Suthernsurg

Hi Everyone, I'm Gina from Millington Tn. I have just began my journey to getting banded. I attended a seminar and signed up for my first appointment with the Bariatric physician. Unfortunately, my insurance requires 2 six month long weight management programs, the first to be completed within 12 months of the surgery. I was hoping to get things moving a bit faster than that but I guess there is no way around it. I am a surgical technologist and have actually assisted on a few gastric bypasses in my time. Im truely thankful that the LapBand has come along. Being a single parent and working full time night shift the less complicated the better. I was amazed to find out that it was an outpatient procedure and that the time off work I would have to take could be as little as a week or less. Anyway, I am glad I found this forum. Its always nice to talk to others that are going through some of the same things that you are. It's kind of hard talking to someone that has never had a weight problem. They never seem to understand.

My mom is about the same height and probably weighs about 120 pounds wet lol She has no clue what its like being heavy and I have let her know that many times. I love her to death but I just tell her I don't want a man that can't see the inside of a person anyway.lol. I'm soooo over her negativity about my weight. M'Town is growing rapidly. You wouldn't believe how much. We actually have a Chili's and a Perkins now lol. To bad I wont get to eat many of those good baby back ribs after I get banded lol.

I have cigna insurance. Make sure you ask many questions. When I called them to make sure the surgery would be covered ( after getting all the requirements done that is ) they told me that my insurance covered all but 20% after the deductible. That was incorrect. In the insurance packet that I received at work in black and white it says any bariatric surgery would be covered 100% after the deductible. I work for methodist healthcare and called my benefits administrator and had them check into it for me. Turns out, if I had the surgery done at St. Francis hospitals the insurance only covered 80%. But I am a methodist employee and would be having it done at a methodist facility so the surgery is covered 100%. Again, just ask questions and if you have to, ask the same ones over and over. The people that answer the phones at the insurance company only go by what they read on a computer screen. They don't bother to find out what company you work for or an other details. It's a big pain in the rear but you want to make sure that you get the CORRECT information. Your best bet would be to go through your benefits administrator.

I'll be going to Dr Woodman. My initial appointment is June 27th. I hear he has a horrible bedside manner but is great at what he does. I work in a hospital myself and know several people in an anesthesia group and have asked them alot of questions and they pretty much all say the same. He is very good at what he does.

I won't miss: Type 2 Diabetes lack of energy My swollen legs and ankles my triple chin My high heart rate the stares I get when eating at a restaurant The ugly plus sized clothing the pain in my hips and knees wearing shorts and a T-shirt instead of a cute bathing suit Getting out of breath when I play with my granddaughter My mother saying you can have any man you want if you were thin I could go on and on lol But most of all, I miss feeling good about myself. So I won't miss the low self esteem and the self loathing.

Choosing a goal weight was a pretty easy thing for me. I just asked myself...at what weight would I feel comfortable and happy with myself. I'm 5'6" and 264 pounds right now. I would feel happy with a weight of no more than 165 pounds. I know that my ideal weight according to alot that I have read is around 145 pounds. But I haven't weighted that since I was in high school and that was quit some time ago lol. I'm not looking to get into a size 2 dress, just a body that is healthy and comfortable to live in.

Hi Cindy, This process is definitely time consuming and tedious. I'll be seeing Dr. Woodman on the 27th of this month. I'm not sure who Dr. Weaver is though. I'll also be going to my second visit for my 6 month weight loss management. It is really not as bad as you would think. I am lucky because I work in a hospital and one of the doctors I work with frequently is handling my weight loss management. I have a total of 5 Dr appt.'s this month alone lol. Hopefully it will take care of most of the requirements that my insurance company is looking for. A work of advice though. Make sure you do your research as far as your insurance is concerned. I have Cigna and they gave me some wrong information as far as the surgery being covered. I'm not sure if you are self pay or not but I had to go through the human resources department of my employer to get the correct information. I now know that my surgery will be covered 100% after my initial yearly deductible. Before they were telling me I had to pay the deductible and an additional 20% of the total cost, which was incorrect. So just dot all your 'I' and cross all your 'T's' so to speak. Good luck on your journey. I know for myself I'm extremely excited about the surgery. I know that sounds weird but I have been heavy for most of my life as well. I tell my friends I'm just a skinny person trapped inside a heavy body...lol. But one day, with the help of this surgery that skinny or should I just say 'thinner' person will emerge and live a healthier life so that I can enjoy the rest of my life being able to do some of the things that my weight has prevented me from doing in the past. Lets keep in touch and hopefully we can lend support when it is needed. It helps to have people that are going through the same experiences. Oh and by the way, Congrats on finding a man that was able to look at the inside as well as the outside of you. I am still searching myself lol. Good men are few and far between. Gina

Thank you all for the welcome. I Dont think any of these physicians would know how to deal with an obese patient unless they have experienced the same emotions and experiences that we have had to deal with over the years. I just have to be tollerant where they are not and be successful in my goals and I will end up the winner. I did call the insurance company today because of a descripency in there benefits package I was sent. In one place it says I have to pay 20% of the cost of the lapband and in another place it says they pay 100% after the initial deductible....So the fight begins lol.

Thank you all for the welcome.

Hi Stella, Yep, I'm using Dr Woodman alright. He is the one that gave the seminar. I sure hope his surgical skills are better than his people skills thats for sure lol. Fortunately, I have worked with many Dr.'s and I'm pretty immune to their arrogance and other personality flaws..lol. Thank you for the welcome.