Texas girl looking for some friends!

Hey 30's! I'm new here and just looking to meet others like me! I would love to meet others from the Dallas area to share my WLS experience with! I am waiting for insurance approval for RNY and hope to hear something within the next couple of months.  It definitely couldn't come quick enough!  I love getting on here and reading all of your posts! Everyone seems so welcoming and supportive!  I just wanted to say hello and I look forward to getting to know some of you!!! ~Stacey

Hey Stacey, welcome to the board.  Its a slow group, but a good one.  Like you I'm in the Dallas area and I also happened to notice that you share the same doctor that I had.  Dr. Kuhn is a good guy and he did a bang up job on my surgery.  So feel free to ask me any questions about your surgery, Dr. Kuhn, his clinic or staff, or anything else for that matter. I know from time to time there are NTx WLS gatherings.  There's going to be one in Addison on May 3rd.  You can check the Texas board for info on those. Good luck with the insurance and you did right by going with Dr. Kuhn.  Take care. T-Willy

Hey  T-Willy! Thanks for the reply!  I am really excited and looking forward to the surgery... looks like you are newly post-op.  How has the recovery been? How long did you take off of work? I really liked Dr. Kuhn when I met him at the seminar.  Initially, I had started the process w/ another doc, but decided to "fire" him rather quickly.  I was referred to Dr. Kuhn by a friend and really got a good vibe from him right off.  I am waiting to hear back from his office about a consultation.  How long did it take you once you attended the seminar to get an appointment? I'm a little anxious if you can't tell. lol.   Anyway, thanks for responding so quickly! I will definitely check out the Texas board!  ~Stacey

I was only off work for 2 weeks.  I am an office jockey so as long as I didn't do anything more excruciating than hitting the "Enter" key on my computer, I was cleared to go back to work.  The first week back at work was tough, mainly because I was low on energy, but it got better quickly.  I'd say at 7 weeks out, I am pretty much back to normal. Recovery has been good.  Down 60 lbs. so far!!!  I have had no complications at all and I really consider myself fairly lucky in that respect.  I had a pretty good stall at week 3.  Lasted for about 2 weeks but the scale is on the move again.  So don't be too nervous if an early stall happens to you. And just so you know, the hardest part of my recovery was the first 3 weeks I couldn't really play with my 3 year old son.  He and I, as my wife puts it, are "Rowdy buddies" and we can get a little crazy sometimes.  It was rough on him, and it was rough on me too.  He didn't like it one bit that Daddy and him weren't getting in their playtime. I went to the seminar the week before Christmas last year.  I'd say about 4 weeks later I called their office to see about getting a consult.  Conicidently, the next day I got my insurance approval letter.  With the letter in hand I was quickly able to get a consult.  (Nothing gets you in the door faster than a client with a letter saying his bills are paid!)  So My consult was early February.  If it weren't for work obligations, I could of had surgery 2 weeks after my consult, but instead had it scheduled for the first week in March...and the rest is history. Only bad thing about the consult was my insurance company wouldn't pay for it on the grounds that it "was not of sufficent medical expertise."  Whatever that means...I think they were saying it wasn't thorough enough for their standards.  I thought I had provided Dr. Kuhn's office with everything they needed for their paperwork that they sent to my insurance folks, but I guess it wasn't enough.  I'm figthing that with them now.  The good news is the insurance did pay on my surgery, so I'm only arguing over hundreds, not thousands of dollars. All in all the experience pre-op was great and Dr. Kuhn and his staff at Baylor have been great.  I wish you luck and hopefully you can make it out to one of the upcoming social outtings. T-Willy

Wow! 60 lbs in 7 weeks~ That's great! Congratulations!  I have to admit that I'm a little nervous about the whole thing... insurance approval, surgery, recovery, complications... I think everything has crossed my mind at one point or another. But, I am so ready to do this!  I'm afraid of what my reaction will be (notice I say "will"... staying confident that I'll get my approval!) when I hit stalls, but I know that they are inevitable.  I'm sure it was tough on you when you were not able to play w/ your 3 year old son.  I have a 7 month old and I worry about being able to lift him after surgery.  My others are a little older so I don't have to carry them around, but we are constantly running to softball practice and games and dance class and competitions.  Hopefully, it won't slow me down too much.

So, what insurance do you have? I have United Healthcare.  Did you have to do anything prior to surgery to obtain approval?  I would love to make it out to one of the social outings! Are there people in the area who coordinate those?  What kinds of things do you guys do?

I would love to tell you what goes on at one of these gatherings...problem is, I haven't been to any yet .  The two I know about though happened at restaurants.  I can't even tell you how many people showed up.   As far as who coordinates?  Good question.  My best suggestion would be to search the older post and find out who the people are making the announcements. Another cowinkidink!!!  My insurance is United Healthcare as well.  (At least until May, our company is switching to Cigna).  I only had to provide the Baylor folks with all the information they asked for and they took care of the rest.  Considering the denial of the consult, maybe they didn't take care of it as well as needed.  They sent the request to United for approval.

Cowinkidink.... funny! Hopefully United Healthcare will respond quickly so I can get this thing done!  Do you ever attend any of the support group meetings at Baylor? As far as the outings, maybe we could plan one to a Mavs game next season (I read on your profile you're a fan too)... you know, when the seats at AA won't be so small! lol. 

There has to be some sort of psychic connection here between us.  I can tell you from a matter of personal experience that the seats at the AAC have gotten larger over the last 7 weeks. Helps that I'm a Stars season ticket holder.  In fact at last night's game (complete suckiness), my buddy that has been going to the games with me all season long (this was our first time together since the surgey), said to me that he could tell a huge difference in my weight simply from sitting next to me.  I didn't run over into his seat as much. I have not attended any of the support group meetings yet, but I am really interested in going.  Part of that has to do with work obligations, plus family stuff, and then all those darn Stars' games.  But seeing how my hockey attendance will be ending way sooner than I hoped, I may find some free time to attend a meeting.

Hmmm... kinda creepy, huh? That's good that they've gotten larger! My mother went to a Desperados game on Monday night and I had to warn her about the unusually small seats. (She's a big girl too!) She told me afterwards... "Those seats ARE small!" lol.  It couldn't possibly be that our butts are just too big! lol.  Well, I'm glad your friend noticed! That's a success in itself!   Yeah, that did suck.  Can't say that I've been much of a Stars fan~ although I do like to watch the playoffs... just haven't this year.  Never been to a Stars game either.... I did go to a couple of Dallas Freeze (semi-pro) games when they were here.... There not here anymore are they? lol.  I am definitely a Mavs and Mark Cuban fan! And, I support my Cowboys without a doubt!  They were having a support group meeting the night that I went for the seminar.  Everyone seemed really nice.  One of my best friends went with me to the seminar and we were going to stop by afterwards (she had RNY 3/2006) but it was over by the time we got out of there.  I'm looking forward to attending the meetings afterwards~ maybe I'll see ya there sometime!

I'm definitely going to start making to support group meetings.  You know, be on the lookout for Stacey! I'm pulling for you and your insurance.  Feel free to drop me a message if you have any questions.  And I will definitely be going to the getogether in Addison on May 3rd.  take care and good luck. T-Willy