Surgeon visit & informative meeting Wednesday.....

Hi,   I'm a bit apprehensive about this now that it is this near.  Oh, not the "maybe I shouldn't do it" at all, THAT I am POSITIVE of!!!!  :)  But more the,  "what if's?"  I have no clue what to expect when I see the surgeon, can anyone let me know?  He will have all of the x-rays and blood work, ekg and such that he requestd, as I did that all last week as he asked that it be done when I saw him.  But from there what else is there that will happen?  Can anyone tell me?????  Yes, I'm one who gets scared of the unknown.  I see the surgeon BEFORE the informative meeting as I requested to have them the same day.  I have my medical records that he requested as well and the food diary, the medical questionare and all the pre-visit forms that they requested I fill out.  I have pre-registered with the office as of this last Friday.  Soooooooooooooooooooo  the big question, .....I am getting to the point of hurry up, get it done and then wait until insurance starts their arguing?  LOL  I just have this horrible feeling that I'm going to get denied, I will be heartbroken, but truthfully not sure how they can say no at this point.  My PCP has put in several of my visits that he KNOWS that after all the tries I have made with him in observence that this is my last choice.  That if I have the surgery he is pretty sure all of my other problems will clear up on their own and I can be back to a normal person again (no, I haven't felt "normal" in forever!  do you all feel like that?)   Can anyone tell me how long they had to wait for approve/disapprove from Medicare/Medicaid insurance?  Please, just a hint of how much longer?   I'm starting to get the butterflies, you know the ones, when you want something so badly you can literally taste it, but then the back side of it and the fear of what if I'm denied, what if the surgeon decides he doesn't want to do it, what if ..... sorry about rambling on.  I haven't told but two friends and my kids and hubby and none of them are overweight and have not a clue what I'm thinking, what I have lived and what I dream of becoming over the next few years.  I want to be healthy and able to go out and work again, to be able to take my grandson for walks, play ball with him and to enjoy him like any other grandma ...not that my weight would ever stop me from not enjoying him (and trust me he is THE cutest little guy you ever did see!!!!!) but it would / does stop me from being able to do some things with him.   My kids just don't get it, they are so used to me going on diets and losing, gaining it back, becoming disapointed and discouraged and quitting.  they are used to me finding the next diet and doing it all over again, and they think that this is the same thing.  They don't understand that it is NOT different, that this IS going to work and if it doesn't that I might not live long enough to see my first grandchild graduate from high school, or to see my youngest daughter get married, graduate from college etc.  They don't know how serious this is for me.  NOR do they understand that the change in eating habbits is not going to be ONLY me!  It is going to be the whole house, no more junk food, no candy, ice cream, potato chips etc.  That FRESH fruits and veggies are going to be the staples, which they won't argue about, as they love them.   My hubby, what a guy, but I don't know if he REALLY understands the consequences of this surgery, of the change in our lives that it is going to make.  He is the "junk food junkie"  of the house.  I have never seen anyone eat like he does and not gain a blasted pound.  Been married 21 1/2 years and he has not gained a pound BUT he eats POUNDS of chocolate a MONTH, chips and whatever other crap he can buy.  His fav food?  PIZZA and burgers.  He would live on these if it came right down to it.  Me?  I LOVE things like fresh broccoli steamed and a good piece of baked chicken, or a baked potato and a steak.  I know there will be things that I won't be able to have, but at this point, I don't care, I want to be here until I'm 108....lol or well at least longer than the maximum of 10 years that my doc has given me.   So, what did everyone else feel when they were at this point in their walk for a healthy body?  I wanna run, but then I wanna walk backwards and hide.  Lots of mixed feelings that's for sure!   Input anyone??????? Laurie

Hi Laurie, congratulations on your decision to have surgery. It is a scary thing to go through but it is worth it. Since you have medicare they require that you follow a dietician's diet for six months. I know what a pain this is but the time will go by fast. You also need to have tried weight loss prescription drugs. If they are not appropriate for you your doctor can dictate a letter stating this. Medicare will pay for whatever procedure you are wanting but they have added more criteria. I hope this helps. Remember the squeaky wheel gets the oil. Keep on top of your gathering information for approval. Good luck. Mona

I am actually seeing Dr. Sudan this coming Monday for my inital consult.  I am not sure what to expect at this appointment either.  I went to the seminar on Sept 5.  I started my food diary today and already have my medical records for one year.  I emailed my insurance company asking about benefits and medical requirements.  I was confused by this so I hope that the insurance person that works with Dr. Sudan helps explain it.  I haven't done any of the tests/labs yet.  I have decided to get all my questions answered first as well as make sure that Dr. Sudan thinks that the lap-band is best for me, which is the surgery that I was thinking about. I also want to know how long it takes for insurance to approve or disapprove the surgery.  I am really hoping to do it near a certain date due to holidays and PTO days at work.  I guess we'll see and hope for the best with that part of it. I am excited about the appointment though.  I do feel kind of weird that I don't have many questions...actually only 2 I think besides the insurance stuff. I am engaged and my fiance has been suportive.  He knows my weight loss struggle and my health issues.  I haven't figured out what my parents think.  My mom typically is one that listens to me, thinks about the topic, and then blasts me in an email about a week later.  I don't know why she does this.  She knows it is upsetting to me.  Anyway she hasn't done this yet.  I'm not sure if she is supportive or is waiting until after the consultant to see what else I have learned....possibly both I guess.  My dad on the other hand is the one with all the major health issues - diabetes (and complications from this), a mini stroke about a month ago, many many heart problems including a 5 bypass in Nov 05, 2 stints in Nov 06, another stint in Dec 06, and another one in mid-Aug 07.  I am not sure if the stint happened before the stroke though.  Anyway he knows I do not want to end up like him healthwise.  I am 30 this coming Monday too and to have to talk to dad about things like wills, living wills, POAs, funerals, etc is not something I thought I would be doing at this time in my life.  Many of his health problems stem from weight.  I refuse to be 53 (like he is) and be concerned about passing away at any time.  Like I said, I am engaged and I want to be with him, his 2 sons, and hopefully some little additions.  I don't want to be sick all the time.  I want to be there for everyone.  I don't want to die early and have any of them wish I was there at some special moment.   Anyway I got kind of side tracked...my dad, oddly enough, was the one to put up an immediate wall.  He too was talking about the extreme risks like not making it through the surgery.  I basically didn't listen to him.  All I said was I am gathering information.  I haven't decided if this is right for me.  I just thought you should know and left it at that. I do hope you tell your family soon.  You will need their support. Good luck and take care. Stephanie Omaha, NE