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JULY 5th! I have waited my entire life for an oppurtinity like this! This is not an exaggeration as I have literally been overweight since I was a toddler. I have never worn a normal size, I have been shopping in the plus size section since 5th grade. I have spent my entire life on diets calculating how much weight I can lose in X amount of time. This is the first time in my life that I can say, without a doubt, that I will have a significant loss by Christmas! I am still in shock that my insurance company approved me for surgery in just a few days! My final appointment was last Thursday, and I got the call to schedule surgery exactly a week later. I thought for sure that I would be denied, and have to appeal. God works in mysterious ways! Pre-Op is June 8th, 2 week liquid diet prior to surgery begins June 21st. A little scary, but super exciting!

I'm getting more excited as each day passes! My first appointment with Dr. Spann(Vanderbilt Hospital, Nashville TN)about my gastric bypass surgery was on January 12th, and I was extremely impressed with how smoothly everything went. They were able to make all my future appointments at once, and even doubled up to schedule some appointments on the same day- so I wouldn't have to take more time off work. My next appointment is in two days, and I will also be attending one of the weight loss surgery support groups while I'm there.

I am super anxious. Not scared, but somewhat nervous. . . . . .

Mostly about *when* my insurance will approve my surgery. The bariatric surgery benefit was just added to my insurance plan last year. After researching it, I discovered that the plan will only cover surgery after I have 1 year (12 whole months!) of physician supervised dieting with 12 consecutive monthly visits. Needless to say, I was discouraged and never started the process. A co-worker returned to work after having gastric bypass a month ago. I was shocked to find out that she was only required to follow a physicians supervised diet for 3 months. We have identical coverage, and the benefits have not changed. That's when I made my appointment through the same physician she used. She was nice enough to let me look at all of her materials prior to my appointment, so I saw all her approval letters and requirements stating 3 months from our insurance company. Unfortunately, when the insurance specialist from Vanderbilt called to verify my coverage, she was told there was a 1 year requirement :(  Dr. Spann says he has never seen anything more than a 6 month requirement before, and actually believes it is descrimination. They have pulled my co-workers file and confirmed insurance info. They plan on filing to my insurance company once I've reached my 3 month requirement. If it is denied, Dr. Spann says he will appeal. It seems silly to all the sudden, after 20+ years of being obese, want to rush surgery - BUT -?I was just diagnosed with type 2 diabetes last month-despite losing 30 pounds in the previous year. I am only 33 years old! I have a BMI of 63. My health is only going to get worse, unless I stop it now.