faithmd

I don't think it is a usual test, no. My husband's had one in the past, it turned out fine, was fatty liver disease, the treatment was just stay away from saturated fats in his case. When they were in there doing your band, they can easily visualize your liver and may have decided to do a biopsy for some reason. Did you ask the nurse why? I suggest you call the surgeon's office tomorrow and ask them directly why it was done (is it usual for that surgeon's patients to have them?), and if they can't tell you, ask to have the nurse or preferably the surgeon who CAN tell you, call you back ASAP. That's just mean to tell someone a biopsy was done and not say why.

Here's a thread a couple below the one you posted that may help: http://www.lapbandtalk.com/band-slippage-t30220.html Check out the complications forum (where you posted this thread), there may be some more info here for you to read while you are waiting for more responses. hope everything is alright!

I can't offer a lot, I don't know too many signs, but click on Search on the blue toolbar near the top of the page and then click on advanced search, then type slip in the box on the left, then click on the down arrow below it and click on thread titles only. You will now see all the threads that have slip in the title. You could also write slipped in that search box. You also may wish to search for bile because I remember seeing another thread recently about bile around here. Good luck!!

you're very welcome. hope your seminar is a productive and informative one!

Who does the surgery at GCH? I'm planning to go to Hurley in Flint, but I thought I'd still say hello and welcome!!

Call your insurance company and ask who they suggest (and pay for) that does bariatric surgery evaluations. I did NOT go to the ones my surgeon's office suggested, I went to who my insurance paid for after calling a couple from the list the insurance company gave me. It was one visit, about 45 mins talking and then the MMPI-2 personality test. Altogether it was $45 out of pocket as it was billed as three visits (which I think was sneaky, but oh well) and my copay is $15 per visit. Good luck!

Woohoo!! Congrats on your marvelous loss!

Welcome! Take some time, look around here and you'll find loads of good info. The Search function on the blue toolbar near the top of the page is a wonderful thing to use to find answers. I've learned a lot by using it. I haven't been banded yet, so I cannot speak to what the band feels like, but I don't think anyone has posted that they can feel the band itself. The port area is sore after surgery, and sometimes after moving certain ways (it's sutured to a layer of muscle). What after effects are they saying are not good???? I can imagine that someone might say the after effects of bypass surgery might not be good, but there are no real after effects of the Band other than soreness and gas pains after the surgery for a bit and occasionally eating too fast and getting "stuck." Here's some links to help you with more info: Here's a link to the FAQ forum, you will find many threads there about what all the abbreviations mean that are tossed around here, links to other good sites, technical references about the band, checklists, and things to ask the doctor: http://www.lapbandtalk.com/lap-band-faqs-f73.html?s=&daysprune=&f=73 The scars are NOT big at all! Here's a link to the thread that has many, many pictures of people's scars, in various stages: http://www.lapbandtalk.com/scar-stages-share-t6117.html Here's a link to the thread with lots of before and after banding pix: http://www.lapbandtalk.com/before-and-after-t4642.html

Goldfish are little crackers shaped like tiny goldfish. And they are yummy! They come in pretzel, many varieties of cheese flavorings and a pizza flavor. I haven't been banded yet, but I do appreciate reading all these posts about being in Hell. I am taking all this info in and processing it so I have tips to make it through my hell when I finally get there. One of the things I have read on here over and over and over again is that the first fill RARELY gives you good restriction, it usually takes until the second, third, or occasionally more than three fills to find the "sweet spot." Not meant to burst your hopes, but I wanted to remind us all (because I will be where you are now, soon enough) that we have to be strong for a while. We can do ANYTHING if we know there's a light at the end of the tunnel. How many years have we carried around this excess weight? And this Hell is only mere weeks out of our lives. Okay, it is several weeks, but we all CAN do it!!!

Once some of this weight gets off and I am in better condition than I have been for the past year, I can't wait to go down again. Thanks for the suggestions!

Hooray! I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you! Not to be a spoil sport, but remember, different insurances have different requirements, so it may take longer than a couple of months for the surgery. Mine has a 12 MONTH MD supervised weight loss requirement with monthly doctor visits and weigh-ins and if I missed one, the clock would have started over. Some have only 3 month, others have six and a very few have no diets required at all. Can you ask this person what their requirements were? Or perhaps you've covered that already. Ooooo, I'm very excited for you and your possibilities! Keep us posted!

