another newbie...

my name is renee, i am 24 years old, a mother of a beautiful 2 yr old girl, and a army wife. at current, i am 5' 11'' and 386#'s yikes! i know, and have known for a long time that God put this in my life for a reason, i know i am supposed to do this, i am just scared, nervous, and honestly, i do not know how to begin. i am getting discouraged quick over people not wanting to take military insurance!! ugh!! so pretty much my insurance company said yes, you have the ok, you just have to find your own doctor, let us know who ya get, and oh yeah, good luck finding one. is it possible to reach through the phone line to strangle someone? good thing not, because i'd be jailed already. i need help. i need encouragement, and i need friends who are willing to be there for me through this. there are so many different types of surgery, how do i know which one is for me? i dunno, but if anyone has an answer, let me know, until then, i am praying steadily for guidance and patience.

Hi Renee and welcome to the sight. Health Care Finder should have given you a name. That is their job. Here is how it went for me. When I talked to them to get my approval number to see a civilian doc, she said the only doc I could go to would be Dr. Weber in Seattle. I had heard there was at least one local doc that did the surgery. So, I gave him a call. He has stopped dealing with insurance companies. His appointment person told me that I could pay up front and then he would assist me in recovering at least some of the money from my insurance company. She gave me another number to call to see if they could find me a group of docs that would might Tricare. I called and their appointment lady told me that she thought there was someone in the practice that took Tricare. But, if they took me on as a patient, there was a 6 month, at least, waiting period before I could have the surgery. And, I wouldn't have any say-so about who my doc would be and wouldn't find out until I was called after the wait. After thinking about it for a weekend, I decided that it was better to go with an experienced surgeon with no waiting period that I knew too Tricare even if I had to drive to Seattle. Dr. Weber, here I come. As for what kind of surgery, I am waiting until I talk to the surgeon to decide. I know which way I am leaning, but want his expert opinion. Check out my profile to read my moves and complaints so far. And, email if you have any questions. The only reason I am as far as I am now is because of some really great people here that have helped me out. Hat

I am seeing Dr. Weber and I really like him. In fact my surgery is scheduled for April 27th at Swedish Ballard Hospital! He only does the open surgeries. He does the VBG and the RNY. He is very upfront with you and will explain what he thinks is best for you. You have to go to one of his orientations before he will see you. They will give you an information packet at that time that contains the things you need to do before you can make the appointment. Like......see a dietician, psychologicol testing etc. But they will tell you all of that when you call. Good Luck! Linda