rhepting

John47 - Thanks for the reply. I had Cardioversion once & it only stuck for about 2 weeks. I plan to try again once I get my weight down. About your family, are they concerned about the procedure itself or the fact that you are getting banded. Any medical procedure can cause concern but this is a pretty inevasive one at that. If it is the banding that they are concerned about, well, you need to do what is right for you first and hopefully they will see that you are doing this for them also. Hang in there and stand you ground as you need. RHepting

First I would like to commend everyone who is a part of this site from the individual considering banding to pre-op to post-op all the way to the experienced. Thank you all for coming together and sharing you concerns, fears, triumphs, setbacks, and stumbles along the way. I will try to be brief however, I will like to share my story. I am 43 years old and I have always had a problem trying to keep my weight down to a recommended level. Over the last few years I have tried a number of diets but I have always gained the weight back. I would usually lose between 20 -40lbs and then I would just stop. As most of you probably already know, this can be very disheartening. I have been considering banding for the last two years and have researched it periodically but I didn't follow through because of the concern that my insurance would not help cover the cost. Well, to by surprize, I found out last week that they will now cover 85% of the cost, Thank You God. Here is where I stand now, as I mentioned I am 43yrs old, 6 feet tall and weigh (as of yesterday's doctors' visit) 350 lbs which gives me a BMI of about 47. I currently have Atril Fibrilation ( I won't go into detail but you can read about it on Webmd) which my cardiologist expects was cause by a childhood infection. I also have sleep apnia and a degenerated disk in my lower back. If I don't make some changes in my life, the next thing on the list is going to be Diabetes. This is not by any means a pity party, I am just trying to let you know my story. I have been married to a wonderful woman for 4 1/2 years and I have 26yr old & 20yr old stepdaughters and God blessed us with a wonderful son 3 yrs ago. If all this isn't motivation to make a major change in my life, I don't know what is. Here is where I am now. I met with my regular doctor yesterday for the needed consultation & refferals and he is behind my decision 100%. I am scheduled for my psych eval in two days and I see know reason why I shouldn't pass that step. I am waiting on a telephone call for my first appointment with the surgeon I have picked (who has been recommended by one of my wife's co-workers who was banded in March of 2009). So I am on my way and I am very positive about the whole idea of being banded. I know that I may not be all roses but I have to much to concentrate on to help me through any of the low times, plus I feel pretty confident that I can always post here for help. Sorry to draw this out but hopefully my situation and decisions may help someone else out there Rhepting