Yes, MCare does have their head up there! And I had to have 12 months of MD supervised diet. Not to make light of the situation, but Cigna at 6 months is a breeze. I was on a medication that made me completely sedentary and mimicked the symptoms of depression (not caring, eating, sleeping short periods all the time), it was metoprolol (Lopressor) and I was on a fairly high dose of it to control my heart rate, and it didn't work. It was because of a heart condition that reared it's ugly head two months into my year of MD visits (and they're right, don't miss a SINGLE visit!) and I was affected by it until December of this past year. So by the time I was fixed, I only ended up with a month and a half to lose my required 5%. By then, I had added 22 lbs to my weight. The insurace considers your STARTING weight, not your high weight. So I had to lose the 5% PLUS the 22lbs I put on. But as it was explained to me, it is about compliance. Which I think is ridiculous, but what can I do? I am trying again next month and in the meantime, I'm socking some moola away and WASaBB is going to help me choose another surgeon if need be. (Thanks!) About not missing a single visit: also make SURE that you see your doctor every month, not just weigh in with the nurse or MA. And the doctor has to write in their notes what you've been doing over the past month to try to lose weight. It can be as simple as saying you've started walking 20 minutes a day, etc... But it all must be documented.

Another option (but you have to watch the carb content of this, too) is to try baby food. There are most foods available in baby food varieties and with a little salt can be quite yummy. I have read that some folks pureed egg salad and said it was yummy. Others said they layered smooth tomato sauce and ricotta cheese (smooth) and cheese sauce and baked it or microwaved it.

I'd set up the appointment for right after you see the surgeon (not the same day, though-surgeons are notorious for running VERY late), you can always cancel it if you don't need to see your PCP. That way you have an appointment. You can also call the surgeon's office and ask for a packet to be mailed to you with info about what that office requires pre-op. Some surgeons require a psych evaluation, some require sleep-testing, depending on your age or history, others require a scope or an upper GI, it all depends. But if you call now and ask what EVERYONE who is banded by them is required to do, you'll have an idea of what you can get started on. Let them know you are aware that everyone is different and you may require more testing, but you just want to know what you have to do at a minimum. Call your insurance company and ask the insurance company what the requirements are. Most require a letter of medical necessity, and a psych eval or something like that. Have them mail you their policy statement about adjustable gastric banding, that way you have it in writing. You also want something in writing that says what they require to be in that "Letter of Medical Necessity." They may want diet history, or they may not care about it. They may want co-morbidities and may need a BMI in it, they may want something that states you've been X # of lbs overweight for X # of years, etc. That way you know exaclty what they're looking for and can give that info to your PCP to assist in writing the letter. Good luck!

I don't know who your insurance will pay for you to be banded by. I would suggest you start there. Call your insurance company and get a list (in writing) of who they will pay for you to be banded by. Then you can come here and ask, or I would suggest going to obesityhelp.com and doing a search for that doctors' name. Most docs have a page on OH that has patient reviews. It's very helpful. I have researched a few in the SE Michigan area, here's a little of what I've found. Dr. Deol is very good, but she also has an $800 mandatory support group fee that is not covered by insurance. Mark Pleatman in W. Bloomfield is also good, but he has a $1500 office follow-up fee that isn't covered by insurance. The Hurley Bariatric Group in Flint are all quite good, their office has one of the lowest mortality rates in the country for any WLS. They've only had two mortalities in over 2000 surgeries, and those were earlier on in their program and were RNY's that went into it quite ill. U of M hasn't banded anyone yet (or hadn't as of February). Port Huron has a FANTASTIC program, their surgeons are top-notch and the follow-up care is very good. There are a number of bariatric programs like CORI and such, I don't know much info about them, they have always been very RNY biased and my insurance doesn't pay for them, so I didn't do much research on them. Hope this helps!

Here's the link to the whole forum about FAQ's and technical issues, you'll find questions to ask the surgeon there as well as checklists for items to have. http://www.lapbandtalk.com/lap-band-...aysprune=&f=73 And here's some of the many other threads that are similar to yours, I thought you might like to check some of them out, too. The Search function along the blue toolbar about 1/3 way down from the top of every page is invaluable. Welcome and best of luck, hope these all help! http://www.lapbandtalk.com/questions...4.html?t=32224 http://www.lapbandtalk.com/pre-op-qu...6.html?t=31866 http://www.lapbandtalk.com/pre-op-qu...5.html?t=31865 http://www.lapbandtalk.com/questions...5.html?t=28945 http://www.lapbandtalk.com/some-ques...1.html?t=12541 http://www.lapbandtalk.com/questions...7.html?t=20287

Very glad to hear it all went very well! And glad to hear you may be able to have the VG soon. Take care , kick your feet up and relax, you deserve it!

