Melinco

I have nothing good or bad to say about this outfit as I have had absolutely no dealings with them. My question is about the "free insurance verification." Why would a surgeon (regardless of whether they are from a premiere surgery center or not) charge you to verify if you have insurance coverage or not? If the surgeon is part of the insurance network, there should be no charge whatsoever to verify coverage, and even if they aren't part of the network, you'd think they'd not charge you to verify coverage, since they will most likely be getting paid by the insurance company. This just smells like a scam to me.

Congrats on being banded and finally healed! Have you ever tried Leslie Sansone's Walk away the Pounds videos? They are very low impact. I enjoy these videos because my knees give me problems too. I also really like Water aroebics.

My husband and I went through fertility treatments in trying to have kids. It didn't work. We were open with most people about it. While some were quite supportive, others weren't, and I always felt that I had to give a play by play report to those who knew. Now that I am pursuing WLS, I have told DH that I do not want to tell anyone. In fact, the only person I have told is my best friend, as well as those who read my blog (only IRL person who reads it is my BF, everyone else are those who I met through online forums when trying to have a baby). Part of the reason I'm not telling anyone, not even my mom or siblings, is that I don't want "food police" and two, I just want some privacy this time around. DH told his mom and dad, because his mom, who is diabetic and on insulin shots, was talking about possible gastric bypass. He told her hoping she could talk with me for support. While I wasn't pleased with this, I understood why he told them, but asked him not to tell anyone else. I find out today at lunch, when I went home and fixed both of us chicken breasts over salad greens and he said he'd be going to work and eating a couple of tacos and a burrito (he runs a mexican food restaurant). He then said that he told one of his workers that I had gone on a low-carb diet. I asked him if she knew why I was doing this, and he said he'd told her about my wanting to have the surgery. I'm both really pi$$ed off as well as very disappointed that he didn't respect my wishes for not telling anyone. It's not his story to tell. Has anyone else had this happen to you, and if so, how did you handle it? Do you think I should go and ask his employee not to repeat it, which may be too late now? Ugh, I really wanted to throw my dinner plate at him today!

If you want to control your sodium, because some of those packets of chili seasoning has a lot of sodium in there, you can create your own spice mix really easily. Use cumin, Gebhardt's chili powder, McCormick's chili powder, and if you like it a little spicy, add some cayenne pepper. Use garlic powder, onion powder and black pepper. Then add kosher salt to taste. I always go heavy on the cumin as I love the flavor of it. You might also want to try the fire roasted diced tomatoes (by Del Monte I believe). Those add some really good flavor as well as just a bit of heat, if you get the ones with the peppers added. If you like making your chili with beans, use a combination of pinto beans, chili beans in sauce, and kidney beans. Of course, if you are making a smaller batch, you may not want to use so many beans. I always buy whatever is on sale that day. Also, if you are adding onions or bell peppers to the mix, add them to the meat while you are cooking it so that the onions and peppers can get soft from the fat of the meat. Then drain any excess fat. You can also use ground chicken (try to get the white meat) instead of ground turkey or beef. Sometimes I'll use tomato sauce if it's too thick, but you can always substitute low-sodium V-8 juice instead, which adds additional servings of veggies to your already nutritious (and yummy) chili.

My dietician said to take two Flinstone chewables with iron once I get banded. For now, I'm taking a one a day multi vitamin. As far as how I'm preparing so far: Right now, I'm just doing my pre-op solid food high protein low carb diet. I did buy a new set of scales so I can track my progress. I've got sf puddings and jellos, but they are more for my pre-op than post op. I already have a blender and a food processor. Oh, I did also buy some of the Viactiv calcium chewables. Once I actually have a date, then I'll start buying the foods for after surgery.

Those donuts were calling my name this morning, but I resisted. Then, fudge was brought into the office. Mmmm, fudge. But NO! I stood strong. As I walked by the left over donuts and the fudge sitting on the break room table, and pointed to them both and said No! I want my band more than I want you!

Hi Lalalude, If you come to the Pre-Op lab band surgery Q&A forum each time, and look for the December Bandsters 2009 thread, you will not have any problems finding us. You can always book mark this thread too. If you read back through some of the posts in this thread, it will tell you how to do a ticker. Welcome and good luck!

Ok, I called. They don't have the psych consult yet, plus even if they did, the doctor is out till Monday. I guess I'll go back to being patient! lol

I am so tempted to call the surgeon's office today to see if they have my consult reports yet and if we can set a date! Wouldn't it be wild if they said they could do it this month and not have to wait until next? Although I think next month would be better. I'm cooking Thanksgiving dinner for my family, and I'd like to be able to eat it (although not everything since I've already started my high protein/low carb diet). Hmmm. Okay, I'm going to call them!

