Bullwinkle

I keep reading posts on these boards about insurance, and the need to document the information I get from the insurance company. I just scared that they will deny me due to "pre-exisiting condition." Thursday, 11-02-06, 6:30pm, I called the toll-free number on the back of my husband's UHC insurance card. After pushing a few buttons to get through to customer service, I talked with a man named LeLand. I asked him this question (straight from the paperwork supplied to me by Dr. Curry): "I am inquiring about my policy benefits on surgical weight loss. Is surgery for morbid obesity a covered benefit? In particular, I'm inquiring about lap-band surgery.” LeLand: "Yes, it is. Lap-band surgery is a covered benefit." Me: "May I please give you the code for this procedure and would you please check to see if this particular code is covered?" I gave him the code. LeLand: (After sighing and acting like I was a pest) "Yes, that code is a covered benefit." Me: "What information do you require before approving the surgery?" LeLand: "You have to have a BMI greater than 35." Me: "What else?" LeLand: "Ma'am, just have your doctor's office call our care coordinator and they will work out the details. This procedure IS covered by your husband's insurance policy." At that point I just thanked him and hung up because he acted like I was just a huge pest. What I SHOULD have done was stay on the phone and gotten all of the information from the paperwork Dr. Curry supplied to me. Now I'm scared that if I call the insurance company back, I'll "tip them off" that I want to have this surgery done, and they won't put me on the policy. My husband just enrolled me this past week, and I won't be effective until 01-01-07. Any suggestions? Should I call them again and get more specific? If I do, won't they think this is considered a pre-exisiting condition, and can't they deny me in January?

Nealy two years after being banded, I finally have restriction! I was banded 05-05-07 with a 10cc band. I've had 6 fills and, although I knew the band was there because I frequently got stuck, I never got full from eating. In fact, the only reason I ever stopped eating was (a) because I guilted myself into stopping, or (:thumbdown: because I was so miserably stuck that I would throw up, and then was scared to eat anything else. I even went to the doc last July for an unfill, but he didn't do that and, instead, had me swallow that white stuff to check my opening, and I was told that I had plenty more room for more fills and that I was eating too big of bites. So, since July, I worked on eating more slowly, chewing more thoroughly, and not getting stuck. It worked for a few weeks, but I just found myself being able to eat more food. I gained a few pounds, lost a few pounds, regained those pounds -- I was the poster child for the yoyo effect. I came to this forum nearly every week and read of others' success -- success that eluded me. I reasoned, "Well, I've got 7cc in my 10cc band, so I should have restriction and feel full." But, I didn't. So, I simply resigned myself to the fact that the band didn't work for me. It happens. I guessed that I was just one of the statistics. I mean, I could eat nearly 4 or 5 cups of food at a meal....easy. I would get stuck because I didn't chew my meat well enough. But, if I chewed really well, I could eat 2 hamburger patties, a large salad with ham bits and shredded cheese and dressing, and 2 cups of yogurt...at one meal...and still had room for 6 or 7 sugar-free Cookies without getting stuck or, more importantly, without getting full. But, guess what? I made an appointment and went to the doc yesterday to discuss it. The nurse checked what I had in there and discovered that I had lost some Fluid from my band, refilled everything to 8cc's, and......drumroll, please..... I HAVE RESTRICTION! I went to work after the appointment and drank a cup of coffee with Splenda and cream. I immediately noticed a difference. I was belching a little after a few sips. When I had my clear broth for lunch, I felt myself getting full....on broth...I was amazed! For dinner, I had 1/2 cup of sugar-free yogurt and 1/2 cup of egg salad with celery and onion bits...and for the first time since I was banded, I was full. Hones-to-goodness comfortably full. Not that "I ate too much Thanksgiving dinner" miserably full, but I knew that if I had eaten any more, that I would be miserable. Do you know what this MEANS to me?! This means that I am FINALLY at the stage where I am eating 3/4 to 1 cup of food at a meal, and feeling full! I NEVER THOUGHT IT WOULD HAPPEN FOR ME! In fact, I told my husband this morning that I might be too tight now because I experienced a wee bit of heartburn last night when I laid down to sleep. But I know that the band will ease a bit in the coming weeks, and it will be okay. And now that I know how to use this tool implanted inside of me, and now that it's working at proper restriction, I can get down to losing this weight properly. I've already been exercising four times a week, and now I FINALLY have the help I've been yearning for. When I got on the wii balance board this morning to exercise and get my BMI and weight, I had lost 1.8 pounds since yesterday morning! Instead of seeing the chart line go UP, it had gone DOWN. I weigh 248 this morning. I was 292 when I was banded 2 years ago. So, take heart, mates......if you think that you'll never hit that sweet spot, YOU WILL. If I can, then anyone can! PS: I was admonished by the doc to come back every six months -- on my anniversary date, and 6 months later. So, I have another appointment for another fill on May 5th, if I need it. And another appointment in November to reassess the situation. For anyone who is discouraged about never hitting that sweet spot, I hope this post helps. Never give up. Never give up. Never give up. Talk with your doc, follow the lap band rules, keep getting fills/unfills, and just keep going forward. You'll get there.

