JennyBeth

Holy moly! I'm approved! I just feel like I won the lottery! In a way I guess I did . . . The lottery to a better/healthier life! I just have to wait for my PCP to send the approval over to the surgeon to make my first appointment! The WAITING is the hardest part in all of this!!! All I know is I will definitely be sleeved sometime between now and 4-7-13! The sooner the better!

I don't have a date yet, but I totally relate to how you feel. I feel VERY excited the more and more real everything is getting, but I also keep it to myself. No one knows at work and the other people in my life who know (my husband and mom) are thin and always have been. They are supportive, but I think deep down they think it's a drastic step to take and they just can't share my level of excitement. Once I start showing them I can do it then I think they'll share my excitement because their first reaction seems to be fear that something will go wrong. I guess I'm at the point where I'm not fearful at all-I just want to get on with the thin stage of my life (and everything that goes along with that)! Honestly the thing I am most scared about is not being able to drink while I eat (which is a pretty minor thing to be concerned with). Good luck to you! I can't wait to be where you are in this whole process!

I am also 220 and I'd like to reach 140 and I am getting the sleeve. My surgeon recommends the sleeve if you want to achieve that big of a loss. 80 pounds is a lot of weight. You could only lose 40 pounds with the band and there are so many complications. My surgeon also said if you have 10 people and gave them all the band, 5 would do well and 5 would fail. That's a high failure rate to me. Whereas the sleeve 7 would succeed and 3 would fail. Also if you have attended a seminar yet you will have a large number of people who are in attendance that were former band patients. Obviously it's your decision to make, but for your sake please do your research! Good luck to you!

I have not had surgery yet, however my surgeon recommends waiting 2 years before having plastics done. Even after you lose the weight the skin still takes time to shrink.

About how long does it take from the time your paperwork is submitted to insurance until you received an answer? I have BCBS IL and my paperwork was submitted by my PCP on Monday. I called the doctor today and the girl in charge of referrals was sort of rude and said they still hadn't heard anything and she would call me once they did (I felt like I was bugging her by calling!) I'm just anxious and want to know ASAP that I'm approved so I can set up my first appt. The first appt. takes like half a day to complete because you meet with the surgeon, bariatric doctor, psychologist, nutritionist, etc. all that first day then they send you to complete your clearances. The surgeon's office said they can make a first appt. for sometime next week or the week after, but the nutritionist doesn't have anything available until beginning of February! I just want to get this part of the process going already so I can get sleeved! Hopefully I can get sleeved sometime in March. I'm just anxious!!

How long did it take from the time it was submitted to insurance until you called BCBS to find out the status? Mine was just submitted to BCBS yesterday and I'm so anxious to hear something! Good luck to you on your surgery!

I am in the Chicagoland area also and I'm still in the pre-op stage. Mainly I made my decision based on where my PCP said my insurance (BCBS) would send me. I had the option of Loyola or UIC hospitals because the hospital my PCP works through does not have a bariatric program. I tried to research as much as I could between the two and just trusted my gut (no pun intended!) Then I attended the doctor's seminar I felt most comfortable with and I came away feeling that he would be a good surgeon for me. I am going through Loyola's Metabolic Surgery and Bariatric Program and using Dr. Bipan Chand. I like the fact that they have a whole medical and surgical approach to weight loss and would tell you if you were better suited for one over the other without automatically operating on you. I trust my decision that the sleeve is right for me, but if for some reason a medical professional felt otherwise, I would want to know beforehand. Bottom line, you have to go with who you feel most comfortable with. Good luck!

I am most nervous about having to stop drinking with my meals. How did you manage this? Truth be told I'm also struggling with giving up pop. I don't drink pop at home, but there's nothing more refreshing than a large diet coke from McDonald's! A small sacrifice to be thin I guess!

Contact your insurance company and they can tell you right off the bat what their expectations/requirements are. Even though you meet the specifications for bariatric surgery a lot of insurance companies still make you jump through their "hoops" before they approve you. Good luck to you!

Good luck to you! I get really frustrated with people that think this is the EASY way! There is nothing easy about this process and lifestyle changes!

Does anyone know if there is a liquid form of Ambien and if it is safe to take following surgery? I will talk to my doctor about this, but I just thought I would ask on here since I just thought of it. Has anyone taken anything for sleep following surgery besides Ambien? I stopped taking Ambien a few years ago and take Melatonin as well as an OTC sleep aid, but they don't work as well anymore. I figured it would be easier to find a liquid form of Ambien rather than an OTC medication. Thanks in advance for your help!

I agree with what a lot of others are saying-if you feel maybe you could do this on your own then maybe you should try that route first. This is major surgery and not reversible. I know for myself that I can not do this on my own. I've done so many attempts the past 10 years and I can lose weight. However once my motivation wears off I gain it all back (plus more!) If I could be successful on my own I'd be 130 pounds and not 220! The way I look at it is this-the sleeve is simply a tool. I still have to do this myself. The weight isn't going to magically fall off of me once they wheel me into recovery, however this time with the hard work I put in will see results which will keep me motivated. There are risks involved and those are to be seriously considered, but I don't question my choice for a second. It's one thing to be scared and nervous and feel anxious (it is major surgery) but if you're questioning whether or not you should do this I don't think you're ready. Maybe you could see if your insurance covers supervised medical weight loss programs. The surgeon I am going to use works with a whole bariatric team and they offer a lot of options besides surgery-such as an intensive 14 week program and sometimes use medically prescribed medications to help patients lose weight. Good luck with whatever you decide!

