Newbie looking for info from Dr. Blaney patients

Hello! I have a few questions.  1)  When does Dr. Blaney's office send in for insurance approval?  How long did all of this take for you?  Was it frustrating?  Did they wait until after the Saturday meeting to send it for you?  How did the insurance approval part go?  I had my first appt 7/18, met with Dr. Stapleton and Bryn on the 7/20.  The office has records from my PCP and I was under the impression they would send in for approval. I called to ask about it and they said they don't send it in until after the Saturday appt, which is not scheduled until 8/11!  I'm impatient, plus I swore Dr. Blaney said they could send in for approval as soon as he got the report from Dr. Stapleton. There are no openings sooner for the Saturday appt. 2)   I noticed people talking about the pre-surgery liquid diet.  What is that about?  How many days before surgery does Dr. Blaney have his patients do that?  I'm just envisioning myself wanting a Last Supper so to speak. I know it sounds stupid, but I'm sure I'm not the only one. 3)  Next question, how long does Dr. Blaney have his patients on clear liquids, etc?  I'm going on a cruise in November and was hoping to be able to eat regular food, very SMALL portions of regular food, but solid regular food.  I'm also meeting up with my sister in law, mother inlaw etc.  It would definitely be a bonus if I could be smaller than the last time they saw me.  If I had it by the end of August, I would think it would be obvious I lost something even if I've only lost the 1-2 pounds per week that is expected.  But if I don't have it until the end of Sept etc, I'm thinking I might still have eating problems and no noticeable weight loss yet.   I'm so anxious to get this done.  I'd do it tomorrow if I could.  I absolute hate the waiting.  I know I've not waited long but I've thought about this for a long time, I only recently found out my insurance would cover it, if I qualify, which I should. Thanks for any info you can share. Laurel