Another set back in my quest for losing weight...

18 years ago

When I first started this adventure,my insurance company said all I needed was a DR's reccomendation(sp) now...the DR talked to them yesterday and I have to do a six month course of a DR controlled diet.So i have to go once a month to a dietician and THEN they will approve it.Geesh!! IF I could do the healthy eating and dieting,I wouldn't be going to get this operaation in the first placce.Seems to me that the insurancce is spending a LOT more money than they would by just approving the operaation! They just had to pay over a thousand for that Stress Test...now 6 months of a dietician.I feel like I'm being beat down around every corner...but I'm not giving up...I WILL go to this 6 month thing and I WILL wait them out....Rotten stinkin' insurance!

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heather_on

18 years ago

Typical Insurance Company garbage! They love taking premiums but they absolutely hate paying out. I suppose now if you do lose weight they will say - "see she can do it on her own".

Reminds me of when DH was working in a motel as a desk clerk one night. He was robbed by two guys with semi-automatic guns. They asked for his own money as well and he reached into his own pocket and handed them the money while one gun was pointed at his stomach and the other at his head. When he tried to get his money back from our own insurance company, they laughed at him and told him that he had physcially handed over his own money and refused to pay. DH had just cashed his paycheck so it was a fair bit of money.

Surely your insurance company must realize that you have tried on your own for a long time and you wouldn't be jumping into this surgery unless you felt it was a good option. Surgery isn't a quick fix, but is a lifetime commitment as well. Wishing you well. As a fellow way too fluffy person I know it isn't easy.

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Comments (21)

grittymitts
18 years ago
Glad you're not giving up! (Maybe you're just not supposed to have that surgery right now, for reasons we may not understand.) But with your determination to lose, I'll bet you come out a winner!!

Best Wishes,
Suzi
grammahony
18 years ago
Hang in there Deb. Hopefully that time will go fast. It'll get you past the holidays and all the dinners that go with them.
Leslie
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paula_pa
18 years ago
Well please TRY the diet program. Don't just go through the motions to qualify for the surgery. I know the surgery has helped many people but if you can finally find a way to lose weight without surgery, how great would that be? Give it all you've got! Put the surgery out of your mind completely and go for it for 6 months. Good luck!
western_pa_luann
18 years ago
"I suppose now if you do lose weight they will say - "see she can do it on her own". "

Well... yeah.

If you can avoid major surgery with all the possible complications, that is a good thing!

Lapband surgery makes you decrease what you put into your mouth. If you can do that without the surgery, you are better off.
Happy_Go_Lucky_Gayle
18 years ago
I'm pulling for ya CR. You can do this.

Keep the Faith.

Gayle
heather_on
18 years ago
I'm sure that Deb has tried many diet programs in the past or her doctor would not have recommended surgery in the first place. It is a serious operation,there are complications and not just a quick fix. Whether dieting to lose weight or having the surgery, it is a lifetime commitment. Wishing you well CR.
maryanntx
18 years ago
Sorry you have the 6 month delay for your surgery. Hopefully you will have a good dietitian who will help you make good food choices, as you won't be able to eat much after your surgery and what you eat needs to be healthy.

I know it's hard to wait when you are so anxious, but just hang in there.
lydia1959
18 years ago
Sorry about the delay... hang in there!
ont_gal
18 years ago
CR..there is a gal here,43 yrs of age,who now weighs 140 pounds.

She "was" 336...BEFORE the docs would even consider the surgery(stomach bypass),she had to lose no less than 18 pounds.

Her surgery was then completed at the weight of 318.
liz
18 years ago
YOU GO GIRL!! Don't give up!!
sharon_fl
18 years ago
CR...I know how you feel. Before I moved to FL-my insurance @ the company I worked for, insisted I go for the same program. I'm w/you! It's their way of copping out of providing the tool one needs, to have a healthy life. It's obvious your Dr felt it necessary! Does your Ins Co have an Arbitrary Board? Call & ask them, then if yes? Have your Dr write a letter explaining the reason he feels it's medically necessary for this surgery, and to please reconsider. It never hurts to ask a 2nd time, even a 3rd time. If they don't have a Board, look at it this way. By taking 6 months to eat healthy food, exercise, etc-it will be so much easier for you to accept a new way of eating, etc. Question..what & who at your Insurance Co-decides AFTER you've done their program...is there any guarantee they'll pay if you follow their program???
wildchild
18 years ago
Once you have the surgery you will be on the "same" diet for the rest of your life. Just less hungry.

