meltingaway

my dr. is aaron hoffman also . i had my surgery 3-2-09. i think hes great. i was in for 28 minutes was all. lisa is awesome. shes aggressive with the insurance companies. funny story about dr. hoffman. he was in the gift shop buying gum he chews alot of it. well anyway i was in there buying water on one of our last visits before surgery. he walked over and said "i hope your not in here for candy". scared the hell out of me.. you never know where your dr may be hiding out spying on you.

all i really know is that i have cinergy and got it in may of 08. . i pay 230 a month ..right out of my checking account.. i am allowed 5 visits a year to a dr. and 1 to the eye dr. and 1 to the dentist for cleaning. max to eye dr per year is 100 bucks. same for dentist.. all perscriptions are discounted.. scripts and glasses are not covered. just discounted. i was banded on march 2 2009.. no copays.. no problems. if anyone here is from buffalo ny and considering lapband just call buffalo general and ask for lisa at dr. hoffmans office. she will tell you it takes time but cinergy did approve me..maybe i got lucky but i have never recieved a single bill...not even phys consultation.. they paid it.. and 2 sleep studies.. they will not pay for cpap..

oh plus you can not just get the ins the drop it after you are banded.. there is so much follow up and you need ins .. everything is a charge.. please dont cancel .. you need followups and fills and blood work

i have cinergy ins.. it costs 230 a month.. i have had it less than a year.. it took 8 months to get banded but its done.. and no copays

39andholding. i used to live in tampa . i love it there. ex is there so i am in ny... lol. anyway i was banded 3 weeks ago. it was the best thing i ever did for my health . i am 5'2. was 217 and my heaviest now i am 182 and losing. i breath easier because my chest is not so heavy. i am once again a quiet sleeper. i can take a few flights of stairs without needing oxygen. when i started looking into the lapband it was last june. it took almost 8 months. the process is lenghty. so much to do. the more you do for your dr. the smoother things run. it gets to you at times but if you have a good support person you will get thru it. first thing i did in jun was pply.. after a month i got an application. they are so busy they get 2000 yes 2000 applications a month a buffalo general. the application was 12-14 pages long if i am not mistaken. with an essay asking you to explain why you are applying. then another month and i was invited to a seminar. it was standing room only get there very early.. over 200 people. we got introduced to 3 drs. watched before and after and listened to 2 drs. lecture.. very informative. this took place in the hospital cafateria. after a few weeks i was accepted into the program. i went and met the nutritionist. the nurse practitioner and a physical thearipist.. 3 hours .. dont be late you will get bumped from your spot. the i had to meet a physcothearipist..excuse my spelling. this was 1 hour or more...many questions..again be early.. i was a victim of a volent crime as i was with my daughter in a parking lot. and all that came out.. they ask and you just tell.. so she was not sure if i was healed or not and almost denied me.. cause i cried..she made me i swear. anyway. i waited for her results.. oh another thing everthing i did i asked my drs. nurse who everyone uses. they all seem to be a big network so things run smoother i think. then i had to go to my primary and have a physical . he said he was all 4 it so he sent them clearence. you will be very busy..just do it and smile.. then i had blood work they gave me a script 4. another month goes by.. my dr. says i need to lose 5% for him and insurance.. i say ok cool.. so i lose and thing are moving slow . i get upset and i gain. then the sleep studies ..ask for referals... that take anothe mont to get in..i go spend the night..another 3 weeks and another sleep study. i need a cpap..insurance says no way..and its 1800 bucks.. i am so upset.. i figure all is wasted.. i call cpap place.. the have demos and offer to lend me 1 for surgery.. oh happy day.. i go get it.. practice with it.. ok i think i am set.. i meet dr again along with nutritionist. we schedule 1 month later. but so much to do. pre register . 3 days before they say i need to update bloodwork it has to be within 30 days and so does primary dr clearance.. oh geez.. i am almost in tears. the awesome surgons secratary called the bloodlab at the hospital and they rushed it on the saturday before surgery.. 2 days.. my primary has moved away and i need a clearance so i called a dr. i knew and they got me in. ok all is set..i think.. the insurance company wont give written approval only verbal. well we stay on them . and now i am banded.. please work hard , do not give up.. do everything ontime .. and ask for help when people say no can do...cause it can be.. i am open to questions from anyone . remember insurance companies wait till a few days before... this is normal.. dont get upset a pigout like i did

