Hi to all, I am new to this site. I am in the process of getting the surgery approved. I just went through the Seminar given by the Western Bariatric Institute in Reno, NV on 8/26/09 & I had my Initial Consultation with the surgeon on 8/28/09. I am now getting ready to setup my Psych & Nutritional Evaluations. The problem is, the surgeon is in Reno & I live in CA just north of Sacramento. So I plan on doing the evaluations locally. Has anyone had any problems getting the evaluations done long distance from their surgeon? By the way, I have decided after much deliberation to have the Lap Band. My surgeon tried to convince me the Bi Pass was the way to go. But I do not want my inside plumbing to be moved around :wink2:. Any advice would be much appreciated.:ohmy:

By the way, I made a ticker tape, but can't for the life of me figure out how to bring it over to this site. Can someone walk me through it? I am almost computer illiterate !

Thanks

i am going for a gastric band in october 09 and would like to hear from anyone who has had it done i booked it through tullia law has anyone heard of her

Good Luck on getting everything apporved. Here is how to do your ticker. Since you already have it ready, you will go to it and right click on copy. Then come to this site and go to user CP up at the top lefthand side of the page. God to edit signature and at the bottom you will see a box. Put your cursor in the box and right click paste. Your ticker should show in the box. Then go all the way to the bottom of the screen and hit save and you are done.

welcome and congrats....I didn't use the psy affliated with my surgeon, so don't worry about it.

Thank you greytz. I was pulling my hair out. I hope your surgery this Friday is all smooth sailing for you. Let us know how it went. :biggrin:

Wally,

The lapband is not always the best choice for everyone. That being said, many surgeons sometimes push one type of surgery over another because they have limited experience with doing one proceedure over another. If you haven't already asked, ask your surgeon how many lapband proceedures he has performed. Don't let him be general and give you total number of weight loss proceedures. Gastric bypass has been around in the US a lot longer than the lapband, so many surgeon promote what they are more comfortable with. It pays to question. Good luck.

Hi Padanelle,

Your right about the surgeons being more comfortable with the type of surgery they do the most of. But he said that he does all three types fairly equally. He does the Bi Pass, the Lap Band & the Realize Band.

The reason he was trying to persuade me to go the Bi Pass route was due to my type of eating habits. Because I am considered a grazer & a sugar addict, he said that unless I was really prepared to change my eating habits, the Lap Band wouldn't work for me long term, & that the Bi Pass was what I needed. He is right, but I am committed to this 100%. I am prepared to change my habits & I REALLY DON'T WANT MY INTERNAL ORGANS REARRANGED :biggrin:!

So, thanks for the support, I will need it.

I have an update, I finally did get my ticker tape to work, & I had my Psych Eval last night. I have finally found a Nutritionist in our area that I can work with, so yea!! I am on my way. I will have everything accomplished by the end of the month so that we can apply for approval from the Insurance. Then I only have to complete the pre-surgery stuff (4 wks of liquid diet!) to do. :thumbup:

Seminar Date: Aug 26th

Surgeon Consultation: Aug 28th

Psych Evaluation: Sept 2nd

Upper GI: Sept 9th

Nutritional Evaluation: Sept 12th

H Pilori/RMR Tests: Sept 25th

Surgery: November or December??? :smile2:

Sounds like things are moving along nicely for you!

Wally Bob,

Congrats on everything moving along. You mentioned a 4 week liquid diet. Is that all pre op, or including both pre/post op? You should start now to find the best liquid protien drinks that you like. Several brands offer samples. GNC has a great refund policy if you don't like the taste.

Hi Padanelle,

Your right about the surgeons being more comfortable with the type of surgery they do the most of. But he said that he does all three types fairly equally. He does the Bi Pass, the Lap Band & the Realize Band.

The reason he was trying to persuade me to go the Bi Pass route was due to my type of eating habits. Because I am considered a grazer & a sugar addict, he said that unless I was really prepared to change my eating habits, the Lap Band wouldn't work for me long term, & that the Bi Pass was what I needed. He is right, but I am committed to this 100%. I am prepared to change my habits & I REALLY DON'T WANT MY INTERNAL ORGANS REARRANGED :thumbup:!

So, thanks for the support, I will need it.

Wally, my surgeon said the same thing to me when I started the process last year as I am a grazer and have a sweet tooth. But like you I wanted the lapband and that is what I got. I can tell you it's not easy but if you are committed to making the change it can be down. I'm down a little ove 60 lbs since surgery on 8/11/08. I still have my sweet tooth and my new dr and dietician said I can treat myself here and there but be careful. I wish you all the luck on your journey sounds like you have things moving along well so far. :smile2:

Wally Bob,

Congrats on everything moving along. You mentioned a 4 week liquid diet. Is that all pre op, or including both pre/post op? You should start now to find the best liquid protien drinks that you like. Several brands offer samples. GNC has a great refund policy if you don't like the taste.

Thanks, unfortunately, it is ALL pre-op! Then I have the usual post op diet as well! I guess I will either be really used to the liquids or really sick & tired of them! I'm fairly sure it will be the latter! :smile2:

Thanks for the information on checking out the Protein drinks. Do you know how to get some samples? Or where to start looking? Do I have to contact the companies directly?

Seminar Date: Aug 26th

Surgeon Consultation: Aug 28th

Psych Evaluation: Sept 2nd

Upper GI: Sept 9th

Nutritional Evaluation: Sept 12th

H Pilori/RMR Tests: Sept 25th

Surgery: November or December???

Sounds like things are moving along nicely for you!

Thanks, I can use all the encouragement I can get. I noticed that you went from a Band to a Sleeve, may I ask why? Did you have problems with the Band? I hope all is going smoothly for you. :smile2:

Seminar Date: Aug 26th

Surgeon Consultation: Aug 28th

Psych Evaluation: Sept 2nd

Upper GI: Sept 9th

Nutritional Evaluation: Sept 12th

H Pilori/RMR Tests: Sept 25th

Surgery: November or December???

Wally, my surgeon said the same thing to me when I started the process last year as I am a grazer and have a sweet tooth. But like you I wanted the lapband and that is what I got. I can tell you it's not easy but if you are committed to making the change it can be down. I'm down a little ove 60 lbs since surgery on 8/11/08. I still have my sweet tooth and my new dr and dietician said I can treat myself here and there but be careful. I wish you all the luck on your journey sounds like you have things moving along well so far. :smile2:

Thanks Stacylynn,

Good for you! :thumbup: Keep up the good work! Just keep reminding yourself that a treat once in a while is ok, but only a treat & the less of it the better.

I feel like I am making the right decision. I do know that I will always have a problem with sweets as well, but I really don't want to be a statistic. I recently lost a cousin to Diabetes. She had been over weight most of her life & had actually lost the weight, but too late. Her Diabetes was out of control, she went blind & was on a transplant list for Kidney & Pancreas. Unfortunately, she didn't make it. To make matters worse, she lost both legs below the knees a month before she lost her life. She would only be 55 yrs old today. We all have to do what we need to do to survive & this made the decision for me. I want to see my grand kids grow up & have children of their own.

Thanks Stacylynn,

Good for you! :sneaky: Keep up the good work! Just keep reminding yourself that a treat once in a while is ok, but only a treat & the less of it the better.

I feel like I am making the right decision. I do know that I will always have a problem with sweets as well, but I really don't want to be a statistic. I recently lost a cousin to Diabetes. She had been over weight most of her life & had actually lost the weight, but too late. Her Diabetes was out of control, she went blind & was on a transplant list for Kidney & Pancreas. Unfortunately, she didn't make it. To make matters worse, she lost both legs below the knees a month before she lost her life. :wink2: She would only be 55 yrs old today. We all have to do what we need to do to survive & this made the decision for me. I want to see my grand kids grow up & have children of their own. :sad:

Sorry to hear about your cousin. I'm so glad I made this choice last year and I sometimes wish I did it sooner.