Hi everyone,

I just cleared my psych eval on Monday, and meet with nutrition on Friday. I don't meet with the surgeon until Aug 8th.:phanvan Being new to this I have sooooo many questions like how long does it take to get insurance clearance, do people treat you differently after surgery,canyou ever drink alchol after surgery, and what about ur skin does it normally get saggy? If someone could help answer these i would truely appreciate it.

Hi everyone,

I just cleared my psych eval on Monday, and meet with nutrition on Friday. I don't meet with the surgeon until Aug 8th.:phanvan Being new to this I have sooooo many questions like how long does it take to get insurance clearance, do people treat you differently after surgery,canyou ever drink alchol after surgery, and what about ur skin does it normally get saggy? If someone could help answer these i would truely appreciate it.

Ok by no means do I know all of this I can only told you what I have read and what I have learned. First of all, whether you use him as a doctor or not Dr Ortiz has a lap band surgery book that is great to read... check it out it's on Amazon.com. Anyways...

1. insurance... don't know cause mine won't cover.

2. People always treat people different when they change. I think you wil lfind ALOT of positive but be prepared for some people not accepting the new you. Jealousy is out there and unfortunately alot of negativity too. But this has to be about you and not others. I worry more about how my weight affects my kids rather than my brother or friends. (Although making my ex a lil jealous will be nice)

3. Alcohol... from what I read it does differ person to person. Beer is usually a no no cause of the carbonation and the high calories. Many bottled drinks now have carbonation so be careful. Erosion would suck. The other big issue with alcohol is the calories.. empty calories that slide right through. I heard a glass of wine is ok, or even on the rocks. No rum and cokes or mixed carbonation drinks. Personally I will want to celebreate with a glass of bubbly but that will be at goal and hopefully I can handle a lil carbonation then. Drinking too much is just not a great idea when investing so much into the new you...

4. skin... again differs from person to person.. .but one of the reasons i prefer LB over GB is the slower rate of weight loss allows your body to adjust better and less of a chance in needing plastic surgery. It also depends on how much you loose and how you feel about whats left. I am getting a breast aug cause they are big, and after breastfeeding they SAG big time. I am getting them reduced and lifted. They are my best bodily feature and when I loose weight I want them tip top shape. Kinda nervous about Tummy tuck, but a friend just had one (no WLS) and she recovered well.. and looks great. So hmmm maybe, but BA first.

Ok hopw this helps, and remember I am not banded yet, just reading everything I can about it so answering what I know. Good luck... keep reading and ASK all you think of.

Welcome to the site. All of us had lots of questions. There are no real set in stone answers as everyone is different. The main thing is do you really want it? Are you willing to do what it takes? As to the insurance...they are all different too. Mine covered the surgery as they felt it met the criteria for medically necessity. I had diagnosis of high BP, back pain, arthritis and hx of blood clots. I had two doctor recommendations for the procedure. I had to produce 5 years of medical records showing my many attempts to lose weight. But, it was all worth it to me. My husband, children and pets are important reasons for me to get healthy. But the number one reason is me! I wanted to feel better, have more energy and get off meds. I knew I was a walking time bomb for a stroke or heart attack. 2 BP meds and still not controlling blood pressure is not a good thing. I looked in the mirror and saw a stranger. I wanted to be me again. I was screaming to get out of the fat suit. I am almost 3 months post surgery and 31 lbs. lighter. I feel like a freed bird. I have a ways to go...but each step I take is lighter. It is worth the effort I put in it. That is the key. Do you want it bad enough to do whatever it takes?

thxs for the input. My true motivation is to be healthy and be able to keep up with my kids (agegs 5 and 3) but I haven't really told anyone that i'm having surgery except for my mom and a few close friends. I figure alot of people will think I'm sick but most of my co-workers an some relative think I should just exercise more and keep dieting. I know I may have come off as purely in it for the asthetic reasons but I just need to do right fro myself and my family. thanks again

sbee -

I'm in the process of getting approval and I haven't told many people either - hubby, kids, parents and sister and 2 friends. These people all know what I've gone through with weight issues all of my life and everyone is SO supportive. I don't want to tell everyone because I know some will not "approve", and I don't want to have to defend my decision. It's hard though because I'm a very open person and my life is pretty much an open book. I'm excited aobut getting banded and just want everyone to know! Thank God for this forum!