gingin

Will insurance cover a re-banding? Or do the original weight & BMI requirements apply? Anyone have experience with or input on this? Just one of the million questions running through my mind right now...

Hi...I am looking for a recommendation for a surgeon in Massachusetts...I know the lap band website has a surgeon finder, but I don't really want to just pick a name off a list...any ideas? Anyone I should stay away from? Thanks so much :help:

Rosemary... Yes I can relate! I was banded on 6/26 and lost 30 lbs by 9/16 (my second fill). I had great restriction for 2 months ad lost another 10 lbs, but then the floodgates opened around Thanksgiving and I felt like I could eat pre-bandlike! It took 5 weeks to get an appt with my surgeon for a fill (she said it was a fluke and that it should never take that long). At the appt on Monday I had gained that weight and then some back and I was hesitant to go too because I knew I would be fatter again. She was understanding though and I am straightended out now with good restriction and I have already lost the excess weight in just a few days back on liquids (YAY!) It is always best to just go and see the doc again, remember, if they have been doing this for a while then they have seen it all...including people who have had WLS and GAINED weight temporarily. You can do this!

STEAK!!!!!!! I have tried steak 4 times in the last 6 months and every single time i have gotten stuck & PB'd...this is with chewing until its annoying. It's a shame because i really like steak on occasion, but it is a small sacrifice to say goodbye to obesity! Also, I struggle with chicken alot, any way I cook it. The only way I can eat it successfully is boiled/shredded in my homemade chicken Soup. And bread...bread is a *%$#@!

Thank you...I am already working on the weight. It feels so good to have restriction again...it was like my old insatiable self was resurrected for a few weeks, and I hated it.

Hi everyone...I have not been on these forums for months...not good for me. I saw Dr. Vernon last in September, and she didn't tell me to make an appt when I left so I just assumed I should call as needed for my next fill. I was doing great until Thanksgiving when I realized I needed a fill, called for an appt and was given one for yesterday. 5 weeks! I asked repeatedly if there was anything sooner and was told that there wasn't and just assumed it was because of the holidays. Needless to say, I gained 14 lbs since that point because I have been ravenously hungry. I went in for my office visit yesterday and Dr. Vernon was like "why didnt you come in sooner? I always have openings for fills"! Just an FYI...if you need an appt w/her asap, don't talk to anyone but Jen. Apparently no one else has any pull. So I had my fill, drank the water--I finally felt restricted so I went home. As the night went on I felt a huge lump in my throat and couldn't even swallow my own saliva, nevermind water or a protein drink. I was up the entire night, barfing up spit, trying not to really heave to hardly. My band was totally closed! Needless to say, I went in today for a slight unfill w/Dr. Lautz (what a nice guy) and I felt instant relief as he removed some of the saline. I guess every MD places the ports differently because he stuck me 3 times and had to fish around for it (ouch!). This afternoon, I feel much better. I finally have restriction again that I can live with and know that I need support from other people going through what I am...I will be on here much more often and really want to try and get to the support mtgs too...it's just so far away for me. Anyway, thanks for listening and I appreciate all of your support, even if you dont know you're giving it to those who lurk! Gina

I'm in Fall River! Nice to meet you...I thought I was the only one out here :wub:

2 Things come to mind: 1) I was at my inlaw's Christmas party and a big group of us were playing "Guesstures"...girls against guys. One guy from our church was having difficulty mimicking the word "flabby" in a way his team could guess. He ran over to me, put his hand on my stomach and jiggled it. I literally wanted to die. 2) A co-worker of mine had a physical altercation with her ex-husband and he messed up her hand, so the next day when she came into work, I took her to the hospital to get an X-ray. In the radiology waiting room, a little boy was with his grandmother playing on the floor. Apparently, I caught his eye, and he said to his grandmother, "Look, there is a huge girl over there". I was obviously mortified, but my co-worker was nice and we laughed it off. For some reason when we returned to the office, she thought it was a good idea to tell one of the doctors we work for in the middle of the clinic, in front of patients and other staff alike, mind you, I am her boss. That made me cry.

