What is left to do?

[Ree 215]

I think I've done just about everything I needed to do before the surgery date. Currently I just completed my 4th NUT visit and I have 2 more left, one in Sept & Oct. Next week I go to see a sleep specialist. Will they require me to sleep there to see if I have sleep apnea? So after my last NUT appointment in October do I get to make an appointment with the surgeon to schedule a surgery date? and how long does it usually take to get the surgery after meeting with the doctor? how far out in advance are they usually scheduling or does that vary greatly? I am really hoping I can get a surgery date before the end of the year, only because I have already met my deductible and out of pocket max for the year for health insurance. If I have to wait till 2014' I'll end up having to pay out a lot more money.

[T'snewstart 251]

I think I've done just about everything I needed to do before the surgery date. Currently I just completed my 4th NUT visit and I have 2 more left, one in Sept & Oct. Next week I go to see a sleep specialist. Will they require me to sleep there to see if I have sleep apnea? So after my last NUT appointment in October do I get to make an appointment with the surgeon to schedule a surgery date? and how long does it usually take to get the surgery after meeting with the doctor? how far out in advance are they usually scheduling or does that vary greatly? I am really hoping I can get a surgery date before the end of the year, only because I have already met my deductible and out of pocket max for the year for health insurance. If I have to wait till 2014' I'll end up having to pay out a lot more money.

each ins company is different... Kaiser ins gave me the option to take the sleep study home or do it there. I did it in the hospital because the appt. Was a month sooner if I did it in the hospital. I had my surgery date one month after seeing the surgeon. Best Wishes to you!

[mokee 588]

When I had surgery last yr I started seeing the dr in June and had all my hoops done by Sept but because of all the people trying to get in by end of yr did not have surgery till Nov 28. Very hard time of yr to go thru this. Surgery was 2 days after my 66th birthday and 1 wk after Thanksgiving. I had our family Thanksgiving the weekend before my preop diet began. Skipped all the Xmas parties because they were all centered around food and could not handle that at that time. If I were you I would try and get a tentative date from the dr so you can get it done this yr. Just giving you a heads up about the difficulty of having surgery at this time of yr.

[Arts137 1,811]

Yes to the above comments! Every insurance company is different.

As to the sleep study, I was p***** that I had to do it (or the pulmonologist would not sign off), heck, I KNEW that I did not have Apnea...and I had to sleep at the center.

Well OOOPS! I have pretty severe obstructive sleep apnea, and the CPAP machine that I now religiously use is WONDERFUL. Never realized how great a good night's sleep is.

All in all, go through the requirements and your sleeve will be here quick as a flash!

[Cajunlady12 49]

It does depend on the insurance company. I had to do all requirements then submit to insurance and get approval. Once I got approval then made appointment with surgeon who I see Sept 10 and surgery is scheduled for Oct 7. Just keep on doing what needs to be done. As far as the sleep study, I already have sleep apnea and CPAP machine so all I had to do was get copy of study sent to surgeon's office. Good luck.

[Cajunlady12 49]

Arts137 I have sleep apnea and have had the machine for about five years. When I first got the machine I hated it, now if I have go anywhere overnight, that is the first thing I pack.

[Roo101769 742]

Your post sounds almost identical to me! LOL I only have to have a pulmonary clearance before I am done..( ie: ready to submit to insurance) I have had two different episodes of pulmonary embolism ( blood clots traveling into my lungs) so the surgeon/ anesthesiologist want this checked. ( but not really concerned there are any issues) I have done everything else on my check list. I too hope to get in before the end of year and a large part of that reasoning is financial. Since I already went through another round of DVT/PE and was hospitalized for 6 days overall I too have met my deductible/ out of pocket annual max. So financially it would be greatly beneficial for me to have surgery in 2013. Also, it starts me on the road to a healthier me that much sooner. But if the cards are dealt that I have to wait, I will still do it. I just hope luck and timing is on my side...Good luck to you too!

[LittleLou 31]

I think I've done just about everything I needed to do before the surgery date. Currently I just completed my 4th NUT visit and I have 2 more left, one in Sept & Oct. Next week I go to see a sleep specialist. Will they require me to sleep there to see if I have sleep apnea? So after my last NUT appointment in October do I get to make an appointment with the surgeon to schedule a surgery date? and how long does it usually take to get the surgery after meeting with the doctor? how far out in advance are they usually scheduling or does that vary greatly? I am really hoping I can get a surgery date before the end of the year, only because I have already met my deductible and out of pocket max for the year for health insurance. If I have to wait till 2014' I'll end up having to pay out a lot more money.

It's possible that we may be having the surgery around the same time. My insurance only requires 3 NUT appointments and my last one will be in October. I think it depends on your insurance as to the sleep study, or maybe it depends on the Dr. you are using. I had to stay overnight, and I have to do a 2nd study with the CPAP machine because I do have sleep apnea. I think once you are approved, the surgery date has to be at least two weeks from that date because you will need to begin your two week pre-op diet. My cousin just got approved last week and her surgery is scheduled for 8/30. But again, that probably depends on your Dr. and how busy they are.

GOOD LUCK with everything:)

[Ree 215]

The surgeon I'm seeing is pretty popular, he has actually been on Opera back in the day when the Opera show was airing. Arts137, how much weight have you lost and do you still need to use the CPAP machine? I've heard that once you start to lose weight sometimes you are able to ditch the CPAP machine because you no longer need it.

[Macy6 356]

When my paperwork was finally submitted (Which after my last Dr. appt took about 2 weeks, than 2 weeks for approval) anyway I told them I was on a tight schedule for surgery, otherwise I had to wait for December and they penciled me in pending approval. So I actually knew my surgery date about 2.5 weeks before I even knew if I was having surgery.

[Arts137 1,811]

Arts137 I have sleep apnea and have had the machine for about five years. When I first got the machine I hated it, now if I have go anywhere overnight, that is the first thing I pack.

Takes about a week to get used to it, but after that I love it and my sleep is sooooo good!

[Arts137 1,811]

The surgeon I'm seeing is pretty popular, he has actually been on Opera back in the day when the Opera show was airing. Arts137, how much weight have you lost and do you still need to use the CPAP machine? I've heard that once you start to lose weight sometimes you are able to ditch the CPAP machine because you no longer need it.

YES that is possible. My highest weight was 423 and I am now 331, so about 80 pounds. I have a long path to get to 200 to 225. And I might not need CPAP later, but let me tell you, it does NOT interfere at all with my sleep, so I might just keep using the CPAP...

[anniehip 14]

Did anyone have to complete that yellow questionnaire with 17 questions from Kaiser?