Hello there!

I just had lunch with a friend that I hadn't seen in about 3-4 years. We were meeting for lunch and before she ordered she came right out and said "I may not eat a lot because I had the Lap-Band procedure done." I was shocked, she didn't seem like the sort of person do to such a thing. She had NOTHING but great things to say about it. She said the only negative is if you eat too much you will throw up. I figured, then it can't be that bad and why in the world do people choose to cut their stomachs instead of having a lap-band put in????

Since our lunch I have not stopped thinking about having this done. I want to make an appt. with my Dr. but am so afraid she will talk me out of it. I have already written out a list of MANY different health related issues and just can't see how anyone would tell me "No".

What kind of questions should I ask at my first doctor's appt.? I don't have an appt. yet but I want to be prepared.

I am unmarried, no children..how will this effect me having a child in the future? How do I find a good Dr? I live in Northern CA and have Kaiser...will they pay for it? What will the process be? I have so many questions and Im hoping a few of you out there will help me and guide me.

Thanks again!

Papahemi,

I am curious...how long did it take from seeing your PCP to the Baratrics Dept. calling you? I was refered last Thursday...I was going to wait until this Thursday before I call and "harass":biggrin2: if they don't call by then.

It took about 10 days for them to schedule my orientation appt. I emailed my PCP after 7 days to ask how long it would take and he had his MA look into my referral. I say call and ask. Everyone knows that the squeaky wheel gets the grease. I find that being proactive (but nice) with Kaiser gets better results. Kaiser is so overloaded with patients that you sometimes get lost in the system. IMHO

Edited July 14, 200818 yr by Papahemi

I do most of my requesting online through the Kaiser website. I find this more efficient than face to face for questions and answers. I actually requested the referral by email. Although my PCP has treated me for all my "co-morbidies" and is well aware of my health concerns.

Papahemi - You are SO right about being proactive. During the initial phase they don't check the schedule for canceled appointments. They just go to the next available at the end of the line and fill that one. So should an appt need to be rescheduled, call and check for cancelations every couple of days. You might even be able to get some of the original appointments sooner but I'm not sure on that one.

The other thing is to jump into your weight loss as soon as you get through orientation. If they see that you're applying yourself, they make sure your surgery happens as soon as your turn comes up. I have seen them delay people's surgery for what would seem a small amount of weight. Also, I checked with them and you can't loose too much weight. They go by the beginning weight to qualify you and that's all you need. I believed that I was getting a head start by continuing to loose weight and that the band would help me loose the remainder of the weight and keep it off.

Good luck to all of you.

Vicki

I have already started a weight loss program on my own trying to prepare for what I believe to be coming in the future on my Lapband journey. I hope this won't be a problem when I weigh in at the orientation class. I do believe they have on record pretty close to my max weight. I guess I will find out on August 5th.

Thanks again Vicki

When I started my BMI was around 46+ so it wouldn't have hurt me to loose a little before orientation. I would hope they would look at your records to find out if you were above 40 BMI should you go below that.

My BMI at its peak was 43.1 and is now 40.2 and falling slowly as I adjust to different way of eating. I have mostly cut the alcohol and sweets completely out for now. My wife is a great cook and I love her cooking so I know I am in for a battle over portion control. I hope to use the band as a tool to help with my major health issues that being overweight aggravates. Not completely sure where this will all lead but with expert help from everyone I know I can lead myself to a better life.