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Hey Jess! After reading your comment, it sounded a lot like me. I was considering the surgery and worried bc I haven't been to the doctor in years and "my insurance won't pay". What insurance do you have? In most cases your insurance requires 2 to 5 years of medical records, but you can use your jenny craig as records too. Don't be discouraged! I'd look into different weight loss surgeons in your area. You have nothing to lose! :thumbup: Good luck!

I too am playing the waiting game! I have BC/BS of Nebraska. They show that it was received on September 24, 2010 and according to them it could take up to fourteen days. I hope it doesnt take that long, like the rest of you I am sick to my stomach everyday waiting for the news. Any advice of finding out the determination early or do you just wait for a call from the doctor or a letter from the insurance company?? Congrats to all who have been approved!! and Good Luck to those who are waiting. Kim

I totally agree with you. It's definite BS. If I pay that much I better be getting a personal chef to take home with me and prepare all my meals for the first 6 months. LOL

Well I hated the scale as well especially with it at 323....the month before the surgery once a week I hated seeing the numbers....after I lost my first 20 I was so excited....as it continues to drop I'm excited ...just not happy for that plateau to come.....I have had 3 fills I'm at 6 ccs right now and I don't think I'm gonna get another fill for a few months doc said I was losing to much to fast.....not because I'm not eating but BC I'm do much more active gym 5 days a week ....lots of water....n more aware of what I an eating.....learning how to eat again n what u can break down is an adventure .....but we can all do it...my friends don't really understand what we are going thru....but by chatting in here keeps me so motivated ....don't give up people...

Thanx ladies...chicken has also been a problem .....anything crunchy seems to b great lol......bread is slowly getting better but I'm not tempting it often lol.....as far as exercise I'm going to the gym n doing the elliptical n treadmill n I'm also playing on a softball team.....I'm gonna start swimming on mon and alternate that with the gym....trying to get rid of the flab before it gets to bad..... I had to go n buy some new clothes bc everything was getting way to big...so I buy a pair of jeans n sweats and deal with them until they become big n do the same thing over so like once eery 2 weeks I have to get something ....so ladies don't go crazy buying new clothes all the time it can get expensive lol....n please get rid of all the big clothes we don't need anything reminding us of the excessive weight we HAD lol

Adding to my list: When you tell someone to use the search, knowing that there are over 1000 hits and they come back with some snarky bs about searching and not finding anything... like, yo, I know how many hits there are, because I searched before I told you to search, so nice try asshats.

Claud - they thought we were getting too big for the other thread - then we complained and he reopened it but since we moved here I guess this is where we will stay... until they lock us up again. :pray2: Va - guess what? I'm going to be in Richmond on 2/2 - how far are you? I'd love to meet you for lunch. My son is doing a mixed martial arts - jujitzu thing (LOL - whatever!) at the Showplace Annex - it'd be so cool if we could get together. Although it'd probably just be for an hour or so since I'd have to get back for his competition - but its a thought. Think on it. Well that is if you're close to it. Anyhoo - so I thought you got a new job, the one with the travel woes? What happened there? I don't understand men either. I guess he may be healing a broken heart (like our own sweet Bman) and he's afraid of another relationship. Did you all email Natster and tell her to come home? I'm at work again - and I hate it - I'm so lazy, love sitting around in my pj's all day and do puzzles. I did walk 3 days in a row and the nurse at support group says that you burn more calories when you walk in the cold bc you are breathing in that cold air and so your body has to work harder to warm it. Does that sound logical?

Hey girlfriends!!! I've missed you!!! It was a great week with my family all here.. and the baby!! He's 4 months old. Geesh.. time flies! Do you remember this time last year I was telling you all about my great-neice who got pregnant? She was just 16, well it ended up she married the guy (don't get me started) but she's very happy and has this beautiful little boy. I was very proud of her and what a good mama she is. As for the rest of the family, my mom will be 80 next month and she looks wonderful, gets around great and will probably live to be 100. My neice who is 35 has gained weight and wants the lapband so bad but she's no where near qualifying. Its so flipping weird that her and I are the same bmi - but she is in that age where everytime she loses 10 lbs she gains 15 back, I really feel for her - been there! As for my weight loss - they were all going on everyday how good I look. We'd be in a store and my sis would say, omgoodness I didn't even know that was you, I can't get used to you looking so thin! I came out one morning in my pj's and my neices said you look so small! It was so nice having them here for my ego's sake. Everyone around here is used to my weight loss so it was a week of encouragement for me. They think if I get a tummy tuck I shouldn't need to lose anymore weight. I go next monday for my 2nd ps visit - unfortunately I've only lost one pound this month - yet that might be a good thing bc he said they want to see that my weight is stable. So I guess I'll just go in and tell him I'm at the point where I'm only losing a pound a month. And truth is I'm ok with that, if I lose a pound a month for the next 2 years thats another 24 lbs and I really don't want to get any smaller then that. So where has everyone been? I thought I'd have 2 pages of posts to read and there were about 5. Bman - girl you are back on the right track - sounds like you got a good job and maybe there'll be more room for advancement with them. You also are getting a new start with new people who never knew you before wls. Thats got to be cool. I'm just so happy you are back and posting, you are one of our pillars and we really miss you when you are gone. Nat - you too! We miss ya when you are gone. I'm glad you got the p'rot -:laugh: - how's the little man? Its snowing today, I have to go into work but when I get home I might pull out the skis. Nikki - sounds like your little man is growing good. Its getting close now, are you ready? The nursery is painted? How was the time with sister, did dh survive without you for a week? Jill - I was always so tired the first few months too. Take a nap whenever you can. And take those pg vitamins! do they make them any smaller now? Yuk I remember these big old horse pills they gave me. But its important. How did things work out with the sitter situation? Boo - I'm glad things are good on the homefront. Make up sex is always good. :smile2: I can't wait to hear about your ps appointment - fill us in! Sweet - how's the knee? One of the members at the club is a big runner and he told me that good shoes are a MUST! He gets new ones every 3 months, he jogs everyday. Va - whats up girl? How's the job hunt, love life, family life? I haven't seen any posts from you for a long time. Claud - when do you leave for Chicago? You have your apartment already, what about a job? Did you get that one you interviewed for? All you missing in action steadies - post and let us know how you are doing. We've been here over a year, lets keep it going another year or 5. My dd had a Fine Arts competition over the weekend, so we were looking at past performances and I came across one when she went to the national convention in Fla, Aug. 2006. On the tape we were at a picnic and I was HUGE - I had the shelf butt and everything! My sister and well everyone watching said NO WAY!!! I can't believe thats you! I don't remember you looking that big. My sister said Steph you really look fat, I don't remember you looking like that, it must just be the video. I said you guys were here for the wedding, which was the month before, I was fat. I was fat. Its so funny how we forget and the people who see us everyday forget just how fat we really were. 65 pounds is alot of weight, if we had to carry 2 - 25 lb bags of dog food around all day we'd be exhausted, but we were doing it. I think anytime we get discouraged we should go back and pull out an old video, pics - whatever and remember how far we've come. Ok - long post and now I have to get to work. I love ya girls!

My ps appointment went really well. He sounded like insurance would approve me but first he'd like me to try to lose as much as I can in the next 4 weeks. I said like 10 lbs? And he said wow that would be great! He is submitting it as an Abdominoplasty and see if the insurance will pay for that, he sounded like they will, and if not that then the Panniculectomy. He said the main thing we want them to do is pay for the hospital stay bc you will be under general anthesia. He had asked me all the questions and I had told him I get like an athletes foot fungus and blah blah and he said that was all good bc we want to prove to the insurance that its not just a cosmetic thing that I need it medically. This dr was way better then that other one I had gone to see. He was all about the money and this guy today never once brought up money, today he was all about insurance. Afterward I ran to the store and bought a bunch of frozen dinners - and I plan on doing the pre-op diet as much as I can this month to get my scale moving again. I go back on Feb. 25, I feel good about this.:tt1: Va - sorry to hear the job fell through. Bummer :frown: I don't know about the guy, friends with benefits isnt' so bad kidding! Did you have fun skiing? And wow - to have ex's comment on the wl is the best!! Good for you!

Geesh! So is that it? You don't go in again? I think you could probably fight it, since you were going to another meeting and that was why you punched in from home, and since there was bad weather and you couldn't make it then they should be able to just adjust the time. Do they pay you for travel time? Because, legally, if you are traveling you should get paid for it. Had you gone in to the branch near you and clocked in then left for the meeting they are required to pay your travel time. Are you going to sign up for unemployment? I just attended a Labor law seminar last spring and and they said as an employer you should never deny benefits, only bc if that employee files a complaint it can bring an audit. Even if we fire someone we dont' deny their unemployment, and we already pay the highest rate since we are seasonal. I'm not happy with my pay either, I'm the office manager and yet I have all the responsiblities of the clubhouse manager. But since I am the office manager I know that theres no room in a the budget for much more - its just that the golf pro makes 3x what I do and I do most of his job, I think they should give him a pay cut and give me the increase! I'm sorry it all happened, keep us posted.

