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Good for you for sticking to your guns, CharlyScott! You knew what you wanted and didn't allow the nurse practitioner to steer you in another direction. You were smart to call your insurance company and get that matter straightened out. I am just starting out in this process and have also been given information that doesn't sound correct and will be calling my insurance company. May God bless you in your journey to good health.

Thanks for your reply. I thought that I would only have to pay a copay fee every time I saw the NUT; I was floored when I was told otherwise. I will take your suggestion and call my insurance company.

Her fee is $300 which I find to be too expensive. She doesn't take insurance even though my plan covers other nutritionist visits. Is there a way around this?

Thanks for all of your comments. Each of you made very good points about dieting and convincing arguments regarding the surgery. Most of those points are the reasons why I even considered wls in the first place. I'm just so anxious because this is such a big step and I need to make absolutely sure that the pros outweigh the potential cons and that I can live with my choice without regret. Berry78, I have researched RNY and ruled it out because of the malabsorptive aspect of the surgery. The terrible heartburn is something that I have only experienced recently in the past week and a half. I just discovered that I'm fine as long as I don't eat or drink anything at least three or four hours before I sleep or else I'm pacing the floor half the night. I will definitely discuss this with the bariatric surgeon if I decide to go forward. GrrlAnn, thanks for the video. I have seen Dr.Weiner's other videos but somehow missed that one. It is very informative. You have all given me things to consider and take to prayer. I appreciate your comments and good thoughts. God bless you all.

I just posted about the same thing, Sugarnspice. Now, I don't feel like I'm all alone in feeling this way. Is anyone ever 100 percent sure about surgery? I don't know. I pray all goes well with you tomorrow and for the rest of your journey. God bless you.

I don't know why, but after researching bariatric surgery for a while now and starting the process of getting a gastric sleeve, I find myself wondering what the heck I'm doing. I don't know why I'm having these doubts. On top of my co morbidities, I am at my highest weight ever, I have constant back pain whether I stand, sit or lay down, and I'm experiencing the worst heartburn that I have ever had in my life. I recently have gone up another pant size which I swore I would never do. Yet, here I am finding myself looking up diets again to see if I can finally stick with one that will help me to lose all of this weight. I'm almost 80 lbs over weight which probably wouldn't be so bad if I wasn't so short. (4'11") Despite all of that, I've been asking myself why am I considering cutting off a large portion of my stomach, when the problem is not my stomach. The problem is my poor food choices. What if this surgery leads to complications to my health and/or constant revisions? I know in my head that obesity is just as much a threat to my health so why am I on the fence? Has anyone else felt this way before surgery? Has anyone gone through wls not knowing 100 percent that this is the answer?

I am sorry that you are going through this, Kumbaice. You mentioned that before you got sleeved you had a lot of health issues so don't allow this current health issue to hold you back. Malignant melanoma can be successfully treated if caught early. The grazing is probably from anxiety. Keep your focus on the positive things you were doing before you got the diagnosis. My very best advice is for you to seek the Lord regarding your health. In my darkest hours I have turned to Him and He has never failed me. Only God can take your anxiety and replace it with a peace that passes all understanding. God bless you, Kumbaice.

I am at the early pre-op stage; I will see my doctor in a few weeks to discuss wls. Your post struck a chord with me, not only because we are the same height but also because just when I think that wls is the right path for me I start wondering whether I should just stick to dieting like I have for years. I have a lower bmi than most people getting this surgery but I also have co-morbidities that have led me to research this option. I guess I figured that once I went through with the surgery, all of my doubts would disappear but your post has me thinking differently now. I see that you posted your message on January 1st but that your surgery was on 12/28/2016. Do you still feel the same about the surgery now that you are almost a month post-op?

It's not a dumb question, walklady. (I had to look it up to find out what it meant) EGD stands for Esophagogastroduodenoscopy. It is a test to examine the lining of the esophagus, stomach and first part of the small intestine.

I have United Healthcare Choice and I still don't know all of the requirements of my plan even though I called the customer service number on the back of my insurance card. The reps that I spoke to didn't know what the requirements were beyond bmi numbers. I am so glad that this forum exists so that I can at least learn what steps other people have taken and do the same. I have already done the online seminar so my next step is to speak with my PCP and hopefully get a medical clearance letter from her. Since you are attending a seminar in person there might be someone there that you can ask about the specific requirements for your UHC plan. Good luck in finding all of the information that you need.

Congratulations! Good luck on your journey, msjesy323.

Hi Kikay, my suggestion is that you keep researching the surgical options while continuing the ketogenic diet. Losing 65 lbs is not easy so I congratulate you on your weight loss. If you believe that you can lose the weight you need to lose by dieting and maintain that weight loss, then I would cancel the surgery, if I were you. Research the risks as well as the rewards of having surgery and decide whether it is worth it to you. Good luck on your journey whatever you decide.

Congratulations to both of you!

I am at the information gathering stage of my journey and called United Healthcare to ask about their requirements for bariatric surgery. I have the United Healthcare Choice EP1 H M O plan and wanted to know if I needed to provide a 5 years weight history and/or required to do a 6 month supervised diet. After getting transferred from one rep to another, the first person I spoke to said that he was not medically trained to provide information about the weight history requirements. Huh????? I wasn't asking for his opinion on the matter; I was asking for what my plan requires. The next rep I spoke with only had information about the bmi requirements which I already know. She said that I should talk with a bariatric resources nurse but I read that bariatric resources are not applicable under my plan. Now, I have to call back on Monday to set up an appointment to talk with a nurse because the rep was constantly putting me on hold and taking way too long when answering basic questions. Why is it so difficult to get simple answers about what is in my plan? It is like pulling teeth.

That's wonderful, Detroit_25. You are lucky to have such a supportive doctor. Thanks for the update.