If you follow the diet for six months you may find you don't need the surgery.

I just returned to weight watchers. I have about 30 to 40 lbs to lose. The first time I went I lost 87 lbs. and kept it off for a decade.

Six months of seeing a dietician now will help you tremendously after the surgery. Better to change your way of eating now.

I have a friend who just had the surgery around 5 months ago. After an initial lose of 30 pounds she is losing weight at about a pound a week just like I am. Except I get to eat full meals and she gets to eat only a fistful of food at each meal.
Terri_PacNW
18 years ago
I'm glad to see they are going this route Deb..I know it's frustrating..but I know several ladies that have had gastric bypass and are are no healthier and have no better a "consumption list" than they did prior to the GB..they are just skinnish...I think it's smart of the insurance company to hold everyone accountable for the surgery. They didn't used to do that...There are people who "cheat" the GB and gain the weight back!!!
Now I know 3 ladies that have had the Lap Band and have actually changed their eating habits and eat much healthier than prior to the surgery..One says,"I hate puking..and if I eat the wrong thing..UP IT ALL comes..so I avoid that banana bread now"..LOL
glenda_al
18 years ago
You ARE gonna make it, I just KNOW!
joann23456
18 years ago
Good luck. My sister had to go through this, as well as psychological counseling. They wanted to make sure she knew that the surgery would make it physically harder to overeat, but wouldn't change a thing about the psychological urge to overeat. I think it was a good thing for her, as she tends to rush into things.

I hope all goes well for you.
mtnwomanbc
18 years ago
(((Chubby_rat))) Okay...I'm coming public here -- I had lap band surgery 2.5 years ago. I'm about halfway to goal, not a poster child. And I'm now trying to get my butt in gear again.

There are additional reasons that weight loss is recommended before lapband surgery -- a lot of fat settles around the liver and stomach area, and a good weight loss directly prior to surgery can make it easier for the surgeon to get in there, and also easier healing for you. After all, with laparoscopy, there's not a whole lot of room to maneuver. Your insurance will come through -- it's your doctor who is taking the cautious path. BTW, there are other doctors who are not as stringent about the pre-surgery weight loss.

The nutritional visits are critical since your consumption will be so much less and it will be hard to get all the protein and vegetables in. The best part is that the lap band really, really does curtail hunger. But it's also not a panacea -- bad habits will return unless you're vigilant. And exercise is paramount. Again, I'm no poster child, but I know many bandsters who are.

The band can be a PITA due to the saline fills required. Have you asked your doctor about other alternatives -- there are a couple of new ones available -- if the vertical sleeve had been available at the time I might have gotten that instead.

If you'd like to email me offline, I'd be happy to share more information about the journey.
redcurls
18 years ago
I think it's very, very common to have the six month diet thing for approval by your insurance. Many people don't even LOSE anything...a woman I spoke to said if she lost TOO much, she woudn't qualify for the surgery because her BMI would be lowered. I honestly think a lot of people could LOSE the weight, but would it stay off? In my friend's case, NO. She has lost and gained literally hundreds of pounds over 40 years.
FlamingO in AR
18 years ago
I'm sorry about the delay, CR. I know you'll get thru this, though, because you are determined!
chubby_rat
Original Author
18 years ago
I am going to do the 6 month thing.I will probaably lose weight...I always do on a diet,but then I gain back what I lost plus more because I can't stick to it. I wouldn't be so upset overr the 6 months iif they would havve told me THREE months ago when I first went! I could have had 3 months down...at first they just said it had to be DR reccomended,now they add the 6 months....I'm getting the bypass not the lapband....They saay the bypass is betterr and faster.Just a little discouraged right now...
maryanntx
18 years ago
I bet the 6 months will fly by CR. Don't be discouraged, we're all here standing behind you.

Another set back in my quest for losing weight...

heather_on

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Another set back in my quest for losing weight...

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