Questions about what 2 expect..

I have my consult scheduled for May 14. Can you tell me what I should expect? Is there anything I can or should be doing now that will speed up the process or be helpful? From he time of the consult, how long does it usually take to actually have the surgery? (Lap-Band) I have Medicare/Medicaid insurance. Does anybody have any experience with them? Any info at this time would really be appreciated. :-S

Michelle, Welcome to the NE boards....First where is your Dr.?? Are you in NE? I had Drs. Holloway and Forney out of Scottsbluff and they are the best! I will be 5 years out in June and maintain my weight of 135-140, my health is perfect and I cant stand still for a second...hahah check my support groups web site,www.npwlssg.org. I had all my medical records pretaining to my obesity. I wrote a letter to ,who it may concern, telling my 45 year struggle with diets etc. I also had Medicare and it paid 80%. My cell is 308-539-5712 if you need to talk ir email me at [email protected] and Lighter, Beth in NE

Hi Michelle: I had my lap band surgery done by Dr. Holloway and Dr. Forney. Here's what I did BEFORE my consult. (and it just depends where you are in this process..........): I already knew what I needed before I walked in the door, and here is what you need (and I'm sure others can think of stuff that needs to be done, that I don't list here): ALL OF THIS HAS TO BE IN THE FORM OF A DOCTOR'S REPORT, IN WRITING, AND SIGNED BY THE RESPECTIVE HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONALS: 1. I had my primary care physician (or PCP) recommendation saying he recommended the surgery; 2. I had the psych eval done; 3. I had a formal diagnosis at a sleep study for sleep apnea (or whatever your accompanying ailments are, if you're diabetic, etc. Get all that documented! etc. I'm sure there is a certain amount you'v already done. In my case, I had to have this because I was at 35.8 BMI (or something like that), and on medicare you have to have what is called a Co-morbidity if you are under 40 BMI. 4. I had a treadmill stress test for my heart. It was all clear. Some doctors don't require this, but it seems most do. I would get an appointment ASAP for this type of check up unless Dr. Forney says you don't need it. FIND OUT! 5. I had to have a nutritionist evaluation, which here in Denver was a very nice lady named Kelly. Beth (above) most likely knows who is good in or near North Platte. 6. In the case of sleep apnea, I had to prove I was being treated for it. In most cases it is a C-PAP machine (you wear it at night). In my case, me and my PCP talked and agreed together that a night time inhaler was the best solution for me. and I HAD TO HAVE my doctor write a letter stating that this is how it was being treated. I had 8 different reports with me when I walked into the initial consult. I turned in all the original copies of these reports, with ORIGINAL signatures. PHOTO COPY EVERYTHING YOU HAND IN. I was told that the doctor's office lost a couple of pieces of my portfolio, and it was good that I had copies of the originals. Otherwise I would have had to go back, and see if my doctors had a copy, or RE-DO the whole thing. I would have been fit to be tied after going through all that I did to accomplish this, and then to have it lost. If anyone loses a document, it is good to tell them you can replace it, but it is also good to hold them accountable for losing something, and making sure that they WILL find it again. It is a legal document, and no one but no one should be losing anything! When I went to my initial consult I had ALL OF THE ABOVE, put it in a nice folder, and handed it to them, the very first time I ever met with them. I had spent all summer, and treated it like a college class project. and it really went well, in my favor. I'm grateful for the small things. My initial consult was in OCT. '06. and I just recently had the surgery in the beginning of March '07. The ONLY reason I didn't get in before I did was, Thanksgiving, Hannukah, and Christmas was right around the corner, and I didn't want to make any serious life changes during the holidays. Then my surgery got cancelled a couple of times due to cir****tances beyond anyone's control, i.e. my doc broke is elbow, not good !! The third time was a charm! If you do the above things, you will show them you are serious, and ready to do this. and things will go along fine. Please feel free to contact me HERE on OH, if you have anything you'd like to ask. I'm going into my 5th week post op, and would be glad to contribute POSITIVELY to your situation. Rebekah L. If you