had something done even with all the swelling. My doc and I have planned three separate procedures.... I could do without the "Barbie" comments but F- them!!! I do what I see fit!! :-)

Hey all!! I had a panniculectomy done on November 11th. I have to agree, the first 2 days are HORRIBLE!!! I live in Long Island but my amazing doctor is in New York City!! So I was feeling better each day.... Then had my first follow up visit on Tuesday. While we drove in, I still had to walk to his office. Almost passed out while he was checking the incisions. (Just got crazy hot and I was light headed lol) I was so beat yesterday!!! I'm trying to wean off the pain meds but they really help!! My biggest issue right now is the RASH!!!! OMG!!! This garment is literally ruining my skin!! Anyone else have skin issues?!?!? He took off 14lbs of skin and fat!!!!! My wonderful friends took pictures!!! ???? this recovery sucks but I think in the end it will be worth it!!

Does anyone have experience with the procedure codes?? I'm having the panniculectomy procedure 15830. The dr does not normally bill for facility codes but wants to bill as much as possible in order for me to get all of my money back from the insurance company. I have experience with procedures but I've never billed facility fees. I've asked a few people to help but so far they've been no help. Does anyone know what he can bill for in addition to the actual procedure??? I'm getting anxious because I'm waiting for these codes before we request the authorization!! Help?!?! Much thanks in advance!!

Thank you for those codes. I actually need codes that a surgical center would bill. We are only billing for the panniculectomy as a surgical procedure.... So I need codes we can bill for the surgical center. I know nothing at all about the facility side. I used to work for an insurance company and we would enter the authorization with the doctors procedures then just add the surgical center. The surgical center never added codes to the auth they just billed their own codes after the procedure. I've never seen what the surgical center billed for... Ex: supplies? Time in the room? I know so many people in the medical billing industry but so far no one has been able to help. Anyone out there have connections at a surgical center??? :-) HELP!!! Thanks everyone!!

Thank you so much!! This seems to be a unique situation. My sister in law works for my pcp and they referred me to this plastic surgeon. He doesn't normally do reconstructive work. But he's super nice and considers me family because of who referred me. His secretary knows nothing about coding at all.... He has a surgical suite in the office and usually doesn't bill for facility charges. I have to pay up front but he is trying everything possible so I get all my money back. I have so many people trying to get codes but it's been two weeks so far. I guess I'm just anxious.... All I need are the facility codes so we can submit for auth. I appreciate your help!!!! :-) I hope you're feeling well!!

Raise your arms over your head up and down almost like flapping wings slowly.... That should help the air move out!! That's the worst of it! :-)

Fluoroscopy makes alllll the difference!!! There was one point where my dr tried to do the adjustment in the office to save us time.... Thank god he couldn't do it. When he watched me drink under fluoroscopy he saw the band was too tight and liquids were backing up causing the pouch to expand!!! So I always get adjusted with fluoroscopy!!! Congrats for sticking with it!! If we don't fight the process it works so much better! :-)

You may just need to get used to the feeling of restriction. You feel the need to burp but can't.... That's just the food sitting in the band before passing into the stomach. Just means the band is doing what it's supposed to. Just means you need to stop eating. Dont force it. Everyone is different so get to know your signs of being satisfied. :-)

Kind of off the subject, but what kind of bariatric restrictions does your insurance have?? If it's new you can request a transitional authorization.... That allows you some flexibility when you switch. Have you had any breaks in coverage?? If you have the band they really cannot deny you if you need to get it fixed!!!! Complications at this point are not bariatric in nature!! Don't take that BS!!!

I had a similar problem a while back. I went to my dr who does my adjustments under fluoroscopy. I had something stuck in the band. He saw it on the screen. So he removed the fill.... I drank to flush it out and he refilled it. I've heard that drinking pineapple juice may help clear the band.... So try little sips. If it doesnt get better have the fill removed then flush it and get it filled. I thank god my dr can see my band when doing these adjustments!!!

