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Should Medicare/Medicaid cover the band?
Ang1982 replied to wrk-n-prgrss's topic in General Weight Loss Surgery Discussions
When I had my consult with my surgeon back in November I asked him why BC medical didn't cover the Lapband procedure but covered the Gastric Bypass. His answer was interesting and I cannot recall everything he told me but what he did tell me made sense. He said that like any elective surgery there is a budget that is allotted and that covering a surgery such as this will end up with only a few a year being able to be done and huge weightlists (currently like Gastric). He also said that this type of surgery would be obviously then paid to him by the govt (or something like that) and that while it's not all about the money that it's not worth their while to take on a surgery that REQUIRES immense amounts of aftercare and that you don't want any joe-blow doing them and not committing to providing the required aftercare. He said it would be more profitable for him to do govt paid gallbladder surgeries and not do any Lapband not to mention he would then not be required to do a lot of post op. He choses to these surgeries and regulate how many he does to provide his patients with the best follow up that he can (he does NOT charge HIS patients for fills at all). I am probably leaving out a lot of what he told me as it was almost a month ago, but when he said it I was like - that makes COMPLETE sense. -
Kero you have made some excellent observations, some of them I subscribe to. I do understand there is now a psychologist on staff but I don't know how you get to him before or after surgery. I live in BC and know firsthand how long distant patients can get lost at TLBC. The aftercare support is second to none for Toronto and area patients. However, anyone long distance must give heed to support very carefully. For instance, for me to have a FREE fill, it costs me roughly $1,000 to fly to Toronto. Also, not being able to attend the "Boot Camp" and other support meetings can leave a long distance patient very much alone. As everyone knows the first few months everything that is unusual such as pain, vomiting, etc. can be very frightening. Not being able to get answers locally can equally be frightening. Where one clinic supplies fill nurses/doctors throughout Canada, TLBC does not do that. They rely on a DVD which has never been accepted by our ER or my GP as a training tool. BC now has a Dr. that does banding trained by Dr. Yau but he will not do fills for any patient other than his own. Mercifully, I was accepted as his patient before he stopped taking on others. All my points are yes TLBC is an excellent Clinic and Dr. Yau is the most experienced. Their aftercare is second to none, except for long distant patients, which can find it a bit tiresome getting help. Zena probably would back me up on this. As for comments on Nancy, I don't think it is the language barrier at all. I I had arranged a surgical date to have my port corrected but she was the direct cause of the surgery being cancelled. She used two needles and 5 tries to get the saline in as a test and told Dr. Yau there was no need for surgery. As a result I lost $1,000 for that trip only to make it a few months later AGAIN and this time I had it corrected. Nancy knew I was from BC but that didn't stop her from "advising the doctor" there was no problem putting in saline. Even when I told Dr. Yau it took 4 needles and twenty minutes to get in a fill. I thought the next day I would get anoher fill before going home On this trip, I told them I only wanted the band corected not moved. In the dressing room, Dr. Yau asked where I wanted it moved to. I was furious and told him to fix the damn thing I didn't want it moved. I really wonder if they talk to each other! FLASH! I just have received word that Nancy will be coming to Victoria, BC for fills. TLBC never told me. Communications anyone?????
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August Sleevers Want To Unit?
doxieville replied to doxieville's topic in Gastric Sleeve Surgery Forums
Hey amykins! I think i've seen you around the forum. :-) Imabear: i had it pretty easy. I was one of those whose doc did a long postop diet. It was about a month before I ate solid food. So when I did, I was ready. I've never overeaten, have never hurt my tummy or sleeve. I do eat something every 2-3 hours bcs I get hungry. And I am back to eating my pre-surgery pace. It doesn't take me long to eat. The only issue l had was 6 weeks post-op my gallbladder had to come out. That slowed down my weight loss a bit bcs I couldn't exercise. It's a great life, being a sleever. -
Fills aside, it might be beneficial to see a psychologist about why you're bingeing in the evening. It could be diet rebellion as you've identified but it doesn't explain why you trying to set yourself up to not fulfill your hopes. Did you binge pre-banding? If so, it's likely because you don't put a voice to your feelings about a particular issue (speaking from my own experience here). You need to schedule a non-eating activity as soon as you get home and become engrossed in it. Exercise is the best as you usually don't feel like bingeing afterwards but any activity that uses your hands will suffice. TV/Computer do not count. I know it sounds like BS and when you want to binge, you get stubborn and do it anyway but willpower will not just come to you. It's not about willpower at all but why you need to put tremendous amounts of unhealthy food in your mouth. Having restriction has stopped me from being physically able to binge but has brought so many other things to the surface that I am dealing with (for example work, parents etc.). I know it's a positive process but it is a difficult one. I have to say that not all bandsters have tremendous 'issues' but some do.
