???????

I know this is a little late in the game, but I haven't been on the forums in a while. I was curious if they tested you for H. Pylori before surgery or even after?

Has nothing to do with that. The PrevPac he called in was generic. What the deal is...#1) My insurance is stupid...#2) One of the meds in the pack is not covered (the Lansoprazole)…the other 2 are covered (Clarithromycin and Amoxicillin). So when sold in a pack, they deny the entire thing. What we have to do is call in 3 separate Rx's as generic and I have to pay out of pocket for the Lanso. Insurance will pay for the other 2...this nearly gave me a heart attack LOL

Even crappier news than having to do a stool sample...my stupid insurance doesn't cover the PrevPac!!! So now they're trying to figure out what to do...ugh...everything was going so great until now.

Interesting. Well, I just got back word that all I have to do is take the meds and there's no further testing afterward. Thank goodness...not sure I'd be able to mentally handle having to do a stool sample LOL

EGD biopsy says I have it. One thing I forgot to ask my doctor is how can they guarantee it’s gone after the 2 weeks of antibiotics? Anyone else have to go through the treatment for this?

I also have Anthem BCBS (California non-resident policy). Things may be different depending on your conditions and your surgeon's preferences, but my surgery coordinator said they only submit my initial weight from the first surgeon visit to insurance. So if I gain or lose it's truly not going to make a difference unless I lose too much and my BMI tanks or I gain out of control, which isn't happening. I don't think you have to worry about 5lb fluctuations from your period. That's to be expected for women. Now...if you walk in 20lbs heavier than the previous month, that's a cause for concern

My insurance won’t pay for the mini-bypass. They consider it experimental or something...otherwise I definitely would’ve been looking into it.

Bummer I guess every office is different depending on where you are and stuff.

No worries. Things are slightly different depending on if you're using the BP phone app, phone browser or on a computer. I think in the app, you can't quote a person in a thread to reply to...which is weird. I never use it anymore because of that. Good to know they can clear that up. Do you have any idea what the cause is?

Awesome! Did they give you something to get rid of the H. Pylori?

Nice to know I'm not alone! I'm the same way with lists and planning. Must be some sort of control freak issue LOL So far I've managed to get a lot accomplished to settle my mind like my dietician visits. Normally they don't schedule them out ahead of time, but my girl went ahead and allowed it so now I know exactly when my stuff should be submitted to insurance. I intentionally set the last appt to May 1st in hopes of getting all the insurance crap done by mid-may and in the OR by end of May That helped plan my time off from work which also relieved stress for my boss. So...win win! Fingers crossed for your 2/11 approval

Well that's definitely some extra annoying legwork! I'm glad your process was pretty painless. You seem to be doing great!

Howdy! I'm halfway finished with my dietician stuff and the further I get into the process (which has gone great so far - knock on wood), I still get this nagging feeling that something is going to happen to derail forward progress and result in a delay in getting approved (irrational, yes I know). My insurance company is great, their requirements are little to nothing, I have no weight loss requirements, only dietician visit stuff. I'm not worried about the administrative side, per se. Mainly I'm talking about health-related stuff that could crop up unexpectedly and cause a delay in this post-op process. Has anyone out there had something come up unexpectedly that messed up your post-op progress?

Amen!

I also have Anthem and would love to know this Edit: I just talked to my surgeon coordinator and since my last 3 dietician visits are already scheduled, last one in May 6th, she said they'd submit the stuff ASAP and "generally" expect an approval in about 10 days max. From there, they can schedule the surgery for 2 weeks from the approval date. So I think this contingent on your surgeon's office availability, not necessarily Anthem.

My Anthem BCBS (California - Prudent Buyer plan) doesn't require supervised diets, but we still have to do 6 months with a dietician. I'm not required to lose anything.

To answer your question, I don't think I became "obese" until about 2007. I was married and we ate SOOOO bad. That's when I ballooned up quite near, if not 300lbs. I've always been a muscular, strong person. People used to equate me to one of those Clydesdale horses As a kid I was slightly overweight, maybe just about 10lbs over. As a teenager I was active in marching band, had leg muscles solid as telephone poles and clocked in at about 170lbs my senior year. When I was 20, I got pregnant and skyrocketed WELL over 220lbs and never really lost it. Then once I got married, I ballooned up to 300lbs...got on Adderall in 2009 and lost 100lbs, got pregnant AGAIN in 2009-2010 and shot back up to 270 something. That's kinda where I stagnated until keto in 2017 and finally dropped to 240 something. Now I float between 245-250.

YESS!!! I feel the same way. Sitting in my work chair here...I feel tiny, but when I look in the mirror I don't see what's in my head. I know I'm lumpy with fat rolls, but I don't necessarily "feel big". I can't even look at my work badge picture because to me, it doesn't look like me. So I get you

Interesting! That reduces my "yikes" level a little bit Your stats are very similar to mine. How long did it take you to get to your target weight? It clearly looks like you're doing well keeping it off! That's great!

Totally makes sense

Sure thing! I hope you find some relief

Electrolytes are critical to get in. Hang-over headaches are caused by low electrolytes and dehydration...this is truly no different. I haven't had surgery yet, but I eat keto (no sugar, very low carb) and have to stave off muscle cramps and headaches with electrolyte supplements. Powerade Zero and Propel are just not enough especially when your intake is limited. I recommend Hi-Lyte liquid and once you can take pills, they also make Hi-Lyte capsules. You can mix the liquid in anything you drink and you'll get in WAY more salts at one time than any off-the-shelf sports drink. Here's a link to the product, good luck! https://amzn.to/2CTOorR In the meantime, if you can stomach it, drink pickle juice

That's awesome! I'm sure you'll do great with the new surgery. I hear from the sleeved side of the fence that reflux is pretty terrible (or can be). Have you experienced any of that?