ardelia

I know I already replied, but I just wanted to address one more thing. You have to wait longer than I do to ask questions. I "only" have to wait till the 22nd of October and then I can ask questions. :smile2:

Same thing here... I just found out on Friday that the HMO I have had for years will no longer be an option. The PPO that will be an option will NOT cover surgery with the surgeon I have been seeing. They only use Centers of Excellence. If I don't get surgery before the end of this year, I'll have to start over again. Of course, I don't even know if my employer's specific plan with the new PPO will even cover bariatric surgery. Ugh. :smile2:

A temporal association is not always causality. Talk to a physician.

For the love of cheese, lady, CHILL OUT! That person was simply pointing out to you that you are NOT starving in the literal sense. Jesus. If you are considering getting banded, my guess is that you are FAT like the rest of us and your body could survive weeks without food. Get over yourself. This is my last post/visit here because I think that - in general - the level of intelligence on these boards is simply lacking. Your option to the other poster is to be supportive or leave? I am so out of here. Buh-bye. And, dammit, people, you LOSE weight, but your clothing might become LOOSE if you do. Sheesh. "Lose" versus "loose" is NOT a difficult concept.

I scheduled my psych visit last Wednesday and the receptionist called me the next day to tell me that: The visit actually requires 2 co-pays ($15 each) because one is for the talk and the other is for the test - and - I also have to pay an additional $100 for the psych to write the report and send it to the surgeon because my insurance will not cover it. Has anyone else heard of this? I kind of understand the 2 co-pays, but WTF is the deal with the report?! Why the hell would the report to the surgeon not be covered???? Is the surgeon supposed to guess what happened? Sheesh. After all the money that I am having to shell out, I certainly hope that the surgery is approved. The nutritionist requires 2 pre-op and 3 post-op visits for a grand total of $300. Ugh. I have to keep my eyes on the prize, though, and realize how luck I am that the surgery can be covered by my insurance.

We must be reading different boards because I have seen posts in which people list their tricks for making weight. In fact, I have sent PMs to folks asking them for their tricks and they are all too willing to share with me. Some ways include wearing heavy clothes (jeans and sneakers), wearing weights (around the ankles or even in the bra), slouching when height is measured, and even eating salty food (Chinese, specifically) the night before a weigh-in. Also, I recall reading here something about people faking their required 6-month diets or making fake entries in food journals. I am just stating facts. No more, no less.

It sucks that you cannot find a psych. Did the surgeon not give you a name? Mine did. It is not really the money that has my panties in a twist. It is that the report is not covered. What is the point without the report?? Oy my head.

That is not necessarily accurate. My PCP and my surgeon BOTH checked my height. Any ethical doctor would. With regard to ethics, I would steer clear of any doctor willing to do the surgery on anyone who does not meet the criteria set forth by the manufacturers of the Lap-Band. Off-label use of drugs, devices, etc. is common, but it is not right - or legal. Specifically, for Singapore, I know that their health authority (like the FDA in the US) looks to the labeling approved by the FDA for their local labeling, so they would likely have the same criteria as is in the US labeling. Then again, I do see that many people here don't seem to care about that. It is all about how to cheat the system (wearing weights for weigh-ins, lying about height) to get a band. All this said, YOU are the one who will have to live with the consequences of getting banded, so make the decision that makes sense for you.

I had Zofran before...worked great! There is also Emend. That one is used for chemotherapy and for post-operative nausea and vomiting.

I have an update since I last posted this. Long story short, I was remeasured at the surgeon's office and apparently I am 5'3", so the surgeon is moving me forward in the process! He is using my weight when I came to see him the first time. (I have since lost 5 pounds even though I literally ate a whole ice cream cake after the last appointment...go figure...) He seemed pleased that I lost some weight and he said that I should NOT gain any weight from here on out. Today I finalized appointments with the nutritionist, psychologist, and my PCP (to get an EKG and the letter saying that I should have this surgery). Only the nutritionist visit is not covered by my insurance, but all others are. Specialist visits with my insurance are $15, in case anyone is wondering. My surgeon appointment is at the end of September, after all of the other appointments. Depending on how all these evaluations go and my insurance, who knows? I might leave the surgeon in September with a surgery date for October!

Crap. I just got home from my overnight sleep apnea testing. The kid who monitored me all night said I had no episodes. DAMMIT! With my current BMI (38-ish) and no comorbid conditions, there is no way that I can get banded and have my insurance cover it. I have a few options, I suppose, but self-pay is not one of them. The first option is to have my surgeon's office remeasure my height. Their measurement is a solid inch more than my PCP's. If I had the PCP's measurement, I'd be on my way to bandland. The next option is to gain weight to reach a BMI of 40. Cripes. Gaining weight to have a weight loss surgery just seems counter intuitive. Go on yet another f-ing diet only to fail once again is another way to go. Finally, I guess I could just give up and try to be happy as a heifer. I don't care for this option. I am supposed to call the surgeon today and let him know that I had my sleep study. I think that he wants to see me again after that....and if so, I will definitely ask for them to take my height again, during which time I will slouch as much as I can without being obvious. The most annoying parts of this? Firstly, I didn't even get a decent night of sleep. The ninnies kept me up two hours past my normal bedtime, so that messed me up. Then, that freakin' nasty crud that he put in my beautiful hair just vexed me. It was too gross. A little OT here, but I did learn that my Wen Cleansing Conditioner really does work!!! I had my doubts, but MAN, that stuff is awesome. Who needs shampoo anyway? NOT ME!! It got all of that nasty crud out of my hair just like that! Anyhoo....whatevah. I'll just sulk for a little while and then figure out my plan...

