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I was banded for 2 years, and revised to the sleeve in mid December. Stomach pain is gone, no vomiting, appetite control is in place, weight is coming off steadily. I wish I'd gone this way in the beginning. When I think of the money I wasted with the lapband surgery, the fills and unfills and other medical appointments trying to resolve the problems .....that's the only time I feel sick now. However, follow your own research and go into surgery confident in your decison, whatever it is. Best Wishes!

does arizona state health care cover lap band or bypass and if so what do i need to do and what are the requirements and time line?

<TABLE height=280 width="100%" bgColor=#c0c0c0 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD borderColor=#c0c0c0 borderColorLight=#c0c0c0 align=middle width="50%" bgColor=#c0c0c0 borderColorDark=#c0c0c0 height=20>Kent "Big Boy" Alexander</TD></TR><TR><TD borderColor=#c0c0c0 borderColorLight=#c0c0c0 align=middle width="50%" bgColor=#c0c0c0 borderColorDark=#c0c0c0 height=18>Duodenal Switch </TD></TR><TR><TD borderColor=#c0c0c0 borderColorLight=#c0c0c0 align=middle width="50%" bgColor=#c0c0c0 borderColorDark=#c0c0c0 height=18>Actor (Deuce Bigelow/Charlie's Angels:Full Throttle) - Radio DJ</TD></TR><TR><TD borderColor=#c0c0c0 borderColorLight=#c0c0c0 align=middle width="50%" bgColor=#c0c0c0 borderColorDark=#c0c0c0 height=20> </TD></TR><TR><TD borderColor=#c0c0c0 borderColorLight=#c0c0c0 align=middle width="50%" bgColor=#c0c0c0 borderColorDark=#c0c0c0 height=20>Khaliah Ali</TD></TR><TR><TD borderColor=#c0c0c0 borderColorLight=#c0c0c0 align=middle width="50%" bgColor=#c0c0c0 borderColorDark=#c0c0c0 height=18>Lap Band </TD></TR><TR><TD borderColor=#c0c0c0 borderColorLight=#c0c0c0 align=middle width="50%" bgColor=#c0c0c0 borderColorDark=#c0c0c0 height=18>Fashion Designer - 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hi everyone. i think i originally posted this in the wrong forum, so ill post it here now. i know alot of insurance companies dont cover the sleeve. my insurance company doesnt appear to have the new 2010 code 43775 for the sleeve in their system, but they do cover the duodenal switch code 43845, which is basically the sleeve with a bypass. has anyone here gotten the sleeve done by getting approved for the ds and then only having their dr do the first part of the ds, which is only the sleeve? im curious if getting only the sleeve done this way would work to get the insurance company to pay for it or even if the dr would be willing to do only the first part of the ds? also, there is another bariatric open code 43843 that my insurance covers and that code specifically states "gastric restrictive procedure, without gastric bypass, other than vertical banded gastroplasty". has anyone been approved for a sleeve using this open code? any comments/replies would be appreciated. thanks in advance.

The MOST effective WLS is the Duodenal Switch. I've seen stats on excessive weight lost (EWL) with the VSG as being 70% and with the DS as 80%. You do have to be more diligent with taking enough vitamins and protein with the DS and that surgery does carry more risk than the VSG. The good thing about VSG is that you could subsequently revise to the DS if necessary (although you're likely to be a slower loser if you choose the 2 stage route).

I know exactly what you mean, I don't want to get "the look" so I've thought about it myself. I think the best thing for me to do is to go ahead and tell the truth and to hell with whatever negative thing they think about me. But with that said, if you feel too uncomfortable telling the truth, just tell them what you HAVE done. You HAVE exercised more and you HAVE eaten less. They don't have to know about the band on your stomach. Most people don't understand how the band works anyway and think it's like bypass, and as we all here know it's nothing like it. It's a tool and we have to use it. You have worked hard so don't let anyone make you feel like you don't deserve to feel good about yourself because you do!