Alos, double check with your insurance (and get it in writing) if you have to lose 5 % of your TOTAL weight, or your EXCESS weight. That makes a HUGE difference. I have to lose 5% of my EXCESS weight (using the MetLife tables to say what my ideal weight is). My ideal weight is (according to MetLife) 167lbs, my starting weight was 344, so you subtract 167 from 344 and that is my excess weight. Then I take 5% of that and it's about 9 lbs. A whole lot better than 17.2 lbs if you went by 5% of my TOTAL weight.

It does, and STAY AWAY from sugars and refined flours AND artificial sweeteners of ANY kind. NO, NO Splenda, NO Nutrasweet! I tried it (I also have to lose 5%, I didn't because of a med I was on, and I WAS DENIED, despite a letter from two doctors that it wasn't my fault, so they are absolutely hard-nosed about that 5%) and it made all the difference in the world. It is fine to eat whole grains and complex carbs, those fill you up and keep your hunger satisfied longer like Protein does. Nothing can help head hunger. Nothing. That is a battle you have to fight and win yourself. But I will tell you that dropping the artificial sweeteners and using Stevia (can find it at health food stores and some larger supermarkets) or Blue Agave juice (which does have calories and carbs, but is a low-GI food so it takes longer for your body to absorb it, thus no spikes in blood sugar) has killed almost all my cravings for sweets or carbs of any sort. You see, Splenda is made from sugar, so your body still processes it the same way, and though you don't get the spike in glucose (cause it is so low-carb), you still get the dip because it is processed as sugar is. The dips in glucose are what makes you crave more and more, a vicious cycle. The weight loss of 5% is required because the insurance company wants to make sure that you can follow a MD program. It really isn't that much weight, and it shows "good faith" to them that you can do what the doctor tells you to do. It yanks my crank, yes, but I do understand their reasoning.

I would add, stay as FARRRRR away from that second surgeon as you possibly can!!! Run, do not walk, back to the first surgeon. I would also encourage you to go and check out obesityhelp.com Read through some of the forums, even the forum for your own state, and really read what the posts are about and what the answers are. Just everyday conversation on the forums for RNY'ers seems to frequently include discussions about Iron infusions, trips to the ER, abdominal pain that is discovered later to be leaks or adhesions in their bowels or blockages. But it is just such a part of their lives, they think nothing of it. True, they've lost lots of weight, and some would answer you that they absolutely would do it a gain even with the complications. And that's great for them. Really, it is. But I'd like to ask them that in five or ten years when the weight is coming back on. Now, I know there are some true RNY/DS success stories out there, and that to me is FANTASTIC. It is wonderful to hear when someone does not have a complication. But the numbers do not lie, the complication and mortality rate for RNY is much higher than that of the Band. If my weight in five years will be the same whether I do RNY or Band, I'll do Band and not lose sections of intestine, thank you.

No, no, it's fine, I just noticed you are fairly new and probably haven't had the chance to find the other threads yet on your own. And since it is a holiday for a lot of people, I also knew there probably wouldn't be a lot of responses to this thread for at least a while. If you are anything like me, when I want to know something, I want to know NOW. So I thought I'd help you find some answers.

What stage are you in? Go and get some of the baby bottles of apple/prune juice. They don't taste bad at all and will help. If you are in the mushy stage yet, then you could pick up some baby food veggies or cook some and run them through the blender. Are you still taking narcotics for the pain? They are very constipating. Also, are you getting in your 64 ounces of Water a day? That will help tons. Some folks also take Citrucel (it mixes clear in water).

Hello TracyTX, welcome and congrats on getting banded! This is a question that is asked almost as much as can I have soda after the band? Here's a few links to some threads that have a couple of pages each about this subject, there are a couple of polls in this list, too. That way you can see what many people have done. Hope these help! http://www.lapbandtalk.com/soon-after-surgery-t31539.html?t=31539 http://www.lapbandtalk.com/soon-were-you-t31467.html?t=31467 http://www.lapbandtalk.com/soon-can-go-t31892.html?t=31892 http://www.lapbandtalk.com/time-off-work-t31007.html?t=31007 http://www.lapbandtalk.com/back-work-t30346.html?t=30346 http://www.lapbandtalk.com/poll-time-off-t24060.html?t=24060 http://www.lapbandtalk.com/time-off-work-t27726.html?t=27726

lianna, how do you take your Metformin? I take 1000mg BID as well. The pills are so huge and my surgeon says he wants to try to wean me off before surgery, but my PCP would like to keep me on them. Do you take a liquid? They're sooooo bitter even broken in half that I can't imagine crushing them!

AHHHHH Schinkes!!!!! I just always look at the posts but clicking on "New Posts" I NEVER look at what specific forum they are posted in....guess I've learned to start looking. Oops, I suppose I'd better stay out of anything that says Canadian afore'n I put my size 11 foot back in my mouth. Sorry... :faint: :yield: :yield: :yield: :usa2: