heynowkc

Thank you all for your kind responses. I haven't even had surgery yet and am already eager to get back in the pool afterward. I will definitely mention it to my doctor tomorrow and find out what he usually recommends. I am sure it is different for everyone! Thanks guys!

WOW. Thanks to the lovely Pam at one of their other offices, I was approved by my insurance and able to secure a December 17th surgery date this morning. (I am kind of freaking out, but the good kind of freaking out.) But I did find out some more news. Apparently the Stafford office was completely closed last week and was told that they do plan to open a southern office again later, but not right now. As I live in Fredericksburg and work in Richmond, this is unfortunate for me, but I will be okay. Just a little bit of an extra drive for all my pre-surgery appointments. Hopefully they will quickly recover from whatever change-ups are happening. Transitions can be hard and they were definitely scrambling to work out everything they can for me.

I can't believe this, but I just got my surgery date and it's way better than I expected. I had already written off getting surgery before Christmas because I'd had a few setbacks, and was already told by one staff person that I was probably looking at mid-January at the earliest. Well, they must have had a cancellation, because I just got my date! December 17th!!! That's in two weeks! (Holy crapola.) Start the 2-week fast tomorrow! My head is spinning!

I have no idea why this posted so many times! I only posted it once, I promise!

I haven't had my surgery yet and am still waiting for a surgery date. One thing I am concerned about is when I will be able to get back in the pool. I have been working really hard since the beginning of October and have almost lost 60 pounds already with diet and exercise. My exercise of choice is mostly Water aerobics, including a little lap swimming/finning. I am in the pool 3-5 times a week and feel so much stronger/better than I have in a long time. I am concerned that the wait to get back in the pool will be long, and that I will grow weak while I am waiting. Being as heavy as I am, that is a real concern for me! Does anyone know when you can get back in the pool? Even just for "water walking" and nothing else? Thanks!

My approval was supposed to be submitted on Tuesday. (Spoke with someone first thing Tuesday morning and they said it would be.) But apparently, the benefits coordinator, Martha suddenly quit, and so it was never sent. Very disappointed but I know it's not the office's fault. Plus it was a holiday week. I just can't believe she quit just as my paperwork was about to be submitted. That is exactly my sort of luck. I am hoping to hear back from Leslie later today.

@@Elode I am doing the best I can. The silly part is that if it weren't for my leave schedule I would legitimately be happy (and even prefer) to wait a few extra weeks or even a month longer than I originally expected. It would mean I could have time to lose even more weight before surgery and get to enjoy my Christmas break instead of having to recover from surgery during it! Who knows, I might just get my wish.

I haven't had surgery yet (waiting for a date) but I have lost and gained the same 20 pounds over the past 12 months, trying and failing to follow the goals I set each month with my coach. The last time I actually gained an extra 10 pounds on top of the 20 I kept gaining and losing all year. But, I guess something clicked in me on September 29th. Not even 2 months ago I weighed in at my max 491. Now I am down to 438. Lost over 50 pounds and lose more almost every day. Really cut back, focused on Protein, cut out most carbs, almost all processed carbs/sugar and am faithfully tracking on my WW app. But what's really done it for me is that I make sure to do something physical or go to the gym almost every single day. Water aerobics and rotisserie chickens. If I take an "off" day I try to go shopping or something where I'm at least walking around a bit. And honestly? I think I didn't have the motivation to do all of this until I joined dietbet. (Around Oct 7th.) Getting paid to lose weight is incredibly rewarding. You just join a game and bet a certain amount (my first was 15 dollars) and at the end of the month you split the winnings with everyone else who has lost at least 4% in 4 weeks time. I will have to quit the site once I have surgery, because I will be disqualified for losing too much too quickly, but for right now, it is an amazing incentive!

@@alwaysvegas & @@Elode thanks for the responses. I know it's a terrible week to wish for anything to be rushed! Thanksgiving week! And I completely forgot most people's insurance plans renew with the year. Mine doesn't until mid-year. I am definitely going to put a bug in their ear and hope that they get it done quickly. At least talking to the insurance company and getting someone to give me an estimated wait time will make me feel better.

I am also with BluePoint and Dr. Halmi. Currently awaiting my approval. This thread has been very helpful although I am concerned because while I have already done my testing and requirements that were given to me, I have no idea what an EGD is and I am pretty sure I didn't get one.

So I had a little snafu after finishing my 12-month program with my insurance company. First, the insurance company had the wrong enrollment date for the 12-month program. They had me down as enrolling in June but I actually enrolled back on November 15, 2013. Second, even though I had specifically asked (and was told no by) both the surgeon's office and my insurance about a psych eval (and sleep study) and have checked and re-checked dozens of times that I was following all of the guidelines/pre-reqs, I was only told AFTER my graduation date that I actually do need a psych eval. At that point I had already done the half-day wellness visit with my surgeon, all of my pre-op testing, weight watchers since last November, and monthly MyActiveHealth consults for 12 months. So I was completely floored by this sudden revelation. Why hadn't anyone told me before? I still don't understand. Anyway, I found out about this on Monday of last week, completely lost it, then pulled myself together and somehow scrambled and got my psych eval done. It was really a miracle too because most of the places I called (pages and pages of listings) have like 2 month waiting lists, or couldn't see me until mid-December at the earliest, or weren't even taking new patients at all. The good new is, that yesterday, a week after the bombshell of that news, all the paperwork for the the eval and my graduation date came through. Finally everything was in place. Today the surgeon's office happily tells me they're sending the pre-authorization in before scheduling surgery, and that everything looks good. She has me down as wanting surgery before Christmas, and says they will definitely try to make it happen. (Because of the way our leave works where I work, I have about 2 weeks paid time off starting Dec 23rd. And my leftover sick/personal leave doesn't run out/renew until January 9th.) Then she drops another bomb and tells me, that however, it can take up to 2 weeks for approval, at which point they'll call to schedule the surgery and will "try their best" to get me in before Christmas. I am crossing my fingers that my insurance won't take that long. I have had to get a couple of other pre-authorizations in the past that were approved the same-day over the phone, so I am really hoping they're fast on this one too. I never imagined it would take two weeks to get an approval for something that I've been working with the insurance company on for (technically over) 12 months now. I think I might call the authorization office myself tomorrow morning just to get an idea from the source itself how long they think it might take, and also maybe see if I can convince them to speed it up. So my question is, how long have you guys experienced having to wait for that final approval once the pre-authorization request is officially submitted? And what are the odds that I won't be approved? After all of this. What are some of the reasons people get turned down? I know I meet all the qualifications and have done absolutely everything they've asked of me, so I am not that worried, but with all of the run-around I've had the past week I am not so sure anymore.

Good luck. Did you just get your surgery date? I still haven't gotten one. Congrats on already getting down 20 lbs! I am sure you'll drop plenty more on the pre-op diet. Keep us posted.

Hahaha, my cute friends make me feel cuter! Obviously this is flawed logic but I don't even care. To spin this, I'm going to talk about stuff I'm looking forward to: - Halloween costume shopping - stocking up on CHEAP clothes (plus sizes are so expensive!) - going to NYC to see shows again (I haven't been in so long!) - taking a vacation (I don't even pretend I could afford a 2nd airplane ticket) to Nova Scotia, Iceland, Russia, Istanbul, Ireland, or anywhere! - adorable outerwear (especially cable knit stuff or stuff with unusual/asymmetrical cuts) - beating my high score on Thriller (Michael Jackson Wii game) - riding my bike again (knees hurt too much right now!) - sleeping through the entire night without waking up even once - keeping up with nephews/friends kids/maybe my own some day - a million things I probably haven't thought of.

Wow, great news @@shelby77!!

I'm pretty sure my doctor does 2 weeks of Optifast pre-surgery and then about 3 weeks after? I am not sure what else is included in that other than shakes. In the past I have done a juice "fast" and never felt hunger/headaches/stomachaches on it so I am optimistic that it will be a breeze to get through the pre-surgery bit. Still waiting for a surgery date. (Impatiently, I might add.)

Oh, I see. That is a bit different. I would just scream if I had to do this 12-month program all over again because of some paperwork snafu. That would be just my luck though. Seriously.

I'm not religious either and I won't go so far as to say that things work out WHEN they're supposed to. But I have no doubt that I will be ok either way it works out, haha. It may be frustrating and a pain in the neck but it's not the end of the world! Oh my gosh! Why did you have to go through it twice?!?! That's terrible. Now I am worried that something else is going to go wrong on my end. My gosh! Good luck to you as well!

I recently had a friend have a heart attack scare (it was a muscle strain) and she had an EKG. The EKG came out normal so she had to do more testing. They told her that EKGs are often only 30% accurate. I am crossing my fingers for you!

I haven't had surgery yet but I am so much like you. I have told pretty much everyone about it. And have a great support group. I honestly have been that way about everything in my life up until now. But I do understand that some people are intensely private. I have no idea how my family would react if they didn't know and I had to sit through a family dinner with them weeks after surgery. My family is definitely the "try this, it's amazing, go on, try it, try it. just one bite" type even after someone's said no to something. I agree that telling folks you're feeling sick to your stomach might be the best way to go!

Sounds like you're doing everything right! I am sure the pain will subside in no time.

I find eating a snack a little late in the night is ok. If you are already starving by bed, your body MAY start to consume your lean muscle mass, and it turns it into sugar basically so you might as well eat a little something and avoid losing those precious calorie-burning muscles while you sleep!

I am so frustrated with my insurance company now. I had to complete a 12-month education program in order to qualify for my surgery. During this time I got all of my pre-op testing done and even had a sleep study (not required, but I did it anyway!) and have lost almost 50 pounds (49.6). I checked and double-checked throughout the year to make sure I was doing everything right. On Sunday I "graduated" from the education program, and my coach, a nurse, forwarded my graduation information to my insurance company. I called on Monday to get the ball rolling for pre-authorization and to schedule surgery. I knew it was early, but I was being optimistic. Then I was hit with a curve ball: the bariatric benefits coordinator tells me I need a psych-eval in order to qualify for surgery. I was flabbergasted. Not only had I specifically asked both my insurance company AND the surgery coordinator one year ago (almost to the day!) about a psych eval (and was told no) but I have been constantly (all year!) checking and re-checking to make sure I had everything done, and now this at the 11th hour? Luckily, I don't need a "full" psych eval, just a meeting and a letter from a health care professional that says I am good for surgery. Luckily I got in today with a very nice doctor who normally treats children and adults with ADD and ADHD. She was literally the only doctor in the area that had any availability before Thanksgiving, and so she said she'd help me out. The meeting and evaluation went great and at the end she confirmed she would send the doctor a letter recommending me for surgery but that it probably wouldn't be until Monday, Friday if she can swing it. I am happy to have it over and done with, but am also a little deflated because of the setback, and the waiting I will have to do. Also, next week is a holiday week so I am hoping that won't push things back even further. I was so eager to get my surgery date and now I am facing a set-back that is a result of the incompetence of a number of people, and is no fault of my own. It's unbearably frustrating. I can't believe after checking and re-checking that none of the many people I spoke with over the year told me this was required. The worst is that I specifically asked about it and was flat out told that it wasn't required by two different people. How does something like that happen? Because of the way our leave works, I have two fully paid weeks off over Christmas and it doesn't come out of my personal, sick, or annual leave. It's built into our schedule. For that reason, it's really important to me to have the surgery scheduled before Christmas. I am still hopeful, because I was told by their scheduler that usually once given the OK to schedule that you have surgery in about 3 weeks. So even if I can't schedule until the 1st of December I may still be able to get a date near the time-period I want. But if this set-back has taught me anything, it's not to hold my breath!!! Truth be told? I'd be okay with waiting longer than expected. It would mean I could try and lose more weight prior to surgery. (I am losing about a pound a day for the last 50 days!) And It would mean that I could actually enjoy my Christmas break instead of recovering from surgery at that time. But because of the way our leave works, I don't want to risk running out of my personal leave (I only have two weeks, and am told that recovery before returning to work can be up to 3 weeks.) It's just very frustrating to have everything planned and for it to all go up in smoke right before your eyes.

Congrats! You must be so excited to have the waiting over. Good luck to you.

Wow you lost that much on the pre-op diet so quickly? That is amazing! A positive portend of things to come for you! Good luck tomorrow! So exciting.

I am also in the over 400 club. After going through a 12-month qualifying program with my insurance company, I am very close to having a surgery date. I am hoping to set the date to sometime just before Christmas. Maybe the 18th or 19th of Dec. Have been told that once you set a date it is usually about 3 weeks until surgery so I am crossing my fingers I get the time period I want. However there may be a setback. My surgeon seems to think I need another set of tests to qualify with my insurance, but my insurance says that's not the case. They are communicating with each other today and hopefully I will hear back in the next couple of hours. I am really nervous that this is going to set me back several weeks. But hopefully not. On Monday, September 29th, 2014 I weighed in during a clinic visit at my highest weight ever: 491. About a week after that date, even though I had yet to actively change anything (no exercise or consciously dieting) I had already lost 7 pounds. I started exercising almost daily on Tuesday Oct 7th 2014. 5-7 days per week I am at the gym or doing something active. Mostly doing Water aerobics but also doing some walking and strength training. I also started tracking my food and exercise on the Weight Watchers app. I have cut out most processed carbs, white potatoes and rice, and have been focusing on high Protein with lots of fruit and vegetables. I also discovered Quest bars. (They should be called Miracle bars!) Since that initial weigh-in, it's been 49 days and I have lost 48.6 pounds. Almost 1 pound per day. I am beyond thrilled to say that I am currently weighing in at 442.4. I'm less than a pound away from my 10% total weight loss goal. And less than 2 pounds away from a total of 50 pounds lost. One thing that has helped me is that I joined DietBet. It's a site where you can bet a certain amount of money to join a weight loss game. The first game I joined was a 15 dollar bet. So the money goes into a pool (the site keeps 25% of the profits) and everyone who loses 4% of their total body weight in 4 weeks time splits the winnings. I ended up winning 45 dollars. So I made a 30 dollar profit on my 15 dollar bet. I actually joined the site to help out a friend who was in need of motivation. I thought I would encourage her to join with me and we could help motivate each other. She dropped out after the first week, but I kept going. I am now enrolled in 3 dietbets that all end next week just before Thanksgiving. (You can be enrolled in up to 3 four-week games at a time, and 3 6-month games at a time.) I honestly thought the camaraderie would be the biggest motivating factor. But actually? The idea of losing my bet money is even more motivating! I am just as surprised as anyone! If I get the surgery date I want, that is one month from today. If I continue losing at this rate I could potentially lose another 30 pounds before surgery, which will put me at around 413. I will be thrilled if that happens! But I am honestly just happy to have lost what I have so far and to be gaining the strength that I have from every day in the pool. They say that the stronger you are before surgery, the easier it is to recover. I am really hoping that's true! I can't wait to get my surgery date!