<p>Hello everybody. I'm looking for people who had a BMI of less than 35 before surgery. I'm 5'6" and 207. I aready have Diabetes, high blood pressure, high Colestoral and hypothyroidism. I have lost about 10 lbs since the Doctor put me on meds but the weight loss seems to have stopped. I ask my doctor about having lap band surgery, her answer was I'm not fat enough. I then ask what I can do to get off all these pills she has me on, her answer was to lose 60-70 pounds and become a vegan. Now I have been trying for most of my life to lose weight, how does she think I'm going to do it this time? I feel like Humpty Dumpty.<img src="http://www.LapBandTalk.com/images/smilies/help.gif" border="0" alt="" title="Help" smilieid="256" class="inlineimg" /> I just want some help. I have yoyo'd up and down from 180 to 220 for almost 20 years now ( since the birth of my first child) Has anybody out there have any words of wisdom for me other than push my self away from the table?</p>

Hi Crystal, I can understand that you are frustrated with your current weight, but I don't think it is ethically correct to lie to your surgeon. If you are wanting to lose weight why are you planning to put it on over December? Just to qualify?

It is best to be honest at all times in your dealings with your surgeon and other health professionals.

Susannah

hi Susanah,i though about what u said and i want to be honest,it is more simple,but do u think any surgeon will accept me?In december i will have the money i need for the surgery,if i had the money i would go right now,it's something i truly want and need.I will try to be honest with my surgeon,if he will reject me i will try another one and lie.U are right,i should be honest.Thanks a lot for your advice!

omg I dont think Id EVER want to have AN kind of surgery in India-now granted this is a kneejerk reaction and I have not done any research on the facility or doctor but I have been to India and just dont rank it up there as being medically cutting edge so please please please make sure they trained under someone with over 300 lapbands and they have been doing it awhile.

hi Susanah,i though about what u said and i want to be honest,it is more simple,but do u think any surgeon will accept me?In december i will have the money i need for the surgery,if i had the money i would go right now,it's something i truly want and need.I will try to be honest with my surgeon,if he will reject me i will try another one and lie.U are right,i should be honest.Thanks a lot for your advice!

Hi Crystal, I know it is such a battle we fight with weight. There are surgeons out there that will help you if you are upfront with them. I think that they realize that diets don't work statistically in the long run. Just be honest and let your surgeon know that you are really struggling with losing weight and that you need the surgery to keep your weight down for the rest of your life. I wish you lots of luck with it.

Susannah

from what I understand is taht in the US it is law that you can not have the surgery if your BMI is under 35 and that is with helath peoblems without health problems the BMI is 40

It sounds like thet are trying to change it to be 30 but right now you may have trouble finding a GOOD doc because you are under the requirement by law I would be very carefull if a doctor says he would do it. CHeck him out lots.

My BMI was 47 so I was fat enough my insurance did say I had to be 50 before they would pay for it but they did end up in teh end paying for most of it

Good luck

You can get a lap band in Mexico, even at a lower BMI. If you know your never going to loose it on your own, why wait till your toppling the scales at 300. Wish I would have save myself the years of futile struggle and just gotten the band when I was thinner, but I just kept telling myself I could do it on my own and I kept getting fatter.

I would be VERY carefull about going to Mexico I am not trying to start a debate but the US has the health guidllines and the costs are there for your own stafty and you can find lots of people on the site that has had horriable luck some with good luck but I kind of look at teh horriable experiance on going to Mexico

I feel like my life is more inportant than trying to travel to Mexico to save a few bucks you also will need check ups and you can ot for get the cost of that travel

All I am saying is be very carefull

So many Americans have these crazy stereotype ideas about health care in other countries. Its not like you're going to pull up to a taco stand and have Pedro open you with a greasy kitchen knife. There are some VERY highly respected docs in Mexico. Dr. Ortiz is the one I have chosen. He very well published and even has even published a book on the lap band.. He's taught all over the USA, even at Yale University. He's a member of every important American Professional Organization and he's done over 4000 bands. He's even been featured on the Discover Health Channel. You'd be hard pressed to find a more impressive resume in the USA and he's half the price. The main reason USA docs charge so much more is because the hospitals charge so much for using their equipment. The exact same equipment they use in MX for less. Its all about doing your research. There are good and bad docs everywhere.

<p>Hi everyone. I had a BMI of 35 when i had my surgery. I weighed 217 and am 5' 2". 2 1/2 years later i weigh 129. I was just featured on my docs website at Obesity Surgery,Adjustable gastric banding . click on amazing results and then see Eva S. I encourage all of you to do this, no question about it. it truly chnaged my life.</p>

So many Americans have these crazy stereotype ideas about health care in other countries. Its not like you're going to pull up to a taco stand and have Pedro open you with a greasy kitchen knife. There are some VERY highly respected docs in Mexico. Dr. Ortiz is the one I have chosen. He very well published and even has even published a book on the lap band.. He's taught all over the USA, even at Yale University. He's a member of every important American Professional Organization and he's done over 4000 bands. He's even been featured on the Discover Health Channel. You'd be hard pressed to find a more impressive resume in the USA and he's half the price. The main reason USA docs charge so much more is because the hospitals charge so much for using their equipment. The exact same equipment they use in MX for less. Its all about doing your research. There are good and bad docs everywhere.

hi all,i've been trying to lose some weight these days,but i failed today,i feel horrible,i am diaspointed.I will keep trying until december,i have 5 more months.If i won't succed then i will have the pad band.How much did your surgery cost?I am not sure if a doc from my cuntry will agree to operate me,so i am thinking about going to another country.Keep well everyone!

My BMI was 37 when I was banded. I also had multiple ankle and back problems that would not heal with my weight being what it was. My insurance wouldn't cover the surgery, but they wouldn't have covered it under any circumstance, no matter how high my BMI would have been. Every situation is different. Good luck.

My BMI was 37 when I was banded. I also had multiple ankle and back problems that would not heal with my weight being what it was. My insurance wouldn't cover the surgery, but they wouldn't have covered it under any circumstance, no matter how high my BMI would have been. Every situation is different. Good luck.

in my country the insurance doesn't cover this kind of surgery so i will pay for it.here it costs 4000 $,so i need to know prices from other countries.hope to hear soon from u!

Mine was $15,000. What country do you live in?

In Mexico the cost seems to range from $7000 to $10000, with most surgeons being somewhere in the middle. In my experience, all of them are flexible with their price. Also, many have several different patient brokers, you will want to keep email people asking for prices. One person might quote you $8K for Dr. X and another will quote you $9K for the same doc. Keep a record of each quote and the docs name. Once you find the lowest cost, call and try to negotiate a better price. Dr. Ortiz, usually charges $9500 but he is having a sale right now for $8500. If you have good credit there are lots of med credit places. Some offer 0% interest for the first year or two. There are all kind of programs out there. You can also choose to itemize your tax returns and write off the entire surgery. The government is now allowing us to charge off any weight loss programs from surgery to jenny Craig. There are a lot of Mexican docs that lye about their experience and credentials, so do your research.

I found that you can find docs in the US for about $10K to $11K. If you cant stand the idea of going to mexico, they are a nice alternative. The hospital in detroit charges only $11k, through belite.