The Beginning--I hope!

[Vixynne 695]

Noob member, first time poster, hello all. *waves* Apologies in advance for a wordy post.

I have several good friends who have had bariatric surgery (gastric bypass and VSG) and after envying their chutzpah and success for a little while, I decided to check into it myself. I attended a seminar on Tuesday, got a call to book a consult on Wednesday, called for a referral on Thursday, and going for my first consult Friday--tomorrow! Meep! Nervous is an understatement. I'm trying to keep myself grounded, as it's all going along rather quickly right now. I know this won't always be the case, and that this is just the very first baby step on a long, winding road.

My nerves are getting the better of me tonight, though. See, for ages I assumed I was firmly lodged in the 40 BMI category, based on my clothing size (20's are started to fit snuggish) and my height (either 5'1" or 5'2" depending on how high my hair is that day). scales are my bitter enemy--they almost never have nice things to say to me--so whenever I am weighed at a regular check-up, I tell the nurse to just write it down. It's not worth the emotional warfare I'll conduct on myself, so I just let them scribble in their file folder and go on my merry way.

I stepped on a scale tonight. Well, sort of. I stepped on my daughter's Wii Fit balance board and let her weigh me. (Anyone besides me think the little voice on that console is kinda snippy about announcing your weight status? Maybe it's just me.) In any case, based on my weight--which is apparently about 10 pounds or so less than I had estimated. So my BMI isn't at the operation-approval 40 that it needs to be; instead it's hovering around 35/36ish. Now I'm worried that I don't qualify. Talk about a mindblower; for the first time in my life, I may not be heavy enough for something?

I do have some health issues related to my weight. Hormonal imbalances that have stopped my menstrual cycle cold, with nary a hot flash. My primary physician did some bloodwork, and one of my hormones is at menopausal level, the other is not--which he said was very odd. I have joint pain (knees, back, neck--with stenosis and cervical lordosis in the last 12 months), asthma, acid reflux and some mild apnea. My question is--will these things qualify me for VSG since my BMI isn't 40? I'd hate to be turned away after finding the gumption to start the process at all.

[Iniysa 157]

Welcome to the group! It seems that usually if your BMI is lower then 40, but you DO have medical issues due to your weight, that you will probably be approved anyway.

Let us know how it goes!

[ajeeprider 94]

Hi...If you have insurance that you plan to have cover your surgery cost, I advise you read their criteria for coverage, usually they tell you their guidelines to qualify for. There are guidelines too that are standards for qualifying for bariatric surgery that many bariatric surgeons will follow. You can google for those. I would recommend looking through info on this site and start googling to collect more info. I had a BMI of 38-39 but had been diagnosed and well documented in my medical record OA of both knees as well as newly dx severe apnea. Both dx qualified me for surgery based on standard guidelines and my insurance coverage. My BMI was also above 35 which I think is the low end of the guidance for surgery. So do your reasearh . You found this site so keep collecting information. Dont rush into anything especially this until you completely understand what you are getting into. it took me well over a year to understand and make this choice. Knowledge is power. Good luck!

[Vixynne 695]

Thank you both!

I went for my consultation today, and during the initial check-in, I found out that using a Wii Balance Board to measure my weight is a BAD idea. As it turns out, the Wii underestimated my weight by not 5, not 10, but a whopping 43 pounds! That was a bit of a jaw-dropper, but the good news there is that I do qualify for VSG, as my BMI is 43. Happy to be qualified and moving forward with dietician and psych appointments, on my way to an eventual surgery and new outlook on my life!