Hi Everyone!!!

My name is Mickey Craig. I live in Central Falls, in the Beverly Hills section of Central Falls........LOL I have a profile if you want to check it out. I just barely found out tonight we have a state to state message board. I think it is awesome!! With Rhode Island being such a teeny tiny state we are all practically neighbors....LOL OK, I will shut up for now. Just wanted to introduce myself. My typing skills ain't what they used to be. Sometimes the "hand typeth before the brain thinketh".....LOL Hugs to all, Mickey.........

Hello Mickey, I think my journey is going to come to a halt soon because of my insurance. I have United RiteCare (state medical) and from what I have been reading with others...they take months to approve surgery..if they approve it at all. I guess I am just going to have to fight them on a daily basis because I am not giving up. I refuse to wait 6 months for an answer. I just had my appointment with the Dietican. That went ok. Next week I have my cardiology consult. The week after that, my gallbladder ultrasound and HIDA. The following week, sleep evaluation and the week after that psyche eval. The consult with Dr. Pohl is on Nov. 20th. Then he will give me an appointment for my upper GI stuff. I think then all the paperwork gets submitted and only if I am approved I get a surgery date. This is going to take forever. My medical is notorious for denying people. I will not let that stop me though. That is what appeals are for. I have thought long and hard about having the surgery. I know this is the only option for me. Nothing else worked. My mom passed away a few weeks ago from a massive stroke. She was about my build, had diabetes (me too), possibly elevated cholestorol (don't know if I do) and she just turned 67. No one in my family lives past their 60's. My mom out lived them all. I am 39 and if everything keeps going this way....I have about 20 years left. Those odds are not accpetable. I need to get healthy. I need to get rid of diabetes. I need to feel 39 again...not the 60 that I feel now. Anyhow...I am babbling. Let's hope others use this message board more. The support is key to sucess. Joanne

hi there, don't know if you remember me but I wrote to you before my operation asking you for more information. That was over a year ago! I'm so glad you finally got approval - best of luck to you! Sandy

Hi Mickey, Good for you for keeping your eye on the ball and pursuing the surgery. Dr Roye did mine almost 7 weeks ago. I've lost over 50 lbs, have about 120 to go. He is such a great surgeon, you have placed yourself in great hands. Everything is working exactly as advertised, and I haven't had even a hint of depression as Dr Freidman had warned me is common. I had such a cool experience in the OR. I was a nervous wreck, having been at the hospital for about 6 hours before I was taken in to pre-surgery prep (insurance problems at the last minute, yikes). Let me say that the entire day, in between to other surgeries, Dr Roye spent on the phone with hospital billing and my insurer, trying to get the surgery done that day. He was my knight in shining armor! The insurer wouldn't budge but the hospital agreed to fight for their payment so I did get the surgery. After being there since 9:30am it was about 5 pm when they wheeled me into the OR. I was shaking like a leaf. One of the OR nurses then covered me with a heated blanket. The entire team, including Dr Roye and the anesthesiologist, then leaned down, putting their heads close to me, and began to massage me, my legs, arms, shoulders, scalp, saying "good night, sweet dreams, see you soon". What a wonderful feeling to go to sleep to! That's the last thing I remembered. I think it's attention to details like that that give his patients such good outcomes.