At least you HAVE a date! Some of us would kill for a surgery date. Best of luck to you.

Ummmmm...because junk foods are loaded up with grease and they just slide on down? Good question...

OH. MY. GOD. What the hell is wrong with everyone? It is a word. Banning ANY words is absolutely against everything that I believe. In fact, putting bans on words seems to give them power. Let it go, y'all...let it go... If you don't like the word, then don't use it.

How YOU doin'?

OMFG! Ding dongs! :thumbup: That word shouldn't make me laugh as hard as it does... If you're a trooper, you can certainly get the job done with larger-than-average DING DONGS!! I know whereof I speak. :wub:

My PCP says that I have a food addiction...perhaps you have the same? He prescribed bupropion for me and I have noticed a big difference. I started on two tablets and then went up to three. He told me that I could go back down if I wanted to, but I could go back up if needed. I did go back to two and I did notice a difference - obsessing about food!!! I popped back up to three and - POW! - away went those obsessive thoughts. Pharmaceuticals can be a wonderful thing!!

If you have an infection of any kind, many surgeons won't touch you till you're all clear. (not even with a 10-foot scalpel!) If I had an infection, I would certainly not want to any kind of surgery. Your body is trying to get rid of something icky inside of you and it is a little weaker than normal. You want to give yourself the best chance of a successful surgery, right?

Hi, all. I am not necessarily looking for replies...just had to get this out. I also am not looking for pity. If you have been through a loss like this, please feel free to reply or PM. Today I lost my best friend. I have known him for 7 years. We had a disagreement the other day and he does not want to let it go. He said that I am poison to him and that because of me being in his life, he is now a negative person who hates himself. He said he is scared of me and that I make him anxious. He said that I am mean. Next week he is going to see a therapist because I have apparently caused him more damage than anyone ever has. Why would he have kept me as a friend for all these years if that is how he feels? Why the hell did he not tell me? At holidays, we'd always do something together, even if that something was not being with our families. We traveled a lot together all over the world. I have never caused him any bodily harm (or anyone else, actually). He absolutely refuses to talk to me and he even brought my stuff from his house over here and took all of his stuff from my house. NOTE: We were bf/gf for a few years, but have not been so since 2005, but the friendship continued. Also note that he works for himself and I help him with the business. That also is likely gone forever. He knows things about me that NO ONE else knows...and the same goes for him. I have this man in my will, for goodness sakes. He is the sole beneficiary for every last thing I have - including my cats. MY CATS. They are more important to me than anything else and to someone who has no other friends, this is huge. I am devastated and I feel physically sick over losing his friendship. I have to put on a happy face at work, where my job is tentative at best right now...but I am miserable. All I can do at home is cry. I had chicken thawing in the sink for three days...had to throw it out because I forgot about it. It is NOT like me to be so casual about food. Not to be flip about any of this, but another part is that I cannot put a bit of food in my freaking mouth. DAMMIT. I have another visit with the surgeon on Tuesday and LOSING weight is NOT what I need right now. He was also the ONLY person I told about wanting to be banded...and he was to take care of me after surgery (if I actually would get it). Though he was not fat, he would at least listen to my blabbing about the surgery and how much I want it. At least I have the boards here to feel like I have a little social interaction other than at work. Sorry for the rant, but I truly have no one else to talk to. I do not have any other friends, just slight acquaintances. It is hard for me to make friends, but when I do, I am all-in, as it were. I am NOT suicidal or anything like that...and I would never do anything to hurt him in any way. I just really, really want my friend back so very much. If I thought that I could do something to fix this, I would do it. Anything. That is not what he wants, though...so I guess a true friend would just let him go so that he could get well mentally. I'll do that for him, but I would be happier with him in my life again. Oh, and sorry for the lack of composition here, but I am a little distraught.

*sigh* I feel a little better about things after nearly a week, but I still do hope that he comes around eventually. If he did snap, then maybe things will get better, He still has to figure out what will happen with the business, so I know I will hear from him at least one more time. Let's just hope that things work out for us both. It sure is lonely, though. My phone has not rung in days. ((insert crying, pathetic emoticon here))

The odds of NOT waking up from any surgery are quite low. Think of it this way: If you don't wake up, you will never know it. Maybe it sounds a little weird, but it is true!!

I'd find myself someone who likes all of me, including that saggy skin!!!

When I used to have a period, it was tampons all the way. Thanks to Lybrel, that is a non-issue for me. YAY for no periods!!! :thumbup:

Um... Can you clarify what you mean by your "sex hole" because I personally have more than one. :thumbup: If you are talking about your vagina, then say so! Don't be shy. If you can't say VAGINA here, then you have bigger problems to worry about...

If it doesn't feel good, maybe you're doing it wrong. It is all about being relaxed, trusting the giver of said sex, and good lubrication. :thumbup: