A little infor please i am new

I am looking for information on peoples wait times and how soon after first consult was the wait time for surgery. I would also like to know what kind of tests are involved with all this. Also has anybody encountered negativity towards doing this , so far i have met a few people who think that this is the craziest and stupidest thing i could do to my body.(I think i have already done that). Thank you for taking the time to read this MarcieC

Hi Marcie, The wait times vary with each surgeon, some are very very booked while others are pretty open. Personally I had a surgeon that was inbetween. What I did is in July 2006 I went to my own personal Dr. and talked with him about WLS. He did a referral to a bariatric surgeon ( I am not sure if I could have gotten in to see him without the referral) but every place is different. I saw the surgeon in August, he did measurements, history of diets, exercise, etc and asked me why I wanted the surgery as well as answered any other questions. They then wrote up a request based on the information and history I provided and faxed it to my insurance, I got a denial the first time as my insurance was requesting a 6 month Dr. supervised diet and exercise plan (I had done it before but it was not charted exactly how the insurance co wanted it) so I went on the insurance co's website and printed out exactly what the Dr. had to include. I went back to my own Dr. and did that for 6 months. My surgeon submitted that info the beginning of March and I got the approval March 23rd. My surgeon was booking May 8th and after and I chose Wed. May 16th as I have to have 2 days in the hospital and my husband could be home with me for the weekend before he has to go back to word. Some people get approved right away and some people have to do certain things or insurance co's request additional info which delays it but jumping through their stupid hoops was still so worth it. A lot of denials cause people to quit, and that's what they count on so they don't have to pay for it. I had a few people that were negative about it but I would answer any questions they had and if they wanted to continue to be negative I would just ignore them. Only you can know what it feels like to be in your shoes and you will do what is best for you. I hope this all helps. Take care!! Jamie

Hi Marcy, I am not a good reference on wait times because I had to schedule my surgery around my job and booked it two months out on purpose. When I was approved, my surgeon had dates available in as little as two weeks though. The approval was surprisingly fast in my case. BMI over 50, maybe I should not have been all *that* surprised. Tests...OMG! B-1 B-12 CBC Comprehensive Chemistries Endocrine/PCP History and Physical H-Pylori Nutritional Eval Physical Psychological Evaluation TSH Upper GI Vitamin D Ever donated blood? That's about what it was like in the lab! Vial after vial... Some people on the boards have stories about the negative reactions. Personally, I have had nothing but support so I have no advice to share there. But you will find lots of love and support here. I'm relatively new here and the people have been just great. Made a lot of friends both pre-op and post-op. Hugs, -- T.Rob

oh yeah I had all the same tests as T. Robb but add PREGNANCY TEST and SLEEP STUDY. --Jamie

I had a sleep study fairly recently and forgot that one. Oddly, I did not need a pregnancy test. No, not for the reason you are thinking - me being a guy and all. The reason I did not need one was that my insurer made an paperwork goof and gave me an administrative pregnancy. A few days after I requested the evaluation I received a letter which began (and I quote): Dear Mr. Wyatt, Congratualtions on your pregnancy! It then continued to explain to me all of the prenatal care benifits that I could take advantage of. I wrote them back asking whether they could administratively terminate the pregnancy and convert it to WLS surgery. If so, would this procedure be covered as medically necessary? What with me being a guy and all. They did eventually terminate my pregnancy but you can bet that I'm taking a sharpie and writing "NO C-SECTION" on my stomach before I get to the OR. -- T.Rob

Hi Marcie, I have been very fortunate with my journey. I investigated and had a consult with one bariatric surgeon and then made an appointment with another (not too keen on the first one). My second appointment was with a bariatric center, Barix and I was imediately impressed with the surgeon. I was given the list of approvals I needed from other professionals as well as lab work (cbc and H-Polari). I called my PCP and had an appointment the next week and she order a ton of more blood and lab work so that results could be sent to surgeon as well. 2 weeks later I saw the Psych professional, 10 days later the cardiologist (3 days worth - EKG, cardiolite stress test and echocardiogram). Then I was done, but my reports didn't arrive at the surgeon's office as quickly as promised. I called around and had all of my reports faxed to the office and then waited for the review and the scheduling office to call. Did I mention my insurance was submitted on 3/23 and approved 4 days later? I spoke with the scheduler and was given the option for 2 dates, the 15th or 23rd of May. I am graduating with my Masters on the May 19th so I picked the 23rd. So . . . . all said and done, my process took 2 months. I did not need a sleep test and I have a long history of physician supervised diets, physical thearapy, as well as having several of the co-morbidities of obesity. It was a no brainer. I need this. I have encounted negativity, yes. Mostly from people who think they know me or at least think they know what might be best for me. "you just need to diet." They have no idea what it like to have been a heavy/obese person since puberty, nor do they suffer the pain of arthritis, nor been on diets of less than 800 calories a day just to lose an average of a pound or 2 a week, nor have they felt the incredible sadness and frustration of regaining any and all weight loss back. Yes Marcie, some folks don't get it, don't get that WLS is a chance for life and not simply another stab at a diet. Chin up and know that no matter how much time or how many tests, all will be worth it for your health and well being. Jan K.

Hi Marcie! The wait time can vary based on what your insurance requires before insurance will approve or pre-authorize and also the requirements of the clinic/program you choose. The best place to start is to call your insurance and find out precisely what their requirements are before they will approve you for surgery. I have been on this journey a year, however, that's because my old insurance required a letter of medical necessity from my primary care provider (PCP), a 6-month physician assisted diet (had to include nutritional counseling, monthly weigh-ins, exercise and amount done) as well as a pyschological evaluation for bariatric surgery whi*****luded the WLS evaluation and an MMPI (that alone took 3 visits). After I got the 6 month diet under my belt (got that done end of January), I had to go part time on my job which meant I lost the insurance coverage and had to wait until I was added to my husband's insurance (Medica) effective April 1. My old insurance ended March 31, but there wasn't enough time to get in the clinic appointments, wait for insurance approval and then get a surgery date in that short period of time. So, I got all the clinic appointments in whi*****luded nurse consult, psych eval (I didn't have to do this though since I already had it done), EKG, blood tests, physical therapy appointment, nutritionist appointment. Then everything was submitted to insurance for pre-authorization (took 16 days), then after approved I had a pre-op class and met with the surgeon just yesterday where I got my date - May 30. So, for me it took about a year, BUT, that's because of my old insurance requirments. If your insurance does not require a diet, then the average turnaround time is 3-4 months. Good luck on the journey!!! Michelle

Hi Marcie, I think that everyone did a good job explaining the process. I wish you luck with your journey on whatever you decide to do. Don't give up because it is so worth fighting for. They do make you jump through a lot of hoops but it is all worth it. Once I got my date I so relieved and excited at the same time. It is a wild roller coaster ride of emotions but it gets better as you go along. I don't let negative people get to me and I am so ready for this that no one could change my mind. Again, best of luck!!!! If you need help with anything pm me. Kelly