jessiquoi

I am so jealous of all of you that have your dates already! I have my enscopy scheduled ofr 9/16, and my last weighin on 9/23. I am worried because they told me I had to lose 14 lbs, but I've only lost 8 so far. I called my insurance company, and they told me that the only requirement THEY have is that I don't gain weight before surgery. I guess the 14 lbs is my doc's requirement. I'm hoping very much that they are lenient in this. I am really doing my best, and will be crushed if they push me off another month. I expect to be sleeved in October, it's my birthday present to myself (I'll be 57 on 10/10). I'm currently living in MD (for the last 5 years), but spent the 20 before that in Monmouth County, NJ, and the 30 before that in Brooklyn, NY.

Lizzy, I agree that seeing a therapist and determining if you need a prescription or some talk therapy is a great idea. Just to let you know, I have read some posts on here that said there is a lot of hormonal stuff that goes on while you are losing weight. So know that this will pass, and deal with it appropriately right now... it's just another way of taking care of yourself, like having this surgery was.

wow, i wish i could get 3 - 5 days in the hospital with others taking care of me! my surgeon only has us for one overnight stay. GOOD LUCK!!!!

Congratulations! I wish you (both) a speedy healing.

Tuesday afternoon I went to the Bariatric Center for my second of three follow-ups with the team. The first month, I lost 5.6 lbs. I knew I didn't do as well this time, but I expected to see some loss, maybe a couple of pounds, based on my at-home weighing. Their scale says I stayed exactly the same. I was fine with that for about 2 minutes, thinking my first month was really good and I'll work harder next month, but every one of the team members (nurse, nutritionist, exercise physiologist, behavior counselor) was concerned and let me know about it during my 15 minutes with them. They all told me there's a chance the insurance won't approve me for surgery if I don't lose 14 lbs (5% of my weight). Threw me totally into depression. I couldn't get out of bed yesterday to go to work. So now I have to lose 8.4 lbs by 9/23, my next scheduled visit. I realize that I did exactly what I usually do when I go on a "diet". I was gungho for about a month, then start slacking off on my weighing and measuring (like, not doing it at all) after my first good weighin. Yes, I am pleased that I didn't gain any back... that says a lot to me that I am working a bit. I'm just so scared now that I won't be able to lose that much and they won't approve me. I can't stand feeling this way. Like many of you, I've been very successful in just about every aspect of my life... except losing weight. I really need this surgery. I feel like I'm going to be a miserable, cranky b!tch for the next month as I struggle with this. I'm normally sunny and optimistic... this is making me a monster, and I don't like it. I wish I could just be put to sleep for a month and fed intravenously. Wake me up when I'm sleeved, please. Sorry for the pity party. I'll be better now that I've dumped all of that out of my brain. I couldn't even look at the forums yesterday I was so down. Friday I have my appt with the gastroenterologist, and he'll schedule me for my endoscopy and colonoscopy, which are the last pre-op requirements I need to fulfill (other than the weight loss). I am garnering the strength to break this chain and finally succeed at taking care of myself.

Congratulations! You look great, and I bet you feel even better.

I would go through with it. My feelings are that if something is meant to happen, it happens. If you showed up at the hospital and the surgeon didn't and they cancelled you, then to me that's a sign it wasn't meant to be. Since everything seems to be getting settled, I would take a deep breath, accept that mistakes do happen and that this is only a clerical one, not a life-threatening one. I totally get where you are, though. It would drive me crazy to have that happen. I hope you have a calm surgery day and a quick recovery.

@@Jersrose43, I LOVE YOU!!! thank you for giving me the impetus to call the insurance company. they forwarded me their paper on requirements, and i just read it, and it says "patient must not show a net gain in weight". period!!! so the 14lbs is strictly my doctor's requirement? recommendation? i don't know. but i do feel so much better knowing this!

@@CowgirlJane, I wish you could come with me too! that would be awesome! @@Jersrose43, you are right. i am going to call the insurance company and ask them. thank you for all the pep talks. it really helps.

