Alexandra

Unless your company is a large one it's very unlikely they'll be purchasing "riders" for various conditions. Most small- and mid-size company plans are off-the-shelf products from carriers. So your boyfriend is probably right. But there's no reason you can't make your preferences known. Very often employers count their employees' desires as an important part of the decision-making process. Is there a carrier your doctor likes over another one? Try to find that out, and then let your company know, for example, that XXX carrier is better for you just because more of your doctors are in the network (or some such reason). That's something I hear all the time from my clients -- no company wants to make their employees unhappy by switching to a carrier that none of them can use with their own doctors.

Blue Cross/Blue Shield is an association of companies, and each state has its own. Unfortunately, insurance in this country is regulated by the states, so no insurance company is subject to the same laws across state borders. Stupid, I know, but there it is. BCBS is actually cleaner in this regard than the big "national" carriers (Aetna, Cigna, UHC) because BCBS really doesn't even pretend to be one huge company. They're different entities in each state, period.

Hi Hammer, I remember very clearly being exactly where you are now. This is where the head work of being banded comes into play. You need to take things VERY slowly, and try to really learn the new way that your stomach works. When you feel a blockage coming on, or that you've had enough that one more bite might bring it back up, STOP EATING. Put your fork down and close your eyes. Feel the way your stomach feels right at that very moment, and recognize that THIS IS WHAT FULL FEELS LIKE. It is a different feeling than what we experienced before banding, but if you wait 10, 15 minutes you will definitely come to understand that you are no longer hungry. You will have eaten a lot less than you might have wanted to, but this is indeed how we lose weight with the band. I know it's not easy, but it's a passage we all MUST make if we want to be successful in losing weight. There will be more food later, if you decide you really want it. But for now, BEFORE you PB or get uncomfortable, it is time to STOP EATING. Enough really can become enough, but only if you let the band teach you what this new ENOUGH is. Your stomach is smaller than before, but your mental perception was not changed in surgery. That takes a bit of work. Good luck!!

Everyone's different, and of course it depends on the kind of job you have. I was banded last Monday and went back to my desk job on Thursday. That might have been pushing it a tad, but I was bored at home. No ill effects.

Wow, Judi, Thanks! You're like me: give me the ocean, salt air, a porch, a book and I'm happy. The kids like a little more action, though. We've been going for years to Cape Cod until finally someone recommended OBX and we compared prices. We're getting three times as much house for 2/3 the money, and (we hope we hope) it will be WARMER than the Cape at this time of year. I'm so glad to hear it's laid-back; I was a little worried it would be all touristy and built-up. We can't wait!! Saturday we roll out. Yay!

Hi bandmate! It is very unlikely that you'll be feeling anything akin to restriction once your internal swelling goes away, and no one can say how long that might take. Once your innards return to normal, you won't know there's anything new going on inside. It's only after significant adjustments have been done (in most people) that any difference is felt. That said, you may find that you get full quicker when you get back on more-solid food, so take it very slow. I know I did, but not everyone does.

AP is the newest kind of band, recently released by Allergan. I think it stands for Advanced Platform or something. Pretty soon all doctors will be using it; it's not that I'm so special or something. (In fact, I think I'll take that out of my signature, since it's not really anything I had a choice about.)

I'm going there next week for the first time! What shouldn't we miss? We're going to Duck. Do tell!!

Smooth ice cream and frozen yogurt are indeed full liquids. If you're progressed on to that portion of the postop diet (and off clear liquids), this is not a problem at all. You may get more calories than you want, of course, so don't be surprised if you don't lose as quickly as those who don't add calories this way, but it's all good.

The statistics given for slippage have consistently been like 3-6%, and for erosion in the neighborhood of 1-2%. We hear about these problems more here, because people with the problems are the ones most likely to COME here. The best source of information on this is your doctor's office, which tracks its patients' progress closely. It wouldn't surprise me, though, if the slippage rates rise over time as more and more people live years of banded life. My doctor thinks 20% will be the number after 7 years or so. But I'm here to tell you that slippage is NOT the end of the world, and even having the band removed and re-inserted months later (total of three operations) I'd still do it all again. This simple band of silicone inside me is the only thing I've ever found that gives me any control over my weight, and it's worth all the "complications" I've had.

I was able to sleep on my left side after about the fourth night. The first couple of nights I slept on my back/right side, which I just hate. Now I'm back to my left-side fetal position and sleeping like a baby.

200 calories is fine! You are supposed to be using these as meal replacements, and that's not much for a meal. Three of these throughout the day will give you 600 calories, plus Soups or whatever for meals and you're good! That's real nutrition. This is not supposed to be a starvation situation. I'm not sure about the sugar content of real Protein Drinks is, though. Are there GNC stores near you, or some other health food place that can advise you?

These are either/or situations and you would seem to fit the latter. According to the standards of the American Medical Association, those falling into either of these categories ARE medically qualified for bariatric surgery. So you're in there. Whether your insurance carrier will cover the treatment is a whole other story. But medically, you do indeed fit the bill.

Hi Pemy, Sounds like your wounds are just taking a bit longer to heal than some. Definitely call your doctor tomorrow, and in the meantime try not to worry!! And on the other thing, I too got my period many days earlier than expected after being banded on 8/13. I have no idea what the physiological cause might be, but you're not alone. Personally, I'm glad since I'm going on vacation this coming Saturday and now won't have to worry about it!!

Hi Momto1, My band was removed in April due to a significant slippage that couldn't be repaired in surgery. I don't know what makes the difference; I know other people who were able to have slips repaired in surgery and could keep their bands. Good luck with yours! Removal surgery was remarkably easy--I could have gone back to work the next day if I had to. Getting banded again is a bit harder, the surgery was longer and the body has more to adjust to afterwards. But I'm feeling fine and just glad to be banded again!!

