HunnyBun

LOL that was awesome!

I'm no expert either, but if you're only a few weeks along, I doubt the developing fetus was in any danger. Take good care of yourself and forget about getting a fill until you've given birth. Right now you need to feed your little angel Good luck and keep us posted

For those of you who don't know me (probably most of you LOL) my name is Maggie. I am a 24 year old single mom and I weigh about 275lbs. I have talked to or seen pretty much every lap band doc in the state of Illinois over the past two years and so far found only one who would be able to do my procedure. The only problem with him is, I can't stand him. He is a smart mouth, not experienced, and I wouldn't let him touch me with a 10 foot pole, let alone a scalpel. Anyway, the reason why I can not find a doctor who could help me is because I am on public aid and no lap band doctor I called accepts my insurance. Self paying is not an option since I only make as much as my bills, food and living costs a month. I don't have savings. I can't take up another job because I don't have anyone who could help out with my son. My mom works evenings and other family wouldn't be willing to help. I thought about taking a loan to pay for the surgery, but I quickly found out that my credit is not good enough. *sigh* For the past two years I have been trying to get this accomplished and it is becoming such a pain in my life. I just want to be banded and become the happy and fun person that is hiding behind this fat body and sad face. So, I decided I need to get my $hit together and do something that will result in either finding a doctor that will do it for free, or finding the money to have the surgery. Some starter ideas I have are: 1. Become a hooker - but I won't. 2. Marry an immigrant for money so he can get papers - seems like a crazy idea but it just might work? 3. Find a different job that will have insurance - but I have the perfect job right now, I work the exact hours that my son is in school. If I quit I might never find anything so flexible again. 4. Sit on the corner and hold out a sign that reads 'Collecting for surgery, please help' - and die of shame. 5. ????? Funny, crazy, plain stupid, and great ideas welcome. Put your brains together and please help me find a way to get my band. I am desperate. :think Thanks!!!

Thanks NewSho, this is exactly what I was talking about. If my surgeon isn't even open to the possibility of doing something wrong, if he does mess up, he will never take responsibility. If I go in there and tell him I am ill, instead of being helpful and compassionate, he might just be defensive. I can't put my health in the hands of someone who thinks this way.

Chameleon that was so nice of you to post. Thank you.

Jodi, the problem is, he only did a few surgeries. He downplayed it alot too. He said that it's so simple and easy. I know it may not be the hardest procedure, but I know that placement of the band can have a lot to do with slippage, so I would not want someone who takes it so lightly. After meeting with him, I just KNEW he wasn't a good surgeon. I had a feeling. The personw ho came with me to the consultation told me that he does not approve of this doctor either. I'm just lost because I am afraid of being operated on by an overconfident jerk who will blame complications on me.

He is very inexperienced and has a bad attitude. I am worried about having complications like slippage, erosion and him being a jerk about it. When I asked him questions about complications, he said that they will absolutely not happen if I do everything right. I KNOW that's BS and I am afraid of being in his care in case I do have something go wrong. He is also about two hours away and requires that I drive there every Wednesday for 16 weeks to do a pre op diet. Then, after surgery I am required to drive there again for 12 weeks for post op support meetings. The problem with this is that I don't have anyone who can care for my son while I am there. I know that complications from Lap Band are sometimes serious and I don't want to be in the care of an a$$hole. Plus, if something goes wrong and say I can't swallow my food, I am two hours away from his office, where he might not even be. He doesn't have partners or a nursing staff. He works in a hospital and is the only lap band surgeon there. I already gave him a shot, I met with him, did 4 of the 16 weeks, and I realized that I just don't trust him. I feel like it's too much of a risk. I wish I could just ignore my fears and go with him, but if something goes terribly wrong and God forbid I get really sick, I would never be able to forgive myself. My son deserves a mom that has good care. I can't take the chance.

Thats funny! It's weird but after reading that I feel a little sad that I may not be able to get the band. I want all those things, the good and the bad.

I was doing a weight loss program at a chicago hospital. I was following a 1200kcal diet but had only lost 2 pounds in a week. The doctor had bigger expectations so he told me "Just don't eat! You have got to stop eating. You will see your weight drop if you just stop eating" Ok, maybe he ment 'don't overeat' but the way he phrased it, I was PISSED and wrote a complaint. I did not sign up for that kind of treatment. Other than that, I have been told not to eat for 3 days to shrink my stomach, drink lots of vinegar, smoke, etc. Just ridiculus stuff. None of it healthy.

excellent idea

We are all so eager to lose weight and we do unhealthy things to achieve that goal. I wonder sometimes if being fat would be so terrible if it was socially acceptable? I generally don't like being fat because I feel like an outsider. I feel like the ugly person in my group, even though I know I have a prettier face/hair/attitude than some other girls I know. If fat was 'normal' and skinny was 'ugly' would we all want to lose weight? Would we overlook the physical discomfort and be happy with the attention we get? Sometimes I get this crazy idea that being fat isn't so bad as long as I eat right and excercise, but then I hear someone call me a fat bitch and I want to cut my fat off with a knife. If fat really was beautiful (by society standard) would we all be getting banded?