I don't have a date yet, but I expect it to be in the middle - end of October. I don't live there now, but I did live in Monmouth County, NJ, for 20 yrs. I'm in MD now. Looking forward to sharing the journey!

RJ, then if they find out that's the case, that I can't lose even with surgery, wouldn't that be another reason to deny me?

I'm in the same place. Tonight is my second followup weigh in, and I'm nervous because I don't know if I'll show a loss. The bottom line is you are the only one who can do this for you. The only thing we can do to help is to tell you that we are experiencing the same thing. Do you want to have the surgery? Do you believe this will work and change your life? I believe this for myself, after reading all the posts here for the last 8 months or so. You have to believe it, first of all. If you believe it will work, then do you believe you are worth it? I believe I deserve every chance I can get for myself to be healthy. If you believe you are worth it, are you willing to work hard for a while, knowing that the eating will become easier to control if you just set yourself up for a safe surgery now by controlling the urge to eat things that are not on your nutritionist's plan for you? I am working so hard, I cry some nights because I want to eat whatever I want and I won't let myself. That's the bottom line. If you want it, if you believe in it, if you believe you deserve it, you can do this. Take a deep breath, forget about everything that you've done to date, and get started now. You can do this.

YAY! I love hearing stories like yours. Congratulations, and thank you for sharing!

SO glad you're doing better and that you don't need the stents! Please keep updating us on your progress, and I look forward to hearing that you don't regret the surgery after all. I think it's important to those that come after us to keep these threads up to date, especially if we've turned around a difficult situation. Thanks for letting us know how you feel!

@@IM.ON.MY.WEIGH.DOWN, how are you feeling today? any better?

wonderful to hear! i have geha too. can't wait to get submitted... congrats!

i have two that work for me very well. 1. talk it out with my boyfriend, who is willing to listen to me for hours talk about how much i NEED to have some ice cream or a turkey club sandwich, but won't have one because i don't want to derail my journey, but i NEED it, but i won't, maybe i will, would you have some with me, will you share it, no i CAN'T have it, i WANT it.... you get the picture. he is a saint. 2. go to sleep early. i'm not very good at transfering the comfort received from food to anything else yet except interacting with my boyfriend. i am hoping to pick up crafts again... that always helped me when i was dieting in the past, keeping my hands busy. i am also hoping to regain my gym rat status and transfer to working out, after i lose enough weight to allow me to walk more than 5 minutes.

wow, i'm so jealous! my surgeon won't schedule the surgery until the insurance approves everything. i have everything done except the endoscopy and colonoscopy, which will be scheduled after my initial consult with the gastroenterologist this Friday, so i'm feeling very close (probably mid-October). is there a reason that you fear they will deny you, Shirl? i don't have that worry because i have mondo comorbidities. do you have any? what's your BMI?

I don't really see the person in the mirror now (pre-op). I only seem to see my eyes. It is too hard to believe that the rest of that person is really me. It's only in photos that I see myself truly. I am looking forward to connecting with myself in the mirror post-op!

Hi. That's what I had, but I don't have a copy of the letter to send you, it went straight to my surgeon. My psychiatrist who has been managing my meds sent them a letter without even speaking to me directly about it. If your psychiatrist wants/needs one, I'm sure your surgeon's office can send him a template of what they're looking for. Ask them.

this is exciting! i can't wait to be there! my closet REALLY needs a cleaning.

Oh, don't let that a-hole affect the way you feel! You look fantastic! You look healthy and happy... don't give anyone the right to take that from you. He's probably jealous.

I saw you back there! Congratulations, great NSV!

I can totally imagine being depressed during the liquid diet. I think that's the point that it must start to seem most real. I'm not there yet, but I can imagine being in the same place. Everything you say sounds like normal pre-surgery jitters to me. Top that with a liquid diet, and I'm not surprised you're feeling emotionally down. All I can suggest is, keep reading things on these boards. People are going through the same thing as you, and feeling the same way. Everyone I have read about on these boards, even the ones who have complications, eventually are thrilled with the outcome and would do it again. Maybe that will allay your fears. Good luck!