MicheleK

I'm currently doing the 90 pre-approval supervised diet plan that Aetna requires. I'm confident about getting approved as there are many folks at my boyfriend's job (I'm on his insurance) that haven't had any problems at all as long as weight history is available (and mine is...). I'm SO SO VERY excited about starting my journey. It makes it easier going through this waiting time with people like you giving me hope. Your successes have motivated me more then you will ever know. I'm hoping for a July (or maybe June surgery date). My birthday is June 27th, I would love to be banded by then.

Nice!! LC is the only thing that's ever worked for me. If you don't mind I'll be peeking in on you to see what kind of menus you guys put together for LC with the Lapband. I'm currently working on my 3 month pre-band supervised diet stuff...and anything I can learn ahead of time would be fantastic! BTW, Losing & Georgia, you two are an inspiration, especially to us pre-banders...wow just wow.

I can relate with you. I'm currently doing a 3 month dietician supervised program (for insurance req's). I'm cutting back on a lot of things (fast food, sugar) but, I'm not starving. I figure hell, if I could've done it the right way I wouldn't need the surgery! Any weight I lose right now will just make my surgery that much easier, but I'm not starving or making myself crazy over it. Just taking one day at a time. (I'm not even close to 40BMI, but I hope to be someday ) You might check with your insurance company to see if they have a required % that you have to lose prior to WLS. Mine doesnt, I made sure and asked.

While my exp with GNC is limited, my rude people exp is not. Another thing thing I hate about being overweight, people are so friggin rude. You know how older folks always comment about how rude/cruel kids are??? I have news for you....when it comes to overweight people adults are JUST AS CRUEL. This happened was at my vet's officer...the story still brings me to tears: I went to the vet to get some meds for my dog. As I was getting out of the car to go in I noticed an attractive older genetleman (60ish) going in the door as well. He held the door for me as I came up behind. I didn't think much of it, and nodded with my ususal "Thank you". He joined his wife at the reception desk, we were the only people in the office. His wife was asking if the vet does work with livestock. The receptionist replied yes she does and proceeded to hand her a business card. As they turn around to walk out the wife makes the comment "I'm so glad we found somene close that handles large animals." Her husband looks RIGHT at me and said (loudly) "Well she's not the only one, I just opened the door for a pretty LARGE animal myself" and proceeded to laugh about it all the way out of the office. I didn't even get my dog's meds I just ran out to my car and drove home crying....I didn't do anything to him, why did he feel the need to treat me that way??? Some people suck...

My 1st husband and I did NOTHING but argue (he was a bad alcoholic, which didn't help...pretty emotionally abusive). Money was ususally our main topic, he liked to spend LOTS of money we didn't have. He was the primary breadwinner and didn't like for me to have any control over our money...at all. My current boyfriend (soon to be DH), works and I stay home (for the past 7months). I handle all the finances and the only question he has for me is: "Do I have enough to buy electronic device (a)?" We are currently putting money back for co-pays, I told him I would probably have to put money back for PS after I reach goal. He's cool with it, he wants me to be happy. Talk to your hubby, see if you can get him to understand how important this is for you. Sounds to me like he needs a wake-up call.

You're going to do amazingly well, your attitude shows that you are ready for the challenges ahead. I'm pullin for ya!

I've heard the CPAP machine really works. There was a lady I used to work with that had one, she said she didn't even know what true "restful" sleep was until she got her machine. So, in some ways I'm looking forward to being diagnosed and having something done about it. Ginny - I spoke to my friend that had the lapband and she, like you had the sleep apnea test right before surgery. She did have to stay overnight for observation but didn't have any issues like having to rescheduling surgery. Let us know how everything turns out for you!! Wishing you well.. By the way...how in the heck do they expect me to fall asleep at 8:30pm at night!!! LOL

I just started doing these, and Suzanne...you are SO RIGHT. They are a great way to get some cardio at any weight. My issue is pure embarassment, I don't want to leave the house and go to the track at my current weight (not because of the way I look, but because of how I look walking around a track...Yes, self-esteem issues BIG TIME). So, after hearing a couple people sing the praises of Sweatin to the Oldies, I got a copy online. Good, good stuff!!

Today is the day (or night) of my sleep apnea test. I have to be there at 8:30pm and ready for bed!! It's gonna be a loooooonnnngggg night. I know they don't have a TV but I'm hoping I can at least read a book until I doze off. My ususal bedtime is around midnight-1am, especially since I've been off work, my internal clock thing is really screwy! Hopefully this evening will pass quickly and I can come home and have some normal sleep! I'm almost 100% positive the results will show I have sleep apnea, if I don't I will be VERY surprised. It's pretty rainy and depressing today, which kind of matches my mood. For some reason I'm having a hard time dealing with the fact I have to wait until June-ish before anything is going to happen with my surgery. :biggrin: I know there are folks that have to wait A LOT longer for insurance approval, and that comforts me somewhat...but, it doesn't stop the fact I'm still annoyed and I really want to get on with my life!! Well, enough whining...I think I'll do some laundry! :crying:

Today is the day (or night) of my sleep apnea test. I have to be there at 8:30pm and ready for bed!! It's gonna be a loooooonnnngggg night. I know they don't have a TV but I'm hoping I can at least read a book until I doze off. My ususal bedtime is around midnight-1am, especially since I've been off work, my internal clock thing is really screwy! Hopefully this evening will pass quickly and I can come home and have some normal sleep! I'm almost 100% positive the results will show I have sleep apnea, if I don't I will be VERY surprised. It's pretty rainy and depressing today, which kind of matches my mood. For some reason I'm having a hard time dealing with the fact I have to wait until June-ish before anything is going to happen with my surgery. :thumbup: I know there are folks that have to wait A LOT longer for insurance approval, and that comforts me somewhat...but, it doesn't stop the fact I'm still annoyed and I really want to get on with my life!! Well, enough whining...I think I'll do some laundry! :crying:

Safety was a huge factor for me in deciding between the two procedures. I like the fact that most Lapbands can be done as an out-patient. However, whatever you choose just make sure that it's what works best for you. I wish you success either way you go!

I'm heading in tomorrow evening for my sleep apnea test. I'm a little nervous, mainly because I know it's an issue. It's so bad that my boyfriend has started sleeping in the livingroom. He won't right out say that's why, but I feel him get up every night and it's usually when I start to doze off. He teases me some cuz I snore, and he is really, really happy I'm getting tested. I'm guessing because he'd like to actually sleep in his own bed again, lol. The sad thing is I never snored until I hit 250+. Now I wake up with headaches and I'm tired all day. :thumbup: I'm still doing the 90 day pre-approval diet that Aetna requires. So, hopefully if I get this under control now I won't have to worry with it pre-surgery. I hope everything works out for you, I know several people that have posted have had sleep apnea and still had their surgery. However, some folks with sleep apnea do have to stay in the hospital overnight....small price to pay in my opinion. Best of luck and let us know how it's going!

YAY! Grats on the date!!

Ok, so here I go!!!! Thought I'd start keeping some sort of record of my journey involving my decision to have Lapband surgery. I figure 6months from now when I want a piece of cake, I can look back and see what a pain in the butt it all was...that just might stop me! :wink2: I've been thinking about weightloss surgery off and on over the last 2 years. I'm horrible about putting off minor decisions so it's no surprise that this one has taken so long. Initially, I considered RNY surgery (gastric bypass). I'm a horrible coward and am scared enough of this procedure, so I've decided against it. One of my best friends has a RNY about 4-5years ago. She lost an amazing amount of weight within the first year or so (She ended up getting down to around 180lbs, from 400+) but lately things aren't going to well. She's back up to 300+lbs. :crying: I feel really sorry for her, she's even considering having the procedure re-done. On the flip side another friend had Lapband surgery a little less then 4 years ago and is doing great (she has put on some weight, but she drinks a TON of milkshakes...). She is supposed to be scheduling a fill in the next few weeks to help her lose some excess weight (I think around 30lbs left for her) and I'm excited to see how that works out for her. I attended the seminar in November, and was not too impressed. I actually made up my mind NOT to have WLS after attending. There seemed to be a lot of hidden charges (equalling 1300 PRE-surgery). The doctor's office I was looking in to actually required you even purchase your protien powder from them!!! It was insane. My insurance (Aetna) requires a 90 day supervised diet plan before the approval process can begin (mine started 3/7/08). The former doctor's office did not file these appointments with insurance and required I pay the entire amount of pre-surgery visits out of pocker (including the psy exam). I felt that something was really wrong with the whole system. So, about mid-February I started looking around for other doctor's and found one in Oklahoma City (I live in Norman, about 17miles south). It's a surgery group that does all types of bariatric surgeries. I was very excited to find out that my insurance covers all of the above!!!! Now, I feel that I'm really one my way down a path that will actually lead somewhere! :thumbup: I had my first appointment with the dietician on March 7th. She really didn't tell me much I didn't already know (I DO know what I'm SUPPOSED to eat), but I was glad I met with her. She did stress the importance of at least improving some habits (no sugar, bread etc) pre-surgery. After my appointment I stopped at McDonald's and had a bigmac meal super-sized (real smart huh?). BUT I've finally decided to try and improve some eating habits before I see her again on April 18th. It's tough...I love bread, I love potatoes and I love sugar...obviously. I bought some Lean Cuisines, some yogurt, fruits/veggies at the store Saturday night. I'm snacking a lot but at least it's on decent stuff (beef jerky, carrots etc) so I guess it could be a lot worse. I'm just so damn hungry!!! Tomorrow I have a sleep test to attend (not really looking foward to that) but I realize I need to be tested for sleep apnea especially before I am booked for surgery. Might as well get going now so I'm good and prepared when the time comes. If I need a CPAP machine, I'd rather spend the next few months getting used to it instead of finding out at the last minute sleep apnea is going to be an issue for me. I'm kind of scared of all the test I'll need to have done before surgery (especially the chest xray) I smoke (trying to quit, ugh) so I'm a little worried. I just don't want anything to come between me and my surgery!!! Ok, well I'm off for now...thanks for listening to my ramblings. I'll post tomorrow before I head off for the sleep study!!! :smile:

