Alexandra

Thanks, L. I think this is probably is the way to go, since I do need a new PDA and would prefer NOT to combine it with my phone. And it seems a lot more reasonably priced than a whole-shebang unit. Now, if a machine is Wifi-equipped, does that mean I just need to find a WiFi hotspot and I'm online? I was looking at the Palms and they seem to have this feature already in.

I just looked at Palm, and their Treo looks to me like a Blackberry. What's the difference? And it's $400!! yikes.

I already have a Palm PDA, a Zire model. Is that the sort of thing you're talking about? If I had a new one of those, are you saying it can access the web? How does that work?

Fish is fish, smoked or not. Smoked salmon is one of my staples. And matzoh ball soup is great, too, as long as you don't stuff yourself with the balls. Bagels are out, though, if you have restriction; that was the one thing I had to completely give up that I really was afraid I'd miss. But it's amazing how good restriction lets you just ignore food that will cause a problem!

This is a decision best made with medical advice. Leaving the band in but empty should be OK, as long as you are sure that it's in the right position and you will be able to keep it that way by not overeating and putting pressure on it. The device itself will not cause any problems, but if it hasn't worked well for you so far it seems to me that taking it out might be a better way to go. Revising to RNY is certainly not the only option. Talk with your doctor honestly about your goals and concerns and I hope you'll find the answer you seek!

There are several reasons not to eat late in the evening before going to bed, and it's even more important for bandsters. Eating late means that whatever you eat is going to be metabolized as slowly as possible, since you're sleeping rather than up and moving around. Almost all conventional diets recognize this and advise against eating late. And for bandsters it's even more important, because lying down while there is still food in the pouch can lead to irritation of the tissues. This can lead to being too tight in the morning, leading to the well-known phenomenon of not eating before mid-afternoon, getting hungry in the evening, eating late, and starting the whole vicious cycle over again. So, in general, try not to eat solid food for three hours or so before retiring for the night.

Hi Angelica, I just replied to your other thread about individual insurance, and now that I know you're in NJ I can tell you that you absolutely are NOT eligible for individual insurance as long as you are eligible for your group plan. That said, let me ask this: are you in a large-group plan? I'm in NJ and have not heard that BC/BS has that requirement here. Maybe it's being levied by your employer in an effort to make the plan more restrictive? In any event, it's worth a call indeed. Good luck!!

Hi Angelica, You need to check what the regulations are in your state before considering this option. In many states, individuals aren't even eligible for insurance if they are eligible for group plans through their employers. And even if you are, it's highly unlikely that you'll be able to purchase insurance that is *better* than what's offered by your employer. In general, group plans offer better benefits at more reasonable prices than individual plans.

Sorry, Ryan, that's really not the same thing. What they're probably offering is reimbursement for gym memberships or things like Weight Watchers, which is just an added benefit and not medical insurance at all. It's one of those "value added" things that the carrier or vendor throws in (since they know relatively few people will take advantage, and it's low-cost even if they do) to make it seem like the company is getting a great value. It really has nothing to do with coverage for medical conditions.

I doubt very much that any state permits individuals to buy additional insurance to cover what's excluded by their employers' policies. I know in NJ it's not even possible to buy individual insurance AT ALL if you're eligible to be covered under a group plan. But check with your state's department of insurance to find out what the regulations are in your area. Exclusions are a bitch, but definitely check ALL the writing in your policy to see if treatment for morbid obesity is excluded. Often there will be a caveat to the exclusion to the effect that IF you are medically qualified, treatment will be covered. In other words, they won't cover treatment UNLESS you have a BMI of 40+ or 35+ with accompanying comorbidities. I think the day is coming when across-the-board exclusions of treatment for morbid obesity won't be permitted. But it's not here yet.

I agree. I HATE talking about my weight--on the way up or the way down--always have. It is just not a topic of conversation I will engage in except with very close friends, and even then, only rarely. When people I don't consider close friends ask I get a chilly tone in my voice and that seems to send the message that this is not something I'm going to be happy talking about. That seems to shut them up.

The summer of 2007 has been amazing for me! It's almost like I'm afraid to bask in my good fortune too much for fear it will come back to bite me. But I have to share my happiness and let you all know what I've been up to. First, after having a slip diagnosed and my band removed in April, and then having my insurer say no to a replacement, I was pretty upset. But in short order I was able to change carriers, they approved my replacement band overnight, and on August 13 I was banded anew. Things have been going wonderfully with my recovery and healing; I'm now on solid food and REVELING in the ability to actually feel satisfied after a reasonable portion. And just this week I made a deal with my former employer to go back to the best job I ever had, at MUCH better terms than when I left! I will be able to hang up my full-time insurance hat and go back to my "real" career as an association administrator. It means going back to the city, working with professional writers and those in the field, and being essentially my own boss with a huge ship to steer. I am absolutely THRILLED!! I'll continue with insurance on the side until and unless I find I can't manage both. So that's my great summer of 2007! I hope things go as well for all of you. :biggrin1:

Thanks, guys! Right now and until the transition is complete, I'm really working both careers and trying to stay on top of things. I may be scarce--even scarcer than usual--but I'll try not to disappear entirely. This is so exciting!!!

