Brian-LA

Hi stephanie24p ! Yes I am also fairly new to this site and hope to get all the online support I need too. My surgery date is TOMORROW !!!! Egads! I am still trying to make sure I have all or most of my post op stuff ready so I don't have to leave my house for a few days until I feel good again. This is a great site / forum with a lot of great people just like you who are going through this journey together. Worried or full of questions - ask here or in the Post Op section I am sure someone will be happy to answer your questions. -Brian

Hi Cathy- " You know Brian if you keep talking like this you will have every single lady on this thread contacting you. " Thanks for the complement but I am not actually looking for a date.I am just like everyone else here - just trying to get better / healthier. I am glad to hear you are happily married with a wonderful daughter. You are very fortunate. It is interesting you said your husband is 25 years your senior. My friend is 14 years older then me ! Age is just a number. You said you can drink easily and haven't eaten yet... BUT how is the hunger. Are you hungry or do you sometimes feel hunger? I am just starting my liquid diet before my surgery on Wednesday and BOY DOES IT SUCK !!!!! Here's to a Better Life ! -Lillyegg: Hi ! My dinner went well / she is supportive. I only wish things were different. Oh well such is life. :smile: -Brian :smile:

Hi All, -Cathy: I am glad you are getting back to normal. How is eating / drinking BTW ? Do you feel the band in there ? I hope all is well and you have a a great Saturday. -Danide: I wish I was so lucky ! But in reality I am pretty lucky I have a good job that pays me way too much for what I do. And in actuality although my health insurance does not have any whatsoever bariatric benefits ... it is still extraordinary health insurance. I am part of the Motion Picture Industry Health Plan and although we don't have bariaitric benefits it is pretty great everywhere else. Doctors and Hospitals LOVE to see my health insurance card. Of course I wish I didn't have to pay $16,000 but it will be worth it. -Lillyegg: Hi ! Well I didn't ditch her because I didn't really land her. We are " special friends " but as much as I do Love her she won't commit and maybe its for the best. I do tell myself I should move on and maybe I will. But yes we do have a Saturday night dinner date and I have told her about my upcoming surgery / I won't be going out with her to dinners / lunches or breakfasts for awhile and when I do it will be about two decks of cards worth. :biggrin: If I find that my " relationship " with her is making me go sideways I will have to be something I am usually not - selfish and ditch her. I always look out for other people and try to help them and not help myself - I am usually the guy who gives and gives and gives but I think it is my time be a little selfish and take care of myself first for once. -Newbs: Yeah I feel exactly the same way. You mentioned about how when you are with friends that you sometimes feel you don't fit in. I feel that way almost all the time. A lot of times I feel like a fraud or just an observer in life and not actually taking part in it. I think in the last decade I managed to take myself out of society so much that it will take some herculean effort to bring me back into it. I sometimes feel like I have been in solitary confinement since I graduated college. I have slowly been coming back into it but it is ever so slow. I think this is probably why my friend who is a pretty extraordinary woman and is beautiful inside and out probably doesn't commit or go further in our relationship. She is waaaaay too good for me. She is waaaaay out of my league. I don't have a league. I am not even playing ! At this point I wouldn't commit either and I wonder why she even spends any time with me at all. But I will get better both inside and out. It will just take some time. :scared2: -Brian :thumbup:

Hi CSinTX ( Cathy ), How are you feeling post surgery ? I am glad you are down 5lbs. It is just the start ! I got scoped on Wednesday and they did find a small hiatal hernia and my surgeon will correct it when he does the lap Band. I am a little apprehensive today - 5 days from surgery. I have yet to start my liquid diet. My surgeon just says 2 days ahead of surgery - I will probable start tomorrow night. I am prepping my place by buying my protein drinks and getting rid of any and all food. I live alone so I can sanitize my place. I am wondering if I should go to a final dinner with a special friend ( woman I am in love / lust with but who triggers some emotional eating ) or just flush my old life / get ready for my new start. Decisions. Decisions. arrggggh. -Brian

Hi Danide, I am in the same boat you are in - I have to self pay for my Lap Band too ! You are being banded the day before me I will be banded on Wednesday. I also have to pay $16,000 for my band. I am a little apprehensive about paying $16,000 it is a lot of money and I am going thru Care Credit so by the time I pay for it it might end up costing me $22,000 ( I will probably pay it off quick to lower the total ) . BUT I want to change my life so much and get this horrible burden of obesity off me it is worth it. Obesity has effected my life so much I don't even know or can I comprehend a life without obesity yet. BUT it has to be much better. I know its effected my self confidence in great ways. I am not a bad looking guy but I have had no luck with women at all. Even with excess pounds good looking normal weighted women look at me / talk to me but my self confidence is so low and I feel so horrible that I just blow it constantly. In the last couple of years I have gotten most of my life goals and I have come together pretty well but I suck socially. I have a good job and make good money. I am a nice guy and very dependable. I have gone from entry level at my job to among the top levels at my job of a couple hundred people in a couple of years time. But I still suck socially and I have a weight problem. This is one of my final obstacles in life. I know it isn't going to be easy but I know in the end it will be worth it. -Brian

My surgery date is Wednesday Sept. 8th. Today I am going for my endoscopy ... I wonder what that is going to feel like. I am still on the fast track for the Lap Band. From seminar to surgery in less then a month ! I have started to stock the fridge w/ various Protein drinks. So far MyoPlex Lite / normal, Adkins and Costco Premier. So far the everything is good except the Adkins does kinda suck. :biggrin:

I don't have my Lap Band yet but my surgeon says he puts it in the belly button to hide it. -Brian

Hi Gwen, What happened ? And as my post asked ... would you still give Dr. K. a good recommendation ? Your reply didn't really say. -Brian

Hello My Fellow Sept. Bandsters ! I am Brian & I live in Los Angeles, CA. I started my LAP-BAND® journey on Wednesday August 11 and I have a surgery date of Wednesday Sept the 8th. I am about 5'7" and 250lbs. I have been overweight almost my entire life except for a few years in Army ROTC in college. UNFORTUNATELY my insurance does not cover the LAP-BAND® so I will be Self Pay. It sucks but I figure it is worth it and I desperately want to change my life now and get this weight off once and for all. My Surgeon is Dr. Michael Feiz of Beverly Hills. He stopped counting his LAP-BAND® surgeries after 1000 and he does 10-15 a week. I have gone through a general physical, blood work, x-rays, psych eval, nutritional counseling and I have a appointment to be scoped on Wednesday. Things are going extremely fast and I do have some apprehension at the speed of it all but I also am sick and tired of being obese and want to get on with my life. I have accomplished a lot of my life goals in the last few years and my weight and my social life ( or lack of ) are my last goals left.

Wow some very fast and nice replies. Thanks Reverie, Mom and Isa Bella for the warm welcome. I just came back from my surgeon's office... man the wait can be long ( he was late / at Cedar Senai ) !!! Anyway I feel much better and much more assured about the surgery. I am self pay and I only started on August 11 after going to a small seminar and now I am only 2 weeks away from surgery hopefully ( I still have to go my my GI Doctor this afternoon and get an appointment to get scoped before surgery ). Hopefully everything passes muster and I can get on with it. Anyway I was feeling like I was caught in a whirlwind from a seminar to basically being almost operated on in a little over 2 weeks. After meeting with my surgeon I am very assured. He has done well over 1000 Lap Bands and does 10-15 a week. His Beverly Hills Office was nice too and the staff very helpful and answered many of my unanswered questions. Well I am off to the GI Doctor now. I will be here often to see and write to many of you. THANKS -Brian :biggrin:

Hello Everyone, I am Brian from Los Angeles, CA. I just turned 41 yesterday - yikes ! and I am currently in the process of getting the LAP-BAND® hopefully. I have had a general physical from my primary care doctor and had a lot of the necessary blood work done, I had the psych eval - passed ( it was pretty super easy - I seriously wonder who can fail - Jeffrey Dahlmer ??? ), have the chest X-rays 2 days ago, go to my GI Doctor today to hopefully be scoped next week and HOPEFULLY be banded on Sept. 8. I only started this process about 2 weeks ago. UNFORTUNATELY although I have extremely great medical insurance they don't cover Bariatric surgery yet. So I will be self - Pay and as you can see self pay means I can have the surgery pretty fast. I am about 5'7" and about 250 lbs. I am 39 BMI but I do have type 2 Diabetes and I am sick and tired of being overweight. It has had a dramatic effect on my life and self confidence and I am in desperate need of great change. I have accomplished many of my life goals in the last few years but I have yet to defeat my weight. And I know weight has had a bad and major effect on my self confidence and self image. I know I can do better and will do better. Well this is just my short intro - hope it didn't make you run for the hills. : ) :biggrin: -Brian

Hi GDF, My sister had a gastric bypass w/ Dr. K. You seemed to have been a big Dr. K. cheerleader but then I see on your tag you got banded BUT then you had to have it repaired after you wrote these posts. Do you still have a great opinion of Dr. K. ???? I am curious because although I have another surgeon my sister would like me to see Dr. K. Just curious.