Vicki J

When I was going through the process in SSF last year, I asked if I could do my psych and nutritionalist appointments here in Roseville. They said no. I asked if I could pay for private appointments through a WLS psych and they said no. I was trying to get things to move faster. According to what I was told they will only work with the bariactric group at that hospital. Things could be different in the other two locations but call before you go through all the trouble and have to double your efforts. Some of the classes, especially the weekly ones were available for me in Sacramento. Some of the classes were in SSF. Again, call. All of this will be gone over in orientation. I also asked if we could choose our facility and at that time they said no. Loose your weight as quickly as possible AFTER orientation because they hate to see people not working hard. Yeah, they're all skinny and don't seem to realize that it is hard to do. They also view this as an elective surgery. If you want to see if you can move an appointment up, call frequently for cancellations. They don't call you. I had my psych appt cancelled because she was in jury duty and they wanted to put me 2 months out. I called and found out they had an appt the next week that they didn't tell me about. I got that one. The process seems lengthy when you're going through it but afterwards it's like birth and you forget the pain. LOL

I live in Penryn which is next to Auburn. I had my surgery on 12/12/07 and I'm very happy with it. I lost 70 pounds prior to surgery (while waiting) and have lost an additional 46 since surgery. With only 9 pounds to go until I reach goal, I find I have a little bit of a hard time staying focused. I'll loose it but I'm just not as driven to be really strict with myself. I'm extremely happy I did this as it has truly given me my life back.

Contact patient services and they will be able to tell you if they are doing the band. Also, contacting the bariactric department will get you information on the process. Good luck! Vicki

Papahemi - Congratulations on the beginning of your journey. The best advice I can give you (from a fellow SSF patient) is to follow your instructions and be patient. They will want you to loose around 10% of your current weight (+/-) and the sooner you do that the sooner you'll get your surgery. If you need to change an appointment, make sure to call in frequently for cancellations. They won't call you. I think that all three surgeons are good so there probably isn't anything to worry about there. Other than it taking a while to get through the process it is well worth it. Contact me if you have any questions or just need someone to talk to. Once again, congratulations on starting your new life. Vicki

Kelly - I am a Kaiser patient that went through SSF. The programs between the Kaisers are somewhat different but close enough to relate. The one thing that frustrated me when I was going through all the pre-op stuff was the fact that you had to be the squeeky wheel in order to find anything out like cancelled appointments. The staff was nice enough and in hindsight I wouldn't hesitate to do it all over again. Yes, it took 6 months for me to get through from orientation to surgery but it also only cost me $15 for the lapband. That's a pretty good trade off. We went through orientation and then they put us through the other appointments. One person told me that if nothing else came of this I would have the best physical I would ever have. It was a pretty good one. Kaiser views this as an elective surgery. Those of us who have been obese know that this is a very important surgery and don't think of it as elective. Hence, the reason for them feeling like it's non-urgent and us feeling like it is. They wanted me to loose 10% of my weight pre-surgery. I made sure that they wouldn't kick me out of the program if I lost more and proceeded to loose about 70 pounds by the time I had surgery. That was more than 50% of the weight I had to loose. They have you do this by putting you on a 1200 calorie diet. I had one person tell me that the more I succeeded the quicker I would get surgery. Well, I have to say I believe her because I was tentatively scheduled for Feb. 08 and was banded 12/12/07. Basically, it's the best thing I've ever done for myself. I'm now within 4 pounds of a "normal" body weight and 9 pounds from goal. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. Vicki

