sistasassy

Illinois Medicaid does cover the lap band if you BMI is at least 40 or if it is 35-39 with at least two comorbidities. You will need a doctor who will do the band, a psych evaluation (which is not typically covered by Medicaid and can cost between $250-$600) and an appointment with your surgeon's nutritionist who must also say you are a good candidate for the surgery. Your surgeon can then submit it for approval. Mine was just submitted so I am not sure how long it takes to hear back. All of my other testing is done for my surgeon as well due to other issues I had going on in my life anyway. I hear there are a number of doctors in the Chicago and Peoria area that are accepting Medicaid and one in Decatur. Good Luck!

Sprite Zero is not bad. Has a bit of an after taste but it is okay once you get used to it. It should be an okay alternative to regular tastewise.

I think an "implant to help control hunger" is a pretty accurate description. I think that people need to remember that Lapbanders are learning to control their lives they are learning how to finally take control of themselves. To me, the only lap band failures are those who just continue to eat out of control. AND, they are only failures if they do not seek additional help and support to continue the process. There are lapband misfortunes such as erosion, accidental slips, body rejection, etc. Bypass and rerouting surgeries are usually successful, yes, but when you factor in the weight gain that they usually have at the end, to me, that is failure. There was no self control and no change in lifestyle and thinking about eating. I went to eat with two ladies one night, one with the band and one with the bypass. Both ate regular fat-laden food to the point of having to stop on the way home and BOTH women were out of the car throwing up. They eat what they want and then when they are too full, they throw up. To me that is failure. They did not learn to change their lives and how they eat to be healthy.

Waaaaaaaahoooooo! I have been just FREAKING out waiting on my sleep study results. Been waiting for two weeks (I know, I have no patience). Anyway, they are NORMAL! Yeah for me!!!!! :tt1: I also got my ultrasound results back and they say that my liver is normal size. Do you think that may mean no pre-op diet?

Congrats on your 75 lbs! That is awesome! As for your co-worker, congrats on taking the humble side and trying to let it go as well. I think that it is a hard task to do. She is obviously uneducated about the band and what is involved. She is also most obviously very very jealous. If I were you I would continue to accept compliments and smile and move on if she does it again.

Hang in there. I had to wait for three weeks to get my psych doctor to dictate the info needed and am now at the two week point waiting on my sleep study results and the one week mark waiting on insurance approval. It seems that a big part of this process is waiting. It will go quickly.....just not quickly enough for us with little patience. :thumbup:

I have been to the doctor's office/surgeon's office many times and have had to wait. I have waited for 2 hours in the ER before. The point I am getting to is that there may be someone with that doctor who needs his/her care more than we do at that moment. I was in the ER one time (in the midst of my very first and most major panic attack) and was told that, although my paramedics were going to stay with me for the time being (so I would not be alone), the doctor and the nurses would not be in just yet. Mind you, I had never had a panic attack before and would have sworn to you that I was having a heart attack and dying. I could hear noise and voices and beeping in the room next to me. A few minutes later there was almost an instant quiet......and then screaming and wailing. A 23 yr old father of 2 had just died after valiant efforts by the doctors and his staff to save his life. I will never complain again about having to wait when I am basically healthy and, in all reality, DO have the time to wait. That young father did not. It taught me a hard lesson. Now, that being said, the nurse needs to work on her people skills. She could have handled it differently. I would have waited to see that doc and then addressed the issues with him.

It is not bad. I had been nervous but it was much easier than I thought it would be and it is over rather quickly. Again, drink lots of Water after.

Awesome awesome awesome words! I, too, have seen the switch flip in people's eyes when I talk about the fact that I am going to get banded. They do not understand the road ahead of me. They think the weight is going to melt off by magic. They do not realize that I am still going to have to deal with pain in my ankles as I begin my walking routine, or that I will still have cravings (head hunger) to overcome, or that I will possibly have limits and no longer be able to handle a few of the foods that I love, or that I will have to be in and out of the doctors office for fills (and maybe unfills), or deal with being "stuck" or "sliming" or "pbing". I have just basically quit telling people unless they ask, which means that someone gossip has passed the word along.

Lunch?? I am still waiting on my breakfast to get here. Lazy sleep-in morning at my house today. My hubby is on vacation this week and was up at 6:00 am! Crazy man! Anyway, he just went to get breakfast for me and the kids and COFFEE! I hate Mondays.:wink_smile:

I never post just to post. I only post to put up a fence. Okay, corny, but it needed to be said. :thumbs_up: I like fish and calamari.

I have Emu oil. You only need a dab because it is really oily but it does work. I use it on my feet if they get super dry and then put socks on for a few hours. Really helps alot.

From the times I have visited the Rants and Raves section, it should have been named the "Fight Club". :thumbup: I say that affectionately so, please, no one kill me.

I was taught a long time ago that love is a choice. You choose to love or not to love. I believe what he is saying is that, perhaps you guys were not actually meant to be together, but that now that you are together, he loves you and will always be with you. Love grows over time and builds that bond of commitment. I think he was, in a man's weird way of saying things, trying to tell you that even if things were rough or perhaps different choices should have been made, that he loves you and wants you. Learning to interpret the weird things guys say is hard sometimes because we, as women, are wired differently. Perhaps talk to him and ask him to try to explain more in depth. You may get more out of him that way. He may just have trouble with words.

I will be voting McCain. Long standing, very conservative republican and that's just the way it is. As for drilling, why let the oil sit? We need it now and this earth has replenished itself for thousands of years. There will always be oil. We just have to find it. I am all for drilling here and drilling now. Families need relief at the pump and they need it now. Most families are living paycheck to paycheck. Why should it all be spent at the pump?

I just had my sleep study last night. The tech said that she could not tell for sure if I had sleep apnea or not. She said most of the time she can tell right away. She said my doc would not have the results for two weeks. Uggggh. Long time. What has everyone else's experience been with the sleep study and the waiting and were you able to get a clue at least as to whether you had it or not? I am just not a very patient person is all today. I have a whopper of a sunburn (again, my fault) and just sort of wanted a real good good hint as to whether or not I was going to be heading to the "waiting line" or the "moving forward" line.

Low fat does not work for me either. Don't be afraid to be proactive in your health and diet. Speak up and tell her that is the way you want to go.

THe only advice that I have is to listen listen listen and as soon as you have a question, ask. Don't let the fact that he is a surgeon intimidate you. The only dumb question is an unasked question. Good luck today! :thumbs_up:

I would not lie. I would explain that low fat is not working for you so you switched to low carb and are now losing. I would be truthful and ask her to work with you from there.

kizzie, can you make your own popsicles? You could pour juice in ice cube trays and make them that way.

Strong conservative here...but evidently not with my eating patterns or I would not be here. :Angel_anim:

My hubby was kind of nonchalant about the whole process in the beginning too. He seemed disinterested to me. I finally blew up, which is what we do as females, and told him that it really hurt me that he didn't care about what I was trying to do. He finally said that it was not that he didn't care, it was that he just assumed I had it under control and that he totally supported me and would be there to help. Sometimes, we have to remember that men are made different than women. It is not that they are stupid or inconsiderate (although I have thrown those very words at my sweet hubby in the heat of an argument). It is that they truly just think differently. That is where we (both men and women) have to cut each other some slack and understand that we are both speaking from different places at times. It will work out with your hubby. Give it time to cool off and then sit down and really just talk about your insecurities with him. I think you will find that he really does care.

Had my Upper GI on Tuesday and am experiencing the "other end" today. Not overly pleasant but I drink a ton of Water each day so it has not been awful. My test was not too bad either. The barium was better than I thought it would be but still not great. Mine was lying down for the first x-ray and then the machine moved me to standing for the bulk of the pictures (by the oldest man on the planet) and then back to lying down for a few at the end. The barium did upset my stomach later in the morning but I just took a long nap and felt better when I got up.

To funny that you actually know that information! ROFL!

Good to know that you can really feel this one. Especially since he will not be having you back as often. I just finished all my pre-op testing and am now waiting on results. Not really worried about any of them except perhaps the sleep study. My surgeon requires a six week cpap trial if I fail the sleep study. I am trying to be patient but the waiting is killing me! :tt1: