THE BEGINNING

[elpasovet 83]

So I started this process in August 1st 2014. For ATLEAST 5 consecutive years I've had:

High Cholesterol

High Blood Pressure

Bmi over 40

And my newest symptom is a fatty liver yay! I am 33 years old and I have 4 children. Boy (10) girl (7) boy (5) and girl (2). I am an Air Force veteran rated at 100%. I asked my doctor for weight loss medicine and he denied me and told me since I've been battling my weight (since I was 10) that he is going to refer me to bariatric surgeon. This is at William Beaumont Army Medical Center in El Paso Texas.

My 1st appt is a seminar on 21 August at 1230.

2nd appt is support group 28 August at 7:00 pm.

They told me after the seminar I would have a checklist of items to do including a psych eval.

My question is...has anyone had surgery here at this location? Has anyone heard anything else about the process when going through the Veteran Affairs?

Thank you so much in advance. I am super nervous and hope this all goes through. For everyone who prays, please pray for me. This could potentially save my life.

[Jz0917 21]

Hi elphasovet. I am a 100% disabled army vet. I am not going through the va but I feel your pain. If you are getting it done by a private doctor, then it is probably fee based and it should all be covered. I am a a prayer and will pray for you. I have a group on Facebook called women aspiring for higher. You should find it and join. Lots of prayer and encouragement for whatever you are going through. There are over 300 women there to support us. And some of the daily posts are very encouraging. I have surgery on august 26 and have battled with my weight have a military injury and two twin pregnancies. It is had, it is a challenge, but if the va has already approved you, you are golden.

[elpasovet 83]

Okay I will definitely be looking y'all up on Facebook! I'm not sure how the whole process works but the bariatric surgery consultant is the one who said that the referral was approved. I still have to get approval from surgeon and psychiatrist and I am praying hard I do. If I don't do something drastic I don't think I will make it past 40 :-(

[Jz0917 21]

Hi elphasovet. I added you on the Facebook page. Everything you post there is private. Make your prayer requests known and people will pray for you there. By the way, my name is Zaneta in case you were wondering which member was me. :-)

[elpasovet 83]

Thank you so much girlie!!! See you over there!

[mamiledesma 0]

This is the hospital that my physician is trying to send me to. Did you have the proceedure as of yet? I would love to get some information if you have any. I live out of state and will be traveling there to meet the requirements with that facility.

Thank you!!