SalOdyssey

Her judgement or lack thereof says more about her then you. I've been very public about my weight loss and my intention to get the sleeve done. My support has been beyond what I thought. People who proclaim the easy way out excuse, couldn't go through this process if they've tried. They should be happy that you've decided to get healthy rather than criticize you. People who put down other people are small and narrow minded. Your success bothers them, so keep succeeding. You do you!! Haters gonna hate.

What about talking to your NUT or Surgeon and explaining the burden of purchasing them? Provide them with the ones you can afford and compare them to their required ones and see what they say. My surgeon has his preferred ones, but has also approved other ones as well. Or buy what you can afford and don't bring it up unless they ask.

I use the Pure Protein chocolate ones and they're very good. I usually do mine with 1 scope with 8 ounces of Water and several ice cubes, and drink it over the course of 15 minutes or so. This is my favorite one out of the powders I've tried. I even add regular PB 2 or the chocolate PB2 to reinforce that chocolate flavor. Look on Amazon, as I've found them relatively affordable there. Also my local Target store also carries the Chocolate Pure Protein. My NUT said to just watch the carb count per serving. I usually start my day with this Protein shake. On days where I'm late and miss Breakfast, I usually do a double serving as a brunch type intake. I believe the 1 scope calorie count is 160-170.

I guess it depends on your personality and temperament. I love the pressure and relish it. Bring on the negative comments and calling me fat, or whatever. I use that to fuel me on days where I want to stop or be lazy. Use it to prove the doubters and the uneducated ones that their negativity and BS won't stop me.

I've told mostly everyone I know and even started a Facebook page about my weight loss journey. I'm still in the pre-op stage. My family, friends and colleagues have been more supported than I could've imagined. The texts, Facebook comments and private messages have been beyond my wildest expectations. I'm humbled by all the support they've shown me. Even people whom I thought were close minded to this kind of thing have shown tremendous support for me. Good luck to you all!!

I normally drink (pre-surgery) about 90 ounces of Water per day. 64 ounces should be easy for me. Tips I've picked up on is to drink consistently throughout the day. Small sips here and there add up quickly and next thing you know you've gotten down 64 ounces. Keep your spirits up!!

Stay strong! You've got this!! The liquid diet is what I'm dreading most.

You've got this!!! Kick fear in the face.

I make a HUGE batch in my crock pot and then let it cool and freeze. They warm up fairly quickly in a pot when ready too.

This reminds me, I have to ask my surgeon if he uses them.

I've been liking the Premier Protein chocolate ones. I am currently waiting for pre-op surgical testing/clearance.

Hello All, It's been several years since I've been here. When I last was here I was going to go out of state to have the Lap-band done. Well, I had all the approvals in my hand and my surgeon essentially abandoned me. I have my personal speculations about why this happened as I've encountered several others who had the same thing happen to them. Maybe it was a blessing in disguise. Any who, at the end of 2013 I decided to give weight loss surgery another go. I redid my research on all the procedures and settled on the Gastric Sleeve, which is the procedure I feel most comfortable with. I watched the videos of the actual surgery, I watched more videos on YT than I could count. Then I started to look for Dr's in my area. I found a surgeon and went to his seminar just after the New Year going into 2014. Met him at his seminar, with a room of about 30-40 people similar to me from all walks of life, short, tall, male, female, black, white, Asian, Catholic, Jewish, etc. This room was as diverse as it gets. A few days after the seminar I was called with my 1 on 1 consultation appointment. I laid out my expectations and the surgeon and his dietician laid out theirs. Well here I am 14 months out from that appointment down 139 pounds to date, without having the Sleeve done yet. Surgeon tells me that I've lost more weight in 1 year w/o surgery than some of his patients have with it. I found my weight out sometime after my 1st consultation. The surgeons scale didn't go up high enough. I had found out my weight during a failed out-patient hospital procedure, 688 pounds. That was then and as of this past Saturday I am down to 549. My surgeon wants me to continue to stay the course. He had a good analogy for me, I'm like a surfer riding a wave, why interrupt that now when I am doing so well. He's got a valid point too in that, the more I lose the safer surgery becomes and hopefully less painful the recovery will be. I see him in a few weeks and hope to bring him another good weight loss number. I'm slowly running into the problem of my clothes not fitting, my shirts are getting too big and my shorts are practically falling off of me. My dog saw a little more of my ass than she wanted to see. Made the mistake of not holding my shorts when I was walking in the house. LOL! It's both a good and bad problem to have. Good in that it shows results, bad in that buying clothes gets expensive still at this size. I've been pretty vocal about my journey with my family and friends. They've been extremely supportive!! Words of thanks don't feel like enough of a way to say thank you to them all. It truly has humbled me in seeing all the love and support from people both online and in my community. The support truly has been my motivation and thunder to keep plowing forward with this. Being obese as I was I compared it too a prison sentence. Yes, I was free in the technical sense that I haven't committed a crime, but my weight confined me to my home most of the time, which is essentially prison. Well, before I write a novel, it's good to be back. Now time to catch up on what I've missed!

You look great!!!

Thank you!!! It's definitely been a roller coaster ride thus far and I expect nothing different moving forward.

