patlong

Hey ... Good to see that there are some Orange County Bandsters (I'm in Anaheim) on here. I will be having my Lap-Band on August 28th by Dr. LaPorte . I am impressed by his office staff; and thankfully I have heard good things about him as well. Does anyone have questions they thought of AFTER they had their Lap-Band that they wished they had asked their doctors before? I have been doing lots of reading on this procedure; was actually wanting and RNY, but my insurance approved this because of some recent medical incidents ... they thought this would be less invasive. Looking for ward to my surgery date ... but there is also the nervous anticipation...you know the one "WILL THIS WORK!!???!!"

Hey ... Good to see that there are some Orange County Bandsters (I'm in Anaheim) on here. I will be having my Lap-Band on August 28th by Dr. LaPorte. I am impressed by his office staff; and thankfully I have heard good things about him as well. Does anyone have questions they thought of AFTER they had their Lap-Band that they wished they had asked thier doctors before? I have been doing lots of reading on this procedure; was actually wanting and RNY, but my insurance approved this because of some recent medical incidents ... they thought this would be less invasive. Looking for ward to my surgery date ... but there is also the nervous anticipation...you know the one "WILL THIS WORK!!???!!"

YeeeeHaaaaa!!! :clap2: I have been approved by my Insurance (Pacific Care & Memorial Care IPA) for a Lap-Band Procedure! I want to thank this site for helping me. I had originally been turned down for the Gastric-Bypass; what with my recent cancer history, they felt that the Bypass would be too invasive a procedure for me. I was disappointed. My weight actually delayed my Cancer treatment because we had to locate a RT table that would hold my for Radiation Therapy. :phanvan My Surgeon, and his office (Dr LaPorte and the Orange County Obesity out of Fountain Valley Hospital in Fountain Valley,CA), would not let me be disappointed for long; they recommended that I work for the authorization for the Lap-Band. I did, but I had educated myself on the Gastric-Bypass - not the Lap-Band. I found this site as I was researching the procedure ... and I am ever so glad that I did. :clap2: Many of the posts here helped me understand the procedure, the things I can look forward too, and what I should look out for as well (although, I am still looking for a definition of a fill - I haven't found that yet, but see it referred to alot) Again, thanks for this site - it's a Great Resource!!!

OK ... This may sound strange ... but I keep seeing references to a "fill" ... I am still new to the idea of Lap-Banding as I was originally going for the Gastric Bypass, but my insurance company, in all it's wisdom (???) decided that a gasrtic bypass was not in my best interest at this time (especially since I have been in remission from cancer for a year, and can't be guarnateed a 5 year remission <duh!!>) ok ... back to the pointof this msg ... WHAT THE HECK IS A FILL ... please educate the wandering newbi that is me ... and thank you :eek:

Hello all. I am new to all this so please bear with me. I am a 51 (well, almost 52 year old woman) living in Southern CA. My insurance company recently denied me the Gastric ByPass because of a recent history of Cancer (1 year in remission from Cervical Cancer ... woohoo); they felt since I could not be guaranteed a 5-year remission (duh?) I was not a good candidate. My doctors though (Dr. Laporte and Associates in Fountain Valley, CA), feel that a Lap-Band might be the best surgery for me ... since it is reversible (if I have a re-occurance of the cancer, they can remove the band so I will be able to eat the Protein needed to keep myself healthy for chemo-therapy). What I need to know is how successful is it for people like me who are morbidly obese with a BMI that is off the charts? The last 20 months taught me that I want to take control of my health (well, actually, I was looking into this far earlier than my cancer diagnosis of July 2004); in fact my weight actually hindered the treatment of my cancer, because it was difficult to stage without a CT scan, as well as find a Radiation Table that would hold the ol' body. Anyway ... lol ... before I write an entire book here; if anyone can give me advice about how the Lap-Band has helped them; especially if they have a real high BMI, please let me know.

Hi Thinkin'boutit ... I have been researching Bariactric procedures for the past ... well it seems like forever; I kept looking at various surgeons and various procedures; then I had a health crisis and had to put every on a back burner for about a year. The Psychological Evaluation made me nervous as well (I mean, were they really going to see how nuts I REALLY am ); but in actuality, I found it kinda easy. The person I saw was year post Gastric Bypass, so he knew what I was feeling. And lynng35 is right when they are really checking to see that you have realistic expectations. It also helps to understand that this is NOT a miracle, and it is hard work. As well as a MAJOR committment on your part (you can see that from all the post from all the people who have had the procedure.) Like you I am awaiting authorization from my dang insurance company (they already denied me the Gastric-Bypass, because a doctor couldn't guarantee I would be 5 years in remission from my cancer ... and I REALLY don't want to wait five years to take control of my health! :rolleyes ) The Surgeons Office I am working with (Orange County Obesity (Dr. LaPorte & Associates) ) are going to help me resubmit my information for a Lap-Band - they think that's the best option for me (and my insurance company seems to approve those more than the Gastric-Bypass.). Anyway, Good Luck, and keep reading the posts ... they are helping me loads, and I only joined yesterday (04-21)

Ahhh, you know, it's great to be able to read all this information about the Lap_Band and it's diet; please keep up the good work. And, DylansMom, thanks for the suggested foods, at least this way I will have an idea of what I should stock up on before I head to the hospital for the procedure. I have this feeling I am not going to be wanting to do much shopping AFTER the surgery.

Imt33167 .. I was on the Phentermine for almost 8 months; it's true about the jittery feelings, and the heart racing ... all in all it wasn't a pleasant experience. Yes, I did loose weight, about 100 lbs all total on the (while on the fast, and taking the drug combo Phen-fen); but when I got off the medication, as well as the fast, it all came back with a vengance; I gained back the 100 I had lost and additional 50. Just don't do it ... if you're thinking about the pre-weight loss for the Lap-Band, there must be a safer way to do; trust me, this isn't it! The "sick" feeling you get when you're taking the medication just isn't worth it.

I took that medication when I was doing a medically supervised fast. It worked kind of, but in the long run, it's not worth the side-effects (pulmonary edema and death being just a couple of them). My Primary Care Physician at the time advised me to get off of them ... this was BEFORE all the lawsuits came down the pike because of all the bad effects. My advice is don't ... the risks simply are not worth it.