tinksmom

My doctor pointed out that the band does nothing to the inside of your stomach. All restrictions, adhesions etc are from the outside. So the things we can't eat are affected by the shape of the stomach; tolerance for things like alcohol, caffeine, etc should be unaffected.

Others have suggested wearing ankle weights or putting them in your pockets to make sure your BMI is 40 or over. I never thought of that and just stopped watching what I ate for a month before I went to the doctor's program. Actually when I talked to the HR person at my husband's company, that was her suggestion. I didn't need a medical history or comorbidities if it was over 40 so I made sure it was. Didn't take much...a week with my family pushed me right over the edge.

You can do standing push-ups against a wall if you can't do regular ones.

Doctors seem to be all over the map on tea, coffee, and alcohol (not to mention other foods). You can find studies that say that caffeine is a diuretic, that it isn't a diuretic, that it makes you eat more or less, that it helps alertness, that it does nothing... I have to wonder if their own preferences control just what studies each doctor decides to believe and transmit as orders to patients. Well, that's no true exactly...I don't really wonder. Since this is a diet for life I am choosing to drink my tea and coffee much the same way I always have...2 cups of hot tea in the morning and a latte here and there through the week. Gallons of unsweetened tea during the day. An occaisional cocktail...calories permitting. My doctor says "whatever works".

When we moved to Texas I learned fairly quickly to like ice tea...a lot of it! Unsweetened and with lemon. Restaurants around here from McD's to the upscale ones just keep it coming. Once I got over the no-sugar thing (because it was not available pre-sweetened and sugar just doesn't dissolve but I loathe artificial sweeteners) I learned to always have one at hand. Before I made the decision to get banded I talked to someone who had had a bypass; the conversation started because she was fdoing a wine sampling in the grocey and mentioned that a particular wine went well with the coffee she drank day in and day out. That's how she got her liquids...coffee not wine. And I do drink bottled water too. Once you get used to drinking a certain amount per day you'll find you wake up craving it. I also read that some people think they are hungry, when actually they are thirsty. The signals get mixed up or we can't tell the difference...so we overeat. You just have to train yourself to keep sipping.

Just got on to the spreadsheet. I'm doing the Labor Day Challenge too so it will be interesting to see a short term and then a longer term goal. I didn't do a ticker because it is so long...and I have two already...but I am with you!

I think I saw some at WalMArt. I didn't know if they were any good so I got Mederma instead. I had carpal tunnel surgery right after banding and the doctor never mentioned therapy so my hand is still painful and swollen. Went to a new hand surgeon to see if it can be repaired and he set me up with PT and thinks it will be OK in a few more months, and was surprised that the first doctor had said nothing. Would have saved me weeks of pain and panic.

I too can eat a much wider variety of foods than I expected...which for me is good since I need a varied diet. I chose to track calories and do it on lapband.com...which has the fitday food diary/calorie tracker. There are a lot of sites that have trackers. I actually found that if I don't keep track I usually am under my optimal daily calorie count...so am skimping on protein and nutrients, which makes weight loss harder. I shoot for 1200 calories, then keep an eye on protein so I get that all in...then add veggies and carbs. Also with this fill, my third, I am feeling more restriction, so I use my handy 1/2 cup scoop to measure out meals for the first time since my post band diet. But the food diary...every day, and every time food passes my lips!...is a real key to weight loss! Online it is even interesting to see how many calories in my normal foods.

The soups I make are usually pretty chunky so I ladle very little liquid into my bowl. Then I just make sure the calories fit into my budget for the day. Sometimes I use a chunky canned vegetable soup to get some extra veggies if I feel I need them. Last night my husband made a gumbo that was lovely...with chicken and fresh andouille...heavenly. I actually took the meat and weighed it to keep track of protein, and measured out 1/8 cup of brown rice. My half cup kept me full almost 4 hours so it must have worked well with the band.

Loved the last challenge and it feels so good to set and reach a goal! 18 more pounds will take me to 200...a good mini-goal.

Whew! I upped my goal, then watched the needle on the scale just hover for the past few days. But I can say with a clear conscience that I made my 20! Thanks to everyone here for the motivation and accountability!

I found that as I found I could tolerate and enjoy my favorite foods the cravings went away.

Insurance reps are pretty easy to talk to, I have found to my surprise. At the very least they can tell you what your policy will cover in general and how long you need to wait for verification. Best case scenario they will tell you if you were verified or if and when the doctor's office turned in the paperwork. The final approval will have to wait until just before surgery though.

If it is an employer exclusion you might get facts on how obesity costs the company money and production through sick days, disability, treatments for other conditions it causes etc...and ask that they reconsider their exclusion. Company plans change all the time and a new year could bring different conditions. You might also look for an alternative plan if your company has options, or even consider a different job entirely based on benefits. Or use an oblique approach...have them check for a hiatal hernia...they'll pay for that surgery and it is possible that you can select a lap-band surgeon to do it and pay for the extra surgery yourself.

Hubris...when you think you're doing so well that you add extra pounds to lose in a week, you just know your ratfink son is going to bring home choc chip cookie dough and leave it front and center in your fridge. I shoulda drowned him as a pup...

I gues from what I've read here, that after a fairly painful "stuck" incident that you can have swelling that lasts a couple days. People who are pros at this say to go back to liqids for a while and add food gradually again. I had one such problem last week after a fill and that's what I did. It finally simmered down...for a while I thought I was going to have to go get an unfill. It took a day and a half to feel normal though. I sipped cold liquids to reduce any swelling and that made it feel better.

I thought I was doing badly this week but instead lost 3 lbs. Only a few more days until the 4th but I think I'll try to shoot for another 2 pounds to make it an even 20. My family almost can't believe it. I feel so much better now than before my operation! These kinds of mini-goals really work well for me. I feel like I am accountable somehow. Are we going to try for a Labor Day Challenge? I cannot do spread sheets at all...they are a complete mystery to me so I have to rely on someone else to set one up. I know several others want a Christmas Challenge but I fear that is too far away to keep me focussed...although I'll do that as well.

I was hoping for a Labor Day Challenge. Sort of a baby step program. But I guess I could do a Christmas one too.

Anyone? Anyone? This is not just about weight loss surgery. I have been to a local surgical center for several procedures. Each time I am handed a sheet with the cost of the procedures and, in the next column, my insurance company's negotiated price. I obediently pay my percentage of that, then look at the original numbers in disbelief. For an operation that the facilty charges the uninsured $20,000, insurance (and I) anted up $7000. Another time it was $9500/$1700. These places actively court the insured, so they must make money on these payments. I know there is very little discount for self-pays, as a friend had a similar spinal procedure and paid close to the full price quoted me. The statements for doctor fees...surgeons, GP's, and specialists..show a similar range. Wouldn't you think cash payers would get more of a discount? Wouldn't we be able to afford to offer health care to more people if we were able to pay a larger percentage of the much lower amounts before insurance kicked in? It boggles the mind.

Just got off the phone with BCBS and then anesthesioligist office. (I have to psyche myself up to deal with this stuff so it took me a while.) These notices are so confusing. The first thing that happened was that apprently an assistant surgeon was brought in. Why I do not know, since there were no problems with my surgery. I never saw or met this person and still have no idea of his/her name. But ins was billed almost $8000 for the services, on top of my doctor's fee. The problem stemmed from the fact that this doctor was not a BCBS surgeon so the bill was rejected. On researching it, the customer service rep found an agreement with that doctor that he would accept BCBS max..and that had alreeady been paid. So I owe a small copay of $50 or so...which I can pay when and if I ever learn who to pay. The second problem was that the anesthesiology bill was also rejected, although the facility and doctor had been paid. This is obviously absurd...the same people had been paid 3 weeks later for a carpal tunnel surgery so they are obviously in network. Turn out...and the rep said this is common...their claim had been submitted with the wrong code...and did not match the physician's or surgical center's. The code must be not for obesity but for morbid obesity. I called and told them what to look for and they will resubmit. Everyone else is fairly happy. Whew! The moral of the story is to call your insurance company! Rep said they almost never deny after approval without a good explaination. They will explain all the claims for that procedure and find what is going on. The guy I talked to was wonderful...took over half an hour to work things out for me.

If your surgeon is confident that you'll be fine, you probably will be. You've had pre-surgery tests to check out liver functions and have had your exam so I'd just trust him. My surgeon gave me the two week diet, then his office staff was surprised that I did even the last week of it. He daid only once did he have to close up and reschedule due to liver condition...and that person had had other signs as well but had sworn they had dieted.

I update on Mondays for the 4th of July Challenge and I'll update my regular ticker then as well. I will also edit my regular one after any kind of doctor visit, because I recalibrate my scale at that time as well.

My doctor's office is right next door to a new Cajun bar and grill. My husband waits there for me when I go for my fill. I was early and walked in to find him chowing down on a burger and fries that looked wonderful...and I was starving because it was late in the day and I can have nothing before a fill and only clears after. So I decided to treat myself on fill days to one of their cocktails. This week was a Coastal Breeze - vodka, cranberry, and sour mix. Fairly low calorie and clear enough.

I think when people here are talking about non-invasive surgery we are talking about not cutting into/altering/or rerouting organs. Cosmetic surgery may at times be dangerous but also does not alter organs. One of the things mentioned about the lapband is that it leaves you pretty intact and can be reversed or revised to another type of surgery if it is not tolerated or working. I consider that it is permanent but one never knows. Surgeons here have some people who cannot lose enough and are doing vertical gastric bypasses or R-en-Y, in some cases leaving the band in place. I just never wanted to jump into more radical surgery without trying the band. I also can, if my appetite is not nagging me, control my portions and keep track of protein and carbs. I am not a compulsive eater and seldom eat emotionally (at least not unhealthily so). So we all decided the band would most likely work. I have a friend whose husband is wanting to get the band but he has no interest whatsoever in sticking to or even planning a diet. He would probably do best with a bypass. Another thing that was brought up is that if...and I realize this is a long shot...but if I needed testing on my gastro-intestinal track it is possible with the band and gastric sleeve, but not with the roux-en-Y. My family has a history of ulcers and stomach cancer so that fact had some weight. You need to think seriously about the options. Make a list of pros and cons for each. It took me over a year to decide to go ahead with the surgery and I am comfortable with the decision. If I didn't think as much about options I would feel far less secure and in control now.

Why not get some sliced chicken or roast beef cold cuts and have them rolled...maybe with cheese...in a plastic container as finger food? Breakfast doesn't have to be shakes, fruit, eggs, etc. You could finish your meal with a few grapes or other cut up fruit.