My Mom told me today that she really doesn't want me to have the surgery. Her reason is that according to what she's learned most people regain the weight so it just doesn't seem like the surgery would be worth ruining my life for. She also said it was my body my choice. She also said she knew people who had bypass and were just as sure as I am that they could change their lifestyle regain all the weight they lost. I tried to explain everything but just kind of ended with I just don't want to die before I can see my kids grow-up. I'm so heartbroken right now. She also brought up all the doubts I struggle with especially about failure. I want so bad not to be the fat girl anymore. I still am going forward with all the pre-op prep and the surgery in August I just wish my Mom was okay with it.

thanks AdaGray -- I do have, I think, two severe co-morbidities -- HBP, which was initially resistant to treatment, but now seems to be working (after PCP doubled starting dosage). I've also learned from my endocrinologist that I was pre-diabetic a year ago. My PBP didn't say anything about that to me, and my endo thinks there's a good chance I'm diabletic now. I get my blood sugars tested next week. so, taking sudafed spikes HP? I didn't know that ... hmmmm. It's funny, but I was thinking that the stress alone was going to start driving my BP up! I was also desperate enough to think that I could stop taking my thyroid meds for a month and easily gain 20 lbs, which makes the whole point moot, because that would drive my BMI up to 40. I really really don't want to start at any higher weight, though, expecially since my bariactric surgeons are notorious for pushing gastric bypass over the band, and equally notorious for being ultra-conservative with the fills ... Anyway, thanks so much for the info -- please let me know how your approvals go. I am glad that my insurance doesn't force me to document five years back, as that would really be difficult for me. Good luck to you!

Well, skyeblu, you should then read "The BIG FAT BLOG" which is one of blog sites for the size acceptance movement. They are very anti-WLS. The Size Acceptance movement itself, acknowledges that they are having trouble staying afloat as there are so many divergent views about what they should be about, as was referenced previously. As far as being tons of people who are anti WLS who aren't part of the size acceptance movement, I know, I was one of them. I have not been fat my whole life. But after trying diet after diet and gaining more and more weight, I had to give WLS a fresh look. After doing three years of research, I changed my mind about it and found it to be a viable option. Anyway, this thread is about what we think of the size acceptance movement, so that is why I specifically addressed the anti-weight loss sentiment I have found among a group of people who are also part of the size acceptance community. Are all of them anti-weight loss? No, of course not, just like our group has different opinions about what works: some in the WLS community think the Lap band is not helpful and prefer RNY, some like DS, some think Gastric bypass surgery is the way to go,etc. In any group you are going to have different views. As a multicutural female, I have been around people from different cultures and ethnic backgrounds who complain when they are discrimminated against. But it doesn't make it right for them to turn around and do the very same thing to the groups they are complaining about. My point being, as has been my point throughout this discussion, that if you want people to accept you, then accept them. I have chosen, as an overweight person, to use the tools available to me to try to overcome my weight problem. I don't realistically expect the Fat Acceptance community to embrace me, but to be accepting of my choice, as I am accepting of my overweight family and friends who are happy with their weight and choose not to have surgery or to diet. I am very surprised that I am being flamed on a lap band surgery site.

Pretty happy with my progress. Was hoping for 90 down today by today, but hit 88.2. so almost there. Revising my goal down now. Hit overweight last month! People le who haven't seen me in a year aren't recognizing me. So here is that...

I had to have bypass because of GERD.. Barrett Esophagus, & H. Pylori .. On top of that it ended up being open because of a past hernia repair with mesh.. Munky

@weezzee. All symptoms of huge hiatal hernia disappeared after my rny bypass. That was the way to go for me. Good luck

I had bypass done on 1/25 and had a huge hiatal hernia. My surgery took longer than expected, but he said there was no way he could leave the hernia without repair. The hernia repair has been the most painful part of my recovery. The surgeon said I would be really sore and it would feel like I had broken ribs and he wasn't kidding. I was in extreme pain! I ended up with sub. emphysema and my face became so swollen and it crackled if you touched it. I am totally fine now and the surgery was a success. Message me if you have anymore questions. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

