Update and more questions...

Well, all my appointments are set and I go to the first one this Saturday morning in Charlotte. I wish I had been told to go ahead and set up an appointment to see my surgeon as this is likely going to be what slows me down. At the seminar I was pleasantly surprised to see that I have more stamina and can walk the whole way to the conference room while some of the people there couldnt. Several people brought their spouses and I was surprised at the number of spouses who want the Dr to talk their spouse out of surgery. I got the feeling that there would be a lot of divorces in the futures for some of the people there. Not a problem for me....lol. Question ... I have a documented weight loss effort through my PCP going back to 2001. These visits have not been monthly however. Each time I was weighed and we would discuss my efforts to lose weight among other things and several times I was given a diet medication to try which never worked. I always jokingly accused my PCP of giving me placebo pills instead of the real thing... Anyway, does this sound like it will satisfy the Medicaid 6 months of supervised diet requirment? My weight is staying relatively steady but I have been gaining and losing A LOT of water lately. Yesterday I had to cut a new hold in my belt to keep my pants from falling off and today my waist is at least four inches wider. I dont want to talk about this too much because Ill get worried about my kidneys again and that doesnt help anything. I got my second book in the mail a few hours ago and have already read it. When I can afford it Im going to buy a few more books. Ive got a list of questions to ask Dr V when I see him but maybe I can get some answers from you guys? Were you catheterized? What were you given for pain? Im a baby when it comes to pain. How long did you have the drainage tube in? Did you have any complications whatsoever? Please dont forget the question above concerning medicaid.

Unfortunately Medicaid wants 6 months consecutively. The want details as well. What was suggested for good weight loss results. calorie intake, excersise recommendations etc. Weight has to be recorded each time. and of course pysch eval, dietician visit, upper gi study, lab work etc. I haven't had my surgery so I can't tell you that much about the procedure. But I do know that you are catherterized, and my surgeon takes the drainage tubes out before patients leave the hospital and he gives his patients a pump where the meds go straight to the inscision site. Hope that (s) you some Phenom

My heart sank when I read that. I guess I can get my PCP to monitor my kidneys pretty close while I wait six months. The truth is my kidneys ache already. I know the difference between low back pain and my kidneys hurting. Ive had kidney stones and believe me I know EXACTLY where my kidneys are. I talked to Dr V and his office manager and he acted like it wouldnt be a big obstacle and she said she didnt think it would be a problem either. I really hope youre wrong but I bet your right.

rm, im not sure about how much waiting you will end up doing before a surgery date and all your preop testing, but i reccommend that you schedule an appt. with your pcp to start a supervised diet. i got denied by medicaid back in sept. because of that. they needed consecutive months. once i started the diet i also made appt's with a local dietician at the hospital to see me once a month too either right before or right after mt pcp appt. i did this so that there would be no chance of denial a second time around. my pcp recored my weight, and talked to me about what the dietician talked about and my dietician recored my weight and talked to me about a diabetic diet to reduce weight. and helped me choose good food choices. to me it was just a formality but i did it to be better safe than sorry. i was approved and had surgery on the 13th of this month, by dr. malik(the best doctor) in rocky mount. i have lost a total of 25 lbs in a week and a 1/2. yipppppeeeeee. adrienne

Can't help you with Medicaid questions but , I can answer some of your questions , with my lap RNY experence. 1) Yes, I was cathaterised , over night it was taken out the morning after surgery. 2) Morphine pump for pain while in the hospital and a bottle of Hydrocodine for home use. 3) My drain tube was put in during surgery on Tuesday and was removed on Thursday the day I came home ( it hurt like hell coming out ) 4) I have been doing great no problems whatsoever. This of course is my experence, I think age and staring weight has lots to due with things. For me the worst was the two week liquid diet. Good Luck

Everyone is catherized for about 24 hours some longer. I had no complications. My tube came out the 8th day and boy was I glad. I had to tape the bottle on my stomach so it wouldnt jiggle when I walked. That was the worst part and crushing my pills. After 2 weeks I started taking my pills whole. I din't know about what medicaid requires but the surgeon will know. Good luck . I had no pain after surgery but was only sore and I have a very low tolerance for pain. They had me on Morhine but I didn't use that much. Used it mostly to sleep.

Hi, I live close to you. I am in Albemarle. No I was not catherized. I didn't need much pain meds. I didn't have much pain at all. The only pain I had was when they took the drainage tube out. Now that was not fun at all. But it only last a few seconds. Just ask your doctor about what to expect after the surgery. I am one of those not so lucky ones. I am 8 months out and still throwing up. I am in the hospital almost every 3 months. Just ask lots and lots of questions. Good luck to ya. If you need to talk let me know. I'm not far at all. amy