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@@northcountyr1 what OP means is some states consider bariatric surgery and essential service, so insurance plans on the exchange are required to provide coverage. There is a sticky on it in the insurance forum.

Hello, everybody. I haven't been checking in here enough lately I see. I am glad to see those of us still here. I have had an interesting second year. On the positive side, I had a hernia repair and a tummy tuck in June of last year and an arm lift and a breast lift in October. I am very pleased with the outcome. On a not so postive side, I continually have problems with reflux at night so that I can no longer eat after 4 or drink after 6 at night or I will be up all night. Ingesting reflux has given me pneumonia once already. It continues to get worse and I have been totally unfilled since last September. Luckily, I have continued to lose minute amounts of weight per month - at least not gain. But my diet is mostly liquid or soft foods. My ticker below reflects my current position. I have had an upper GI and and endoscopy in the last month and when I saw my bariatric doctor this week, we looked at the films together. I have pouch dilation without band slippage and scar tissue between the band and stomach which is why I have restriction despite the band being empty. Bottom line - band has to come out. I can either have a band placed back in with no guarantee it won't happen again or convert to gastric bypass. I think I have decided to get the GB. That said, do I regret getting the band? Hell no. It has been hard work for two years and no easy road. I have had reflux almost the entire journey. I never could really eat the types of food others could. Dense Proteins were a problem for me. I had constant follow up care at the doctor's. I followed band rules. I will get a surgery date when I get back from a trip to Pennsylvania next week. It's not my ideal choice but a better one none the less for me. I don't want to lose but 10-15 more pounds and would be happy to stay where I am for the rest of my life. BUT, I have a history of not being able to keep it off so I will have the surgery.

Wow, I'm sorry you had so many problems with fills! Where are you in Southern California? I am in the Los Angeles area and am seeing Dr. Milton Owens at Coastal Center for Obesity. He's been doing bariatric surgery since 1987, Lap Band since 2001. He seems very open to giving the right care, and my PCP highly recommends him. Just a thought...

So are we all better now Kathy? I'm praying so you'll still be my bariatric god-aunt, my natural family's pretty well died out. I need you, Fluffy Chix, Creek Imp and Little Green to have my back, life has been pummeling me recently. Sent from my VS880PP using BariatricPal mobile app

I went to fitness mania we have in my area and as soon as i told the guy i needed a Protein shake for bariatric he pointed me in the nectar Syntrax... they have all flavors! Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using the BariatricPal App

I'm not actually at the very beginning, but now that I have a surgery date and I've completed all the pre-op classes, it feels real. I'm 53, currently weigh 334 (on my home scale--and that's what I'm going by!) My highest weight was 359 about a year and a half ago. Also a year and a half ago I swore I would never get WLS. It seemed contrary to all my convictions about being body positive, the ability to change eating habits, rejecting societal pressures for people (women, especially but no exclusively) to physical harm their bodies in order to diminish their presence, a lifetime of trying to be good enough just as I was...all that and more. So I went to the Bariatric Nutrition center with the intent of finding support for addressing food addiction through a mindful eating practice. No one pressured me about surgery, which was great, and I started a series of uninspiring appointments with a variety of nutritionists. I did lose 20 lbs and then I gained 15 lbs and the self-loathing and frustration amped up. At the same time, I was diagnosed with a degenerative condition in both of my heels. I had all sorts of treatments and therapies, but the reality was that it can’t be fixed, only managed. It really interferes with my daily life and makes it difficult for me to do everything from walk the dog to travel. The doc said that the most effective way of managing it was to lose a lot of weight. I still didn’t want surgery. I thought I would just double down on the dieting. I have no other co-morbidities: heart is fine, blood pressure is fine, no diabetes, only borderline cholesterol. I had waited my whole life for some diagnosis that would be the magic switch in my brain to get me to stop overeating. One day I was talking to someone at work who happens to be a doctor and when he asked me how my heels were doing, I told him what the other doc had said. Very simply, he said: “you should get wls.” At any other moment, with any other person, I would have been offended, or defensive, or upset, but for some reason, I knew he was right. I then found out the next obstacle: my insurance would not cover it and I am not willing to incur the kind of debt necessary to cover the cost on my own. In truth, I was relieved. I now had an excuse to not do it! And then, another person encouraged me to write a letter to the hospital, and used her influence to get it into the correct hands. Within weeks, I got the word that my appeal was accepted. I felt like someone had called my bluff!!! So I started doing the pre-op classes in January. I was still very reluctant, and not at all a good sport. Everything I heard made the whole process sound miserable, but I figured I could change my mind up to the moment I was on the operating table. Over the months I talked to some friends who had the surgery and talked to close family and friends. It was their gentle support that helped me come to some sense of peace. I am very, very blessed to have that. My plan was to finish all the pre-op stuff in the spring, have the surgery early in the summer while I’m on a break from work, and be ready to start the school year by the time I was starting to eat solid foods again. That’s pretty much how it is working out, though my surgery will be in early August because I decided to have RNY instead of sleeve. I made this decision because I do have some acid reflux and didn’t want to have that be an issue, and also I figured I’d get the most bang for my buck. I need the most effective tool I can get in order to lose and maintain the weight. Now I am getting into the home stretch. I’m trying not to eat everything in sight, as if I’ll never eat again, and I’m trying to stay focused on the positive outcomes and not the challenges to getting there. Surgery still freaks me out. The post surgery eating and digestion issues definitely freak me out. But I’m going to keep going, in spite of everything, and keep reminding myself that I am worth the effort.

holy hell! I'm frustrated. I'm above my bounce weight of 130's for maintenance . It's not a good feeling. I'm getting things reigned in before they get out of hand. Some days I need to shut my inner voice off. I'm telling myself It's my new medication, My sports injury, I might as well eat this because I'm already at a higher weight. The scale is not moving. I'm pressing on! I'm tracking food and I have increased my workout for the last 5 days. Keeping up all the things I have been taught by my bariatric brothers, sisters and professionals. Waiting for the scale to move again.

Greetings from snowy Ohio. I feel you're making a good step for your future health, if she couldn't support in this she wasn't the right person to share a future with. I know my late husband would have been the same way, sad isn't it? I'm going thru RnY in a few months and I'm probably old enough to be your grandmother. Shoot there are days I think I could be Methuselah s granny dragging this fat body around but I'm gonna have a good tool to,help me continue on living. Let us all know how your surgery goes you've got a worldwide Bariatric family here and we groove on success. Sent from my VS880PP using BariatricPal mobile app

OK - quick recap - banded almost 5 years, stomach dilation, converting to Sleeve - Insurance approved and surgery scheduled for 9/7/10. I made all of these plans before really getting to question my surgeon about the sleeve so I had an appointment on 7/14 and we spent quite a bit of time talking about sleeves. He usually uses a 36f bougie and oversews. I'll be in the hospital for 2-3 days and I will have a drain - yuck. I will be his 6th or 7th sleeve but as he put it "in Boston that may be the most any one surgeon has done", now I don't know if that is true but I do know that my surgeon is GOOD. I have full confidence in his surgical abilities - he is the Cheif of Minimally Invasive Surgery and Bariatrics at BIMDC in Boston. Am I a little nervous - Yup - but he has done hundreds if not thousands of lap RNY, the guy knows his stuff and was very fluent in explaining the Sleeve process so I know I'll be OK. We discussed the possibility of switching from lap to open if there was a problem and that I may end up with a modified sleeve (a little larger on top) due to scarring from the band. All in all the risk seems very acceptable and I'm really starting to look forward to my new stomach. In the mean time being unfilled in murder and I've stopped gaining but I am sitting about 25lbs heavier then when I had Fluid - our goal right now is to pamper my stomach and let it resume as much of its normal shape as possible so that I can has as close to a normal sleeve as possible. Fingers crossed - the up side - 3 weeks off of work!!!!

I'm one week away to on the 5th.... Sitting in the doc office waiting to meet the bariatric team... Had a set back with my heart, still waiting on clearance from the cardiologist - but he said proceed with everything! Just had a CTA scan yesterday- figured if they didn't stop the test and rush up to a room I passed! Crossing my fingers! Will know more Friday on that! Had the endoscopy and upper GI last week- all went well... So know it's done to the final stretch!! I'm more excited then scared! Good luck to everyone! June 5th can't come fast enough!

Good articles Hawk, especially the last one. It mentions about a 5% increase over time. I'd say that's still "not like it used to be". I like the books suggested in one of the links. I didn't know there was a Bariatrics for Dummies. Some of those are really well written.

If you pick a good shake that's has lots of vitamins and minerals I think it shouldnt be a problem. But again I'm not a Dr. I had to do a two week 4-5 shakes a day plus clear liquids. I started that around 316 and the morning of surgery (12/10) I was 300.1. So almost 16lbs in 14 days. The shakes they put me on were Bariatric advantage and I had to purchase the through my center. They were ok. They got kinda thick upon blending and yiu could doctor them up with fruits and sf syrups. But Dr said it definitely did my liver some good Good luck to you and always check with surgeon first.

Bariatric advantage chewy bites for iron and calcium. Store brand Flintstones chewable for multi vitamin.

I started with Bariatric Advantage chewables but now am moving to over the counter vitamins.

Don't beat yourself up. Obesity is a multi factorial disease. It is caused by many things. Eating habits, activity level, genetics, gut microbes, hormones and who knows what else. The medical community can't even tell us exactly why weight loss surgery works. We just know that it is the most effective treatment that we have at the moment. Everyone is different. Don't compare yourself with anyone else. I also believe that stress is a big contributor as it affects our hormones and our genes. I still see my bariatric nutritionist at 20 months out and have no plans to stop because we have to be diligent and do everything we can to fight this disease. If you have access to one, I would highly recommend doing that because you are right, there is so much misinformation and information that does not pertain to us out there. Time and time again I have found her information to be spot on. She reels me in back to nutrition and away from the confusion. Also, I have said it before and I still believe that if we get to a point where we feel like we are loosing control, reaching out for psychological help is a good thing. It can't hurt and I've seen many people who said they were so glad they did. You can do this.

1 vote for the next,president of Bariatric Pal Ms FLUFFY CHIX! Sent from my VS880PP using BariatricPal mobile app

I am a 'recipe collector' - I tend to graze at night and my way to get out of that habit is instead to look for new recipes and drink more Water. I keep a notebook of new recipes and once we have them, if they are deemed 'do overs' then they get transcribed to a 3 ring binder that is going to be my 'go to recipes.' Some great sites for recipes are: http://www.emilybites.com/ http://theworldaccor...e.blogspot.com/ kalynskitchen.com skinnytaste.com cookinglight.com myfitnesspal.com (look in the community section, they have recipe threads and suggestions there) and any weight watchers sites - just be cognizant of any non-bariatric site, that you have to pay attn to the carbs and what not. I have some other sites bookmarked in my netbook, but I hope some of these will help you! Feel free to add me on MFP and I publicize my diaries. Anything you see on there, I'll send you the recipe if you want it. And many ppl who said "food is just blah/nourishment only to me now" yes, I agree with you. I struggle with it many a times, but let's change that perspective. Challenge yourself with new recipes, new plates (hey alot of eating is the environment/appearance of things), new cooking utensils (who all has a wok? who knows how to really use it? can you make a sludge? eggface introduced me to that!). It's all about perspective people. When you are feeling blah, it's time to reach out for motivation and we'll pull you out of that as we have to eat every day. Let's make it fun, low calorie, healthy and move on to goal! Best of luck! xx

Hmm nope, found a Boston bariatric clothing exchange? Sent from my SM-G920V using the BariatricPal App

Everybody needs help sometime, if they don't supply it you may have to seek a bariatric consult somewhere else. Each of us is too precious a life to squander- if you NEED it Go Get IT!🌈😛

You can request three free samples from: www.doctorsbestweightloss.com Once you go to this site, click on the purple bar in the lower right corner that says "leave a message" or "chat now". If it's after business hours, you will have to leave your sample request as a message. Otherwise, you can chat with an online chat person. They will let you request a Protein bar, Protein shake, protein pudding or Soup in your choice of flavor. I sampled some protein pudding (Bariatric fusion chocolate) and liked it so much that I ordered a tub of it. They have great prices and service. The samples only take a few days to ship to you. Also, Bariatric Choice will give you two samples at your request. It's usually a chicken broth and chocolate pudding. Click on the following website and fill out the online form for these samples: http://www.bariatricchoice.com/sample-request?utm_source=bariatricsamples&utm_medium=postcard&utm_content=BC3Q2015&utm_campaign=professionals

I had a feeling you would say that (that it is difficult living without the band). Its been pretty easy so far with my food but I think its only been a few weeks since my band was taken out and my stomach is still swollen. I can tell that I can eat more than I used to (little restriction) but I also have little appetite and no cravings (thank goodness). I will investigate this new band you talk about and see if my bariatric surgeons use it or not. I think you are in Australia? I am in California in the US so the band has not been around as long as it has been where you are located so maybe they are more advanced than here. I also heard from someone from this site about doctors suturing not only the port area to the stomach but also suturing the band to the stomach. Have you ever heard of that? Maybe this would help slippage. Maybe the new band solves the problem of erosion and slippage. I was wondering how your port healed after it was taken out? The area were my port was located has been accumulating Fluid and has scar tissue. Its like the size of a small egg. Its very hard. I can't sleep on my stomach like I used to because of the pressure of laying on this area. My doctors have told me that this is common and have been to the doctor twice for them to take the fluid out. It feels like a fill or unfill when they withdraw the fluid. They told me if it continues to fill up with fluid, they could be a drain in it. Its slowly getting smaller so maybe my body will accumulate it eventually. Thanks for sharing your experience. Good luck to you! Please keep us posted on what you decide to do. You will be helping not only me but others that are trying to figure out what do without their band.

10/2009 Take a good look. This is what Morbid Obesity looks like. Let me preface this by saying that at first I was going to keep it all a hush-hush big super secret squirrel secret. But I figured blogging would not only help me chronicle my journey, but serve as a sounding board. Of course I run the risk of opening myself up to criticism and negativity. But I figured…they talked about Jesus they’ll talk about me too. And what’s more is – I really don’t give a rat’s sweaty nads. *shrug* With that said… I’ve never had a problem with being full-figured. In fact, I’ve embraced it. It’s a part of the me that I’ve been proud to be. Even flaunted my curves. And its not like I’ve been starved for attention. Most…well, a lot (only basing on what I’ve been told) of men (women too) think that I’m (are you ready for this?) SEXY. I’m not bragging at all…but can you imagine? Me, at 298lbs…on a 5′3″ frame. What doctors frown at in disapproval. What some people in public look at in disgust…but yet others…desire. To this day. As recently as an hour ago. 8/2008 *smh kinda confused* Admittedly, I’ve thought the same thing for a long time. My self esteem has remained in its proper sometimes over-elevated place. The men folk (husband included) never seemed to have had a problem with it, so I never had a problem with it… Until now. I’m at my biggest ever. Almost 30lbs more than I weighed when I was 9 months pregnant (2 years ago). I’m uncomfortable. I don’t like what I see in the mirror any more. My feet hurt. My knees ache. (ironically enough, the VERY reason why working out has been such a chore – that aside from time: 9-5 job, jewelry biz, almost 2 year old daughter, and a hubby that works nights/weekends). And now, my once high (sometimes too high) self esteem has taken a nosedive. So what to do?? 9/2002 I’ve done the diets, the shakes, the cleanses, the “lifestyle change”, the pills, the work-out regimen, etc… Something has to be done. NOW. So after about 6 months of mulling it over, I’ve opted to have the LAP-BAND®®® surgery. In fact, that’s the entire reason for this blog. My goal is 75-100lbs. Realistically, at 200lbs, I’ll still be +size…but ALOT better off than I am now. I’m making a decision to better my life, and thereby, my family’s life. I will learn healthier habits to pass on to my daughter and share with my husband, as well as actually be around a lot longer to see her grow up, and grow into the olden golden years with her daddy. This vixen, is about to change her game up, for good. I have my physical exam and initial info session at the Bariatric Surgeon’s office on Monday. Then comes the consult to chart the path forward, counseling, etc. I will join the Million Pound Challlenge to help get me started on the right track. But that’s Monday – and it’s going to be a life-changing day. So this weekend, I’m gettin it in. *lol* I’m gonna eat what I want…probably for the last time (at least for a long time); Celebrate my 35th bday (late, bc of all the snow) and celebrate in anticipation of a new life and a new, even sexier, healthier me… I’m excited. I can only pray that by sharing this journey, it will garner some support & encouragement from friends, acquaintances, and strangers alike. But even if it doesn’t, it’s no skin off my teeth. I’m CERTAIN that my words will touch or encourage SOMEONE out there. 1/2010 Beauty can be found at ANY size. From a size 6 to 26. However, HEALTH cannot. And that’s all its about for me. Taking off some pounds to add some years to my life. Phine, re-defined… *sexy grin*

I struggle with the same thing. I am definitely still low energy. My surgery was 3/9/16. I think it is pretty common to be totes the first few months. I guess no one posts they are too tired to work out in Instagram. I have done workouts, but I was super tired the next day. Everyone keeps telling me it is still very early on. I have a bariatric small group training I do that really helps. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

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I'm scheduled for the Gastric Sleeve on January 9th with Dr. Alejandro Gutierrez from Mexico Bariatric at Mi Doctor Hospital in Tijuana, Mexico. I'm kinda nervous and excited at the same time. My husband and I fly in the 8th and fly out the 12th.