From consultation to operation?

I had my first consult in August and surgery in December. The biggest contributor to the wait was that my insurance required a 3-month supervised diet.

Many of us are in a rush to have surgery, but honestly, the wait is a good thing. It's a HUGE commitment and permanent lifestyle change, and we need time to make sure we're mentally prepared for it.

I'm just starting, too.  I met with my surgeon on 1/6, I've already had the Psych Eval, and I've been evaluated for Sleep Apnea (yes, I have it and will be getting a CPAP machine soon.)  My insurance is one of those that requires 6 month medically supervised weight loss before they will approve the surgery.  So July at the earliest for me.  I have to see a Nutritionist monthly and have all sorts of tests and evaluations.  It seems that it really varies a lot how long from consult to surgery depending on your insurance more than anything.

Good Luck!

What does the medically supervised weight loss entail? I guess weigh****chers wouldn't qualify?

They require me to see a nutritionist (that is in my bariatric surgeon's office) once a month for 6 months to be "supervised" while I diet.  The surgeon wants me to lose 50 pounds before surgery and with 6 months I think I can do it.  I have no idea if something else would qualify, but I don't think so.  My insurance is paying for the nutritionist visits, so my guess is that they want to ensure that I won't fail by having 6 months being indoctrinated in the ways of WLS.  :)  I have 2 support groups run by the Bariatric Clinic (Counselor, Dietitian, and ARNP) to go to per month, too.  I've been to one so far and have the other tomorrow and it's pretty good to hear the issues/victories from so many other people.