Sooverit!

Dear IRC....good for you for taking a step in a heathy direction....looks like you are the pefect candidate for this surgery! Good for you for jumping through the hoops and making it work! I am 49 now and probably in a few years I will be the perfect candidate too....too bad they want us to wait that long! all the best, marg keep us posted on your journey from here

Wow! Aren't you lucky....I've been sitting here for over 5 weeks :-)...Congratulations! Do you mind sharing your BMI and if you had comobidities...sorry if I'm being nosy...I just want this saga to end!!!

Hi everyone, I know this question's been posted but I was wondering if anyone knew the latest turn around time for Cigna to issue an approval? Meaning from the time paper work is faxed to Cigna and call from Surgeon's office> approximate?

After attending the introductory seminar at the hospital where I plan/hope to get my lap band the surgeon said just one thing that put a damper on my spirits. She said that the only group that doesn't lose weight or not too much but have health benefits are post menopausal woman. Of course..... I am 48 but still pre menopausal. Anyone out there over age 45 that can proudly boast a good loss and put these statistics to bed?? Anyone...:help:

I am 5 ft. 9 and a BMI of 36/37 (getting larger by the day as I am pre op). I really like when people say "Your not t h a t fat ...you're just BIG"...oh okay...that's better, that means I can't do anything about it...great. Or from thin people well your are very overweight but you're not one of those people that need surgery for weight loss!! The truth is I am 85 pounds heavier than I was only 12 years ago..but because I am tall and large boned I carry it well but my heart doesn't think so. Have heart disease & Type II diabetes in my family big time! Actually when ever I tell a medical professional I am considering the lap band...there responses are ...from a nurse: "Cool" good for you...from Doc's....Good ...as you get older you'll be less active this will be good for you". or just Okay...as long as you know that you will still have your mind to deal with (head hunger). Great topic thank you~

Are you still in the "mushy" phase? Can you try eating food that has fiber in it? I would think soft (steel cut) oatmeal with fruit,.scrambled eggs, protein drinks, soups, fish ..I really like Dr. Oz's books "You on a Diet" etc. If you are really hungry try to force yourself to eat healthy first then go for the "bad" stuff after your full from the good stuff. I think there should be better nutritional counceling when you go for something like this! IT's not your fault...call your surgeon asap! .

Burger rings?? Yikes that's would really tourture me to tempt myself like that!

Whenever I add Extra Virgin Olive Oil 1/2 tsp a day to my diet...my hair responds in about a week and looks shiny, slightly wavy and healthy. Also adding fish to diet helps too.

Andrea: I remember this happening to me after investing 2 months everyday at the gym for 2 hours a day and only eating health foods, I went on the scale for the first time there (I don't own one) and only saw 1 lb. down...I remember the frustration you are feeling and I immediately stopped going to the gym and then my weight really got out of hand. Thinking back I shouldn't have trusted the scale because in honestly my clothes were fitting better and I felt better.

I don't know but be careful ...I'm in the same dilemma and I think they could ask to see past proof that you had a 40 BMI for the past year! I would check this out before gaining. I am 38.5 BMI ...it's so frustrating...if I only had not gone to the gym for all those years! crazy!

Forgot to ask this question of my doctor so thought I would throw it out here. Does anyone know when the new AP band expires? Has anyone had one long enough to know when it should be removed? Is the price less if you need to replace it due to just everyday wear? I am guessing weight gain would be a symptom of it starting to errode or just not work any longer? I know nothing lasts forever just wondering if I will be up for it to be removed when I'm 75?

I am starting to think there is a method to the Insurance Company's madness. After a year of thinking about doing this and then the 6 month doc. supervised diet (which I gained 10 lbs. doing) I am extremely ready now to have the lap band surgery done and over with! Are Ins. co.s the only ones who don't know diets don't work? I have new forms from my surgeons office I will fill out fax today and ask push for the available February date wheather my insurance company covers me or not. The $22,000 I will have to pay out of pocket is gradually looking like a bargain. For a longer life with a healthier body that looks and feels better and gives me back control of my eating.....you bet! :eek: Best to everyone here! Marg a.k.a. Joan (middle name)

Dear Ron: Any news on a upcoming February support meeting>? thank you! MJ

Did your doc tell you that you may be dehydrated adn that could also be why you are constipated? It's hard to get in enough water ....I keep a very large bottle by my bed with cups and have a water cooler in the kithchen. Work is tough so I keep water on my desk to remind me also in my car. Hope this helps keep us posted

