THEBIGGESTLOSER427

:wub:OMG, I found the greatest mushy diversion. It contains 12 grams of fat and 11 grams of protein per 3oz can. ARMOUR POTTED MEAT!! It hit the spot for me because I was not feeling full on the popsicles, pudding, and broth. So while driving home from church, I had this great epiphany of potted meat. This was really great timing because this is the first Sunday out since being banded on 9/4/2009. Usually, after church we head to a restaurant or fast food joint to eat. The potted meat epiphany worked out well because not only is it cheap but my kids love it as well.:thumbup: I am 9 days post-op. Will see Dr. Hart on the 15th and we will go from there. Maybe this is psychological but once I eat and feel satisfied I am good to go . The smaller amounts are really doing it for me...so far anyway.. You all take Care...

:wub:OMG, I found the greatest mushy diversion. It contains 12 grams of fat and 11 grams of protein per 3oz can. ARMOUR POTTED MEAT!! It hit the spot for me because I was not feeling full on the popsicles, pudding, and broth. So while driving home from church, I had this great epiphany of potted meat. This was really great timing because this is the first Sunday out since being banded on 9/4/2009. Usually, after church we head to a restaurant or fast food joint to eat. The potted meat epiphany worked out well because not only is it cheap but my kids love it as well.:thumbdown: I am 9 days post-op. Will see Dr. Hart on the 15th and we will go from there. Maybe this is psychological but once I eat and feel satisfied I am good to go . The smaller amounts are really doing it for me...so far anyway.. You all take Care...

I had my surgery on 9/4/2009 and I am now 9 days post-op and practically pain free. Yeah! I can cough with out that annoying pain on my left side and I can move without that worrisome gas. I feel great! I weighed in yesterday at 251. My pre-op was 269! I am happy as a bee eating honey :-). My post-op visit is Tuesday and maybe I'll be back to work on Thursday. Would I do this over again! Without a doubt...a resounding YES! Thanks to Cathy and Delma for the advice on how to get the gas pain to a minimum. Cheers!

I will be banded on 9.4.09. Next Week!!! I am very excited. Thanks for starting this thread!

this is easily the worst conversation I've read on this site..on any site for that matter...

I am soooo inspired by reading the posts on this board. I am anxiously waiting for my approval from the insurance company. For the last four months my life has been consumed with medical appointments, psychological tests and evaluations, procedures...etc. I finally finished everything and my sugery was tentatively scheduled for 8/28. I am now told that it is a possibility that the surgery will happen in September...this wait is so unnerving. In the meantime I encourage myself by coming to this board. Thanks for keeping me excited despite the delays...

i am very excited about this path i am on to better myself by improving my health. even the preparation phase has been a great experience. the psychological evaluation probably was the most enlightening. it revealed that i am 'above average in intelligence' but quite dysfunctional in my relationships with men. this coupled with disappointments, loss, unplanned changes, and a desire to shut off myself from the world lead to ballooning of 100 pound weight gain over a period of six years!! :smilielol5: The trip part about all of this is that i didn't see it piling on. talking about denial. i finally saw it staring in my face when i was diagnosed with severe obstructive sleep apnea. i realized that i could die in my sleep from the underlying factor of being too fat... for the first time in my life i was scared. this was my turning point. i knew i needed to do something but whatever i needed to do i knew i could not l do it on my own. i did what i always do when i am afraid, or uncertain...i prayed. believe it or not, my two-fold miracle began when i found this page and then found a group of people at a center called true results who lead me each step of the way. so now i am almost at the finish mark for completing all my required testing. tomorrow i will have my nutritional consult which is the final visit. then i'll wait to hear from the insurance company. it's been a long four months... so tell me what was your turning point and where are you in the phase one process:rolleyes2:?

i am very excited about this path i am on to better myself by improving my health. even the preparation phase has been a great experience. the psychological evaluation probably was the most enlightening. it revealed that i am 'above average in intelligence' but quite dysfunctional in my relationships with men.:sneaky: this coupled with disappointments, loss, unplanned changes, and a desire to shut off myself from the world lead to ballooning of 100 pound weight gain over a period of six years!! :thumbup: The trip part about all of this is that i didn't see it piling on. talking about denial. i finally saw it staring in my face when i was diagnosed with severe obstructive sleep apnea. i realized that i could die in my sleep from the underlying factor of being too fat... for the first time in my life i was scared. this was my turning point. i knew i needed to do something but whatever i needed to do i knew i could not l do it on my own. i did what i always do when i am afraid, or uncertain...i prayed. believe it or not, my two-fold miracle began when i found this page and then found a group of people at a center called true results who lead me each step of the way. so now i am almost at the finish mark for completing all my required testing. tomorrow i will have my nutritional consult which is the final visit. then i'll wait to hear from the insurance company. it's been a long four months... so tell me what was your turning point and where are you in the phase one process:rolleyes2:?

Congratulations! Thank you for sharing your story. You have helped me tremendously by giving these details. I have had all the consults except the nutritional consult. I will have that tomorrow and my packet will go to the corporate office (true results) and then to the insurance company. My tentative date is scheduled for 8/28 if approval occurs within two weeks or less. Soon i will start the protein diet and then it will begin to sink in that i am about to change my life forever...it is so exciting but also i become apprehensive on other days. Anyway thanks again!

I am very early in my journey, and I was told by the psychologist that I WOULD NOT BE SUCCESSFUL! At first I did not make the connection as to what he said. Simply put he suggested that because my life is so stressful (i.e. working two jobs, raising three children as a single parent, trying to finish my doctorate) that my lifestyle is not conducive for making the changes required to keep the weight off. Also because I've experienced some traumatic events in my childhood and never sought counseling this heightened my likelihood of failure. It took me three days to get over this "evaluation" and decided that I'd take the good and proceed forward. Has anyone experienced a not so enlightened consult? Did this affect the overall decision of the surgery?

Looking forward to polishing my toenails and lotioning my feet Walking a half block without breathing like I've run 6 miles Losing the CPAP apparatus Looking in the mirror and smiling at what I see

Hi Fishy09, I went to my insurance company's web site and typed in weight loss surgery. I don't know if the information I learned of is universal but according to my insurance company and the NIH, if you have a BMI of 40 or greater WLS is then a medical necessity. If your BMI is greater than 35 and there are co-mobidities (i.e. hypertension, diabetes, sleep apnea etc., then the chances are also greater for you being viewed as needing a medical necessitated procedre. The thing is that in most cases the procedure has to be FDA approved---as experimental procedures generally are not covered. Hope this is somewhat helpful. THEBIGGESTLOSER427

__________________________________________ My gosh Marie, even my middle name is very close to your's (Maria is my middle name). :cool2: And what's even more ironic is that I share the exact same sentiment regarding following through with the surgery. I prayed about it and decided that after rsearching the procedure, and finding a physician I am comfortable with...the rest would be in God's hands. If this is meant for me I know things ill run smoothly and if not then I'll still press on...knowing that somehow and someway I'll get this weight off and live a healthy life. In writing this an epiphany came about " heal thy life" put together it spells healthy life. WOW! what a message. I s-o-o-o believe that God is directing my path s He divinely let me to this site where I communicate withsuch AWESOME AND INSPIRING Folks! Thanks for sharing Marie... THEBIGGESTLOSER427.