sweetheart181

I'm going to need an arm lift and an inner thigh thift for sure. the rest I could go without doing. but the loose skin drives me NUTS!!!! My friends want to go swimming and I'm so nervous to go because my legs look horrible! the loose skin looks like celulite x100. hahahaha but I did already buy a swimsuit and plan on showing off my new body with or without the extra skin!

everyone looks so great!!!! and sarah.r you will be there sooner than you think! I know it!

It took a while for me to get approved because my insurance wanted me to do a 6 month diet before they approved me. and when I first decided I wanted to do this I was going to school in california but still wanted to do the surgery back home in washington. but once I got approved it only took 2 months until I had surgery. I got approved in october sometime and had surgery december 12th. my doctors set my date as soon as I got approved and let me do the testing until 10 days before surgery.

how did the general meeting go? I did have to do a psych eval but it was a piece of cake!

mine says an hour to an hour and a half. normally I can't drink until about an hour after otherwise I get sick

I had a really big butt before surgery now my butt is a lot smaller but still a bigger butt. I love it!

talk to your doctor about the NSAIDs. I also get really bad cramps and my doctor lets me take celebrex because it isn't so hard on your stomach. but for today probably the best thing you can do is use a heating pad and take tylenol.

Hopefully you won't have to wait until winter break. It's hard to wait for something so exciting.

My insurance paid 80%. let me know how your informational thing goes.

wow 80lbs on your own is amazing!!! I would never have been able to do that before the band. and that's good that your insurance is going to pay.

HAHAHA sorry to laugh but this sounds exactly like my family. When I told my dad about my surgery(I didn't tell him until about 4 months after) he told me "you know if you hadn't gotten fat in the first place you wouldn't have needed surgery." It just makes me laugh.

Congrats!!!!!!!

I drive 2.5 hours to get to my doctor and it's really not that bad since I did all my pre-op stuff at home. I've only had to go to his office for the seminar, 1st appointment, pre-op appointment, the surgery, and then about once a month or every other month for fills. I've only had 3 fills and I will only need about 1 or 2 more. my doctor was about 7,000 but that included only one fill after surgery. I would say just go with a doctor that you trust.

I have aetna and they denied me at first too. My doctor talked to them and then they said that if I did a 6 month diet I could apeal their decision. I did the diet and they approved me. don't give up with aetna, call again and see what they can do.

hahaha I'm actually REALLY bad at exercising. unless you count work as exercise(I do!). I work in a store where I have to run around heavy clothes all day. so are you going to be self-pay or do you think your insurance will help?

hey I'm also in college. I got my band during winter break and so far so good. Social life is good after the band, although a lot of people wonder why I don't eat very much. normally i just laugh at them when they tease me about being annorexic and tell them that I love food too much to be annorexic. if you have any questions about the band I would love to help out and answer them!

ok so I had my surgery on december 12, 2008. Since starting the pre-op liquid diet I've lost 80lbs. I've lost a little over 100lbs since starting the 6month diet my insurance company put me on last may. after surgery I was on liquids for 1 month then onto pureed foods for another month. Finally I could start on solid foods 2 months after surgery. I eat a little bit of everything. I normally eat a lot of Protein just because that's what I prefer and it seems to be the easiest to eat. Vegetables tend to get stuck really easy. My doctor told me to stay away from milk because it doesn't give you that full feeling. Instead I like to eat cheese and wheat thins if I'm feeling snacky. As for exercise I've been really bad. I really don't exercixe outside of work. I work at a dept store and my job is to run carts. this means a lot of running around with heavy clothes. It's exhausting!

I was sleeping in our recliner for the first week after surgery because I was so sore but eventually the pain went away and I can now sleep however I want and it's fine.

don't worry! It's definately scary going in but getting this surgery is the best thing I've ever done for my health. I feel better every day. Don't forget these things on surgery day. -gas-x -a pillow to hold over your stomach after surgery. It will feel soooooo good! -wear slippers to the hospital. - if you're a girl wear a sports bra. -wear comfortable pants with a stretchy waistband. -buy liquid tylenol. - find a protien shake that you love I can't think of anything else right now but if you have any questions about lif with the band I would love to help!

when I plateau it normally means that it's time for a fill. But I do also re-evaluate what I've been eating.

how did your fill go? are you feeling better restriction. when I was at 3cc's I didn't have any restriction either so don't stress. I don't really remember when I started to feel restriction but now I'm at 7.5cc's and I definately feel it!

My motivation is to be able to do things that everyone else my age can do. -buy regular sized clothes. -be able to ride roller coasters without having to worry if I'll fit. -be able to run a mile. there are so many things that motivate me I just can't think of them all right now. My goal weight is to be 170. I'm 5'10 and I don't want to be super skinny, I want to still have my curves. My doctors thinks that I will get down to 150. I would love to reach goal in the next year and definately think I can do that!

Don't worry fills are so easy!

pattijo. I know it's hard to get a hold of Dr. Fox but he really is an amazing surgeon! He is so supportive. and his office will bend over backwards to get your insurance to pay. Here is a website that has other reviews of Dr. Fox. Bariatric Surgeon Profile - Earl R. Fox and his number is 509-943-0710.

hahaha thanks guys! that's 99lbs from starting the 6 month diet I had to do before surgery. I started that may 2008. My surgery weight after the liquid diet was 285. and cordovachick I'm sure you will start loosing again soon. when do you get your next fill?