I have a way to go, but thought I'd say "Hi everyone!"

My Name is Linda,  I live in Hillsboro and I am a professional yahoo. That means, I am computer literate and get paid for it. Nice way to work! I have had weigh tissues all of my life. I am 56 now and its about time I did something about it. Today I took step 2 (1 being attending orientation) I have submitted my paperwork to OHSU. Lets see how long it takes to get this ball rolling! I already know that Aetna will pay.. I just need to jump through all the correct hoops before my knees give out on me :) Linda...

5'5" 275.6 lbs BMI 45ish

Welcome Linda  you are on the right track. let us know how its going

Welcome to the group Linda! It will all probably take about 5-6 months unless you have co-morbities that are already well-documented.  I had to do the sleep study, etc., then submit my paperwork.  It took about a week to get approval from my insurance company, and then it to three months to get the surgical appointment.  Well, they gave me the appointment right away, but it was three months out! I was so disappointed, but the time has passed quickly and I'm now really looking forward to surgery next month.  I can't wait to be a big loser!! Linda

I never thought I would be of the mindset that hypertension diabetes and receeding knee bones woudllbe an asset, but they are my co-morbidities! According to Aetna I only need to do exactly what OHSU requires of all patients to be covered at 100%! Susan told us last week that they are scheduling appointments all the way out to August now.  I can do this, (its a shorter timespan than I had to wait  for my breast reduction last summer).

Oh August is definitely do-able!  I'm sorry to hear you have several co-morbidities, but they do qualify you easily for the surgery, and there is a great chance that at least two of the three will be gone shortly after your surgery.  Good for you. Linda

Hi Linda, welcome to the forum! This is a very kind, supportive group, with people in all phases of WLS. Best of luck with your new adventure!

Thanks for the warm welcome ladies.. I look forward to learning a lot from you all!

Good to have you here Linda.  I started with the orientation session at OHSU on 12/18/06 and had my surgery on 6/20/07 after getting thru all of the hoops.  Sometimes it felt like it would take forever, but here I am -- a happy loser.  Hope you get to the loser side soon. Shirley 

Linda, welcome to the beginning of a wonderful journey, with lots of interesting paths to good health!  I had my surgery on May 23, have met many wonderful helpful and kind people here on Obesityhelp.com.  I hope that you will find an interest in one of the local support groups, as it was something that I did the week-end before my surgery.  I wished I would have started attending the support groups long before - when I was first considering surgery.  I think my pre-surgery journey would have been much easier with a lot less stress! Best of luck to you, and I will look forward to seeing more posts from you!

Have fun playing with your hoops, lol.  Oh, wait, we're not talking about hula hoops.  Maybe that'll be later! Wishing you the best and a welcome! Lori