mumof2boys

Yeah...I think that I'm in that "big boned" category myself. Everyone says that I don't look like what the scale says. Anyway...it's really weird because some folks feel no restrictions without getting fills, but I do. I have talked to someone else who had the surgery by Dr. Brody and she did too. Maybe he does something different from other doctors. Who knows...all I know is that the pounds are going down on the scale and that's making me quite happy. I have completely changed my way of eating. I eat lots of fish, chicken and turkey. I also eat salads, drink Water and eat the 100 calorie snack packs. Although...I have also had McDonald's, Dominos and others... Jorgina told me that my insurance does cover my fills. I guess I'll find out in three weeks. I look at it this way...they covered the surgery...if I have to pay a couple hundred dollars a couple of times a year...I can deal with that. It's much cheaper than paying for the entire surgery. I had to call Jorgina this morning. My last scab fell off yesterday. My incisions are healing very well, but when the last scab fell off...there is white string coming out of my stomach. I'm not trying to gross you out...don't worry...anyway...she said that it will disolve and if it doesn't within a week to call her back. So...for right now, I kind of look like I was put back together with a needle and thread. Oh well... Tina

WOW...you are doing a great job of losing weight right now. That's something to be very proud of. I am 5'4" - 5'5". I want to lose about another 101 pounds. I would love to be in a size 10. You never know...it could happen. As far as the EKG goes...I had to have one but that's because I already see a cardiologist for a heart problem that I have had since I was 2. If you don't already see one and if you have no reason to see one, I don't think that you need to have an EKG, but you could check with them. I can't believe that I'm going to have a fill in 3 weeks. I'm a little nervous about it. I have heard that it doesn't hurt, but I'm still nervous. I will tell you that I have great difficulty eating a sandwich. It hurts and it's just not worth it. It's weird because some people say that they have no restriction at all until they have about 3 fills. I can't imagine what I'll be like after 3 fills if I already have restrictions. Well...let me know if you have any other questions. Take care! Tina

Here are my stats: Starting Weight: 275.8 Current Weight: 241.4 My starting weight is my weight the morning that I started my Optifast diet. Prior to starting that I had a "Farewell to Food" party at my house. I ate LOTS of food. So...I have lost the 34 pounds in about 8 weeks. My goal is to lose 10 pounds a month. That's 2 pounds a week and I think that's very doable. I'm so excited for you... Regarding the bloodwork...what insurance do you have? I have MDIPA. I had my bloodwork done in the same building that Dr. Brody's office is located. It's on the basement floor (I think). Also...when you call to do your pre-registration over the phone, they will ask you about it. The little pre-op class that you have to take is pretty good. There are people in there that are having gastric by-pass and when sitting in there, it just made me think how lucky I was that I wasn't having that. They show you all kinds of things. What tubes you will have in you...where you will be staying...how long you'll be there. The nurse that did our class (Mariam) was VERY nice. She ended up being my nurse the morning that I left. Do you work in DC? How do you get to GW? Luckily, I work in DC and I take the metro right over whenever I have an appointment. It's right off of the Foggy Bottom stop. I thought that I had my information with me here at work and I was going to give you the numbers for the blood work appointment and the pre-registration. Unfortunately, I don't have that with me. You can call next week and get all of that taken care of. Well...great to hear from you. Keep me informed. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask me. I just love GW and Dr. Brody!!!!! Tina :biggrin1:

Hello everyone. How wonderful to hear that you guys both got your surgery dates. And Chanda...I'm so glad that you like Dr. Brody and his staff. I couldn't have asked for a better surgeon. I go back to see him on 6/26 for my first fill. As of this morning, I have lost a total of 34 pounds. I'm so very excited. Did Jorgina make you an appointment with the nurse for your Optifast? You should do a two week Optifast diet prior to your surgery. The materials costs $322. I did not use all of my stuff. In fact, I have quite a bit of it left. You could get away with less than I did. If you don't have an appointment for that, you might want to call Jorgina and ask about it. Well...glad to hear that everyone is doing well. Keep us posted on how everything goes. I'm very excited for both of you!!!! Tina

Sonya, Get a copy of all of the tests that you had run in March. Dr. Brody's office will need that. If you have all of that and everything else that they are looking for, you should get a surgery date in no time. Good luck!!! By the way...you will really like Dr. Brody. He's great!!! Tina

Hey Tanya...how have you been? Yes...we are neighbors. I live right near Pinefield. Small, small world, huh? I go to the Pinefield Curves, too. Do you go there? Have you ever been? I usually go on Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday or Saturday. If you have never been, you should give it a try. It's quite fun (and quick). Tina

OK...no need to fall out of your chair. I live off of St. Peter's Church Road. You are right though...we do have a lot in common. Mr. Jeworski is actually not a doctor. He's a nurse practitioner. I usually see him because it's easy to get an appointment and he's very nice. When I told him that I wanted to get lap band he said...I know what to do. Six months later, I was on my way to Dr. Brody's office. My insurance requires six months, so that's what we did. Anyway...everyone in that office is very helpful. Good luck and keep me informed. Tina

Chanda, Good for you for making that call. Get this...I go to Dr. Pace and Leatherwood's office too. I usually see Mr. Jeworski and he's the one who did my paperwork for Dr. Brody. It sounds like you will be good to go real quickly. I didn't even know that Jorgina had send in my paperwork and all of a sudden I got a call from her to schedule my surgery. So...it really doesn't take much time. Good luck and keep me informed of the progress!!! Tina

When I met with the nurse at my surgeon's office, the suggested the Optisource Vitamins. I bought them but didn't open them after reading the bottle. At my two week follow-up visit, I asked my surgeon. He advised that I don't need to take those. With the band, I don't have absorbsen problems such as those who have gastric bypass. He suggested just a once a day multi-Vitamin, such as Centrum. I have purchased the chewable ones and they taste good. They are orange flavored and you only need one a day. You should look into those. Good luck! Tina

Hi, Chanda. I am actually doing great. I have completely changed my way of eating. I did the Optifast diet for two weeks prior to my surgery. I'm not going to lie...it was awefully hard. I did substitute a shake for a salad, but I got approval from the nurse first. After the surgery, they tell you liquids for an additional two weeks. I did it for about a week and a half and then moved onto soft foods. Since 4/16, I have lost 27 pounds. I have started eating lots of salads, fish, turkey, etc. I can't explain it...it's like I had a brain transplant at the same time that I had the lapband. I really watch my calorie intake. The first few days (actually more like a week) after surgery, I was really sore. My kids understood and didn't jump up on me or anything, so it worked out alright. Well...good luck with all of your stuff for insurance. By the way...who is your PCP in Waldorf? Tina

Hi there. I too had my surgery at GW with Dr. Brody. However, before I had my initial appointment with him, I had already done my 6 months of physician supervised weight loss. I went to my PCP in September because I made up my mind that I wanted the LapBand. I did my six months and then went to Dr. Brody. Did you meet with Jorgina? Let me just say that Jorgina requires a lot of documentation, but she is very good. She wants to make sure that she gets an approval as soon as she submits. I have federal MDIPA and I was approved right away (much to my surprise). My insurance doesn't require a psych. evaluation, but Dr. Brody's office did, so I got it done. Hang in there. As far as the two year thing...I just got a copy of my medical file from my doctor because everytime I went to the doctor (for whatever reason), they weigh me. So...it at least showed what my weight was. But for the 6 month thing...I did go once a month and get weighed in. Good luck...let me know how everything goes. How did you like Dr. Brody? I think that he's great!!! Tina

Hi J2mommi, Where do you live? I was banded on 4/30/07 by Dr. Brody at George Washington University Hospital in DC. Absolutely wonderful hospital, excellent surgeon...very compassionate people. I highly recommend him. In fact, I went to see him this morning for my 2-week check-up. He's a very nice person. If you would like, I can provide you with the phone number to his office. Just let me know. Good luck! Tina

Chanda, Welcome!!! I also have an appointment with Dr. Brody tomorrow. What time is your appointment? My appointment is at 9:45 am. I'm going in for my two week follow-up. I was banded on 4/30/07. Dr. Brody is great...you're going to really like him. His secretary Jorgina is a wealth of information. The entire GW team is wonderful. I had a great experience at the hospital. I wish you luck with the insurance. Let me know when your appointment is and how your insurance approval process goes. Talk to you soon! Tina

Well...I did it. I am two days post-op and feel like I have been hit by a freight train. The pains in my stomach are terrible. In the hospital, I vomited twice because of the pain medicine and that was a horrible feeling. I took my bandages off today. Two of my incisions have some oozing, but they will be alright. I didn't realize how sore I was going to be. Hopefully it will go away in a couple of days. How long before I start to feel "normal" again? Tina:eek:

Thanks everyone. I am feeling much better. I went back to work yesterday for a half a day and I'm back again today for a half a day. The only problem that I really encountered yesterday was that two of my incision sites started leaking (and I was wearing a pink shirt...not pretty). Today I'm wearing black in case it happens again. Anyway...I appreciate all of the feedback. Since starting my pre-op diet (4/16/07), I have lost 24 pounds. I'm very excited and looking forward to this very long journey. Tina

My discharge papers from my doctor says for weeks 1-2 Clear Liquids. However, it also says that I can have Ensure, Boost and Carnation Instant Breakfast. My doctor wants to make sure that I still have an intake of calories. I have a Carnation for breakfast, Ensure for lunch and broth for dinner. I also drink Propel during the day. I think all doctors are different in what they want their patients to do. Tina

I was banded on 4/30/07...came back to work yesterday (5/9/07) for only half day...the longer you can take off, the better. I could never have come back to work in a day or two, but everyone is different. Tina

Oh...I got it now. You will probably also have to attend a seminar at the hospital that is mandatory. It's basically a "What to expect during your hospital stay" type of thing. It was pretty beneficial. Anyway...the tests that I did were all prior to my appointment with the surgeon. My insurance didn't require a psych. test, but my doctor did so I got a referral from my PCP and went and had it done. It was no biggie. Good luck to you! Good news on the approval. Tina

I have never heard of that other doctor. I have talked to a number of people who have had their surgery with Dr. Brody and everyone was pleased. You might want to check him out. As far as all of the pre-surgery testing...you have to complete that before even making an appointment with him. You call his office and his secretary sends out a packet of information. Once you fill out the information and get all of your clearances from the doctors, you call back and make your appointment. I think that really helped me with getting my insurance approval right away. The office was great. So...you already went to the seminar at GW? Was it held in a conference room on the 5th floor? Well...let me know how things go with that doctor. Good luck to you! Tina

Teacherchick, I thought that Dr. Afram only did gastric bypass. When I went for my mandatory pre-of seminar at GW, Dr. Afram's patients were having gastric bypass and the only patients having lapband were with Dr. Brody. I could be wrong, but you might want to check on that. Dr. Brody is who did my surgery and he's great. I got the band on 4/30 (I'm a newbie). If you do have Dr. Afram, I have heard that he too it wonderful. Good luck! Tina

Hey BJ and Tanya...don't forget me...I'm 100% Waldorf... Tina

Hi, Tanya...thanks! This week hasn't been the best, but I know that it will only get better. I really would love something mushy tonight, but I'll be good and wait until two weeks. broth gets old real quick. Hey...anyone know how I set up the ticker at the bottom to show weight loss? Thanks! Tina

Thanks...things seem to be getting better every day. I just realized that I will still be on Clear Liquids on Mother's Day. I'm going to call my surgeon and see if I can eat a little something to Celebrate...I will only be shy by one day. It should be alright. I have been out of work for a week now and I'm not going back on Monday. My doctor told me two weeks, but I'm going to play it by ear. I hate to be out for so long and use so much leave, but if I'm not comfortable yet, then I'm not going back. I can literally hear the air in my stomach and at times it takes my breath away. It happens more when I am sitting up and that's what I do all day at work, so...I'm just going to take it easy. I appreciate all of your suggestions and advise. One more question...what Vitamins did your doctor put you on after the surgery. My doctor said that he always recommends a multi-Vitamin for anyone (not just weight loss patients) but the nurse told me to take these vitamins that gastric bypass patients take for absorbtion reasons. I haven't opened them yet and if I can, I may take them back. What is everyone else taking? Thanks!!! Tina

Thanks, guys. I'm actually feeling a lot better today...just having some dizzy spells. I'm sure in a day or two I'll be back to my same old self. I appreciate the suggestion of walking...I'm trying to get a lot of that in. Tina

Well...the time has come and now I'm getting scared. I have to be at the hospital tomorrow at 11:30 am for my 1:30 pm surgery. I can't believe that it's here...on one hand I'm excited (Optifast for the past two weeks has been horrible), and on the other hand I'm terrified. Lots of emotions going through me right now. What have I done to myself to make me get to this point? Why do I need a band around my stomach so I can lose weight...why can't I do it myself? Will I be able to do it with the band? Hopefully after all of this is done and I'm working with the band I'll feel better about all of this. Did you guys feel this way too? Any advice for me? You guys are all so great and have done a wonderful job with your weight loss. If I can do as great as you, I will know that I have made the right decision. Thanks guys!!!