VwGirl916

I had my visit with the NP on friday. Let me back track by saying that I had my first orientation class back in Feb with Kaiser. So I finally get through my lifestyles class, my visit with the nutrionalist etc. So , I go and see the NP on friday and he is doing everything he needs to do. Taking measurements, weight, checking my O2 levels and asking 5 million questions. He tells me he thinks I am a very good canidate for the lap band and that they just had about 10 spots open up for the OR, and then he gets to the "do you drink or smoke" and I told him I didnt drink at all but I did smoke cigs. As soon as I said that he says....well thats going to delay your surg for another 4 months atleast. DAMN IT! I knew at some point I would have to quit smoking, but not durring any of the classes that I have been to did this ever come up. :thumbup: I am SO upset at myself for not just quiting when I went to the orientation in Feb!! He scheduled me for a follow up with him at the end of Jan, and if I have been smoke free from now until he see's me again that I will have surg sometime in Feb. I was really hoping that it would have been sooner but I guess it is my own fault. So I guess my question is...how hard has it been for people who have quit smoking? I smoked the last cig in my pack tonight and I am not buying anymore. Im hoping to go cold turkey, because I tried the gum before and it taste's like . Any tips or tricks from ex-smokers that will help?? On a plus side....I also saw the Psych the same day and he gave me the thumbs up, so I guess that means im not crazy! Thanks for any info!!!

For those that have gone through the program at the South San Francisco Kaiser....How long did the process take you? I went to the orientation 4 hour class back on Feb 26th. They told us it would be ATLEAST 32 weeks from that class until we got our next appointment. I had not heard anything from them so I called the bariactrics dept last week and was told that I missed an appointment July 21st....which I was NEVER notified that I was even scheduled for! :biggrin: So she rescheduled that appt with the Nutritionalist for Sept 12th. So I guess my question for those that have gone through Kaiser is what kind of time frame am I looking at after seeing the nutrition doctor? And just want to find out experiences with the process there in general. Thanks!

Ok so I went to my appointment with the nutrionalist. Went pretty well. She gave me a meal plan and weighed me and asked about how things were going. Was pretty short and sweet. They have me scheduled for a lifestyles class on October 13th and then an appointment with a NP on october 24th (not sure what this is for). What other appointmens beside's the surgeon are left?

Im in the same boat about being freaked out about the unknowns. I have had a minor surg before and have been under anestesia, so that doesnt worry me too much anymore.....but I was like, oh god incision scars, pain, failing! Then I came to my senses and thought....the scars arent going to be any worse then the stretch marks I already have! lol Im more worried about my IV now then anything else. I have a huge phobe of needles/giving blood. I had to go give blood again today before my seminar next week, and I had a anxiety attack and almost passed out. I HAAAATE having to get blood drawn. They took 7 tubes *shivers* :tt2:

I think soda will be the hardest thing for me to give up. But I guess it will be better in the long run

Thanks! Well again to my surprise I already have my orientation scheduled for Feb 26th.....Got that letter last week.....And today I got a letter in the mail that ordered me to go get a whole bunch of Labs done (bloodwork) and one to give my PC doctor to have an EKG and Chest X-ray done. I just got a whole bunch of labs done a few weeks ago, so I am not looking forward to giving up more blood (have bad anxiety when it comes to blood draws). I am sure I will have tons of questions soon....:tt1:

I signed up and introduced myself a while back but didn't realy have a chance to post after that. But I am back to re-introduce myself. Im Heather, 27 (about to be 28 in march) and I am a Norcal-er (Northern California). I have been checking into the lap band for a while. I finally got up the nerve to go to my PC doctor to talk with her about the lapband. I have Kaiser and have heard horror stories about them not wanting to refer people for the surgery. So I went and talked with my doctor and to my surprise she went ahead and sent a referal for me to the San Francisco Bariatric center. I got my letter from them today explaining things and that they will be scheduling my first "oreintation seminar" in a few weeks. I am super excited to get started on my weight loss journey! I look forward to sharing in the same experience that the majority here have, and I look forward to being active on the boards :biggrin:

Hi everyone! Have been checking out the board for a while now and finally decided to sign up. My name is Heather and I am from good old California. I have been interested in getting the lapband done for about two months now since doing some of my own internet research. Only problem is I have no idea where to even start, so I am hoping to get a little info here from some experienced lapbandsters on here. I had a weight problem when I was a teenager and through some tough work finally got down to a size that I felt happy about. I got pregnant with my daughter when I was 20 and have again been heavy ever since. 7 years is way too long to keep telling people im still carrying my "pregnancy weight". I have tried for 2 years now to watch my diet and work out on a regular basis, but it has not worked for me what so ever. So here I am, looking for a change. Again I am not sure where to start. I work for the State and have Kaiser for medical coverage. Would I need to tell my regular doctor about my interest in getting the lapband done? Or can I take my insurance coverage to another doctor that specializes in weight loss surg? Sorry if those have been asked a million times, but thanks for answering! Looking forward to talking to everyone! :nervous