Question:
With a BMI of 37.7, and not sure of comorbidities, do I qualify?

I am a 23 yr old mother of 2 and have struggled with my weight for the past 10 years of my life. All I want is to be healthy and play with my children the way they want me to play. I cannot even go up and down the stairs in our house without being out of breath. I am an active person (walking daily), but I feel terrible. I have severe cases of both diabetes and heart disease in my family. I am also experiencing incontinence with my bladder within the past year. Would these symptoms be considered comorbidities? If so, is there any one out there that can relate at all?    — Erica C. (posted on November 15, 2000)

November 15, 2000
According to you BMI, you should qualify as you fall into the morbidly obese category. Your family history will help getting insurance approval - it all depends on your policy. Some people's policies exclude weight loss surgery altogether and some of those choose to pay for their own surgery. Some hospitals give a reduction in price for self-pay. You sound like a good candidate to me. Now, you need to check your insurance policy, get a referral from your personal physician, if that is required for you, and see a very experience weight loss surgery surgeon. Best wishes.
   — Cindy H.

November 15, 2000
according to your BMI w/o comorbs you DON'T qualify...Insurance companies don't care about family history of conditions that are concerned about the health conditions that you currently have. If you meet the 100# over requirement THEN you would qualify.....good luck in whatever you do
   — Jack N.

November 15, 2000
Do you have any thing else, such as Hypertension? Have you had any blood tests etc? You may have other co-morbids that you do not know about. I would think the incontinence would be a start as one of your co-morbids. Besides being out of breath, is it painful to walk? Make a list of everything you feel, it warrants researching by you and your Doctor! For instance you may be borderline diabetic,and your Doctor could reccomend this surgery for you because of the history of diabetes in your family. It is not all cut and dried, I would definitly check out everything before giving up. Towards my heaviest, I did notice incontinence (I'm only 32!) and the hip, arch pain just trying to walk was unbearable. I also had hypertension and PCOS, and not until AFTER surgery, they discovered signs of sleep apnea. Since my surgery, I can walk (it seems forever) and not lose my breath. I sleep through the night, my snoring is almost eliminated. My BP is normal, I could go on and on... I think you should look into it, and check out everything you can. GOOD LUCK
   — Karen R.

November 15, 2000
Dear Erica...my insurance company did take family history into consideration. Maybe they (BC/BS of CA) are a little more proactive than other insurance companies. If your BMI is greater than 35 and you have co-morbid factors, surgery may be an alternative. Shortness of breath and incontinence would be considered co-morbidities too. You owe it to yourself to find out exactly what your options are. Good luck to you!
   — Roseann M.

November 15, 2000
I had a BMI of 35 and I was qualified by Cigna. I was 6' tall, weighing 274 pounds. In six months, I have lost 102 pounds and I have a 23 BMI. I had no comorbidities, but I was able to show at least 10 years of up and down weight loss, told them my back and knees hurt (I didn't even realize at the time how true that was), and that I snored loudly. I had normal everything else. Good luck to you!
   — Beth B.

November 15, 2000
I have Kaiser, and if you want, I will e-mail you their list of co-morbidities. Just let me know. Family history is definitely important and should be considered. Also, look at your own health with a microscope. I don't know how heavy you are, but I can say from my own personal experience that many obese people are either in denial of their health issues or have simply learned to live with the symptoms. I did both. I just kept trudging on because I had no other choice. If I reacted to every little ache and pain, I would never have gotten out of bed in the morning! When is the last time you had a COMPLETE and thorough physical? Have you been tested for high blood pressure, high cholesterol or diabetes? Do you have symptoms of sleep apnea? Do you have regular joint pain? Many who think they have no co-morbidities actually do - they have just never gotten the "official" diagnosis before. Get with your doctor and start testing. Gather your family history. This will get you started in your WLS journey. best of luck!
   — Paula G.