christiemon

Keeping busy to hide my anxiety by making sure my house is shiny and clean for the family coming to help out with the kids for the next few days. I should pack and put on my make up but I think it would make me realize that I'm about to part with a large portion of my stomach today and that is pretty scary. But it's all good - I'm here. = ) I'm blessed. = )

I've been avoiding the update a little because I'm hoping not to be judged but I'm back on with my surgery and my original surgeon. My surgeon (not the other surgeron who had made me so upset) who is the one I've been dealing with from the beginning called me this Monday - he explained why they had changed my surgery date. I had my gall bladder taken out with him on April 29th - I was having pain from gall stones and they thought it best it be removed before the surgery. I was warned just before my surgery that my last blood work showed a high white cell count and that if he got in there and there was a problem they may have to move my surgery date. When they got in there I did have acute Cholecystitis and there fore my surgeon had to give me another week to recover. He has the specialist flying out specifically for me and a couple other sleeves. I researched the specialist and he has performed hundreds of sleeves and 1,000 of bypass plus he teaches other surgeons. I feel better. I also did go ahead and call a few other local places and tried to explain my situation and all of them wanted me to start over from the seminar. It's either this or no sleeve. So I will be sleeved in one week on the 20th.

Thank you for the affirmation ladies - I emailed my surgeons office for a refund yesterday - hopefully I wont have any problems with a refund or their being willing to transfer all my medical papers over to another office. I'm in the Phoenix area so I know there are many experienced surgeons out here and I should be able to find one I will be in good hands. = ) Many thank yous

Unfortunately I didn't know much about the sleeve when I started my journey to get weight loss surgery back in September. Thankful for the six months diet and exercise from Cigna - after more research I decieded I didn't want to walk, I wanted to RUN from the lap band. I had my gall bladder removed from my surgeon last week at his center and I was listening to a woman who was on the phone while waiting for her mother to be released from surgery talking about all the complications she was having after having the lap band in and how sad it was. I felt completely affirmed that I was doing the right thing and proud of myself for fighting for the sleeve. So anyways I'm one of the first they will be doing for the sleeve - and I was scheduled for the 13th. Been doing fabulous on my pre-op diet - down 14 pounds in a week....and they call me yesterday and say they have to change my date (they've already changed it once, just by a few days) to out another week. A week which I couldn't take off work so I don't know when or if it's going to happen now I happened to stop by the office for my post op gall bladder and the surgeon was such high pressure and mean that I just want to get my money back and cancel. I usually deal with the other surgeon but this one would be the "co-surgeon" on my surgery. Basically he told me it was the 20th or nothing and we should just cancel. They have two other sleeves scheduled and a specialist flying in to assist which was supposed to be "his tickets are purchased" for my date on the 13th. They tell me different reasons that don't really add up as to why they changed my date even though I told them I have my time off scheduled, my husband's time off, family coming to help me, etc....this really puts me in a bind. So I'm getting ready to leave, and in tears (I already have very bad, emotional day at work) and the surgeon wants to meet with me. He and his nurse meet me in an office and he starts asking me why I didn't want the lap band (which is what they primarily do) I explained after my research and the amount of complications from the lap band without sufficient weight loss I really felt the sleeve was for me. I said I'm only doing this once and I hear so many horror stories about people miserable with the lap band, they have it taken out and they get the sleeve. He tells me I need to understand that I could die if I get the sleeve and that's why severe the surgery is and tries to push the lap band on me - that he's done so many and they are experts on the band and he even put on in his own mother, and I should trust them, blah blah blah. Thank God for the nurse who did keep saying that "She's been saying she wants the Sleeve for a long time now - that's what she wants...." He kinda hemmed and hawed, but basically the nurse was saying she would see what she could do and the surgeon just left me with a bad taste. I'm really thinking about getting my money back on Monday. I've already paid all my out of pocket costs. Basically this would be in the of my journey - because I don't think I'm going to have my insurance much longer and I can't afford to start all over again. What would you do?

I received my approval a week ago and will be sleeved on May 16th in Arizona. Not looking forward to pre-op though - I start that on April 26th and plan to be focused. = ) Good luck everyone - I think I'm almost as scared as I am excited.

May 16th is my big day. Now I'm glad my insurance company has me do a six month diet and exercise program, otherwise I think I would have rushed into the band and feel so much more confident in my decision to get the sleeve. Do you have a date yet?

First I've been whining about how long it was taking my surgeon's office to get my paperwork to insurance - I guess I have to take it back, when they finally sent it off it only took three days to hear that I was approved. And now that I'm scheduled and this is coming a reality I'm getting really scared. I'm afraid I'll die and leave my husband w/ our three children. My surgeon has done only gastric bypass and lap bands, I will be one of the first to be sleeved by him. He assures me of his experience and training and says he will do whatever surgery I want by I'm still scared. On the plus side - he did discount my fee - I'm only paying $1,000 more than I was quoted for the lap band. = ) Anyways - I'm praying everything goes well - anyone else this scared?

Mostly my frustration was I think that my PCP's office (from what they told me) had really sent all they needed too - 45 pages worth but my surgeons office wasn't asking any questions to make sure that's what they needed. And my specific PCP's last day at the practice is tomorrow. I've had this in mind that I had plenty of time if we needed to get anything still from her before she left the practice since my last date of the six month diet and exercise w/ her was six weeks ago. On my plus non-whiney note - I just called again to my surgeons office and they said they received the last of what they needed this morning (??) and would submit this week. Wish me luck! As some of you awesome ladies said - a year from now this will be a distant memory and will make no difference. = ) I appreciate the encouragement! Thanks! Christie "Just keep swimming, just keep swimming, just keep swimming swimming swimming."

I'm using one of the Weight Loss institutes in Arizona - they do primarily Lap Band and initally that's what I was interested in until I did more research. I wish now I had went with someone else but hopefully as long as good things come out of my sistuation it will be all good. = ) Still waiting. = ) Christie

I'm lucky enough that my insurance company covers my surgery and I've saved up enough to cover most of the other out of pocket expenses - we try to be tight financially so this is a big deal for us. I would never have been able to do this if it wasn't for insurance and I've been so excited since I've started my journey. I have completed my six months of diet and exercise, done my pych eval, all the pre op testing, five years of weight history, everything I need to do. Initially I was hoping to have my surgery completed a couple weeks ago. My hold up - for the past six weeks my PCP's office and my surgeons office can't connect all my paperwork from the diet and exercise in order to submit to insurance. I'm getting sooo frustrated mostly at my surgeons office. They don't return my phone calls, seem unorganized and two weeks ago someone told me they had submitted my paperwork to Cigna and when I called again to check on it (because no one returned my messages) they tell me again they are still waiting on some of my diet and exercise paperwork and never submitted to insurance. Which when I call my PCP's office they insist all has been sent. So I feel like I'm in limbo, that this is never going to happen. And frankly I wouldn't mind starting at another surgeons office but I'm too cheap - I'd loose out on the $500 I've already spent. = ( I guess I just wanted to vent and see if anyone else had a similar problem.

(just posted this earlier in the wrong forum so sorry for duplicates) I've just completed my six months of diet & exercise w my pcp & my surgeons office is submitting for insurance approval. Since I first met w his office I was originally planning for lap band & had a run down of my exact out of pocket cost which was around $2500. Since I deceided on the sleeve I was initially told it would be an additional $7300 out of pocket! I have great west heathcare which is a division of cigna. I'm meeting w my surgeons office Wednesday & was told he may choose to lower my costs. What's reasonable? Ive been planning on the $2500 - don't have that larger amount lying around but I can manage to pay a reasonable amount more. Anyone else able to get costs down? Surgery is tentatively scheduled for march 11. Christie

I've just completed my six months of diet & exercise w my pcp & my surgeons office is submitting for insurance approval. Since I first met w his office I was originally planning for lap band & had a run down of my exact out of pocket cost which was around $2500. Since I deceided on vsg I was initially told it would be an additional $7300 out of pocket! I have great west heathcare which is a division of cigna. I'm meeting w my surgeons office Wednesday & was told he may choose to lower my costs. What's reasonable? Ive been planning on the $2500 - don't have that larger amount lying around. Anyone else able to get costs down? Surgery is tentatively scheduled for march 11. Christie

Bet you didn't realize this would wind up being a full time job! Could I get a copy too - christiemon@hotmail.com . Thanks!