TracyinKS

good morning!!!!! Dynamo: WOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!! Hope you see it before you leave. I am so excited for everyone getting banded today.. I can not believe that my turn comes NEXT week, after all this waiting here we are.

CONgRATS!!!!!!

Ahhhhhhhhhh day 2 of TRACY Excavation! LOL....... today I starting some overgrown flower beds and then moved and entire bed of vinca vine, before covering the old bed with gravel.......... I even moved some rocks via my sons little red wagon... I am pooped, but I know that it was good for me... and I counted it! and LD.......... I laughed at your co-workers comment.. (as long as you two have a not so serious relationship anyway) but do be careful.. you can get used to all KINDS of attention in the coming year

I just spent the day out in the yard and again moved gravel with a shovel and wheel barrow......... I am tired and my hands are bleeding.... I'll check in after I take a nice hot shower.

Lunasa: DON'T FREAK OUT HUN!!!! Everything will be fine!

Good Morning all! Teach, Terry, Sara... you are so right about the support group. I mentioned LBT several times only to be greeted with blank stares. It was obvious that many of the people in the group had never heard of it or got online at all. The former Co-worker..... I didn't question her as to what she ate or if she exercised but when I mentioned the LowCarb/ High Protein diet she just rolled her eyes, so I'm guessing she is the one who continues to eat a bag of potatoe chips.... she complained about the maintenance being too expensive..... I was drinking a bottle of Alpine Punch Isopure and several people asked me about it, (BTW Alpine Punch is pretty good) I felt out of place at the meeting because I was SOOOOOO Ready, SOOO upbeat and others seemed sad, scared, embarassed, or disenchanted. It didn't help that the 3 main contributers to the meeting were all the long term bandsters that although had lost 130 lbs - 173 lbs were there struggling...... very depressing for those who were just in the research phase. I felt like interupting and saying SHUT UP!!!!!!!! your scaring everyone. I remember feeling the way those other ladies did... it was at the seminar.. a room full of depressed, embarrassed, hopeless fat people.. me being one of them....... its human nature I guess to see the negative side of things, but I guess I need to go because of my big happy assed mouth! LOL........... The next meeting is May 12, but I will be out of town so I think I'll plan to make the June meeting...... If I didn't have LBT, I might not be having surgery in 11 days.. this place has given me so much information (good and bad) the support garnered here is unmatched! THANK YOU

GOOD MORNING!!!!!!!!!!!!!! HAPPY Band Day tomorrow: :present:ARD - 04/16 :present:PsWashburn (Phil) - 04/16 :present:DynamoMini - 04/16 :present:Margi - 04/16 :present:Jennifur - 04/16 :present:Lunasa - 04/16 :present:SchexyMomma - 04/16 :present:Laura23 - 04/16

JULIE!!!!!!!!!!!! Words can not even begin to describe the inspiration your posts and pics yeild.... thank you, and look at that ab definition ALREADY!

WOW BOO!!!!!!!!!!!! that is so wonderful! I just got back inside after getting my exercise in for today.......... I shoveled gravel into a wheelbarrow and then dumped it out along the foundation of the house......... (while dbf was inside veg'ng on the couch!) HOW'S THAT... (do I hear a roar?? My arms are like spaghetti right now but I feel good, I can't believe I did it for two hours and dbf is shocked beyond belief... buy hey.. I have to give him credit, he's spent the whole week replacing pipe in the yard.

Just a note to all who have recently joined........ if you don't see your name on the list (Page 1, Post 2) please drop me a PM, so I can add you... I remember when I created this thread.... I only had my name and several lines of: "your name here" :mad: We have grown nicely. To answer the excercise thread question... just go to the April bandits exercise thread started by BOO and join in.....

Hello all! I need to go back and catch up on all the posts..... I just got back inside after getting my exercise in for today.......... I shoveled gravel into a wheelbarrow and then dumped it out along the foundation of the house......... (while dbf was inside veg'ng on the couch!) HOW'S THAT... (do I hear a roar?? :mad: My arms are like spaghetti right now but I feel good. I also went to my first ever support meeting today, and I have mixed feelings........ first SMALL world a woman I used to work with about 10 years ago was there....... she was banded in december and was sooo negative.... she was flat out pissed because she had only lost 27 lbs and in her words she didn't pay all that money to lose 27 stinking pounds....... (then I remembered.......... she was negative back then too) she was the first to leave.....anyway...... I did meet a couple people who post on this board.... JBtulis.. (Johnathon) he is doing GREAT, and a nice guy... and a gal that posts on our doctors forumn...... she was real nice too..... We had a gal that lead the meeting who had her lap band done in Mexico in 2001.. her and a couple other gals were two years or more out and now struggling with the emotional side of maintaining, and getting sloppy with their fills and eating.. complacent...... (I think this scared a lot of the people who were there just for research and in the beginning stages) I will go back to give it another chance but I'm betting a lot of those in attendance today won't. I had an NSV today too.. I squeezed my 259 lb butt into an old pair of size 18's today.......... (with my laundry being down this entire week, I was scrounging for something to wear) ........ I had to lay on the bed to get them zipped .. but they zipped.... Breathing is underrated anyway RIGHT??? LOL Anywhoooo: Pam, Congrats on your car!!!! I am so glad everyone is coming back to post!!! Now we will see those tickers starting to move!

YAYYYYYYYYYY Christy!!!! I've been wondering about you two!!!!

