TheLovelyMissJ

I am actually wanting to start a youtube vlog about it :thumbup: I've been trying to come up with a catchy name, but I think I'll just use TheLovelyMissJ :thumbup: Maybe that'll be my project for this coming week, get that going

my doctor has a $200 program fee that pays for you to go through the program - meeting with dietician, educational meetings, and other random stuff they have you do. Half is due at the first consultation and the second half is due at the pre-op appointment a week or two before surgery

Thanks for the well-wishes everyone.

I just got back from my PCP a few minutes ago (have been having back pain and stiffness, and I wanted to talk to him about this surgery anyways, so I made an appointment)

I have good news, and bad news.

so, remember how i was bummed about having to do 6 months MDS (medically supervised diet)? well... I told him about it and he filled out two of the forms. One for our appointment last month when we discussed my weight, and one for this month. He wants to see me every month for the next four months to get this done. He also made some copies of some test results that he thought would be useful to the surgeon. He's really doing everything he can to help me with this, and I am sooo grateful for his support.

I told him I was also ready to quit smoking and asked about the medicine Chantix. He got me all set up for that, wrote the prescription and explained it to me... but when I got to the pharmacy my insurance declined it. Apparently they stopped covering it. I cant afford the $140 a month at this time, so I guess im gonna have to quit smoking on my own

sooo... Im happy but frustrated yet again. Oh well, I'll get through it.

Edited to add- my diet plan for the next month: eat off of a desert plate... no going back for seconds, and my servings cannot touch eachother. Switch to diet pop for two weeks and then see if I feel good enough to eliminate pop completely. Go on a 20-25 minute walk 5 days a week. YAY!

So i just got home from my seminar... wow I have mixed emotions. 1st impression of the Surgeon: he looked like a mortician lol. He wore a black suit and had his hair all slicked back and was very direct and to the point. lol But he did have good things to say and I tried to focus more on the stuff he was saying rather than the fact that he looked like a man you go to after you've passed on. I took my mom with me, she's a nurse and I knew that she would have more insight into questions I should ask incase I happened to forget. I found out that the surgeon requires all lap-band patients to have an overnight hospital stay after their surgury, which is good. I live an hour away from the hospital and was worried about going that far away from the hospital that soon. He also requires a 6 month diet supervised by a medical professional I was hoping to bypass this but apparently its not only his requirement, my insurance is also requiring it. :crying: so I am really bummed, and definatly don't qualify as a september sweetie anymore... it also means that I wont have this done by christmas :smile: It's weird, at first I was like "Hopefully in september" then as september came I was like "Maybe by my birthday" (october 8th) and then, sitting in the seminar, and hearing him talk about the process I was like "Maybe by christmas" and then he dropped the bomb about the 6 month MDS and I almost started crying. I want this done ASAP... tomorrow isn't soon enough. Although, I do understand that he wants me to be as prepared as possible, and my mom is trying to help me see the positive in this delay. I have time to quit smoking. I have time to break my pepsi addiction. I have time to change my eating habits. I have time. Well... dang, to me, its TOO MUCH TIME! If i had the option of having a cigarette or going for this surgery within the week, you can bet your last dollar I'd gladly throw my pack of smokes in the garbage!

Another problem I am terrified of, is currently, I am going to school 3/4 time (9 credits) and working with the state because my son's father ran off and is no longer paying child support, so the state is paying his child support but as part of the terms, I have to get a part-time job. Well I am worried that if I do get a job, I wont qualify for my insurance anymore. So I am terrified about losing my insurance and then not being able to get this surgery. But at the same time, I want to work. I actually am going to call tomorrow to check on my application for a job that I REALLY REALLY want. My mom suggested just adding a class so that I am a full time student, and then I wouldn't have to get a job based on the rules for the state helping me with child-support. But, I don't want to not work, ya know? My parents have offered to help me out so that I don't have to work until after I get this surgery though. I just don't know what to do right now. I'm so stressed and I feel like just crying.

Anyways, I have this book about insurance and the process of getting to the point of surgery from the standpoint of the tests, the insurance requirements, and stuff like that... and starting tomorrow I am going to start my way down this seemingly never-ending list. Call the doctor, email my state worker, look for another class to add to my schedule, check on my application (I really really want that job) ...

wish me luck, please?

You CAN do this LovelyMiss ! believe me.. I have alot of weight to lose.. I smoked 2 packs of ciggs a day since i've been about 14 yrs old.. i needed my coffee and diet coke every day.. and yet.. the need to see myself thinner is overwhelming now.. I have quit smoking all together since 5/5/10,, stopped caffeine completely and have been doing NOTHING but liquids and following the pre op list to the T since last monday! YOU CAN DO IT ! WE HAVE FAITH IN YOU !:thumbup:

Thank you so much Shelly.

I have however found out that I will NOT be banded in september MAYBE october... but oh well, I'm stickin around here anyways

I am pleasantly suprised to see how many of you are using the september sweeties graphic I made for the goup It's weird seeing it all over the place and being like "hey I did that! and they liked it enough to put it in their signature! YAY!" lol

Wow, I have been gone for a long time huh... anyways, a little update...

I go to my seminar tonight, I am sooo excited!

