LindaV

Congrats, Dawg!

Barbara, Most doctors do follow ups/fills for cash patients for the first year after the surgery at no charge. If you get an in-network provision for Dr. Speigel, he will be paid the full amount that he bills for, not the contracted amount so, see if he will charge you for fills/follow-ups. Again, good luck with this whole process!

Good for you!

Hi Barbara, Check with UHC to see if ther is another in-network doctor in your area. If there is not a network doctor in your area, UHC will often give you an "in-network provision" which means, you can use an out of network doctor but they treat it like it's in-network. Once you have the provision, even if the doctor bills for more than the contracted rate, UHC will cover it. I had to go through this process here in Boise and my doctor has seen many UHC patients who have successfully gotten the "in-network" provision from UHC. Good luck to you!

Hi danie, I can relate to how you feel. Your doctor will be able to answer a lot of those questions for you because he has probably seen it all. I felt so much better after my initial consultation. If your doctor isn't up on your insurance requirements, ask to talk to the person in his office who handles the insurance stuff. They are the ones dealing with the insurance companies and preauthorizations and they are usually willing to help you jump through the hoops you need to jump through with your insurance company. Where are you from and what insurance do you have? If you post that info., you might find someone who has already been through the process that can offer helpful advice. Good luck!

I'm with you mychevygirl--by this time next week I'll have my band too! It's hard to believe it's finally here. Pnut--I really enjoyed the walk yesterday--WHAT A SHOCK - I ENJOYED EXERCISING!! It was probably more the company than the exercise. Either way, I'm looking forward to tomorrow. Here are my stats: H 313/ S May 1st:high5:/ J 299/ C 296 (-3 lbs this week) Have a great day everyone!!!!

Hi Amanda, We have a3 1/2 year old Beagle named Sparky. He was getting to be a little portly last year so we adopted a one year old blue heeler. She has a ton of energy and boy has she worked the fat off of our Sparky! He has lost about 8 lbs in the 8 months we've had her. Of course, she is also smart and has taught the Beagle how to open our pantry and raid the bread. We've lost several loaves to the pair of them; although, I'm sure the Beagle has had the lion's share.:hungry: If only I could control my weight and bad eating habits by blocking off the pantry and playing all day! Alas, I have to resort to surgery!!:nervous Don't get me wrong--I am thrilled to have the option!

Hi Amanda, I am scheduled to have my band surgery on May 1st. My doctor wanted me to review all of the information on the following website before my surgery date: https://www.my-emmi.com/startemmi?access_code=17757688480 The information on this site gives a pretty thouough overview of the lap band. You need to plug in my bday, 9/15/64 to access it, but, I found it very helpful. Besides researching the actual procedure to see if it is right for you, you should also find out if your medical insurance covers the procedure and start researching doctors in your area. It is great if you can hook up with a local support group in your area. Good luck with your journey and keep us posted. By the way, I love Beagles!!!!!!!!!!

Ok, count me in for May!

4MF- You can handle it! I can too! We just need to keep the long term goal in mind and remember that the discomfort we feel after the surgery will ultimately help get us to that goal. Linda

Hi Seminole, I want to lose about 150 pounds. I am not even sure what my goal weight should be. I got down to 160 once in high school and looked pretty good. I started this at 313 before the prediet and hope to be at 290 in six days for my surgery. WOW :confused:, a 150 ound weight loss finally seems attainable!!!!!!! I couldn't even stand to think in those kind of numbers before.

Hi, I'm Linda and I will be banded by Dr. Anderson in Boise, Idaho on Monday morning May1st. I can't wait to start this journey with my new partner--my band! Good luck to all of you! Linda

Hi Free to Be, Be encouraged! UHC is one of the best insurances to have when considering the lap band procedure. They will usually give approval based on bmi and a doctor's recommendation. In my case, they have even granted me an "in network" provision for my doctor (there isn't a network surgeon in my area that does the procedure). Anyway, this means that they will have to pay the surgeon the $8000 he bills, not UHC's contracted rate of $3860. That is pretty impressive for an insurance company since most of them are worried about the bottom line. I hope this helps alleviate your stress some. My doctor was glad when I told him I was UHC. Good luck, Linda

Hi 4MYFuture, I can certainly relate to our situation. I will be banded on May 1--7 days from now. Although I am pretty excited, I share the same fears and anxieties you have. Will I be hungry the first few weeks? If so, how will I handle it? My husband says I have been a bit grumpy and a bit preoccupied since starting the prediet a month ago. If he thinks I'm grumpy now, what will I be like postsurgery? Well, I guess we will both find out the answers to our questions soon enough! Where will you be getting your band done. I'm in Idaho and am one of the fortunate ones who's insurance covers the procedure. Good luck!!!!!! Linda

Hi All, Well, I had my presurgery appointment this morning and my surgery is definately a go for next Monday, May 1. Thank you to all of you for the great posts. I am so excited and encourage by all of you journeys. I am hoping to be -20 lbs by next Monday. I have 3 more to go, but three lunch dates with friends who want to feed me before surgery.:omg: I am planning to stick to salads!!! Talk to you all soon. Linda

Well, having to sit in the lodge this past winter while my 10 year old was out on the slopes motivated me to start the process. I have my surgery on May 1st. I am hoping to be able to get in some skiing by the end of next season.

Hi HH, Wow, I wish I didn't have a presurgury diet. Lucy you! To answer your question, Dr. Anderson and Cahn do assist each other. With regard to diet, I am thankful to have Dr. Anderson--Dr. Cahn makes you go on a diet of 3 slimfast a day and vegetables. That diet would have done me in. I do see though that Dr. Cahn's patients usually lose more weight presurgury than Dr. Anderson's. As for the reason's behind the presurgey diet, yes, I think your understanding about the eliminating the exces fat in the liver is correct. When I went to the Lap Band Information seminar, they had a slide of a fatty liver and then showed one during the surgery and what a difference. I think the Doc's said that the liver is more easily damaged when they have to move it to place the band if it is very fatty. Anyway, good luck with your surgery. Maybe we can compare notes afterward. Linda

Hi Hippo's Hope (I love that), I am scheduled to be banded on May1st too. I will be banded by Dr. Anderson in Boise, Idaho. I actually can't believe how close it is getting. I really can't wait. I am 41, about 5'5 and started this journey at about 313 lbs. My personal presurgery goal was to get under 300 and I actually did that on Monday. My new goal is 295 by the 1st. How are you doing on your presurgery diet. It hasn't been too difficult for me since I switched to Weight Watcher Point system. The dietician put me on a high protein/low carb diet and I just wasn't loosing. Weight Watcher's has always worked for me in the past and it hasn't failed me this time. Thank goodness! Well, good luck to you!!!!!!!!!! Linda

Hi, I'm Linda I am 41 years old, I am married with a 10 year old son and I live in Idaho. I will be banded by Dr. Anderson on Monday, May 1st. I am very committed to this weight loss journey so I thought I would join at the very beginning. So here are my statistics... H - 315 J - 299 C - 299 G - 170 I met my personal presurgery goal of getting under 300 on Monday :clap2: (2 wks prior to surgery) so my new goal is 295.

Hi, My name is Linda, I am 41 years old and live in Idaho. I will be banded on May 1st by Dr. Bryan Anderson. I can't wait. I started this journey at 315 lbs and my goal was to get bleow 300 lbs by my surgery date. I actualy made my goal on Monday. Anyway, I am now trying for 295 lbs. Anyway, this site is great. I homeschool my 10 year old son and reading posts here definately kept me occupied this morning while he was doing his work. I hope I am posting this in the right spot. I only belong to one other on line group and it is much, much smaller!