Newbie ????

I am in the beginning stages. My first meeting is not until. What has been the procedure for some of you? I have read sometimes it can take 6 months from beginning to end.

Welcome!  The timing really depends on your insurance and your surgeon.  Some insurance plans require 6 months of supervised dieting, some don't.   Your surgeon will require attendance at one seminar in most cases, then whatever testing is necessary based on his requirements.  I was one of the lucky ones and had surgery two months after seeing surgeon.  No matter how long the journey the results are well worth it.  Good luck!

Congratulations on your decision to pursue weight loss surgery!

I think all depends on your insurance criteria and requirements regarding weight loss surgery.

It all depends on what your insurance company requires.  Mine required six months of a supervised weight loss program, which basically consisting of seeing my PCP every month to record my weight.  I lost about 50 pounds during that time, but had to delay surgery for several months due to unrelated reasons.

Welcome!

What I suggest you do first is call your insurance company and see what they require.  Some companies require 6 months of a doctor supervised diet and some don't.  My insurance company did not require this.

From beginning to end it took me about 3 months.  I had to go to my primary doctor for a referral, then to a seminar that was ran by the surgeon I ended up going with.  After the seminar I had a bunch of paperwork to fill out, including medical history, diet history, what I've done, how much my weight has gone up and down over the years, etc.  Then I had my consultation in which I met with the surgeon, nutritionist, exercise therapist, and some other lady that sat behind a desk and had me fill out a bunch of forms.  I had to have a psych evaluation done.  The guy I went with required 2 visits for bariatric patients.  I also had an endoscopy, an EKG, blood work, and then other pre-op lab testing.  I didn't have any severe co-morbidies such as sleep apnea so I didn't need further testing.  As soon as my psych eval was completed my surgeon's office sent everything to my insurance for approval.  It took about 2 weeks for them to approve and then about another 2 weeks for my surgeon's office to give me a date.  This was the longest period that I had to wait.  My surgery was July 30th 2014.  So it all started in early May so it took about 3 months for me.

No matter what happens for you though, keep it mind that it's worth the hassle and the wait.  Some people have had issues where surgery was pushed back, post poned, denied, etc.  Just keep plugging away.  The end justifies the means.