August Bios

[SummerAgain 0]

Here's the August 2009 Group if anyone wants to join.

http://www.lapbandtalk.com/groups/august-2009-bandsters.html

[skinny31 0]

Howdy, Friends! I'm Konnette and I have a surgery date of August 5th! I have been jumping through in insurance hoops since late November and was finally approved on June 30th with BCBS of Texas. I am being banded in Amarillo by Dr. Roye. I am 5'8" and want to lose about 130 lbs....at lease 115 lbs, which will get me back into my wedding dress. I have three sons....twins that are 6 and a baby who is turning ONE (my goodness, where does the time go!!??) on July 16th. I also have a wonderful, supportive, handsome husband. I teach 2nd grade. I can't wait to have the energy to keep up with all these things in my life b/c right now, I feel like I'm crumbling under all this weight!! It's going to be a great ride, folks!

[formerfatchick 1]

I thought the same thing! Everyone was loving it and it is the one drink that has made me retch the worst! I am actually enjoying Atkins Premade strawberry shakes. The chocolate Truffle by nectar was okay.

I bought some Muscle Milk today to try.

Hey Summeragain, Im also from NYC. Are u in the city or elsewhere?

During my many attempts at diets I tried my fair share from the Optifast ( YUCK!) to the slimfast ( DBL YUCK!), I did find one once that was very decent, Natures Plus Spiruteen it's soy Protein based and they see it at Vitamin shoppe, here in NY I dont know if this is a nationwide retailer. It has 14g of Protein with 176 calories when mixed in skim milk. Im a chocoholic so naturally I only stuck to that but I also heard from others in the store that the strawberry was really good. Anyway worth a shot ? I was leaning toward the unjury.... but might just get this again.

Adios !!

[TiffanyP 0]

Hi, I am Tiffany. I am 37. I am married to very supportive man. I am a long haul truck driver. I am having surgery August 10th in Bakersfield, CA. by Dr. John Garcia. I have to lose 20 pounds before surgery, I have already lost 13. liquid diet starts July 24th. Final weigh in is August 7th and then Monday the 10th is THE DAY!

I have 5 kickbutt sisters, a fab mom, a great dad, and a wonderful mother-in-law, along with the hubby that are my support system.

I have researched all WLS and I think this is what is right for me. My GP is wonderful and she is very supportive. I am a self pay, so I am a bit nervous for complications due to the $$$ factor, but I am trying not to get obsessed about it.

Good luck everyone!!!:thumbup:

[sms1964 0]

Guess its my turn. My name is Sue and I am from Baltimore. I am 5'5 and am currently 256. I have been very overweight since I had my daughter 12 years ago (over 200), have not seen less than that for 12 years, but hope to soon. I am getting banded on August 8th! So excited. I attended my first seminar with Dr. Von Rueden in February, at St. Agnes Hospital. Have been thru all testing including a sleep study (hated it), and just got insurance approval thru United Health Care.

We will really need to support each other. I am here for you!! Since I am in the beginning of Aug I hope I can provide good feedback and postitive support to everyone else!!

Best to all!! We can do it!!:thumbup:

[SummerAgain 0]

FormerFatChick, I live on Eastern L.I.

[seckert08 0]

Hi everyone! My name is Sarah and I am from Greensburg, Indiana. My surgery is scheduled for August 4th at St. Vincent Carmel Hospital. My surgeon will be Dr. Christopher Evanson. I am 40 years old, weigh 242 and am 5' 5" tall. My current BMI is 40. I am tired of being tired and no feeling well so I am taking this step to improve my health as well as my self-image. I look forward to getting to know everyone!

[tripletmomma2000 3]

Hi all!

I am proud to say, that I am joining this Awesome August Bander group!!

I got the call today that my surgery is scheduled for Thursday, August 6th!

My name is Karen, I am almost 42 years old, married to a wonderful husband, and mother of 9 year old triplet boys!! :wub: :crying:

I have been yo-yo dieting all my life, and suffer from PCOS (polycystic ovarian syndrome) I started this journey last month at 350 pounds, and I am 5'6" (BMI=56.4)

Because I have a BMI over 50, my doctor wants me to do 3 weeks on the liquid diet.... consisting of 1500 calories/day this week, and 1000 calories/day until the surgery. Yesterday and today are liquid ONLY days. The two days before surgery are liquid only as well. All the days in between are Protein shakes, and ONE frozen meal that clocks in at under 300 calories. I really like the Lean Cuisine chicken Mushroom Spinach Panini, which is about 320 calories, which works for me!

I have a few co-morbidities: High Blood Pressure, Hiatal-Hernia (GERD) with esophagus damage. The doctor will be doing the hiatal hernia surgery at the same time he does the band. I just went for a sleep study, to see what my sleep issues are (not sure about apnea..... but I ALWAYS sleep like crap.... wake up many, many times during the night) and..... this is the big one.... I just FAILED my cardiac stress test. I am going in on this Tuesday for a catheterization, to see if I have a blockage. Apparently, sometimes the test can get a false positive if the test is done on a female with big boobs. That is certainly an understatement for me..... as a matter of fact, my cardiologist made me go to the testing center first, to make sure these "girls of mine" would even fit in the machine (barely....btw)

Since starting the liquid diet yesterday, I've lost 10 pounds (typical for me.... I can dump between 20-30 pounds in a week... but only the first week.... I expect to hit a plateau next week)

ANYWAY.... on Tuesday, if the doctor finds no blockage (term is called inferior ischemia) then he signs my cardiac clearance for surgery form. If there is a blockage, he takes care of it right then and there, and signs my cardiac clearance for surgery form! So... it will be good to know either way, and I will certainly report here once I know for sure!

Oh.... and my insurance company just DROPPED lap-band surgery for individual payers (that's me) in January. Since I have other stuff that needs to get done, as it stands, I'll pay for the band ($5200) but nothing else.

Oh... and to add insult to injury, I also need my spleen to be looked at. I had a CT scan last month for an unrelated issue, and there's a bump on my spleen... and I have an "accessory" spleen (second spleen) My doctor feels that this bump is actually a THIRD spleen. Crazy, right?

Anyway, I'm looking forward to "meeting" all of you, and celebrating our victories together!

Karen T.

[widget 0]

Hello all,

I am 26 years old and live in Minot, ND. I am 5'4" tall and my starting weight is 268 lbs. I have struggled with my weight for most of my life. My surgery is scheduled for August 11th.

[Riane226 0]

Hello everyone, Im Riane! I am 24 years old, married to my sometimes wonderful husband (Jeff), and have 2 sons (Jeffy 8, and Jayden 3). I am 273lbs, with 283lbs being my heaviest. I am 5'3". I do not have a surgery date yet, but am positive I will be an August bandster. All of my pre-op testing has been done and I am just waiting on a final checkup with the pulmonologist so she can clear me. (Last month after my sleep study I was diagnosed with Obstructive Sleep Apnea, which I honestly believe I have had all my life). I have been overweight/obese since I was 5. Anyways, I am THRILLED we finally have a place of our own, and cannot wait to finally be banded. good luck and god bless!!!

[Riane226 0]

oh yeah... i am a vegitarian (ovo-lacto) which means i eat eggs (very rare that i actually do) and dairy...

[dolphinz 0]

Hello everyone! My name is Tammy. I'm from a small town in Northern Illinois. Byron. For the sake of no one knowing where that is, let's just say Chicago! (about 2 hours away) So...I've been fat my whole life. Even when I was little. I believe it started around age 2 or 3. I'm 5'6" and weigh 300 pounds. This is my heaviest ever. I was about 230 when I got married 5 and a half years ago. I have a 4 year old son named Nelson who is VERY active, rough, tough, and difficult to keep up with. ESPECIALLY being this overweight. I feel so bad not feeling like taking him outside or to the park because I'm lazy and fat!

I am lucky enough to have an insurance company who pays for the surgery without too much requirements. I am having the surgery done at St. Alexius Hospital in Hoffman Estates, IL (suburb of Chicago). My surgeon is Dr. Rantis from the Kane Center/Suburban Surgical Care.

I did receive a phone call on Friday, however, saying that my EKG was "abnormal" but they are not sure what is abnormal and I had to see my regular doctor. However, before the nurse did my EKG she said "Hopefully it works, it's been giving me problems." I have had EKGs in the past and never had an abnormality, so I am sure this was just a fluke!

Surgery is scheduled for August 3rd @ 1:45 pm. I am on my first days of an ALL Protein shake diet, and I cannot WAIT for these 15 days to be up! Not the best tasting stuff, but I've had worse!

[KayVee 0]

Hi Ya'll

I'm Kathi from the Dallas area and I'm just hoping this is the last monthly group I'll be joining. Until I fix my signature, you'll see I was supposed to be banded TODAY! Oh well, a little pneumonia postponed my surgery! I had a June 22 date initially and then sleep apnea pushed that back. So, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that Aug 27 will be the ACTUAL date I get banded. I went to my first WLS seminar last year on Aug 28, funny how we can remember these dates so easily. I had some insurance changes midway through which also changed my requirements. In April I was all ready and paperwork went through in less than a month.

More about me, I'm 5'8" (pretty tall) and my current weight is around 305. I did 3 1/2 days of my liquid diet before the pneumonia and lost nearly 7 lbs then. It wasn't too awful, but it is just another hurdle and I'm treating it like the challenge it is. My fave Protein Shakes are the muscle milk, I much prefer 'milky' shakes rather than fruity supplements, and these are pretty good.

I have not been overweight all my life, just after having kids (2nd daughter) and dieted and got into ONEderland once or twice. Been well into the 200s for the last 15 years or so and managed with it. I'm 49 and want a healthier more active life with my wonderful boyfriend. My girls are cheering me on and we're all excited for the new life this Realize band will afford me. I have a blog that I'm pretty regular with if you'd like to know more about me and my crazy thoughts.

I'm happy to be with a group of supportive folks with the same goals. I am ready for this band and am looking forward to being more fit in my 50s!

[TSB 1]

Hi All! My name is Tonia. I am 40 years old. I have a 20 year old son, and 16 & 13 year old daughters. I also have a 19 and a 23 year old step-daughters. Just found out today that I am approved and scheduled for surgery on August 11! I have struggled with my weight since I was a child. I'm so glad to finally know that this is going to happen for sure! Looking forward to getting to know you all!

[siouxcityranch 0]

Hello all, I live in Bakersfield CA, my surgery is scheduled for Aug 10th. I have never been this heavy and started my descent into obesity after having a hyrecstomy, then depression followed (I was only 34). I have been on a downhill slide since then. Now I have developed ostearthritis in my knees and cant get around without pain. The dr said that losing weight will get me back on my feet again.

I am self pay, and praying that this is the answer for me!