Here is my story. I was banded on March 2nd 2009. My surgery was scheduled for 3pm but the day before it got bumped up to 11 am. My boyfriend is a worry wort so i did not tell him about the time change. I did not want him sitting for hours so I told him i wanted to go in about 7. with him still thinking i was having surgery at 3. he dropped me off and went to work for a "few hours". after i knew he was a good 2 hours away i called and told him i was going in. he was schocked.. He would not have been good waiting for so long.. he worries too much.. So all went perfect.. Dr Arron Hoffman at Buffalo General Hospital in Buffalo N.Y. is the best. 6 days earlier i had my period and thought it was way over with but the blood thinners caused me to bleed more late that afternoon. All i wanted to do was get cleaned up and look good when the boyfriend got there. This is where things got ugly. i just needed help getting up was all. I could do the rest. I asked a nurse to help she said she would send someone in. 2 hours later i was in tears and struggling to stand and wheel my iv to the rest room myself.. i was a mess and all i wanted was to be clean and settled when he got there to see me and say goodnight before he left me to the dogs for the night. the same nurse finally came in as i said after 2 hours. At the same time the boyfriend walked in as i was struggling to walk to clean myself.. i asked him to give me a private minute.. after he left i told the nurse all i needed was her help..and she smarted back and said " well i am here now.. when i laid back down all i had to do was touch the boyfriend fingers through the bedrail as he sat in the chair and all was well. i was there for 26 hours and got ice chips from them only 1 time.. meds were not to be had until they were damn good and ready.. i almost have tears in my eyes typing this.. i hope anyone who has to spend the night at a hospital never feels like the peice of crap i felt like that day.. my boyfrind told me if i would have let him be there he would have taken care of me.. i wish i would have

i am 3 weeks post op. i had my surgery on march 2nd.. the best 28 minutes i ever spent. i have my first fill april 14. i was 217 when i decided to look into the lap band. i am now 182. thats 35 lbs . so far. i am 5'2 and i was told by everyone i did not need this.. just cut back and all the crap we all have heard. i told nobody except my 23 year old daughter and my support person /boyfriend. well march 17 we went to a party and my 3 sisters and my mom all said i looked great and how am i losing weight. we all crowded into a tiny bathroom as i lifted my shirt and showed 3 tiny scars and 2 1 inch incisions. they all we shocked and my younger 150 lb sister said i am so jealous. i said its just a tool not a cure.

as for pain it was very minimal. i had surgery on monday march 2 at 11 am. i was in surgery for 28 minutes was all. about 5 that night i was up sitting in a chair. feeling a bit groggy but i was vertical. i took a few laps around the floor because my dr. says its a must. the worst pain i had was a sore throat from the tube. i did not speak for 2 days. i showered the next day and dressed really nice for the trip home so that i would feel good about myself...makeup and all.. i felt great and my boyfriend was shocked that i was moving better than he was after he worked all day. now i had to climb into a big 4 wheel drive truck this i do not suggest. i wait tables at an upscale rest. and i love it i was so worried about missing time cause there are a line of people wanting my hours so i worked that friday. yep 4 days after surgery i was back to work.. i feel great.. i never thought a deep breath would feel so good but i did not care about anything else. not food not sleep nothing...so breathe deep and fill those lungs. it hurts but it so good in healing. body and mind. the pain from a broken leg i had last year was 100% worse.. no big deal on the liquid diet. my dr. let me do the atkins shakes . 1 carb in them and i already liked them.. way better than others..try strawberry.. also minute maid lemonade lite sold in containers like orange juice. low carb 5 calorie i add 2 oz of water to 2 oz of juice.. its good stuff. do not worry about liquid diet.. get rest and deep breaths

i am 3 weeks post op.. the 1st week on liquid was ok really. you are tired and feel crappy from being put under so the liquid diet was fine.. now i can eat soft foods and i am fine. i did crave chicken wings today but my dr. says chicken is way too stringy and asks me to avoid it... so i did.. i had 2 0z of grilled pork tenderloin i made on the grill in the freezing cold. with a little apple sauce. it hit the spot

murphy, i am so glad my dr. never said anything like that. i just had my surgery march 2. i feel great. i get a little winded at times. i wait tables so i am always running around. when i feel this winded i take deep breaths and they help so much. the first 2 weeks after surgery all i wanted to do was breath deep . it hurt at first but do it as many times a day as you can. its so calming. and it relaxed me.

today is march 26. i had my lap band surgery march 2. for the first week i had gas pain mainly in my chest. its gone now. i went back to work after 3 days. do i suggest this? no but i thought i could handle it. i wait tables for some great people that did not make me carry a tray. i have my first fill in 2 weeks. i am a little afraid of the tight feeling and wonder if i will be able to work the night of my fill. as i said i wait tables.