Biglilmama75

Hi, everyone! Just a quick update. I did my upper GI this week. That sucked! That barium stuff was really nasty and I was real close to throwing it all up, but I hung in. I hope never to do that again, but I keep telling myself that it will all be worth it in the end. I got my report from my psych consult... apparantly I'm not crazy :drum:. This week is the last of all my evals... it's going to be busy. I have my stress echo on Wednesday afternoon, sleep study on Wednesday night and EGD on Thursday morning and then I'm all done with the consults and tests and scans and x-rays! Yay!!! So far, thank God, I'm healthy, except that I was just diagnosed with Diabetes last week and have been put on oral hypoglycemics for now. :thumbup:. Oh, well. At least I caught it now. My A1cs have been abnormal and we have been monitoring it. Unfortunately, despite my change in lifestyle, it was still elevated. It just gives me more motivation to take better care of myself :thumbup:. I finally got my medical letter from my pcp. Wow! That may have been the most difficult task of all! She was so apprehensive about writing the letter and she's never had a patient opting to do any kind of WLS, so I've pretty much had to coach her thru the entire process. I even had to advise her on the medical consult letter. It was frazzling! Thankfully, the girls at my bariatric center have been able to coach ME thru the entire process. I don't know if it was because she was unsure of the process and needed guidance, or if she felt as if she was committing some kind of fraud, or if she is just old school and felt I could do it the old fashioned way. In any event, that's out of the way! My biggest fear now is getting the insurance approval! My BMI had never gotten to 40, even at my highest. I'm down to 36 or 37 now and I am afraid of losing any more and not getting approved. My center has assured me that they have not been denied yet, but there is always a first time! I'm trying to be positive, but I've always been a pessimist so it's stressing me. My next visit with the nutritionist is March 5, where I will be receiving further instructions and begin my pre-op diet. I'm so nervous. I hope I can get thru this diet. I'm gonna have to. I can tell everyone that I am doing a cleansing diet for the Lenten season. What great timing! It's so hard to keep this secret. The lies are just piling on top of each other and I'm losing track of everything I'm telling people. I think one of my friends is on to me because her hairdresser is actually one of the medical assistants at my dr's office. My friend keeps quizzing me when I go out of town or do something out of the ordinary. Maybe its my paranoia!

Hi, everyone! Just a quick update. I did my upper GI this week. That sucked! That barium stuff was really nasty and I was real close to throwing it all up, but I hung in. I hope never to do that again, but I keep telling myself that it will all be worth it in the end. I got my report from my psych consult... apparantly I'm not crazy :thumbup:. This week is the last of all my evals... it's going to be busy. I have my stress echo on Wednesday afternoon, sleep study on Wednesday night and EGD on Thursday morning and then I'm all done with the consults and tests and scans and x-rays! Yay!!! So far, thank God, I'm healthy, except that I was just diagnosed with Diabetes last week and have been put on oral hypoglycemics for now. . Oh, well. At least I caught it now. My A1cs have been abnormal and we have been monitoring it. Unfortunately, despite my change in lifestyle, it was still elevated. It just gives me more motivation to take better care of myself . I finally got my medical letter from my pcp. Wow! That may have been the most difficult task of all! She was so apprehensive about writing the letter and she's never had a patient opting to do any kind of WLS, so I've pretty much had to coach her thru the entire process. I even had to advise her on the medical consult letter. It was frazzling! Thankfully, the girls at my bariatric center have been able to coach ME thru the entire process. I don't know if it was because she was unsure of the process and needed guidance, or if she felt as if she was committing some kind of fraud, or if she is just old school and felt I could do it the old fashioned way. In any event, that's out of the way! My biggest fear now is getting the insurance approval! My BMI had never gotten to 40, even at my highest. I'm down to 36 or 37 now and I am afraid of losing any more and not getting approved. My center has assured me that they have not been denied yet, but there is always a first time! I'm trying to be positive, but I've always been a pessimist so it's stressing me. My next visit with the nutritionist is March 5, where I will be receiving further instructions and begin my pre-op diet. I'm so nervous. I hope I can get thru this diet. I'm gonna have to. I can tell everyone that I am doing a cleansing diet for the Lenten season. What great timing! It's so hard to keep this secret. The lies are just piling on top of each other and I'm losing track of everything I'm telling people. I think one of my friends is on to me because her hairdresser is actually one of the medical assistants at my dr's office. My friend keeps quizzing me when I go out of town or do something out of the ordinary. Maybe its my paranoia!

I'm sorry, I can't really answer your question. You must be frustrated and I hope you feel better. I am sort of new here and I'm still trying to learn all the lingo. I'm hoping to be banded in March. Can you please tell me what "pb" means? Thanks and best wishes to you!

