Aaron O.

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I had a crazy day.  I got a call first thing this morning informing me that I've been approved for surgery by my insurance company.  Now I need to fill out some information for a psych consult which then would be followed by an appointment with Dr. Lynch.  Then I get to work and I get a phone call from a recruiter who wants me to interview for a job that pays more than my current one.  Thing is, if I were to take it then my insurance would probably change and I'd have to start the whole process over. 

I'm very early in the process, but I've made the decision that I'd like to have WLS.  My main reason is for my health and longevity.  I have some bad family history working against me and have had health issues already such as high cholesterol and fatty infiltration of the liver. When I had an ultrasound and they called and said they wanted to talk to me about the results - that should've been my wake up call right there.  And it was ... for a while.  I went on phentermine and a supervised diet and after 5 or 6 months my ALT and AST were back down, but I got complacent and then moved and stopped seeing a doctor and have backslid.   I'm on a path that I want to reverse before it's too late.  The second reason is to improve my quality of life.  I'm beginning to miss out on a lot of things thanks to my poor physical condition and size. 

I went to a local clinic, Baptist Metabolic Surgery Center, and filled out the application, was weighed and they copied my insurance card.  I attended some online seminars and decided I'd like to have laproscopic RNY.  The insurance person gathered weights for the last 5 years and submitted them to my insurance Aug 10.  I'm now just waiting to hear back. 

Some of my concerns:
- My insurance (United Healthcare) will deny me.  I have weights that go back 5 years and I'm 47 BMI now and think I've been in the 40's the last 3 years,  but probably was in the mid to upper 30's going back 5 years.  I have been on supervised diets, but they may not have been well documented.  I was taking phentermine for 5 or 6 months and was getting blood tests every month to check liver function. 
- I'm concerned about the amount of exercise I'll be able to do, and if I can't do enough, the surgery will be for naught.  I had a condition in my legs called chronic compartment syndrome for years.  I had an operation for it and now can at least walk without pain, but still have some leg and foot problems.  It is my hope that as I lose weight, my condition will get somewhat better.
-That I'd be able  to conquer whatever percentage of my eating is anxiety related.