I'm surprised by this! I have done this for YEARS! The amount of food I consumed increased as my weight did (go figure). When I was young and thin I might eat a small handful of crackers, which increased and now just like others I can consume an entire meal during the night! When my eating greatly increased I attributed it to taking my ambien prescription. Being a horrible insomniac I really needed something to help me sleep. Then I saw a dateline episode about how a side affect of Ambien was "night eating" among other issues. I stopped taking it (which has led to horrible sleep because nothing OTC works as well) but the nightly eating continued, but I figured it was because the habit was already ingrained in me. I had no idea that it's an actual eating disorder! WOW!

It's a lot of small steps, but it all adds up to a great reward! I started my process on 11-29-12 and finally met all the requirements necessary (by my insurance) and everything was submitted for insurance approval today. I know how nervous you are regarding getting the approval because I feel the exact same way! I'm trying to focus on other stuff, but it's hard to do when your such an anxious person like me! Good luck to you in getting your approval!

That's awesome! My PCP submitted to insurance today so hopefully I'm as excited as you are in a few days! Did you not have to do a supervised diet through your insurance? Best of luck to you!

I am still in the Pre-op process (submitted to insurance today in fact!), but I have to say I find dealing with other's opinions (so far) to be extremely frustrating! I have only chosen to tell 3 people about my decision so far (husband, mom and 1 co-worker at work). My husband and mom have been supportive, but the look on my co-worker's face when I told her has kept me from telling anyone else! She didn't say much at all, but the look on her face said enough! I can't tell you how many posts I've read on Facebook about losing weight (especially with the new year and resolutions) and doing it the RIGHT way vs. the EASY way and it makes me want to scream! Anyone who has not gone through this process or the changes you are forced to make has no idea that this is in NO way the EASY way! All of this makes me not want to tell anyone else until I start to show results so I don't get people's unsolicited/unintelligent opinions! How has it been for you to tell others either before/after your surgery?

My PCP's office called me today to let me know they are submitting to my insurance today! I'm anxious and extremely nervous! The referral coordinator did not foresee any problems/issues with getting my approval, but I'm such an anxious person that I can't stop worrying! Hopefully I hear something by end of the week/early next week!

I'm really sorry you went through that! That sounds extremely scary! Why is it that so many people end up getting their gall bladder removed following WLS? Is it a side affect due to being overweight for so long? Does the gall bladder removal affect the WLS?

Does anyone have any experience or had surgery with Dr. Bipan Chand at Loyola? I am still in the approval process for insurance (I have H M O insurance thru BCBS so I had to start with my PCP before I could even get the referral to see the surgeon) and I am scheduled to attend his seminar on Jan. 5th, but I'm trying to get some feedback from others who have used him for surgery. I couldn't find too much about him on this site. My PCP said I would be referred to either Loyola or UIC (my choice) but I do not know too much about either bariatric program and Loyola would be closer (I live in Mundelein, IL) and I thought that would be easier for appointments, attending support groups, etc. I appreciate any feedback I can get!

That's how I felt before mine, too! LOL!

I agree that it isn't fair to judge others on how their process should go. I have been researching this for a long time, read just about every book I can on WLS and feel totally ready. If I received a call that told me to start pre-op diet tomorrow and your surgery is in 3 days I would totally do it without hesitation and feel like I was going into this prepared. If my insurance required the 6 month supervised diet then I would do it, but I am happy that I don't have to.

Actually I am not nervous about the procedure AT ALL! I have been researching the Sleeve for about 6 months and if I could have it done tomorrow I totally would! I understand that this is simply a tool and it is up to me to commit myself and make the right daily lifestyle changes in order to be successful. Also, I deal with surgery/pain pretty well so I'm not scared and I feel confident this is the right decision for me! What I am VERY nervous about and think about constantly is the approval process! I feel like I can almost see a light at the end of the tunnel (for ONCE), but am so scared I will be denied. My BMI is 37.8 and I suffer from high cholesterol, GERD, urinary incontinence, chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia (joint pain), migraines, depression and insomnia. All of these things would improve if my weight were not an issue. The MAIN thing is my self-esteem is non-existent and I want to feel good about myself again, however the insurance companies don't really care about that! I'm just hoping I will get approved! I have an H M O so I have seen my PCP already and have my 2nd appt. for my psy evaluation tomorrow and then she submits to insurance so I can get the approval to see the surgeon. I have BCBS and they no longer require the 6 month supervised weight loss, but I do have documentation from my 5 attempts with Weight Watchers over the last 10 years which will go to my insurance as well. Can anyone who has been thru the approval process already please give me some advice, suggestions, etc?

I have some questions for those of you that went straight to seeing the surgeon. Do you have a PPO? I actually have BCBS H M O and I started with an appointment to see my PCP and I have my 2nd appt. for the psy. evaluation tomorrow. After my PCP receives the report from the psy evaluation THEN she submits to insurance so I can get a referral to see the surgeon. Does anyone else have any experience with an H M O and if so what was the process you went thru? I'm just nervous because I keep reading all of these people went straight to see the surgeon and I just want to make sure I'm doing this right and nothing gets messed up along the way! I want to get approved SO badly! Also my BMI is 38, but I also have high cholesterol, GERD, Fibromyalgia, Migraines, and urinary incontinence so I'm hoping that should be enough to qualify me. I also have a strong family history of high blood pressure, stroke and heart disease. I would greatly appreciate any information from anyone that has received approval from their insurance could give me!

I have some questions for those of you that went straight to seeing the surgeon. Do you have a PPO? I actually have BCBS H M O and I started with my PCP and I have my 2nd appt. for the psy. evaluation tomorrow. She submits to insurance so I can get a referral to see the surgeon. Does anyone else have any experience with an H M O and if so what was the process you went thru? I'm just nervous because I keep reading all of these people went straight to see the surgeon and I just want to make sure I'm doing this right! I want to get approved SO badly!