Congratulations! How exciting for you!!! That is the biggest hurdle I have to overcome. I'm so nervous. Best wishes :thumbup:

Hi, Ilene! I'm seeing Dr. Gabriel now! I'm so glad to hear that you had a nice experience! They don't do fills at St. Cath's? I'd love to hear more about your experience. I'm having a great time now. The girls are wonderful and I enjoy Sheryl. Dr. M is a hoot. LOL Best wishes to you!

Hi, Vikki- I don't know how far out of the city you would like to travel. I found a wonderful surgeon in LI. His name is Dr. Nick Gabriel of St. Catherine of Sienna Medical Center. The group is wonderful and they are great about answering questions and guiding me through the entire process. There is a nutritionist in the office as well. I found Dr. Gabriel thru the actual Lap Band website. I don't know what insurances they accept, but according to them, they haven't been denied yet. He has also done many procedures. Hope this help! Good luck on your journey.

Woohoo for March! My date is set and 23rd. Looks like Hotmama is closest to my date. I was close to being an April bandster. Good luck to all of you!!! :thumbup:

Ooooh, that's a tough call! I did a lot of research on docs, as I prefer someone with experience. I'm pretty sure that you have to have done many procedures in order to be "certified" by the makers of the product (I think I saw that on the actual Lap Band website). I was comfortable knowing that my doc has always been a bariatric surgeon and has done thousands of LB surgeries (Dr. Nick Gabriel of St. Cath's of Sienna in NY). In my opinion, I would go with someone who had plenty of experience and equally as high a success rate. It doesn't matter if the doc has done hundreds or millions of LB procedures... If his success rate is low - C-ya! There are lots of surgeons out there who do procedures just to make good money. You know what I mean? Good luck to you!

Hello, SunnyRachel! I just posted before regarding chewing. It's so important, I see. I'm really trying! As far as the breads go... I decided to give them up now, the conventional loaf breads anyway. I've been doing wraps. I would like to give that up eventually as well and just roll my sandwiches in lettuce leaves. My downfall is RICE. I'm Asian and grew up on it. I can eat it with ANY meal, any time of the day or night. It was a staple in our house rather than a side dish. I've almost given up the white rice :cursing:. I'll still have it every once in a while. I eat brown rice and though it just okay, it really doesn't replace the white stuff. I really appreciate your honesty. I want to know the plain truth about everything! It looks as if you are doing well. Not one of my friends know what I'm doing. As a matter of fact, the only one I'm talking to about this is a coworker whom I've only known for about 6 months. She has weight issues as well. She is not overweight by any means, but she can have the potential. She works out constantly and always watches what she eats. Her hubby went thru gastric bypass surgery 2 years ago so she is able to give me a fresh point of view... being the spouse of someone who has had bariatric surgery. She's been a wonderful supporter and I vent to her when I am stressing. I will be sure to look for you now when I need to discuss or vent! Good luck to you as well and keep up the great work!

I have been reading and reading and looking thru different topics in a lot of different categories and all I can say is WOW! I'm overwhelmed at concerns that everyone has as people who have been banded, thinking about it, pre band, post band, and just everyone who have to adjust to different lifestyles. I'm hearing different terms that I've never heard before and I really just need to post some questions, hoping that some the answers will come in my directions as opposed to me having to search and search and search! So here it goes: What's a sweet spot? I have an idea, but clarification is needed. How do I know if I need a fill or if I'm too filled? Is it painful if you eat too much? I hear lots about heart burn. Is your diet restricted completely to avoid certain foods once your back into the normal eating phase? Is there anyone out there who found the liquid portion after your LB surgery completely torturous? Has anyone had a leak and if so, how do they treat it? How long is recovery time? I was planning to take 3 days off and go back in the middle of the week... is that too soon? I like bulk Fiber... is that a no no forever after being banded? What happens if you have a stomach virus and vomit? I know that vomiting, among other things, can loosen the band or displace it... is that indication for surgery? I haven't told anyone but my husband and 1 friend that I'm having surgery because my family and many of my friends won't understand why I am doing this. For the last several months I've had to lie or come up with good stories as to why I'm always driving into NY during the week (I live in PA and have been doing all my appts and tests, etc in NY because if insurance issues). Is anyone else in the same situation where they have kept it a secret? I'm not even sure if I will tell anyone afterwards. So these are some of my concerns and as I read on I know I will post many more! Thank you all for your support and good luck to everyone out there in your journey :cursing:

TQUAD- I also have to add that you make an excellent point about not being distracted when you eat. Something I have to totally remind myself of everytime I eat! I do a lot of traveling and there is plenty of eating in the car. I do pack my own snacks and make my own lunches (something I've had to work REALLY hard at and make time to do), but when the music is on and I'm driving and I'm going from job to job, I can literally eat and entire sandwich or salad in 5 bites. I eat so fast that I don't remember what I ate or what it tasted like and I end up STILL hungry. I have to be mindful to chew chew chew... that is a work in progress! I'm like a dog that way... I will just gulp and swallow and the next thing you know, I'm bloated and unhappy and full. I have to count how many times I chew just so that I know that I'm doing it! I hope that stops soon...:cursing: Great tip and thanks again!