Thanks for all of your kind replies. We did talk last night after getting back from "Connected Couples," a church related event for couples, where we talked about how communication was vital for a lasting marriage. So once we got home, he did apologize and explain that by his talking about it, he was, in a way, expressing his concerns just a bit about my going under anesthesia. The reason for this is that when we did IVF and they put me under light sedation to retrieve the eggs, my O2 levels dropped, so he is actually worried about my coming out of the anesthesia after the surgery. He said he didn't understand why I tell everyone on my blog, but he couldn't tell anyone. I told him that with the except of my best friend, and two people who also went through IVF that I have met, I don't personally know anyone who reads my blog. It's just a support group (like LBT is) of people who went through what I went through (IVF), but now are supporting me while I do the WLS in hopes of losing enough weight so that we can pursue the next option in trying to have a baby. So we did talk it through (me through tears as I am so bad about expressing my feelings and anger without shedding some tears - ugh, I don't like that but what can I do?). Maybe I will go ahead and tell people once I've actually gotten the band, but for right now, I don't want to. I think that the ladies I take a break with will be very supportive, as today one of them asked about my new "diet" and if I were doing it under supervision, and I did say yes, I was seeing a dietician. But I don't plan on divulging why for now. One thing that did come from our conversation last night was that my husband said that no matter if I'm short, tall, skinny or fluffy (we don't use the F word), he'll love me.

I wonder if perhaps they didn't say anything before was because they thought it was harder for you to find clothes and shoes that fit well, and now that you've lost weight, it should be easier to find appropriate clothes? I don't know how much you've lost, but do you think that could be it?

I am self-pay and the thought of something happening to make a revision necessary is scary! I will have coverage on my insurance if I have an emergency due to my band, but it can't be coded as lap band surgery.

You know, after reading this post and all the replies, I realized that I have been "judging" my sister in law regarding what she has done to lose weight as "cheating." She is using a prescription medication to lose the weight, and she is doing great! But I always thought to myself that by using a drug it was taking the easy way out. However, after thinking about it, and looking back at the meals we've had together, she is eating less, she has also been exercising more. So for her, the medication she is taking is a tool, just like the lap-band will be a tool for me. What will be interesting to see is if she can maintain the weight loss after she quits taking the medication. But now, rather than hoping she isn't able to maintain it, I will be cheering her on, because I wouldn't want someone wishing me ill-will. I'm glad the original poster wrote this entry. It has opened my eyes to what I was doing.

So you think that they make the men take a PG test too?

Not sure on the recovery time, perhaps a week if you have an office - sit down - job. Your surgeon should be able to tell you. Most likely, you won't need to use your STD as most policies have an elimination period of two weeks before the benefit kicks in. You'll want to check your own policy of course to see what its elimination period is. Regarding what to tell your co-workers. I'm a firm believer in medical privacy. If you think they would just be nasty, and you know them best, then don't tell them. If they questions why you are out, you can always say that you had to have hiatal hernia repair surgery. Today I told the ladies that I take breaks with that I'm starting a new diet, so that when I begin to lose weight after getting the lap-band, they'll already know that I started to eat healthier. Good luck with setting your date and everything in between. It's exciting, isn't it?

I started using my-calorie-counter.com today to track my weight and what I eat. I'm in my pre-op diet stage, where my surgeon wants me to eat high Protein (105 g) and low carb (about 150 g of carbs, which doesn't seem very low to me, but that's what the dietician said to do). So I'm using the website to help me keep track of everything. Did you figure out how to keep your ticker in your siggy without doing it each time?

Hi Kells, I'm from Pueblo. I haven't got a date yet, but am shooting for next month. I just finished my psych and dietician consults yesterday. By early next week, we should be able to schedule the date. Let's hope that time flies so we'll have our surgery before we know it. What type of pre-op diet is your doctor going to have you on? Mine is having me do a solid food high Protein low carb diet that I started today.

I had my psych and dietician consults yesterday afternoon. They each went well. The psychologist had the lap band done in May. He's lost about 27 pounds so far, with about 25-30 pounds more to go. While it was nice to get first hand information from him, I'm not too sure he is a great example of how to work the band. He admitted to still eating McDonalds (although not very much) and not exercising. And he still drinks soda. He had me do all the questions (like 5 or 6 different tests). But he didn't ask me about whether I had a support group (like family or friends), which I thought a bit odd. Then, I went and met with the dietician and she is promoting NO BREAD! She did say if you have to have bread, make it well toasted wheat bread. That's not a problem. But when talking about starting the high Protein low carb diet right away, I forgot to ask her how low I should aim for the carbs, and how much protein I should get. I'll have to call her this afternoon and ask her as I started a nutrition tracker and want to make sure I'm get the amounts I need. It is quite possible by early next week, I'll have a surgery date! I'm getting excited. I told the ladies at work that I take a break with that I'm starting a diet so that when I finally get the band, it isn't odd that I'm losing weight. However, at this time, I'm not telling them about the band. From what I've read, having to do the Liquid Protein diet can be hard, so I'm glad my surgeon is having me do a solid food high protein diet. At least I can still eat. Oh, and it's interesting, he doesn't want me doing any liquid protein supplements. When I was over at WalGreens buying some Protein Bars for Breakfast, I saw that Special K has a protein supplement drink (sort of like Crystal Lite) but I didn't buy it. Today is the first day of my new life style.

