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Hi BC, thanks for seitan recipe. I had never heard of it. Im not one to use tvp but love my lentils. I saw a few other interesting recipes on that website. Thanks for the link.

I had 7 & was told it was bc of adhesions. They couldn't get a good angle on the camera. Three C-sections will do that I suppose. They are very small & at 10 day post-op they're all healed & 2 I can't find anymore. My biggest one is the only noticeable one & it's right in line with my belly button which is a little bit of a bummer. I can live with it though! IMHO, it's the 2 week liquid diet that has been the challenge. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

You have been doing your pre-op diet for FOUR months? My hat is off to you. You and I actually have the same starting weight. I was 291 when I first saw the surgeon last June. I'm down to 243 now, which is awesome bc my surgeon didn't think I was a great candidate for laparoscopic at my starting weight. He now feels I should be able to have the surgery laparoscopically without difficulty. Sent from my iPad using the BariatricPal App

@@BCs 1000 Congratulations on your awesome results !!! How wonderful ! And thanks for sharing that the weight comes off in spurts, but with time, the result is great. If not for my damn thyroid disease, I would have been sleeved July 2015, last year ..... Oh well, it wasn't meant to be, so I am in recovery now. 7 weeks post op. Cheers

@@love4life @@Apple85 Hi there How did your surgery go love4life? I live in east Tucson and both my husband and I are patients of Dr.Monash. We have BCBS Fed and hubby was approved really fast. His surgery is May 2 (sleeve). My case was submitted on Thursday (4-21) and I'm a nervous wreck. I have a lap band and want the sleeve. Monash is very very against doing both in one session and that is quite disappointing. I know safety is most important, but I will beg him to do it if I am approved, lol. All the dozens of times I've been in that office, I have never seen Dr. Lovato. I wonder if she does revisions in same surgery. Would love to hear from you both and any other Tucson Bariatric patients. ~Susan

Thank you. Yea I figured I needed to do that BC I haven't had a movement in a week.. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G750A using the BariatricPal App

Per Comment 17 and the Blogspot: One BS alarm for me was the misrepresentation that no insurance pays for bariatric surgery and the expense for everyone is totally out of pocket. MOST insurance pays for a great part of the cost of surgery, if not all. In that regard, I got my sleeve for $150. By the way, I am 2 1/2 years out and far healthier and happier than I was with a 53" belly.

I'm going to scold you for that, Miss Reverse Scarlett O'Hara. She was nearly force-fed before the picnic at Twelve Oaks so that people would only see her eat like a bird, i.e., a proper Southern lady. You bent over backward to eat more than you would ordinarily. Where's the sense? To mix movie metaphors, be a lion, not a mowess. I hope that means your insurance is friendlier about plastics than others and that, if you decide to go that route, you'll be spared having to get letters in support from every doctor you've ever known, personal trainers, tailors and all the rest.

That seems like BS to me. There are TONS of people on these forums who have been successful with sleeve after having their bands removed.

Thanks yall. The reason I asked was bc my husband was like...ummmmmmmm shouldn't you be losing more weight? I thank yall and congratulations on you alls success!

I am in a lot of pain from the gas it was really bad yesterday I'm filling a lil better today but very tired bc I can't rest jam up every hour on the hour walking for 10 min I have been able to eat just been drinks by Water I don't feel hungry or anything so far I'm happy I did it no regrets yet Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

I just got the call from my Drs, I was approved by Highmark BCBS. I'm so excited! I was so nervous bc I do have a BMI under 40. So my journey continues!! My surgery date is May 10th!!! This has been the longest 5 days of waiting ever! Haha!

Isopure and Fairlife kept me fed during my first month. I am over the clear Protein, but Fairlife will be a staple for the foreseeable future. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Thanks DJMohr for your honesty. I'm trying to make a good decision between bypass or sleeve. I'm not wanting the dumping and stuff that goes with bypass but I also think if I eat the right things and stay on the recommendation diet I should be fine. No matter what I chose I think it definitely is a journey that is for sure. VSG Ann I think you are exactly right. My friend doesn't want to face changes perhaps , I know she wants the best for me, and is worried about my safety and health, but I've had other obese friends in the past make fun of my diet or worse enjoy reminding me that I will just gain it all back again, as if I'm just a fat failure. Hearing from all of you has helped so much. Thank you. I'm planning on this forum to be my number one support! I always feel better when eating healthy just have to find other rewards for life and stress mechanism. There is such a blizzard of crap food shoved at us every day in commercials, ever notice how all the people in fast food commercials are in shape and young? What BS. Thanks everyone and keep writing!

