HappyMom

Hi Michelle - Isn't the staff at Lovelace great....and efficient! I was just banded with Dr. Smith on the 25th (5 days ago) in ABQ. My total process took about 6 weeks....and I thought that was quick! It sounds like you have done your homework and are ready for this change. I would recommend reading and speaking with as many people as you can before your surgery in April. You should also try coming to the support meeting at the hospital on Monday, April 12th at 7 pm. I went to the one last month and it was really helpful to listen and ask questions about the band procedure. Paula (head surgical nurse), Laura (dietitian) and Jaine (psych) run the support group. Please contact me if you have any questions about the surgery or the staff at Lovelace. Congrats on your decision and I hope to see you in support group! Melissa

Hi there I have a question for you guys - I am 5 days post-op and I still weigh more than I did the morning of the surgery. I hope that this is just Water weight due to the surgery...I still am swollen in the belly and on day 3 of my TOM. I have only been allowed 3 Protein shakes a day for the last 3 days. That works out to about 400-cal a day, so I am sure that it is not from overeating! I will only be able to have Protein Shakes and yogurt for the next 9 days. I did great on the pre-op diet...lost 19 pounds....so I was really excited about the actual surgery. I know that it is not a race, but it seems that most of you have lost weight since banding and I am still above my pre-op weight. Did any of you gain weight immediately after surgery? Did the weight just drop off one day when your body decided to release the stored water? Just having a sad moment....don't mind me!

Hi - I was banded on the 25th...so I am right there with you guys. I don't really have much pain except if I bend over. I went back to work yesterday, but I am able to stay in the office for the next couple of weeks and not out in the field (structural engineer). I was tired and a little sore in the ribs and left shoulder last night....still having a bit of gas pains. I have a question.....I still weigh more than I did the morning of my surgery. I lost 19 pounds on the pre-op diet. The morning after surgery I weighed almost 10 pounds more than I did immediately before my surgery. It has been 5 days and I am still weighing more than I did before surgery. I am still only allowed Protein shakes for another week so I know that I couldn't have gained weight since my calorie intake is around 400 a day. Could my body still be holding on to Water due to the surgery? Are you experiencing this too? Mentally I know that it must still be water due to the surgery, but it is a little sad. No worries....this is a long journey and I am ready!

Hi Laura - I too just had my surgery on the 25th. I am still a little sore from the gas pains, but other than that I am doing well. I haven't actually eaten anything since the surgery. I still need to be on Protein shakes until at least day 10. I do get to have some applesauce today..whoohoo! I definitely know what you mean about will power. I have 1 and 4 year old little boys and a husband to cook for every day. It is hard to make Breakfast, lunch and dinner for the guys and not want to eat. I don't have an appetite so I haven't been that tempted, but it is hard to smell the lovely smells and not get to satisfy myself by tasting! I have hoping that it all gets easier. Good luck to you and everyone else!

Hi there - I was banded on the 25th. The surgery went really well. I was wheeled into the operating room at 10:15 am and walked out of the hospital at 12:15. The only problem that I am having is GAS PAINS!!!! My shoulder, neck, stomach and back hurt something horrible. I am really hoping that this goes away soon. Not too much incision pain. They found a hernia and fixed that along with the banding procedure. I am just sore if I twist or bend over. Not bad though.....just the DARN GAS. I am moved from clear liquids to full liquids today. I was able to drink two protein shakes without too much trouble. I am a little tight and it hurts for about 5 seconds after each swallow (a tightening in the chest)...maybe due to the TRAPPED GAS? I read about the pain associated with the trapped gas, but what the heck! I have two weeks of liquids and then I can move to mushies. Never has the term "mushies" sounded so good! Congrats to all of us!

My surgery went really well. I rolled into the operating room at 10:15 and walked out of the hospital at 12:15. Pretty good I would say. There are 5 incisions on my belly, but only 1 really hurts. It is the longest of the 4 so I am assuming that is the port? The other 4 really don't hurt, even if you touch them with a little pressure. MY left shoulder is getting sore and I have some burping-gurgling gas pains but the Gas-X and walking seem to make it subside for a bit. Actually I feel much better than I had thought. I have had 2 c-sections and this is a breeze compared to that! MadysMom - I really hope that your surgery went well. Please post and let us know how it is going today!

