duckydoom

are you self funded, or going through insurance? Have they given you any reasons why they're not interested in proceeding? Is there scar tissue or something like that?

well, dang. I came here to check the median - I was going to try to go back to work the next week. Doc usually does surgeries on Tuesdays, so I was hoping to be back at it the following Monday. I telecommute though, so I'm thinking it won't be too bad as long as I don't have any in office mandatory stuff.

It really depends on what is required by your insurance. For a person new to the process, my insurance requires that you attend a seminar, meet with the surgeon, have a psych eval, physical, pre surgery nutritional counseling, liquid diet, and then after the surgery something like 12 months of phone nutritional counseling that is pre-paid prior to surgery. I'm waiting to see exactly if I have to start the whole process over (it was actually pretty easy and quick), or if since I was a lap band patient and had it removed if I can just start from the consult and be good to go from there. Definitely talk to your insurance company though. Research Medicare bariatric surgery guidelines - I've found that most insurance companies base their guidelines off of that. The more you know, the better prepared you'll be Good luck! disclaimer: I work for the insurance company that also provides my coverage, so I have access to all of our guidelines and requirements

I'm always getting scolded for slouching hehe

Hello! Bit of background - as my title says, I'm a former bander. Had it in on 8/21/12, had it removed 5/21/14 due to intolerance. I went from 233 down to 207 at my lowest in the first year, had an aggressive fill and it all went downhill from there. I couldn't keep any food down even with the band empty, wasn't losing weight, and it was awful. Ultimately, doc and I made the decision to remove the band. I've had better eating habits since then and exercise more often, but here I am 2 years later - gained all of my weight back and a bit more. I'm at 237 right now. Endocrinologist has diagnosed me with PCOS and Fatty liver. She wants me to go on Saxenda, which isn't covered by my insurance since I'm not diabetic yet, and is cost prohibitive to pay out of pocket. She says if I can't lose weight on my own, it's either that or surgery. My hepatologist says that my fatty liver is pretty severe, and with a family history of fatty livers needing transplants, he's been heavily pushing surgery. I'm interested in the sleeve vs the bypass. I've heard plenty of bypass horror stories, and I have two close friends who have been sleeved and have had amazing results. My husband was totally against it at first - he thought the "sleeve" was some sort of contraption like the band, and he didn't want to see me go through that experience again. Now that we've cleared up what the sleeve actually is, he's all for it. I have a consultation with my surgeon on June 9th to discuss my current situation. I was only authorized for the consultation visit, so I want to make sure that it counts. I plan on taking print outs of chart notes that have my comorbidities, a list of all of the diets and exercise programs I've attempted, and anything else that I can think of that will give the doc the info that is needed to get me approved. I work for the company that provides my health insurance, so I have a pretty good handle on my benefits. Surgery is covered if authorized, but I've had conflicting information on whether or not I have to start the process over completely with the psych eval, physical, nutritional counseling etc or if it can be approved without those. Either way, I'll be happy with an approval. I'm really anxious for the 9th to get here so I can have the appointment! Does anyone have any advice on what I can take with me to the consultation that might up my chances? I fall in the BMI below 40, and have hyperlipidemia and sleep apnea which are on the comorbidities list.

@@VSGAnn2014 I know that my company follows Medicare guidelines when it comes to my particular plan, and they need "just" the two comorbidities. Surprisingly Fatty liver isn't a comorbidity - that kind of blew my mind. I should be fine on BMI, according to the last doctor's visit I'm at 241 lbs which has me at 38.9 BMI at 5'6". I've been relatively low carb for awhile, I'm considering putting them back on the menu prior to the consult and that should shoot me up with Water weight. Only 7 lbs more and I'm at a 40 BMI so it's definitely doable with water weight. I also have lymphedema in my left leg and it can really vary. @@jaxmom I'm so glad they covered the removal and revision! My coverage won't take care of any complications related to services that were not authorized by them, which is why I haven't considered heading to Mexico to have it done, though that is in the realm of possibility if I can't get it approved. This site has definitely been an awesome resource - it was for me when I was first banded, and it's turning into a great help again.

Congrats!!

Finding out that I had a fatty liver, and I'm facing cirrhosis even though I'm a teetotaler. I've not been able to keep up with my husband and our dogs, and I'm constantly fatigued and sore from carrying around the extra weight. My endocrinologist and my hepatologist both are heavily pushing surgery, and I can't keep weight off on my own at this point. I want to be able to be healthy and stick around long enough to have a long and happy life with my husband. Considering the surgery hasn't been a light decision for me, but pursuing it can save my life.

