Donna0526

Has anyone tried to buy life insurance after having lap band surgery? I have tried twice to buy additional life insurance but was turned down by both companies. I have asked why the decisions were made but have not yet received a response. Has anyone else experienced this?

One of the insurance companies was New York Life, and I can not remember the name of the other ( will check when I get home tonight !!!). When I find out something about the refusal I will be sure to post it. I really believe having this surgery so soon before applying for this insurance had something to do with it. If so, maybe after losing a good amount of weight, the surgery will not have any affect on a decision to cover me. In 2007, I had to purchase health insurance on my own because of being laid off from my job. At that time I chose a plan with BCBS of NC that was advertised for $257.00/mo for single coverage; but due to my weight at that time (282 lbs), the premium was increased to just over $1,000.00/mo !!!! Unbelievable!!!!! Again, I will post again when I have more info. Happy weight loss everybody.

I had my surgery 9/12/08 with Dr. Chapman at the Brody School of Medicine in Greenville. So far I have lost 45 lbs.

I had my surgery on 9/12/08 and my first fill on 10/21/08. So far, that fill has been the easiest thing since the surgery!! Before the PA did my fill she said "most people think the first fill is the worst"; so naturally I braced myself for pain. She wiped the area with alcohol, nothing to numb it. The only thing I felt was some pressure and a tiny "sting". Honestly, for me, a blood test is more painful. Nothing to it !!!!!! You'll be okay.

I was banded on 9/12/08 and have lost 37 pounds. I got my first fill on 10/21/08 and have lost 7 pounds since then.

Hershey, I hope all went well with the gum. It happened to me, and I had no problem. I use Altoids or either Listerine Breath Strips. They both work really well. Good luck to you!!!!

I got my first fill yesterday afternoon. About 6:30 last night I had a bowl of soup at Applebee's, and did not eat anything else until 12 noon today. I met my mother at Zaxby's for dinner at around 5 PM and was not able to eat anything!! I tried one french fry ( not good, I know) and felt like I had stuffed myself. I now know I should not anything unless I am really hungry. Is it normal to eat so little and feel stuffed?

Other than my immediate family, I only told two cousins. The reason I told no one else is that I didn't want to hear a lot of negativity.It seems that anytime weight loss surgery is mentioned, it's always "don't do that it's dangerous" or " oh let me tell you what I heard happened to woman that had that surgery". In the past I've had co-workers (slim co-workers) that would always attempt to sabotage any diet or weight loss effort by the heavier co-workers. I think they're afraid we will lose weight!!!!!

I got 2cc's on Tuesday. I do not believe any fluid was injected during surgery.

I am 3 weeks post surgery and am now eating soft foods. I noticed on the hand out the dr gave me, it had listed the quantity of protein I should be getting daily, but there was no mention of calories. Approximately how many calories are you consuming daily!!

I've had the same problem since surgery. My surgery was on 9/12 and I had my first bowel movement about a week later, and the second last week. This is very unusual for me; I have always been very regular -- everyday at approximately the same time!! I have used Miralax and have also starting eating Activia yogurt. Hopefully, the yogurt will work as advertised.

I was banded on 9/12 and I had a lot of bruising for about 2 weeks. I was expecting the bruising, as I bruise very easily. As for pain, I really did not experience any pain, although I was extremely sore for a few days. I am a "side" sleeper, so the first few nights I was not able to sleep on my side. After about 4 or 5 days, I was able to lay on my side with a pillow up against my stomach. Just take it easy getting up - make sure you have something to hold onto when you get out of bed. Good luck to you!!!:thumbup:

Hang in there! I know how you feel. During the first week after surgery, I had feelings that I had made a big mistake. Looking back, I know it was because I was experiencing a lot of hunger, and I was just upset that I had two more weeks of liquids. I feel much better now, I'm in week 3, and I have just started on some soft food. I know now that the band was the best thing I could do for myself. So, just hang tough, and you will get thru this and things will be much better for you.

I'm so excited, I had my first dr visit since surgery on 9/12 and I've lost 17 lbs!! I got the go ahead to start on level 2 foods. I can have eggs, low fat cheese, yogurt and peanut butter and couscous. He said I could also start using the elliptical. I've been walking a lot; but I believe you get a better workout on the elliptical. The future is looking brighter already!!!!:crying:

I have cheated a few times. I had my surgery on 9/12 and go back for my appt on 9/25. I have been extremely hungry since about the 4th day out of surgery. The few times I have eaten, I had sugar f ree pudding or mashed potatoes; but I added fat free skim milk to make them very loose. It helped me a lot. I've only done this a few times and ate very little when I did; maybe 3 times since surgery, and no more than 2 oz. I'm just counting the days until the 25th. As of 9/12 I have lot 11.5 pounds.

I'm 5 days out and I stay hungry most of the day. My doctor has his patients drink 2 oz. Optisource 4 times a day, plus water, tea, coffee, anything unsweetened. I've found that after drinking tea or cofee, my stomach is growling within 10 mins! I bought some sugar free popsicles today and am letting them melt slowly in my mouth. My doctor usually does the first fill 6 weeks out, so I should be getting my first the end of October. How long does this hunger last? One of the reasons I chose lapband, was because of the commercials saying that it took care of constant hunger!! Help, please!!!!

I've noticed that quite a few of you are already in the soft food stage. What kinds of things are you eating?

Well, yesterday was the big day. I arrived at the hospital about 7Am and at 745 was called back to the preop area where I was prepared for surgery. I guess I stayed in there about 45 mins and was then taken to the anesthesia waiting area. I spoke with several nurses and anesthisiologists. About 30 mins. later I was in the operating room. The next thing I knew, I was in recovery. I have always had a nausea problem after surgery, even though the doctors give me anti-nausea meds in the iv line during surgery. In fact, the doctor told me before surgery, that she planned to give me three doses during the surgery, one at the beginning, one midway, and one at the end. She thought this would help me a lot. Well guess, what? Everytime I sat up on the side of the bed for about 2 minutes I started getting that queasy feeling. I must say the staff really worked with me, trying to make me feel better. I was gived more anti-nausea, but it didn't help much. I never was nauseated enough to vomit, thankfully. It turns out they had me stay all night, they changed my iv solution to one that had some sugar in it to help rid me of the nausea. I was up at 4 o'clock this morning sitting in a chair without nausea!!! At about 6 o'clock I was walking the hall with a nurse assitant. I was finally discharged about 830 this morning. I am still swollen; but the doctors and nurses said that this is type of gas that cannot be expelled the traditional way, that it is absorbed into the body. I don't have pain, but I am very sore - - I told the nurse I felt like I have been run over by a freight train. I had some Optisource for breakfast at the hospital and its now 721PM and I am about the drink some more. I have not had any desire to eat since I got out of surgery. I have been sipping water and unsweetend tea all day. I had perscriptions for Lortab elixar for pain, and phenagran suppositories for nausea. Good luck to others about to undergo this procedure.:thumbup::wink_smile:

:rolleyes2: I am scheduled to be banded tomorrow. So far, I've lost about 11 lbs. on the pre-diet. I hope that's enough weight to "de-fat" my liver some. I am getting a little nervous. The hospital called and wants me to be there at 7:00 tomorrow morning. Wish me luck. I'll try to post later in the weekend.

Tomorrow's the big day - - - I get my band!!! I am just now getting a little bit nervous. I hope my liver has shrunk enough. By my scales at home, I have lost about 11 lbs. on the prediet. Wish me luck. I'll post again after surgery.

:redface: I was just wondering how much weight some of you have lost on the all liquid pre-diet!?!? I started Optifast on 8/30 and had lost only 3 lbs. on my dr. visit on 9/02. My doctor said that some people lose weight quickly when their calorie intake is drastically reduced, while other people lose very little. As of today, I have lost a total of 9.5 lbs. My surgery is scheduled for this Friday, Sep12, so I have three more days of liquids. I hope i can lose another 3 or 4 lbs.

I am scheduled for my band on Sept 12. My doctor wants me to drink Optisource for the first and possibly second week after surgery. Has anyone used Optisource as their post diet shake? If so, does it taste better than the Optifast? Another question, how long after surgery were you able to return to work, school, etc? Thanks Donna:sneaky:

Hello my name is Donna and this is my first post. I have been approved for surgery and it is schduled for Sept. 12. This past Friday I started the two week optifast diet. I know that if I can make it through these two weeks, I will be successful at weight loss. I have never done anything the difficult to try to lose weight. The optifast is controlling my hunger, but I so badly want to eat something solid. :thumbdown:

I'm having my surgery on Sept 12 by Dr. Chapman in Greenville, NC