:thumbup::biggrin:hi tiny...i got my band 9 days ago on 6/26 at the faulkner. everything went pretty well & im healing nicely. still a bit sore...i went to work on thursday and was tired but made it through most of the day. like a bonehead i took off my steri strips because they were all stained and gross looking & now my incisions are stinging a bit. i did put some new ones on but they arent as heavy duty as the hospitals i guess. i am dropping weight pretty quickly...so thats a plus! today i noticed that the swelling must be almost gone because i was able to drink a lot in a short period of time...i am wondering how restricted i will feel when i get to the mushy stage. just out of curiosity (everyone)...what were your post op diet guidelines? i have two different sets of info from brigham and i am not sure which one to follow (i will have to email natalie). the pamphlet they gave me on discharge said 3 weeks of liquids, & 3 soft solid but the packet from the dietitian said 2 liquid, 2 soft solid, 2 diced Protein. obviously, i am eager to get off the liquids asap, but i found it odd that i got conflicting info from the same practice and honestly dont know which one to follow. overall im well and excited about the changes im seeing already...cant wait to see what the months ahead will show on the scale :frown:

Me too...this has been happening for about 3 days now!

Hi everyone...just wondering when it is safe to go swimming...I had surgery on 6/26/08 and this hot weather is killing me!! Also...when did your steri strips fall off/did you take them off? Its been over a week for me and there is no sign that they are ever coming off my incisions! Thanks!

Wendy's chili is one of my favorite things in the world...pre-banding I ate it all the time...but never thought of it as something for the mushy stage!!! I LOVE YOU ALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I still have 2 more weeks of liquids but now I have some mushy food to dream of...pureed chicken just wasnt doing it for me :thumbup: 2 WEEKS TILL WENDY'S YEAH!!!!!!!!!!

Hi everyone...I was banded last thursday 6/26 and the most calories i have been able to consume is 600 in one day. i am literally eating (drinking) all day and cannot possibly consume anymore at this point. i find myself a little lightheaded and slightly out of it (i am no longer taking the pain meds, just tylenol). i am wondering if i should try something with a little real sugar or some drink with more calories...or is this just par for the course? would appreciate any advice...i do have an email into the nutritionist as well. thanks! gina

hey minpinmom...just an FYI...flexeril is a muscle relaxant not an NSAID, it does not thin the blood or cause ulcers. as long as you can swallow it, it will not hurt your band.

Thankfully, we didn't have to arrive at the hospital until 11 am for a 12:30 surgery time. This allowed me to spend a lovely night with my family and to wake up with our 3-year-old in the morning as usual (we were originally planning on leaving him with Grandma if I had an early arrival time). Maybe it's just me and my paranoia, but I felt like I had to tie up all the loose ends in my life...facing your own mortality isn't something we like to do nowadays. I told everyone I needed to that I loved them and made sure hubby knew what all my wishes were if the unthinkable were to happen. Now onto brighter things... I woke up about 7 am and jumped in the shower. After making sure all my areas were, ahem, appropriately groomed, I cheated and put conditioner in my hair after shampooing (not really sure what the bizarro reason is that you can't condition before surgery...but my hair really needs it). I did follow the rule of no body lotion, but must admit that I also put a pea-sized amount of lotion on my face so I could actually move my face (it is so dry in the summer). I deodorized and brushed my teeth and begrudgingly, did nothing to my hair. I then woke up the hubby and the boy and fed them. We then piled into the car and drove to Nana's house to drop of Junior. After that, my husband and I made the 1 1/2 hour trip to Boston (Jamaica Plain, actually) for my surgery at Brigham & Womens Faulkner Hospital. We arrived 45 minutes early, so we decided to go and sit at a nearby park for a while. There, I cried like a baby for a little while (not sure why I was so nervous), told him he was the man of my dreams, and I, again, made sure he knew how to brush Junior's teeth, feed him, and all the basic stuff he is lost without me for Alas, the time past and it was 10:50 am so we made our way back to the Hospital. On arrival, we got the last parking spot in the entire garage all the way up on the roof level (I kid you not). We then entered the building and went to registration and then they sent me down to the surgical suite. They very quickly put me in a room to "admit" me and asked a million questions, drew my blood for typing again, and had me change into the highly fashionable double johnnies (one on forward, one on backward) and some cute little footsies (not really cute, they were gray). We then were escorted to a holding area where I sat on a bed with a nicely warmed blanket and were informed that the doctor was running late. We were probably there for about 1 1/2 hours all together before I was wheeled in. In the mean time, my IV was started, and I was asked questions by 5 other people: the anesthesiologist, the nurse anesthetist, the lead nurse in the OR, my doctor's chief resident, and then my doctor. The nurse anesthetist, Beth, gave me some "versa" to relax me and I kissed my hubby goodbye at about 1:30 pm. They wheeled me into the OR and had me scoot onto the operating table. They then secured my arms to two tables on either side of me and I remember nothing after that until they were waking me up and telling me to stop thrashing after surgery! Recovery was hard the first half of the day, but by nightfall I was feeling much better... I still, however, havent pooped and that is really bothering me