Congrats to all our NEWBIEs!!!! Sounds like everyone came through ok! Pam: Way to go on cleaning your moms desk........ that would of been emotional to tackle alone. (but... I'm a sentimental sap!) If I remember right you are buying your car today.... How did it go? Terri: Your sneaking up on ONEderland!!! I've been watching that ticker get closer and closer every day! I am happy to announce that we now have the ability to run water in my house! THANK GOD........ it has been a huge mess and although not over yet... we can at least shower at home again..... and you can bet your sweet asses that I am giving the city a diagram of our sewer lines, where they run, how deep they are, and what we replaced it with (We were NOT on the city sewer maps!) I didn't say anything but yesterday the trench collapsed right when dbf and bil were about ready to set the pipe... luckily no one was in the trench (6 feet deep) when it happened but the curb fell in as well.......... I was out in my yard holding a drop light at 10:00 p.m. while the guys were knee deep into muck trying the get the pipe in before it started raining........ They were back filling when I took them lunch.. so all is well. It is supposed to snow tonight!!!!!!!!!!!!! Where did Spring go? I'm going to my first ever band support meeting tomorrow... kinda feeling a little weird about it.. I'm not sure why. I hope everyone is have a great day!

Sara: a lot of people can't eat rice because it swells and gets stuck...... I know its not funny, but I did chuckle at the thought of your daughter laughing at you while your flapping your arms! If I were you, I'd take it easy on the rice until your completely healed............ ohhhhh and BTW your the first APRIL bandster to Have a PB and SLIME! Congrats.... I think!

ROFL!!!!!!!!:eek: I just about lost my coffee via my nose on this one!!! Well I guess you would be good on your exercise too if you complied with his request!

Welcome Shawna! I just added you to the list......... jump in and post!

Happy Band Day!!! Tater Bug - 04/13 :present:MS_Jen - 04/13 :present:ChicaChula - 04/13 :present:Collector - 04/13

TriCare covers the RNY but not the Band........... BCBS of Kansas City, or BCBS of Kansas all list it as investigational but will cover if medically necessary.. PROVIDING your employer DOES NOT HAVE AN EXCLUSION

All depends on your company exclusion........ my mom had anthem and they had an exclusion in the policy.

There was a place here in KC that wanted $800 up front, but I found a surgeon on my provider network that does the Band and the only thing I had to pay upfront was $150 for the consultation.......... they submitted to insurance and last week I just got a refund check for $150 from the Dr.s office because insurance paid it.

During my nutrition eval the really nice, but REALLY ULTRA THIN nutritionist told me that I needed 100-200 carbs a day to lose weight....... We actually got into a long debate about it... she even knocked on her head with her fist saying that my brain wouldn't function with less...... I KNOW that I lose best when I stick to 30 carbs a day 50-60 when I'm exercising........... Everyone is different and I'm sorry ........... What she said to me is CRAP.

WOOT! HAPPY DAY!!! WOOT! WOOT! I am so happy for you I feel like doing a back flip.... (but if I did that the waters would part and the angels in heaven would start singing!):clap2:

Brandi: This post has moved me to respond...... this was me New Years Eve 2001... except my note was on the kitchen counter, and we had planned a party inwhich I had to call everyone and tell them it was off and why....... Your post brought me dead and center back to that awful time. I applaud your determination and quick thinking...... YOU ARE WORTH IT! DAMN RIGHT! There is a song by George Straight "She let herself go" that if you've never heard you SHOULD at least google the lyrics. OK.... since I'm posting...... I will say that my lightbulb moment happened last August while I was on a company business trip...... Like Sunshine, I had gained and lost weight following a LowCarb diet...... 3 times I've lost 80 lbs........ the last time was 3 years ago...... over the last two years I've went from 174 to 272......... an all time high....... before my high was 256 and seemed to be the point I'd get too before I'd restart my efforts... I have two RL friends that have had the RNY..... I applauded them, but knew it wasn't the way for me, I heard about the band, but knew that my insurance wouldn't cover surgery......but I researched it anyway.. thinking that I'd just put it on a credit card or SOMETHING.... all along the way half assing back to my needed LC.. but not sticking to anything....... While I was at the BCBS SC Corporate Office..... (our company changed to them in 2007, and I was part of the dog and pony show) We were in the middle of a roundtable with all the other HR people from various affiliates and one of the guys made a comment about BCBS WLS exclusion, and how would that affect OUR ALLOWANCE of it...... I about spit out my Water and choked on my cookie!! WHHHHHHHHHHAAAATTTTTT??????? We ALLOW IT? I had no idea. So after the meeting broke up I cornered the Main Benefits guy from our Corportate office and I asked all about it because I said that I had 2 employees who were interested in it..... He told me that yes we did cover it if medicially necessary.. He said there were two common types of gastric surgery ..... he said it would actually be easier to qualify with BCBS than our old provider.......... THAT IS WHERE I STARTED SERIOUSLY PLANNING FOR IT....... I had to wait til Jan 2007 for it to take effect, but all in the month of Jan I had done everything from seminar, consult, physc eval, nutrition eval...and bcbs approval letter in hand..... It was booking the surgery that has me waiting til April 26..... the in network hospital was totally scheduled til this time....... This time gaining the weight, I have noticed my fingers and ankles swelling and all I wanted to do was sleep. My son(after divorce miracle) didn't have room on my lap, and he was always asking if I had a baby in there..... I used to feel pretty, but I had gotten to the point of not caring about hair and makeup..... I feel empowered and for the first time in a long time I see the light at the end of the tunnel......

KT: 7 weeks isn't that long! I was pending for a long time myself and then when I got my date I was feeling like it would never happen...and now it is a mere two weeks away.. and I'm like Holy crap! More will join you as the time gets closer just keep posting so that this thread stays on page one!

Thanks for sharing MOLLY!