The saturday before Memorial Day, I began taking a progressive boxing class. It's an hour long class where you box and actually hit the bags. I've never sweat like this in my life!! I have been religiously going at least 3 to 4 times per week. The day I started, my weight loss had hit the 80 pound mark!! I was sooo excited because I figured I would lose that 20 pounds in a month and reach the 100 pound mark!! Literally and I mean literally I did not lose an OUNCE in 3 1/2 weeks!!! Then all of a sudden I dropped 13 pounds in 10 days!! I know weight loss is never steady, but what gives??? I'm to the point where I don't even care what the scale says. I got down to 93 pounds lost and then I go up 2 - 3 pounds before I lose those 3 plus another 10-12 after a month. Now I'm concerned with my diet. I haven't been over eating at all. Sometimes I'm so tired I don't even want to eat. But as I'm reading online, I realize...maybe I'm not eating enough?? Working out at this intensity means I should be eating much more protein or else I lose muscle and not fat!! But eating that much protein comes with added calories. I don't know my exact body fat percentage, but guestimating it at 40% would mean I would need 162 grams of protein per day...that's around 650 calories!!! That's alot just from protein. I'm only 10 months into this journey. Anyone out there that is farther along that could offer some advice?? My body is definitely changing...but I don't feel like I'm losing the fat the way I think I should be. I have a lot of loose flabby parts...which is frustrating because it actually looked better when it was full of fat!! UGH!!! Either way I love the boxing class. I also started taking his conditioning class!! My arms are quite buff now!! :thumbup: It all comes together in the end right???

Wow...I have to give you credit...I would NOT have done this if my insurance had not paid for it!!! I was worried about the $250 copay turning into $500 when they admitted me!!! Good for you!! I seem to be doing a little bit better today. When I took my pills this morning it was like a volcano erupting slowly with lava!! Anything I ate was like splashing into the lava and creating a burn. It's not there when I don't eat though. I just ate some tuna... it was feeling like it was getting stuck!! But if I sit up straight it felt better. The more I think about it the more I think the band slipped. But I really don't want another surgery. I'm going to take it easy this weekend...try to stick to soft foods and see what happens.

So I'm trying to figure out why all of a sudden I am having Heartburn like crazy!!! I've never had a problem with heartburn in my life!! It's the MOST uncomfortable feeling ever!! I've been researching the symptoms of the band slipping. It sounds like it could be, but I'm not so sure. I think I may have irritated the band by eating too much. I have those days where even now I feel like I can't control what I'm eating. I had my second fill about 6 weeks ago and it was too tight so we took some of the fill out. I'm at 1.25cc in a 10cc band...no restriction at all!! I was having so many problems for some reason. I even had a GI appt and they did an endoscopy. He said everything was fine...and I didn't have any restriction. But since that 2nd fill, I've had some pain swallowing liquids!!! I'm not sure how I can have pain when I don't have any restriction!! Now all of a sudden I am getting heartburn. It begins in the morning when I take my medication. Anything I eat or drink is like churning hot lava in the my stomach!! It feels much better to not eat or drink!! I don't want to be a hyperchondriac, but this sucks!!! I started taking a boxing class last week...it's physically difficult...could that have anything to do with this?? I imagine the band slipping would "HURT"...I don't have nausea or vomitting...just burning. Anyone have any clues??? :frown:

So I'm trying to figure out why all of a sudden I am having Heartburn like crazy!!! I've never had a problem with heartburn in my life!! It's the MOST uncomfortable feeling ever!! I've been researching the symptoms of the band slipping. It sounds like it could be, but I'm not so sure. I think I may have irritated the band by eating too much. I have those days where even now I feel like I can't control what I'm eating. I had my second fill about 6 weeks ago and it was too tight so we took some of the fill out. I'm at 1.25cc in a 10cc band...no restriction at all!! I was having so many problems for some reason. I even had a GI appt and they did an endoscopy. He said everything was fine...and I didn't have any restriction. But since that 2nd fill, I've had some pain swallowing liquids!!! I'm not sure how I can have pain when I don't have any restriction!! Now all of a sudden I am getting heartburn. It begins in the morning when I take my medication. Anything I eat or drink is like churning hot lava in the my stomach!! It feels much better to not eat or drink!! I don't want to be a hyperchondriac, but this sucks!!! I started taking a boxing class last week...it's physically difficult...could that have anything to do with this?? I imagine the band slipping would "HURT"...I don't have nausea or vomitting...just burning. Anyone have any clues??? :bored: