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I am in the process of trying to get my lap band removed and revised to the sleeve. My insurance company was agreeable and said that I needed to have another psyche eval and 3 mos of nutritional counseling, with which I did comply. My insurance company is First Choice through the ILWU... which is fantastic insurance, but they referred this claim out to Innovation Care Management for review. I have had my band for 6 years and I initially lost 70 lbs. and pretty much stayed at about a 60 lb loss until about a year ago. I had only a little over 3cc of Fluid in my band and could barely eat any solid food.... mostly Soups, shakes... nothing with any substance. My reflux is off the charts, having to sleep propped and taking the strongest dosage of meds twice daily. I can't eat much of any solid food without it coming back up. I had pretty much had convinced myself that this was the way my life was going to be , but after a conversation with dr. he came to the conclusion that my band had failed. After my consideration, I have chosen to have the sleeve, however my BMI is just at 35. While waiting for my approval, all of the fluid was removed from my band to help me heal before surgery. I have been able to eat a little better, but still not a lot of solid food. My reflux is pretty much the same.... I have gained 20 pounds and my blood pressure is vasilating and my BMI is rising . I was anxiously waiting to get my approval for surgery. The ICM doctor said since I was managing with the unfilled band, its better for me to just live with it like it is! My doctor had a peer to peer conversation with him and I still was denied! I need to file an appeal.... I read on here where someone had some info regarding appeals... letters, etc. Can you help a girl out? What a way to spend the holidays! Thanks! Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Hello Everyone: I was banded on 11/8/10 and so far I have lost 32 pounds. I had no restriction, but I still watched my portions and was very careful with what I ate. I saw my Dr. on Wed. this week for my first fill and I was under the impression that I would probably receive 1/2 cc to 1cc of saline. However...he placed in 4cc., which I was surprised. I was able to drink water fine, continued on liquids for 24 hours and then proceeded to mushy foods. I ate a little egg drop soup with little star pasta in it. I barely got in a few bites and felt tremendous pain...pressure in the middle of my chest....had to let it come back up! Since then, I have only been able to eat a little yogurt, pudding, plus protein shakes. Did I try to eat too much, too quickly? I am feeling definite restriction, ....will it go down some or do I have too much fill for the first time? Will some of you share with me your experiences...please....just trying to walk this thing out in the right way. Thanks!

Thanks for the comments! It's now day 4 and I'm doing much better! I was able to eat some fish today...a little veggies and felt full, but no pain! Yeah! I am definitely more cautious about what I'm eating and I think I'm going to be ok. Good luck on your journey! Donna

I too have struggled with my weight since I was a little girl, up and down, losing 40 pounds every few years and then putting it right back on and then some! Keep pressing on towards getting the Lapband....it took me 18 months to get approval from my insurance company...I had to jump through hoops...but they finally approved me and now I'm having my surgery tommorrow morning! I've waited so long, it doesn't seem real! Good luck to you and God bless you in this journey!