Hey everyone - What you're experiencing is normal. Our bodies tend to take a time out to readjust. Whenever this happens to me, if I've been following most of the rules most of the time, eventually I'll loose 2-4 pounds in one fell swoop. Then usually I'll bounce again. On another board we call this the "dead pound bounce". It seems it has to do it before we can get rid of it for good. As far as getting back on the wagon goes, you're already exercising and now you have to accept that you've made some bad choices and move on. Start journaling your foods and if you choose to eat something you normally wouldn't, plan it in. It seems that if you make it a choice and not a compulsion you have control and that makes it easier to have the amount you choose instead of it choosing you. You also don't beat yourself up because you made an informed decision. This last weekend I went out to dinner with my DH and a couple of friends for our 24th anniversary. I ate lobster, steak, salad, a baked potatoe, a roll, and cheesecake. Now, did I eat the whole thing? LOL - I couldn't if I had wanted to. BUT - I did have butter and sour cream on my potatoe, dipped my lobster in butter and by the way did I mention I had some cheesecake? But the amounts I ate were tiny. I ate my steak/lobster first (about 1 oz of lobster and 2.5 oz of steak) and then tasted everything else. It was a wonderful dinner. Now I'm not saying this because I think I'm so great. I'm saying this because I was happy with what I ate and I ate it while feeling in control because I decided this was what I was going to do. I learned a while back that the feeling of being out of control made me feel like I had failed. Choosing to do something left me in control and guilt free. We all have to live the rest of our lives with this way of life and we had better factor in that we are human. But isn't it great that we can live knowing if we eat that special something we aren't going to balloon up to where we were like someone stuck an air hose up our bums. Of course, that night I did dream that my son gained weight. LOL So first thing is to ease up on yourself. Second is if you're going to weigh yourself (I weigh daily) is not to run your life by it because it will continually move up and down. Third is to journal. I've been on this journey for a year now and I still journal if for no other reason so that I can go back and evaluate things. Fourth, give yourself permisson to be human. This isn't a race and a year from now you'll be overwhelmed because you've lost a ton of weight and are wearing smaller clothes than you would have thought possible. Finally, take your measurements because during these times you are usually loosing inches. Good luck on your journey.

Well, one year ago today I started my journey towards a new life. I can't really call it my "bandiversary" because I didn't get banded until December 12, 2007. Sometimes I think it's funny because those of us who had to loose weight prior to surgery seem to almost appologize for loosing the weight without the band. LOL. I know I sat and spent a great deal of time deciding whether I should put that on my signature. Then I decided to be proud of it and it started at the beginning of my banding journey. I lost 70 lbs on the "pre-op" diet. 25 years ago I started Weight Watchers with my father. He had just had his second major heart attack and had struggled with obesity all of the life that I knew with him. I guess he was fit when he was younger. I started Weight Watchers mainly for him because I was so afraid of loosing him. I weighed 161 at the time. We had a great time together egging each other on. I can remember him telling me to go ahead and eat that cookie because he would kick my butt at the weigh in. Of course, he always did. I thought that it was because of his being a man and all. Unfortunately, he was diagnosed with esophigial cancer shortly after I made my lifetime membership. He spent the next 8 months fighting a loosing battle. One of the reasons I'm telling this story is because not long ago I put together the fact that he used to drink a bottle of Malox a day due to heart burn. Ok, I'm slow. But now everytime I read about someone having reflux due to a tight band I want to cry. Therefore, I've kept mine a little loose. I spent years believing that since I was "so like my father" that my life would be short too. I struggled with my weight as he did. We started Weight Watchers when he was 54. He died at 55. So when I started my journey it was really a major decission not only because of the risks involved in surgery or because as we all know it's a major change in life style but because I was 54. There were so many emotional issues to deal with that I had put on the back burner. I had done what my father asked of me and had taken care of the family for him and I had not taken care of me. It took me 5 years to even allow myself to cry over his death. Them first, me second. The can of worms I opened up created the preverbial flood gates to open. Not only did I have to deal with his death but buried feelings from child abuse, rape, 2 bad marriages, and a multitude of other things. I knew this was going to be an "uncloaking". Most of this I have kept to myself. My husband knows about ALL of it and he's there when I need to open up to someone or just a quiet set of understanding arms to melt into and weep. He has been my rock. But I've gotten to a place where finding a quiet spot on my property, putting my IPod on and just sitting and reflecting seems to be the best. Somedays I find myself talking to my Dad and others I just reflect on how much of life I missed being cloaked. Sometimes I sit and picture my children small again and playing in the pond or riding horses or motorcycles all around me. I hear their laughter again. I find peace. Sometimes I face the sadness and insecurities of my life. Sometimes I feel strength. I've done a lot of reflecting. I regret being someone who felt like they had to hide. Yeah, I know, I shouldn't be ashamed. In a way I'm not, I just regret it and accept it now as something I had to go through. But I'm proud of myself now and I have a sense of security that I've yearned for all my life. Funny how something as simple as loosing weight and throwing off the cloak can do that. Yeah, Dad would be proud and no it wasn't simple. I know now that even as I get close to my goal at....age 55....I'm not going to die because I've lost weight. I know, that's completely stupid and irrational but that's how I felt. I know that's not why he died. I know that he didn't die because I instigated him going to Weight Watchers and loosing weight. I know I miss him. I knew there was a reason I didn't wear my makeup to work today <grin, sniff>. I want to thank all of you for your posts and stories. They have helped me through this year. I don't post a lot but I do appreciate all of your struggles as well as your accomplishments. You armed me with the knowledge I need to be a success. This year has been a grand adventure and has opened up so many doors. I feel strong, I feel confident, I feel successful. So here's to the many years we have all gained and will gain. <clink> To those of your thinking about joining the journey, do SOMETHING to save your life. To those of you who are on this journey and it seems slow, you've got a lifetime to get there. To those of you who are tight, GET IT ADJUSTED NOW. And to those of you who have reached goal, I'm almost there and will be hopefully joining you soon. Life is indeed beautiful! Vicki 12/12/08 highest/now/goal 265/152/140?

