Matt Z

Hi Matt,

I know the waiting is inconvenient but the WLS is a tremendous life changing experience. You can read all the books, participate in discussion boards, etc but there is a reason why insurance companies want this. The most successful patients long term are the ones who went with a surgical center of excellence, and a supervised program ahead of time. I am 2 1/2 years out, maintaining my doctor's goal weight for me but it isn't easy. You will find 1000s of success stories from people who did private pay surgery but think about the lifetime commitment to a new way of life. I do not regret all the "hoops" I jumped through. Best wishes on whatever you decide.

Chrystine, the reason I'm not fond of being forced to not only wait, but to go through 6 months of more mandatory check-ins, is because I have already had my band more than 5 years. I've been following all the recommend diet and exercise programs, so being forced to just check boxes over the next 6 months is nothing more than an inconvenience. I fully understand that people that are properly educated have higher success rates. But at this point, I'm no where near new to this process, it's been my life for coming up on 6 years now. So, I still feel like I shouldn't be held to the same requirement as someone that doesn't have an already established, medically approved diet and exercise standing. In fact, I had my first nutrition appointment already, and it went exactly as expected. "you are already doing everything we are going to tell you to" that's what I was told... yet, insurance is forcing me to waste 6 months and $240 just to meet their generic guidelines rather than actually look at my medical history and waive this requirement.

NYCGAL000, since I already have the band, I'm going to stick with the same doctor that installed it to do my bypass. I'm aware of all the ways to go around and outside of the US medical system, but I just don't feel like risking it.