3kidsmom - I spoke with Paula today before the surgery and she said that they are having a horrible time with the Lovelace insurance company. There are two people scheduled for surgery tomorrow that they think will have to cancel due to denial from Lovelace.....they still haven't heard a final response as of this morning! I really wish you luck. Henry will absolutely go the extra mile to try to get you accepted. He is VERY good at what he does! Good luck to you!

Hi MadysMom - Congrats on your surgery tomorrow! I too am having surgery in the morning. I have to be there at 7:45 for a 9:30 surgery time. I am so excited that I probably won't get much sleep tonight. You take care and I hope that all goes well with both of our surgeries!

Holy Cow! I am on my last day of my 2 week pre-op liquid diet. I can't even imagine having to do this for longer than 14 days! You go girl! I did notice that after the first 5 days my hunger diminished considerably. Maybe my stomach just accepted that it wasn't going to get fed no matter how much it grumbled! I do have to agree with the ashli1982 in that the key is no carbs. My nutritionist said that to reduce liver size you deprive your body of carbs....this releases enzymes within the liver and reduces its size....I am not a doctor so I am not sure if this is true or not! I really wish you luck! Keep to it and the time will go by faster than you think....hopefully!

Good luck to you reverie. I hope that your seminar goes well! I do understand about you being excited and scared at the same time. My surgery is tomorrow and while I know this is the right decision for me, I am still a little nervous about the whole process!

Your post made my cry! Congrats to you and your new found life. I am so very happy for you!

Ravyn - I can only drink the two Protein shakes and have a cup of soup a day. I am allowed all the Water, iced tea, and non-caloric non-carbonated beverages a day. I can also have sugar-free Jello. That is it. The two Protein Shakes and the soup equal about 450 calories a day with 60-g protein and 20-g carbs. I guess that it is the carbs and calories that will help shrink your liver...? I have also had two c-sections. I have heard that the pain from this surgery is a breeze compared to the c-section. That is about the only part of the surgery process that I am afraid of...the gas pains. Either way it is over tomorrow! Yea! Thanks for the good wishes and I will let you know how it goes. Good luck on hearing about your pre-op diet. I hope that you have a shorter one that I did! Melissa

I definitely agree with Betsy about trying to get the insurance company to consider the surgery a long term cost saver. I take a total 5 medications associated with my diabetes and high blood pressure. The total monthly cost of these medications is $450/month. That is a staggering $5400 a year! My primary care doctor is certain that I will be off of ALL medications within 6 months...if not sooner! The total cost for the insurance company for the next ten years is $54K. I am not sure of the cost of the surgery if you are self-pay ($15K or so), but my insurance company can probably break even within 3 years time. I think that the insurance companies need to come around to the notion that WLS is a money saver for them in the long run.

I definitely see your point of view on your weight loss. I am going to strictly follow the post band eating plan...but just try not to let it run my life. I tend to get a little obsessive about my eating when I join a new dieting plan. I spend hours logging what I have eaten and planning what I will have next. It seems to all go to heck after a few months because I can't keep up the time and detail obsession. I need to find a balance between strictly following the eating plan the dietitian and I have come up with, but be relaxed enough not to obsess about every detail. Does this make sense? I am looking at being banded as undergoing a LIFE changing alteration to my mental and physical mindset about my relationship with food. I need to find a non-stressful way to work with the band and not have the obsessive stress that comes with dieting. I want to live....not diet. Sorry for the long post. I am having last minute jitters about the surgery in two days. I am positive that I am ready for the Band, but just at this moment it seems a bit overwhelming! Deep breaths!

I am really sorry that you are having a problem with Anthem. I too have Anthem BCBS PPO and haven't had any problems with them at all. I am not sure if there are any guidelines that we had to follow about length of employment. My husband has worked for his company for longer than 3 years, but we have only had Anthem for just a little over a year (changed for the 2009 calendar year). My surgery is scheduled for two days from now and I only have to pay $100 for the procedure. This is of course after I meet my out of pocket deductible for the year. Since we are not there yet the actual cost is $850. ($100 for the surgery and $750 for our remaining family deductible). I have befriended the insurance processor at the hospital since I have bugged him so much over the last month about my application status. He said that he is noticing that certain employers are putting restrictions on weight loss surgery that are more stringent than the insurance companies requirements. The patients would normally be getting approved (and approved faster) if not for the clauses that some companies make regarding WLS. I personally think that this is bogus, but it seems to be the trend. It sounds like it might be your employer that is restricting the qualifications and payments for your surgery. I have not talked with another person who has carried Anthem that didn't breeze through the approval process. Maybe you can talk to your benefits department at your company and see if they can do anything for you. I really wish you good luck in your approval process!

