JamieNP

I am totally with you Marcie! I work nights and broke down yesterday...ate a Lean cuisine. I was feeling week and dizzy. This is going to be interesting when I have the band. I have been creative with the shakes (but it is hard to do at work).

There are several people here that have crohn's and have been banded. Type in "crohn's" in the search box and you should be able to find the threads.

Welcome! Just make sure you talk with your surgeon and get educated on all of the complications. I can see why bypass would not be a choice for you, but lapband..I don't know. Since Crohn's can affect the entire digestive system, it may be contraindicated.

I told my Surgeon that I wanted to just take about 3 days off, and he said "absolutely not!" I am a CCU nurse and do lifting and I am on my feet. Guess I will be taking 2 weeks off!

Don't go on a diet until you get approved. You may have to gain just a few lbs if you are borderline (remember, I was 6.5 lbs under the med frame requirement).

I can answer that for you. They send you a denial letter and it will state why you were denied. I was denied and they said, in so many words that, Yes I had the comorbidities but the weight required for my height was 227 and my weight was 220.5. I ended up reweighing and got approved.

It is behind a little...it didn't show up until at least 24 hours after I knew I was approved.

Good luck! Mine is on the 30th also.

Maggie, You HAVE to appeal. A lot of times it is because the doc's office did not send everything in. When you denial letter comes in, see exactly what it says...then appeal.

I read "one for the money", and actually bought the next one..just don't know where I put it.

To be honest, the "Weight Loss Surgery for Dummies" was very informative, especially if you are just getting started. Has insurance information, diet information, etc.

While being on my Preop diet, I am mourning juicy cheeseburgers and an ice cold coke...maybe some mozzarella sticks and ranch dressing.:smile:

I am finishing the first of the Twilight books, and I have the others on hand for after the surgery. They are good! My daughter read them and told me that I "HAD" to read them!:wink_smile::smile:

Ah..the waiting sucks, doesn't it? As far as the Psy exam: I have heard conflicting requirements, but my surgeon's office and the tricare people I talked with said that they needed one. You can self refer and should be able to find one that is in "network". It isn't that big of a deal, if you can get in. My advice is to do a lot of the leg work yourself, like the psy exam, the support group, nutrition class, etc. It kills time while waiting for other stuff.

Tricare prime did..the slight hold up I had was because they did not have the psy eval...they had "misplaced it"

When you talked with them had they received the paperwork? Sounds like you need to give your Docs office a swift kick in the rear. Mine had it listed as pending for awhile, as soon as they got the paperwork.

That is a long time. Usually Tricare is a little faster than that. What does it say at the website...is it even listed there? Does it say "pending"?

Did anyone here actually have tricare call them. I had read in earlier threads that someone from Tricare called to let them know they were approved and asked if there was anything they need to call them. They never once called me.

Maybe you will find out today. When did your doc send the paperwork in? They may hear before you. In fact, I called the office and they ended up calling Tricare and got more info than I did.

I know I bugged tricare to death. I called everyday until I found out.

:smile: TN here too!

Anne, what part of Indiana do you live? I am from Evansville, but live in TN now.

I bought the following: 1. Weight loss surgery for Dummies 2. Laproscopic Adjustable Gastric Banding: Achieving Permanent weight loss with minimally invasive surgery 3. Exodus from Obesity: The Guide to Long-Term Success After Weight Loss Surgery

Maggie, Find out why you were denied, and then meet those requirements. I talked to some people at my support group tonight and it looks like it is not uncommon for Tricare to deny the first time and then approve.

I think I saw somewhere today that she got denied:cry_smile: