November 15, 2005 – I make some phone calls and do a lot of research about WLS, particularly the Lap-Band procedure. My research shows that Boston Medical does not do the Lap-Band, so I look into BWH

November 17, 2005 – Had my appointment with my PCP to get referral to BWH

November 22, 2005 – Attend aFree Info Session @BWH, Dr. Luatz is there, who I like very much.

November 23, 2005 – Call and schedule an appointment with Dr. Luatz @ BWH. Appointment set for Jan. 26th

December 9, 2005 –My sister tells me that she spoke with the doctor from her hospital and that he does not recommend Dr. Lautz, so I call and cancel my appointment with him and call to make one with Dr. Ashley Vernon, which is set for Feb. 10. Long story short, I have to call my PCP again to change my referral, and when I do, they say that I need a special referral to see a doctor outside of Boston Medical, as there are doctors there who perform the Lap-Band…now that would have been helpful to know BEFORE… Anyway so things change, I called to set-up an appointment with Dr. Hess from Boston Medical, and canceled my appointment with Dr. Vernon.

January 12, 2006 - Met with Dr. Hess for the First time. Went over the different WLS options and he confirmed what I was thinking which is that Lap-Band is the surgery for me. Dr. Hess gave me a packet of info and said that his assistant would contact me to set up my necessary appointments.

January 17, 2006 – Got call from Dr. Hess’ office to set-up my next four appointments! I was so happy to hear from her, I was afraid I would be waiting for her call for a while. Also, All my appointments are pretty soon, so that’s great news.

1. PFT (Pulminary Function Tests): is scheduled for Friday, January 27th at 8:00AM

2. Appointment with dietician (Dr. Isfan): is scheduled for Wednesday, February 15th, at 4:00PM

3. Ultrasound: Scheduled for February 21st at 8:00AM

4. Appointment with the Nutritionist (Wendy Anderson): Scheduled for February 21st at 9:00AM

5. MMPI test ($160): Cant be scheduled until the other four are complete

January 19, 2006 – Attended my first support group meeting at Boston Medical Center, run by Wendy Anderson. It was good, although the majority of people were waiting for surgery, and there was only one other Lap-Band person. Everyone else was doing the bypass surgery. Everyone was talking about the weight they were told they had to loose, and I asked when they were told this, and they said during their first meeting with Dr. Hess, but he said nothing to me about loosing any weight. Wendy did say that sometimes they don’t ask people to loose any weight, but that I have to be careful not to gain any before the surgery.

November 15, 2005 - I made some calls and do a lot of research about WLS, particularly the Lap-Band procedure. My research shows that Boston MEdical does not do the lap-band, so i look into BWH.

November 17, 2005 – Had my appointment with my PCP to get referral to BWH

November 22, 2005 – Attend aFree Info Session @BWH, Dr. Luatz is there, who I like very much.

November 23, 2005 – Call and schedule an appointment with Dr. Luatz @ BWH. Appointment set for Jan. 26th

November 24, 2005 - Went home for Thanksgiving and told my parents about the surgery and what I was thinking. THey were both very supportive and backed me up 100% to go through with it.

December 9, 2005 –My sister tells me that she spoke with the doctor from her hospital and that he does not recommend Dr. Lautz, so I call and cancel my appointment with him and call to make one with Dr. Ashley Vernon, which is set for Feb. 10. Long story short, I have to call my PCP again to change my referral, and when I do, they say that I need a special referral to see a doctor outside of Boston Medical, as there are doctors there who perform the Lap-Band…now that would have been helpful to know BEFORE… Anyway so things change, I called to set-up an appointment with Dr. Hess from Boston Medical, and canceled my appointment with Dr. Vernon.

January 12, 2006 - Met with Dr. Hess for the First time. Went over the different WLS options and he confirmed what I was thinking which is that Lap-Band is the surgery for me. Dr. Hess gave me a packet of info and said that his assistant would contact me to set up my necessary appointments.

January 17, 2006 – Got call from Dr. Hess’ office to set-up my next four appointments! I was so happy to hear from her, I was afraid I would be waiting for her call for a while. Also, All my appointments are pretty soon, so that’s great

news.

1. PFT (Pulminary Function Tests): is scheduled for Friday, January 27th at 8:00AM

2. Appointment with dietician (Dr. Isfan): is scheduled for Wednesday, February 15th, at 4:00PM

3. Ultrasound: Scheduled for February 21st at 8:00AM

4. Appointment with the Nutritionist (Wendy Anderson): Scheduled for February 21st at 9:00AM

5. MMPI test ($160): Cant be scheduled until the other four are complete

January 19, 2006 – Attended my first support group meeting at Boston Medical Center, run by Wendy Anderson. It was good, although the majority of people were waiting for surgery, and there was only one other Lap-Band person. Everyone else was doing the bypass surgery. Everyone was talking about the weight they were told they had to loose, and I asked when they were told this, and they said during their first meeting with Dr. Hess, but he said nothing to me about loosing any weight. Wendy did say that sometimes they don’t ask people to loose any weight, but that I have to be careful not to gain any before the surgery.

January 27, 2006 - Had my PFT's which consisted of blood being takin from my wrist...which KILLED. He warned me that it was apianful, but damn. Plus he had to stick me twice. The second test was the breathing test, which was very interesting. He said my numbers were really good, and that he wasn't used to seeing such good numbers. So that's good news. Now I have to wait three weeks for my next appointment, which seems like forever, but I know it will be here sooner than I realize.