littlerlou

No more of your pants pilling together from thigh friction!

Since there is no LIKE button..I'll just comment that I am in TOTAL agreement with this one.

In addition to the overall benefit of living longer and being all around healthy again.... 1) Being able to be more active during the day...not taking hours to get motivated to do something..if anything at all. 2) Not being the only person at the baseball games who gets winded just doing simple things 3) Not having to order a 2x shirt this year for my sons baseball team 4) Being able to roll over in bed without having to build momentum 5) Being able to shop the clearance racks...(there always such good stuff in smaller sizes). 6) Being able to play with my kids a lot more...actually finish a game of baseball or basketball without sitting 7) Wearing a swimsuit without a skirt. 8) Spicing up..and getting back to..a normal sex life..and drive 9) Being able to enjoy a dinner without obessing over it 10) Not being the biggest one in the "friends" group.

This makes me nervous! I just changed my coverage to BCBS Community Blue (DTE, Michigan) because I was told by the surgeon and his office personel that they had the easiest requirements. My doctor wrote out the note and just jotted down all the diets I have tried within the last 10 years and that I had been on adipex for a year. My BCBS wont kick in until the first of the year but I hope they dont make it a 6 month diet requirement! So frustrating. And there is no where that you can actually read what exactly their policy is..When I called the 800 number the girl on the other end said that it was covered and that there was no requirements..but before she hung up the phone she did the little speach about ..."this does not guarantee and coverage is subject to change". Ill be so upset if it does change cause the whole reason I went with BCBS is because they said it was covered and no requirements needed!

Hmm..that is a toughy..is there any way you can go back to your PCP and let him/her know that this is getting to be too much? Especially financially. Perhaps the dietician isnt communicating too well witht he PCP and maybe the PCP could contact them and override it???? Anything is worth a shot!

I just switched to BCBS this morning during our open enrollment. Of course it doesnt kick in till the 1st of the year..but Im wondering if I can get all my pre-req. done now and then schedule my surgery for the 1st of the year.???

Can you just go see another dietician anyway? Since you have already done the 6 month thing with your PCP I would politely inform her that you arent going to do this and if she doesnt give you the clearance then you are going to another dietician. I think what these dieticians are suppose to do is deter you in every way from surgery. Do they think that after everything we have been through that a 2 week diet they are going to put us on will just magically turn us around!! I suppose this diet is going to be something that you wouldnt be able to maintain the rest of your life realistically. That is so frustrating!!!

ahhh..ok..that explains it very well!!!

So by "comes back up" of course you mean throw up right? I wondered how you would know something got stuck. Like what does the hurt feel like? Im just trying to get as much info as possible!

I see a lot of people post things like "I have trouble with chicken" or pasta or rice...can anyone elaborate on what it means to be having "trouble with". Like if you have trouble eating chicken. What does that mean in your terms? What do you have "trouble" with..what are the affects? How do you remedy it?

It seems the more research I do the more confused I get. Im in open enrollment period with my insurance and we are switching to BCBS. Our contract states that I have to have 40+ BMI..and no longer requires the specific time period of trying to lose..so on and so forth.. Ive already talked to my PCP months ago and she was the one who actually threw the suggestion of Lap BAND to me. That is where I started my research. Well..the hospital I chose, of course doesnt accept my CURRENT insurance. So I have to wait for the BCBS to kick in at the beginning of the year. My question is..I feel like Im in limbo. I dont know what to do or who to call next. Do I call my PCP and tell them that I want to start all the psych eval stuff right now and get it underway..or do I call the surgeons office that I want the surgery done at go through there? Im so confused!!!

Can I ask about sex???? Im wondering if that changed at all??

Im switching to BCBS during open enrollment. They told me that they do cover lap band..but cant give me any specifics on what the requirements are to be approved until AFTER we switch insurance. So Im kinda going into it blind just following posts about BCBS on these forums and hoping for the best.

First..LOVE THIS THREAD. Im in the beginning stages of all this and had some questions about some of the things here. 1) The Gas! Does it go away or is this something you have to live with for the rest of your life? 2) Pain medication...Can I never take a pill form of medication again? I seen someone say that they had to take liquid Tylenol and all that..is this forever? 3) Do you eventually "not feel" your port..like getting dental work or something..you feel it for the first few weeks then after that you just kinda forget its there? 4) When people say they "Platue" is there something to kick start it again or is it just a wait and see kinda thing?

First..LOVE THIS THREAD. Im in the beginning stages of all this and had some questions about some of the things here. 1) The Gas! Does it go away or is this something you have to live with for the rest of your life? 2) Pain medication...Can I never take a pill form of medication again? I seen someone say that they had to take liquid Tylenol and all that..is this forever? 3) Do you eventually "not feel" your port..like getting dental work or something..you feel it for the first few weeks then after that you just kinda forget its there? 4) When people say they "Platue" is there something to kick start it again or is it just a wait and see kinda thing?

Thanks Melinda I will definately give that a try in the morning.

Does anyone have any idea where I can find this information. It seems like the info is available if your already a member..but if your looking to switch insurances its almost impossible to find the full info. My husband works for Detroit Edison in Michigan. Its making me insane.

they gave us a pamplet. That says its covered but says "see exclusions" but there is no exclusions that I can find. And when I go on the BCBS website the term "community blue" is not listed anywhere in the options. And of course, when you call, you cant get any answers. I feel like Im running on a hamster wheel!

When I started researching the band I was kinda in the same mentality you are. The more I read the more I thought "why not just diet...why get the surgery if Im gonna have to diet afterwards anyway". Instead of giving up, I kept on reading. I kept on learning. And I learned a lot about myself in that process. I havent been banded yet, as Im in the beginning stages of the insurance part..but what I learned is this: The lap band is truley a tool..I got sick of hearing how its "a tool"" but once you accept that..the better off you will be. If you are going into having lap band and thinking "I still can eat McDonalds Big Macs, Fries, Shakes and all the junk food I want..just less of it"..then you are in the wrong mind frame. Losing weight is not about the food..its about you..and what you want. Putting better things into your body to get better things out of your body. If your not wanting to change your life for the long haul..then you probably arent making the right decision right now.

I know Ive posted a couple times regarding insurance coverage. So I apologize if my post seem to be repetitive. However, we are in the open enrollment stages of insurance with my husbands company. After much research, it *seems* like BCBS is going to be the best option for me. However, because I dont currently have BCBS, Im getting the run around. To actually speak to a representative, I have to have a client #. I dont have one so I keep getting hung up on. I called the hospital where I want the surgery done and talked to the insurance dept who said that BCBS is *usually* great. But just to check my particular coverage and make sure there are no exclusions...problem is..without actually having that insurance yet, I cant find the exclusions and cant get through to a real person to ask them. Any suggestions? The open enrollment packet says "Blue Cross Blue Shield Community Blue".

Thank You! I am at the beginning stages and with wanting to switch insurances, Im so confused. Thank God for this board and its members..at least Im getting some direction! Ive put in a call to Aetna, BCBS, BCN and HAP just to see where I stand and what I need to do. Thank YOU!!'

What do they mean by 2 years of weight history? Does that mean like being on WW for 2 years..or that you just have been trying for 2 years.

Im so lost and have so many questions. We are in the open enrollment time for our insurance. Currently we have HAP which we were not happy with and we were going to switch to BCN. Then I started reading about Aetna and how great they were with lap band. My confusion is this....if we change our insurance..it will take affect Jan 1st. I know Aetna is 90 day PSWL and BCN is 120 days...HOWEVER..does that apply to new subscribers? Or will they make me be on the plan for a calendar year before I can do any type of weight loss surgery? I called both companies and they talked in "their" terms and I didnt understand and they just kept referring me to their online info..which doesnt really clarify it for me. I know Aetna reads this about the surgery: "In Patient, Morbid Obesity Surgery (includes surgical procedure and acute hospital services) 90% per Admission after Calendar Year Deductible". I have no idea what that means.

We are under open enrollment for insurance and Im thinking of switching to Aetna just for this reason alone. I dont even know where to start with the questions I have about Aetna and how much they pay etc. Ive been doing a little reading and it looks like they pay about 90%. Im wondering if I go through the 3 months of physician supervised diet...starting now...(I have HAP now) and switch to Aetna during my open enrollment, if they will go back 3 months..or if they will make me start all over starting Jan 1st to get the surgery.

So I had my meeting with my reg. doctor today and she said that my insurance requires me to have 6 months of physician supervised diet. So she recommended weight watchers since my insurance also pays for that as well. So, I came home and started to sign up..but seen that there is now a Weight Watchers Online Option..which you can do everything online...I didnt get a chance to ask my doc about it cause I didnt know about it..but Im wondering if this would suffice. Ive been on weight watchers before..so I know Im doing it as a means to and end..in other words..just doing it cause thats whats my insurance says I have to do. Anyone have any experience with this? I mean, I will go to the meetings if I have to..but the closest one is 45 minutes away and the online thing would be so much easier!