Thank you all for your responses. I thought long and hard about what I would write today. So I sat down still undecided and just let it flow. I wish that the band had been around for him. Oh well, I truly believe everything happens for a reason. Patchelton - you're doing great and I'm glad you've decided to work with a little looser band. Reflux/heartburn is the main cause of esophagial cancer. Some people decided to just put up with it and that could have disasterous consequences. You're getting really close to goal and by your bandiversary should have been there for a while. Nance, I'm sorry to hear about your Mom. As with my Dad, I'm sure she is smiling down on you and is very proud. Thanks again everyone. I'm cheering all of you on. This is a fabulous journey (albeit w/some bumps) and I'm so glad I got to take it.

Why is it we are compelled to add the "yeah but I gained a few pounds" statements? I always do that and I also know that those few pounds will go away and that they can't see them. Ugh! Next time try to say something simple like "fine." Boy is that a do as I say not as I do statement. LOL

Drew - WLS has many different effects on those around us. Most of the time the negative ones come from worry or not understanding. There have been a bunch of great suggestions and another one would be to take him to a support group meeting with you. My family has been pretty supportive but they don't hesitate to tell me that they are worried. My response to that has become "you shouldn't worry I'll loose too much but should have been worried that I had all this weight to loose and I'm still trying to reach a healthy weight." With WLS we tend to get a lot of attention from our family and friends. His statement about loosing 5 lbs may have been a "look at me too" statement. Does your brother have the abiltiy to get WLS? Is he afraid of it? Maybe he would like to join you but feels like he can't for some reason. You also said he mentioned people who have had GBS and maybe he's afraid of some of the health related issues. Who knows. Maybe the inviting him to exercise with you and being extra supportive to him if he comments on his loosing will swing the tables in both directions. He will see that you have to be very careful and that this is not the "easy way" out but he may also be hesitant to mention it if you're doing what he can't by loosing weight. You're going to be a major center of attention while you loose because your friends and family are going to be so proud of you. If it is jealousy, it's going to be worse unless something he does isn't recognized as much. Good luck to you in both this situation and your surgery. Throw some love and understanding his way and this too will pass.

Just be EXTREMELY careful on your workouts. I was not released to go back to Curves for 6 weeks. The reason behind this is because your port needs to get scaring around it to hold it into place. The stitches are not strong enough to do the job without the scaring. Your port will end up flipping and then that's another minor surgery. Walking, treadmill and anything that doesn't involve working that area or lifting over the recommended amount (20 lbs) would probably be ok. Just be careful. I'm glad that the Protein helped. I learned of it when a friend of mine who had WLS found me at my desk the week I returned to work looking like death warmed over. She picked up on the protein deficency right away and gave me some. Let me know if I can help in anyother way. Congratulations on your journey.

Well, after searching high and low I have finally found out that Kaiser does cover the lap band surgery. :clap2: My PCP referred me to the bariactric surgery center and I am now waiting for my appointments to start. They set you up for all the necessary stuff like physc evaluations, nutritionalists, etc. According to what I was told by the referral coordinator it will take 4 - 6 weeks for me to get into my first appointment and surgery will be approximately 3 - 6 months out. Now most people would be upset about the time table for surgery but considering I was going to have to change my insurance to CalPERS BC PPO and wait to even get started until after Jan. 2008, I'm pretty pleased. My daughter also got her referral from a doctor who was not really happy about giving it even though her BMI is 47 with LOTS of comorbitities. She had to get pretty graphic about what living as a super morbidly obese person was like. So Mom and daughter are on their way. Anyone wanting answers to Kaiser can contact me. I will be happy to share as I go on my journey.