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I was banded in October, and post op weight loss has been verrry slow... and 100% MY FAULT, not my bands. I did the exact opposite of what I was supposed i.e. ate plenty of ice cream amongst other things. I was very frustrated with myself, but came to realize that I love having my band. Absolutely love it. It motivated me to get back on track quicker, and drag my ass to the gym. I like having it there as a (sometimes annoying) reminder that I chose this to help me. So now I am doing everything right, and have been for a few weeks and haven't lost any weight, but that's ok, I will. How can I not? I'll just keep at it, and I know it will come off. This is just for people so fed up with their band they regret, hopefully a little inspiration to keep going, because I know I will. :thumbup:
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So here it is...two days post op and I'm doing great!! Its been very manageable with pain never going above a 6 for me. The hospital docs and nurses were amazing and I truly think it couldn't get any better than that. At home in some pain but walking around. Mourning the loss of food but celebrating the five pounds I have already lost!! Maybe it's bc I've had two c-sections but this is truly a piece of cake. So excited to have made this choice!! May 7...here I come!!
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Great post!!! It is definitely a new life, and a chance at lift at that!! We're so lucky bc so many will never get this opportunity and we do! I know I feel very blessed!! Traceylynn we have the same date! I'm so ready!!
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Addendum to all that BS I wrote above...... I don't bother with my scales anymore anyway....... I go by how my clothes fit.
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First day of the stall hit while still on liquid diet phase. I consumed 184 calories that day. Second day was 1st day purées. I had 1/2 egg and 1/4 cup low-fat cottage cheese for 2 meals and all I had was the 2 meals. Yeah that’s all I had that day but I was so sick and tired of “sweet” tasting protein drinks I didn’t care. Yesterday I branched out and added a third meal of the Bariatric oatmeal. I double checked all my macros and I’ve only had about 20gm carbs for the 3 days combined. I did skip walking on the treadmill one of those days bc I had dr appts all day. Man I hope skipping one day on the treadmill doesn’t put me into a stall...
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OMG! It's here
Seattle WLS Newbie replied to tori_1983_canada's topic in PRE-Operation Weight Loss Surgery Q&A
Just submitted to insurance and looking at surgery the first week of April. Can't believe I have less than a month to go now... Excited and scared. Having trouble sleeping at night bc I can't stop thinking about what a change this will be. -
~.~Accountability~.~ for those of us really struggling
Road Queen replied to Firecallie's topic in LAP-BAND Surgery Forums
Jenny, I split mine up. During the week I try and do 20 minutes before work, and 20 minutes during the day, and 20 a night. Yesterday, I didn't want to exercise and was trying to get house stuff done - so I did 6 sessions of 10 minutes each. Although you don't get the cardio benefits, you are still burning calories and you are still getting exercise. Feb 3 goals 1. Walk 30 minutes - did 60 minutes 2. Follow bandster eating rules - yes 3. Fed ex mail reimbursement - no 4. Start cleaning bedroom closet - no no goals for Feb 4. but I did 60 minutes of walking Feb 5 goals 1. 60 minutes of walking 2. No eating after 7 3. Finish cleaning kitchen island and shelves 4. Journal instead of stress!! -
As you've mentioned before, we can all be very successful and healthy with either band as long as we follow the rules. Even the old LapBands aren't necessarily dangerous. I think we all agree that marketing is highly influential today and everything isn't always exactly what it seems. And all companies have their share of BS when it comes to marketing. Thankfully there are laws that can cause companies to have huge lawsuits/fines if their advertising is proven to be false or misleading. So get the best surgeon you can and trust his judgment.
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I am over two years in ad haven't paid a cent over my initial cost..Mis is right...complete BS
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well...I have to go out atleast on the weekends because I partially work at the club I go out to.......its not necessarily the feeling of booty call that bothers me at all, I dont want a real relationship right now...Ive figured that out so far...after being in one so serious for so long, I just dont want to put that much effort into another human being....the stripper doesnt make me feel like one anyways, hes had his eye on me since September! In fact he was a little nervous to talk to me again, he got my friend to do it for him at first...I need that male attention to feel pretty. I feel good because Im attractive enough to get that attention from guys...I really just like to feel attractive....Ithink my hormones are wacked from BC pills...in fact Im sure of it. Im getting them switched Monday so I should be feeling better. I dont feel degraded by guys unless they are talking about how fat I am, or ugly or something like that....I really like the attention. Trust me it felt good fall asleep in a man's arms, and wake up in them too....to be held with such passion that he didnt want me to get out of the bed. He's called me all day anyway, he's actually got a heart.
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Unfortunately there is no magic skin poofing button. LOL I wish! I have lost 152lbs and have a lot of the same issues with chaffing. Even so without long history of having that skin problem documented most insurances will not cover removing it, because they say it's cosmetic. I say BS. I had a terrible time with my bat wings....they were very large and even though I had gotten to my optimal weight I still had residual fat and tons of leftover skin and no matter what I did, nothing helped. I did not even realize how badly it pulled on my neck. So I pain 5950.00 to have them removed 5 weeks ago. I have to do the same with my stomach and breasts because everything is hanging low pulling on my spine. I have osteoarthritis of the spine and have had 6 back surgeries so far. Hoping to hold off another one. Anyway, you think insurance would cover these things given Morbid obesity is a metabolic disease. Yikes! It will cost me another 18K to have both my Abdominalplasty and breast lift with augmentation. That is the bad news.....the good news is there are excellent surgeons out there who can do this kind of work if you can raise the funds to do it. It is the only way I know of taking that skin off your body. It simply will not go away without it.
