leliwhoaoh

Hey Brandi! I gained 2 pounds, but I haven't even been given a surgery date. I'm still going through the required 6 month supervised dr's visit, but they say I should be going into surgery the end of august. I too am trying to get the process going with taking off with my job, I want to make sure that I give more than enough notice. I actually just posted a question about this very subject, how many days off are you trying to take? Will you use PTO, FMLA, or short time disability?

That's what I was thinking I will do, maybe 10 days. I'm aiming for labor day weekend also so that there's an extra "cushion" day, so to speak, where my whole department will off.

Unfortunately, I don't qualify for FMLA, I haven't been at my job for a year and by the time I my tentative surgery will happen (end of aug, beginning of sept) I will be one month shy from my one year mark. I'll have to use PTO but I don't nearly have enough time, maybe 40 hrs now. By the end of august I'll maybe have another week and a half saved up...I'm worried I won't have enough time to take off to rest up

You know, it's a shame, I have a food scale hiding in my spice drawer and I haven't utilized in FOREVER! I think its time to break that bad boy out and download some apps on my phone, thanks everyone!

Im thinking of my food funeral and I'm still 3 months from even submitting my paperwork to my insurances.. ???? its like i need to eat all the things now cause it's going to be a definite no no later on. I haven't quite acted out on those feelings, but they are there Sent from my SM-G920P using the BariatricPal App

I am now midway through my journey to getting my sleeve, just 3 more months to go and I don't feel I have any support from my boyfriend. I see posts here and there about how some couples tend to fall apart after surgery, and I can't help but wonder what will happen to my already fragile relationship once I (fingers crossed) get approved? He too is obese and suffers from sleep apnea, he can easily qualify to have the sleeve done but he instead wants to achieve his weight loss by going to the gym and eating healthy. He workouts everyday (except sundays) two times a day, and does brazilian jiu jitsu. And with all that he does he is still severely obese. I thought that maybe this is a journey we can do together, but he doesn't seem interested. I think that he sees this surgery not as a tool, but as an "easy way" to loose weight. I try talking to him about it, but its always a one sided conversation. He says to me " I don't have to agree with your decision, but I will support it"...to me that makes zero sense. I hate that I feel alone in my journey. I live in another state, away from all my friends and family and would love to have a nice support system. I thought I would have it in him since he is essentially the only person in the state of maryland who i know... I don't even know if I want him to drop me off/pick me up on surgery day, or to be there waiting for me when I get out...I can't help but wonder/feel, that this will be what breaks us.

I'll be attending my first support group meeting next week and hoping to make connections with others, looking forward to it! Sent from my SM-G920P using the BariatricPal App

I would def. never push surgery, that's a huge personal decision and I support him for wanting to continue to loose the weight in the manner he is doing. Definitely going to read this article soon as I get home!

Im so sorry that you're going through that, that sounds tough...to be honest, to me, this chick just sounds like a hater! She's probably upset/jealous that you made the decision to get healthy. 73 lbs lost is awesome! Please don't let someone else's negativity darken your bright moment. I have to wonder what it is that she is doing to better herself...sorry it's just people like that get me so mad

According to my doctor, the procedure costs $17,500 (including inpatient stay, etc). My insurance covers my procedure (vsg) at 100%, no copay, no coinsurance and no deductible/out of pocket applies. All I have to pay is the $40 specialist office visit copay and a $300 program fee for 10 visits with cardiac rehab (exercise visits) and 3 visits with a nutritionist. All in all, I will be paying $540 out of pocket. I was lucky in this respect since I happen to work at the hospital where I will eventually (fingers crossed) get the surgery

I gained 2 pounds on my 3rd (out of 6) weigh in, they kind of scolded me but didn't make it a terribly big deal, do you know if you gain weight during the supervised visits if it will impact the prior auth?

As per my doctors office, in order to qualify, I need to maintain a bmi of 40 and above. If I go below that then the requirements change. The best bet is to call your insurance and verify with them, is it 4 months, or 6? Is it the initial visit? of the last? I work in a hospital and I deal with insurance companies to obtain pre-authorizations for procedure and I can tell you they will deny, deny, deny for the littlest, dumbest sh!t.

I am also just starting out, but I have insurance directly with the hospital I work for. My insurance required a 6 month medically supervised weight management program, sleep study, labs, various radiology tests, 2 visits with a cardiac/ exercise physiologist, one visit with a nutritionist, and a mental eval...and although my doctors office did tell me that I needed to have all these things done before they would even consider approving me, I took it upon myself to call my insurance and have them email me the requirements (so that I can have it in writing). My point in all this, I would still make a call to Aetna just to make sure the your doctors office hasn't missed anything :]

I'm now half way through my required 6 month medically supervised visits, and as I am getting all the required tests completed I am worried I may not get approved. Although I have a bmi of 43, I have no co-morbidities (no diabetes, high blood pressure, sleep apnea, etc). I'm wondering if anyone out there has been approved with a bmi of 40+ and no co-morbidities? I work at a hospital and have insurance through them, nothing commercial like bcbs or aetna, it's Adventist Healthnet, and they do cover it at 100% after I've met the criteria. I know based on bmi alone, I qualify but I'm worried that they'll find a reason to deny me cause I'm not "unhealthy enough"...i hope i make sense Sent from my SM-G920P using the BariatricPal App

It kind of does suck, its like you have to be careful not to loose too much weight that you dont qualify, but you need to loose some weight to show motivation... Sent from my SM-G920P using the BariatricPal App

Definitely puts my mind at ease, thanks ladies! Sent from my SM-G920P using the BariatricPal App

That's awesome! A month flies by real fast! Sent from my SM-G920P using the BariatricPal App

Yeah my doctors office made sure that I understood, if my weight gets me under a 40 bmi, i can kiss the thought of surgery goodbye! Sent from my SM-G920P using the BariatricPal App

Omg that's great! Definitely makes me feel better about my situation. Congrats on the approval btw! Got a date? Sent from my SM-G920P using the BariatricPal App