A life Post!

The picture on my icon is a picture that i like from 3 years ago. I weighed about 190 then. Today i got a nose piercing. It only pinched and looks really cute.

So anyways i had a great day got to go to a science center see some birds of prey. My favorite was the bald eagle, she liked me. Apparently she had bonded with humans when she had fell or been knocked out of her nest as a baby. She kept talking to me. My other favorite was this falconer i believer a tiny bird who had messed up its wing and could not fly but had what we kept saying "small dog" syndrome in that it kept puffing up and strutting around with its wings out. It was cute. 

Had a great time with one of our couple friends. Had a nice dinner at a Mediterranean restaurant and tried chicken schwarrawma(sp?) for the first time. Pretty good. Also went to a prisoner art show, that was pretty nice once we found it. 

over all fantastic day =) 

The wheels are a turning.

I went to my doctor today which was the 1st big hurdle. I had measured myself over the weekend and thought that i was shorter than 5'6 which if i was 5'5 then i was within a few pounds of the 40 BMI i needed to get the lap band surgery. (depressing i know) If i was 5'6 then i was on my own. I went in today and this cute 4'8 asian woman took me back and i asked her to take my height. She gave me this look that was like seriously! But she tried and i could tell she was having trouble figuring out the measuring device. (it was pretty weird) She said 5'6, and i was pretty bummed. But then something inside me decided to question it again so i did. This time she got someone who actually knew how to work the measuring device and to my surprise..... 5'4.5! Which puts my BMI over 40! I never thought i would be happy about that but i am. It means i can go on my path to a healthy life. Then i went back to my doctor and told her how i am tired all the time, that i sleep, eat, go to school, take my meds, and sleep. She is sending me to a sleep study to check for sleep apnea. We shall see. Then i got to the real reason and i started explaining how i hate myself, how i don't want to feel diabetes creeping behind me, or high blood pressure. I want to be happy and healthy. I want to be able to go farther, faster, run with my dogs again. I want the life i had when i was a kid before my parents divorce. After that i got fat, and fatter and now i am drum roll please 237.5. The fattest i have ever been, and i won't accept this. I have been exercising, eating right, i have tried weight watchers, different diets, in high school i used diet pills and dropped the weight but it all came back really fast. Point being i don't want a fad diet i want a lifestyle change. I don't want to roll through life i want to live it!
-Amber

Next up:
Nutrition Counseling, bariatric meeting at UofM.

Act: One Scene: One....

So you stumbled here probably after frantically searching around the web looking for the perfect article on weight loss surgery as i did. What i can say is that i have already learned a few things in my time researching how to make this happen. Lapbandtalk.com is a fabulous resource. If they don't have what you want ask about it. It is just a bunch of people like you, many of whom already got the surgery so they know a bit of what is going on. There are doctor recommendations, and a whole lots of do's and dont's. It is great. So why the heck did you make this blog then lady!? Well i wanted to share my experience so that i could some day help others in their quest for health, self-esteem, and pursuit of happiness.

Now onto what i have learned so far:

1.) Call your insurance first and foremost. Find out if they will even cover you. You don't want to travel down this road if they won't; unless you want to A. make payments for 7 years, or B. are rich. Just saying.
- get the details- how much will they cover, what is your co-pay, out of pocket, what sorts of hoops do you have to jump through do u meet the requirements for the surgery.

For my insurance (blue cross mi) i have to have a bmi of 40, have a medically structured weight loss program for at least 6 months documented, have a psych evaluation, and be cleared for surgery medically.

Just remember do this FOR YOU, it is okay if others benefit but this if for YOU, YOUR health, YOUR happiness, and YOUR longevity.

=)

See you soon!
-A