Last night I head a freakout moment... I realized that I had been OCD about my research for this surgury... but I've never even googled my surgeon's name! Wow so I stayed up untill like 3am reading reviews and info about him. I now know that he rides a harley, plays the Cello flawlessly, his wife is an obgyn, he's handsome, and he is VERY good at what he does. Apparently he perfomed a rare gastric surgury on a patient who's intestines were reversed of what a normal person's intestines are. *shrug*

I'm feeling a bit down and worried that maybe i cant do this. I find myself alot with the mentality "I cant have it after surgury, so I'm going to enjoy it now" for example, my Pepsi addiction... its that attitude that makes me think I'm not strong enough for this.

Good Morning everyone! Hope everyone is having a good Monday so far.

I wanted to share about the Jillian Michaels Protein shake Mix... (after trying others before)... its $10 at Walmart for 14 oz container- apx 14 servings, vanilla and chocolate only. Pretty good! No bad after taste (which I found with a few other Protein drinks). VERY filling! 100 calories, 15 grams protein and only 3 grams of sugar and only 1.5 grams of fat! I use apx 14 oz of fat free lactose free milk with 1.5 scoops of the mix and blend it in the magic bullet (it doesn't stir or shake well). recommended serving is 6-8 oz of liquid with 1 scoop of mix.

Lovely- Yeah that really sux about your aunt. It is 6 months of supervised dieting based on SOME health insurance companies, if thats the route you are going. (haha I did my 6 months as required.. damnit I could have had it done already if I knew I wasn't "fat enough for long enough.") I heard of a several people on this site saying they had it within a month or two. Again, it depends on your surgeon and health insurance and other tests you need to get done. Did you go to the Cardiologist, Pulmonologist, Gastrointestinal Specialist, Nutrionist and Psychologist yet? Those "pre-tests" are they only things you would have to wait for really to get started. But you can get those done all within a week if necessary probably. Are you and your aunt going to the same surgeon?

Gale and Cathy- Keep calling! The squeeky wheel gets the grease (usually). Call every day if you have to. There is no reason for them to not at least acknowledge you two by explaining why its taking so long! Thats just not right.

yeah and all of this is stuff I will find out at the seminar. But she thinks she knows it all though... never mind the fact that she's going for a completely different surgery... and with a different surgeon in a different part of the state... lol oh well.

Welcome to the boards you two!

I hope you find what you are looking here

I bet yall are soo excited to just get this done and move on to the rest of your happy lives, right? I know I will be when I get my surgery date!

:cursing: i do! im sorta addicted to my crackberry lol i hope they let me have it in the hospital room! I'll be textin people! >.<

PIN: 313C9621

Love your graphics and thanks for giving us some color.

I see you are in Iowa, what school do you go too?

Thank you!!

I'm working on getting an online portfolio to showcase my artwork. If/when I get that setup, I'll be sure to post a link somewhere on the boards.

I go to a small community college right now working on my AA in Fine Arts focusing on Digital Art, but hope to transfer to ISU next year.

ok another thing I wanted to add... I told my aunt about the surgery today, and as it turns out, she's starting the process to have thy bypass surgery. I was nervous to tell her because she has always been very judgmental of me (not with the weight, but just every decision in my life) Well so she was supportive, and when I told her I was hoping to have it done by late september she started laughing and said "you wont get it that soon, you'll be lucky to get it by march!" she laughed when I said I have been pretty OCD about researching the surgery and said "if you've done the research then you SHOULD know that you have to wait at LEAST 6 months and do a diet monitored by a license professional" it really discouraged me :cursing: I wanted to say "the research YOU have done and the info YOU have is for a different surgery, with a different surgeon, at a completely different hospital in a completely different part of the state. What you have to do is probably a lot different than what I will have to do!"

to get the logo, you should be able to click the thumbnail to bring it up full sized. Then you right click and chose "save as" or something like that. Save it to your hard-drive and then go to your "User CP" and click "edit signature" and there is a spot to upload it. Make sure you check the box that says something like "Add image to signature".

Thank you all for the feedback

I'm also a september hopeful

So hopeful that I wanted to have a cute graphic to Celebrate (I've seen others that have them with their "band-month"

I made one for girls and one for guys. Let me know what you all think. I love doing graphics (its what I'm going to school for)

WOOHOO!! I'm just starting as well. It's exciting isn't!!!

Be sure to keep us updated with how it goes for you!

Hey! I joined this site almost a month ago and have been sorta OCDish about reading as much as I can. I spoke to my family doctor three days ago about the surgery. He sent me for some labs and told me that he would get the referral for me. He was really impressed that I knew so much about the surgery and what to expect

Today I got a call from the surgeon's office and they told me that the first step I need to take with them is to attend an informational seminar. I am going September 8th at 11:30am to a seminar in Cedar Falls, IA. (Anybody else by chance going to this seminar?!) I'm nervous about it so my mom is going with me.

Hopefully I can get this surgery done ASAP because my mother (who will be my caretaker and also take care of my son while I recover) has to have surgery to have her knee replaced, and the doctor told her that her surgery would most likely happen before then end of September. So we want me to get my surgery and recover before she has hers since they say she will be laid up for a long time.