they set it all up...i had it all done on the same day. you have to have a psych consult, nutrition consult and an upper GI study minimally...more testing if you have problems like sleep apnea, heart issues, bp, etc. i was lucky in the sense that my only pressing medical problem at this point is my the obesity. she called me a 'perfect candidate'...i enjoyed being considered physical perfection:lol:

i have bcbs hmo of ma...there havent been any problems yet!

She is awesome...I actually am having my surgery a week from today on 6/26. From the info session she has been awesome. Let me know if you have any questions! Gina

Congrats! My surgery is actually the day before! I am so excited too Do you have to do the liquid diet beforehand? I have to do a 2-3 week liquid diet...we can start together gingin

Hi everyone...I got my surgery date! It will be June 26 @ the Faulkner. I haven't been there yet...anyone have their surgery at Faulkner? What was it like, I assumed I would be operated on at the Brigham, so I am not sure what to expect! Thanks so much...I will try to get there for the meeting next week, but I'm not sure if I can get my son any childcare (DH is out of town). Thanks!

Hi everyone...I, too, have PCOS and have been on Metformin for years now. I was wondering how everyone is taking their Metformin once they've been banded...I take 2 500mg XR tablets twice a day, and, man....they are huge pills. Did your docs switch you to a liquid medication or can you still swallow the pills? I know that the extended release tabs that I'm on obviously cant come in liquid form...but I dont ever get that gittery, low blood sugar thing with the XR so I will be bummed if I have to switch back to the regular stuff. Anyway...any input is appreciated

I thought it was hilarious...I finally had my consult yesterday with the surgeon, and after taking my history, she looked at me and said, "well, i think you are a perfect patient for this surgery". i thought that was pretty funny...when was the last time you'all were considered a 'perfect physical specimen', heh?:blushing: i didnt know there was such a thing as perfectly fat

i love it! only we could appreciate the irony...

hey everyone...i am planning to go to the support meeting at the faulkner on 5/12 @ 6 pm...i have all my PAT that day in the city so it will kinda be on my way home... if anyone else wants to go...i will be the one with the huge butt...lol

hi there...i actually just had my consult with dr. vernon yesterday (she was awesome) and it went great! i dont have any major co-morbidities so she said i was a great candidate and would shoot for surgery sometime in june. i had my labs done after the consult and my nutrition/psych/upper GI are all scheduled for 5/12, then a few days for the insurance approval and then they give a surgery date 2-4 weeks out. so, my hope is to be banded asap in june...i will keep you posted on my progress. one thing i did that worked out in my favor was fasting before the appointment (NPO after midnight the night before)...i was able to have my labs done that day...of course, it depends on the time of day your appointment is though. gina