This is all happening really fast!

May 14, 2009

I had my appointment with the nutritionist and with Dr. Bauman on Tuesday (05/12). First, I have to say that Dr. Bauman is AWESOME!!! I had been told to prepare myself for him to be "direct" and "to the point." I was afraid that he would be unfriendly and dry. But I thought he had a great sense of humor and was very genuine. It was obvious that he is very good at what he does and that he takes every patient and every surgery very seriously. I LOVE that! I would highly recommend him to anyone looking for a surgeon. (Not to mention, he's done nearly 2,000 bariatric surgeries and has a ZERO mortality rate).
So, we discussed my options regarding the fact that I already have a Lap Band. Ultimately we both agreed that the best way to move forward is to remove the band and have the RNY. He said that he would like to remove the band in an outpatient surgery at least 2 weeks prior to the bypass in order to give my stomach a chance to heal and regain its original form as much as possible. This will eliminate many of the risks associated with this type of revision surgery. I agreed with his logic. I have already completed all of the requirements, like the psych eval, nutrition visit, physical and bloodwork, weight history, etc. So all we need is pre-authorization from my insurance company.
Since the band was not approved by my insurance (BCBS of NC) in 2005, when I had my surgery, they won't pay for the removal. So I will have to self-pay for that. But the surgeon's business manager told me that she had no concerns about getting insurance approval for the RNY. So.....drum roll.....I have an appointment to have my band removed on July 17! They can't schedule the RNY until they get the approval but they expect to have it within 7 to 10 days. So it looks as if I will have the 2nd procedure done either the 31st of July or the first week in August. That's not a bad thing. I feel like I need the time to get as emotionally prepared for this as possible and start cutting out some of my bad habits.
The nutritionist said that I don't have to do a pre-op liquid diet, but I have to come back having lost a few pounds and definately not having gained. She said that if I have gained any weight, they will postpone the surgery because it's an indicator that patients are not taking this seriously enough. So that means I can't just blow it and eat whatever I want for the next 2 months with the rationale that I should enjoy binging now because it's almost over. That makes me a little nervous since my weight tends to teeter like a see-saw. But I think I'm up for the challenge. She said even if I've just lost 3-5 pounds, that would be enough to show that I have taken the surgery seriously. Anyway, whatever the logic, I'm going to do it because I don't want to sabotage my chances of having this surgery.
I actually have more to write, but I really should be working right now. So I'll finish the story later! 

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