I have BCBS Fed, and I started 4/14 and will have surgery the first week or two in August. The only thing I have to do for my insurance is the 90 day diet. I've had the psych, weight history etc. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Just got referred last week to Dr. Sampath in Bc. Apparently I will be contacted in 1-1/2 years. Ok expected that. What can I do to prepare? I know you need to log.your food, I guess.it.won't hurt to start now, anyone know a good program for that or pen, paper? Take a health class? Therapy? Any suggestions.. I'm very good at loosing 30-40 lbs but not keeping it off. What if I loose too much before my.1 st meeting scares me because maybe I'll be denied Thank you for your time. Cheryl Cw 260 45y Sent from my D2206 using the BariatricPal App

Some of my favorite staple foods, which change I find overtime based on what my body wants have included: Organic or non-GMO project certified yogurts-the higher Protein the better. I always put granola and/or berries in my yogurt. Nuts: cashews, walnuts, almonds Cheese: high-end, grass fed, snobby cheeses LOL The occasional Protein Bar. Fruit: bananas, berries, oranges, pomegranate seeds, pears, apples Occasionally, some soft cooked meat coffee with Protein powder.

Not really if love to drop another 20-50 but that might be some of the skin I want to have removed... the 10 lbs didn't bother my skin I was just super excited about loosing it bc of the being stick for so long Sent from my SM-N920V using the BariatricPal App

Maple Ridge BC Sent from my D2206 using the BariatricPal App

As of yesterday, I am [NewSleevedKellyRN] The only set backs were, I had to be discharged with a urinary catheter bc my bladder hasn't completely woken up. No N/V, just a lot of gas pain. Been walking alot to move the gas. Look at me! !!!! I am at the beginning of my new Life NewSleevedKellyRN

I have acid reflux sometimes like maybe once a month. But also could it be that there's less of a revision rating bc there's nothing really to revise to? Except the duo switch but I hear that has alot of complications and you basically have horrible diarrhea for the rest of your life so not many ppl want to revise to that Sent from my SM-G900T using the BariatricPal App

@@kmorri how do I know which one is the primary? Of the two policies I currently have, I had the exchange policy first if that means anything. Since both are BC/BS will they automatically know about the other?

