kfgates

Hi, I would love to keep in touch. My date got moved and it is actually a week from today...Feb 11th. I am really looking forward to my new life, but find myself mourning food right now. I look at things and think...gee i will never eat that again. My goal was to loose 20 lbs before surgery and I lost 21. I really wanted to be closer to 200lbs, but am at 215 now. I also wanted to make sure my liver was not too fatty for surgery. I do not want to gain any back. I am going in for my pre op on Friday at 2pm. Right now my only REAL concern is getting stuck. I live 1 hour from my surgeon and the local hospital won't touch my port. I HAVE to drive to the hospital that he works out of. I understand it has something to do with the bands warranty. Do you have your pre op date yet? Keep in touch. Kimberly

I was approved after 2 days...YOU CAN NOT SEND IN TOO MUCH INFORMATION. My BMI was under 40 as well. I did have multiple comobidities. I got letters from my OBGYN, peditrist, pcp and i even wrote one heartfelt letter from me. I kept everything I ate for 6 months and I did loose weight, but not that much. K

BC BS approved me after 2 days. My BMI is 35-38. My comobidities are many....herniated discs, stress incontinence, pre diabetic, extreme joint pain, plantar faciatis, (fallen arches) and others. I made sure I did everything they required and doted my i's and crossed my t's. I even got letters from not only my PCP, but my OBGYN, my pediditrist and a very heartfelt lettter from me. You can't send them TOO much information. I even printed my weekly diet sheets for 6 months. I am scheduled for surgery on Feb 13th (yup it is a Friday) so I am waiting for the other boot to fall...ie: oops we called the wrong patient, or oops you lost too much weight and they changed their minds. I was so sure I was going to be denied that in order to not fall into a complete depression I did loose some weight. If history repeats itself I would have gained it back without the band. Please feel free to ask questions if you have any. K

Wow why so much out of pocket? I have BC BS of CA and that is not even close! Who gave you that figure? BC or doc's office. I too was approved after 2 days...I was overjoyed! Good thing about that much out of pocket is that you can claim that entire amount on your taxes next year. K Blue Bug I can't believe how much BC BS varies from state to state! That is bittersweet, yea they will cover you, but yuck you have to pay the bulk of the procedure.

It was my experience that if you dot your i's and cross your t's with BC BS you will have NO problems. You can't send them too much information and yes make sure you weigh in 6 consecutive months. The last thing you want is to only do 5 and have to start all over again. I was where you are 7 months ago and I know this may sound foolish, but these 6 months will go fast and you can't do too much research into your procedure. At first I was mad that they were making me jump thru hoops, but am now greatful that they made me wait. I now know I am doing this for the right reasons and I am very prepared for my future with the lap band. Good luck! Oh yea, they approved me in 2 days! k.

As for protein shakes I have tried several! I actually like the EAS chocolate powder mixed with skim milk. It is very fine and dissolves completely. It has 23g protein in the mix and the added 8 from the milk is a generous 31g. It has 130 cal and 2.5g fat. I highly recommend it! Kimberly

I noticed you are a teacher...I teach Pre School and want to be able to go back to work after a week and a half. How long did you take off?? We have Feb Vacation so I am looking at having the surgery Friday the 13th and back 10 days later. Were you tired? Kimberly

Hi Sarah, I don't know if you remember me..I had tons of questions about 6 months ago...well as of Thursday I was approved. How are you doing? I am looking at Feb 13 (yes that is a Friday..lol) for a surgery date. I have all my other dates so it is all down hill from here. I look forward to hearing from you! Kimberly

Hello, I was approved as of yesterday and they are shooting for a Feb 13th surgery date. I am a teacher and we are on vacation for a week so the timing couldn't be better. I have not posted for some time becasue I had all but accepted the fact this was not going to happen for me. I will post more later..just seeing who is being banded in Feb. Kimberly

Hi Sarah, I am still in insurance hell!! My husbands company still has not told us who we are switching too so I have been on pins and needles. My PCP has written yet another letter regarding my 6 month diet...It clearly states that I have been on multiple diets for over 6 months, have lost weight but keep putting it back on. I know he is trying, but am sure Cigna will kick it back. I have to try tho. I need to get approved no later than Nov 10th (that means I will have to submit right after my psyc appt on the 19th of October) I am shooting for the week before Christmas for the procedure. The anxiety of not knowing is making me crazy!! I know my husband is concerned, but there is really nothing we can do but wait. On a lighter note...hope everything is going well for you folks!! I am back to school in just over a week...I really miss the kids. Kimberly

Congrats!!! If you find out what took so long let us know...I will be looking to submit to Cigna the end of November...It can not take as long as you because my husbands company is switching insurance and the new insurance does not cover the lap band. I can't wait till I can post such good news!! Good luck Kimberly

My husbands company may very likely be switching from Cigna to an inferior company...needless to say they do not cover baraitric surgery. Cigna does and has been just wonderful this far. I am not due to submit my paperwork until the end of November (END OF 6 MONTH DIET) and we switch over Jan 1st....It is VERY likely that they may not make a decision until after Jan...anyway now I am looking into cobra....I would have the same coverage, and I would only sign up myself...the rest of the family would go with the new insurance....has anyone had to switch to cobra during this process, or had to go from Cigna to Cigna cobra??? Thanks for any insight you may have. Kimbelry

Has anyone had any dealings with American Heritage??? It is apparently a subdivision of Allstate. I would appreciate any insight. Kimberly

You two are great...It means a great deal that you respond. You aren't going to believe this.....I called HR and they know nothing...I called an Allstate agent and they were clueless and said they had no idea that Allstate was carrying health insurance. All I can do now is wait and see what happens....I am also going to try and see if my PCP has any record of a weight in May...that would push my file date up to November and could set up surgery by the middle of December. I have my weigh in with him on the 22nd so I will try that...thanks again ladies...I have just worked so hard, researched, got letters from 4 other docs re my weight!! I will let you know what happens. Kimberly

When are you going to file your claim?? I am curious what they will say. Keep me posted. Kimberly