Have ??s before consultation with Dr. Chiang...please :o)

I have been reading about the Lab-Band procedure for some time now but have a couple of questions that I haven't seen addressed. Who better to ask than the experts here. 1) Do you ever feel like you have a foreign body in your stomach? I mean are you aware of its presence? 2) Has anyone had to self-pay for the surgery? If so, what options have you found for getting the financing? 3) What about maintaining skin and muscle tone? I've heard some horror stories...are they rare instances? Or common? Thanks in advance for your consideration...I'm getting more nervous by the day now. I have my initial consult with Dr. Chiang in Brookfield in 2 weeks.

Christine, Sorry I don't have any answers for you on the Lap-Band but I just wanted to say that I have a consultation with Dr. Chiang as well! Mine is scheduled in January because of my insurance. Let me know how your consulation goes. I attended an informational meeting at Elmbrook and have heard wonderful things about each surgeon there! My email is [email protected] if you want to talk. Good luck with everything! Tammy

Thanks Tammy for the well wishes...as the day comes closer I am SOOOOO nervous. My appointment is one week from today, and it will be the first face to face discussion about WLS ever since I missed the last informational meeting at Elmbrook...it was mismarked on the Internet calendar. Right now, the thing that scares me most is failure. Failure to qualify, failure to pick the right procdure...on and on. I'm sure it will get better the more I learn. And what helps most is I KNOW this it the right thing for me...I need my outsides to match my insides. I love being active and miss it right now. Well, I'll keep in touch about Dr. Chiang...you do the same. Good luck to you too! Christine

Christine, When I went to the informational session at Elmbrook both docs said that at your initial consult they talk to you about what they think the most effective surgery for you would be. They take into consideration your weight, goals, etc. With all the research I've done in the past 6 or so months I'm almost 100% sure they will recommend the RNY for me (which they mainly do LAP). I have about 150+ lbs to loose. There isn't very much research or concrete findings with the LAP Band since it's so new. I have heard the weight comes off much slower. My only concern with it was how often does slipping occur (what is the likelihood of keeping a foreign object on a organ in the same place for serveral years.) However, the one nice thing is that it is very easy to reverse if for some reason you had problems with WLS. RNY is not so easy to reverse. If you're about 100 lbs. overweight or twice your recommended weight you probably will qualify for surgery, so I wouldn't worry about that. Even though I am well over 100 lbs. overweight I don't have any co-morbidities (if you can believe it). I do have boaderline high blood pressure but I've never taken meds for it. Well, good luck with your appointment! Just from attending the informational meeting in October I have a sense that your meeting will be great. Dr. Chiang seems like a very highly trained and knowlegable surgeon. He also seems to be very personable. I've emailed everyone on the obesityhelp.com website that has had their operation at Elmbrook from the 3 docs, about 7 or 8 responded back to me and I've only heard great things about the surgeons and the staff. I guess the dietician is awesome there. That's why I'm traveling from Madison for this. I've heard the support groups from the hospitals are great to attend too. They have a group for pre and post op patients. I'm going to be emailing a yahoo WLS Milwaukee chat group to get more information on when they meet. You should ask Dr. Chiang to see if he has any info. on it. Well, write back if you have time after your appointment. You can post here or send a message to me at [email protected] Again, good luck!!! Tammy

I am having the lap band done by Dr. Engstrand in May and I am usually on the lap band forum messageboard but decided to find some one in Wisconsin that has had surgery. Most if not all are banded on that forum. The band is safe, does not slip because it is stitched also. Yes, you do lose weight slower but the research done is that you keep it off longer than bypass surgeries. I am self pay because insuracne won't cover any of these surgeries but the doctors come up with a package deal and I am getting help from family members to pay for this surgery. I have talked to so many bandsters and not one of them regret the surgery. Look into the forum if you want more info. Denise