Auntie Aud

You name it, I've probably tried it. Weight Watchers - about 5 times / Jenny Craig - twice / Atkins / Xenical / One of the Phen Fen's / Low Fat / Low Cal / Herbalife With all of them, I would lose 30 or 40 pounds and gain it all back - except Atkins, with it I lost 60 (and gained 80 back). I think it's good that you are asking and researching your options. I have been researching for years. I researched the RNY and couldn't bring myself to do it. Especially after a friend had it done and while she lost a lot of weight, she simply looked unhealthy. Her hair was falling out, and her gums receeded, and she just looked sickly. Then I saw in an interview somewhere that Sharon Osbourne had a "band" so I went all over the internet to find it. I researched it and decided that was the option for me. It would help me, but it would also force me to change my lifestyle so that I was eating healthier and taking better care of myself. (As a side note, I find it humorous that just as I am about to get the band, Sharon Osbourne is talking about removing hers!) In June, one of the gals in my office went in and had lap band surgery. I watched her very closely to see how she recovered, and how well she did and if she was hungry. Prior to surgery she lost 20 pounds, and since surgery she has lost over 40 (in 4 months!). So, I was finally comfortable that her Dr. would be great and I go in on Monday to get banded! Best of luck to you in making your decision. Bottom line, this is about you and what you feel will be best for you.

Wow! Sounds like everyone is doing well thus far. Congrats to all of you! I had my pre-op appt today. Everything is a go for Monday! While the Dr. does not require a pre-op diet, I put myself on one. Nothing fancy, just the two Slimfast's a day and a small dinner. It's working though! I've lost 18 pounds so far! Woo Hoo! I remembered to ask the Dr. for the Rx so I could have it filled and ready when I get home from the hospital. I have liquid Loritab for pain and some little pills for nausea. As the date gets closer, I am getting more excited and more nervous... Hope to have the same experience as all of you. I'm so glad that everyone has been sharing their experiences along this journey! It has been a big help in overcoming my nerves!

Good luck to all those being banded this week! Let us know how you are doing when you feel up to it.

Hi Sandranoelle, I'm in Riverton, Utah. I will be banded a week from Monday by Dr. Alldredge (Dr. Hansen's partner). The only information I have for the mushie stage is what Vivienne gave us in the pre-op handout, so I'm not much help. But, I wanted to say hello and let you know I was here if you wanted to chat. There's another one of Dr. Hansen's patients on here as well. She will be banded on the 26th. Her name is JDru. You may want to join us in the October Bandsters thread. Hope you are able to get some good feedback on your question.

I was just reading through, and found your thread. WOW! I feel very fortunate! My Dr. includes the first year of fills in what he bills the insurance company (or in the amount charged to the people who are "self pay"). After that he offers a "package deal" for the fills, you can pay as you go or buy a year's worth. His theory is that if we are going to take the time and effort to make this work, he isn't going to throw a potential road block (like not being able to afford fills) in our way to success. Thanks for sharing!

Congrats MarySue! I'm glad that your experience overall has been positive! It's good to hear. I've had those coming off of caffeine headaches, they are nasty! That's good advice to get off of it before surgery. I hadn't heard about the medic alert bracelet... My Dr. hadn't mentioned it, do most Dr.'s recommend? Sounds as though it may be a good idea?

Congrats to all those who have had surgery this week - I hope you are all recovering well! I had a pre-op seminar last night, we met with the nurse, a social worker, a dietician, and an exercise specialist. We were able to ask any questions we had, and were given lots of information on what we needed to do and where we could buy things we might need. (Rather than a food processer, they recommended a baby food grinder that can be purchased a Babys R Us for 14.95, etc) One of the things that came up was the pain in the left shoulder. The nurse said that it was from the diaphragm being irritated during surgery. She said to put ice on your tummy right below the rib cage and at the same time put a heating pad on your left shoulder. Sounded odd to me, but since she was the doctor's first patient I am thinking she would know. I am so anxious now for surgery! 11 days and counting!! My Dr. doesn't require a pre op diet, but I have put myself on one. Might as well start eating right now. I had my "last supper" last week at Morton's, and started my self-imposed liquid diet this week. So far, I'm down 8 pounds! Thanks to all for sharing their experiences and successes, it has helped keep me excited about the process!

