Sleeve Story

[Bloomer723 75]

Background:

I thought this would be a good place to start the story of my sleeve. I had my first appointment 8/20 (after being rescheduled from 8/27 due to an opening). I am 5'2 and weigh 225.8. I have no comorbidities but have had a BMI over 40 for the past 5 years. I work in a hospital that has a weight management program and by default have to use their services for insurance purposes (I'm fine with that). I am a married 47y/o female and have two younger children ages 5 & 7 as well as an adult son 27 and a 1.5 year old grandson. I have tried every diet out there and have been overweight since I was a child. I finally told my husband about scheduling an appointment after being referred by my PCP. At first I was concerned about his response, but he was so supportive. I have a list of appointments already scheduled and meet with the surgeon tomorrow.

Program Details:

My program requires a 6 month program, like most. After my first appointment with the PA, he suggested I start eating 4 oz of food 5 times a day. I am all for getting in the swing of things but this seemed drastic to cut back six months ahead of time. So for week one, I have stopped drinking diet coke. I haven't had any for 4 days and feel fine. I usually only drink one a day and not every day. I am going to try a new behavior each week, building on the week before and slowly transition. I have adjusted my food intake to include more Protein and less carbs. PA wasn't concerned about how much weight I could lose before surgery but suggested I be able to show a downward trend. I had other tests done during the initial appointment (labs, EKG, body comp) and will not need any additional testing like sleep apnea, stress test, etc. I have a fitness appointment, nutrition appointments and psychological evaluation already scheduled. I assume I'll be scheduled for surgery in February/March.

Costs:

I had to pay an insurance co-pay of $20 for the office visit, $50 Program Enrollment Fee and a $60 Fitness Evaluation Fee (scheduled 9/25). Apparently I will have a $20 co-pay for each office visit. My insurance is UHC-UMR and I have a $3000 lifetime benefit, and 60/40 split for the balance. What was explained to me is that my 40% portion is based on the contracted rate. Still not sure what my overall costs will be, but I was willing to pay self pay rate of $16.5K and was assured that I would pay less through insurance. My insurance changes Jan 1, and I am sure that my WLS benefit will be the same or better, based on the fact that the hospital I work for has a recognized Weight Loss Program and how can you not cover WLS for your employees (hoping for better coverage)?

Progress:

I will update my progress weekly for anyone interested. I wanted to do a youtube video or blog, but realistically don't have the time. If anyone who has already been sleeved could suggest a helpful behavior change/goal for next week it would be appreciated.

Week1 - no soda

If you made it this far thank you for reading and I look forward to sharing our experiences.

[Miss Mac 6,261]

Congratulations! You are offf to a great start. That six-month supervised diet will definitely help you establish habits that are essential to bariatric success.

One of the hardest concepts for me to change was night eating. I could actually be doing well on a Mediterranian diet, then would blow it around midnight with a carb fest. I just had to determine that the kitchen was closed after dinner and I limited my trips to that part of the house. 21 months post-op, night eating is still a challenge, so I just keep popsicles on hand.

Right now, my late snack is cherry tomatoes from the garden. Success also depends on how you stock the fridge and pantry. The fewer temptations, the better. So at least if you cave in, you can grab something that won't do so much damage.

[Bloomer723 75]

Miss Mac thank you for your reply. I too struggle with night eating. I usually eat food items in large quantities at that time ie popcorn, Cereal, veggie straws, chips...I'm probably just tired and should go to bed. I'm working on the fridge/pantry items and trying to increase my Protein. I'm going to start exploring Protein Shakes too so I'm not scrambling at the last minute to find one I like.

[Bloomer723 75]

Program Details:

Initial meeting with surgeon (good looking I might add)

Cost:

$20 co-pay

Progress:

Met with the surgeon today. Had a nice conversation and felt really informed discussing the sleeve surgery. I felt my research on this site as well as some others really helped me to understand an ask the right questions. My last appointment will be in February and I anticipate surgery later that month. Doctor said I was an excellent candidate basically because I have no comorbidities, heart or pulmonary issues as well as no history of stomach surgeries. MD liked the idea of a new behavior each week. This week I have been working on no soda and have made it 4 days with no problem. MD emphasized exercise and how the sleeve will get you to a certain point and then you have to start exercising to get to that ultimate goal weight. So far good experience.

[Bloomer723 75]

Progress:

Sunday, the day to add another weekly goal. Last week my goal was to stop drinking soda. This week I am going to close the kitchen at 9:00 pm. This time may seem late but I get off work at 7:00 pm so after I prepare dinner and eat, it's close to 9:00 pm. I tried to do all liquids one day and caved at about 6:00 pm. I was thinking about doing liquids 2-3 days a week and eating normally the rest of the week. Certainly I should be able to make it one day on liquids just knowing that I would be able to eat something the next day. For me this process will definitely be a head & habit issue. I need to get some control before the procedure or I will fail. Initially I was disappointed to wait 6 months and now realize this is probably the best thing for me, kind of like an opportunity to practice before the real deal.

If you've read this far, thanks for reading!

[Jessica Ellison-Correa 66]

@@Bloomer723 my 6 month wait also ends in febuary and i have been doing the once a week new behavior thing as well week 1 was no soda week two was night time snacking im going into week 3 and its limiting grazing between meals im a huge grazer on nuts love them

[Bloomer723 75]

@@Jessica sorry I didn't see your post sooner. Night time snacking is going pretty well. I had 2 pseudo binges and ate 2 Quaker granola bars and dried apply slices. I think I just needed the crunch because I started incorporating Protein Shakes and Soups to get a jump start on weight loss. Still doing well not drinking any soda since 8/20. Hoping to stay in control over the holiday weekend.

[tssiemer 85]

I feel weird because my insurance doesn't require a 6 month diet. :-/

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[Bloomer723 75]

Have you been able to get a date yet? Whose your insurance? I have UHC through UC.

[tssiemer 85]

Anthem. We have an employee plan because my husband works there

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[Bloomer723 75]

Progress:

Sunday another goal/behavior to implement. So far I have been working on no soda (since 8/23) and no eating after 9:00 p. I was doing well until today on the no soda and then drank about 5 oz because there was an ice cold diet coke at the bottom of the cooler (Labor Day party). It has been two weeks since I had soda and can honestly say I didn't enjoy the diet coke. I've done well not eating after 9:00 p and so this week my new behavior/goal is to get 10K steps a day.

Week 1 no soda

Week 2 no eating after 9:00

Week 3 10K steps per day