DO I HAVE A CHANCE?

On March 8th I went to the doctor requesting labs be ran on my cholesterol (I've never had it done and I see her 4 times a year!). I weighed 278 at this appointment. (I requested the labs because my 7 yr old's cholesterol is 194 and insulin is 18 and she's overweight. She's currently being treated at the Lipid Clinic at Children's in Dayton.) I go back on 4/22 and I'm healthy. B/P was 114/78 and Total Cholesterol was 141. She said my sugar was also good. She didn't check my insulin, but at last check (over a year ago by ob/gyn) it was 16. This gave me a diagnosis of PCOS. My BMI as of Monday is 49.1. I have pretty tiny feet and hands with very boney ankles and wrists. I have a *slight* case of asthma, but that will probably disappear when I quit . I have osteoarthritis in my right hip and have needed it replaced for years. The arthritis is not weight related (I had many surgeries as a child), but it is preventing Dr. Buffington from doing the replacement now. I have an umbilical hernia, too. The surgeon I saw about it a year ago was a total fat phob! She used the word "Fat" about 20 times in the 10 minutes she was in the room! However, when I called to get a statement to that affect, her assistant says my obesity, smoking and desire to have more kids is why she didn't agree to operate. She never said ANYTHING about the other two things. I told her to forget the statement and that the doctor was a fat phob and she has no right to walk in a room, call an obese person fat and look down at them over the top of her glasses which hang on the end of her nose! So, her statement is out of the question. My PCP thinks if I stop drinking Pepsi I'd lose 100 lbs in a year. She has never suggested a nutritionist or pills or even cutting back calories. This same doctor let my mother-in-law talk her out of putting her on insulin for 10 years! Anyway, I don't think a statement from her is going to help me either! I haven't even been to Dr. Martin's seminar yet, but I have already scheduled appointments with the nutritionist and psych he has his patients see. I already have a statement from the ob/gyn about the PCOS waiting for pick up at her office. I have called the orthopedic surgeon and my PCP and requested statements from them as well. I am on top of things, pretty much! Now I'm starting to wonder that since I don't have high blood pressure or cholesterol and that my arthritis is not due to my weight, that I am going to have a hard battle even though my BMI is so high. Does anyone have any thoughts on this? Thanks! Michelle

hi michelle what does your insurance need to have to get approval? i didn't need a referral from my pcp. but i have bc/bs and i know they all are different. i had to have a psyh eval. and see a nutritionist. but i did go see my pcp, for peace of mind. i go to dr striebel in huber heights. so if you do need a refferal he does work with weight loss surgery patients. i am having my d/s on april 19. with dr hadley out of kettering. you should not start to worry yet. the ladies at the office are really good about getting people approved. best of luck carol

I would probably change PCP's and find one that is WLS friendly. You will need one after the surgery to handle much of your follow-up care and it would definitely help to have one who is on your side and knows what blood work, tests, etc. are needed for those who are post-op. In reading your profile, you said that you needed a 5 year diet history. Does your insurance want to know what diets you've been on over the past 5 years or do they really want some documentation (medical records) indicating your weight for the past 5 years? Some insurers require one, the other or sometimes both. If you will e-mail me at [email protected] (different than the e-mail that I use for this site), I will e-mail you what I sent to my insurance for my diet history.

You know Michelle I was in your shoes a while back. I had the surgery at Bariatric Treatment Centers in Michigan. I had such a good experience, they got my insurance to cover it and they gave me a complication free surgery, that I started to work there. If you have any questions please feel free to give me a call. My phone number is 1-800-282-0066 Ext 1534, or you can ask for Mark Webking. I would be happy to ans. any of your questions. Looking at your profile you would qualify based on just your ht and wt. Give me a call and we will see what we can do for you. I have lost 115 lbs and I am keeping it off with out much of a problem. I had a high BMI and was qualified based on just that.