beachgurl84

Whoa you get this done at every pap test? I've never had that done, thank god! You might want to try a different doctor if yours is sticking their finger up your butt everytime they do an exam. I've never had this done during a pap.

I'm Curious... Are you saying they have removed the 6 month non-surgical weight production policy?? If so, that sucks like a big dog. i've wasted the last 6 months and 120 in copays. uggghhhhhh..... Unfortunately for you (fortunately for those of us just starting) yes, that is what has happened. No more 6 month medically supervised diet program. Yes, you may have wasted some time and $$$, but look at is this way, at this point you should be able to get a surgery date asap and approval should be a breeze. The rest of us still have appointments like psych eval and NUT before we get that close. Sorry you had to go through it, but can't say I'm not thankful it's happened for myself.

I've been looking for this change since it was announced towards the end of June. Actually, I was practically stalking the website yesterday waiting for them to update. I wanted to read the fine print ASAP!!! So happy to see they haven't added some other crappy requirement in its place. My first appointment with my surgeon is TOMORROW so I can't wait to go in there and hopefully leave with a plan.

Hi Lexibelle, I did a quick search for you just like I did for our policy. I googled "BCBS CA Corporate Medical Policy". I found the BCBS CA list of medical policies that have requirements before approval. Here is the link: https://www.blueshieldca.com/provider/authorizations/clinical-policies/medical-procedures/policy.sp Where as NC list it as "Surgery for Morbid Obesity," CA list it as "Bariatric Surgery." PLEASE DOUBLE CHECK your plan because from what I see, your plan does require 6 months (pg 3) . I'm sorry, I'm not trying to get in your business or anything. I just know I had one heck of a time sorting out the "mud" in the NC policy and if someone had pointed me in the right direction I would have been grateful. Good luck to you and please let us know what you find

Just checked and it's POSTED!!! https://www.bcbsnc.com/assets/services/public/pdfs/medicalpolicy/surgery_for_morbid_obesity.pdf 6 MONTH REQUIREMENT REMOVED!!!! There are some other changes so we need to review in detail but WOOHOO!!!

So hopefully today is the day. Everyone stay tuned and post with updates please! My first surgeon appointment is Thursday and I'd love to go in there with news that I'm ready to go (after other required testing of course).

Most grocery stores (I know not all) have a second entrance, like Wal-mart has one to the groceries and another to the household stuff. Maybe you could ease the trigger by using an entrance away from the groceries. That way, you avoid seeing the cupcake parade on your way in and you happen to throw in a few extra steps of exercise. I haven't had my surgery yet but I know once I do, my weakness is going to be coffee creamer. I like my coffee strong and I like my french vanilla creamer (the liquid fattening kind). I probably consume 1.5 cups of creamer alone in a day. If anyone knows of a good substitution I'm all ears. I'm also lactose intolerant so it has to be non-dairy.

I know everyone has different body types and nothing about this is going to be the same for two people. I'm curious to know how weight loss has effected shape and size of breasts for those women that have lost 100+ pounds (under 100+ you're welcome to chime in too but I've got about 150 to lose). I wear a 40G and large breasts run in my family. Even as a young teenager going through puberty and just slightly overweight they have been larger than average. I'm just wondering what I might be in for. So here are some of my questions.... 1. In all your weight loss, when were your breast affected the most? Beginning, end, the whole time? 2. How proportional was the weight loss in your breast compared to the rest of your body? 3. Did any type of exercise particularly help the shape and firmness of your breast? Thank you ladies

Just curious, are they putting you on the liquid diet and then taking you off until surgery? If not then maybe it's a good sign it's only a two week diet. Or do they expect you to stay on the diet for months until surgery?

I might try to call the hospital at lunch and ask. My first appt with surgeon is July 17 so I'd really like to understand the requirements before then. But, I'm in PA with BCBSNC insurance so they may not know about it.

I have BCBS NC. Check out this other topic we've been following because they apparently just changed the 6 month diet requirement (got rid of it). http://www.bariatricpal.com/topic/311979-bcbs-nc-6-month-supervised-diet-maybe-changing-as-of-july-1-2014/

I can't speak for during or after surgery yet but it really sounds like you need to talk to your respiratory therapist about options. If your mask is leaking in weird places your not getting good suction which is why you might be waking up in the middle of the night. Also, if your mask is 6 years old, it's possible you might just need a new one. Usually insurance will cover replacements. Is the hospital doing a sleep study on you before your surgery? Maybe you should ask about a nasal pillow instead of a mask. They are a little less intrusive.

Sooo since the 15th is taking forever to get here, has anyone heard anything else? I'm not very patient lol

I would hit the like button a million times if I could!!!!!