I am on day 12 of my liquid pre-op diet which was required by my surgeon. I have surgery scheduled for Thursday the 25th. My diet is two Bariatric Advantage Protein shakes and one cup of vegetable Soup a day. I was screaming hungry the first few days, but that passed around day 4 or 5. Now I am just tired and a bit weak and tired from all of this.....and craving something to chew! You can definitely do it if your doctors requires a diet. I am not going to say that it is easy, but it is very doable. I was/am a volume eater, so it has been hard, but I have not cheated even once. Just don't let yourself cheat....once you do you will not be able to stick with it! Good luck to you!

MadysMom- I too am having surgery on Thursday and just today received final approval from my insurance company. The surgical team had me doing all of the pre-op procedures without really knowing if I would actually get approved. All that I kept thinking was what if I get denied and I have been on this pre-op liquid diet for the LAST 12 DAYS! Talk about pissing off a hungry fat woman! I wish you good luck on Thursday. May we both breeze through surgery without any complications!

Congratulations! I can't wait to join you in BandLand in just a couple of days. I hope that all is well and your recovery is fast! Again, congrats!

Hello Amber - I have BCBS of California and it took about 7 working days to get final approval once the doctors office sent off all the paperwork. I have heard from the insurance people at the hospital that BCBS is one of the easiest insurance companies to get approved for surgery with. They will usually approve anyone with a BMI over 40, or in my case, a lower BMI with TWO co-morbidities. Good luck to you!

Hey there - I am also being banded on the 25th. Good luck to both of us!

darkangel - I am having the exact same thoughts that you are. I can lose weight easily...I have proved that over and over again over the last 20 years. But, I cannot keep it off to save my life. I guess that is what it comes down to for me....am I going to make a change to save my life. I know that this is going to be a hard journey for me, especially when everyone else is pigging out on food all around me and I can't partake....but is that really good for me and is it really what I want for the rest of my life? I know that I am ready, but I am have a sense of loss of the comfort of volume eating. I am hoping that it will go away and gets replaced by something else more healthy in my life. I really wish you luck on your surgery on the 24th...I am right behind you with surgery on the 25th!

mimo- The pre-op liquid phase really sucks! The good thing is that I lost my hunger around day 4, but I am getting a bit weak....good weight loss though! Only three more days to go! Good luck on your first fill tomorrow!

Hello BriBri90 - I am being banded just one day earlier than you, on the 25th. I too am very excited and FINALLY get to surgery day. It seems like it was a long time coming. Good luck to both of us!

mimo - That is fantastic to hear that you had a great experience with Dr. Smith here in ABQ. I have my surgery scheduled for March 25th. So far I am very impressed with the program and staff that they have assembled here in ABQ. I can't wait to get the surgery over with!

Hi there - You are lucky that you only have a 7 day pre-op diet....I guess that I am lucky that I only have to do a 14 day diet....I have heard of people on this forum that had to endure liquids for 4 weeks! I am currently on day 8 of my 14 day liquid diet. I get two Bariatric Advantage Protein shakes and a cup of vegetable Soup a day. I really have to say that the first 3 days of my pre-op diet was HELL. I am talking about my stomach wanting to eat my intestines, a constant headache that you wouldn't believe, and a feeling of extreme weakness. I am not sure how I survived those first few days. But on day 4 everything changed. My headache went away, along with any appetite and feeling of hunger. I now have to remind myself to drink the shakes and eat the soup. I don't get hungry AT ALL and when I do eat my soup at night I am really full. I am hoping that this gets my through to next Thursday when my surgery is scheduled! I have dropped 10-lbs in one week and am right now feeling great. I know that this diet is not healthy for you...starvation never is....but I am thankful that I am forced to do this. I think that it is a nice mental boost to my weight loss journey and I love looking at the scale each morning! My suggestion is to drink A LOT of water! I really wish you luck on your weight loss journey. The pre-op is hard, but if I can make it so can you!