Kim_in_SF

Good luck with the insurance approval. I'll keep my fingers crossed for you!!!

Hi Carolyn, I was banded at the beginning of October and when I went in for my first fill 6 weeks later, my doctor couldn't get the fill in... he figured it was probably a kink in the tube, sent me to x-ray, confirmed it to be true and told me to come back in for a "repair" surgery. I went in the day before thanksgiving and was out that same day. It was very reminiscent of being banded at first, had pain in my port area because my doc moved my port a bit in order to straighten the kink out and my stomach in general seemed sore. After a few days though, I had recovered MUCH faster than when I was banded and I was back to my normal self. I, too, was my doctors first "kink". Lucky me! haha All in all, it wasn't a bad experience, my doc even did my fill when I was in the OR to make sure everything was fixed properly. Out of all the complications that can happen with the band, this seemed pretty easy and trivial. Hope this makes you feel better and let me know if you have any questions!!! :regular_smile: -Kim

Hi all! I live in the Redwood City area and had my surgery done at Kaiser South San Francisco. Great experience all around and my fills are done at Kaiser, too. I unfortunately have a deductible plan, so my fills cost me $100, however, I know others that are on co-pay plans and they only pay $15, $25, etc.

Hi Angelica, I had my 2nd fill about 2 weeks ago, and I personally find it easier to follow "the rules" now that I have more restriction... I'm not saying that I'm a saint by any means! But things REALLY started looking up for me after that 2nd fill. I wanted to comment on how you said "the nagging monster in the back of my head telling me 'you need to lose weight' 24 hours a day has shut his stupid mouth." Hallelujah! Me too!!! Isn't it great?!?!!!!!!! I never thought that voice would go away, and it finally has. It's a huge relief and I just wanted to tell you that I know EXACTLY how you feel. The weight loss for me has been slow, but it IS happening, so I'm hoping that monster is gone forever! :whoo: Best of luck with your weight loss journey!

Paragirl, I'd be careful doing Pilates so soon after surgery, because it's all about using your stomach and stomach muscles. Maybe you should ask your Doc just to be sure. My doctor told me not to do sit-ups for at least 6 months, and it seems to me they are similar. I'm just concerned for you and want you to be careful not to do any damage to your new stomach. Just one bandster looking out for another. :-)

Hi everyone! Thanks for the well-wishes!!! It's been one week and 3 days since my "fixer-upper" surgery to repair my kinked tube, and I'm doing MUCH better now. The first few days after the repair surgery brought back a flood of memories as to how painful my stomach was after the lap-band surgery. I got really bummed out because it took so long for my stomach to feel somewhat "normal" again after LB, and the day after repair surgery, I thought that it was happening all over again. :-( BUT, I was only uncomfortable for a few days... I'm back to sleeping on my side again and have resumed most of my normal activities. I'm still not wearing jeans yet, but I'm certainly not complaining about getting to wear sweats all the time! haha Anyway, I wanted to thank you ALL for your support. I KNEW I would get it here! You are all truly a blessing!!!

Hi everyone... I haven't been reading or posting AT ALL due to life just being crazy busy, and of course with the holidays here, it won't be slowing down any time soon! However, I knew I had to get online for the wonderful support that everyone here gives, because I have a complication already... only 6 weeks out! I was banded on Oct. 3rd and went in for my first fill last week. My doctor said the fill wasn't going in and came to the conclusion that I have a kink in my tube near the port. (he did an x-ray to make sure, turned out to be true) So now I have to go back in tomorrow... yes, the day before thanksgiving, for a small surgical procedure to have it fixed. Yikes! Apparantly, he will be moving the port up a bit to straighten it out. The only thing I'm bummed about is that the port took the longest to heal, and now it will be moved and I'll have to go through that part again. ugh. I'm not worried about the actual surgery itself, (I LOVE my doctor!), it's just kind of disheartening with the slow weight loss that I have a complication so soon. :-( I'm keeping a positive attitude though, hey, could be worse, right?!?!?!?! LOL (I'm not even all that bummed that I won't be eating Thanksgiving dinner. SOOOOO not like me! haha) And the good thing is that my doc will try to do the fill after he fixes the kink. So here I go again. I just felt I should let everyone know what was going on with me, especially in case anyone else is going through or may go through the same thing. Have a Happy Thanksgiving!!!

