Hi everyone. Ok so I had an appointment with my PCP on Friday June 3rd he also did a full physical and he wrote me a letter of recommendation for the sleeve surgery. And on Tuesday May 31st he ran something called a fasting blood test. I also asked for a copy of the blood work to take to my consultation on June 8. I am beyond ready. I'm also keeping a food log now.

My concern is that I won't be able to get the sugary done this summer. Since I'm a teacher its best for me during this time. I'm worried I started the process too late. Even though my insurance BCBSIL PPO doesn't require any documented weight loss before I'm worried about what the docs at the University of Chicago will have me do. Has anyone gone through their program??? Is it even possible to accomplish this this summer or am I getting ahead of myself???

Also does my BMI also affect how soon I'm approved. I'm 5'3 I weigh 301 and my BMI is over 51. I'm so nervous about this all I can't wait for Wednesday.

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Congratulations on making the decision to change your life.

You MAY be over optimistic about being able to have surgery this summer, but it MAY be possible.

Are you using insurance? The biggest things that will influence your surgery date are: 1) insurance requirements, 2) pre-op clearances, and 3) your surgeon's program/availability.

Some insurance companies require a pre-op supervised diet that can range from 3-months, to 6-months, or even more.

Clearances can take time, especially if it takes time to schedule testing.

You may also be required to take nutrition classes, etc.

Be prepared to practice patience, polite persistence, and positivity.

I asked my insurance to mail me the requirements for BS and luckily a supervised diet is not a requirement. I plan on going in being brutally honest and proving I'm committed to this life change and hopefully my appointments can be mad as close together as possible. June 8 I have an appointment with the surgeon, the nutritionist and I have the psychological evaluation. I have fingers and toes crossed. Thank you for taking the time to read and respond to my post

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I attended the mandatory info session in July 2015 and it took till March 2016 to get to surgery. Most programs will have a bunch of mandatory hoops (weight loss, classes, tests) to jump through. My program said the absolute minimum would be 4 months and that was very rare. 6 months was more common. It took almost 9 months for me. So if I had to bet, I would bet against you getting surgery this summer, but you may get lucky.

If summer turns out to be a no go, you could aim for a school vacation. One week of vacation plus a week off will probably be enough if you are getting the sleeve. It was plenty for me.

I wish you luck!

You will either get it done this summer.......or not.

If you can't steer them to a summer surgery.....then don't sweat it. Schedule it for the most opportune time you can once school resumes....when school is out for a long weekend or something. You'll only need a week to recover and be ready for action.....at least that is the experience most have reported. I took three full weeks off but that was due solely to having an abdominal hernia repair done during my sleeve surgery. Even then...I only needed pain meds for a couple days after getting home. The sleeve surgery itself was a breeze.

Congrats on making the decision. It certainly was one of the best I've ever made.

I would be shooting for christmas break. Even with no 6 month diet, you have to get all the preop tests done and wait for insurance approval, which can take from a few days to a few weeks.

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I was annoyed with the six month thing at first but then it realistically took me about 4 months to complete all of my surgeons requirements anyway. BUT I was working so my schedule was not so flexible. If you are off for the summer and have lots of flexibility it may work. If, for example, you need to see a pulmonologist ask for the earliest appt and if it is a few weeks out take it but ask them to call you if someone cancels.

But the bottom line is these things do take time and the pre clearances are important. If it is a bit later than you'd like that's ok too.

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Congrats on marking the decision! If you cant get summer try to aim for Christmas.

Good luck & blessings!

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Jane I hope the time frame works out for you I have BCBSIL PPO and I had to do a 6 month supervised weight loss it is weird how insurance policies differ. GOod Luck.

I guess it all depends on your Dr. I have never heard of a process to surgery going that quick, the quickest I have ever seen is 6 months ,my BMI is 54 and I started May 11 and surgery should be Nov.

Don't confuse a required weight loss with a supervised monitoring. My insurance (Premera BCBS) did not require that I lose weight, but they did require 6 months of supervised visits with a doctor. Your surgeon will likely have a whole list of requirements, including some or all of the following: nutrition visits, psych eval, lots and lots of bloodwork, endoscopy, sleep study, and visits with a cardiologist and/or anesthesiologist...plus the pre surgery diet which is often 2 weeks. If you happen to test positive for h pylori, that is another delay. You surgeon will likely have other surgeries booked out for a couple of months. Maybe you have a plan and a surgeon that doesn't have all of those requirements, but it seems unlikely. I started back in October and am just now getting to surgery this month, and my journey was a smooth one with no setbacks. Also, even if you only need a week to recover from the actual surgery, I've heard so many people talk about their lack of energy for several weeks after the surgery. That's good advice above...try to plan it for one of your long school breaks rather than rush it. You need to be prepared physically and mentally. Best wishes to you on your journey

Edited June 6, 201610 yr by anniebanana

I think it's possible but not probable. Have you already had a sleep study? If so - that would move things along faster. Be prepared for your visit - write down all your previous diet attempts, learn as much about the procedure as possible - particularly the eating habits that will need to change post-op and your expectations for recovery. Check your Programs website and see what else they recommend. Don't be too disappointed if you have a supervised weight loss expectation or if your Team wants you to go to nutrition classes/visits or even therapy. It's all to ensure you succeed!

Edited June 6, 201610 yr by KristenLe

It might be possible depending on your surgeon's schedule. My surgery was done 2 months after my 1st consultation

I'm a teacher to, when I walked in for the consult I said I'm a teacher so when do you think I want my surgery.. The surgeon said summer, correct... He said once we get all the needed paperwork he would be able to get me in for July.... He's a busy surgeon... Good luck, count down to Summer is on either way so that makes me

"We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them"

Einstein

I love the feedback you all are giving me, trust me it's so appreciated. If I couldn't get it done this summer I'm totally aiming for a winter or spring break surgery. Or I just may schedule it for next summer.

I had gallbladder removal surgery at the beginning of this past school year and I had to take a week and a half off I don't really want to take off another extended leave like that.

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I think it's possible but not probable. Have you already had a sleep study? If so - that would move things along faster.

One test I never had to have was a sleep study.

I got delayed by a couple months due to an abnormal mammogram (which took a shocking 4 weeks to get an appointment for, then two more weeks for them to read the results) followed by a biopsy (another week to get appointment for that) and then it all turned out to be nothing.

My advice, get the required tests done immediately. Pap smear, mammo, blood work, ekg, colonoscopy, endoscopy. Those have to have been done within the past year in order to "qualify." I lost a lot of time making most of these appointments after I had reached my pre-op weight loss. Check with your program to make sure you know all of their required tests early, and get them out of the way!

Edited June 6, 201610 yr by Shaydi.Laine