Years ago I talked to my Dr about lap band surgery, we put it on hold because I didn't have insurance. Now that I have insurance (full coverage) I want to bring up the idea again. What are some good tips on how to start my journey with this? And also reading some things about recovery time, does anyone have kids? How was it healing and dealing with kids? I have 3 under the age of five that I care for right now. I know it would be hard but I honestly can't wait any longer.... thank you

Congrats on starting an amazing journey.

I started with my primary doctor and it was his recommendation that I went to the surgeon I chose.

I went to a group seminar through my surgeons office...after that I made an appointment for a consult with the surgeon...got all of my testing requirements and just got started with all of them.

The most important suggestion I would make with all of the pre-op "work" is to first check with your insurance company and see if they require any kind of monitored (supervised) diet. Some people don't know about this requirement and it pushes things back for them by months . Mine required a 6 month supervised diet where I had to visit my PCP each month...weigh in...have a talk...and have paperwork filled out as documentation.

As for kids...I have a 3 and 7 year old. I also have the most amazing and supportive hubby who is an incredible help to me with all of this. I took off the day of surgery and 4 work days after that....so I went in for surgery on a Thursday and went back to work on Thursday. It IS surgery and you need some time to heal...both physically and mentally. In the beginning I was tired and sore (the only pain meds I took was liquid Tylenol)....remember everyone is different...I'm just sharing MY experience.

I was not supposed to lift anything over 10 pounds for about a month or so...so lifting my 3 year old was off limits but we managed. I would sit on the couch and she would climb onto my lap...and like I said my husband was there to help out. After a few days I was feeling much better....the sore part lasts a while but it is very doable.

Wishing you much success in your journey...hope my experience helps you in some way...keep us posted!

I also took a week off. My only kid is 17, so it was a bit easier than with small kids. You will definitely need help with the kids during your recovery. This is a perfect opportunity to rally the grandmas, grandpas, best friends, aunts, uncles, hubby or boyfriend to help. I am very independent, but everyone wanted to help. It was hard for me to let them. (It was weird to ask my boyfriend to do my laundry), but I think our closest people really truly want to feel like they are helping through those first few days.

As for starting the discussion, I looked for a Lap-Band surgeon on the lapband.com website. You can call the 800 number and they will find you one near you who is on your network. My surgery center is a Surgical Center of Excellence for Cigna, but my actual Cigna insurance did not cover bariatric surgery, so I ended up cash pay. i was still glad I was at a Center of Excellence.

-K

Greatly appreciate the replies. Any other information is greatly appreciated.

Perhaps I'm premature with joining this conversation--It's just been 3 days since my PCP and I decided that the lap band was a good option for me. My husband is totally on board and my daughter, an RN, praises me for the decision. I have reservations for a seminar (I attended one several years ago, but I'm sure that there are changes). Now, I can't wait to get started!! I will be "listening" to others to see what I might expect on my journey.