:bored :bored :bored well well I guess this site has nobody from the chatt. area and let me also guess that no body has been banded at memorial hos. by dr. fromm-paynter-or ponce?? Geez I sure feel like the lonesome stud here lol.

I'm also from the Chattanooga area. Not been banded yet, still waiting on insurance approval.

HI,

Yes Ponce is supposed to be one of the best. I was self pay and chose to go to Mexico and have my surgery with Dr. Kuri and his team. WAS VERY SUCCESSFUL and half the price of Ponce.

lots of luck to you summer insurance takes a while sometimes

*~Thanks~*

have you gotten any replys yet are you still wanting to have it done

Yes I'm going to have it done. Just waiting on insurance to approve.

I am from the Knoxville area and I am awaiting insurance approval. I have been denied once and am in the process of appealing. Hopefully I will get an approval soon and be banded by June. I can't wait to begin LIVING my life thus far I have just been existing.

I was banded by Ponce back in 2003 in Dalton. I have lost 120 pounds, and cannot seem to lose any more, I have about 40 more pounds to go. Good luck to you as well!

I'm from cleveland-just over the hill from chattanooga and Dr land will be doing my surgery-- don't have a date et hopefully

Good luck, and I hope you get ypur date soon.. I'm also from Cleveland. Dr Duncan in Atlanta will be doing my surgery on Oct. 2.

Hello! I am living in BandLand now!! Yahoo!!! I was banded by Dr. Sass at Memorial Hospital August 24th. I came home the same day, and have had no vomiting, or nausea. I did have a reaction the the stitches, and they had to be removed yesterday, which made me a VERY unhappy camper...since I told them I was allergic to stitches, and they were not supposed to be used.

Everyone can make mistakes, and I'm not letting this one rain on my parade. I"m ready to kick some booty!!

Good luck to everyone.

I was banded March 20 by Dr Ponce, and he was great! I read a lot of posts about port site pain, and I wouldn't even know where mine is if Ponce hadn't put a padded sticker over the site. It's under my right arm, below my bra strap, a much better location than the chest or breast area I have read about. I lost 10 pounds in the first 10 days after surgery, and am waiting for my first fill date. I highly recommend Dr Ponce and company, they are all very nice. My only problem was going back to work too soon (one week + one day) and making my stomach hurt where the band is placed. It was really uncomfortable the first two days back, and I discovered ace bandages (over an undershirt) applied just enough pressure to my abdomen to ease the discomfort at the end of the day. I bought a long, 6" wide bandage that wrapped twice around my upper abdomen. It helped a lot. I wish I had taken two weeks off work. I think I'd feel better now. Ideally, 3-4 weeks off, doing nothing, is what Ponce recommends for good healing, but it isn't practical for most of us. We work, have kids, have to cook, clean, wash laundry. Ponce said do nothing for one month, I haven't met anyone who was able to follow that. I just take it as easy as I possibly can, and get the kids to help carry things. Good luck to everyone. Cleveland

Hello everybody! I just had my band removed after suffering on & off for 6yrs. The band did help me loose weight but in return i gained health problems. I am 5 days debanded and im just trying to be patient and let my stomach heal back to normal. I still suffer from acid reflux and indigestion symptoms;therefore im still on a liquad diet. my biggest fear is that my stomach is altered forever, but i hopw not. I had my band put in and taken out by Dr. Rose at memorial hospital in chattanooga. If anyone has advice or words of wisdom....please share:smile:

Hi! I am scheduled for surgery on 5/22/08 at Memorial Hospital. Dr Paynter is doing my surgery. I live in Cleveland, but I am from Chattanooga. I was wondering if anyone had to pay Memorial Hospital anything prior to surgery? I know I have to pay Dr Paynter the coinsurance, but did anyone else have to pay the hospital in advance as well?

Memorial, or maybe it's the doctor, requires a nutrition class and a meeting with a counselor prior to surgery. My doctor was Ponce', surgery at Memorial, and I paid the co-pay to Ponce' that they said covered hospital charges and doctors fees. I also paid $95 to Memorial for the class and counselor, which is to educate you on healthier eating and choices, and the counselor to screen for people with eating disorders and such. I am not sure if my fee paid for the anesthesia, so I have to check with Ponce' to see who pays that. I also found that they estimated my fee based on the fact that I had not met my deductible, but I did meet it before surgery. So now I find through Blue Cross that I've overpaid by about $266 or so, and I have to get with the doctor about a refund of overpayment that Blue Cross says I'm entitled to. I hear that some hospitals in Chattanooga require an expensive program prior to surgery, but Memorial is pretty simple and is just what they say, $95.