HELP! new to this please help so many questions!

You'll probably be approved since you have a high bmi, the surgeon might want you to lose a little weight to make the procedure a little safer, you should definitely check. Good for you for going for this but you shouldn't have had to beg your pcp for a referral that shows a lack of empathy and education on her part. You should start looking for a new pcp who is educated in bariatrics, this is a major lifestyle change and you need as many people in your corner as possible. You'll probably be seeing a pcp in between seeing your surgeon and having one that is educated & supportive will go a long way in your long term care. Good luck!

My goodness! The lady even forgets that she referred me to weight management and every time I come to see her she asked me what program am I on! It's like she has no clue what's going on with me and every time I asked questions about bariatric surgery, she goes to say... "Well you have to do a program for 6 months first" I'm like lady I started the program that YOU!! Sent the referral for inFebruary she just has no clue! But I'm just glad I got the referral  

Your BMI alone will qualify you for WLS, even without a single medical issue, so there is no need for you to worry about that. As Grim said, though, not all surgeons will perform surgery on someone who is so heavy.  Do you already have a surgeon in mind whom you know will do the surgery?

Does your insurance REQUIRE a referral from your PCP?  (Many do not.)  I agree that you should perhaps seek out a different PCP because, to be frank, it sounds like she either is anti-WLS or is one of those physicians who treat their obese patients (and especially ones who are super morbidly obese) badly.  I was also SMO (BMI of 57) but my PCP has always been wonderful and was very supportive of my request to have the RNY after watching me struggle with my weight for a number of years and watching my weight AND blood sugar creep up year after year.

Because your weight is so high, it is only a matter of time until you DO develop a life threatening condition, so IMO it doesn't really matter why she was so reluctant to do it.  The important thing is that she did it. 

Again, do not worry about not being approved.

Lora

Thank you everyone for your help and it has made me feel a lot better my fingers are still crossed though! If they need me to lose weight to do the surgery no problem I'll stave myself (unhealthy I know) but I'm so serious I want this so bad I do anything! But I'm honestly working on getting my weight down little by little right now even though I weigh a lot I don't eat a lot I know skinny people who eat more than I do, I think my issue's are genetic and metabolism I need the help from the surgery to get this weight off for good! And I will check with my insurance thank you for that tip! Im ready to jump through any and all hoops I just hope this is not going to be a battle I'm just ready for this change, I've never wanted something so bad in my life!  Again thank you all for the tips and encouragement! 

Before you start starving yourself, see the surgeon!  He/she will want you to see a nutritionist as part of the process.  If you're like me, and can follow a "recipe" for an eating plan, that will be a big help!!!!

With a BMI of 78, I agree that your issues probably are due to genetics and metabolism. It's hard to get to a BMI that high without having a very 'thrifty' metabolism, one that's super-good at hanging on to every calories you eat.

I highly recommend you choose your surgeon VERY carefully. The higher one's BMI, the more risk involved in any sort of surgery. I would suggest you contact either Dr. Robert Rabkin or Dr. Ara Keshishian, both located in CA. Both sort of specialize in high-risk patients, both do revision WLS (which is more complicated that first-time WLS), both do the Duodenal Switch (the form of WLS with the very best long-term, maintained weight-loss stats for patients with BMIs greater than 50!), and both have done surgery or patients with BMIs greater than yours.

So how do I find these doctors? Will they let me choose the surgeons? Idk anything right now I'm just at the process of getting a referral! I'm getting scared now because I keep getting told I'm "high risk" because of my weight and high bmi. I mean although I have a high bmi and my weight is 428 I'm low risk for   diabetes and high blood pressure I just had my whole blood work done and everything came back normal except for my red blood cell count which I'm anemic from iron  deficiency! My doctor says I'm pretty healthy! Just need to lose weight or it won't stay that way. So Don't get me wrong I suffer from many things associated from being super obese plus I have anxiety and depression my joints hurt, I don't have any energy I feel like everyday I'm getting closer and closer to my body shutting down on me I'm scared to death of what I've become, and what will happen if I continue to stay this size. I assume the risk of any surgery but y'all just scaring me now!

Many of us do have very efficient metabolisms, and at your BMI it would not be surprising. The good things are that there is one surgery that shines in helping those of us with bad metabolisms, and it's also the same surgery that has the best weight loss, best maintenance, and best resolution of co-morbs, AND that you have already done some of the pre-op requirements, AND that you are in CA, which has two of the best surgeons for doing complicated DSs. 

I can't suggest strongly enough that you research the DS, and I personally would get a consult with Dr Rabkin or Dr Kesheshian.

I'm going to look them up, do they accept medi-cal how does all this work?

I would just call them and ask them. They are both in CA, which is awesome for you to have two of THE top guys right there in your own state.

Dr keshishian is at;

Central Valley Bariatrics
1808 Verdugo Blvd, Suite 413
Glendale, CA 91208

and Dr Rabkin is at;

2250 Hayes St, 3rd Floor
San Francisco, CA 94117

415-668-3200