Sorry I didn't catch this sooner! I would contact obesitylaw.com and see if they have any suggestions. Otherwise I would contact patient assistance. From what I've read if there is an exclusion it's pretty much a done deal. I have read where people went to their employers and pleaded their case. Some of the people got their employers to delete the exclusion in the policy which gave them the green light to get the surgery. If you are self-pay on the Kaiser plan, contact whoever is your agent and get it changed. Good luck.

Go to your Vitamin store and see if they have New-whey Protein drinks. Get the ones with 0 carbs/sugar. They have about 170 calories. You can drink them like a shot or mix them with your Water. They have 42 grams of protein in them and taste like Kool-aide. I have tried the berry flavors, grape, and orange. They were really great. I mixed them with my water and sipped on them throughout the day. I'm not sure why Richmond has you restricting your intake so much. Kaiser SSF mainly said for us to make sure we got our fluids and protein. Also, you can go on smartbandsters.com and they have a file section that has a whole list of stuff you can have on each phase of your eating program. This has been complied by not only a bariactric nurse who was banded back in 1998 but also by a bunch of people who have had their bands forever. Good luck and PM me if you need me. Vicki

I have had this problem most of my life. I have tried ALL of the stuff suggested and nothing. My MIL gave me a product that is what I consider a miracle. It's called Dual-Action Cleanse and you have to order it online or call them. (www.DualActionCleanse.com or call 1-800-941-0163) I DO NOT SELL THIS PRODUCT OR HAVE ANY REASON TO SOLICITE FOR THIS PRODUCT. I put that in caps because I don't want anyone thinking I have any reason to tell you about this but helping. Most laxatives & stuff like Activia give me horrible gas. :thumbup: I've been gasy after banding anyway and don't need the pain or help. You take this everyday for a month and then a month off. (take everyother month) I just started so I don't know quite what to expect next month. My MIL swears by it and it works so good I can't believe it. I mean 95% of days I have a healthy BM. Sorry if this is TMI.:crying: I plan on continuing with this because I have NEVER had these results. I hope this helps someone else.

Wow, I'm not sure how to reply. I guess the first thing I would say is that if you don't have insurance to cover therapy or even if you do, Overeater Anonomous might be a good place to start. This might help you find out why you're binging and how to handle it. The other suggestion is to get the Beck Diet Solution book. It is not a diet but about your thought process. As for the band, I guess the best way to say it is I was a binger and used to drowned my stresses in any food handy. The food of choice was sweets. I could do my stress/depression/anger/boredom justice with ice cream or Cookies. Yeah, like Abby Normal, I could loose weight but keeping it off was the crux of the problem. I truly believe unless you have a medical problem or medication problem we can all loose the weight but how much and maintaining it is the quesiton. The band for me has given me the little added push I needed to be able to keep off the weight. I don't fight my band and try to listen to the signals it gives me. That keeps the amount I consume down. All of us who have dieted know that we should eat good foods and exercise (ick). So I try to do that most of the time. I personally hate working out but I'm doing it and as I get in better shape I'm starting to appreciate it. Having said all of that, let's get real. Calories in and calories out is the whole thing. Yeah, good calories in is the goal but it's still calories in/calories out. So, if you like the sweets and you want to loose the weight, plan them in. If you put your sweets in smaller bags then at least you'll have to make a conscious decision to eat them if you go for the binge. That is unless you grab all of the bags. Most of the time we're just mindlessly eating and when we scratch the bottom of the bag/box we go "OH S**T." Then we spend the next week beating ourselves up because we blew it. Of course, this starts the old cycle and we eat because we were bad, beat ourselves up, eat, beat, eat, beat.... You know the routine. The other thing I have to say is when you do want to eat those forbidden things make a decision to have them and don't let it be an unconscious thing. Last week we had a part for an employee that was leaving. I brought the cheese cake and a white cake. Did I set myself up or what? Well, after battling myself over how I was going to blow it by eating cheese cake I finally decided that I wasn't going to let it be a compulsive eating thing. I decided that if I had some cheese cake it would be because I wanted it and I would count it. So, I had my sliver of cheese cake and counted it. Boy did it take a hunk of calories! But I ate it, enjoyed it and didn't let it have control. I have gotten where I journal all of my foods. If I don't, I forget and then I get into trouble. You can use fitday.com. It's free. It tracks your weight so when you feel like you haven't lost in forever or that you have only lost a minut amount, you'll usually see it isn't that bad. If you are stalled, you can look at what you're eating and doing and can usually find the problem. Remember ABC - all bites count. The band isn't going to stop this from happening. The band will HELP you limit your intake. However, for some strange reason it makes it easier to control it. I can't say if it's because it limits you, you detox, or why but it helps. Maybe it's the success of loosing that does it, I don't know. You won't be perfect, don't try to be. Just try to follow most of the rules most of the time. It will spank you if you eat too much, too fast, or don't chew well enough. I have my international house mochas every morning (burn 200 cal or so there) and I have my sugar free fudgesicles in the evening. Not the best choices but it makes me happy. I will eat a cookie or two now and then and have had some pie. But I do it when I'm in control. What would I do if I felt a major binge coming on....First I would get myself out of the kitchen, then I would try and figure out the cause, if I could figure it out I would try and figure out if eating would really help me cope, if I totally couldn't get rid of the binge feeling I would try and find something that would appease the urge yet not totally upset the apple cart. Lastly, I would forgive myself as soon as possible for my lapse. I would forgive my child within minutes if they endulged, why not myself. I am not perfect. I will always be a work in progress. But I have hope because of my band. Good luck to all of you. If I can be of help, hollar!