OK Now, where did I leave off... March 10: Second half of my nuclear stress test. This one was even easier than the first half. I had radiactive dye injected but nothing that stimulated my heart to simulate excersize. I was injected with the dye and laid on the table for the scan. Quick and painless! March 12: Echocardiogram today. I was laid on a table and the tech used the thing on my chest that they use to take pictures of babies in utero. It took about a half hour and was totally painless. March 15: Saw my surgeon again and he informed me that he had clearances from most of my dr.'s. He explained the procedure to me again. Essentially they put 3-5 holes in my abdomen, fill me up with air to blow me up like a balloon and give them room to work. They insert the tools needed into the other holes, lift my liver off my stomach and cut 80% of my stomach away. The removed portion is supposed to contain most of the stomach which produces the hunger producing hormone called ghrellin. This helps the body to not feel hungry but does nothing for pcychological "head hunger". The nurse checked my weight, down about three pounds, and he sent me on my way with a return appointment made for 4/5. I'm not to sure why they require all these appointments! March 17: Follow up with the cardiologist. Half day off work and another copay just to learn that my tests were normal and I was in the office for about three seconds with the Dr. He wished me well and I reminded him to send an approval note over to the surgeon. March 22: Follow up with the nutritionist. She covered the exact same things as in my first visit! I guess this counts as the "nutrition counselling" required by many insurance companies!. She showed me little plastic pieces of food that were sized to the size and weight I'm supposed to eat once healed from the surgery. She suggested eating on a small plate to trick myself into thinking I'm eating the same as before! The fake salmon on the mini plate was about the size of an old fashioned matchbox. There was 1/2 cup of fake green Beans and 1/4 cup of mashed potatoes. I feel skeptical that this tiny portion will leave me sated but I plan to work to get used to it! I think this was also the meeting she told me to buy and start taking bariatric Vitamins. She reccomended chewable optisource vitamins, which aren't bad and are intended for post surgery patients but apparently also helps the body be ready. I suck on them like a hard candy until they are dissolved. April 5th: Back to the surgeons office! I feel like this was a wasted visit, except, he gave me a date! Intitially he said we could look at a date in June. I objected to that and said that my work schedule would be better suited to an early May date. He gave me a date of May 9th and said as long as my insurance company signed off, we'd be good to go for then. In an earlier visit he was concerned that my diapragmatic hernia repair and incisional hernia repair might interfere with his ability to perform the sleeve. He was able to get the surgeons notes from those other surgeries and after review said he felt cautiously optimistic that he could perform the surgery without old scar tissue getting in the way. Apparently he gets a tad nervous when other abdominal surgeries have been performed. If scar tissue has adhered to the stomach, things can get a bit dicey. I don't tend to scar much so I am going to try to not worry about this much! April 5th: Another two birds with one stone day! I also saw the bariatrician who informed me that all approvals were in, including the psych review-I talked about that, right? Hmmm. Looks like I may have missed that! I was worried about the psych eval because I, like many here, have a food addiction. It's real and I have battled it since I was a wee tot. I am also an alcoholic and I was afraid that the Psychologist would consider me too high a risk for realpse. Either with food post surgery or with alcohol since I will no longer be able to feed my addictions with food. I talked to her at length about that and she felt comfortable since I have been sober six years and intend to increase my meetings post surgery. She gave me four long questionnaires and talked to me for over an hour, She asked lots of questions! Anyway, I'm all approved from the medical side! Now it's all about the insurance! April 5th: Ha! this was actually I three bird day! I saw the nut again in the afternoon. These appointments have been a real pain in the arse but are necessary and I just set them up and knocked them down one at a time. The nut just really talked to me about the pre-op diet in more detail today. I get 800-1000 calories a day all in liquid Protein for two weeks prior to surgery! I'm not too happy about that since the Surgeon had said i would get a Protein shake for dinner, one for lunch and then a small dinner of lean protein and veggies. I told the nut that the surgeon had said that and she said that I was mistaken. I wasn't, but I'm not here to argue. Lets just move along please! So I plan on using Muscle Milk since it is approved and I sell it at work, so I can get it for real cheap! 4-5 of those a day and nothing else. April 8th: Called the woman who handles the insurance submissions for the practice to insure that everything had been submitted to the insurance company. She assured me it was sent the day before and that i should follow up with them in a week. April 19th: Today! I waited a bit longer than a week and today "chatted" with BC?BS IL through their website Chat feature. The person I chatted with said that the information was just received on the 14th and was still "pending review". This leads me to believe that either the insurance coordinator sent in the stuff a bit later than she said, or the insurance company actually received it a bit sooner. In any case, not much of a discrepancy. I asked how long the review takes and she said that their official time frame is 30 days. That would be a problem since it is after my surgery date of May 9th! But she also said that it usually only takes 7-10 business days. I am glad I contacted both parties as that might help keep things moving along. 7 business days from the 14th is the 25th and I intend to contact them again then. I want to stay on top of this in case they need more information that I might be able to get them in time to keep my original surgery date. I am very nervous about insurance approval! I am afraid that since my main work policy didn't cover bariatrics, that they might not either. Or that they'll determine I wasn't eligible for an exchange plan in the first place and they shouldn't have sold me one! But they Did amd they have been paying some of the pre-surgical bills , so I'm hopeful. Still, I worry. A lot. Oddly, my work insurance changed again as of April 1st and this new policy DOES cover bariatric surgery! But since I've come this far with my exchange policy, I'm sticking with it unless I get denied, then I'll resubmit to the new insurance company which is BC/BS of NC. Until then I'm on pins and needles. I'll keep you posted.

Hi 45y I just got reference sent to Dr. Sampath on April 11 2016. Excited new journey. Nice to meet you all. Ps I'm Maple Ridge Bc. Sent from my D2206 using the BariatricPal App

I have to have my mind made up in a few weeks and I'm still so unsure if I want to have bypass or sleeve. My surgeon says I'm a good candidate for either and left the final decision to me. He initially suggested sleeve bc it's less risky and less invasive. I started this thinking I wanted bypass then was talked to about the sleeve and now I don't know. I'm 25, have a very high bmi, and a goal to lose 250 lbs. I have mild sleep apnea, and PCOS and had my Gaul bladder removed in 2011. Any advise, opinion, or success or even failure story would help! Thanks! Sent from my SM-G900T using the BariatricPal App