excarolinagirl

I was required to pay a $150 program fee during my first visit to my bariatric surgeon.

I think it took a couple of days before they called me back. I do like the staff there. Please keep me posted.

I've had similar experience after having general anesthesia. It lasted a couple of weeks. Might be worth asking your surgeon during your next visit. But I wouldn't be too concerned.

I had plantar fascitiis (sp?) in 1998. I wore a split for several months and that helped. I had a really good podiatrist who worked with me. Good shoes, good arch support are very important. I still have to watch what kind of shoes I wear when I do exercise but I can exercise nonetheless. Good luck.

Aivey,, Sorry I don't know which days they do surgery. Do you know if you will see Kramer or Kappa? Please keep me posted. Dee

Thanks again Restless Monkey - you said pretty much everything a person who is considering WLS needs to know. :girl_hug:

Good luck to you tomorrow. We'll be thinking of you.

Re) six months waiting period required by insurance: I can't add anything to what Restless Monkey has said - excellent summary of the US healthcare system.:embaressed_smile: I will add as a personal note that I am grateful for the waiting period. This gives me time to think about this procedure and get my mind and body prepared. At first, I resented the waiting period but now I am going to enjoy the process as a journey toward my new healthier life. Dee

I had problems all evening and thought it was my computer. Glad the site is back up and running!

This is a huge lifestyle change and not to be entered into lightly. That's why I am doing my homework while I'm going through the six-month process required by my insurance company. I really liked the analogy that Restless Monkey used - "pacemaker" for our appetites. Diets don't work, and the LB is the tool that will help get us to goal and stay at goal. But not without effort on our parts.

BTW, what is "PB"??:thumbup:

I always enjoy and learn from your posts, Restless Monkey. Thanks for sharing.

WOW! This was very helpful information. I have my 1/2 day class on Tuesday (required by my doctor and insurance). I wonder if they will cover these kind of issues. If not, I plan to bring them up! Thanks everyone for the tips.

Went to my second WLS support group meeting for the town I live in. Speaker was a local psychologist. I might ask him to do my psych eval. My hands and neck are bothering me. I have a large herniated disc in my C3, and C4-6 are also affected. My PCP saw me today and was concerned that the neurosurgeon didn't think I needed surgery. I will have PT later this month and see how that goes. I am still unsure whether I should have WLS, and also whether I should choose LB vs. another procedure. I am reading as much info as I can and asking as many questions. I have 6 months for the insurance pre-req so I won't have surgery until Feb. at the earliest.

Went to my second WLS support group meeting for the town I live in. Speaker was a local psychologist. I might ask him to do my psych eval. My hands and neck are bothering me. I have a large herniated disc in my C3, and C4-6 are also affected. My PCP saw me today and was concerned that the neurosurgeon didn't think I needed surgery. I will have PT later this month and see how that goes. I am still unsure whether I should have WLS, and also whether I should choose LB vs. another procedure. I am reading as much info as I can and asking as many questions. I have 6 months for the insurance pre-req so I won't have surgery until Feb. at the earliest.

Welcome! Good luck on your upcoming surgery. This is a great place to meet other people and learn from their experiences. Hope the hurricane missed you part of TX. Dee

Thank you for sharing your story. Good luck to you. You sound like you know yourself very well.

These posts were very helpful to me as well. It's important to research your options but also make sure you know the research is unbiased. Some websites are obviously biased toward one procedure. I'm choosing LB because of the same reasons outlined by Restless Monkey. Dee

Hello and welcome! I'm a newbie and have just started the process. Good luck to you in your journey. Dee

Hello, I am also a newbie, no band yet. Welcome! Dee

I am very sorry for the loss of your best friend. I really admire you for going down this path a second time. I''m just beginning this process and have been encouraged by the good information and support from the website. Good luck to you.

Thanks for the link to the Cigna website. Very much relieved...

Thanks. I don't want to rush myself into surgery at this point.

My employer is switching from BCBS to Cigna in Jan. My dr's office secretary told me that Cigna requires more "hoops" to jump thru than BCBS. I don't know if I will have all the prereqs done by the end of the year. I'd appreciate any advice on experience with Cigna and LB surgery approval.

I actually saw Dr. Kramer. (I was originally scheduled to see Dr. Kappa but heard that Kramer's bedside manner was more more easy-going. I think Kappa is a good doctor, just different personalities.) I really liked Kramer and his practice. He has recently had WLS (bypass) but didn't reveal which surgery he had until after I had told him I wanted LB. I was very encouraged by what I heard and also understand the reality of the surgery (permanent lifestyle change required). I'm hoping I can have LB before the end of the year. My employer's insurance changes from BCBS of TN to Cigna which has more "hoops" to jump. Keep me posted on your progress.