Bryn

I think that's a great idea! I'm a Lymphedema therapist and i do a lot of massages on people who are post op (for a variety of surgeries). very rare that I do it pre-op. but like Mandyrae said, the movement/touch is phenomenal! It's light, airy and when doing the whole body pre-op, it can take at least an hour if not more! feels delightful and i generally have patients fall asleep just beware that in some folks the massage can make people use the restroom a bit more after the massage because of the drainage, but it just lets you know it's working and your watersheds are opening up! good luck, and enjoy :thumbup::thumbup:

i think some don't like to wear tampons cause they pee a lot because the string can get wet from the urine if there isn't a steady flow and thus causing urine to travel up the tampon. creates a heavy feeling and the tampon can slip down. i've heard that from many people

Yesterday i told a co-worker about my journey for the WLS. I trust him very much and he is a life coach. He kind of made a face and went through "you can do it through exercising etc" and I respected his opinion and he offered to lend me exercise equipment etc but he supports me And it feels good to have people support you

I think that is a good idea Mum! I have m consultation with Dr. Long on Sept 16 A while away but will be worth it

If you don't mind me asking, why did you get denied twice? according to majority of policies, folks with a BMI of 40+ are generally approved. did they state the reasons? sorry, i'm just curious

On 8/19/10 I had a meeting with my PCP and from the 2 months I saw her last, I had researched WLS. I always told myself WLS would be a last result, and at that time it was. I asked her about the surgery and she told me it may benefit me but to contact a Bariatric Surgeon I googled a surgeon in my area and up popped Dr. Cynthia Long. I liked that she did her surgeries at my preferred hospital of choice and she was local to me. She also had great reviews from what I read. I called her office to set up a consultation but was promptly told that I needed to attend a seminar on WLS before a consultation and I thought that was fair. On 8/25/10 (today) I attended the Seminar held by Dr. Long. I found her seminar to be very informative and she was very up front about how serious all surgeries are. Plenty of questions asked and all were answered professionally. I was very impressed. Now that the seminar is over, I can't wait these measley 11 hours to call her office and set up a consultation :wub: I am super excited!

Hi WantingHealth! I too am in Maryland and I went to Dr. Longs' seminar tonight. very informative and she seems like a great doctor. also seems like she's a no nonsense kind of gal which is nice. she's very personable in my opinion and I can't wait to get a consultation in with her the seminar was at Holy Cross (which happens to be my preferred hospital choice) the seminar is informative to the point where she will straight up tell folks that if you don't exercise and eat properly, you will not see results and she can't emphasize that enough. she will stay til every question is asked and no question is off limits for her. for the consultation though she did tell us that there will be a fee of $450 which covers the time b/c they can be anywhere from 45 mins til an hour or more and it covers education and nutrition. she said she had to start it last year because folks would make appts, and then not show up so she had an open slot of an hour left with no patients to see so she said she needed to charge that fee she basically accepts most insurances and she will tell you how long each has a period of waiting approval (like 3 or 6 months) if ya need any support or just wanna chat, I'm here! I'm calling tomorrow to schedule a consultation. good luck!

Haha, thanks for the replies everyone. Makes sense now!! :-)

Oh no, I am sorry to hear this. Try and get your doctor to write to the insurance company on our behalf, you never know; maybe after the doctor submits it they may cover some. Or look into financing options. Don't give up!! Good luck

Tampons durin the time I am up. But I prefer pads at night cause during night time pee I may forget I have a tampon in

Thank you guys! I just researched my works healthcare plan and i discovered they do cover the surgery 100% if found medically necessary so that is good news to me. I will talk to my doctor more. Thanks!

I use her dvd at work during my lunch break! love it

I am in the beginning process of learning and waiting to find out if i'm a good candidate for the lapband. I have yet to have my first bariatric consultation, but already spoke to my PCP and going to a seminar this week. I have not told anyone but my sister and my bf about my wanting to get lapband. My sister is supportive (just hoping she doesn't tell my mom just yet) and my bf is completely supportive. I'm not telling anyone else about my interest because I'm not sure how they'll react. and I don't want to get too excited because i'm not even in the complete process yet and don't want others to feel bad or feel sorry for me if i don't get the surgery

the lady at lane bryant is absolutely right. shapewear/any type of support material should never be worn long term/constantly. it starts to compensate for your muscles working and you can lose elasticity in your skin if it is constantly banded. just think of it as your muscle going into atrophy. when someone wears a cast for 6 weeks, they lose muscle strength. same way when someone uses a shapewear. if you're gonna get it to wear under certain items of clothing, fine...but it should not be worn everyday. and it most definitely does not firm anything!!! hope this helps

Hi everyone, my name is Bry (long e sound) :smile: I have been researching the lap brand procedure since about a year ago. I always told myself that even though I am obese, i would only consider it as my last resort. I am currently 25 yrs old I weigh over 250 lbs (i still can't come to terms on how much i weigh :smile2: ) but anyhow over the years my PCP and I have been monitoring my weight/diet and my co-morbidities that have creeped up. I have high bp, was diagnosed w/ sleep apnea a year and a half ago, and my bmi is well over 40. I also have Polycystic Ovarian syndrome which doesn't help making me lose weight any easier. But I've been going to the gym and dieting like no crazy and i am for sure a yo-yo dieter. my weight can go down 20 lbs in one month, then go right back up w/in three months even when i continue the same routine. it kills me and my doctor tried to console me and help, but i finally broke down and mentioned the LAP-BAND®® procedure and she thought it would be a good idea to sit in on a seminar and find a bariatric surgeon. So i did just that and I am attending a seminar on august 25 and I'm completely nervous. I'm thinking about taking my bf with me, he's completely supportive and understands my struggles. I've been creeping around this thread for the past few days and i'm completely impressed by everyone here and their success stories. It's nice to know that there are others out there who are experiencing the same thing and aren't embarassed to share their stories. It's so weird because i guess i've been in denial somewhat for years at how fat i actually am. I'm constantly active, have a great social life, i have a job that is physically demanding but i've never felt the effects of being "fat" til recently. I'm more sluggish and completely body conscious. but anyhow, I'm ranting now and I am glad I found this site. I'm ready to come to terms with my ordeal and I'm hoping that I can get through the process and hopefully i'm approved after all is said and done and i can begin to be happy again.:biggrin:

Thank you Ravey, I stayed up last night to read her blog and her youtube videos. amazing, thanks for the advice!!!