Great to hear you're doing so well, Edieparks! :high5:

I went the Freecycle route eventually, but first I tried to give them to a battered-women's shelter. I was also trying to unload PILES of my girls' outgrown clothing, so I figured that would be a great way to do it. But you know what? It was impossible to find one! Even after calling the county for a referral I was told someone would have to call me back--I didn't realize it at first, but it makes sense that they would want to be hard for the public to locate. Duh. Freecycle sounds wonderful and maybe it would be better out where you live, Rain, but in my county I think the members are reselling things even though they're not supposed to. I was disenchanted when one person repeatedly claimed ALL my outgrown clothes, no matter what size. Now my castoffs go to Goodwill, an organization I have faith in.

This pretty much depends on exactly how the procedure is coded. The procedure itself is a hypodermic saline injection, with or without radiology at the same time. That procedure is common and not excluded just on its own merits. But the problem will be the diagnosis code--I don't think your doctor would be able to label it as anything other than a lap-band adjustment without committing outright fraud.

I did indeed! They are terrific doctors and I've had a great relationship with them and their whole office all along. Dr. Abkin was my surgeon, but Dr. Bertha has done all my fills and I think they're both absolutely wonderful.

Hi Karen!! It's great to hear you're doing so well, and you sure sound happy with your procedure. I'm so glad it has worked out--and your surgeon sounds like a dream. Congratulations on your great progress, and everything!!

:rockon: I agree 100%. Like everything else, banding is what you make of it. It is not a "big con" unless you go into it thinking it's a magic bullet that will render you slender overnight with no effort on your part. But no responsible doctor is selling it that way. It's a tool, nothing more, nothing less, and it absolutely makes the job of losing weight and keeping it off easier--hell, it made it POSSIBLE for me.

Congratulations, Rainer!! Wow, that was fast! :biggrin1:

All of this is a learning process, and very personal. I think as healing continues it's likely that you'll feel LESS restriction until you get an adjustment. During this time you'll start wondering if you even have a band at all. Just take it slow, though, because it's there even if you don't feel it all the time. It's a good idea to try to take a good 10-20 seconds between bites. I know I hardly ever manage that, but it's a very good practice.

Thanks, Fab. I'm not sure if I got the small or the large AP band, but either way it's a lot bigger than my original 9.75cm Inamed band.

You know, I really feel like I DID know this before I was banded and it didn't make one iota of difference to me. Not being a cockeyed optimist, I honestly explored and considered all the possible outcomes and how I'd face them if they happened. Well, one of those "negative" outcomes did happen to me, and even if I hadn't been rebanded I'd still have felt that my first 3.5 years with the band had been totally worth all the effort. Look: NO DIET METHOD IS GUARANTEED. We have to consider the pros and cons of each for our own personal situation. For some proportion of people, the insertion of an artificial gatekeeper to help control portion size is exactly the right treatment. For many other people, it's not going to work well for one reason or another, or turn out to be permanent. I always knew there was a chance the band might have to come out someday, but I also knew that if that happened I'd still be whole and healthy. It happened, I lived, and four months later I've been rebanded even after having the "worst" happen. Because for ME, those 3.5 years with the band have been the only time in my life that I felt I had any sort of handle whatsoever on my personal battle with food. I completely believe those statistics. It's because of those stats that I wouldn't have been willing to remortgage my house to self-pay; I wouldn't have been willing to travel to Mexico and take on the continued expense and hassle of finding aftercare. For me, it was insurance or nothing. But then, I wasn't at a point where my obesity was threatening my life--it was only threatening to do so in the future. If I had been, the calculus would have been different. I'm glad you posted this (and don't think it matters what section it's in--it will show up in New Posts regardless). It's important information that people need to have when considering their options.

This one was much easier, but probably only because I wasn't afraid this time. The first surgery had HUGE amounts of apprehension, excitement, fear, nerves, doubts, decision-making, etc., etc. all bound up in it. As much as I wanted it, it was scary and unnerving--and I had never had surgery to speak of before, too. This time it was my 3rd surgery, and there was never a minute's hesitation about whether I wanted it. Recovery was easy, and I'm a whole lot calmer about the entire process.

[rant on] From my personal POV this is one of the worst sorts of "reality" TV. It takes advantage of people who are in a desperate situation for others' entertainment. Sure, people who have attention-whore disorder and don't mind parading their personal pain in public can lose a lot of weight with all the help they are given. But what they go through has less than no bearing on anyone's real life. And I am 100% positive that, as with the general population, 95% of those contestants will gain all of their weight back and more over time. I can't imagine what would make it worth going through that process so publicly and having the experience follow me around the rest of my life. If boot-camp style tactics worked permanently, I'd have been able to avoid a life of morbid obesity after "fat camp" at age 10. [/rant over]