Hello Tquad- Awesome info... tyvm! It sounds as if your doing well. I hope the leak doesn't present a problem. I read on another thread that someone was experiencing a leak and the dr now fills with something that is thicker than water but is just as harmless. It makes me feel good that I am the only one who feels that it is no one else's business how I chose to lose weight or why I would decide on going with being banded. My immediate family doesn't have the weight issues that I do and they haven't struggled their entire lives like I have. My husband is naturally thin. He is 6'2" and can't get past 180-190 at his heaviest even if herthe were to consume an entire cow. At first he couldn't understand why I would put myself through such a process. He said at one point that if I put as much effort into losing weight as I have been into going to dr appts 300 miles away and putting myself thru diagnostic after diagnostic, then I would be well on my way to being smaller. Don't get me wrong, he's a wonderful man, but I suppose as a "skinny", he just doesn't see where I'm coming from. He's very supportive now. He knows how much this means to me. He takes days off when he can when I have my appts so he can he take care of the children. He asks a lot of questions and has even asked if he can come to the appointment where my surgeon will be explaining the actual procedure to me. In any event, I thank you for your support and I am happy for your progress! Best wishes to you :cursing:!

Hi, Wendy Mary! Thank you so much for your reply. Your answers helped me out very much. I appreciate you taking the time to post. 3 weeks out, how exciting for you :-) . I feel a little lost in this new venture and it's nice to hear from someone who is actually going thru it all. My condolences to you and your family for your loss. That must have been some emotional roller coaster for you. It is difficult to deal with death let alone recover from surgery and deal with a new lifestyle. My best to you. Please keep me posted with your progress. I am excited to know how your first fill goes! Heck, I'm excited for everyone who is going thru this whole entire process! Good luck!!! :cursing:

Hello to everyone! I have been surfing thru this website for several months now. This is my first post. I have had a weight issue, like many of you, most of my life. I've tried just about everything but drugs. I've been successful sometimes, but mostly not. I have been interested in the Lap Band for a couple of years now, but I never thought I would be a candidate because I'm not >40% bmi. I am very short and my heaviest was over 200 lbs. I have put on lots of pounds, especially having had 5 children over the last 10 years. I've managed to hang on to 10-15 after each child. Nearly 3 years after having my last (really the last) child, I am heavier now than I was at my heaviest during pregnancy. It hurts me to know that I've let myself go. With my last 2 pregnancies, I had high blood pressure and was at risk for gestational diabetes. I may have addressed my medical issues once or twice, but the demanding schedule that our family has makes it easy for me to put my health and well being last. The children and my husband always came first. Last October, I had a scare and went to the emergency room only to find out that my blood pressure was 200/130. That's when I resolved to take better care of myself. After all, what good is an active life if you can't be there for your children because you stroked out or had a massive heart attack? I went to my first informational seminar in October and met Dr. Nick Gabriel in St. Catherine of Sienna Medical Center and the entire staff of their weight manament program. The people who work there are the most wonderful, helpful, kind and understanding group of people I've ever had the pleasure of meeting. They have been able to guide me thru this entire process. I actually reside in Pennsylvania and have lived here for 4 years. I did my research, and I felt Dr. Nick best suited my needs. Every month I make my 300 mile trip into NY to meet with the surgeon and my nutritionist, Sheryl (who is a God send, btw). When I get frazzled or lost, I can call anyone in the office and they are quick to reassure me and assist me in any way they can. They are confident that though my BMI is only 37-38%, I will qualify for this surgery because I have existing co-morbidities that include sleep apnea, hypertension, and at risk for diabetes. I would ideally like to lose 75 lbs, 85 being my ultimate goal. We've picked a date - March 23rd and I am so excited! I've just about completed all requirements and consults and tests and diagnostics. My anxiety isn't about going thru with the surgery, it's more my recovery time and the demanding post-op diets and follow-ups that are required. I'm loving all the posts here. It makes me feel that I am not alone in my journey. It's a big decision to go forward with such a lifestyle change and I feel I am responsible enough to handle these changes. I'm just here looking for the support. Best of luck to all of you and I look forward to getting feedback! starting weight 202/ current weight 192/ goal weight less than 120. :confused: