I am a little further than half way to goal, and my lap band surgeon said that he wants to see me in 20 lbs and then I should have my consultation with a plastic surgeon. I was banded by dr. Spivak in Houston and he reccomends dr. Heller. I was wondering if anyone had used him, and any advice or anything they would like to share. Thank you!!

Talk to Wanda Chase who is the director of Dr. Spivak's wellness program. Call Dr. Spivak's office and ask them how to connect with her. There is also a patient of Dr. Spivak's who posts on here and just had surgery with Dr. Heller. Her screen name on here is enterprise01 . . . Go to the plastic surgery thread and look for her thread on there . . . I'd give you the link to it, but I don't know how.

Wanda leads the support groups at Dr. Spivak's office on Tuesday nights - she is very open about her surgery and I am sure would be happy to talk to you.

Dr. Spivak is my surgeon too, isn't he the best?!!!

Here I am. http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f12/enterprise01-s-brachioplasty-liposuction-44174/

I've been pleased with Dr. Heller. His staff is attentive and responsive, too. We won't be able to see the end result of my brachioplasty for possibly as much as 3 months, but so far, I'm happy. And do talk with Wanda. She had both a tummy tuck and breast lift and will most likely be glad to show you the scars.

Please make certain that your ps is board certified by the American Board of plastic surgery. My gf had complications from tummy tuck in houston and learned after the fact that her doc was not trained properly!! I had no idea anyone can advertise they are a plastic surgeon in texas! My lapband surgeon told me that I need to be careful about advertising, impressive titles, tv shows and all that smooth marketing. I'm looking to find a PS in Houston with the right credentials and experience. I want someone trained in the US who is board certified and has lots of before/after photos so I can see their work. any suggestins for me? I'm new to houston -

newbie! :cursing:

Please make certain that your ps is board certified by the American Board of plastic surgery. My gf had complications from tummy tuck in houston and learned after the fact that her doc was not trained properly!! I had no idea anyone can advertise they are a plastic surgeon in texas! My lapband surgeon told me that I need to be careful about advertising, impressive titles, tv shows and all that smooth marketing. I'm looking to find a PS in Houston with the right credentials and experience. I want someone trained in the US who is board certified and has lots of before/after photos so I can see their work. any suggestins for me? I'm new to houston -

newbie! :frown:

Mandy,

You raise a good point about making sure your PS is board certified. I would add 2 more criteria for choosing your PS:

1. Member of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) - Board certification is only one criteria for being a member of ASPS. They also have to go through a selection process, meet a certain moral and ethical standard, and mainatin continuing education through conferences , lectures, etc. You can check to see if your surgeon is a member of ASPS at this link.

2. Specialize in body contouring after bariatric surgery - As you all know, your body goes through tremendous changes after lap band surgery. Many of these changes are unique to bandsters and very very different people who lose weight through diet and exrecise alone. Your PS should have experience with bariatric surgery and be experienced with massive weight loss patients.

Safety should always be the first priority. Be selective in your choice and choose someone qualified to give your the results that you want - in a safe manner.

I would suggest meeting with Dr. John Lomonaco also!!! I just met with him yesterday and he is fabulous. He spent a little over an hour just talking to me and making sure I knew exactly what was going to happen, etc. He is VERY sympathetic to post bariatric surgery patients and specializes in that type of surgery. I'm scheduling my appt with him today for a breast lift and some lipo, I can't wait!! Oh, and his prices are VERY reasonable.

So now that I have met with Dr. Heller, he told me that I could very well have the surgery tomorrow. I wanted to lose and additional 20 lbs before, which is perfect b/c my surgery date isn't till mid august, but I am finding that it is so hard to keep motivated b/c I could do it tomorrow.... does this make sense or have I finally lost my mind? I have come so far and I DON'T have so far to go what is wrong with me??????

Good luck, I am Dr Spivaks patient also, yes I think he is great,, you can email Wanda at spivakbandmd@yahoo.com she is always willing to answers questions for you. Dr Heller gives talks at her support meetings every so many weeks, I havn't been to that one yet but I am sure I will meet him at the next one. I was only banded in March.

Hi, Everyone! I'm worse than a newbie -- I've been reading for days, but still havent't located a doctor. I'm in the Clear Lake/Galveston, Texas area and of course would like to have my procedure as soon as possible. Any and all help will be sincerely appreciated.

Linda,

I highly suggest you schedule a consult with Dr. Lomonaco, he's VERY sympathetic to bariatric patients and he makes you feel totally at ease.

I'm sorry...I guess I should have been more specific. Isn't Dr. Lomonoco a plastic surgeon? I am still trying to find a surgeon for the lap band procedure itself. Thanks so much for your reply. I have an appt. with Dr. Spivak, but he is out of network for my insurance. I've been on the phone with them all morning, but apparently I'm just supposed to call random dr's out of the phonebook, then call to see if they do the procedure, then call insurance to see if they are in the network! How does one get one of these jobs where someone else does all the leg work anyway? Sorry...venting. Anyway, I need to find a good Dr. who is in the Houston/Galveston, Texas area to do the lap band procedure. Please forgive me if I am on the wrong message board. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Linda,

If you go to google and type in "lap band surgeons houston texas" it will pull up a bunch of docs. Dr Spivak was my doc and he and his office staff are awesome, I don't know anyone who has used any of the other docs in the area. Hope this helps.

Thank you, Brandy. I appreciate your reply. Have been googling everyone. Spivak is apparently the best, but out of my network. Another name came up, but he is my former dermatologist, so I don't think I would trust that.

hi linda

if you go on the main lapband website Home you can put in your zip code and a whole list comes up.

thats how i started my search. i ended up finding spivak on lapbandtalk.com but i did go to another meeting from info i got on the other website

joanne

Thank you, Brandy. I appreciate your reply. Have been googling everyone. Spivak is apparently the best, but out of my network. Another name came up, but he is my former dermatologist, so I don't think I would trust that.

Linda, the fastest method is to call your insurance member service and ask them who is in your network. When I did that I found about 4 doctors in the Houston area that were in network.

Good luck!