I was banded in Sept 08 back east when I was married to my EX Husband. Initially he was against the band because he felt it was going to be too expensive and he didn't understand why I needed to get surgery he felt I should just diet and exercise,exercise,exercise and I could become the 105 lb girl that he wanted with the legs up to her neck. Mind you the body size he had i mind for me and I am 5'4 was the type you see with the women who are 5'7 or taller, longer legs, no butt and pretty much straight up and down. I did advise him that for me it was an unrealistic shape because I would never be 105 lbs nor would I want to be. I was a size 16 when I met him anyway, so he knew when I met him that I was meaty. My goal was to become healthy because I had lost my Father in 05 to Cardiac Arrest, and My Mom had been diagnosed with Colon Cancer months before my surgery and passed away about 4 months after I had my band. Not all Partners will be supportive and try to think of things that they do or things that will help. Right after my surgery I had to deal with the eating of super sized GIANT hershey bars, not the one's you get that are big for one person but the ones you break apart for Smores! He would sit down and eat it right in front of me while watching TV and eat the entire thing. He would bring home the gallons of Ice Cream and sit right there eating away. It was not after I got settled into my routine but RIGHT after surgery when I was even in the liquid phase both pre and post op. Now I did not expect him to stop eating the junk food, but when someone is prepping for surgery or in the liquid phase one could limit the exposure in the house especially if you had to hear how much I needed to exercise and diet in order to give him the figure he thought was the right one for me. Anyway I dropped back down to a Woman's 16 and some 14's in Jeans. There were other issues that came into play into it that could fill a whole other blog on another type of site. I went through the banding, then lost my job, went to school fulltime, my Mother passed away and with all the changes I left and filed for divorce. That was April of 09 and even though it was a very tough year, I moved back home to California. I have backslid because of losing insurance but still about 10 lbs less than my original weight and a size 20 in Women's Jeans. My new insurance paid for a fill, I am back seeing a new doctor out here and got my first fill since 09 last week. I am letting people know that good things do happen and come true, because I also had met a Guy January 1st 2010 who was from Texas. We did the friendship thing first, ended up doing the long distance thing then he moved to California and we have been living together for over a year and a half. We never fight, or argue which my sister finds to be amazing and are best of friends and lovers. He went with me to my fill appointment, which was a first for me and could hear what the doctor had to say about meals, fills, etc even the fearful number on the scale! He makes us Protein drinks and wants to help me find the best foods for US to eat. He even did the liquid diet with me post fill and then pureed things after the fill to make it easier so he joined me in that. This was the type of relationship that I have always hoped for (not meaning food wise), but had evaded me, maybe I had looked too hard. Maybe I had to learn some things about life and experience two bad marriages. He fixed us each a nice Salmon dish tonight, and Loves to cook and is now looking for Band Friendly receipes. I guess the biggest thing is that he Loves me for me whether or not I am a size 20 or a size 2. You hear there are stories where Relationships break up over Lap Bands and Gastric Bypass, I guess I am part of that story however I wouldn't change it for ANYTHING. So to anyone who has a Relationship that is having a hard time stick with what you need to do for you! Don't do it for anyone else do it for yourself. If they want to keep you down, don't let them... Live your life! Look forward to the next adventure! You might just fine what you hoped for all your life!

Hi! Would love to hear about your experience with Dr. S when you're up for it! I'm in the planning phase for LBL, inner TL, revising old arm lift (fingers crossed it can be done!), possible BL with new implants, and possibly UBL later on.

I'm wondering is there anybody in Miami FL who is having bypass surgery I kind of feel alone Lol...

I was in a similar situation. Was banded in June 2013. Started at 289 and got down to probably 240. Had to have a revision surgery due to a leak in my port.went back to my old ways of eating. I weighed a few weeks ago at 266. I totally recharged. Went back and started following all my rules. Exercising every day. Logging all my food getting in my protein .I feel so much better and I already lost over10 pounds in two weeks. So my advice is to just go back to the beginning following all of your rules and do this before more time passes if I can do it anyone can.

Hey! No you aren't weird or crazy. I think you are perfectly normal. One thing you have to remember, you can still eat what you want with the lapband. Your lapband will tell you what you can eat. For instance, I can eat bread but can't eat breadsticks. I used to love them. Also, I was a pepsi addict! I drank it full strength with the sugar...don't care for diet pop...lol Also, with your approval from the parent company the insurance will pay...either way, you won't be responsible for the bill. Also, you are right, you aren't very big. Diet Coke is very good to alot of people and it is a life change. But think of it this way, Are you happy with yourself? Are you comfortable with you?? If you are then this is a no brainer, don't do it. But if you have health issues and have issues with your body and the way you look, then do something about it. Take a little control. God will take care of the rest believe me. I know how you feel. I was supposed to have the bypass. I went through all of the things I had to do. One week before my papers were to be sent for approval I got sick and was hospitalized. I was told that I need colon resection surgery. I got three opinions from three different surgeons and all said the same thing. The surgery had to happen. I was approved for the bypass one week after submittal then waited a month for the colon surgery do to the second and third opinions and the colonoscopy. The surgery went haywire and I was opened up. No laprascopic surgery for me! lol..It took two months for me to heal because a few weeks after the procedure I got MRSA. After I got through all of that, my surgeon told me he didn't feel comfortable with me having the bypass because of my colon surgery. One month later I was banded. It was very easy for me to get discouraged and scared not to mention my husband and family didn't want me to do it anyway. I am banded and very happy. Everything went well Praise God! I said all that to say this, its your life. You only have one, don't let it be governed by fear. Its your responsibility to live your life to the fullest. If you are happy...there is no point to having the surgery..if you aren't and want to be, there is going to be some sacrifices..including Diet Coke... Much love! Keep us posted!

Hi transformer, thanks for posting a thread. I found out i have a hiatal hernia when my first dr made me do a barrium swallow. then i had to do an upper gi where they stick a camara down your throat to take pictures and take samples for biopsies. You would remember if you had one. haha. anyhow it came back i have a huge one about 5 cm and my dr wanted me to do surgery with him but he would either fix the hernia or place the band or switch out to an open gastric bypass which i told him no way. he then told me i could go to a specialist which i opted for. I think i did the right thing as these people seem to have it all together. this dr said it is very important to fix the hernia if you have a lapband so you dont get acid reflux. the other dr has only done about 100 lapband surgeries so i think he is either very conservative or doesnt know what he is talking about. I see you had LBS about a year ago. any regrets? I have been thinking of doing this for over a year now. I am so ready.! No one but my husband is supporting me. everyone else says i can do it on my own and i'm not having that surgery. even my mom. oh well when i start losing weight and looking and feeling like a million bucks they will be sorry. haha. whats the temp in virginia? we just got over 1 foot of snow up here in vt... Newbeginnings

I have the Bariatric Advantage brand Protein shakes now- bought from their website, also you will need Multivitamins and skim fat free milk makes the shakes easier to tolerate. Otherwise it's real thin and hard to drink all the time. I prefer the Isopure zero carb Protein Shakes though and intend to go back on those afterwards. It's better as far as carbs and fat and stuff goes and I liked the taste a tad better. Bout the same price too. I also recommend V-8 and soy milk. :sad: Oh and I have this cookbook which I used and pureed the food during my mushy stage: Eating Well After Weight Loss Surgery, Patt Levine M.D., Book - Barnes & Noble I thought the recipes were tasty though I've only made a few of them so far- and they tell you how much to puree for the lapband or for gastric bypass etc. I have a Blender Bottle and use it every day! It's so easy to make the protein shakes with and is easy to just rinse out real quick afterwards and let drip dry- rather than a blender or spoon to stir with. Otherwise, nothing else comes to mind. Congratulations by the way!

Congrats on the 34lbs! That's wonderful????. I want to do this to get better control of my diabetes. I saw a surgeon but he only does bypass and lapband. I'm currently going through insurance approval for the bypass but I want to switch to the sleeve. Sounds great as far as being on less insulin. How have your blood sugars been post op? I'm scared that my sugar will get low and I'll have trouble correcting it...any issues there? I've been type 1 for 25 yrs. I've got about 60-70 lbs to lose.

I just got my approval for a bypass, now I guess I need to find a sleeve surgeon and see what I need to do to switch to a sleeve with insurance company. Any tips on switching to a different surgery?

Wow, I hope that is not the case! I don't want a bypass! Any type 1 diabetics out here?

I had the same problem with a massively dilated esophagus. Got the fill removed and it got better. Unfortunately I had to have a revision anyway because of ongoing reflux problems.

<img alt="" height="1" width="1"> 'Gastric Sleeve' obesity procedure tested abc7.com, CA - 3 hours ago The most prominent types of weight-loss surgery are gastric bypass and the LAP-BAND. The general goal of these operations is to surgically reduce or limit ... More...