mamato3

Hey everyone! I had my pre op testing yesterday and they threw me a curve ball. I need to chose between the AP Band and the Realize Band. My surgeon just started using the Realize band about 2 weeks ago. I'm not sure which to chose. Is anyone else having the Realize band placed? Does anyone have any info comparing the 2 or any opinion as to which one is better or if they are about the same? I had never heard of the Realize band before yesterday and I thought I had read EVERYTHING! hahaha! Also, this pre op diet is TOUGH! Yikes! I didn't think it would be too bad, but I am getting hungry especially at night and I am having bad headaches. I keep reminding myself I AM WORTH IT! How is everyone else holding up on this diet?

I think January Jewels is "cute", but I really like New Years Resoloosers and Dump the W8 in 08. You guys are really good at this... I couldn't even come up with 1 idea! hahah

I too LOVE The Biggest Looser. Last niights show was amazing. Those people are so inspiring to me. I cried every time one of them got on the scale. As for an exercise challenge, I have no idea what to suggest. About the only thing I do consistently is Walk Away the Pounds. SOOOO, I am looking forward to everyones suggestions.

So, I have not officially started my pre-op diet yet. That will start on Dec. 28 with surgery on Jan 7th. But here is my question... I have been trying REALLY hard to lose some weight prior to surgery with no success. I have been doing basically the slim fast plan... a shake for breakfast, another for lunch and sensible dinner plus 2 snacks (I usually do a yogurt or a piece of fruit) Is Slim Fast too high in sugar or something? I am not losing anything! Now I'm starting to get nervous! What if I go through with this whole surgery for no reason? It seems like I should be loosing some weight doing this. It has been 2 weeks! What do you all think? Maybe I should just follow the pre-op liver shrinking diet starting now, or would 3 weeks be too much?

YEAH! I'm so excited to finally have my date!! Jan 1- HAPPY NEW YEARS! Starting the year off right! Jan 2 Jan 3-WOWOX7, Woodsy Jan 4- KUgirl Jan 5 Jan 6 Jan 7- CallmeJim, comepickmeup, NukeChik, mamato3 Jan 8 Jan 9 – Redtulips3, FLMan Jan 10- luvsrocks, Hilary Jan 11 Jan 12 Jan 13 Jan 14- CoreynVA, acalpn Jan 15 Jan 16 Kathy-CA Jan 17- SJK Jan 18- RuthE? Jan 19 Jan 20 Jan 21- Chrisann Jan 22 Jan 23- min Jan 24 Jan 25 Jan 26 Jan 27 Jan 28~Amber/Amberwaves Jan 29 Jan 30 - Stephanie PortugsePrinces Jan 31

Well, I found out today that I am going to be having my surgery January 7th. I think I might be in a bit of shock! haha Last time I spoke to anyone at my surgeons office, they told me they were scheduling for February and to wait for my letter to come in the mail. My letter arrived today and WOWZER!! I only have 26 days left til surgery! I'm SO excited. I'm looking forward to talking with many of you as we go through this journey together! CallMeJim and comepickmeup.... YIPPEE we have the same surgery day!!

Well it's official! I received my letter today with my surgery date. It will be January 7th. I cannot even begin to tell you all how excited I am! Of course, many of you probably know as you've been down this road already. HAHA I am a little bit in shock right now. Last time I spoke to them they said they were scheduling for February, so I did not expect to be having this done until then. It is a welcomed surprise though! 2008 is going to be the year that I finally lose some weight and become the healthy, thinner person that I've always wanted to be!!

Well I took your advice and went ahead and called. I dont know much more then I did before! haha All I know new is that my chart is in the hands of the person who schedules the surgeries and I have to just sit and wait until she sends me a letter giving me my instructions. They said it could be anywhere from 2 to 6 weeks! Well, I knew when I started this journey it would be a test of my patience and it definately has proven to be that!

Hey everyone! I thought I would see what you guys thought.... I am starting to feel very impatient. I have had my approval from the insurance company since Oct. 31. I have done everything my doctors office has asked of me (psych eval, nutrition class). I feel like they are ignoring me! haha It has been 2 weeks since I took the nutrition class and I have not heard from anyone. I dont want to be one of those annoying patients that calls all the time, but it is making me go stir crazy. They had told me my surgery would be early January, but since I have not heard from them yet, I doubt that will happen. Would you go ahead and call again? Or just wait it out? My surgeon is Dr. Brengman at Richmond Surgical Group.

Hi CoreynVA, I am having my surgery with Richmond Surgical Group, Dr. Brengman. Right now I am patiently waiting for a surgery date. I had my psych eval with Lisa Berman as well. Attended my nutrition class on Monday the 19th. I have had my approval from the insurance company since Oct. 31 and had absolutely no problem getting it. It's making me nuts waiting for them to call and schedule a date. I wonder if I should just call them and bug them?!??!

I think everyone heals and copes with pain differently. With that said, I had my gall bladder removed laproscopically a couple of years ago. My doctor told me that recovery from this surgery should be similar to recovery from the gall bladder. I had that surgery on Thursday and returned to work on Monday. I would think most people should feel ok to return to work in about a week, as long as it isn't work that is very strenuous. Just an opinion :confused:

Yes I do live in Virginia but I dont know that I would call myself a VA girl. HAHAHA I moved here about a year and a half ago after living my whole life in Colorado. I'm trying hard to adjust to the changes, like humidity, UGH! Right now I live west of Richmond. My surgeon is Dr. Brengman at Richmond Surgical Group. I am SO excited about this surgery. Even if I have to wait til January, I know it will be worth the wait. But I will do what you suggested and see about getting myself on a "cancellation list". I have my nutrition class on the 19th. Everything went along really fast and smooth except for a surgery date! Go figure.

Thankyou for starting this new thread! I always want to post, but never know where to do it, so I usually just dont. I enjoy reading what you all have to say though. Anyways, I found out today that my insurance has approved my surgery! YEAH!!! BUT... the surgeons office is apparently not scheduling anymore surgeries this year. I guess it is "crunch time" whatever that means. Oh well, I guess I'll be a newly banded person for the new year. She said I should be one of the first in January. Meanwhile, I will just focus on eating right and getting more exercise and hopefully lose a few pounds.

cannis - good luck to you on Thursday! I'll be anxious to hear how everything went. Which doctor is doing your surgery? I am feeling very positive today. I had my initial consult with Dr. Brengman this morning. He seemed to think that my insurance company would approve me no problem! YAY! He said I should hear from them in 3 to 4 weeks. I am so happy to say that it seems like things are moving forward nicely.

Welcome newnana! I think it would be great to connect with some people close by as well. So, you attended a seminar last week. What surgeon are you thinking of using?

Congratulations on getting started on the road to a healthier you. I am new to this site as well. Have my initial consult with the surgeon on the 16th. I just wanted to tell you, that I have also found that I dont get an overwhelming amount of replies when I post here. BUT, I read, read, READ, READ and READ some more. I have learned so much here. These people are truly an inspiration to me. It's amazing that a group of people that I have never met have given me such a positive attitude and helped me in finding the courage to move forward with this surgery. Good luck to you on your journey ahead.

I went to a seminar last night and they said that Anthem requires 2 comorbidities no matter what the BMI. According to my member services manual AND the lady I spoke to at Anthem, with a BMI of greater then 40 then no comorbidities are required. Does anybody have any idea which is correct? I have some other minor things wrong (plantar faschitis, stress incontinence, aching joints,already had to have my gall bladder removed and had gestational diabetes with 2 recent pregnancies which puts me at a MUCH higher risk of develping type 2 diabetes if I dont get this weight off). I am now SO worried that I am not going to qualify. My current BMI is 44. What do you think?

I set up my consultation with the surgeon for Oct 16. I am pretty sure it should be covered no problem. Thanks, dustout for the website! I'm hoping to jump through the hoops and have surgery in January :eek:

I am only just beginning my lapband journey but I am ready now and wanting to get headed in the right direction. I have my first consultation on Oct. 16. It seems like I am gaining even more weight lately. Could you give me some suggestions on a diet I could start on now so that I can start to lose a few pounds? Should I just try to start eating as if I already have the band? Am I trying to jump the gun too much here? I am just feeling LOUSY about myself and my weight right now and I really need something structured in order to lose any weight.

OK... seminar is done. The doctor seemed real nice and so now I have scheduled my first consultation for Oct. 16th. YAY! Now, the only thing I am worrying about a little is this: According to my insurance member service manual and what the person that I talked to at the insurance company said, If you have a BMI of greater then 40 then no comorbid conditions are required. According to what they were saying at the seminar last night, they think my insurance requires the 2 comorbid conditions regardless of BMI. Now I'm stumped. I went ahead and scheduled the consultation anyway, but I hope it isn't a waste of more of my time. I guess we will just have to see.

Wow 23 pounds! Thats awesome. I cant wait to say goodbye to my first 23 pounds. Dont cave in to the chocolate cake! The only one who will benefit is Mr. Ukrop! hahah

Hi PrettyBrownEyez- My seminar is scheduled for Oct. 4. I am so anxious to meet the docs. I have a list of questions already too! My insurance is Anthem COVA care through the state of Virginia as my husband is a state employee. It has treated me well so far. I had a baby in June and Anthem took great care of everything. According to the lady I talked to at Anthem about WLS, I shouldn't have any problems with approval. The surgeon will just need to send a letter for their health service review and beings I have a BMI of 44 it should not be a problem. You mentioned getting a copy of my previous weight loss efforts. Is that a requirement from the surgeon, or from the insurance company? Just curious because I really haven't seen a doctor that much in the past 5 years except for illnesses and to have 2 babies. Are they going to make me have 6 months of Dr. supervised dieting? Hmmm... probably my first stumbling block. :cry So you are one week post op. How are things going? Do you feel starved? Are you having lots of pain? Tell me everything. HAHAHAH Kidding. Hope you are feeling great.

MaryWalker... Only a couple more days until your surgery. Just wanted to wish you well. I know things are going to go great. Cant wait to hear from you after surgery. I'm counting down my days til the seminar. HAHAH!! Just imagine how tired you all are going to be of hearing about me counting down when I'm already doing it and it's just for the seminar! Anyways, I read every single day about the lapband and I think I have gone through in my head about every thought and emotion. This is really going to be a challenge. But, I already know I'm in it for the long haul. I am anxious to get started with everything.

So I have only just begun my lapband journey. I have been extremely hesitant to tell anyone that I am considering a lapband because I fear the negative feed back I might get. Well, today I decided to confide in someone who I thought would be understanding and supportive. BOY WAS I WRONG! GRRRR!!! Just as I suspected, she was negative and relayed a horror story of someone she knows who had had a lapband years ago. She was like, you can lose weight on your own, you dont need it. WELL, I'm am so bummed. I told her, sure I can lose weight. I have done it many times before. I just cant keep it off. So she says, dont say you cant! SOOO, I guess I am just going to have to keep this to myself and not expect the support of any of my friends. Luckily my husband is supportive, I would just like to have more then 1 person on my team, ya know?

Thankyou all for your thoughts on this. I have decided I will just try to keep it to myself. I'll come here and talk with all of you and maybe I will get involved with a support group. I do feel like I need some support through this whole thing. I am nervous about it and a bit scared. I keep thinking to myself, "this is the rest of my life!". I know I can do it though. Anyways... thanks again.