As I am sure some of you may know that Medicare has a 6 months exclusion from doing the surgery. In this 6 months they require doctor controlled diet. Well my question is has anyone on Medicare had the 6 months Dr. diet exclusions waived? And if you did what did you do to get it waived. All help will be greatly appreciated. Thank you, Sal

Thank you! Sal

This has been a long time coming for me. I originally saw my surgeon in October 2007 I believe. I got going on some tests in mid 2008. Went to NY from Florida to see surgeon and he said that he switched hospitals and was waiting on re-certification from Medicare. He was hoping to get the certificate in the summer. He didn't get the certificate till Thanksgiving 2008. I has held off on some test till he got his certification, so that they would still be valid. Well I started the final round of test. I got the physiological consult next week and an endoscopy at the end of the month and the gall bladder ultrasound Weds. These are all the final tests. I hope to have all results to the doctor the first week of May and then schedule surgery for the second week of June. I have been dieting since after the holidays. I have lost some weight, but don't know how much since the scale numbers don't go that high. But I know I have lost since my shorts seem to be falling off of me and the skin feel a little looser. I just really hope the rest of the results come back okay. I have wanted this for too long and I hope surgery is in my near future. Having it in June give me plenty of time to heal before coming home to FL from NY. I will also see the surgeon multiple times to make sure all is okay. Plus I are up there for a vacation and a friends wedding. Wish me luck down the stretch... Sal

I needed a place to ask for advice, and this is the first place I thought of. It may be long so bare with me. I currently live with my mother, fiance', younger brother and sister. My bro and sis are not involved directly so to speak. My dad passed 10 years ago this December. Here is the dilemma, Timing. My DR. switched hospitals sometime after I started seeing him. I am a medicare patient. He was certified as a Center of Excellence but because he switched hospital his certification was put on hold till the new hospital could be visited. The visit took place but as with anything to do with the government they are taking forever getting the doctor his certificate so he can resume surgery for medicare patients. I called his office the beginning of September and was told there certificate is on the way should be here by months end. I said Ok and will call back then. I called last week and still no certificate. I spoke to the office manager who said medicare will notify them within 90 days. The medicare rep said probably more like 60 days. The office manager said they have set aside 2 days for his loyal patients who have waited for medicare to move there a@@es. ONe day is right before Thanksgiving the other is a week after. This is all pending if they receive their certificate in time. Here's the problem. Mom and fiance both work for a school district that frowns upon taking time off. Surgery time for me is 3 weeks out of state. 7-10 prior for pre-op and final meeting with doctor. Then surgery day, and then 2 weeks stay after surgery to make sure all is ok and then a visit to the doctor one final time before I come home. I want this so bad and I would like my mom and finace' to be there when I have surgery at the very least. I know they can not take the 3 weeks off. The problem is god forbid anything should happen to me on the table, I do not think my mom would ever be able to live with herself knowing I was there getting cut open and she was home. I think that would send her into a tailspin especially that my father has passed. My options for surgery are these: 1. do it on the 2 days the doctor set aside. Because of the holidays i will get killed on airline tickets. Also the added expense of getting around, to appointments 2. doing it after the new year and save some money flying. Also the added expense of getting around to appointments. 3. wait till June when I am do to go to NY anyway. Fiance' and I spend 1 month there visiting her parents since she is done with school. Doing it in June would eliminate flying. Also this save me additional monies because I already have my car there. Also mom would be off from work as well and could be there. So many decision. I am torn as to what to do. I have wanted this surgery like it was yesterday, but I am also trying to think of everyone else. I don't think that if I were to god forbid die that I could live with myself knowing I left my mother behind and she wasn't there with me. I haven't been able to sleep because of this,my mind is working overtime. Can anyone help, Please? Sal :tt1::confused:

Thanks for the advice all. My family and I are discussing the options. I am leaning towards doing it at Thanksgiving. Sal

The medicare requirements here in FL are ridiculous! They make you jump through hoops. In NY there is little or no restriction. So my decision was easy so to speak. The surgeons here in Fl will not even see you until you have completed month 16 or the 18 month diet requirement, among other things. Thanks everyone! The family and I are going to sit down this weekend and hopefully Iron this out. Sal

Well. Like I said the doctor wants to see me 1 week before surgery to I guess go over everything. Then after I see him I have to go to the hospital for pre-op blood work and stuff and I am sure a ton of paperwork. My finace' and mom are going to try to come for 3-4 days to be with me after surgery. The rest of the time I would be on my own. I would be staying with my aunt ( moms sister) before and after surgery. Fiance' family doesn't have a spare bedroom and when I stay in the summer I sleep sitting up on a love seat. I am getting the band. They still have to make 5 slices in me to access the area. Thats what I meant by cut open. I do not mind the 3 weeks at all. I am going to Long Island to get the surgery. The doctor is Dr. Collin Brathwaite. I hope I spelled that right. Sal PS: thanks for the responses.

I am hoping for late October early November. My doc is waiting for his re-certification as a Center of Excellence. He switched hospitals and the certificate should be on the way within the next 2-4 weeks according to his office. I am dying to have it done, the wait is killing me now. Sal

I am using Medicare, except that I live in FL and will have the Lapband done in NY. Apparently there are different rules for medicare and how the reimburse the doctor in different parts of the country. NY is apparently less restrictive with the before surgery requirement, whereas FL requires 8 months supervised diet before a surgeon will even see you. I have to call my surgeon either this week of next to hopefully get a date. I got only a few things left too do, Greenfield filter, Physc consult, gall bladder ultrasound and endoscopy. Sal

Anyone????

I live in Florida and as most Medicare patients here know is that Medicare requires 18 months doctor supervised diet before the surgeon will even see you. Well when finding that out about a year a change ago I decided to look to other states to have the surgery. I choose NY because there is no requirement. At that time gas and traveling were cheap. I am almost done doing all the test the doctor in NY requires. My mother had asked me to call again in Florida to see if the 18 month requirement was still in play. I called a local Center of Excellence and they told me the 18 month requirement was still in play. I asked if there was any way around it, to which the girl responded that if I got something in writing from Medicare stating they would cover it without the 18 months she would give it to the doctors and they would see if they could do me locally in instead of traveling. So do you think there is anyway to get it done locally? Will Medicare grant me an exception of some type? Anyone have any information that could help me? Sal