SusanB55

I am excited to have some fellow sleevers near by! Please keep me informed of your progress. It has been a super bumpy road in this "90" day business. Thought the bumps were over but apparently not. Not sure what the hell is going on with my approval now.

I'm glad you are doing so well! That is so encouraging. Today is Frank's pre op with Dr Monash and i am so nervous for him. Regarding my case, turns out the auth I received was for the band only and not the sleeve. Not sure what the hell is going on but i feel very let down. I am not getting the band out if I can't get sleeved. Hope they have an answer for me today. Nobody is calling me with updates and it is unnerving.

Aww thank you! I hope we kick butt! My husband just turned 65 and I just turned 56 so we are definitely older than most on here. I hope we are as fortunate as you to breeze through without too many problems! Good for you! Oh, I just found out yesterday so no date yet. Might still have to have EGD done, but i should know more later today I think. My husband is having surgery this Monday. Aaaaagh

Aww thank you! I hope we kick butt! My husband just turned 65 and I just turned 56 so we are definitely older than most on here. I hope we are as fortunate as you to breeze through without too many problems! Good for you!

I just received approval for my band to sleeve revision. Can you please tell me how bad the pain was? My dr told me that it will be very sore around the port area and that overall it is a more intense surgery than a straight sleeve. Plus I must keep in the back of my head that if the scar tissue is too bad, he won't sleeve me the same day, so I may wake up unsleeved.

God Bless! Where in AZ are you? I'm in Tucson and just got my approval yesterday. My husband is getting sleeved on Monday and I am freaking out for him! Best wishes! ~SusanI'm in phoenix ! Good luck and congrats its a journey but I'm hoping it will all be so worthedSent from my LGMS631 using the BariatricPal App Phoenix is my hometown! ALWAYS a Sun Devil fan!! Let us know how it goes!

Best wishes to you! Just got my approval yesterday for band to sleeve revision and I've heard how much more intense that surgery is so although I'm grateful for another chance to lose weight, I am sooo scared! Plus my husband is getting sleeved this Monday and I'm worried for him. It's all becoming real. I hope you have very little discomfort and a quick recovery. God Bless!

God Bless! Where in AZ are you? I'm in Tucson and just got my approval yesterday. My husband is getting sleeved on Monday and I am freaking out for him! Best wishes! ~Susan

I read your post and understood exactly what you were saying. There was no doubt to me that you said you need to lose around 100 lbs but you would be happy at 50 or 75. I am like you. My BMI is 39 and I should lose around during 90 lbs but man would I be tickled pink to lose 75. I am 56 years old and haven't had to chase kids around for many many years but would consider it a victory to be able to do the things I love to do more comfortably, stop shopping for online muu muus , garden, and look at myself in the mirror without disgust! PS I found out a few hours ago that I was approved!!! Cannot wait to get rid of this damn band and get sleeved!!

We are older with no kids in the home. My husband is retIred and i don't work outside the home. I think 2 weeks will be ok for us.

Was it the shoulder pain from the gas that kept you on the recliner? Thank you for your reply☺. I still don't have an answer from bcbs for my surgery and its making me crazy, lol.

Be happy. My deductible is 4k Sent from my SM-G900T using the BariatricPal App I wouldn't mind the copays and crazy coinsurance amounts as much if we had a higher income lol. This is getting super expensive for us!

I've yelped doctors more times than I can count! I have also called many offices to ask the Dr's age, schooling, and treatment choices/beliefs. Don't worry about it! That is the beauty of google! Get names from friends, coworkers, your gynecologist, and the bariatric center and then google each name for reviews and yelp them too! Good luck!

Unfortunately, my surgeon's office is ass backwards on this. They say they don't want the patients to spend money they don't have to so they don't refer to cardiologist OR GI doc until after approval. It is ridiculous. I say let the patient decide if they want to take the chance of spending the extra money or not. Each procedure is preceded by an initial consultation so at least that part of it could be done. These visits and procedures take time and are usually spaced out weeks apart. Ugh. I'm pretty pissed right now actually. My surgeon didn't tick the boxes for cardiac clearance or EGD for me, but now they are saying the opposite. Not an oversight on his part, mind you. He just changed his mind. I could have done this crap already! So frustrating.

