one_more_time

I still feel as though I'm dreaming! Went in for my consult on January 23rd. Got my approval on January 28th...and had suegery today 2/10/14! Everything has happened so fast...I feel extremely blessed. Surgery went well. In a bit of pain...but my pain pump is God sent. I am very excited to start my new journey.

I made it....thank GOD....So glad its over with! Onward snd upward now....or should I say "downward"...with my weight. Hope all of you did well who got sleeved today.... :-)

Hello everyone... my last post before surgery... was trying to add you all as friends..BUT...keep getting an error message. I am thinking maybe its because my profile is new. At any rate wishing everyone WELL for tomorrow... many blessings... and don't forget to post and update! :-)

Having my sleeve done tomorrow as well....best wishes and a speedy recovery.

Yes lets definitely all keep in touch will be adding you all as friends...and will be reporting back on this thread with my update! Wow....cant believe how today is flying by...

I just used the link and ordred 2....I hope I REALLY get 24 cans for the price I paid. To the original poster...whats the expiration dates on the cans? Lol...I was thinking maybe they are about to go bad or something.

Thanks...same to you

Posted twice by mistake...

Surgery is Monday February 10th.... yay!!! ( excited/nervous/anxious) Went in this morning... got my pre-admitting and pre-op testing done... and all I have to do now is get through the next two days. Saturday soft foods...then Sunday Clear Liquids and the dreaded bowel prep.... Still can't believe that I got approved so fast! About 2 days after my consult the surgery coordinator was calling me with a date. No waiting...no frustrating appeals...no "extra hoops" to jump through.... BCBS got straight to the point and said yes! I truly thank God for this.. .I have been riding the weight loss roller coaster for many, many years... I pray that everything goes smoothly and I can finally get this "extra person" off of me and out of my life. I have a little over 100 lbs to lose and I am going to dedicate the next year to reconditioning my mind, body and spirit so that I can utilize my tool CORRECTLY...and not abuse it... Eating less with the restriction of the Sleeve.... DOES NOT mean, eating smaller slices of cake, Cookies and candy bars. What it does mean is having to make better choices to "fuel" my mind and body since my space is limited. Filling up with the good stuff... and reaping all the benefits from the inside out. A healthy body starts within! At any rate.. I hope the weekend zooms by...then again I'm nervous...just a whole lot of emotions going through my mind right now. Ready to be on the recovering end of this... ASAP Best to all of you getting sleeved Monday and next week....looking forward to all of the progress and before and after pics!

Where I work there are two insurance providers for the "medical" part of our coverage (Aetna and BCBS). I already had dealt with Aetna before and I know they are sticklers for "hoop jumping". I have a co-worker who chose them and she is actually having her surgery the same day/same facility we just have different doctors. She started her process (with Aetna) way back in September. They required her to do a 3 month nutrition ordeal with weighing in, going on a 2 week liquid diet prior to surgery...etc. etc. I was still unsure about the surgery around the holidays so made my consult for January to give myself time to think about it... At any rate.. I called BCBS after I made my consult appt. and the the rep told me THE ONLY requirement was my BMI...if the doctor said it was too high...that was good enough for them. Bottom line it depends on your employer and what company your employer has chose to cover you. Some companies request "exclusions" when it comes to Bariatric Surgeries ( happen with one of my exes). While others will pay but they will have you go through a few "motions" to make sure you "qualify" first before they will pay. It took my co-worker about 3-4 months just to get her surgery date for February 10th... it took me about 2-3 days. So before you even choose a surgeon... I would call the insurance company ask about coverage requirements ( to confirm it is a covered procedure with your policy) and once you find that out and choose your surgeon.. then make sure he/she is in network so you can get the most coverage without paying out of pocket. This is my second WLS... I am revising a Gastric Bypass from 2005 to a Gastric Sleeve.

Will definitely update... and sending well wishes your way for Thursday! :-)

Praying for you as well... my surgery is Monday too... I think I saw you post on another thread... I am SO ready for this to be over with... I am excited...a bit nervous... but ready! My pre-op diet was only for two days.... Saturday soft foods... Sunday clear liquids/teas/broths and the bowel prep...which I am not looking forward too! My surgery is at 10:00 am....what time is yours?

LOL.....I read your post and died.... I thought the EXACT same thing when my doctor's coordinator called me last week. I went from consult to approval in less than a week... surgery is Monday and I am a bundle of nerves too.. I am SO ready for this to be over with... I wish Monday would hurry up and come on!

Congrats on your date!

Hi ladies just wanted to chime in.. I am going in Monday for revision from Gastric Bypass to the Sleeve. I don't really remember my hair coming out too bad the first time I had surgery....but I'm older... this time around :-) plus we have the dreaded Alopecia monster on my mom's side.. I wear full sew-ins to "protect" and try grow my hair. You may want to check with your doctor to make sure its okay to take....but I have been taking Maximum Living's Mineral Rich With Aloe Liquid Vitamin for months and it has silica, biotin and a bunch of other great stuff for hair skin and nails. And it's a liquid which is great I would think since the sleeve might be a bit small and not sure how it would take large supplement pills. I will be ordering two bottles tomorrow to get stocked up to make sure that I get my extra vitamins in...especially for my hair growth and retention. Biotin, MSM, Silica are all great for hair, skin and nails have been using them all for years. I also agree with some one said about the amount of protein you have per day... I will be trying to get in about 100 grams per day if I can ...that's a BIG if... but no less than about 70-80 grams. My doctor gives his patients a month's supply of Optifast soups and shakes for post surgery. Have any of you ladies gone through Insure Nutrition to see if you can get your insurance to cover your post op shakes? I just submitted my request yesterday for approval... because I know those shakes can be a bit costly. On another thread I saw someone mention juicing ( getting a juicer this weekend)... a few people said they have been juicing since surgery and it is a great way to also get nutrients in without over extending the new stomach. Spinach and Kale have a lot of protein and they are used as a base in most "green smoothie" recipes..that's something to also consider.

This is a great idea for post-op,... I will be looking into purchasing a juicier after surgery. Should start a recipe thread if there isn't already one for it... :-)

Hello everyone.. I submitted my info this morning... I saw the link and thought why not.... BUT here's the kicker... my doctor actually sells Optifast (soups and shakes) and gives a one month supply of both to patients, so when I went in to his office this past Monday I got two large sacks full of Optifast. Since he is selling it ( first month included with cost of surgery) I wonder if he would still write a prescription for it ?

Congrats to you on your date!

Just wanted to say congrats to you all... I am so excited/nervous about surgery ( 2/10/14). I am currently in 16W/18W and my tops are XL or XXL depending on the manufacturer. I am really hoping that once I reach goal I am down to about a 6-8 in pants and medium top. Haven't been that size since the 10th grade...

My surgery is Monday as well....still can't believe that my insurance approved it... I went in on a Thursday for my consult... really just wanted an excuse to leave work early ....talked to the surgeon who is very well known for his revisions in my area...by that following Tuesday his office was calling me asking what date I was available for surgery. I haven't even had time to process the thought of having this done. I don't think it will hit me until Monday morning. I am beginning to get a bit anxious because I am ready to get it over with... but I am DEFINITELY not backing out... I've prayed about it...and I'm good...can't wait 'til Monday.

Can't remember if I already posted on this thread...but my surgery is scheduled for Monday February 10th and I am nervous/excited...ready to be on the other end of this...

Same with me my surgeon doesn't require a 2 week diet either... my surgery is Monday February 10th... I start soft foods on Saturday...but I am actually going to start Friday instead. And then my instructions are clear broths and liquids a little 7 up if I want a bit of soda on the night before. I also have to do a bowel prep using this stuff that is suppose to SUPER cleanse your entire digestive track. That has to be done Sunday night as well...and that's it. My mom used the bowel prep before a surgery she had and she says it is HORRIBLE...so I might have to use magnesium nitrate instead which he said could be used as an alternate if I couldn't stomach the bowel prep.

My doctor gives his patients about a 4 week supply of Optifast to use post surgery ( Soups and Protein shakes) which you can use during your pre-op diet. The pre-op diet isn't that bad its just two days. My surgery is Monday 2/10/14 so I will be on soft foods Saturday soups, mashed potatoes, noodles, rice, eggs, cottage cheese, soft cooked veggies, soft fruit, ice cream, Jello and pudding Then on Sunday it will be Clear liquids only clear broths, Water, clear tea and 7-up I also have to use nulytely bowel prep ( which my mom used prior to one of her surgeries and she said that stuff is HORRIBLE.... it makes you gag and vomit... so I am NOT looking forward to Sunday, BUT magnesium citrate or fleets can be substituted if I can't stomach the bowel prep. All in all the pre-op isn't that bad... I think Sunday will be kind of difficult, but hey its just one day. It's the Post-Surgery diet that's going to be rough its about 6-7 weeks and you don't go back on solids until about week 6 or 7.

Glad everything went well with you.. I can't wait to be on the other end of this as well. Last night... I did my sleep study.. ( surgery is 2/10/2014) and I really started second guessing myself on the way to the sleep study... I was actually trying to talk myself out of the surgery on the way there... this is is a revision for me from Gastric Bypass to Gastric Sleeve. I just can't wait for it to be over :-)

Wow you got at letter @ dharriott... mine happened so fast I haven't gotten a letter or anything yet. My Dr.'s office actually told me before I even went in for my consult that my insurance was really good about covering revisions and they didn't see a problem with getting it done. And yes I do feel like things are happening SUPER fast... that's why I don't think I will believe it's actually real until I am laying on the table waiting on the anesthesia to kick in. I went today to pick up my post surgery supplements.. shakes and Soups.. I have to be on a liquid diet basically for about 4 weeks after surgery... well mostly liquids with a few soft foods, creamed foods, and soft veggies. My doctor is very strict about the post surgery diet... but CONGRATS on your letter!!! Yay!!!...