God is good. my surgery went well. the NYP Cornell weil team was stellar. I was sleeved on june 8th. down 17 pounds. initially it was 20 but gained back 3. I've made a few posts and have learned that I may have been prematurely concerned about he WL. The day after surgery was ruff, lots of vomitting; however, all tests displayed my anatomy was ok. After the naseau meds were adjusted, i was feeling good. I never took the pain meds prescribed after my discharge. I have a little incision pain- but nothing major. I am working to increase my food and liquid intake bc I am not having BM like I should.

Polly - my heart goes out to you. I recently had my band removed due to a slip. I had horrible pain, vomiting blood - just awful. Like you, I was discharged and sent home without a real plan. The comment - "well, you know how to eat now, so this should not be a problem". HAHA..BS..I knew how to eat when I got my band, I just chose to eat too much and the wrong stuff. My band stopped me from doing those bad things and now it is gone. I feel empty (and not from food). I am trying very hard not to put weight on, but it is impossible. I am walking, writing down what I eat, not drinking with my food...the whole deal, but I am up about 5 or 6 pounds and I don't see an end in sight. It has been less than a month since I lost my band and I feel lost ! I don't know if I will be able to get any revision since I am not exactly fat anymore. I do still have the plication that I got when I got my band and that is supposed to help me..so far. My stomach feels bloated and I am not being a good girl in the food department. I see my doctor again next week and I am really hoping he can give me some type of guide to get me through this dark tunnel I feel I have entered. I had my band almost 3 years and it did work..now, I am not sure what lies ahead. Good luck and keep us posted on your progress. You aren't alone in this one. Melinda in Florida

Omg I am schedule to have surgery this Friday June 28th and I am still asking myself if I should get this surgery done bc I don't have my medical conditions but just fighting with my weight my whole life losing gaining like yoyo did you have your surgery already how do you feel? Sent from my SM-N960U using BariatricPal mobile app

I've been reading some old post on those of you that have Mirena for heavy bleeding. I'm wondering if there is anyone that it didn't help with this problem? Has anyone had weight gain since getting put in? Have you noticed a change in how fast your losing weight since you had it put in? And, this may be awkward...but how do you check the"threads"? I've looked on the Mirena website and can't find that...it says your healthcare provider will show you how? Do you check the threads monthly? One of the older post someone states that her partner didn't like nuva ring because he could feel it? Has anyone had there partner tell them they can feel it? I've had my tubes tied since 1990.....never had any reason to give bc a second thought.... there are so many different choices now. I was only on the pill for 3 years before I had my daughter and not quite 3 years after...same pill both times and weight gain was the only problem I had with it. So, that's my excuse for asking dumb questions...naive. Ruth

