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6 months and a week ago, i had no health problems even with a 47 BMI - BUT i felt so disgusting. I hated clothes. I wore things just to hide myself. I knew I had a pretty face but that all others saw was the fat. Today, 6 months after surgery and 88 pounds later, I feel INCREDIBLE. i am all about what i'm wearing, my make up, I feel just plain unstoppable. I want you to know that yes there can be complications. I have experienced none so far (truly this is thanks to GOD and following my surgeon's instructions) - but they can happen. I am very, very sorry I did not do this 10 years ago (I'm 38). But i cannot dwell on that. This is a LIFE CHANGING thing if you let it be. I truly wish all of you the best of luck in your decision and if you have the surgery - the best of luck on your journey. It TRULY is a journey. God bless us all!!!!

I was banded on August 12, 2011. My first fill wasnt for 6 weeks. My doctor stated that it take 6 weeks to heal and he absolutely does no do a fill prior to the 6 week mark. I recieved the small band during surgery. My starting weight was 316, and I had dropped 20 pounds during that six weeks with no fill so I was already getting some restriction from my band. My first fill was done on 9-23. I have been losing weight this whole time but just recently got in to my "green" zone and have been able to completly skip my last 2 appointments. I now weigh 258. 58 pounds down in 5 months. You will get there, it just takes time. Talk with your doctor, make sure you communicate. Make sure your not drinking fluid an hour before you eat or 30 minutes after because it will move food through your stoma faster. Also make sure you are eating WHOLE solid proteins and staying away from soft foods like mashed potatoes, jello, pudding, things like that. MEAT MEAT MEAT!!! Hamburgers, hot dogs, steaks, chicken, turkey.. Also, junk food breaks down a lot faster, crackers and pretzels, chips and cookies are all considered slider foods and can pass through quickly, or if your in your green zone, these items can also get stuck. I concentrate mainly on meat and cheese because those are the best available for protein and then maybe a few bites of veggies if i have room but I ALWAYS finish my solid meats first. and I really dont want my hair to fall out because of vitamin deficiency so I also take my daily vitamins. Good luck with your journey and remember, this is the tool that you needed to make it work and you WILL get there, maybe not your next fill, or even the next, but you will start to feel restriction.

I don' recommend it, but I had to have my "Last Official Dream Dinner" of my choice, knowing that will never happen the same way anymore. I say I do not recommend it be ause I would not want to see anyone screw up their surgery. I had to loose 20 lbs prior to surgery. My surgery was on a Monday. The Friday prior I had my final meeting and weigh in with the surgeon. Everything was a go. Saturday my family and I went out to the restaurant of my choice for a "Pig Out" Sunday I fasted all day. Nothing but Water. Monday went without a hitch.

Researching, identifying, and selecting an insurance carrier that covers WLS, will accept you as a subscriber at a premium you can afford to pay, and will eventually approve you for surgery sounds to me like an enormous task for an individual patient to undertake. Doing all that could add years to your journey. I suggest that instead, you research bariatric surgery clinics in your area, attend an educational seminar, and hook up with a clinic's insurance coordinator to get suggestions for how to deal with the insurance issue. If you eventually decide to self-pay as 2muchfun suggested, I wouldn't recommend the band. Don't get me wrong, I love my band, but the band requires a LOT more aftercare than the other procedures because it usually doesn't work without fills, and those fills (and unfills) can get to be expensive both in terms of cash and in terms of your time and energy. You'd also need to consider the possible expense of revisional or corrective surgery if something went wrong. For example, my port flipped over so I needed surgery to reposition it. My insurance company was billed a total of $34,628.70 for the repair surgery, and paid the providers a total of $4850.11. I don't know about you, but I don't usually have an extra $5000 stuffed under my mattress! Jean

Each insurance is different on the requirements. I have Blue Cross blue Shield (anthem) and they had me do 6 months of Dr. supervised visits for weight loss (I didn't lose a thing). I would just check out and ask specific questions when you are inquiring to various insurance groups to fax you their specific policies regarding lapband surgery and specifically ask how long you have to be insured before it will cover. You don't want to get into it and then have any surprises come up. Good luck with your journey!

The only thing that may stand in your way is your age and the fact that 125 might not look as good on you now as it did when you were in your teens and twenties. But you get to set your goals, no one else. I know that during the seminars that the local surgeons do, they continually warn people that they shouldn't have the surgery if they think they're going to be skinny when it's all over. I believe they do that because on average, most people won't lose all of their excess weight. But heck, just look around you here-- there are lots of super-star success stories from people at all ages and starting weights so obviously it IS possible with the a well-tuned band, a committed bandster, and possibly a little luck.

Well, it's been a while, but with all of your suggestions and encouragement, I've finally begun to loose as you can see from my ticker. In December 2011 I finally talked my bariatric surgeon to give me another x-ray to see if my band had slipped. It had not. The nurse practioner would not give me any more fillings. She said that I was at 7 cc and I could have no more even though I had a large band. She said that I wasn't doing my part. I just felt that there was more to the story. The band should be helping me, but I could not even tell I had a band. After getting nowhere with my bariatric center, I went back to my primary care physician and asked for a consultation/second opinion from another bariatric surgeon. My appointment was January 5th. The difference in their attitude was huge. They drew out my filling and found that I actually only had 6 cc, so they gave me another one. The difference was amazing! I could feel the band. Wow! I didn't know that's how it would feel. I had lost my 1st 8 pounds from the Friday before Christmas until I went to the new doctor's office, and that was a huge struggle. Since that day, I've lost 4 more pounds and it is so much easier. Granted I am taking the antidepressent, but I can tell the band is working now. When I eat meat 1st, I can't eat very much. I've been off of sweets since then, and it has been easy because I'm not hungry all the time. I have had no problem saying "No" to sweets - even donuts!! What a relief, not to be craving sweets all the time. The new doctor said that I still have some wiggle room with my band. I'm so glad he took me as his patient. Thank you all for your help.

Welcome and congrats! I'm not weighing myself yet- I'm only 4 days out, I see my surgeon on Monday, then I will try to weigh only weekly, but I can totally tell I've lost weight! Good luck on your journey- keep us posted!

I'm not banded yet so I can't say that I know lap band does work but look all the people on this forum and how successful they have been whether they lost 40 pounds or 100+ pounds, that's something. My surgeon told me out of the three surgeries, lap band would not help me lose as much weight as say, gastric bypass or the sleeve. However, after floating around these boards I know that is up to ME. If I want to lose 100 pounds+ with the band, it can be done if I'm willing to do the work. I am also young (22) and my surgeon said nothing to me about being so young and probably being unsuccessful. He actually was more optimistic that I was so young, after all we have all the time in the world to make this work for us! If you're that concerned that it can't be done, check newtoy4kt on YouTube. (check out bandedwendy's channel also!) They were what pushed me to my final decision of lap band. Whatever you choose, good luck!

The lap band is not just a way to get rid of insucurites (although that is an added bonus lol) its about being healthy and being able to spend a long future with your husband maybe try explaining that to him! hope this helps[ url=http://www.TickerFactory.com/weight-loss/w4pTSHD/] [/url]