yup, i am about 70-80 pounds from my first huge goal (180/190 lbs) and i have a PS consult tomorrow. i actually completely forgot about it with everything going on until they called to confirm.

i have the appointment for arms and LBL. hopefully he will say "i can do the arms now" and give me a goal to hit for a LBL. dont think i will go with this guy though - no insurance whatsoever... how discouraging... i dont even know if my insurance will help me out, but it would be nice to be able to go to someone who accepts insurance.

here we go ..

Have fun! Force him to walk you through as many scenarios as you can think of -- make a list -- make the most of your time face to face because it might be a while until you get his attention again (calling back with questions rarely works, in my experience, even with my own dad!)

Here's what I mean. What if you go in thinking you're going to lose 80 more lbs and you fully vet that scenario with him. But then 40 lbs from now, maybe you decide you've had enough and you just want to maintain your healthy, albeit larger than planned, weight. Would he recommend different procedures then if you'd gotten to -80? Make SURE he doesn't see that as failure, but as a different set of input to work with. Or, on the other end, what if you plan to lose 80 and you actually lose 110? If you're ok with the possibility of needing a revision, is he ok with that, if you want to go ahead with PS at -80? Or will he only operate once your weight is stable for X months? (I hate that attitude, as much as I understand it.)

These things may not apply to you -- I use them as examples to make my point that you may want to think through things to ask questions, even if you don't think those scenaria are particularly likely....

Fill us in when you're back!

Good Luck on your consult. Ask Questions, Questions, Questions like Julie says. Good Luck on your arms. Can't wait to hear how it goes.

the problem is - no clue what to ask him. i forgot i made the appt and have no research ... bad patient!!

Good luck LJM!

Now, get to working on those questions!!

Let us know how it goes.

Any update from the consult yet? Did anything come up that you were not expecting?

What procedures are you hoping for-- basic lower body lift? with or without "mons"? And arms with "pit only scar"---or regular longer length scar towards elbow?

I have always enjoyed your input, and incouraging posts. Much luck to you on this part of your journey.

Any update from the consult yet? Did anything come up that you were not expecting?

umm ..... yeah, an hour long wait in the waiting room. i walked out. Thanks Dr. R S of Richardson, TX. i am very tempted to post his name, but i wont

What procedures are you hoping for-- basic lower body lift? with or without "mons"? And arms with "pit only scar"---or regular longer length scar towards elbow?

I have always enjoyed your input, and incouraging posts. Much luck to you on this part of your journey.

for now i am looking for arms. i am pretty sure it will have to be the long scar unfortunately..

with the LBL, yes, i will definitely be wanting a mons lift as well. it looks ummmm... really bad :smokin:

i have another consult with a DFW doctor Tuesday. not sure how his work is. i was not impressed by his website, but we'll see.

the great news is - i have a consult with Dr. LoMonico in Houston in March (yes, he is that busy/good). i am hoping to drop at least another 20 pounds by then. loss has been slow but it's my own damn fault. :confused:

YAY! I'm so glad to read that you're going to other consults, desipte this frustrating first experience. I think comparison shopping for this kind of thing is AWESOME. Woohoo!!

umm ..... yeah, an hour long wait in the waiting room. i walked out. Thanks Dr. R S of Richardson, TX. i am very tempted to post his name, but i wont

for now i am looking for arms. i am pretty sure it will have to be the long scar unfortunately..

with the LBL, yes, i will definitely be wanting a mons lift as well. it looks ummmm... really bad

i have another consult with a DFW doctor Tuesday. not sure how his work is. i was not impressed by his website, but we'll see.

the great news is - i have a consult with Dr. LoMonico in Houston in March (yes, he is that busy/good). i am hoping to drop at least another 20 pounds by then. loss has been slow but it's my own damn fault.

He sounds familiar... Does he do any TV shows?

Isn't he the one that they use on Big Medicine?

yeah Dr L is on Big Medicine. he truly is amazing (based on reviews, plus a couple of months ago I emailed his office and he personally responded in less than 24 hours.)

I have a consult tomorrow, need to get to bed.

Good luck to you today LJM!!

waiting for an update from the consult...........

first of all ... shhhhhh ... im NOT posting at work ...

well, this doctor was only 15 minutes late, so i guess that's acceptable.

the receptionist was very nice and pleasant (dr. RS's were not) and just struck up a conversation...

the doctor is very familiar with lap banding and actually knows my LB surgeon. he has been working on bariatric patients for 9 years.

he talked with me about his philosophy about what weight i should be when i have the TT or LBL (about 15-20 lbs from goal) as well with arms (about 30-40 lbs from goal) and i was soooooo discouraged. i expressed my concern and what a pain in the ass it is to run with my belly hitting my thighs and making that lovely 'slapping' sound. we went over my exercise routine, my nutrition and my expectations.

i very bluntly told him that i just need to get rid of my belly in order for me to be able to exercise to my fullest.

he then suggested a panniculectomy. i requested that we make the consult officially about the panni instead of my arms (since i am not 30 pounds to my goal) and off we went...

he drew all over my belly where he would cut, etc... spent well over an hour with me pretty much answering every question i had even before i had a chance to ask it. he was very thorough.

i am impressed. very much so.

the drawback to only having a panni - i will more than likely need a LBL / TT later when i get closer to goal (in addition to my arms), but if i want something right now (i do) then a panni is the way to go.

i think i want to schedule another consult with 1-2 more PS's. but i will discuss it w/ DH who is finally coming home tonight.

did i mention that this consult was free ? yup ... no charge what so ever.

If the doctor supports it, and if your expectations are reasonable (meaning, you get that this is almost certainly an interim step) I say go for it. In all reality, losing, you'll need the LBL at goal anyway, you know? The issue is really whether you think it's worth the money and surgical risk to get rid of the pannus now. It WILL make the LBL easier, so it's not a complete loss in terms of surgical efficiency.

The only other thing to consider is recovery time. That is important. Meaning, you're only 50 lbs from the weight you could do LBL, correct? You could buckle down and lose 50 lbs in 3-5 months -- you really could. You'd have to sit out of running for at least 6 weeks and probably 2 months before you're back to full steam with the panniculectomy. So option #2 is (1) go on and set a date for the arms that is 2 months out. You can lose 20 lbs in that time. By the time you're recovered from the arms, you'll be able to lose 20-30 more lbs within 3 more months, which takes you to LBL time.

What do you think? I'm starting to think the latter makes sense, but I support you wholeheartedly with whatever you decide.

hey Julie ...

i kinda figured you'd say that ..

im at 268.6 right now (no im not increasing my sig weight!!! ). my 'target weight' is 180 + 15 = 195.. 74 pounds from a LBL.

to be honest, i just want it gone. i really do. if i were to be rid of the pannus

and nothing else - yes, even the batwings, i would be ok with it.

i still, however, need to do massive research. not only on the procedure, but the surgeon. i wish i knew what all to look for ...