Hmmm...I was diagnosed with fatty liver also but they didn't put my on B12 shots. How often do you have them and what's the dosage? Maybe I will have to be more vigilant about taking them.

Irene - It depends upon my mood what I would say. The least I would say is that one of the draws of the bypass is that you get that instant gratification. You also get to deal with malnutrition, suppliments, higher complication/death rates, and dumping syndrome. Then I would educate them on the statistics about the fact that the weight loss between the two are comparible within 2 years. I would also tell her that I wasn't in a race and that I will be enjoying all the foods she can't have and still be loosing weight. I would end all of this by telling her that when her pouch streches and she's regaining all of her weight that your band will still be adjustable and you'll be able to maintain your weight for the rest of your life.:thumbup: You never know, you may see her getting banded over her bypass in the near future.

Lynn - I had the same thing happen with my doctor but I did manage to brow beat him into giving me a small fill. I went home and did some really hard thinking and realized that there was a communication problem here. You see, I'm anal about journaling all of my food, exercising and limiting my food intake to less than 1000 calories most days. Therefore, I will loose weight most months but can still be ravenously hungry. I tend to use veggies when this happens. So the next time (and everytime thereafter) I saw my surgeon I explained this to him. I told him he COULD NOT go by the fact that I was loosing weight because I will not allow anything else to happen. I could see the light bulb go on. :biggrin2: With your doctor I would have added one more thing. I would have told him that considering his statement he was contradicting himself by not giving you a fill. I really get peeved at these doctors who tell their patients that they haven't lost enough and therefore they won't give you a fill. Who do they think they are, our parents? This isn't something to be used as punishment. Talk about head games that will cause one to go back to old habits!:thumbup: I'm happy that my doctor is really concerned about getting me too tight. I live about 3 hours away from the hospital he works at and it would be a terrible trip if I had to go get unfilled. I just have to figure out how to tell him things so he can get the whole picture in his head.

Aw the evil of impatience. We're so susceptible to it. That's why people get the bypass. I personally don't think the payoff is good enough. Anyway, before you guys all lynch me because of my ticker, I've lost 40 lbs since my December banding. The rest was pure blood, sweat and tears pre-op program. But I have to say that you need to remember that the goal with the lap band is 1 - 2 pounds per week. That means that RSG is around 11 pounds ahead of where she should be. I have two suggestions to help you with this frustration. I'm just as susceptible to it. Get the Beck Diet Solution book and start tracking your weight on a calendar or a program like fitday.com. I use fitday.com and when I look at the calendar that tells me when/if I've lost weight, I find out I'm trucking right along with the program. Also, I tend to weigh myself every morning but I had to learn how to not let the scale rule my moods. The Beck Diet Solution is NOT a diet book with a meal plan. It is a way to deal with the thoughts we have. For instance, I can have bread, Pasta, ice cream.... I choose not too. I know it sounds like I'm being cheeky and like I feel like I'm better than everyone else. WRONG!!! Been there, done that. Just last week we had a going away party for a co-worker. Now talk about setting yourself up....I BOUGHT A chocolate cheese CAKE TO THE PARTY. All the way to work I kept telling myself I was totally crazy because I was going to blow it by eating some of the cheese cake. I then decided that if I was going to have a piece it would be because I CHOSE to have that piece and I would count it into my daily calories. Guess what...I had a bandster size portion of the cheese cake and was totally happy with it. I also didn't beat myself up or feel out of control. It was amazing. I have to work at this line of thought EVERYDAY! It's a matter of taking control and giving permissions to our inner children. Once we take control we can control the food we take. So, once in a while give yourself permission to indulge. BUT make sure you weigh/measure that indulgence and count it. The next meal you're back on track and you will not have sabotaged yourself. Keep on trucking those of you who feel like it's taking forever. Next year at this time you'll be amazed where you're at. See ya!