Gotta put this story out there I guess, to try & prevent more horrible outcomes. I went to Emmanuel clinic when it was not very busy. I found it to be an easy surgery for me to recover from & I am now 72 (this was last September BEFORE all the flurry of infections came out.) I trusted and believed everything my coordinator told me and I especially trusted Betancourt. I have since found out he in very mu*****ontrol of everything down there, and a lot of it is coverup and lies. Yes he is charming but charm is not what you are paying for. I even argued FOR them and posted to the nth degree refuting everyone who had negative things to say about them (the whole experience) I even talked my daughter and sister to go down and have their surgeries done, that is how confident I was. Fast forward to middle of January, I went with my family and for a few days had a very nice time. Dismayed at the size of the new clinic, and I was even more dismayed that Dr Almanza was so over-booked! My sister Linda went in for her sleeve after 10 pm at night, the 6th of the day! I was worried about that as it was so overcrowded in the clinic and so little room for anyone to maneuver, but held my tongue as we expected the best outcome. To make a long story short, my sister became very ill while there at the recovery house, Betancourt said it was gas pains and continued to give her pain control shots. She was in no shape to fly home on the Friday as booked, they caught the fact she had a collapsed lung and severe dehydration and she went back in for intravenous saline and oxygen, but they assumed there was no leak because of their tests. BUT THERE WAS, a centimeter nick out of the stomach high up near the esophagus, and when the housekeeper took out the drain, fluids gushed out of Linda's body. the housekeeper just cleaned it up and said nothing, so we assumed things were OK, no leaks. She was in rough shape when I flew home with her on Saturday. She had to go to the hospital in Edmonton shortly after she got home as she went into septic shock, had a collapsed lung again, severe dehydration and kidney failure because of it. They operated on her for four hours, and ended up with flushing out her body cavity - over a liter of pus!. She was near death and was for well over a week! We were devastated to say the least.. Slowly things have improved since those first weeks passed, but she was in critical care for about 6 weeks until she could breathe on her own and not need a ventilator to help with that. The infection spread and caused all kinds of porosity in her stomach and esophagus. To date she is STILL in the hospital in Edmonton, still being fed intravenously and with a feeding tube directly to her gut, while waiting for the last hole to heal in her esophagus, they did insert a stent but haven't tested it for leaks so far. She had a large hole in her abdomen due to all the 5 ensuing body cavity flushes they had to do every other day in the beginning weeks. It is healing and she will need two further operations, a skin graft and a hernia repair on the incision site. We do expect a full recovery but only after they test her stomach out with real food, which can be weeks away yet. She has lost her job, her income of course and a good chunk of her life due to this facility's operation. Safety should be your main concern, Betancourt and Almanza's "stacke'em and rack'em" policy is not doing anyone any favors. Dr Almanza, as nice as a man he is, is now a partner and profits are what it is all about now it seems. There have been many (20 I heard), complication tales from there since December, most were too sick to tell them themselves but are known to many of the coordinators. They all distance themselves from those, chalking it up to normal rate of complications. They have to do damage control, it is their JOB, and Betancourt controls them! Doing so many surgeries a day in my opinion is SO NOT SAFE! Do NOT believe the other Drs listed in the PR for their new website are actually doing surgeries there yet, as Dr Almanza wants the extra surgeries for himself mainly. Spend the extra now and go to a safe hospital down there, spend the $4000 more to save yourself from becoming another Linda, with hospital costs being what they are in the US I would think that would be more important than the up front extra now to save months of hospital and surgery bills as well as your lost income from your job should things go wrong. Check out my photo albums for a picture of me visiting Linda in the hospital in Edmonton last month when I was there. Sorry Linda, I had waited for you to tell your story but you can't sit up long enough to type it out on the computer and people really need to hear this! All of this is true and I am so sorry I doubted everyone that had problems there, even John who's wife wrote of his experience was pretty sick the day we drove to the airport with them and he ended up with infection and in the hospital. It was extremely busy the day of his surgery too. I am not saying that you won't have a good experience, but why risk it if you don't absolutely have to, is all I am saying, there are WAY too many stories like Linda's from that facility to ignore!

I got a call yesterday that they are starting the process...but from what was mentioned here, it doesn't bode well for me that I have BC/BS

Hi, I am also in Regina, Sk. I am pre-surgery - getting my surgery in Mexico so that I can skip the waiting. I am curious to know what kind of help you are getting from the bariatric program? Is it the same old "eat less and exercise more" kind of bs? Cuz we all know how well THAT works! But seriously, I would love to know what kind of diet they want you to follow, since I don't get any pre-op assistance at all. I think I have to do fluids only for a week before surgery, but that's all.

Dream on, son! What do you have that I'm jealous of? Oh, yeah, 75 pound weight loss! :regular_smile: Even if we all went into together, we'd STILL be rich!!! Wahoo! We can shop at Lenox and Phipps then, Leslie! They really do have great ice as does Zaxby's. Do y'all have Zaxby's? Must. stop. thinking. about. chicken. I'm starving on this liquid diet BS!!

He got that suit in college >20 years ago and never wore it bc he quickly outgrew it. He was ecstatic to wear it, but I agree it's too big He's still struggling with wearing smaller clothes. It's all mental and I admit it took me a while too.

Thanks to everyone for the wonderful feedback. I am going to be poking around this site to find out more information. My concern about having children was mostly the timing issue. I am almost 31 and have to go through the 6 months of classes prior to my surgery. From there, I have to meet with a surgeon and a cardiologist (because I have a history of blood clots and had a very minor heart attack when I was pregnant). In my first class they told me that I would have to be on BC for 18 months after the surgery. That will make me about 33 when I can start trying again and I really didn't want to wait that long to have children. But hey, if I have to get healthy first, I guess that is the best way to do it (by waiting). Again, thanks to everyone for the feedback.:glare:

Kity, money no option...PARIS!! Okay, on a more realistic note Toronto would be nice, but it's getting hot here(i'm in TO) and will be boiling in august. Are you into natury things in a very beautiful and relaxing enviroment? If so, Tofino on Vacouver Island(BC, lol). As a Vancouver native I think that's the most beautiful place I've ever seen in my life(well, besides parts of Europe). There's this really really REALLY nice hotel there(Tofino Accommodation | Prime Tofino Whale Watching | Wickaninnish Inn that's what it really looks like!). And the town is the cuttest thing ever, surrounded by old growth trees and little coffee shops to tuck away in. It's pretty easy to get to, fly to Vancouver or Seattle and then hop on another flight right into Tofino