Now that we're all in the home stretch, I'm interested to see what pre-op regimens our doctors have us on. My doctors seem to be almost unique in that they have NO preop diet for patients. (Well, unless you count liquids the day before, and nothing by mouth for 12 hours prior to surgery, which I don't.) So what's your doctor got you doing?

Becky, try to find mushies that have more protein in them. I use this stage to explore the marvelous world of soft cheeses, pates and spreads, hummus, liverwursts and all the other yummy things that normally seem like condiments. They're densely caloric but can have lots of nutrients in small amounts too, and that's what you want. Go to somewhere like Trader Joe's or a high-end supermarket and look at the deli counter with new eyes. There's lots of amazing stuff out there!

I do worry about that, indeed. My girls are handfuls now, at 6 and 9. But then I remember that my husband's family went for a LONG cross-country drive back in the late 60s in a station wagon. Two kids, 12 and 10, and two parents, one who hated to drive, no iPods, no GameBoys, no DVD/CD players, and they managed to go all over this nation for two months learning and seeing and doing. Hell, if they can do that, we can handle whatever adventures traveling throws at us.

I WAS BORN IN: New York, NY. The Big Apple. Manhattan, the city that never sleeps. AND GREW UP IN: the same I MOVED AWAY FROM HOME WHEN/BECAUSE: at 17 I went to college in upstate NY, and only lived under my mother's roof briefly after that, now and again. SINCE THEN I'VE LIVED: Manhattan (2 places); Queens (2 places in 4 years); Brooklyn (2 places in 4 years); Morris Co, NJ (3 places in 4 years)--I moved 8 times in 13 years, the last time in 1996. I ain't NEVER moving again!!! I TRAVEL AS OFTEN: Before kids travel was my #1 leisure priority. 3 months in Europe after college, Canada, Australia, Caribbean, as much as I could manage. After kids? Different story. But we'll get out there again. FARTHEST I'VE EVER BEEN FROM HOME IS: Australia in 1992. Loooong flight for 11 days, I'll tell you! BEST VACATION EVER, THAT I'D REPEAT IN A HEARTBEAT: Hmmmm.... I'd rather keep having new travel experiences, but will always love a beach vacation. Cancun in 1994 when Michael proposed to me is probably the best memory from a regular vacaion. WORST VACATION EVER, THAT WILL HAUNT ME TIL I DIE: None. All travel experiences are precious to me. But if I have to pick one it'd be last summer's week in Cape Cod, with bad weather and an ER visit on the second day because my 5 y.o. needed stitches. But I always know it could have been worse, and it's just another story for the family to laugh over later. DREAM VACATION IF TIME AND MONEY WERE NO OBJECT: Ahhh, now you're talking. I'd go on one of those around-the-world trips that go with only a few dozen people and take a year. SPECIAL PLACE I NEVER GET TIRED OF GOING BACK TO: I want to go back to Paris. I want to go back to Fair Harbor, Fire Island (NY) where I spent childhood summers. My heart is always in Manhattan. Great questions!!

Mary, I'm so sorry you're having this trouble! It's extremely rare that a body "rejects" the band--I've heard surgeons actually say that it's categorically impossible--but every once in a while there are people who seem just physically unable to tolerate it. I hope your body stops objecting and makes friends with it!! Good luck and heal quickly. :hug:

Hey, we're bandmates! I know exactly what you're talking about. I think it's just muscular twinges and twitches as things heal up and go back into place. Today is the first day I've done much more than sit at a desk and I am reallyl feeling it in my midsection. Guess getting in and out of a car (about 50 times today so far) is harder on me than I thought! All these little feelings are messages our bodies are giving us to TAKE IT SLOWLY. I for one am going to listen, and am about to retreat with a book. Feel better!

Jvalve, this is not all that uncommon. I recall feelingt that way myself sometimes. I even talked to my doctor about it on many occasions, and she was never concerned. Just try to take it easy, stand up slowly, and make sure you're getting enough fluids.

EVERYBODY CALLS ME: Alex MY PRIMARY RELATIONSHIPS INCLUDE: DH Michael (below), love of my life; DD Gillian almost 9, DD Catie, just turned 6. And stepson Peter, just turned 18. MY NON-HUMAN FAMILY CONSISTS OF: a parakeet of indeterminate gender named Ben-Sophia. My daughters have stuffed companions named Whitening and Spotty. (There are lots of other stuffies, of course, but these two have been elevated to members of the family.) I LIVE IN: Morris County, NJ OCCUPATION(S): Currently working as a health insurance broker and office manager. But my first career was as the executive director of a professional trade association, and I am thisclose to going back to that job. KEEP YOUR FINGERS CROSSED FOR ME. AVOCATION(S): None at the moment. Well, LBT, I guess. :biggrin1: But once my kids are grown and I have time for my own pursuits, it will be travel, music, and photography.

Hee hee! Yep, after surgery on Monday morning I went back to my office on Thursday. Am I nuts? (Don't answer that. ) I just can't take lying around the house, especially as I started to feel better and got a little hungry. I hate the way pain meds make my head feel, so they didn't really help. The worst part was driving to work--my 1/2 hour trip had a few potholes that made me twinge. But once at the office I was really OK. I find that working helps me keep my mind off of other things--time goes faster, I don't think about my next meal, it's all good! I did go to bed early that night, though. :biggrin1:

Thanks, Tracy!! I'm feeling better and better--that's the wonderful part of having surgery (or recovering from anything). As you heal life looks bright and shiny every day! I'm even enjoying doing the laundry. (Too bad I know THAT will pass.)