@@WantToBe thank you for sharing! How has recovery been compared to having the band put in, if you don't mind sharing?

I've had many, many thoughts about the surgery. I don't have a date, but I have had questions about my pursuit. However, as some other people said before - the minimal risks associated with the surgery, and the manageable discomfort while I recover will be totally worth going through in order to avoid the obesity related health issues I face down the road. Best of luck to you!

I told my husband and my dad. Husband was because of obvious reasons, dad was because he's legally blind and I'm his transport to the grocery store weekly. I told him so that once I get approved and a date, he can start stocking up so I can have a few weeks of taking it easy without worrying about how much food he has. I don't plan on telling my mom (she's a huge drama queen) until after I've had everything done. Husband told his mom, so soon the whole family will know soon enough lol. I'm keeping the list of people that I'm directly telling about my intentions very small, but once I'm sleeved if it comes up, well, then it will be discussed.

I had my band removed 2 years ago, and I'm now going in for a consultation to see if I qualify for the sleeve and what exactly I'll have to do in order to get it covered. Since it wasn't a revision at time of band removal, I'm 99% sure it's going to be treated as if I am coming in from the start. I got a modified referral for the consultation only, and was told by the bariatric case manager with my insurance that I still need to meet all of the requirements. I've got a BMI between 35 and 40, so I have to show that I still have the comorbidities. If I had revised to bypass at the time of removal, it would have still required a referral, I just think it would have been approved without any question. I wanted the sleeve though, which wasn't covered at the time... so here I am. See if your surgeon will submit an authorization request for a revision due to intolerance, have them slap on the other comorbidities (sleep apnea and hypertension) and go from there. You can always appeal. If you have any chart notes etc from other specialists that you've had to see, have the surgeon include those. The more information the better.

I decided to come back here and start posting again because this is all I hear. I'm really nervous to tell anyone that I'm going to try to have VSG because of my previous experience - I had a lap band and had to have it removed due to intolerance... it's been 2 years band free, and I still hear "we told you that wouldn't work" from friends and family members. I also hear the "you're just fine the way you are" and of course the horror stories. If I wasn't at a point where I was able to lose the weight and keep it off on my own, I wouldn't be looking at this! The very small chance of risk outweighs the horrors of possible bypasses, liver failure, etc that I face if I keep gaining!

I'm scheduled to get mine out on Tuesday May 13th. I'm excited, but still really disappointed. I'm coming more to grips that it just doesn't work for some people, but I'm scared of gaining weight. I'm almost obsessively making healthy freezer meals and planning my workouts so once I get the release to go back to working out, I can have a plan. I did that last time as well, but it helps with the anxiety to plan as well as I can. How are you feeling since having it removed? How has the recovery been? I'm only taking 4 days off and going back to work the following Monday, so I'm hoping thats enough. I know when I had it put in, it felt like I needed a month off.

