Just came from my surgeon consult! Good and Bad news...the good news is that the doc agreed lapband was a good decision! bad news is that my insurance requires a 6 month medically supervised diet..ugh! Its aggravating because if I have been dieting my whole life! my question is how many of you had to go through this process and what did you do?

I am not banded Yet I am doing the 6mnth thing it really is not that bad for me it is not really a diet as much as keeping track of what u eat. I thing the worst part of the whole thing is just waiting the 6 mnts for something we want so bad. Good luck and keep your head up it will go by faster than you think.:drool:

Most if not all insurance companies require the six month supervised diet and some require you to lose 10% of your weight during the six months.

I am half way through my 6 mos supervised diet. As Jeepman said, it is more like keeping track of what you are eating and learning to modify your diet in preparation for banding. My first 3 months have flown by, so I'm getting excited now about the next 3.

Oh, I was to lose 12 lbs for my 6 mos. I have already done so, so am just maintaining now.

Think positive, all these hoops we have to go through will pay off in the end.

I call my insurance company in the beginning before I had my initial visit with my family doctor. So by the time I got the referral and all my paper work, (history of other diets and diet programs) to go visit the surgeon three months had past and I was able to use those visits as part of my 6 month supervise diet. After meeting the surgeon and having all the required (other) doctor visit (ultrasound, EGD, Physc, Metobolic, another dietician, it was 2 more month passed and now I am waiting to see him on the 20th of Nov to schedule a surgery date (probably will be Dec.) Talk with your doctor, he might work with you.

I have to do it too. I was initially annoyed about it, but I'm doing the supervised part with my surgery clinic, so it's very much focused on getting ready for life after surgery. I've read from other people on this site that the time flies by, so I'm really hoping for that! :thumbup:

OMG, I did this for my insurance, and it was a waste of time, but I did it, it's over with... here's my experience.

For 6 months in a row I went in once a month and said and heard the exact same thing!

I had to fill out a calendar looking packet of all the food and drinks I consumed in the month between visits, I would bring it in, if I hadn't lost it. She'd glance over it. ask me about my diet and soda drinking, i would say something like "i'm trying to watch what I eat and cut back on sodas, oh I do x, y, z (which were minimal at best) for "exercise"" she would say, okay well, everything looks fine, just keep watching fried and greasy foods (for example) and cut back on sodas until it's down to zero.

I would smile and say okay, and I would do it the next month. That was literally all I did!

I changed absolutely nothing!

I remeber feeling the same way back in April 09, I just completed my 6 months and all my paper work has been send to my insurance company this week. So now I'm waiting. Time will go by fast just dont think about it, that is what I had to do. Good luck

Janaey

How do you know?

I called my insurance company and they told me it was up to my medical group (I have an HMO)... So I called my medical group and they said it was up to the surgeon... I am going to call the surgeon today and see if I cant get a better idea as far as the length of time I need... Hopefully it won't be any... I can hope can't I?

Some people are get their doctors to count recent time on WW or another diet toward the 6 month period. If you've been doing one of those programs, it's worth asking.

Good luck! The time will be over before you know it!

Catherine

I had to do the 6 mo diet, but lost my insurance in the middle of it. cry cry, was so angry, i gained the weight i lost back, so now its been 13 months since i started this journey. all i have left is a couple of tests and hopefully it will be done by the end of the year. so just hang in there, the 6 months go by fast!

My GP was a doll and "back-logged" all the forms for me. I had my first consult on July 9th and was banded by Oct. 5th. It is not like she and I had never discussed my obesity or we did anything wrong. I was grateful for that, and it cut back the timeline.

I am really embracing the 6 months. I am using this time to get educated and practice post-surgery habits. For instance, this month I am trying the 15-30 chews per bite. I am amazed at how this lengthens my meal time and makes me fuller faster. I also joined a gym and am trying to get into 3x's a week routine. I am considering this 6 months much needed prep time.