jaria007

Congrats!!

Do you know anyone at your company who has had weightloss surgery? I, for one, got together with my coworker and reviewed all the paper work she turned in to the insurance in order to get her approval. I then drafted the same letter she used, only using the statics my doctor had from my 6 month diet etc, and brought it to my PCP. He reviewed it against the file and signed it. I then went to my psych doctor and had him do my psych consultation and write a letter saying that i was a good candidate. Finally, I went to the nutritionist who also wrote my letter. I faxed it to my surgeon who faxed it to my insurance company and i had my approval 3 hours later. all insurances are different because they are guided by company requirements, so your best bet is to (if possible) seek out the help of a coworker who was approved. Hopefully that is an option for you. It is all about submitting what they want in the exact format they want, and it is all a guessing game until you give it a go. good luck!

at first, i decided only to tell a select few. as the time drew near and people saw me out for doc appts, drinking shakes and not eating food, I got all kinds of questions and finally decided to spill the beans. I wasnt afraid to say anything...I just didnt want negativity. Well, everyone was veryyyyy supportive and, if anything, had a ton of questions. As long as your are well informed and prepared to answer questions of those that speculate, I say go for it. You will be losing weight anyway and evenutally it is going to get out, so might as well have support from the beginning. good luck

I know i shouldnt go under the knife sick. Did that once before and I came out worse than I went in. I just hope I get rid of it miraculously over night. It would be really hard for me to reschedule it. I timed it perfectly with work. 4 vitamin B complex pills and 4 vitamin E pills. Check. 2 Tylenol Cold Multi Symptom pills. Check. 1 packet of nasty airborne. Check. 2 nasty tablespoons of thera flu. Check 1 vapor shower thingy. Check. Cough Drops,Check If that doesn't make me better, it will, at the very least, turn me into a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle.

thanks! I am so nervous that they will cancel due to elevated white cell count or something :smile2:

I cannot believe this. Yesterday was my birthday and what did I get? A cold! I spent last night with a fever, sore throat, and runny nose :eek: My pre op is tomorrow morning! What do I do? It's not really bad but my throat is really scratchy. I heard about the nepi pot. Where do I find one? I took a million vitamins and will get some tylenol cold today. Any other ideas? pray for me please :thumbup:

AZChick-you will probably be fine (though definitely let your doc know so you can get the ones you used replaced for post op). Blood thickens right back up if you miss shots. I've been on coumadin for 6 months now and if I miss a day, my blood gets thick again. Being a week out, I'm sure you are OK. If it was a day or two out, I wouldn't say the same.

I had a pulmonary embolism in November and had to use Lovenox 2 times a day for a couple of months. It really isnt bad. You inject it into your tummy and barely feel it. It does make you bruise a little, but don't worry. I'll be right there with you--probably need to use it after my band next Monday for the same reasons. Good luck with your surgery

I had seminar, 6 month diet, letter from doc, psych eval, nutritionist, pulmonologist consult, endoscopy, chest x ray, gallbladder ultrasound, doppler of legs (I had a pulm. embolism last year), and a bunch of blood work

We share the same date! The countdown is on. :smile:

I bought ankle weights and took out the lead weights that are inside the wrap thingy then stuffed all the lead in my bra. It was hillarious. I looked like Pamela Anderson

hi all! Can I join too? My date is scheduled for May 19th, 1 week after my 25th bday! Great bday present to myself! I just hope all my tests come back A OK. I am quite nervous because I had a pulmonary embolism in November and all my blood work and blood flow tests have to be pristine for my doc to give clearance!

Has any one had to do the endoscopy or is this pretty much the norm? My surgeon's office said sometimes they make you do an edoscopy and when I called the GI office to make the appointment, they asked if I had ever had an endoscopy before?! I'm scared :wub:

I'm just wondering why you are the one doing this? My surgeon's office faxed the paperwork to my insurance and when I was approved, the insurance contacted the surgeon's office directly. That is really strange. I would go see your HR benefits person. That is exactly the point where they should step in

I was able to get everything done in a week. My tip? Ask for copies of everything yourself. Be extra nice to each doc appt. I made "friends" with the psych doc's staff. They actually typed up the letter while I waited and then I asked them to fax it while I was there and give me a copy because "you know how those offices are...always losing things". Win them over with some humor. I did the same for my PCP. I wrote the letter for him and said SIGN THIS, and fax to blah blah. I then went to the nutritionist and also waited for the report. I called the surgeon's office every day. It took 1 week total from initial consult to approval. When I spoke to the coordinator at the surgeon's office and apologized for being a pest she said "actually I APPRECIATE all the follow up. Many patients dont realize how much paperwork we deal with and expect us to do everything and it is impossible. By you taking the lead in following up and getting all of your appointments done, you have shown us your true interest in yourself and your health and that is absolutely wonderful". Don't sit around and wait. Now when I call, they know my name just by my voice lol! Of course I joke and am always friendly so they see me as a friend:thumbup:

Thanks everyone! Now just keeping my fingers crossed that all the remaining tests go off without a hitch. I can't express my excitement! :biggrin:

This is my first real post on this forum, although I have been lurking for some time now. I cannot believe how fast the process has gone. On 4/18 I met with my surgeon and attended his seminar. Last week on Monday, my primary completed my letter to Highmark BCBS stating my need for Lap Band and the 6 month nutrition program I completed under his care. On Thursday, I met with the nutritionist. On Friday, I met with the psychiatrist. Today at 10a, I received a call from my surgeon's office letting me know they were faxing all the info to Highmark and that they would let me know if I was approved within 72 hours. I heard back that I was approved THREE (3) HOURS LATER!! My surgery is scheduled for May 19th! I am so excited. I still have to see the pulmonologist, get an upper GI, get a gallbladder ultrasound, a chest x ray, ekg, and do all of my blood work in the next three weeks, so it will be busy, but I am beyond myself. When something is meant to be, it is amazing how the pieces just fall into place. I usually have the worst luck and was expecting a huge headache, but really received none. :biggrin: Here I come, skinny jeans, here I come!

I actually had a blood clot form in November 07 due to birth control and it traveled to my lung. NOT FUN. I also took b/c because of very heavy and painful periods. My ob/gyn now prescribes me naproxen which helps miraculously with the pain. I have to admit, though, the bleeding can be a pain. Just imagine, I ALREADY had bad periods and now it is compounded by the blood thinners I have to take for a year due to the pulmonary embolism. I definitely advise you to go with doctors orders. See if you can take something else to control the pain. You might also want to see if your ob/gyn can get you protected under the law...you could file for disability due to your heavy bleeding and go on intermitent leave which means you get a certain amount of total hours that you can take off due to your disability and not get fired for it.