greensleeve

Long story...I did weight watchers for nine months and then decided to do surgery. I went through three appeals to get my insurance to approve Weight Watchers, and in that time I almost gave up, thought about having surgery in Mexico about ten times! I have to get an endoscopy and get a negative nicotine test and then do the nurse education thing.

Me too! I just had my consult today!

Good for you! I can't remember, which hospital did you choose?

Do you mean which surgeon? Dr Morales at DePaul.

Did anyone watch the one with the 22 year old? I don't understand how these peoples families can just not work! And her whole family moved to Houston. Like grown brothers and uncles it seemed. Do they not have jobs? I know sometimes when people are on disability the government pays a family member to act as a care giver. I just don't think that's right. Because then they are going to sabotage.

I have my consult in a few hours. I'm so nervous. I hope they don't take my BP because it's really high right now, I just know it, I think my husband is very worried about me. He is afraid I might die. I used to be afraid of that but now I'm just not. I don't know why. I mean it could happen but I could get hit by a huge truck on the highway too. I think it's just feeling really real for both of us now.

Mine told me upfront the only things that would make her say no were if I was suicidal, homocidal, or if I were psychotic and not on medication. She said that if someone says they are very depressed or an active drug user they have to deal with those issues first before they have surgery. I really liked mine, she gave me some good things to think about in terms of how to eat with the family and what to tell the kids.

The truth is that insurance companies ding want to pay for this so they drag things out hoping that you lose coverage, change insurance, change your mind, get pregnant, or die. Seriously it has taken me over two years to get through my process with UHC and I am starting over with a new hospital. I think it's just so wrong to do this to people.

Why do these people all have such horrible marriages?

I have my consult set for next Thursday! Things are moving along! I now have "surgery brain" again which is like pregnancy brain. At times I feel like I'm in a tunnel and all I can think of is surgery, the future, nutrition, vitamins, meals and all the changes. Then there is what is going on around me which I am filtering out depending on the importance. I am having odd moments of forgetfulness like someone mentioned Paul Newman died and I had no idea or couldn't remember.

Ha I didn't think of that. No it's that they won't set a date until we have a negative test so I want to get the test done as soon as I can. I quit yesterday.

Told the nurse that I smoke maybe half a cigarette every few days. She said that it would still take a month of not smoking to get a negative nicotine test. She said it doesn't matter how much you smoke. I have a hard time believing that. From what I'm reading online it would only be two weeks. Does anyone know?

It's funny how different the programs are! I hate snarky NUTs. Skinny little bîtches....lol. It was funny when the nurse asked me what diets I've tried I said "all of them". She laughed.

Long story short. My insurance company is horrible and so was the hospital I was going through. Two years later and three appeals, two rounds of pre-op tests and two consults, I'm starting over with a new surgeon and new hospital. Today I had my first set of appointments. The difference with this hospital is amazing. First of all they got me in right away instead of making me wait up to an hour like the previous. The psych appointment was actually helpful and not just a series of six questions. I felt like I had a therapy appointment not just a five minute list of questions. The dietician was very nice and friendly. I got to stay in one place the whole time instead of walking all over the hospital confused. At the other hospital your dietician meets with you in the same office as geriatric specialists which is a bit off putting. I had a nurse evaluation which was informative and I felt like everyone really cared about me as an individual instead as just a body moving through the system. I am feeling so much more hopeful about everything. I found out I can use their gym for free for life which is amazing. Now the nurse assesses my risk level and if it's low (it is), she calls in a few days to schedule my consult with the surgeon. I'm excited. It feels real again, I feel like I can do this. Right now my relationship with food is utterly bizarre. I realized while talking to the dietician, I really don't eat that much. But I keep gaining because I don't get any exercise due to the pain in my ankle and my sedentary job. I feel like I should be better than this somehow, like I should have found some way to work out without hurting my ankle. I don't want to make excuses. They said that they understood and they know when I start losing it's going to make it a lot easier.

I think the Dr just wants to save as many lives as he can. Maybe he thought that once she started losing it would get her momentum going.

I dont have good credit and we don't have the money for it. I don't know what else to do. I'm also scared of having surgery alone so far from home.

I keep thinking with skinny people I'll just tell them I changed my habits. With obese people I'll hand them my surgeon's card. No seriously. I don't want to tell people because I'm a private person and I would tell coworkers or acquaintances if I had a hysterectomy or something. But if there is someone who could truly be helped and I can help them by giving them the idea and showing it can be done, that would be great. Problem is people gossip and talk and I just don't need people talking about me at work behind my back or watching what I eat and making comments about it.

Thanks. I contacted the hospital and they said every one has a different experience based on their insurance. I did weight watchers for 9 months and lost about forty pounds but then I plateaued and they acted like it was my fault. A couple of things that were said in meetings made me really uncomfortable. I felt like I was seen as a failure while people who only needed to lose 20 pounds were treated like heroes. Then I decided to look into surgery. The bariatric program called UHC and they said I didn't have to do a six month diet. I was buying a house and decided to wait until we moved and got settled to have surgery. So six months later I did all the testing and they submitted to my insurance but then the insurance co said I needed to do 6 months of a diet plan. Then I spent a year trying to get weight watchers to provide me with proof, and appealing over and over and being told something different every time I called. Yes, Weight Watchers is acceptable. No it isn't. Well it is if a doctor is monitoring you. Well no it isn't. Well it is but the letter from Weight Watchers doesn't say what we want it to say. It was a nightmare. I just really hope this goes quickly.

I really hope the Dr learned a lesson. He made a huge mistake. Through my journey I have lamented and railed against the requirements because I kept saying "really? Someone is just going to commit to having surgery without knowing what they have to do? Do they think I'm a stupid child?" And then I see this. And it makes me realize why they do it but at the same time it pisses me off that people like her make it so hard for those of us with intelligence and knowledge and commitment to get our surgeries. I really think she had no intention of losing weight. She wanted to be on TV and she enjoys surgeries and doctors and being in the hospital. She likes the attention. She has a picture of herself on Facebook with her oxygen tubes on. Who does that? I've known people on oxygen and you can take it off for one minute to take your picture. It's like she's proud of it. And she doesn't need it!

She doesn't sound very bright! I'm sorry, those are terrible things to say to a friend!

Thank you. I read on another thread that the hospital I'm looking into requires six months of dietician visits which I refuse to do. I just do not understand how they don't get that you can have all the knowledge in the world but if you are hungry constantly you aren't going to lose weight. If dieting worked I would have kept it off and not spent the last twenty years getting fatter and fatter.

Screw that. If they make everyone do that I'll go elsewhere.

My god, she is now claiming that they purposely edited the show to make it look like she didn't lose any weight.

The first series followed people for many years. Most of the people were successful in the long run. I think someone who is at 600 pounds might have deeper issues than people who are at 300. It sure seemed like they were more severely addicted to food and lived with enablers more than what I read on the boards. They seemed to have more ups and downs. This version only follows them for less than a year. And I do think that isn't a long time for someone who is that big and who has put food so far ahead of their own life. I could be wrong. I'm not trying to judge. Sometimes I think that could be me.

I have been through anxiety, fear, hope, shame in the last two years. I have thought about everything you mentioned. I've been through so much and I have to start over with a new surgeon and hospital. If anything my struggle just convinced me how much I want this and that I'm making the right decision. Good luck to you!