Also another thing I am going to change is to do away with the evil scale. Those numbers or lack of declining numbers have caused me to go off the best health and fitness plans in frustration. I am going to use my clothes as my measure. If anyone sees me in Bed Bath and Beyond please pull me out!! thanks all marg

I agree with Bonnie...(I think said it) I wouldn't want to lose too fast at this age anyway! Not a real healthy look! I'll be 50 in 2 years but already starting with the menopausal waist gain and boobs! I can't believe they can grow like this!! I am scheduled for LB sugery next month with a 38 BMI hoping to get this hunger under control. Since the past year or so I feel like I am ravenously PMSing all the time with hunger and newly aquired sweet tooth. I am hoping with HR therapy and the lap band I get back to normal or somewhat normal. thanks all marg

Hello dear Candle: I am so glad to hear how well you are doing. I've followed your progress from the beginning and you've given me inspiration from day one. Heck I know why you don't go to support meetings you'd be way too busy supporting to even get sleep! You are an ideal patient. I am finally getting banded in either February or March...just waiting on insurance approval or disapproval or course but have finally finished all the hurdles and feel so certain now that I want this. I figure I have one more "last supper" anymore and I won't make it to surgery date!@! Best to all, Marg a.k.a. Joan MJ

Big M count me in too...I'll be roady, groupy whatever. Dancin days are here again....do the lyrics then go in the summer evening ...somthing something

Paying more than 7-8 k for this you are just wasting your money. Hi Grace I liked your response except for this part. Can you explain what you mean. For someone living in NYC I don't think we have a choice as we have to pay 3x this amount out of pocket if the insurance company we have gets greedy. I thought about going to another state but the cost of airfare, hotel and the hassle of finding a doc who will do fills here just isn't worth it I think.

Hi Charley Girl: I remember being your age...slightly..and can remember having so much energy left over after the day's end. If this almost 50 year old could turn back the clock when I had more energy I would 1) Learn a new skill to apply to a new 2nd career/ job 2) volunteer 3) Take up a hobby where you meet 1+x a week and meet others like you 4) Take another p/t job 5) Go back to school 6) Go to the gym/walk the mall or anywhere in the evening 7) Visit parents/friends/ etc. more

Hi MIKECEE: hOW did it go? Hope you are recovering easily and taking it easy. Keep us posted and you are in our thoughts. Hi Staylucid: Met with Dr. Huberman about 5 months ago and felt he had an easygoing very "sane" personality. He put my mind at ease and I never once felt like he was "evaluating" me. I just felt like he was there to give me support and piece of mind. Dr. Fielding told me the port does not stick out but if your stomach is firm you may be able to feel it more right under the surface of the skin.

I think for control over a sweet addiction (oximoron) I have to use 100 % abstenance. If I try even a sugar free sweet it's all over (my hips, thighs, etc.). :-) marg .

HI everyone: Haven't been on in months. I finally met with the amazing Dr. Fielding yesterday and one word that comes to mind is confidence....he completely made me feel 100% confident in his abilities and my reasons for having this proceedure. It was like any anxieties or doubts were completely quelled after listening to him talk. I felt like I was talking to an old friend. With that charming slight Austrialian accent I would do anything he says. He desribed the lap band like it was the most normal thing in the world and just about every one in the country will if not does need one now before we all die of obesity related complications. We almost have a date just finishing up paperwork for our "friends" at CIGNA. The only slight small red flag was when I asked him how much I would lose with a BMI of 38 and he said you can expect to lose 60 -70 lbs. That's a BIG promise and I didn't think that was the "norm". Hoping for Februay date, Marg

Oh boy is this strange for me and I hope I'm not being morose in sharing this with anyone who reads this. I haven't been on this site for at least 3 months and I see the changes and I like them, but wow the picture of the girl next to the logo. This woman looks exactely like my sister would if she had had this proceedure and lost the weight that she needed to lose. She passed away two years in April from heart attack at age 47. I can't stop looking at it! Other than that it looks great except for no handy spell check still. Marg

Hi Sophie: I'm just curious if you are taking your measurements? I remember last year when I dropped 3 sizes when I was literally living at the gym and I didn't weight myself for at least 4 months. I had a doc appt. and they weighed me ...I only lost 6 lbs. in 4 months!! but I looked like I lost 40. Muscle replaced my fat and weighed ALOT more than my fat. You probably know this already but I remember feeling so discouraged that I stopped going to the gym....big mistake@ I hate scales! Marg MJ