I'm at a little over 18 months banded. 14cc band, the max I was filled was 6.5 ccs, which proved to be too much (my doc aggressively fills). With 6.5 I was PBing daily. Went back down to 6ccs, and the PBing slowed to 3 or 4 times a week. I'd never know what would trigger my band. I'd always chew everything completely, avoid liquids with meals, etc. I tried really hard to be the model band patient. Some times salad would trigger it, other times it would be meat, lentils, Pasta. You name it, I've gotten stuck and sick on it. I went in and had an unfill down to 2 ccs, so that I could hopefully give my pouch time to calm itself down, and allow me to start over again. I got my unfill on 2/17. Did liquids for two weeks (I hate muscle milk now lol), and started slowly transitioning back to solids. I'm still having issues PBing and not knowing what is going to affect my band, although it's down to once a week instead of the 2-3x. I've been eating primarily yogurt and muscle milk with the occasional small amounts of Protein - meats, cheese, etc chewed very well, as well as vegan substitutes. Friday I had an ounce of salmon after successfully having salmon a few days before. lunch was at 11. Everything went down well, I chewed, felt fine. Midafternoon I started having seriously awful bloat. I took two gas pills to try to reduce it, and drank Water. Still not hungry, but I didn't feel stuck or have any indication that I was. By 9pm, I was even gassier and feeling miserable, so I went to bed. I woke up at about 1am in excruciating pain, my whole abdomen so swollen with gas that my belly was all tight, my port was sore, and it felt almost like it did right after surgery. I took some Tums at that point and tried to lay back down to see if it would help. I figured I'd give it 20 minutes, and if it weren't any better, I'd go to the ER (I have a pretty high pain tolerance, but I was worried it was something in my organs gone awry as the pain was so bad, but since it was under the ribs on the left I didn't suspect the appendix or anything). The Tums ended up making me vomit, and I spent the next two hours throwing up all of the salmon that I had eaten over 12 hours before. It had been stuck, but I didn't even know - there was no indicator! I fell asleep finally at about three, and had to be up at five to go to work. It wasn't a fun day. I've been on liquids all weekend, and just attempting mushies today... but I'm so done. I know this is a tool so it's not fully the band's "fault" per se, but I felt that I've tried so hard to do everything right by it. I'm only down 13 lbs after 18 months, and I've just been miserable. I have an appointment next Monday to talk to my doc and see what my options are, but in all honesty, I'm in a 100% "eff it" attitude. I've been able to re-route my bad behaviors. Instead of eating when I'm stressed, I get on the treadmill or clean the house. Hubby and I have revamped our eating habits - more vegan sources of protein, less pastas and breads, very rarely any meat since we never know if I can keep it down or not. I chew chew chew chew chew, and don't mix liquids with my meals. I feel like I'm banging my head against the wall and getting nowhere. I'm not sure if I have any complications that will warrant my insurance taking the band out, but I'm definitely looking at all of my options. I don't want a revision surgery, I totally just want to be back to normal. The upside is that I haven't gone above my starting weight, but the downside is with the low amount of calories that I eat (1100-1600 max, and the latter only on days that I do an hour on the treadmill with weights) and all of the vomiting I do, I still haven't gone below the 200 mark. I just don't know anymore.

I absolutely adored mine at first! It was only about 6 months ago that I really started having problems, and my pouch just doesn't want to seem to settle down. Doc called it "fussy" and put me down as having band intolerance, so he recommended just bagging the whole thing. It sort of makes sense... I'm so paranoid at this point with my struggle with the band that I'd rather just have it out instead of replaced, because I don't want to have to be opened up again if it fails. I'm still thinking long and hard, because I want(ed) this to work so bad, but I'm band shy now.

I know for me the hardest part was not stress eating, and I'm scared that will be the same thing once I have it out... and I am determined to have the dang thing out. Per the doctor I tried a solid food (small frozen bean burrito), and it ended up getting stuck/I got sick, even with no Fluid in my band. So it's back to yogurt and tea for me at this time... I did indeed have a fantastic weekend though, so that didn't get me down at all. Husband was out of town, so I had my best friend over and we did nails, updated my Etsy Shop, and I did about 16 hours of yard work! Spring is finally peeking its head out, and that is thrilling I'm not sure about revision to the sleeve. I have two friends who have done wonderfully with it. I'm just scared of the prospect of another surgery - they (the doctors) were initially wanting me to do a bypass, but I have friends and coworkers who have had nothing but trouble with that, so that's why I opted for the band figuring it was less invasive and therefore less problematic. We'll see, though. I hope you have a fantastic week. I'm on track for 20 hours of Overtime this week, so at least being busy keeps me from being overly emotional and freaking out about my band

Verdict is in... band is slipped. The surgeon was overwhelmingly kind (as I was freaking out) and said that I am just one of those that doesn't tolerate the band, and they're putting in a referral now to get my removal covered, and he was willing to do it as early as tomorrow - we just have to wait for coverage info. It's all a bit of a blur and I'm really not sure how to feel about it. I'm really battling the emotions right now.

Thank you I feel like a doofus and I am effectively banning myself from the internets until I get some sleep lol. Definitely consulting a nutritionist was a big thing for me. I found that if I didn't take a digestive aid before eating animal products, I'd tend to retain Water. I've definitely lost fat overall and gained muscle, but I'm just nowhere near where I had hoped to be by this point. Best of luck to you in your journey <3

Aaand, I totally just realized this wasn't my own original post and you were talking to the OP. Sigh. I am so frazzled.