Have you tried Chinese medicine to lose weight? What did your treatment include? Would you recommend it? Why or why not? Thanks!

LOL those are cute. I love the elderly. I used to work with them (or their medications) and all the stories the nurses shared were hilarious.

Well then here is another thought. Undereating and throwing up is just as much of an eating disorder as compulsive overeating. Yet, anorexic and bulemic girls were welcome on the runway and overweight girls weren't. Now they are turning it around, they are introducing overweight girls to the runway and banning underweight ones. Do we want 'fat' to be the hype? I don't think it's any better than sickly thin. IMO they should focus on 'average'. Mix it up, some to be thin, some to be chubby. No extremes necessary.

When someone calls me a fat bitch, I don't get mad about the bitch part because I'm not one. I am however fat and they didn't get that part wrong. The 'fat bitch' was just an example, sometimes it's fatass, fatso, pig, cow, etc... people don't like me because I'm fat. I don't care about those people anyway, what bothers me most is that it is embarassing, humiliating, and there is nothing I can do to stop it. Wait, there is... I can lose weight.

Ugh, the girl in the first photo looks ill. I wouldn't want her in my show. I bet noone even noticed the dress because they were all looking at her ribs! Girl needs to eat!

I know exactly what you mean. Thank you for sharing with us :)

Congratulations! Such a beautiful family. I can't believe you had enough strength to put on makeup while at the hospital lol, when I gave birth I looked like a dirty mop. Greasy hair and swollen like a baloon. You look great!

GeezerSue, I am sure you don't mean noone any harm but when I read this sentence from your previous post I assumed you meant all surgery. That's why I went into defence mode and wrote my last post.

Do you think that anyone who has ever had cosmetic surgery needs counseling? I think it is pretty common that people have surgery to make themselves look better. I don't think they need counseling. It's very normal to want to fit in and be a part of the crowd. It's also normal to be affected by society standard and it's normal to feel insecure when you don't fit in with what is 'in'. Some people feel social pressure to look acceptable because of different reasons. One might have low self esteem because of the ugly duckling condition while in school. Some may get the pressure from the work environment (media etc). Some might just be so into the fashion scene that they feel like they 'need' to look great in order for their life to be what they want it to be. I consider myself one of those people. I love fashion and it's a huge part of my life. I go to fashion shows, buy fashion books, follow the designers and trends. I am in love with adorable clothes and the only thing keeping me from being able to wear them is my size. If I lose weight I will be able to wear all the beautiful outfits I have boxed up all over the house. I love clothes so much that I buy them regardless if I can wear them or not. Not many ofcourse, but when I see something I can't live without I can at least know it's there in the box waiting to be worn some day. I'm the only person I know who knows so much about fashion and designers but doesn't wear designer clothes. Nothing designer fits. Even if I was able to buy designer clothes, I don't think they'd look great stretched over my big belly. Do I need to see a counselor because I want my body to reflect who I am inside? Lap band for me has a lot to do with health, but in the end even if I was healthy I would still probably have surgery so I can look the way I feel. I guess I have mixed feelings on this. On one hand I wish I was happy as fat as long as I am healthy, and on the other hand I want to be a cute, sexy fashionista that wears Manolos.

I absolutely love Jean Paul Gaultier, my favorite designer. I'm just surprised at him showing a plus size woman in his show when he does not make plus size clothing. If he was really trying to make a point, why not just start a new plus size line? I have a feeling that there is more to this story and we're just outsiders that don't get it.

While funny, it made me so sad for Joe. Poor guy! lol

PB is when the food you've eaten gets stuck and doesn't come past the band. It then comes back up into your mouth. It doesn't contain stomach acid so it doesn't taste like throwup. PB stands for Productive Burp. Sliming is when something gets stuck and your body is trying to get it down by creating a lot of saliva which should help the stuck food go down. I hear it's very unpleasant. I am not banded and the answers I gave you are things that I read on this forum

Who do you pay to? The doctor himself or a bank that gave you the loan? If you're paying directly to the doctor, screw him and don't pay. He is not in the USA and probably can't sue you. If it is an american bank that loaned you the money, they can turn you over to a collection agency. It still is a long way before they would sue you. They will sue in your state, if it ever happens. Anyway, threats are nothing, don't let them intimidate you. I doubt he can file a civil case in another state.

Congratulations