Congrats Lin and Lots2Luv! I'm so glad that your experience has been so positive and relatively pain free! Thanks for letting us know how you are doing. After much searching here with no luck, I finaly found liquid Tylenol while is was in California visiting my family this week, so I bought 2 bottles! Hope not to need them, but glad to have them just in case. I have my pre-op seminar this week, and am hoping to get a shopping list of "must have" items. Although, I have already compiled a pretty good list from this forum!

Congrats to JWH, Houstongirl1 & Pistol on getting their bands! Good to hear you are all home recovering. Sorry to hear you had a rough time of it JWH! Hope things are getting better. It's so exciting to hear from all of you who have gotten their bands! It's making me anxious to get mine! Two weeks from today!! Woo Hoo!

Wow! What a nice thing to do! I'm sure that it really brightened her day to know she made a difference in someone's life. I also agree that it was a good opportunity to further the insurance company's understanding of lapband and the good that it does. Thank you for sharing your experience. I am going to follow your example once I have my surgery on the 23rd!

Congrats Shellybeans and Kayleesmom! :cheer2: I'm so glad that all went well for you both. Keep us updated on how you are doing when you feel up to it! Would you recommend staying the night in the hospital rather than going home the day of the procedure? My insurance said they would pay for it if the Dr. recommended it. I'm just wondering if it would make any difference?

Congrats Chrispy!! I'm so glad all went well for you!

Good luck to all those October Bandsters who are having surgery this week. Please let us know how you are doing when you feel up to it!

Jessica, I'm so sorry to hear about the delay. I hope everything turns out ok with the testing you have to go through, and you can get banded in no time. Audrey

I will be joining the ranks of the banded on October 23. I'm having a pre-op seminar on the 11th, and my final consult with the Dr. on the 17th. I'm so excited about this! I've been researching the band for almost 2 years now. Then one of the gals in the office was banded in July (she's lost 57 lbs since then!), and I decided to go for it. Surprisingly, I received the approval from insurance in 3 days! Could be because I am impatient once I decide to do something and called them to find out. The Dr. hasn't said anything about a pre-op diet though. Sounds like a good idea. The gal I work with said the worst thing for her was the hunger pains after the surgery when she was on clear liquids. I would think it might be better to condition the system to a liquid diet prior to the surgery. I'll have to ask... Looking forward to sharing this journey with you all! Audrey

Hi Jessica, I'm so excited for you. Keep me updated on how things go, if you don't mind. I have 2 co-workers who went to Dr. Hansen and Dr. Alldredge here in SLC. One was just banded in July and is down 57 pounds! She said she was only on pain meds for 2 days and she was back at work in a week, so I'm comfortable that we picked the right Doctors! I just got the approval yesterday and am scheduled for 10/23, so I will be anxious to hear how you are doing. Audrey

Hello All! I've been reading the many different threads and posts here in this forum for a couple of weeks and have learned quite a bit from you all. I had a call from the office of the Dr. I met with regarding getting banded today - they submitted everything to my insurance company today for approval. I hear I am fortunate because I have United HealthCare and they are fairly good about approving this procedure. But, am still anxious to hear from them. Does anyone know how long they typically take to send out their approval or denial? Well, keep your fingers crossed for me! I look forward to learning more from all of you, and hopefully joining the ranks of those who have been banded. Audrey

Well, I'm not a very patient person. I know that Dr. Alldredge's staff just faxed the information over to United HealthCare on Tuesday - but it's Friday and I just had to call to see if United HealthCare had made a decision yet. They have - I've been approved! WooHoo! So, I am scheduled for surgery on 10/23. I can hardly wait!

Thanks for the kind welcomes everyone. Jessica - I met with Dr. Alldredge who is Dr. Hansen's partner. Best of luck to you in this journey! I'd love to hear how everything goes for you. Thanks again! Audrey