AnneG

I start my pre op diet at the end of this week and it's just liquids- you know SF protein drinks, water, Broth, crystal light, SF jello, SF Popsicle, and that sort of thing- oh and someone from the hospital called me today to take my personal info down again and she said not to forget to do a little more liquids the day before surgery so I'll be real hydrated and all- uhhhhh... that kind of made me laugh..

Congrats- hope you feel better- Welcome!

Yes- thats the list I was looking for- I know I read it some time before- and forgot where it was located. Thanks!

I know I've read several posts about what to bring to the hospital and what people wished they brought to the hospital but for some reason I can't seem to find those posts right now- Does anyone have a link- I'm making my list Lip Balm Mouth rinse What else...?

They look great Sassygirl- very flat and small- I'm so glad you are doing well and thanks so much for sharing these- I've been wondering what to expect with scarring- I sure hope mine look like yours.

I got a surgery date. Sept 8th. I'm supposed to go in on the 6th for a pre op class that discusses the pre op diet and post op care. It's 4 hours long. Interestingly- I'll be on day 6 of my pre op diet by that day- so I guess I better figure out the fine print before the class..haha..

Congrats- and glad you are doing well-

Fabulous and Congrats on being sleeved.

Awesome to all of you that just had your surgery- it's nice to know what to expect right after surgery- i wonder if gasx strips help with the shoulder pain?

Are you taking biotin? Are you getting enough protein and taking your vitamins?

Well, I should be getting a call from the surgeons office this week. Honestly- some days I feel like I will believe it when I see it. It seems like it's been one issue after another every step of the way. Tho, I'm not prone to pessimism- I'd like to get this show on the road because I'm getting tired- It looks like when it's all said and done that it will have taken me a whole year to get to surgery- but I believe it will be worth it. Last October I made the decision to have the sleeve and went to a seminar. In January I had issues with my insurance company which was new to our company as of that January- They kept telling me some nonsense that they covered obesity surgery but only if it was performed by the primary care physician- That was a real riot to sort through- can you even imagine primary physicians performing bariatric surgery- Ms. Vicky and some other really nice people got me through that hurdle on another forum and I see some of those people here now and again- so I really should remember to get over there to give an update on my progress- Once we got the primary care physician issue out of the way and clarified that my insurance really does cover bariatric surgery- everything went pretty fast with getting labs, and meeting with the nut, dietician, exercise classes, support group, psychologist, and other pre op pre requisites. I got tagged on the h.pylori test and was pushed back 6 weeks to get that treated but was assured that end of May beginning of June tops for a surgical date. In May I was denied by my insurance because of a Doctor not related to my surgeons group who had a problem with me being assertive- and when I'm finished with this surgery I'm going to deal with her. Luckily, while she stunned me she did not get me down and I very wisely and quickly got another doctor and filed an appeal. My appeal sat over with my insurance company for 2 months and I received notification that they overturned my denial 2 weeks ago. Basking in the victory- I decided that I'd listen to my surgeons insurance coordinators request from June to just sit back and relax and wait for her to call me- since I'd previously been calling weekly before that to make sure they had EVERYTHING THEY NEEDED- no rest for the weary-- because 10 days later I still hadn't heard a thing from the surgeons office- I decided to call to check on things and was informed that they would call me when they heard something from my insurance company regarding the appeal- le sigh- and so I let them know that I received my approval over 10 days before and they seemed dismayed that they had no copy of such a thing and asked me to fax them a copy- So, I did- and then I was told that I should hear something in a day or 2 regarding scheduling but I haven't- it's been 3 days now. And so, that's the update- I'm glad to be on the brink of getting a date but I'm not going to be shocked if I get thrown some more unexpected hurdles because it seems to be par for the course- on this end- I'm thinking I better use the time to try to brush up on everything I learned in the classes oh...7 months or so ago- That might be wise... On the bright side- I've had 9 months of reading and sharing wonderful and heartfelt posts from all of you- And that has given me the encouragement and push to keep on- keeping on through this-

How exciting! Congratulations!

I had the same EXACT thought when I made the decision to have WLS. I wasn't sure what to do next- My company's insurance was changing at the beginning of the year so I knew I'd have to wait until that was in place to find out about coverage and so while I was waiting- I went to a seminar by a weight loss surgery group that also had the qualification of center of excellence- It was good- I was able to ask questions about the offered procedures as well as some general insurance coverage questions. They gave me a little packet that reviewed what to ask my insurance company BEFORE I made an appointment with them- and an outline of their own requirements. It was good to have a bit of an idea of all the steps before I began this journey. Congrats on your decision.

Yay! Congrats and will be keeping you in thought until we hear back from you!!

Congrats on your weight loss and I know you are going to do great with the race!!! :001_smile:

I've been waiting since May as well- I got denied in June and sent in an appeal- it was over in appeals for 2 months. I finally got approval last week so now I'm waiting for my surgeons office to schedule a date. Not sure how long that's going to take. Hang in there- or consider calling to check with your insurance- that couldn't hurt.

Yay! You look fabulous dahling

Hoping you feel better and get on track with your labs and vitamins - everyone has given such great advice

No worries- focus on you and you will be back before you know it. Congratulations and keep us updated.

Yes, wishing you the best and can't wait to hear how everything went. Congrats!

Hi Bruce- Welcome

Congrats! Glad to hear that things went well and that you are home recovering nicely.

It's been a long journey and a fight every step of the way but I'm sitting here at what should be the last bit of pre surgical ordeal. I really hope things go more smoothly. There are some things that are important that I can't even really go into right now because I'm going to go back after I have surgery to really take on the full scope of the situation so that I can give my full attention to it but- I started this journey last year and went to a seminar in November of 2010. In January I called to confirm coverage and was told I did not have coverage for any type of weight loss surgery. That was a real bummer and set back because my company switched medical insurance companies and we were told that our coverage would not change in any way and with our previous insurance policy we did have wls coverage. I spent about a month back and forth with the human resources dept of my company and with the insurance company only to get some wording issue that stated oh!- sure we have coverage but only a pcp can perform any kind of surgical wls- this was just really over the top because we all know that a pcp can not perform bariatric surgery and so it seemed that the wording was implemented to suggest coverage but not really.. Ya know? It was SO wrong. Anyway- It took another month and our company had to review regarding the medical policy coverage dept about the small print of our insurance policy and they got it all sorted out and I was notified that I did indeed have coverage. Thank God! I can't begin to express the amount of time I spent going back and forth trying to get to the bottom of that situation. After that was cleared up things went pretty quickly- I went in for my consult, scheduled lab work, a light scan, and psych eval, support group meeting, and classes with the nutritionist and an exercise class. I was notified that I had h.pylori. I'd never even heard of it. Have no idea how I might have contracted it- and never had any symptoms relating to it. Not even one. I also was told that I had a serious Vitamin D deficiency. I thought that was odd because I'd been taking Vitamin D supplements for nearly 2 years and thought I was probably right around target area for that. H. Pylori was a 6 week set back because I had to take the PrevPak for 2 weeks and then wait for 4 weeks to be retested. My test came back negative at the end of 6 weeks. That was a relief. I also felt much better after taking the Vitamin D. 50,000 iu per week. I hadn't realized how crappy I'd been feeling relating to that issue. I'd been getting sick really easily for some years which is why I initially began supplementing. I also had a lot of muscle and bone type pain which I attributed to arthritis but it's really decreased significantly since I've been supplementing with the prescription vitamin d. I'm finished with the prescription doses they gave me but you know, to be honest, I'd like to stay on it for a while longer. I'm supposed to get my levels retested soon so that will give me a clue regarding if I'm back up to normal levels just yet. I'm really glad that I had that test and found out that I was in need of higher dosage of supplements- its made a huge difference in how I feel and I've not gotten sick in months- not even once. After doing all of the pre surgical requirements there was an issue that I was concerned about and mentioned to my surgeons office and they seemed to not be too concerned about it. I don't want to go too much into detail- just yet but- it was a really serious thing that happened- I had a problem with a health care professional NOT related to my surgeons office or staff- Needless to say, this health care person- caused a huge problem for me due to some issue on her part- and it caused my insurance to deny me. She actually did it intentionally and it really upset me- It didn't just upset me- it appalled me- I can't believe someone would or even could do something so terribly unprofessional and just wrong! Anyway- the bottom line is I'm not one to stay down long when someone kicks me. I'm pretty good at working through problems- resolving things over the long haul- I'm consistent and dedicated. I'm a great researcher on my own and very willing to listen to the feedback of others to learn through their experience and implement advice given to me. And so, of course I did not give up when I hit this unfortunate obstacle. But I'm not finished with it by a long shot. No. I'm not finished with it for so many reasons. But mostly I'm not finished with it because I can't sit back and not address it because I know this person will do this again to some unsuspecting poor soul- and the next person might not know how to work through the blow- It's not right and it's not fair. So, after I have surgery, I'm definitely coming back to deal with that issue very indepth and I probably will write it all up here in detail. In the meantime I worked very hard to undo the damage and spent the past 3 weeks writing very long wordy essays on my behalf and enlisted other medical professionals who stood behind me who did the same. Which was very liberating and definitely gave back some of the strength and confidence I'd lost with that last battle which did kick my butt- no doubt about it- But that's ok- I'm ok if I don't win every battle..but I WILL WIN THIS WAR. Yes, I will. I've come too far to back down and I will have a successful surgery, recovery, and reclaim my health which is my goal.. that IS WINNING THE WAR! So- I'm sitting here this week, waiting to see if my insurance company will approve my surgery- after having denied it. My surgeons team has been awesome- I feel very confident and know I'm in good hands. I just really hope- the insurance finds things in my favor with approval now and that we can go forward because I'm ready.