My doctor said no coffee because of the caffeine... he believes that caffeine may be a cause of erosion. Decaf is totally fine, but I was put under strict orders not to consume caffeinated coffee or tea. I've seen other people on the board talk about drinking coffee, so it's one of those "every doctor is different" things. I stopped drinking it, because I think the theory sounds like it makes sense. I didn't stop until the morning of surgery though, I figured, I'd go through withdrawal on all those wonderful pain meds! It worked like a charm! :-)

Lizziee, Tylenol with codeine is the same thing as hydrocodone, which is what I was taking. Give it a few more hours, try to eat a tiny bit, then you may feel better. That's exactly what happened to me this morning....

lizziee, do you think it could be from the prescription pain meds? They were starting to make me dizzy and nauseous this morning. I haven't taken any more and I'm feeling a lot better. What kind of pain meds are you on? I was taking Hydrocodone.

Hi all! I was banded on the third and am doing quite well now. Haven't really had many gas pains... just gas "noises", it's pretty funny actually! They're coming from my stomach, my mouth, and well, I'm sure you can figure out where the other noises are comig from. :rolleyes The day after surgery was the worst for me... pain in my port area mostly. It was really hard to get up from a laying down position, it was pretty painful. On day 3, I took full advantage of my pain meds and slept the day away! I'm doing MUCH better today, which is day 4. I was downstairs washing dishes, and have fully weaned myself off the prescription pain meds. Yesterday they were a Godsend, today they were dragging me down! Now I'm just taking Tylenol and it seems to take the edge off nicely. As far as hunger, I'm not famished or anything. When I do get hungry, I drink either a Protein shake, or cream Soup, or add some unflavored protein mix to some yogurt. I think that's key to keeping hunger at bay... protein!!! Also, I have my Water bottle right next to me at all times to make sure I stay hydrated. All in all... I'm happy to be banded! To those who are waiting... don't worry, it will be here before you know it! To those already banded... WAHOO!!! WE DID IT!!!

Hi everyone! I apologize I haven't been active here on the board over the last couple of weeks. I moved over the weekend... yes, I moved 3 days before my surgery! Crazy I tell ya! I'm so glad to see that I've been included on the roll call, even though I haven't shown my face here in a little while. Anyway, my surgery is tomorrow (wednesday the 3rd), and I was wondering if we've heard how any of our October 1st banders are doing? Any last minute words of advice they can give? Or are y'all still too drugged up to be typing on the computer? Personally, I'm going to take full advantage of those pain meds! :-) I haven't had time to be nervous about surgery, but now that it's coming tomorrow, reality is starting to hit me! But I think I'm more nervous about the catheter they said I'll have in during surgery and overnight, more than the actual band and incisions! LOL I'm such a baby!!! -Kim

Wow, Pvchickie... What a fabulous, uplifting poem that is. Thank you so much for sharing it with us!

Hi! Thank you for the warm welcome... and yes, I'm in San Francisco. :-) My health insurance is through Kaiser Permanente, and they have a whole bariatric surgery team right in the South San Francisco facility. It's been somewhat of a process, but worth it to know that insurance is covering most of it! I chose a deductible plan with a lower monthly payment over the co-pay option. Now I'm regretting it! LOL The whole thing would have been covered through the co-pay plan, but now I have to pay my deductible of $1500, possibly up to my out of pocket maximum of $3000 for the surgery. However, I'm NOT complaining, because surgery is practically guaranteed if you follow their instructions, and I'd rather pay $3000 for the surgery than be totally self-pay. I totally couldn't afford to do it that way, heck, I can hardly afford it now! Thank goodness for credit cards, as evil as they are! haha Anyway, Kaiser has all of these appointments and classes you must attend, and we have to follow a pre-op meal plan and lose a certain amount of weight depending on the individual, etc. I've done quite well, and they are satisfied with my progress. Once you go through a series of appointments, you'll meet with one of three surgeons, who then gives you the green light (or red light) to be scheduled for surgery. My surgeon will be Dr. Alami (who is my own personal Dr. McSteamy!) and I'm scheduled for surgery on the 3rd of October. Quite a long-winded answer for just wanting to know who my doctor is! LOL Sorry about that! Does your insurance cover any of this for you? What brought you to Petaluma for the summer?

Hi! I just introduced myself over in the other October '07 thread, but wanted to show my face here, too. :-) My surgery is scheduled for October 3rd, so I'm VERY excited to say the least! I look forward to getting to know everyone, offering and receiving support, and to make lots of new friends!!! -Kim

Hi all! Just thought I would introduce myself as a "TENacious TEN!" Wooohoo! I've been a little active here on LBT since I started the process, but now that I have a group to belong to, it makes it even better! yay! So my surgery is scheduled for October 3rd. I'm SOOOOO excited and yet I feel like it's not really happening. The program I'm going through keeps stressing that we CANNOT gain any weight prior to surgery, or they will cancel. I've lost 23 pounds, gained 2 back, and now am hoping to lose those 2 and at least maintain... hey they didn't say anything about maintaining! I've lost the required weight they asked me to, so I'm hoping that that should be good! At any rate, it's great to meet everyone and to start this life-changing journey together! Lots of love to all, Kim

I'm totally addicted to both shows now! I love the Dr.'s on Big Medicine, too! One thing that frustrated me about Brookhaven the other night though, was how they stressed that the lady that wanted Gastric Bypass wanted to "take the easy way out" by having the surgery. I know I don't have to try and convince anyone here, but the perception of weight loss surgery has got to change. How would having a surgery to prolong her life instead of dying from extreme obesity be the easy way out? I think they're not giving her credit for wanting to change her life. I mean, as others have stated here.... many of the other patients on the show are sneaking food in and not improving their health anyway. At least she's being proactive!

My PCP said she didn't have any experience caring for a patient with the Lap Band, but she was MORE THAN HAPPY to give me the referral when I asked her to. As a matter of fact, I've been emailing her as my journey progresses (I'm still not banded, but soon!!!) and she says that every bit of information that I tell her is a piece of wisdom that she can pass on to other patients, which in turn makes her seem like a very smart doctor! :-) (I LOVE my doctor, can you tell?) Anyway, I just met with the surgeon yesterday, who does both RNY and Lap Band, and I asked what, in his professional opinion, he would recommend for me. (I told him I'm 99.9% sure that I want the band, but wanted to know what he thought.) He said that with my age (I'm almost 32), knowing I'd like to get pregnant sometime in the future, etc, etc. that the Lap Band is a very wise choice for me. So that sealed the deal! I'm so happy with my whole medical team so far. And I believe that anyone that discourages patients from getting the Lap Band, just doesn't know enough about it. I mean, it's still fairly new in this country, so most people (Dr.'s included) just don't have as much experience or knowledge about it as they do with gastric bypass.

hi Maya, I live in San Francisco and I think we should have a get together like the so-calers do, too! I'm not yet banded, but I'm working on it. I have Kaiser Permanente insurance, so I'm going through their bariatric surgery program. We have to follow a pre-op diet, which is sometimes easy, sometimes hard - yet another reason why I can't wait to be banded! Let's keep in touch...

Hey NY!!! I'm a fellow NY'er (from Westchester - Rye to be precise) living in San Francisco, I miss the east coast terribly, but I love SF, too... Anyway, glad to see the band is working so well for you. I'm not banded yet, but I'm currently on a pre-op meal plan that my insurance/doctors office has me doing. Hopefully will be approved by July and then banded by September...??? We'll see! I like how you put it - that you feel stuffed. I know the band is going to work for me (think positively, right?!), but I've been wondering what the "full" feeling is that everyone is talking about. I mean, I've been "full" before and have kept eating, which is why I'm in the predicament I'm in! But I've been "stuffed" before, too, and that is when I've stopped. So hearing you put it that way helps put it into prespective. I realize I'm going to have to practice restraint and eat healthy, too... but I feel that the band will be the tool I need to help me with that. Congrats on your weight loss so far!:clap2: -Kim