Norcal Girl - I can't speak for the gastric bypass part of this but I went through their lap band procedure and no I didn't have to go to SF every week. I think he's referring to the classes which can be done up here and to my knowledge (I never went to any) are once a month. Call the bariactic department and ask them. You can PM me if you need the number. You'll also find out a lot of these things in orientation. Good luck on your journey!

Diz - I know what you mean about getting it at someone else's expense. I guess what happened when mine came up (it was a cancellation) was that Dr. Alami had some kind of injury and couldn't do surgery. I thought they should have let the other surgeons do the surgeries that were scheduled but that's not what they do. They sure have some weird policies. So, after hearing that I was happy they called me. Well I was happy anyway but it made it easier to be happy. Good job on loosing the weight! Your surgeon will be really happy with you. I met one person when I was at orientation whose mother had recently had the bypass done in SSF. She told my daughter and I that the people who worked the hardest at following the program got fast tracked. I don't know if that's why I got the early appt or not but I was #26 on the list when it happened. Good luck with your surgery. I think you're going to be really happy with the staff now that the hard part of getting through the program is over.

Diz - Congratulations about getting your date with the surgeon. At that appointment they will put you on the list for surgery providing you have lost the required weight and don't have any medical issues they are still working on. When I went in October '07 to my surgeon's appt (Dr. David Le) they figured it would probably be late Feb. '08 for my surgery. I had them put me on the cancellation list also which turned out to be a good thing since I received a call and had surgery 12/12/07. I personally think that Dr. Le's conservative approach worked well for me since I haven't had any problems with PBing, slimming or getting stuck. He's really concerned about you having problems like that. Yeah, it's really hard to drive all the way down there for a 15 minute appointment but that's all we have for now. I think they are getting buried enough that they will be looking into expanding the program if they aren't already. I have heard that Dr. Alami is also a good surgeon and his patients dearly love him. I haven't talked to too many people about Dr. Li so I can't give you information on him. Good luck on your appointment and hopefully you'll be hearing really soon about your date. I think they contact you about 6 weeks prior to surgery. The time will go by quickly once you get the call. I hated not hearing from them worse than anything. It made it drag on so badly. Again, good luck and soon you'll be in Bandlandia!

Tiffany - First thing is where you are located. I know that the Kaisers in California are doing the lap band and I have heard that a lot of them across the US are doing them. But, the programs are different in different places. I had my surgery through Kaiser in December. I started last June with an orientation. I had my surgery through the So. San Francisco Kaiser even though I live near Sacramento. We have 3 Kaisers in No. CA that do the surgery so we are sent to one of the Bay Area Kaisers. You don't get to choose which one you go to and they are buried. When I was referred I had a BMI of 45.5 and was 54 years old. I don't think the fact that you are younger will be a problem since I know a few younger people who have had the surgery. Unfortunately, a lot of the PCPs don't know what the bariactric people are doing. So, my advice to you is to call patient services and/or the bariactric unit of the hospital that does the surgery. Patient services is the best place to start because they can tell you all about your coverage and if the Kaiser near you has the program. I did this because I found so much conflicting information about the coverage. They cleared it up in a phone call. Second, if you are in Northern California, let me know and I can give you a run down on the proceedures as I know them. You can also PM me if you would like. It's a long process but I'm happy I stuck to it. Good luck.

Oh yeah, and if you must drink, don't do it until you puke. That will bother the band.