.....on 07-31-07. This will be fill #4. I do have SOME restriction, but I can still eat more than 1 cup of solid food at a time. This is what I had to eat for dinner last night: 1 1/2 cups broccoli/cauliflower/carrot medley, cooked, with fat-free cheese sauce 1 1/2 cups plain, fat-free yogurt sweetened with Splenda 6 gingersnap Cookies, no fat And I could have continued to eat, but I stopped because I felt guilty. So, I'm getting another fill on Tuesday. I should add that I've lost 2 pounds since my last fill two weeks ago. So, that's a plus. Like I said, I have SOME restriction, but not a lot. I shouldn't be able to eat all of that food in one sitting at this juncture.

Thank you, Lady J, for your response!! I WAS eating vegetables instead of meats, but when I had my last fill on Tuesday, I was told to eat meats/proteins before anything else, to make a good layer of that, and THEN eat vegetables if I'm still hungry. That's why I ate the low-fat Boca Burger and low-fat cheese.

Well, I'm just downright confused. I've been reading these boards for the majority of the afternoon and am just shaking my head because the more I read, the more confused I become. And I'm not a stupid person. You people in this thread seem to be very knowledgeable, so perhaps you can help me. I had my fifth fill yesterday and am utterly amazed that I can still eat the amount of food I’ve already eaten today, which is this: Breakfast at 10:00am: 1/2 cup low fat cottage cheese 2 cups of coffee with Sweet-n-Low and low fat half-n-half lunch at 12:30pm: 1 Boca Burger with 1 slice cheddar cheese melted on top 1 slice of cheddar cheese Snack at 2:25pm (because I was so hungry again): 2 slices of cheddar cheese 5 Armour Brown-n-Serve sausage links I've also been drinking flavored Water all day so far, but not 30 minutes before or 30 minutes after eating. I need to learn to eat correctly so that I can lose weight. I was told during my fill yesterday that I've been "eating around the band" with soft foods and Soups, so I've stopped that, as of today. I hadn't realized that that is what was going on with me not losing optimally. But -- and here's where I need help -- I've read many many threads here today and people are listing what they eat during one day, and it's WAY less than what I eat, and most people only have 2 fills. I've had FIVE fills in my VG10cc band and was told that I have "a good 8ccs" in my band now. Why is it that I can eat more than 3 cups of food a day still? I was told not to come back for a month, and that I "should" be at my sweet spot now. What the hell? Why or what am I doing wrong?

I removed this post and put it in the right thread..........sorry.........

I had my fifth fill yesterday and was told that I have been “eating around” my band, because I’ve been eating soft foods – soups, cottage cheese, yogurt – and, instead, need to eat Protein and THEN have the vegetables and other foods. But I was strictly told to eat solid protein so that I wouldn’t be hungry. Further, I was told that 5 fills “should” have me at my sweet spot. I hope like Hell that she was right. So, I need help from you people. I am going to post what I eat and then I need someone to tell me if it’s okay and, if not, what I should be doing to make it right. Breakfast at 10:00am: ¾ cup of low fat cottage cheese coffee with Sweet-n-Low and low fat half-n-half lunch at 12:45pm: 1 Boca Burger 2 slices cheddar cheese Snack at 2:25pm: 5 Armour Brown-n-Serve sausage links 2 slices cheddar cheese After 5 fills, I can’t believe that I can still eat that much food, but I can. I’m trying not to be upset about it, but I can’t ignore that fact and pretend like I’m full when I’m not. Any and all comments are appreciated. Just don’t yell at me, please.

Actually, Speed Racer, I appreciate DebLPN's reply in that she listed very good information regarding Protein, and I refer to her post quite often. The only thing that upset me was her tone in shaming me. She apologized and everything's okay now, so let's move on. I went for my fifth fill and the doctor reiterated what DebLPN said about the protein. My problem is, I don't know what protein to eat. She told me that I'm eating around the band by eating soft foods and that I need to eat protein. I'm still struggling here and getting very frustrated about what protein I should eat. I mean, should I eat a hamburger pattie? A chicken breast? A can of tuna? I dunno.... I ate cottage cheese last night and I know that's protein, but I also know it's a soft food so I guess I shouldn't eat it any more. Again.........I dunno.......

I'm glad to hear that there ARE other people who don't have proper restriction after X-number of fills. Well -- not GLAD that they don't have restriction, but glad to hear that I'm not the ONLY one who doesn't... I had my fourth fill 07-31-07, as stated earlier. Although I do feel more restriction than before, I am still able to eat more than 1 cup of solid food at a meal. I've do eat slow, putting my fork down between bites, and make sure that I eat tiny bites. For example, we went to eat at a Chinese restaurant and instead of the three platefuls of food, as was my norm, I ate a total of half a plateful -- albeit very slowly. But, still -- that's more than 1 cup of solid food. And I have discovered that I cannot eat a Little Debbie orange cupcake without it nearly getting completely stuck if I eat it too fast, so that's a good thing. I'll never eat another! So, I am going for my 5th fill today. I want to be able to say that I am losing the recommended 1 to 2 pounds per week, and that I am only physically able to eat 1 cup of solid food at a meal. Perhaps this will do the trick and find me at my sweet spot -- finally!

Robgoblin - I'm so glad to read your post, because I feel exactly the same way you do. In fact, you and I were banded the same day -- May 4, 2007. On the two-week pre-op diet, I lost 19 pounds. Since then, I've gone down then back up -- myriad times. I've had 4 fills, and am contemplating making an appointment for another next week (which will make two weeks since my last one). I have a little more restriction and PB'd for the second time since I've been banded -- this time the culprit was breaded chicken. Yet, I contend that I still haven't hit that "sweet spot" because I can eat way more than 1 cup of food at a sitting. In fact, I ate about 2 cups of salad with cheese and diced ham and cherry tomatoes for dinner, as well as three slices of hard Swiss cheese, and then 1 cup of yogurt. And I could have continued to eat. So.........I guess the best reply to your post is this: don't feel that you are abnormal. Everybody and every body are different. Just keep getting fills until you can no longer eat more than 1 cup of food in a sitting, talk with you doc, and eat what he/she tells you to eat. I hope this helps.

I got my 4th fill yesterday morning. But before that, I asked how much I have in my 10cc band and was told: 1st fill = 4cc 2nd fill = 2cc 3rd fill = 1cc Then she said, "But since the tubing holds some saline, you've probably got 5ccs actualy IN the band." So, she pumped another 1cc in and then said, "Now you've got a good 6ccs in there." She also reassured me that restriction and the "sweet spot" WILL happen for me. Since I was on liquids yesterday, and mushies today, I'll not find out how good my restriction is until tomorrow.

I'll reiterate: My point in posting was to state just that -- that I shouldn't be able to eat that much food in one sitting. TRANSLATION: I don't have restriction even after 3 fills. I wasn't asking to be raked over the coils for not eating Protein, et al, and I certainly don't need to be shamed into "eating right", and you did just that when you said: Don't you ever wag your finger at me again. I troll these boards looking for posters who experience the same problems I do after being banded, and I glean hope and support from their answers. Perhaps someone else out there who has had 3 fills without restriction will gain hope and support from my posts, and perhaps will think, "Well, see there? THAT person has had 3 fills and still has no restriction. I'm not a lost cause after all." After I have my 4th fill tomorrow, I will report about my level of restriction, if any.

I got my first fill 4 weeks after surgery. I got my 2nd fill two weeks later, and my 3rd fill two weeks after that. I am having my 4th fill on Tuesday.....2 weeks since my last one. I was upset at my last fill and asked the dietician (who is also banded) if I would EVER hit that elusive "sweet spot".....she said, "Don't worry. It will happen for you!" So, I'm hoping that fill #4 for find me at the sweet spot. If not, I'll go back in two more weeks for another.

