fatbottomgirl

Hi Everyone, Maddy- I am in Dayton, too! I have a tentative banding date of July 18th, as long as everything goes smoothly. I am seeing Dr Curry in Cinci also! How is your life altering event treating you??? :-) Im sure things are difficult. Its going to be really tough at first.... Theres so many emotions I feel: excited, scared, happy, depressed, annoyed that my insurance wont cover it, but thankful that i at least have a job so i can pay for it myself... so many different emotions! Ive been trying to change my way of eating already so i can be ready when its done. I only have to do one week of a pre-op diet, but Ive read on here that people are really thankful for their 3month or 6 month supervised diets (after the fact, ususally, lol). Are there any support groups in Dayton that you know of that may be free to attend? I would also like to start excercising so im used to that also, i just have yet to start.... i dont like being sweaty, but i guess ill have to suck it up . so far on my personal pre-op diet ive lost 14 pounds, with the help of my family doc who suggested i take adipex until the procedure. My surgeon agreed it was a good idea. How has all of your liquid/mushy phases gone? Any personal (cheap) Protein supplement advice? I really hope you are all doing well- i would LOVE to hear from any of you!

July 18th is my date. Ive been watching these threads for the past few months, lol. I attended in informational meeting on April 21. Had my psych appointment May 19. Had my meeting with the nurse practioner, surgeon, finance person and the dietician today. The only reason it took so long between April 21 and today was because I took a week long vacation to Jamaica and the Cayman Islands. I am self-pay so things are going a bit faster for me than others, Im sure. My insurance covers weightloss surgeries but only if youve been with the employer for three years or more. Ive only been there two years, so far. But I dont think I would be covered anyways. I am very lucky that I dont have any detrimental co-morbidities like high blood pressure or diabetes. Another interesting factoid is that my family doctor suggested I take Adipex before my surgery because he thinks I will do better if I lose some weight before hand. I started the Adipex last Thursday and have lost 14 pounds in 6 days. CRAZY!!! I didnt want to lose so much so fast, but the surgeon said thats fine and it will even out soon. He just requests that I am off the Adipex about three days prior to surgery. I really like my surgeon and his office. Most of the girls in his office have had gastric banding also, including the dietician, and even the surgeon HIMSELF! I just cant believe this is really happening. Has any self-payers out there used CareCredit? or any other type of payment plan? Just curious as to what has worked and what I need to look out for. If anyone is in the Southern Ohio region, you should check out Trace Curry. He has done over 10,000 bands. Good luck to everyone, I will be reading over your entries and seeing how youre doing!

My insurance is Anthem PPO and Im going to an info meeting in two weeks. Ive considered getting lap band for the last few years, but ive finally worked up enough courage to call and get information and go to a meeting. I just found out that according to my insurance, I must be employed with my employer for 3 years before weight loss surgeries can be approved. And after the 3 year waiting period, weight loss surgery is only covered 50/50. Ive only been there a year and 6 months. So my question is, while Im waiting, what can I do? Should I see if I can do the psych eval/nutrition classes while Im waiting? Just looking for thoughts or anything that I can do to try to get through this seemingly endless process. Has anyone else had issues like this? What did you do?

all of these posts make me nauseous. i guess its a good thing.... but i feel sick to my stomach because i thought i was the only one.... 1. when i was about 7 or 8, i was with my grandparents who were attempting to sell their rental house. My grandmother told me, "I know a little girl who lost a lot of weight who is your age just by sucking in her stomach'. how stupid. i didnt understand it then, but by the time i was 12, i never wanted to see or talk to them again. and as of now, i havent spoken to them in over 4 years. everytime i saw them i hear, 'its just too bad...' or 'cant you just go on a diet', or 'i know you want second helpings, heres another plate. take some home with you, even.' 2. when i was a sophomore in high school i went to a military dance with my then-boyfriend wearing a black and white long floor length gown. I felt so beautiful. when i got home and showed my mom the professional pictures, she said i looked like a whale in that dress because of the black on the sides and the white down the middle. 3. for my 29th birthday my mom bought me a nightgown. it was more of a muumuu and when i held it up from the box it was in, my entire family laughed at me. i thank the higher powers above for my best friend who was with me at the time. she scolded my mom and said, 'would YOU ever wear something like this?' my mom said no, but she didnt know what else i could fit into. which is why i always ask for giftcards for holidays. my family just doesnt get it. 4. i am a nurse and i have to talk with my patients about their weight. it makes me sick to think about it. 5. i went to a festival a few years ago after being on yet another diet. i had lost about 15 pounds! i wore a sleeveless dress and was walking to my car when i was passed by some teens who loudly yelled and whooped and pointed at me. i dont know why they were doing that, i just figure it was because im fat. i got into my car as quickly as i could so they couldnt see me cry. 6. after work one day, i got home and realized the back of my pants had split. im not sure anyone noticed, but how could they not? and how could they never tell me? :-( 7. i have to squeeze into spandex shorts underneath my scrubs because otherwise my legs rub together and its just miserable. because of this extra layer of clothes, i sweat more than normal so i have to keep deoderant in my locker at work. 8. i cant workout in normal gyms. i just cant do it. its taken me over a year to even get myself to go to an information meeting becuase im so embarressed about my weight. it is all unfortunate self-perception. probably due to numbers 1 & 2 above. 9. my mom and dad got into a fight while i was in high school, yelling at each other, my mom was crying, my dad was angry, cursing.... only to find out that they were arguing about how i had gotten fat and blaming each other. 10. when i was in third grade, i was burned by cigerettes on my right forearm by the boys at my bus stop for being 'the fat girl who deserved it'. after that, i always tried really hard to miss the bus so my mom would have to drive me to school. 11. my dad was a marathon runner who decided it would be a great idea to enter me into a 5k when i was in 8th grade. i had never run before and i wasnt in shape at all and had never trained for anything! i was the last to finish the race, and im talking by at least a good half hour to an hour, and the race people had to drive behind me in a golf cart. i felt like i was the loan cow being herded to the finish line. it was mortifying. whats interesting to me, is that most of these stories are from my younger years. i am now 30. when i look at pictures of myself from when i was younger, i think i look somewhat 'normal'. over the years, my self-image has morphed into a distorted picture of a girl who is 5'8 ( i used to be 5'10 but ive lost some inches due to my weight) who feels like i am about 600 pounds. i am very hard on myself and im so angry at my family and all of the atrocities that ive dealt with because of my weight. and now that im quite a bit bigger than the 'average' person (what the heck is average anyways?!?!), i too, have had my share of chairs breaking, the dreaded airplane hell, the amusement parks that i just dont go to anymore, the rude comment from the drunk guy at the bar, the seats in the basketball arena that i can barely squeeze myself into and theres no way im standing up to cheer and clap like everybody else.... so tomorrow is my first informational appointment. ive read every single story on this thread and i am so sorry for the terrible times that we've each experienced. heres to having more stories in the future that are positive ones. i really hope i get some good news about getting the okay for LAP-BAND® tomorrow. it wont be for at least another year, but at least itll be something i can look forward to.