HI! My name is Maureen and I am 19 years old. I am from NY. I was just wondering, what is the process like? I weigh 280 lbs and I am 5'5", and I am starting to develop problems like high blood pressure, and back problems, and I want to get this taken care of when I am young. I have tried many diets, some of which have worked, but not for long. I was wondering, are there any young people who have had the surgery, and what was it like? Thanks for all of your help!

Well if you are planning on insurance paying for it, first thing you should do is contact your insuurance company to make sure they cover. Then see your primary care physician--you may have to do a 6 month medically supervised diet. Also, choose where you want to have the surgery and go to an info session there. Where in NY are you from?> I got mine done at NYU and couldn't be happier!!

HI! My name is Maureen and I am 19 years old. I am from NY. I was just wondering, what is the process like? I weigh 280 lbs and I am 5'5", and I am starting to develop problems like high blood pressure, and back problems, and I want to get this taken care of when I am young. I have tried many diets, some of which have worked, but not for long. I was wondering, are there any young people who have had the surgery, and what was it like? Thanks for all of your help!

Hi maureen! I am 5'4 and started at 327 pounds 7 months ago. I am 29 years old. When you say "what is the process like" that is a really broad question. Are you asking about the process of getting approved, the surgery, post op? Approval will depend on your insurance company and can be very fast for some (about a month for me) and longer for others. Some insurance companys require a 6-month diet before approval.

Preop, once you are approved, you have instructions from you doc. Everyones are different. Post op recovery time is somewhere between 3 days to a couple weeks, depending on the person.

After you start to heal, you will most likely be hungry again and want to eat everything. You have to be strong and hold on until you get proper restriction with the band. Once you get restriction, things get easier!

The band doesnt work for everyone. My doc was up front with me and told me that is his biggest fear for his patients. But if you treat the band as a tool, do your part and work with it...it works!

If you have the time, click on my blog link in my signature. Once you get to my blog, look under "Followers" and there are plenty of young bandsters. Look for Angies blog, Tiffani, Mary, Amanda, etc.

The lapband blogger community is a great way to get to know people on a more personal level!

Hope some of this helps. If you have more questions, just shoot me a message!

Amy