You're right - I didn't specify reasons. Basically it's the fear of failure again. And yes, I know I can fail with anything if I don't follow the rules and use it as a tool. I love sweets so I'm intrigued by the idea of "dumping" as a deterrent. I also fear the sleeve is new so that's why it's being pushed - much like the band was 8 years ago and I bit. I really think overall I'm having risk of failure fears right now knowing I have another opportunity at this again. I had great intentions the first time but alas here I am still obese. I know when it's done it's done and I'll make it work regardless. Just wondering if anyone has thoughts to help me get through this uneasiness. Thanks for all your support! Your post and story could be mine!

I have been having doubts on everything and I haven't even heard back from my insurance yet. I too have a band and have ultimately failed with it. I figured out how to eat around it and gain the weight back despite the years of puking. Maybe I will do the same with the sleeve too? I am not feeling real good about surgery at the moment but that could be all the emotional turmoil I have been going through BESIDES the wls issue. Ugh. I would go with whatever your surgeon recommends for you. That's what I did, and my husband also who is having surgery a week from today. I am a nervous wreck. Good luck to you!

Hi there. I live in Tucson and can only say that many PCPS down here are pro WLS. With that said, there should be tons to see up there as well. If you are considering WLS, just pick someone in your area with good reviews and then call the office and ask the staff. My insurance requires at least 2 years of charted weight to show a minimum BMI of over 35, so if you haven't established with a dr, you better do so asap. Sometimes Insurance companies like the pcp to write a letter on your behalf in favor of wls. Maybe your other doctors you have seen regularly would be acceptable instead of a pcp. Of course another thing you could do is ask the bariatric offices you are looking at for recommendations. And finally, you really need to know what guidelines your insurance has for wls. Sorry you haven't had any more answers on this post. Sounds like you really need to get your ducks in a row because the whole wls process is quite daunting, at least to me.

@@Mburk72 still no word? I might call on mine today. If I get up the nerve lol.

No to preoperative diet here either. We asked our surgeon and he said he has never seen any benefit from it. And that is ok with us, lol. We are in Tucson. I am so nervous too and I haven't even been approved. My husband has tho and is being sleeved on May 2, just 8 days. Best of luck to you tomorrow and God bless!

Me and my husband had surgery the same day (11/9/15). We had his parents stay with us for a half a week and then my mom the other half of the week. We definitely needed that extra help that first week. It has been great having surgery at the same time, because we are going through similar things at the same time and have a great support system in each other! Best of luck to you! Wow! The same day! That's fantastic! I wish we could do do that too but we don't have anybody that could help us out. Who had a more difficult recovery, you or hubby?

Did you just call the customer service number on the insurance card? Mine was submitted just this past Thursday but I might call tomorrow anyway. Might be a bit premature but my husband's was approved in one day! I'm also scared to call. I just have a feeling it is the gonna be approved. Thanks for posting.

Yea, it really does/did suck! LOL. I am not opposed to trying another vanilla isolate whey but don't even know where to start because there are so many. costco just happened to be sampling a vanilla whey isolate yesterday and OMG it was sickeningly sweet. Ick. Have you tried the unjury vanilla whey isolate powder? It has excellent reviews. I bought Now Sports unflavored whey isolate and just added sugar-free syrups to flavor it.

I must be a freak. When I did my swallow test I didn't mind it as much as I thought I would. I guess I was just so excited to be able to drink something. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App This is the first I've heard about a post op barium swallow. I wonder why they want people to do that when they just want you to have Clear liquids the first couple of days. Seems to go against their own rules, lol.

Yea, it really does/did suck! LOL. I am not opposed to trying another vanilla isolate whey but don't even know where to start because there are so many. costco just happened to be sampling a vanilla whey isolate yesterday and OMG it was sickeningly sweet. Ick.

Now THAT'S what I wanted to hear, lol!! Thank you! I do understand what @focus was saying though. I had initially thought a month apart would be perfect, but IF I am approved and IF my surgery can be done sooner, I'd love that.