*Lexie*

I am looking at an October surgery date. I have completed my consultation, psych eval and dietitian appt. I've been to 2 of the required support groups and next week I start an 8 week skills class. It's one hour with the psychologist and one hour with the dietitian. During the 8 week skills class, I have to lose 11lbs to be approved for surgery. Then they process the insurance approval and I would have a 2 week pre-op diet. I am impatient and hate all the waiting but I'm thankful that my surgeon puts so much effort into preparing patients for this big change. I'm hoping I'll be better prepared when the time finally comes. And a few pounds lighter.

Thanks for all the feedback. This really helps. I get horrible nausea from pain medication so I will try to get off of that as quickly as possible.

P.S. surgery for an ulcer is totally my cover story too.

I work for a fortune 100 company and manage a department of 150 people. Neither I nor HR can handle any return to work notes from doctors since we make hiring and firing decisions. The notes have to go straight to our leave of absence team. You should double check with another source. Likely your boss is just misinformed on the policy.

I am still pre-op and last night at a support group, someone who had just gotten the sleeve talked about how great they felt, lots of energy, no nausea whatsoever, etc. Then the nutritionist pointed out that she was very rare and almost everyone experiences quite a bit of nausea for a month or more after surgery. I wanted to ask all of you about your experiences with nausea. Did you have it? Was it manageable with meds? How long did it last? Thanks!

Today - 254

I'd like to join. I'm pre-op and need to lose 17lbs before surgery. CW - 257 GW - 240

@lisacaron Your post brought a tear to my eye. Thank you! Thanks everyone for the encouraging words. I am definitely a little defensive and one of those people who feels bad/guilty for my weight gain/size. It took the psychiatrist like 4 seconds to figure that out during my appointment. I'm definitely working on that.

For my own reasons, I won't be announcing to the world that I'm getting WLS. But I've told my closest friends and family which I consider my support system. The other night I was talking to my closest friend about a requirement that I have to lose around 15 pounds to be approved for surgery. (surgeon's requirement) I am nervous that I won't be able to lose it or I'll lose it and won't be able to keep it off. But I'm trying to have faith in the process and I'm following the guidelines that my dietition gave me. She asked me, "If you lose 10lbs, would you consider not getting surgery?" I didn't understand the question and had to ask her to clarify it. Basically she was asking that if I saw results with the diet, would I cancel my surgery and continue to diet. That really bothered me. I said that I would not change my mind. I've lost weight before and it comes right back (usually brings a few friends too). So here are my questions... She makes a good point, how do you respond to that? I read it all over these forums, we have to make permanent changes to be successful. So how do I explain the part that surgery plays in this without sounding defensive? My last question is how do you not let comments like this bother you? I feel like I have to justify my choice.

I expect I am probably going to be homicidal within a few days of starting the liquid diet. You are doing fantastic, you're in the home stretch now. Good luck tomorrow.

I am pre-op so I don't have anything I'd do differently but I love to read what everyone else is sharing because I'm going to take it as advice. I'm going to work hard over the next few months so I can get a head start on losing instead of saving it all for post surgery. I'm going to work on my food issues and not go on an eating extravaganza (as fun as it sounds) before surgery. And once I have surgery, I'm going to follow the instructions I'm given so I can maximize my results. Thank you for sharing, you are making a difference to those of us who haven't yet gone through surgery.

I'm 3-4 months away from surgery. Likely will have it sometime in October. I have to lose approximately 15 pounds over the next 10 weeks so I could really use a diet buddy.

I have to take an 8 week pre-op skills class and am required to lose 10% of my excess weight which is 11lbs. Of course, I gained like 3 pounds from my initial weigh in so I have to lose 14lbs. Given that I am having surgery, I clearly have trouble losing weight on my own accord so I'm a little nervous about this.

I had my psych and dietitian appointments last week and found out my estimate surgery date will be sometime in October. Here's what I have to do first: -psy and dietition appt - check -8 week pre-op skills class - starts July 22nd -lose 11lbs before the end of the 8 week pre-op skills class -submit for insurance approval -2 week pre-op diet I'm just going to try to stay focused on each step and not get discouraged with how long it's going to take to get to surgery day. Any other October people out there? Do you have similar requirements?

I'll have to be careful not to indulge too much because I have to lose 11lbs before they'll approve my surgery. I do plan to have Pasta from my favorite place and a few more diet sodas before I have to give them up forever.

Personally, I feel your pain. My surgeon has a requirement that I have to lose 10% of my excess weight in an 8 week pre-op program before they'll clear you for surgery. Not an insurance requirement. I sort of thought, if I can lose weight without surgery, I wouldn't be here people... I am just being impatient. With no requirements for a pre-op diet, I am a month in already and I'm looking at a surgery date sometime in October. I know time will go fast but I'm so anxious.

Hi, I'm new too and have mostly been lurking. This forum has been so inspiring for me. I am at the beginning of my journey too. I have had my consultation and blood work and have my psych and dietitian appointment this Thursday. I'm hoping the ball will get rolling after that. Realistically, I'm hoping for surgery late August or early September.

I have Anthem so I'm hoping mine is quick too. I have my psych and dietitian appt on Thursday and they should submit right after those appointments. My surgeon makes us take an 8 week pre-op class so even if my approval comes back quick, I'm sure it'll be at least 2 more months. Once I made the decision, I became so impatient with all the waiting. Good luck, I hope you hear quickly.

I'm trying to be a good student and start practicing some of the habits I'll have to develop after surgery. Recently I started eating my meals without any beverages. It seemed like something that might be tough to do so I figured it would be good to start now. It is easier than I thought it would be but I swear I'm staying full longer between meals. Is this just in my head or does this trick work on full size stomachs??