Ok, so here I go!!!! Thought I'd start keeping some sort of record of my journey involving my decision to have Lapband surgery. I figure 6months from now when I want a piece of cake, I can look back and see what a pain in the butt it all was...that just might stop me! :wink2: I've been thinking about weightloss surgery off and on over the last 2 years. I'm horrible about putting off minor decisions so it's no surprise that this one has taken so long. Initially, I considered RNY surgery (gastric bypass). I'm a horrible coward and am scared enough of this procedure, so I've decided against it. One of my best friends has a RNY about 4-5years ago. She lost an amazing amount of weight within the first year or so (She ended up getting down to around 180lbs, from 400+) but lately things aren't going to well. She's back up to 300+lbs. :crying: I feel really sorry for her, she's even considering having the procedure re-done. On the flip side another friend had Lapband surgery a little less then 4 years ago and is doing great (she has put on some weight, but she drinks a TON of milkshakes...). She is supposed to be scheduling a fill in the next few weeks to help her lose some excess weight (I think around 30lbs left for her) and I'm excited to see how that works out for her. I attended the seminar in November, and was not too impressed. I actually made up my mind NOT to have WLS after attending. There seemed to be a lot of hidden charges (equalling 1300 PRE-surgery). The doctor's office I was looking in to actually required you even purchase your protien powder from them!!! It was insane. My insurance (Aetna) requires a 90 day supervised diet plan before the approval process can begin (mine started 3/7/08). The former doctor's office did not file these appointments with insurance and required I pay the entire amount of pre-surgery visits out of pocker (including the psy exam). I felt that something was really wrong with the whole system. So, about mid-February I started looking around for other doctor's and found one in Oklahoma City (I live in Norman, about 17miles south). It's a surgery group that does all types of bariatric surgeries. I was very excited to find out that my insurance covers all of the above!!!! Now, I feel that I'm really one my way down a path that will actually lead somewhere! :biggrin: I had my first appointment with the dietician on March 7th. She really didn't tell me much I didn't already know (I DO know what I'm SUPPOSED to eat), but I was glad I met with her. She did stress the importance of at least improving some habits (no sugar, bread etc) pre-surgery. After my appointment I stopped at McDonald's and had a bigmac meal super-sized (real smart huh?). BUT I've finally decided to try and improve some eating habits before I see her again on April 18th. It's tough...I love bread, I love potatoes and I love sugar...obviously. I bought some Lean Cuisines, some yogurt, fruits/veggies at the store Saturday night. I'm snacking a lot but at least it's on decent stuff (beef jerky, carrots etc) so I guess it could be a lot worse. I'm just so damn hungry!!! Tomorrow I have a sleep test to attend (not really looking foward to that) but I realize I need to be tested for sleep apnea especially before I am booked for surgery. Might as well get going now so I'm good and prepared when the time comes. If I need a CPAP machine, I'd rather spend the next few months getting used to it instead of finding out at the last minute sleep apnea is going to be an issue for me. I'm kind of scared of all the test I'll need to have done before surgery (especially the chest xray) I smoke (trying to quit, ugh) so I'm a little worried. I just don't want anything to come between me and my surgery!!! Ok, well I'm off for now...thanks for listening to my ramblings. I'll post tomorrow before I head off for the sleep study!!! :smile:

Kat, you are an inspriation!! WOW! My reasoning behind choosing the Lapband is I completely trust my PCP and Lapband is the ONLY WLS she recommends (she's totally against RNY/bypass). I have a friend that had gastric bypass 4 years ago, she went from 425 to 180 and she now weighs over 300. I'm not willing to go through all of that to re-gain most of my weight 3 years later. She now has the same health risks she had when she had her surgery... Safer, slower weightloss with long term effects. Sign me up!

Words I need to start living by!!! :mad2:

Whew I'm glad I found this section.....my current BMI is 53.2 I have a total of 180lbs to lose. I have to admit I'm pretty scared!! That seems like an overwhelming about of weight to take off. I'm 34 years old with high BP and pretty severe sleep apnea, I also suffer from hypoglycemia which has made weightloss pretty darn tough. I'm scared of being this heavy, tho I've fought weight my whole life this is the biggest I've ever been. I'm currently working on my 90 day supervised diet plan, and hoping that Aetna is fast in approving my Lapband surgery after I'm done. I'm trying hard to lose some weight as my nutrionist told me, even to get down to 300lbs will make my surgery a lot easier. I look forward to getting to know my BMI 50+ brothers and sisters, we really do have struggles in our lives that I think only someone that's been in our shoes can understand.

I'm certainly no expert, but I have two friends of mine that each has WLS. One had the RNY (bypass) and the other had the lapband. Both are 4 years out. My RNY friend had a starting weight of around 450lbs. She got down to 180lbs very quickly, and is now 300lbs. :mad2: My Lapband friend had a starting weight of 325lbs and is now 190lbs (and has maintained that weight for sometime....she hasn't had a fill in ages and enjoys milkshakes a little too much, lol). I don't know about you, but coupled with the fact that Lapband surgery is MUCH safer and the recovery time is MUCH shorter, it was a no-brainer for me to choose Lapband. I'm not saying RNY doesn't work for a lot of people, but the possibilty of it not working for me was not worth the risk. Also, when I went to my seminar back in Nov 07, there were like 6 people there wanting to re-do RNY's. I think maybe it might be too easy to stretch your stomach back out???? Which, in my opinion would suck, especially after going through a massive surgery like that. I wish you the best of luck, I don't think you're going to have any problem taking off the weight! You sound very determined, and with the support here for you...there's noway you can fail! :cool: Best Wishes

Hello Everyone :mad2: My name is Michele and I live in Norman, Oklahoma. I've been overweight most of my adult life, and yo-yo dieting has been my reason for living! I think I've started a "Monday" diet every week for the last 15yrs. I'm currently going through my 90 day supervised diet in order to be approved by Aetna. I'm working on changing some old, nasty eating habits that have been my drug of choice for a very long time. I'm hoping to lose about 40lbs before I have my surgery, but we shall see! At my current weight exercise is very difficult. I have a great boyfriend, and a fantastic supportive mother (that too has struggled with weight). My main motivation for having Lapband surgery is I want to be healthy!!! I'm tired of taking BP meds and feeling/looking 15yrs older then I am. I would also like to have a child in a few years (yeah, I know I better hurry!LOL) and I know my weight is keeping my from being able to do this.

Back in Nov. I attended a WLS seminar in Norman, OK. My original goal was to have my band done by Dr. Ronnie Keith. He is one of the top bariatric surgeons in my state. Needless to say I was VERY excited to attend the meeting. How disappointed I was once I arrived. Dr. Keith gave a wonderful presentation discussing in great detail the entire procedure, from what to expect to the unexpected. Too bad after he was done one of his staff got up in front of the group and started discussing what it was going to cost us.... They require purchasing protien powder from their office, they don't turn in the psy exam to insurance nor do they turn in the dietician visits (my insurance requires 90 day supervised). Total cost out of pocket - $1300 (this doesn't include regular co-pays for the surgery itself!!). I was flabbergasted, and very, very upset. So, I started looking around (this site included) and talking to a few folks that had the procedure done in my state. This is not the norm, I don't have to buy anything, and my insurance will cover pre-surgery expenses (ie. psy exam). So, I made an appointment with Dr. Holsaeter at St. Anthony hopsital. Guess what?? EVERYTHING is billed to my insurance and come to find out they will pay for everything including the psy exam with a low $20 co-pay!!! I'm very confused...why would a weightloss center try and take advantage of folks alread desperate for answers?? Sure, I could've paid the $1300 but why?? I'm getting excellent help and paying a fraction of that.... Honestly, I'm a bit insulted by Oklahoma Weightloss Center's "sales pitch".

I'm pretty new here myself, so welcome from another newbie!! There is a TON of fantastic information on these boards. You're very lucky to be scheduled so quickly!! I have a 90 day supervised eating plan I must go through before being approved by insurance. Are you using insurance or private pay? Just curious, cuz if it's insurance pay...your insurance ROCKS!!!

The sad thing is, this doctor is very respected in my community. I was sad to find out that his offices require this kind of out of pocket expense when it's not nessecary. In addition, the man seemed very sincere about helping folk's lose weight, that's why I was so SHOCKED when his officer worker got up and started "selling" psy visits and protien powder!! Just weird... Anyway, so far so good with my doc of choice. I can't wait to get these 90 days over and get my surgery date!! WOOHOO!!!

I don't have a date yet, it's required that I do 90 days supervised eating plan. Once that's done it generally takes Aetna 2wks - 30 days to finish approval. Seems like a long journey, but I know it will be well worth it. Thanks all for the kind words :biggrin2:

Wow, you've been through a lot!! You're courage is an inspiration to me. I wish you nothing but the best, you will be in my prayers. Keep fighting the good fight!! You can beat this!