But NOT giving up! I am pre-op. In fact, the surgery has not been offered to me yet. I have been following my surgeon's suggestions, and have had the sleep study done, and the psych eval. Well, the surgeon said that he wanted a letter and a phone call, so the psych gave him that. Now the staff says that the letter isn't good enough. They want a "profile" and "conclusion." Will get that for him, but it's a little frustrating that he did not say that is what he really wanted beforehand. I know this is just a little bump in the road, so I am taking it in stride. I had hoped to be banded in the summer months, but maybe that won't happen. Oh well. I have waited this long. I can wait longer. :thumbup: Thanks for listening to me fuss.

Sorry to hear of your frustrations. Just try to take it all in stride. I am pre-op also and finally have a surgery date of June 17. I thought I would never get to this point. One thing I have to say about the extra wait that I had; it was a good thing for me. Gave me time to prepare for the HUGE life change that will occur the day of my surgery. Good luck to you!

Hi,

i don't know your situation except what you've written here, but i'd like to tell you my experience with the "frustrations" of getting all of the clearances and permissions and approvals.

my insurance company required a 6-month dr supervised diet before they'd approve the surgery. while i will admit to (i think) even more frustration that you are describing here, i will also tell you that at the end of that time, when i went into surgery 46 lbs lighter just by following the drs direction before surgery, i had an immense sense of satisfaction. now, i have been on ww and other diets before and have always been able to lose weight--but have NEVER before been able to keep it off. that's why the band has been so good for me. i've always before kind of "lost interest" after a certain period of time. now, the band won't let me forget myself.

during the time i spent getting the ducks in a row, so to speak, i was able to see some success "on my own", so when i had the band installed, i was able to Celebrate my success and look forward to "staying the course."

i encourage you to look at this time as a chance to get onto an appropriate nutritional plan, exercise, and behavioral modification (like not drinking 15 minutes before or 60 minutes after eating; eating from a small plate; and eating small bites, slowly, chewing well...) .

then, when your psych paperwork an all that are ready, you'll have made the life changes you need to allow the band to TRULY work in your favor.

anyway, as with all advice, take what works and leave the rest.

Blessed be.

Good discussion. I started dieting a month ago, based on plan that the nutritionist laid out for me. I've lost 15 pounds, and haven't really suffered. I agree that getting into this mode prior to surgery will be beneficial. I was at a banquet last night, and did my best to eat properly, and ignored the cake when it came around. I didn't even long for the cake anymore, its just not important to me anymore. I meet with the doctor next week in prep for meeting with surgeon, but its possible for me to get a date in the summer months too. I've been charting my weightloss along with the steps on the pedometer, and I can definitely see a correlation between days of high exercise and days of weight loss. So for me, exercise is a critical factor, beyond what a diet will do.

But NOT giving up! I am pre-op. In fact, the surgery has not been offered to me yet. I have been following my surgeon's suggestions, and have had the sleep study done, and the psych eval. Well, the surgeon said that he wanted a letter and a phone call, so the psych gave him that. Now the staff says that the letter isn't good enough. They want a "profile" and "conclusion." Will get that for him, but it's a little frustrating that he did not say that is what he really wanted beforehand. I know this is just a little bump in the road, so I am taking it in stride. I had hoped to be banded in the summer months, but maybe that won't happen. Oh well. I have waited this long. I can wait longer. :laugh: Thanks for listening to me fuss.

I am sure that he just wants to be sure that all of the paperwork is "perfect" before he sends it in to insurance. When I asked my doctor for a letter, I sent him a sample letter from the surgeon (you know, with fill in the blank lines). Well my doctor (or more likely his assistant) just filled in the blank lines instead of typing a letter. It wasn't even on his letterhead!!! The surgeon is your advocate, so don't be upset by his asking for a little bit more.... Trust me, it will be worth the wait!!!

I know exactly where you are coming from... I have been waiting and waiting and waiting for final approval. I hope I hear something in the next day or two. I'm nervous that I went through the 6 months, the endless testing, etc, for nothing. Even my PCP is getting frustrated because of continually having to give information. (6 months of weight management, several letters, etc, etc!) Did I mention he charges me $ each time he sends stuff. RIDICULOUS!