Hi Warrior, Yes, things are moving pretty quickly for me, however, I'm not sure that that's necessarily the norm. I had orientation on May 22nd, and it was two weeks after that when I still hadn't heard anything. I called on a Monday and did the old innocent "I was at orientation two weeks ago and haven't received any appointments yet, I was just checking to see if I was supposed to call and make them myself?" Well, they of course weren't amused and replied with "you'll receive an appointment card in the mail in 1-2 months." I was totally bummed about that, and low and behold, THAT AFTERNOON they called me and said that the director of the program (Dr. Stiles) had a cancellation and could I come in on Wednesday? I jumped on that faster than you can imagine! When I went in, it was more of a meet and greet, she went over basic medical history, and at that point gave me my individual weight loss requirement. I only have to lose 10-15 pounds because I'm very pear shaped... I don't have a lot of abdominal fat at all, however, I'm VERY bottom heavy. She also told me that I need to start taking an Iron supplement because my iron levels from my bloodwork were on the low side, I'm not anemic, but I need to get it up to a normal range in order to even be considered for surgery. When I was finished with Dr. Stiles, she sent me to the receptionist and they worked with me to schedule all of the required appointments. There weren't a lot of openings, so in order to get in fairly quickly, I had to be a little flexible. Here is a list of appointments I've completed: 1. orientation 2. meeting with director of bariatrics (in the South San Francisco facility) 3. appointment with dietician 4. psych consultation These are the upcoming appointments I currently have scheduled: 1. friday morning lifestyle class (this friday) 2. appointment with surgeon (July 13th) I asked Dr. Stiles how long after I meet with the surgeon it would be before surgery, and she said it's usually about 2 months after that. It could be sooner if I'm flexible and someone else cancels, but unfortunately, my work has about 0 flexibility. So if all goes well, I'm thinking I may be having surgery around September? I'm happy to answer any questions anyone has... I mean, I'm not a know-it-all by any means, but as you said warrior, I seem to be the one that is the furthest along in the process. Guess that's it for now. Great to meet all of you!!! :-) -Kim

Hi! I can't believe I missed this thread... I'm even mentioned in it! (I'm Kim, oh, and hi Vicki!) :-) I went to orientation on May 22nd, and I've been to 3 appointments since then... my meeting with the director of bariatrics, my meeting with the dietician, and my psych consult. So far, all three have gone very well. My next appointment will be the lifestyle class, and that's next friday, the 22nd. After that, I have a meeting scheduled with the surgeon on July 13th. I've been following the pre-op meal plan for the most part, with a few slip-ups here and there... but so far, in the 3 1/2 weeks since orientation, I've lost 13 lbs.!!! I'm not required to lose 10%, but I was told to lose about 10 -15 pounds and to make sure I exercise. (I never thought I'd say this, but I can credit being a "pear" to that! I carry MOST of my weight in my butt and hips). Anyway, it's strange how there were no Kaiser patients on here before, and now we're starting to come out of the woodwork! haha It's great! Glad to meet you all, and if you have any questions, please feel free to ask! :-)

Hi! I can't believe I missed this thread... I'm even mentioned in it! (I'm Kim, oh, and hi Vicki!) :-) I went to orientation on May 22nd, and I've been to 3 appointments since then... my meeting with the director of bariatrics, my meeting with the dietician, and my psych consult. So far, all three have gone very well. My next appointment will be the lifestyle class, and that's next friday, the 22nd. After that, I have a meeting scheduled with the surgeon on July 13th. I've been following the pre-op meal plan for the most part, with a few slip-ups here and there... but so far, in the 3 1/2 weeks since orientation, I've lost 13 lbs.!!! I'm not required to lose 10%, but I was told to lose about 10 -15 pounds and to make sure I exercise. (I never thought I'd say this, but I can credit being a "pear" to that! I carry MOST of my weight in my butt and hips). Anyway, it's strange how there were no Kaiser patients on here before, and now we're starting to come out of the woodwork! haha It's great! Glad to meet you all, and if you have any questions, please feel free to ask! :-)

Thank you Podna, that makes me feel a little better. I just want everything to go as smoothly as possible!

I'm in the initial stages of being banded - not banded yet, but hope to be within the year! Anyway, my question is for post-op... I recently adopted the SWEETEST cat because I was getting lonely living all by myself. I've grown up with cats, and have never had any problems, but after I brought my "kitty" home, I started coughing and wheezing, and I now believe that I'm allergic to him! I'm not constantly coughing and wheezing, but occasionally, my cough is pretty harsh. I'm wondering, could a bad cough dislodge the band or cause slippage? Giving him up is the very last thing I want to do, because he's such a wonderful companion and gives me somthing to look forward to when I come home, and I can handle coughing here and there... but I don't want a cough to cause complications with the band when I get it. Does anyone have any experience with something like this?