19 Years old...had RNY March 7th

HI all...I've never posted on the teen website, but I've read alot of posts about should I or should I not do whatever... I've been overweight all my life...I live in Texas and when I was 16, I was coming back home with my mom when I heard on the radio about the Lap Band...I got all excited and went home and got online and went to several seminars and went through the whole entire thing...phsych. testing, sleep apnea testing, EVERYTHING...and my insurance denied me. I hired and attorney out of CA to appeal it 4 times and still nothing...my hopes of ever being a "normal size" was shattered.

The second I turned 18, Dec of 05, I tried it again, thinking since I'm now an "adult" they'll approve me...still a big fat NO. January 2007-My insurance changed, we tried everything again, luckily all the previous testing rolled over and I didn't have to do it again...sent everything in to my new insurance and guess what?!?!?!?! I was denied the Lap Band...BUT! I was approved for the Roux-En-Y Gastric Bypass. I had mixed emotions, didn't know anything about the RNY...long story short, my insurance didn't approve me for the Lap Band BECAUSE...the RNY has much better results in a shorter amount of time...and the Lap Band becomes defective after 7-8 years and it just will not work anymore. I had my surgery March 7th, 2007 and it has been the best decision of my life. On surgery day, I went in weighing 361 lbs. A week prior, I was on an all liquid diet and lost 16 lbs...to this day, I have lost 65 lbs and it's been 3.5 months. I now weigh less than 300 and am stoked!!!!   I am getting married in April (2008) and cannot freakin' wait! If you are thinking about getting surgery for whatever reason, I say go for it. It will completely change your life and the way you look at it.  You will be such a happier person and the results you will see will be life altering. Go for it! If you have any questions, feel free to email me @ [email protected]  <3 Lyndsey

Thanks for sharing! I am in the process of getting RNY and I am 18!

My story is so friggin similiar!!! I just posted this in my intro thread! lol-Same thing- when I was 16 I did ALL the pre op stuff, went though it all and then found out WAY LATE that my insurence had an exclusion for Lap Band so here I am 18 and am plannign to have RNY because I know they cover it! Hopefully I will have some good news to post as well! I'd love to chat sometime about our similiar experiences. My AIM is Blacklaceonivory if you or anyone on here for that matter ever wants to chat! feel free to IM me- just tell me your from OH!

Hi Lyndsey! That is a crazy story.  Wow.  It is great that you could eventually get approved and now you're on your way to success.  I had RNY when I was 19 too (I'm 21 now), though I got approved by insurance on my first try.  If you're looking for people closer to your age, and a board that moves a lot faster, you should check out the Weight Loss Surgery in Your 20's board through obesity help.  Here is a link http://www.obesityhelp.com/forums/wls_in_your_20s/ I hang out there a lot and there are plenty of really cool people there to support you and answer questions should you have any - AND it is a great place to offer your insight and support to others.  I hope you decide to check it out!