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What do you love about your new personality?
enjoythetime replied to LilMissDiva Irene's topic in General Weight Loss Surgery Discussions
I love these posts because it really makes you stop and evaluate your entire transformation. Pre-op I was postivie and outspoken but I always had that tough exterior wall up, I held back to a certain extent because I didn't want to put myself in the spot light because I knew what people were really thinking. Post-OP I'm still that same positive outspoken person but the walls are down now because I honestly don't care what others think of me because I LOVE ME the ENTIRE ME!! Yep, that's right I love myself, I've never honestly been able to say that before and not because of how I look (that helps) but because I've proved to myself that I have what it takes to get through whatever life brings my way, with alot of help from the Man Upstairs!!! I wake up everyday with a smile on my face, FULL OF ENERGY, ready to take on the world I'm a go getter, take no BS kinda gal who loves herself! -
Hidden Costs?
NewStart95987 replied to NewStart95987's topic in PRE-Operation Weight Loss Surgery Q&A
Thank you Fran! It's unbelievable to me! I asked so many questions because I like to be prepared as best I can. I have spoken to my surgeons office several times and they never mentioned certain things, as the surgical center sends me a surprise letter less than 2 weeks before surgery. They will be billing me for my anesthesia and anything over the norm which is the 20% I pay. I have Anthem BC and they have been as helpful as possible on their part. I just think that maybe my surgeons office could have given me a heads up, something along "Hey, be prepared or check into XYZ." But nothing was said. They have been through this hundreds of times and I just find it frustrating. People need to know to prepare financially. It's not good for their mental/emotional health to get so close and the keep having the rug pulled out from under them. I do hope future banders ask more questions and ask several times! Something I learned, get as much as you can in writing!!!!! Thanks again for the wishes Fran. Have a great day -
Loose skin after 150 pound weightloss!
hkdontplay replied to hkdontplay's topic in Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery
I can't wait for my plastics I'm terrified of the pain bc I'm a huge baby and had the hardest time with recovery from my gastric bypass but I feel I've earned this i worked my butt off literally to be healthy and fit now I wanna be happy and feel comfortable in clothes I have to constently tuck in my skin and my breasts are like a 100 year old lady my arms don't bother me but the loose skin from my breast and belly honestly hurt the more weight I lost the more pain I was in I can wait to wear jeans comfortably and feel like a 26 year old!! Instead of the old women I feel like now so I'll spend the 18,500 dollars to be comfortable in my own skin I need skin removed from my thighs but that can wait!!! -
These are all terrific ideas, I should get my notebook our and take note bc this is one of my concerns as well!!
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Don't leave! It's hard to read peoples comments sometimes in any forum but this us definitely the best one for RNY. Just accept that we all differ and that's what makes it so great Who is it by the way? I know it's not me bc I'm lovely lol xx
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I had my one on one with my surgeon today, I have 2 more dietitian appointments and should be ready in December. I have BS of CA and Cigna as secondary. I'm hoping all goes smoothly. I barely have a 40 BMI and no co-morbidities.
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to tell or not to tell your pcp
educationrulz replied to stcyt's topic in PRE-Operation Weight Loss Surgery Q&A
I can see this from both sides, but what would be the problem with waiting until you return from Mexico to tell the PCP about the surgery and providing them with the surgeon's reports? Then, if they're not supportive, you can start looking for a new doctor. If the thought of the stress you might suffer from dealing with negative, unsupportive comments from the doc is bothering you, why put yourself through that? Now, the issue of not telling AT ALL after surgery...that seems really risky, but I can see OreganDaisy's point about that also. I hate that some of us even have to be put in that position because of these BS insurance companies. -
Thanks! I'm looking forward to it bc I'm fairly hungry often right now so I def need it.
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I was banded on Feb 1st 2013.. Ive lost 38 pounds so far... which i am ecstatic about. About a week ago i went in to see my doctor thinking somehting was wrong, because I was feeling hungry often and eating more (i thought my band had slipped or something). The doctor told me this was normal, because as you lose weight your band gets looser. make sense. so she gave me a fill and sent me on my way. BUT since then its like ive lost my mind. I know i am making bad food choices but its like i convince myself its ok (like eating ice cream bc it eventually turns to liquid and doesnt take up space in my tummy-!!crazy !!), and then feel horrible afterwards. i know what it sounds like. i was doing so well prior to this last week, my willpower was intact i guessbut now--- its an awful feeling because i know im probably doing damage but idk its hard. i want to say on track and 'be strong' and i know everyone has cravings and most of you are able to move past them. im wondering if anyone else is or has felt like me; and how did you overcome it?
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I was banded on August 8, 07 and have lost a total of 41 lbs to date. I had my first fill this weekend and I feel no difference so far. I will try for another one in a couple of weeks. My doctor was Dr. Joya in Puerto Vallarta and he was excellent. I was treated very well and would recommend him to others. It was impossible to find a fill doctor in my area (Vancouver Island, BC, Canada) so I had to travel to Washington State to have it. It becomes expensive and time consuming, but the people there were great and very supportive.
