Uber Pretty

Name, real or screen~ Jessica Arbogast Age~ 27 Weight on September 1st~ 230 Goal Weight for September 29th~ 215 Exercise Goal for September~ 30 minutes/5 times a week Dietary Goal for September~ No more chocolate! Personal Goal for September~ Destress my life Date Banded~ June 2009 Total Weight Loss Since Banding~ 60 pounds

Hi there, I was banded in June of this year, I weighed 280 on the day of my surgery. I also paid for the entire procedure and all the fills since then by myself, my surgery was $14,500.00 and each fill is $200.00. The months leading up to the surgery I was so excited and like two weeks before I started getting worried that what if it doesn't work. The first 15 pounds came off like it was nothing, the next 10 were pure hell lol. But I talked to my doctor because I'm pretty tight and he said I wasn't eating enough calories or getting enough Protein. So this week I started eating about 1000-1200 calories a day and doubled my protein. My weight loss has increased and I've lost three pounds this week! The main thing you need to think about is, can you commit? I still eat pizza and bad stuff (not that I'm encouraging you to do this), but what I'm saying is don't be scared. food is an outlet for all of us... we all deal with stress the same way, we eat. And I know for me, the thought of letting go of pizza and never having it again was scary, not at first but definitely as the surgery date approached. But then I realized I can have that stuff, just limit my portion size... instead of having three slices, have one. Not to mention, your fills keep you full so you don't even WANT to eat more! I don't regret getting the band, and I am still well on my way to getting to my goal weight and as Lizabeth said, I don't want to jinx myself (I don't think any of us do). I would say to look at all the other people on this site and how amazing it is that they accomplished so much. You can be that person if you are ready. If you ever want to talk or have questions you can email me! Good luck and I hope you choose to do it! Jessica:smile2:

I just wanted to post something in here about Dr. Robert McKeen. I have met with him twice so far and I absolutley trust him with my life. He is an amazing doctor, he tells you like it is and doesn't beat around the bush. Nor does he try to answer questions he doesn't know the answer to, he'll reply to everything as honestly as he can. I am paying out of pocket and had the chance to have it go through my insurance but my insurance wouldn't cover me going to Dr. McKeen. So I said screw it, I'm going to spend the money and go to him because it's hard to find a surgeon you trust and are comfortable around. His staff is equally as awesome, they have bent over backwards to help me. I highly suggest him if you live in the area.

I totally know how all of you feel as well. I was just banded on 6/10 and I have pain around my port, kind of like a stinging feeling and I definitely have a lot of air in me. When I burp it feels like my stomach is going to come with it. I do feel a little better then the first two days. Today is day four and I am actually sitting up with minor pain for longer periods of time. I wasn't given any pain killers, they told me to take liquid tylenol or liquid IBUprofen (spelling?) and they both seem to work. On a good note, I am down 5 pounds. This liquid diet is killer!

Hi there. My Doctor doesn't require any pre-op liquid diets. He said if I would like to do one I can, but he doesn't ask his patients to. He's done thousands of surgeries and I really trust him, I was actually referred to him by a friend who had it done there. I would say that it's really up to the Dr. Sorry I couldn't be more help. Maybe instead of eating a pretzel or cheetos go for soups or yogurts. I would say stay in the area of liquids if you absolutely can't stand the hunger. But the band is about to change your life, why not start two weeks early and get healthy?

Hey De!! Congrats on the phone call, and getting approved for the band!! They told me I wouldn't get approved through insurance and my pcp wouldn't approve me either, all because on the inside there is nothing wrong with me, yet! So I decided screw that, I started saving my own money and will have enough to pay out of pocket by June. My surgery date is June 9th! And I tell you what, from the day I found out it's been like I'm walking on clouds!! LOL... I actually had to force myself to think of other things because the excitement was getting to my stomach. So I know how you feel right now, it's an amazing feeling, June won't come fast enough though!!! Until then I'll be :crying:... goodluck and God bless! J

So I've been given my surgery date, June 9th!!! I have to say, I'm very excited. And in preparation, I've been reading TONS of threads on here, partly to hear success stories and partly to hear what it's really like. It seems like there is a lot of exercising involved, as there should be. But my questions is, what's the difference between just exercising without the band versus having the band? I mean, I know having the band is not just a free trip and it's considered a "tool" if you will, but if you have to exercise just as much either way, then why spend the money? Can someone enlighten me, I'm having second thoughts... :cursing: Thanks in advance, J

My surgery is scheduled for June 9th, 09. I'm so flippin excited it's unreal. And while I know I have tons of time until I get to this stage, I was wondering how much your TT and Thigh tuck cost you? Thanks, Jessica