MISS.SUSAN

Can you give me any info like..... what did they require? like diets, tests, co-morbs? how long did it take to get approved? are fills covered? what wasn't covered? any complaints? any other info that would be helpful? its an HMO thur medi-caid so they may all be the same...? thanks a bunch! Susan

i got banded feb 9th, once the swelling went down i was able to eat pretty much anything, i did follow the post op diet till week 4, then i went slowly went back to my old eathing habbits. i got my first fill 2 weeks ago, that didnt make a difference.. she said i will feel restriction when i reach 12 ccs, she only put 5 in, so im hoping 1 or 2 more fills i will have some sort of restriction. I'm just scared that i have been over eating and have stretched out my pouch or something. cuz i really can put away the food. but by reading these posts i knew the first 6 mos or so is all me (diet and exercise) until i get enough fills for restriction. so just hang in there, stick to your diet and exercise and before you know it, you will have enough restriction.

i had a bad pain, charlie horse on my left side after surgery for weeks after surgery. the nurse said it was common, something to do with when your on the table and how they position you. and i also got strange pains in my upper back. but they are going away now, i read sometimes the band hits nerves and that will cause pain. i'm curious to know, how the doc could tell if the band did slip. do they do an exray?

from my list, your just dieting, lots of protein and healthier choices. eggs/egg beaters for breakfast, tuna for lunch, chicken and steamed veggies for dinner. I got banded 2/9/10 and go for my first fill 3/29/10 and if i dont watch what i eat, i can eat anything and everything. read about bandster hell, that kinda tells you what your go through the first few months. good luck

I have found a cheap hair remover powder. Its for black men, but i use it down there, and it works really well. you can get it at cvs or riteaide, i think its called softsheen carson magic shaving powder. small round can, white and blue lable. 2 to 3 bucks. you leave it on for 7 minutes and wash the hair away.

the week after my surgery, my ONLY friend lol came over every day telling me of other people who had this surgery who have failed and are big and fat again. she finally stopped. I was just thinking we will probably not be friends for long if i loose, I have always been a size or 2 bigger than her. and she has admitted to feeling "pissy" when i loose weight. she has also seemed pissy when i quit smoking. also, i know someone who had the bypass, lost like 100lbs, gained some back, and was very jealous of a co-worker with the lapband doing very well. so even people in our own shoes can be jealous. so sad. I hope i don't end up friendless...

Hi I'm in ocean city nj, just got banded by dr o in ac on the feb 9th.

I got banded feb 9th too, and yesterday i had some real food. but im going to try today to start again. im hungry but i noticed warm creamed soups seem to make my tummy happier, cold stuff just gives me a chest ache. i would stick to more mushies and fluid, they do say if we are hungry sometimes its because we are not getting enough water. I think we are far enough out now to start having scrambled eggs, blended tuna. (great for protein) I just keep reminding myself, between now and the fill that finally gives me restriction, its going to be rough, I plan on sticking to a 1200 calorie diet, no junk food, no fast food. and i think we should allow ourselves some kind of treat atleast once a week, even a little one. hang in there, good luck susan

my doc gave me a list, first 3 days after surgery = liquid diet days 4-7 full liquid days 8-10 = puree days 11-14 minced week 3 soft week 4 bariatric regular not a whole lot to choose from on the list, everything is fat free, sugar free, and you got the Protein first cottage cheese, mashed pototes, pureed meats, pureed veggies, sf yogurts, cream of wheat, oatmeal, then on week 4 you can pretty much eat anything just cut into tiny pieces, some things like raw veggies, tough fruit and hot peppers are to be avoided for like 6 months hope that helps good luck

I was banded on 2/9/10 in Atlantic Care, Atlantic City. By Dr. O as well. wouldn't mind hearing anyones experiences with him as far as fills are concerned. chatwithsuzie on yahoo if anyone likes to chat take care and good luck to all!

#1. Surgery date? FEB 9TH #2. State you live in? NEW JERSEY #3. Doctor/Surgery Center? DR. O ATLANTIC CARE #4. Insurance or self pay? INSURANCE #5. Age and height 40 5'8" #6. Current weight and goal weight? 330 ?? #7. What was your deciding factor for having this surgery? SEVERE BACK PAIN #7. Do you have the support of family and friends? I DONT KNOW, DONT CARE #8. Concerns and questions? FINGERS CROSSED, I DO GOOD!

I'm confused lol. it seems to me it would be better to eat a can of tuna then drinking a protein drink. why the liquid then? for these pre-op diets anyway, I understand it for after surgery.

I got the power max at gnc, chocolate and cookies and cream, I think they are good, 20 grams of protein and 120 calories per shake.

I start today too, im trying to wrap my head around this, 65 grams of protein a day, stay under 1200 calories, and im starving, i have protein shakes, sugar free jello/pudding, cream of wheat, creamed soups, trying to think of other things i can add. the guy at gnc said to take the colon cleanse, it has no calories or protein but helps you feel full, i dont see a difference yet. but its only been one day. what are you drinking ?