So......I'm about to start my 6 month program required by insurance (BCBS NC). I've been reading through various posts on this website for about a week and the one thing I noticed it lacks is a place for people like me that are just starting. I saw groups for people getting sleeved at the end of this year but nobody is posting there (maybe you don't know it exists?). I've read about do's and don'ts, insurance policies, diets, before and after pics, etc.. It's so much wonderful information to inspire others. I am psyched about the whole process. I know it's going to be a loooooong, hard road, but I'm ready for the challenge. For the first time in the 6 years I've been with my husband (married 8 months ago), I finally broke down and told him how much I weigh. It was possibly the hardest thing I've ever had to do. Of course he knew I was overweight, but with my form I don't always look like I weigh as much as I do. He is being so supportive of my goals. Not that he wants to change me, he just wants me to be happy. I'm hoping those of you that are just starting this process will join me here. I'd like to learn how you feel going to the gym (I'm trying to go, it's so intimidating). Are you making gradual changes to your diet or are you going "cold turkey"? For those of you already sleeved, your stories are a big inspiration. I want to be one of you ASAP!! Thank you for creating this community where I can feel like I'm not alone in this. Everytime I start to doubt whether or not this is the right way to go, I simply get on here and start reading posts. I'm looking forward to this journey and challenging myself to get there.

I've been watching the BCBS website all day for policy changes. While they have listed some, they haven't listed anything about this surgery. BUT....they also haven't updated the corporate medical policy to show a 2014 review so maybe they just haven't gotten around to it yet. Stay hopeful.

So hopefully today is the day BCBS makes our lives easier. Looking for updates regularly. Stay in touch.

As somebody who has about 4 months to go before surgery, I can tell you I am drinking in and absorbing every single bit of knowledge the vets provide. It's like a connection to the future. I know I will get there. It will be stressful and hard and I may make stupid mistakes, But I can read these forums and know I'm working towards a wonderful goal that will change my life. So when I make mistakes, I get on this site and start reading questions, stories, even stats. Thank you to all the vets that have stuck around to provide this information and motivation for us. Being 4 months away, it's not like I can call my surgeon and ask a million questions yet. I haven't seen any vets respond negatively to any of my posts yet, but if they do, I'll take it for what it's worth. It's someone that has been there, done that, and got through it themselves. I know they are taking the time to respond because at one point, they probably asked a stupid question themselves and they know how important it is to get honest answers whether I want to hear them or not. So whether you're ranting or raving, please keep doing what you're doing. We may not like your response, but we need it. We didn't get to this point because we're perfect, and sometimes a virtual slap upside the head is exactly what we need to stay on track.

I'm planning to do the sleeve because the rerouting of my intestines freaks me out and the sleeve is supposed to have a lot fewer complications than the bypass. I was told I wouldn't be able to take NSAIDS with the sleeve either. Because your stomach is so much smaller, there is less space to absorb and digest the NSAIDS and the smaller stomach kind of gets a concentrated dose. I already have acid reflux so I'm probably at higher risk for ulcers. Maybe it depends on the person. I know the surgeons are supposed to give us all these warnings and make us take every precaution, but I like hearing this stuff from people that have already had the surgery. I highly doubt my surgeon had this surgery themselves so they can't actually give any first hand experience on some things. Thanks Michiganchic for letting me know there is hope. BTW, they did tell me I would be able to take Tylenol. That's the only one.

@ Have you ever seen a machine reset everything when you change pressure? I changed mine the other day after the post I made above and all my stats reset. I don't think I hit any other button to reset.

He just responded to my email and said he had not heard anything about it yet but he will keep me posted if he gets news. Also, I found this website https://www.bcbsnc.com/content/services/medical-policy/updates/index.htm that list the policy changes for BCBS NC. I bet it will be posted there as soon as the decision is made. However, if you notice on that page that when a change is posted, it usually isn't effective for a few more months. So we may still have to wait till the september/october time frame.

I'm in month 2 of the 6 month program and i've been stressing about being able to get the surgery in by the end of the year to maximize insurance benefits. I don't/wouldn't mind doing the 6 month program but if I can get it in sooner I will definitely pursue that!! You said it was during your bariatric appointment you heard about this. Was that from your surgeon, insurance specialist, nurse? I'm wondering if I call my insurance agent today will he have any info you think?

I just want to throw some caution out there for anyone adjusting their own cpap.........(not that I disagree with doing that)....... If you're insurance is paying for it, find out if they bought it all at once or if they are making monthly payments. My insurance made monthly payments but didn't require reading the chip every month. I lost that insurance and had to pay the last two months on my own to make it officially mine. Some insurances require the chip to be read to make sure you are actually using it. Not just to make sure it's working. They aren't going to pay for it if they can't see you're using it. So.........please be careful about what you do with your cpap. You don't want to find yourself in the position of having tampered with something you shouldn't and end up responsible for paying for a $1500 machine. Other than that, good luck my fellow cpappers! I will also be looking into adjusting my machine now that you've taught me it's possible. If I remember correctly I'm at a 10 (had 60 recorded events per hour). I'm going to look into bumping it up a notch.

Always have faith. Everything will work itself out. Is anyone else trying to get their surgery in by the end of the year for insurance reasons? I wish i had started a month sooner (actually a decade sooner). My last 6 month will be in November so I'm hoping (fingers crossed) all the insurance stuff goes smoothly and I can get my surgery scheduled before 12/31/14. I have a $500 deductible and a $1500 OOP max so I'd like to get everything covered in one year. My first appoitnment with the surgeon is July 17. What do they usually do in these appointments? I'm so terrified I'm going to say or do something to make the surgeon turn me down. I can't think of anything that would disqualify me but I'm going to worry about that until I meet him. Hope everyone is having a great day.

Please keep us posted if they do!!! Do you know what they might be changing to?