Gathering My Info

I was lucky to not have a long wait to attend the required seminar presented by the bariatric surgeons. I had one week and in that time I filled out all the required health history forms, gathered my doctors' letters of support from my pcp and the orthopedic surgeon,filled out a three day food diary and found out what my insurance covered--which was a big fat zero percent. I believe the clause that includes weight loss surgery was denied by my husband's employer. My husband is self-employed. I found the seminar very interesting. The surgeon, Dr. Basa, explained the different procedures that she offers and the pros and cons of each surgery. I actually changed my preference from a gastric sleeve to gastric bypass because I believe it will have a greater effect on my diabetes. People who have gastric bypass typically lose a greater percentage of weight. She also introduced three former patients that answered our questions. A couple of days after the seminar, which was well-attended, I received a phone call from the bariatric surgeon's office letting me know that my insurance does not cover the surgery. I told them that I intend to self-pay and we set up an appointment with the surgeon. I'm super excited! Now, I'm reading three different weight loss surgery message boards and trying to find out as much as possible about gastric bypass. Next time I'll write about telling my extended family about my choice. Fun times.

The Beginning

I have been fat for pretty much all of my adult life. I've had some weight loss successes along the way but they have been pretty small, far and few apart, and never long-lasting. I have diabetes, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol, all of which I take medications for. I also recently discovered I have signs of osteoarthritis. I had a grandmother lose her leg to diabetes, a grandfather die of a stroke in his 50's (probably) due to diabetes, and my mother died after diabetes related complications. My father died of a heart attack and had been undergoing dialysis. I also have early signs of kidney disease. Lovely. I have considered weight loss surgery for years but always decided against it. Surgery was once again recommended to me, this time by my orthopedic surgeon. He said I could have a good 40-45 years if I lost weight. It it finally sunk in. I did some more research and decided I wanted to do it. Next entry will be about the week between speaking with the ortho and attending the required seminar with the bariatric surgeon. :)