I started this journey back in Oct 08, pretty much had all my testing done by Dec 08, come Jan 09 I loose my insurance for 9 months. I finally get my insurance back in Sept 09 then have to redo a sleep study, I had to wait a month just to get in. I finally get the cpap machine and call the surgeons office last week, she schedules my surgery date for Feb 2010, then 2 hours later she leaves me a message telling me my heart tests are over a year old so i have to redo, mind you I have to get weighed every month and every month I have asked her "are my tests still good" she says don't worry! I am so angry right now, now I find out the heart doc I went to, no longer takes my insurance and there are no other Heart docs near me. I now have to pay out of pocket. Hopefully it wont be to much. (I'm on unemployment) I am trying not to have my heart set on getting this surgery, it just seems like its not meant to be. Anyone else go through hell and back to get this done?

I will be going on a full liquid diet for 14 days soon, my doc gave me the diet sheet for post op, which has the list of full liquids on there, and I also cant go over 1200 calories a day, but my question to you guys is, have any of you found any foods, that are low in calories and filling. I can have cream of wheat, so im thinking ill eat that alot, but it depends on the calories. and also, what about drinking lots and lots of water all day, does something like that help? or does it flush your stomach out and make you more hungerier? one more thing, the guy at GNC told me to buy the colon cleanse cuz its fiber and fills u up, and has no calories, i havent seen anyone mention that on here. thanks!

Hi, I am trying to get an idea of how much Protein powder and liquid stuff i should buy prior to surgery and for the after diet as well. Ill be on a liquid diet for one week prior and not sure how many after. Im unemployed and broke, so i need to buy a little every couple of weeks. dont want to be stuck with nothing at all to drink in the middle of it lol. any ideas? thanks a bunch!

I thought about rollerblades too, glad to hear its so great, i just am worried im a bit too heavy yet, not sure when i should start, dont want to kill myself lol, great idea with the stroller it would help me stay steady, now all i have to do if find someone with kids LOL

I had to do the 6 mo diet, but lost my insurance in the middle of it. cry cry, was so angry, i gained the weight i lost back, so now its been 13 months since i started this journey. all i have left is a couple of tests and hopefully it will be done by the end of the year. so just hang in there, the 6 months go by fast!

i started this journey back in 9/08 on nj medicaid Horizon NJ Health. well last month i get a letter sayin my medicaid is expiriing this month 1-09 so now here i am with no insurance? so i go to the welfare office to reapply and they deny me - tell me then it goes up to the state level- so i call the state program but she couldn;t tell me much until they recieve my application. the thing is when i look on the website (njfamilycare.org) the form says something about a family of 2 can make up to 28,000 a year (but with copays - no biggy). i make 26,270 a year. my ins. at work does not cover wls and is too expensive for me to take. is there anyone on here that works for medicaid or government in nj or knows someone. i can't seem to get a straight answer. my next plan is since work is real slow and they are cutting peoples time i was going to ask to be laid off, so that i can go back down and re apply for the state medicaid. its just my luck to be the ONLY ONE in this situation..... i soooo want a cigarette right now! thanks Susan:mad2:

i lost my insurance njfamilycare/medicaid so i told my boss to lay me off since work was slow, now im wondering if i did the right thing - im so confused with all the insurance - who pays and who don't? they have paid all this time? i made an appt with my surgeons office - im going to ask her why did they take my insurance before and now if i get the same thing again they wont take it? i bet they thought i had straight medicaid for the last 4 months, but i gave them my hmo card as well. right now, i have no insurance what so ever. i am soooo depressed. oy!

no the insurance expired this month 1/09. its funny how i got a letter like Dec 23rd telling me i had like 2 weeks left before it expired. but i guess thats the way the government is. and im on the 6 month diet thing till feb 09. so the ins wouldn't have paid anyway. i think my best bet right now is to ask my boss if they are planning on laying us off and if so, go ahead and lay me off. once i loose my job i will be qualified for medicaid again. the only problem (i think) is it will take like 30 to 60 days to kick in. so i will have to pay out of pocket to get weighed for jan and feb. good thing is allllll my testing was pretty much done thru oct-dec, i just got my sleep study done the last weeek of dec. so whats left is the psych eval (which) i would have to pay for anyway. and last blood tests. what a bummer, i had a feeling it wouldn't work out for me, thats why i never persued it. i quit smoking 3 months ago just for this surgery - i have been so upset with all this i ended up smoking twice yesterday! oh well, enough of my babeling! i'm just looking for someone that knows or works for medicaid that can give me some straight answers income limits and qualifying thanks

i just got a letter in the mail today that i am loosing my hmo thru medicaid in 2 weeks. i can get united health care thru work but its very expensive and i don't know if i can afford the 20% of the surgery. or if they will even let me continue without starting all over. do any of you remember how much out of pocket you spent on united healthcare as far as the 80/20 or the deductable or were they combined? i am in month 4 of the 6 month diet and hoped to have surgery by march 09, now i don't know what i am going to do. i am going to the welfare office tomorrow to see if i can apply for new jersey family care. but with my luck i make to much money. and don't have thousands of dollars..... :wink: has anyone went thru this? thanks so much for the help!

i was on medicaid (hmo) in nj and my pcp referred me to a surgern. plus i called the insurance to make sure they paid. your insurance can probably give a more detailed list of docs that accept your medicaid in your area. good luck!