...and I'm getting a third fill on Wednesday. I was banded 05-04-07 and have lost 18 pounds, but that happened on the two-week pre-op diet. I've not lost anything since then, and am bouncing up and down with 2 pounds lost/gained since being banded. I have a 10cc VG band. I think I've got 4ccs in right now. I would appreciate feedback from people who have been in a similar position, and have gone on to lose weight after their third fill. Thanks.

I don't feel restriction. I just stop because I start to feel a little full, but no restriction. Today after lunch, I felt a little bit like sliming was starting, but no restriction. I know what restriction feels like because I felt it for one day after my first fill. Since then, I've not felt that. I've even PBd once after eating a cookie too fast. But, yes, I can eat hard salami and just about anything except a hot dog, unless I chew very well. I'll let you know how it goes after my 3rd fill tomorrow morning.

Tomorrow will make two weeks since my second fill. Tomorrow will make my third fill. I hope like Hell that I get some more restriction. As it stands now, this is a typical days' menu for me: 5:00am coffee with half-n-half and Sweet-n-Low 8:00am Coffee with half-n-half and Sweet-n-Low 9:00am Decaf coffee with half-n-half and Sweet-n-Low 10:00am 1 cup cottage cheese Noon 1 cup cooked vegetables 3 slices cheddar or Swiss cheese 3 slices hard salami 1:00pm Diet iced tea 1 sugar-free hard candy (Live Savers) 2:00pm Diet iced tea 1 sugar-free hard candy (Live Savers) 3:00pm Diet generic Crystal Light 4:00pm Diet generic Crystal Light 5:30pm Coffee with half-n-half and Sweet-n-Low 6:00pm large salad (bagged salad mix); probably 2 cups, with Ranch dressing large piece of steak ¼ cup fat-free cottage cheese 1 cup plain, fat-free yogurt with Splenda mixed in 7:00pm 3 scoops No sugar-added ice cream or 1 sugar-free pudding 8:00pm Diet generic Crystal Light 2 or 3 pieces of sugar-free hard candy (Live Savers) I mean, I just sat here at my desk and had creamed spinach, 3 slices of hard salami, 3 slices of cheddar cheese, and a few sips of diet iced tea and I feel no restriction. I hope I have restriction after my third fill tomorrow. I'm beginning to think that something is wrong with me, because everyone else is doing so well.

I was banded May 4th, and will have my first fill this week -- May 31st. I hafta go straight to work after the fill, and from things I've read on these boards, I could experience lots of things. I'm scared and nervous that I will be running for the bathroom to throw up after drinking sips of Water. Or, that my stomach will be making all sorts of noises. I'm not so worried about the noises. I am, however, worried about running to the bathroom a lot. I MUST be at work that day, since I have month-end duties that MUST be done that day. I truly am worried that I'll be sick and spend the majority of the day miserable. Am I worrying needlessly?

...and now I'm a little hesitant. Has anyone else felt this way? I bet that's a stupid question. Of COURSE there are others who have felt the way I do right now, and that is this: I've been on a liquid diet now for a week and have lost 6 pounds, so if I can do that, why do I need the band? I'm scared that something will go wrong during surgery. After all, this IS major surgery, right? Now that I've waited so long to be approved by insurance, and I'm acclimated to the liquid diet, and I'm not smoking pre-surgery, and I passed all of the pre-op tests two days ago, and I've arranged for someone to fill in for me at work, and the big day is looming........ ..........well, I'm experiencing some fear now with thoughts of, "Is this the right thing to do?" If anyone felt this way before being banded, and has come through just fine, please give me some reassurance. Thanks.

I've got three words for you.......... Dr. Trace Curry. I am going for my first fill with him this morning. Go to Trace W. Curry, M.D. Lap Band Surgeon :: Home for contact information.

Wow. It's not even seven o'clock in the morning and reading this thread has my teeth on edge. I abhor clutter. Having said that, I will tell you that I live with four of the messiest people on the face of the planet -- my husband, and his three kids. So, my teeth are on edge a lot. The kids each have their own bedrooms, and I don't bother looking in their rooms any longer. It's just not worth getting upset over. In order to walk into the 12-year-old's bedroom, you nee to kick a path through clothes, empty Cereal bowls, crayons and colored pencils, used Kleenex, etc. The 18- and 20-year-old boys are the same way when they are home from college. The basement is my husband's realm, and there's only enough room to walk uncomfortably through piles of computer parts and bookcases full of books. The only way I keep my sanity is that I keep the remainder of the house clutter-free and clean. I have all of the canned foods in my pantry faced to the front, and sorted by type of food. I dust and mop each weeked, as well as do all of the laundry and all of the yard work. It's not the my husband WON'T do it, it's that I am afraid he won't do it "right", so I do it. If a kid leaves something out for more than a day, I put it into a garbage bag, named a "clutter bag" and then I stash the bag somewhere. They now know that if they are missing something, they need to find a clutter bag and search for it. If the clutter bag remains untouched for more than a month, it goes to the trash. The first time one of the kids lost his iPod, and discovered that I had put it in a clutter bag aimed for the trash, he was keen to make sure it stayed in his bedroom instead of on the end table in the living room. Same for the 12-year-old and her skates. She lost a pair to the trash, and now she guards them with her life since SHE is the one who will hafta fork over money to replace the stuff that gets pitched. I know that I am a clean freak, living amongst hoarders and people who don't place a clean house high on their priority list. They say that there is more to life than having a clean house. They aren't wrong, and I'm not wrong. We are just different. And we found a way to live with the difference.

I've only told four people about me being banded because I don't have the patience to deal with negative comments and ignorant "holier than thou" personalities regarding their summation of MY choice. I'm not concerned that their judgmental attitudes would upset me. Rather, I'm afraid I would hafta kick their judgmental asses for postulating to me that I have taken "the easy way out" and have not lost weight the "correct way". It was just WAY easier to keep it to myself. I mean, were I to make a personal decision to have a hysterectomy, get a tattoo, have breast augmentation, or get a mole removed from my left butt cheek, I wouldn't spout that to the world, either. Just my two cents......

Oh, and by the way........Dr. Curry has his own message boards (see them here) for lap banders. He and his staff are wonderful.

I live in West Chester and was banded 05-04-07 at the Deaconess Hospital by Dr. Trace Curry. I lost 9 pounds on the pre-op diet, and 10 pounds since being banded, but things have slowed down down. I will get my first fill 06-07-07. I have an underactive thyroid and take 225mcg of Levothyroxine a day. I'm still learning how all of this works, and look forward to that first fill. I need to remember to eat SLOWLY and not drink while eating or just before. So far, I'm glad that I was banded.

I was banded 05-04-07 and I'm leaving in about 15 minutes for my post-op exam. I've lost 19 pounds as of this morning. I am on clear liquids and if I drink one more cup of chicken broth, I'll puke. I start the pureed diet today and can't wait.

My surgeon wisely had me follow a liquid diet for two weeks pre-op. I had 5-to-6 packets of the Medifast diet each day -- no bars or supplemental foods at all. The first 5 days were Hell. Truly. After day 6, however, I found that I got used to not eating and immediately after surgery, I found that I didn't WANT to eat. Today makes one week since my surgery, and I have been following a clear liquid diet -- much more stringent than the Medifast diet. As I type this, my stomach is growling but my surgeon told me that this is a time when I simply hafta suck it up and wait until I can advance to the pureed diet. That step will happen after my follow-up exam this morning in about two hours. For the next week, I can have foods the consistency of thin mashed potatoes -- but it will be food, and I can't wait. I've lost 19 pounds in three weeks. All during this process, I had the same thoughts as you. That being, "If I can lose weight this way, why do I need the band?" Let's examine that thought. I'm 46 years old. I've deprived myself of food off and on all of my life in order to be thin and healthy. I've been obese since I was 8 years old, so I've been losing and gaining and losing and gaining -- through self-deprivation, diet programs, diet pills, shakes, powders -- you name it, I've done it -- for nearly 40 years. And THAT'S why I need the band. This is a tool to help me STOP the cycle of lose-gain. Now I will be able to eat real foods, in portions my body needs to be healthy, and I will no longer be ABLE to overeat. I will physically be unable to overindulge. That's why I need this band. I will have no restriction for another three weeks (my surgeon does fills at week 4). I realize that adding this small amount of food will probably have me more hungry than I am at this moment, but I will deal with it. I didn't think I would make it through the first 5 days of the Medifast, and now I'm itching to have some of it since I can't right now. I think it will be okay. Let's just take it one day at a time. My two cents........