It's true. I blame his bs the reason why I smoke. He is easier to handle baked and that's when we get a long. I have an idea what our therapist will say tonight and I know all fingers won't be pointed to hubby. Ooffa

I know...I realized that after I hit reply. Thing is I'm hungry and know why I havent lost just by looking at my food journal. I need more restriction but I wonder if I am gun shy at the first hint of restriction? Up until recently Ive had no food intolerances (except tough meat) and can eat most things. Will have to see how this so called fill works out. And guess what? Bc I was getting a tiny fill they used a smaller syringe and they didnt withdraw the fluid Dr V says Im ahead of the game bc on average people loose 60% of their excess weight and Im (and you) are over that

Jay, I'm so glad you finally posted. I was hoping Singing would somehow get your input. Let me begin by telling you both that this band hasn't changed--in any form--my compulsion for eating. The only thing separating my weight loss from yours is my ability to stop being such a perfectionist. During one of my many stints at Weight Watchers, I remember a leader telling me we're all perfectionists or we wouldn't be overweight---we all suffer from the "start on Monday" or "I made a mistake so the day is shot" syndromes. Jay, you've made a lot of progress lately that you failed to acknowledge in your post. Even if you've been able to keep record of your calories or kept certain behaviors under control for a little while, you've at least made those attempts. I hear both you and Singing saying something similar---that you both have huge responsibilities that are overwhelming. Let's be honest---none of us wants to be fat or we wouldn't be in this situation. You've made a commitment to yourself long enough to be banded---but other responsibilities have taken the focus you once had on yourself and placed it elsewhere. Jay, I'm really glad you've continued to go to the support meetings. Even if they haven't helped you lose weight, I hope they have helped you to realize that we're all very similar in most facets of this experience. I wish I could give you all a magic potion and make this go away. Honestly, I remember so well numerous times in my life when I believed I'd rather eat myself to death than have to face this horrible fat life for another day. Jay, I know we've talked about counseling---and I do recognize many people don't believe in it, but I hope you'll talk with someone--if for no other reason than to understand why you're eating and maybe the triggers in that. If you can isolate and avoid a few of the triggers, it will at least give you a small sense of control. Let's not sugar coat this---we all have major control issues or we wouldn't be in this position. It's how you choose to address those issues that separates us. I found that staying on a nearly liquid diet for the first year worked for me. Yep....sounds drastic, but it worked. I needed results to keep me going. I couldn't deal with the frustration of having had this and not losing weight. I couldn't fail at this too. I've certainly failed at EVERYTHING else I've tried. I just hope that Jay and Singing come to realize that we all have far more in common than things that separate us---but the thing that determines whether or not you're successful with this is whether or not you eat and the quantities you consume. It really is all mathematical. Sure, there are factors that will vary, such as how your body metabolizes food, but we were subjected to so many tests prior to surgery to be sure there aren't metabolic or physical reasons for our obesity. That leaves only 2 other reasons---psychological and behavioral. I think you'd find---even if you had GB, you'd be patients who eventually gained the weight back. Until you change your eating behaviors, you'll never have success. You've heard it a million times, but the band is merely a tool to provide you some control. If you choose to circumvent it (consciously or unconsciously) then it won't work. I share your frustrations and believe we all do. I have the utmost respect for your honesty and your willingness to put yourself out there and share your stories. Most of us won't do that. I appreciate it more than you know. Jay, I believe that acknowledging what is really going on is one major step in facing this demon---and you've been working at that. While YOU may not notice the change, the past few meetings have been progress. Every time we see you, your attitude has changed slightly. You can BS about what you're really doing behind closed doors, and only you know what's really going on. If you want support and help, we're here for you. I hope you'll come to realize we're not all about butterflies and smiles. We're fellow fighters in this battle who have had some amount of success with the same fight. Good luck---face this one meal, one hour at a time. You'll have far more success if you cut yourself some slack. :thumbup:

Hi I'm also from nepa (Hazleton) and I am going to Lehigh Valley for my 6 mo. now hoping to have my surgery by the end of Oct. My PCP was glad I did not choose Hazleton.Said there has been quite a few problems with them recently. The staff at Lehigh is really great and I recently had other surgery there and the hospital was great, too. I didn't know about the bc/bs change. I have Highmark BS and wonder if they changed too. Unfortunately I already paid for my 6 mo pre op and am half way through. Good luck with whatever u choose.