Yeah, I actually work for the insurance company that covered my band, and I went through nutritional counseling on my own for 6 months prior to moving forward in the band process. With the coverage for the surgery itself, it was stipulated that I would pay out of pocket for an additional 24 sessions of phone nutritional counseling to make sure that I was on the right track. The counselor would go over my food tracking with me, we'd talk about introducing new foods, what worked, what didn't work, etc. It was really helpful in developing better eating skills and coping skills (I was an emotional eater, now I redirect it to walking the dogs, sewing, etc). It worked fantastically for me for about the first year, and it's only really been the last 6 months that I've had so many problems. I avoided tough meats (we were actually vegan for the first 9 months after the surgery, then slowly started adding in animal Proteins again), pastas, breads, etc with only the occasional slip up food wise. I was very tolerant, so she gave me a fill from 6 ccs to 6.5 ccs, and then I started having the issues with being stuck, PB-ing, etc. We removed the .5, and it just never went back to that sweet spot. I'd start PBing and straight up vomiting with such force that I'd end up with burst blood vessels in and around my eyes (sorry to be graphic), and never know what would trigger it. I'd go back to full liquids and mushies, and then per the nurse start trying to work those super moist animal proteins in again, tolerate them fine, and then suddenly a salad or a portion of meat that I'd tolerated before would set me off and I'd be sick again. We still review my foods, and can't find any sort of pattern. I'm as unfilled as I can be right now and had a vegetarian chili for dinner last night. I managed a quarter cup before feeling full, but when I woke up this morning I could still feel it sitting in my pouch, so I'm back to broth today. I totally hear you in saying that if that's what it takes, I'll do it... and I totally made that commitment to myself when I started this journey, expecting ups and downs, but that I'd finally settle into a routine and know what was right and wrong for me to eat. Not knowing any of that, being scared to eat, and still being at my surgery day starting weight 18 months later is finally just wearing on me to the point where I want to be done. It's a scary and very emotional place for me... I don't like it! Hopefully tomorrow's appointment will give me some answers though. Not knowing is the hardest part for me.

I go in tomorrow morning for an upper GI with contrast and a consult with the surgeon to review it immediately after. My nurse thinks that I slipped the band for sure, and unfilled what they could of what was left (I had 2.5 ccs left and they were able to get out 2ccs). It's so very frustrating. I was actually crying in the office as I was explaining my frustrations, and the hopes that I still had, but my resignation as well. And I'm not a cryer! I'm always the strong one. She said that most of the folks at the office she sees have pretty significant levels of band intolerance, and even the nurse who took out my Fluid was very unsurprised by it as well, saying that she's seen lots of revisions. I get such mixed feelings. I'm not trying to invalidate anyone's success with the band, I want to make that totally clear (I think I may have before), but if anyone asks me if I'd recommend it, I'd steer them elsewhere. I want(ed) this to be a tool to help me with a lifestyle change, and thus far it's made me near bullemic, and terrified of solid food. costco had a sale on Chiobani yogurt, so that's what I've been eating since I made my initial post. If given the option to remove it (and my nurse is wholeheartedly suggesting that, which I also find discouraging in a way), I'm doing it. No revision. I need to develop my own tools to get this done, and that will be hiking with my husband, eating much better than I had in the years before I had the band, and learning to love myself at whatever size I am, as long as I'm healthy. @@claudia, hope you're still feeling well after your procedure! Much love and respect to all of you reading and responding

Oh, man - best of luck to you today. My indigestion has been really bad as well, even though I didn't specifically call it out. I've been living on Soup for the past few days - thankfully TitanFall just came out so my husband has been so distracted he hasn't noticed lol. Even as a revision your insurance won't cover the sleeve? I actually work for my insurance company (which is a bit of a plus since I know the contracts inside and out), and I know that I have to have the doctor recommend it and then probably appeal it... it's a giant process. I'm not sure if I'll bother with it if we get to that point though. I went out to dinner with friends last night and got smushy steamed veggies and got stuck on those... the frustration is the biggest negative for me. Seeing success stories on here gives me a mix of hope, but also a feeling of failure for not being able to share one of my own. As I said - best of luck today and in your recovery, and fingers crossed your insurance plays nice and lets you go with a sleeve <3 Ducky

I am thinking it would be as hiddnstar said, standard surgery prep, and then liquids for a bit after? When they did my unfill I was on full liquids then mushies, then graduated back to solids, and the problems started up again. I have another post where someone said it sounds like my band has slipped... so hopefully Monday when I go in for my appointment I can get some sort of word on if that's the case or not. I'm now waffling... I want this to work so badly, but does that outweigh the frustrations? Sigh. Best of luck to you in your surgery, if it's okay I'd like to know how you're doing afterwards as well!