If I attend the seminar, my first consult with the surgeon is free, otherwise it would cost $200. My pysch consult runs from $350 - $275 (depends on who you see - I'm seeing the dr. that costs $275). The dietician consult is $75. The rest of the fees are for the surgery, the surgery center, and the anesthesiologist (or however you spell that!). All follow up care and fills for the first year are free. After that, fills are only $50 (which around here, can be a specialist copay - but I don't have insurance coverage for this so I'm out of pocket). I would definitely shop around, but sometimes if you are in a particularly large city, or only have one "premier" center, they will charge you an arm and a leg and get away with it. I would have had the same thing happen if I went to a "premier" fertility clinic in Denver (CCRM). Their program fee (basically if you want to see them) was ridiculously expensive, and not covered/reimbursed by insurance.

I don't think I'd take nude photos, but perhaps in bra and underwear? Or even bathing suit. Maybe do like they do on Biggest Loser, with a sports bra and spandex shorts. One thing that also helps is if you take all before and after pictures in front of the same thing, and at the same distance, so when comparing, you are not distracted by the background or close ups.

I'm also thinking, as some of the others said, that when you are heavier, your weight presses down more on your feet, perhpas flattening out the arches (in addition to the width of your foot). Then, as you lose, there is less pressure on your arch, therefore it goes back to its normal shape, thus the smaller shoe size. Sounds like good logic to me!

Jeni, If you use a doctor from Mexico, you may want to find a local doctor for all of your fills and follow up visits. From what I've read on here, having a physician from Mexico - while great for the pocket book - can be hard in terms of follow up care and fills. However, you may be close enough to Mexicali that it won't be an issue. Good luck.

I have my first dietitian appointment tomorrow and I think what I want to know includes: What exactly does the pre-op diet consist of. My surgeon wants me to do the solid food high Protein low carb diet, so I need to know what I can and can't eat. What does the post-op diet consist of. How soon do I progress through the stages? What, if any, Vitamins should I take? Can I drink coffee with my flavored liquid creamer? What kitchen tools will make life easier during the post-op stages of healing? (Will I need to buy anything other than the blender and food processor that I currently have?) What happens if I cheat on either the pre-op or post-op diets? Just how bad is a carbonated drink? I love my diet pepsis, and although I only have two (sometimes three) a day, if I need to give them the axe, I will. Does protein have to be eaten first the rest of my banded life, or can I eat a bit of everything until full? I'm sure she'll have lots of information that will generate questions too, but these are the ones that I'll be asking tomorrow. Hope this helps!

I cleared a hurdle today that could have thrown things way off. Last month, I had my routine wellness mammogram and they saw something. Today I went in for a diagnostic mammogram and ultrasound and they said that they didn't see anything that was a huge concern, but we'd do a follow up in six months. I was a bit concerned, as most people would be. But now I can go ahead and proceed with this with no issues. I'm excited for my psych consult and dietitian consult tomorrow!

I hope you don't mind if I join you. I don't have a scheduled surgery date yet, but we are definitely shooting for December. I am self-pay, so I don't have to worry about jumping through any insurance hoops. I've already secured the financing. I'm financing about 1/3 of the cost, taking a loan from my 401(k) for about 1/3, and withdrawing the rest from my IRA. Since my surgery is totally out of pocket, I won't get hit with the 10% penalty of the IRA, as the total cost will be in excess of 7.5% of my adjusted gross income. Next Tuesday, 11/10, I have both my psych consult and my dietitian consult. My surgeon should have the results from both by 11/13. Then it's just a matter of scheduling the surgery and making sure I can get the time off work (which shouldn't be a problem considering it's a medical issue and not a vacation request - although I may just use my vacation time). My dr. doesn't require a liquid pre-op diet, but to follow the Atkins diet isntead. I'm going to start to do some research on it, as I figure there is no reason not to go ahead and get a jump start on it. Now if I had to do the liquid, I'd wait until absolutely necessary! lol I look forward to getting to know all of you better and being a source of support. Thanks!