MarshaAnne
One month to go!
Dec 28, 2007
I just realized I only have one month until surgery day. Every now and then I wish I had taken the Jan. 8th date, but when I look around at all the boxes (we JUST moved)...I know I made the right choice. With 4 children running around, I need to be as settled as possible before such a big life change.
Anyway, I'm getting increasingly more excited and more nervous at the same time. I'm going to be so relieved when the surgery is over and discover there were NO complications! That's what I'm praying for anyway.
I got some Christmas money so I'm going to use it to buy a food processor and a blender. I'm sure I'll put both to good use.
Anyway, I'm getting increasingly more excited and more nervous at the same time. I'm going to be so relieved when the surgery is over and discover there were NO complications! That's what I'm praying for anyway.
I got some Christmas money so I'm going to use it to buy a food processor and a blender. I'm sure I'll put both to good use.
Surgery date scheduled
Dec 17, 2007
My date was scheduled this morning for Tuesday, January 29, 2008. I could have had it done much earlier (she offered me as early as Jan. 8), but I can't be ready in time. We are moving into a new house on Wednesday and I really want to be completely settled before surgery.
Anyway, so much has happened in the last two weeks, I wanted to take a minute to get it written down.
Tuesday, Nov. 20th--I went to see my PCP for my final month of the 12 month supervised diet. At this appointment I was going to ask him to write my letter for the insurance company and schedule me for an EKG. For months I've been dreading this day because I've never had a good sense as to how supportive he will be about the surgery. Well, he was fabulous. He did the EKG on the spot and said he'd write & mail the letter in the next 3 days. He also ordered extensive blood testing (which was not required by Dr. Poplawski). So, as of today, I have met all the requirements for surgery since I had my Psych eval. August 3.
Tuesday, Nov. 27th---Barix called and said they received the letter and the EKG results, but said my PCP didn't include any reference to the 12-month supervised diet I had just finished. She asked me to call my doctor and have him re-do it. Sigh. So, I called and left all the info with the receptionist. I had serious doubts the info would ever get passed on to my doctor. I decided to wait a week and then call Barix and see if they had received the new letter.
Tuesday, Dec. 4--Barix called again and said that they had received my insurance approval for surgery and wanted to set up a follow-up visit with Dr. Poplawski. I was extremely confused. You'd think I don't understand English. I was so certain they were either calling to tell me they haven't received the updated letter OR they were calling to say they had received it and were now submitting everything to Blue Cross for approval. I was not expecting to be told that I've been approved. I still don't understand how it could have happened that fast. Regardless, I'm thrilled!
I was told that Dr. Kam (who was supposed to be my surgeon) had left the practice and Dr. Poplawski would do my surgery. Again, I'm thrilled! She scheduled me to come in Friday, Dec. 14th to meet with him.
Friday, Dec. 14th--Met Dr. Poplawski and liked him right off the bat. I really appreciated the attention he gave to the emotional complications of surgery. He asked me to lose weight (at least 10 pounds) before surgery to increase my chances of having laparoscopic surgery. He can't guarantee it because my BMI is so high, but that's his first choice. I guess I'll find out which type I had when I wake up in recovery. He also wants me to attend his orientation seminar to get to know him better and hear his point of view on bariatric surgery. I am going to that Tuesday, Dec. 17th.
Monday, Dec. 16th---Surgery date scheduled. Pre-op appointment is January 15th at 7:30 a.m.
Anyway, so much has happened in the last two weeks, I wanted to take a minute to get it written down.
Tuesday, Nov. 20th--I went to see my PCP for my final month of the 12 month supervised diet. At this appointment I was going to ask him to write my letter for the insurance company and schedule me for an EKG. For months I've been dreading this day because I've never had a good sense as to how supportive he will be about the surgery. Well, he was fabulous. He did the EKG on the spot and said he'd write & mail the letter in the next 3 days. He also ordered extensive blood testing (which was not required by Dr. Poplawski). So, as of today, I have met all the requirements for surgery since I had my Psych eval. August 3.
Tuesday, Nov. 27th---Barix called and said they received the letter and the EKG results, but said my PCP didn't include any reference to the 12-month supervised diet I had just finished. She asked me to call my doctor and have him re-do it. Sigh. So, I called and left all the info with the receptionist. I had serious doubts the info would ever get passed on to my doctor. I decided to wait a week and then call Barix and see if they had received the new letter.
Tuesday, Dec. 4--Barix called again and said that they had received my insurance approval for surgery and wanted to set up a follow-up visit with Dr. Poplawski. I was extremely confused. You'd think I don't understand English. I was so certain they were either calling to tell me they haven't received the updated letter OR they were calling to say they had received it and were now submitting everything to Blue Cross for approval. I was not expecting to be told that I've been approved. I still don't understand how it could have happened that fast. Regardless, I'm thrilled!
I was told that Dr. Kam (who was supposed to be my surgeon) had left the practice and Dr. Poplawski would do my surgery. Again, I'm thrilled! She scheduled me to come in Friday, Dec. 14th to meet with him.
Friday, Dec. 14th--Met Dr. Poplawski and liked him right off the bat. I really appreciated the attention he gave to the emotional complications of surgery. He asked me to lose weight (at least 10 pounds) before surgery to increase my chances of having laparoscopic surgery. He can't guarantee it because my BMI is so high, but that's his first choice. I guess I'll find out which type I had when I wake up in recovery. He also wants me to attend his orientation seminar to get to know him better and hear his point of view on bariatric surgery. I am going to that Tuesday, Dec. 17th.
Monday, Dec. 16th---Surgery date scheduled. Pre-op appointment is January 15th at 7:30 a.m.
Bariatric Seminar
Jul 11, 2007
Tuesday I attended Dr. Kam's seminar at the Barix Clinic (Ypsilanti). I went to the seminar not 100% sure whether I wanted surgery and a bit overwhelmed by all the reading I've done about complications, etc. I had read that Dr. Kam is right to the point and that was a very good description. I must admit, I was a bit nervous to meet him for our face-to-face meeting. I shouldn't have worried. He couldn't have been kinder and more informative.
The seminar itself was very helpful. While I already had "head-knowledge" about much of what was said, it's quite different to actually be there listening to the questions that were asked and the concerns that we all had. The seminar really helped me to solidify my decision to HAVE the surgery, but made me more unsure of which surgery to have. He did such a good job of evenly presenting Lap Band vs. RNY...My husband and I left confused about how to proceed. I came to the seminar planning on the RNY if I chose to have surgery. Sigh.
After the seminar Dr. Kam meets with us in order of when we arrived. Despite the fact that I arrived 55 minutes EARLY for the seminar, I still arrived LAST! LOL! So, even though the meeting ended at 5:45 p.m. I didn't meet with the doctor until about 7. We had been told each person would meet with him between 20-30 minutes so I wasn't expecting to be seen until 8 p.m.! An hour early was great!
As I said, I'm glad I met with him personally because I felt very at ease with him. He believes I am a good candidate for both surgeries, but believes I'll have more success with RNY. I asked all my questions about complications for both surgeries, long term care (fills, blood tests, etc). In the end Ryan and I felt RNY was the best choice.
Now for the wait! My insurance requires a 12 month diet (supervised) and I won't finish until November. Unfortunately, we're moving in late November/early December. This means I really can't have surgery until the end of January (because of unpacking). In the meantime I have my psych eval. scheduled and I still have to have an EKG. Another 6 months.
My plan is to get as much weight off as possible. He asked me to lose at least another 12 pounds (I've lost 27 since I started the supervised diet). I hope to lose closer to 20. We shall see. I can't tell you how many times I've 'PLANNED' to lose a certain amount of weight and fell flat.
So, that's where I'm at. I've moved my status from "thinking about surgery" to "hoping to have surgery." I'm looking forward to changing it to "waiting for surgery"!!!!!
The seminar itself was very helpful. While I already had "head-knowledge" about much of what was said, it's quite different to actually be there listening to the questions that were asked and the concerns that we all had. The seminar really helped me to solidify my decision to HAVE the surgery, but made me more unsure of which surgery to have. He did such a good job of evenly presenting Lap Band vs. RNY...My husband and I left confused about how to proceed. I came to the seminar planning on the RNY if I chose to have surgery. Sigh.
After the seminar Dr. Kam meets with us in order of when we arrived. Despite the fact that I arrived 55 minutes EARLY for the seminar, I still arrived LAST! LOL! So, even though the meeting ended at 5:45 p.m. I didn't meet with the doctor until about 7. We had been told each person would meet with him between 20-30 minutes so I wasn't expecting to be seen until 8 p.m.! An hour early was great!
As I said, I'm glad I met with him personally because I felt very at ease with him. He believes I am a good candidate for both surgeries, but believes I'll have more success with RNY. I asked all my questions about complications for both surgeries, long term care (fills, blood tests, etc). In the end Ryan and I felt RNY was the best choice.
Now for the wait! My insurance requires a 12 month diet (supervised) and I won't finish until November. Unfortunately, we're moving in late November/early December. This means I really can't have surgery until the end of January (because of unpacking). In the meantime I have my psych eval. scheduled and I still have to have an EKG. Another 6 months.
My plan is to get as much weight off as possible. He asked me to lose at least another 12 pounds (I've lost 27 since I started the supervised diet). I hope to lose closer to 20. We shall see. I can't tell you how many times I've 'PLANNED' to lose a certain amount of weight and fell flat.So, that's where I'm at. I've moved my status from "thinking about surgery" to "hoping to have surgery." I'm looking forward to changing it to "waiting for surgery"!!!!!
Not-so-heavy reading!
Jun 29, 2007
I've read quite a few posts where people have suggested WLS books to read. So, yesterday I ordered two from Amazon. Weight Loss Surgery for Dummies and The Real Skinny on Weight Loss Surgery: An Indispensable Guide to What You Can Really Expect!
I browsed through the "dummmies" book at the library, but it looked so good, I decided I should probably own it. The "skinny" book looks really great. What I'm hoping is that it covers a lot of post-op info and not just pre-op. I looked at the Table of Contents and it looks good on paper. So many people recommend it, I probably won't be disappointed.
There is a third book I found, but didn't order because of the price. It's called, Weight Loss Surgery: Finding the Thin Person Hiding Inside You! Again, the Table of Contents looks like it does a great job of covering post-op information. In the end, I decided to read the other two and then decide if I need a third! I'm a book lover...it's easy to get carried away!
I browsed through the "dummmies" book at the library, but it looked so good, I decided I should probably own it. The "skinny" book looks really great. What I'm hoping is that it covers a lot of post-op info and not just pre-op. I looked at the Table of Contents and it looks good on paper. So many people recommend it, I probably won't be disappointed.
There is a third book I found, but didn't order because of the price. It's called, Weight Loss Surgery: Finding the Thin Person Hiding Inside You! Again, the Table of Contents looks like it does a great job of covering post-op information. In the end, I decided to read the other two and then decide if I need a third! I'm a book lover...it's easy to get carried away!
Just the beginning
Jun 25, 2007
Tuesday, June 26
I spoked with Teresa (sp?) from Barix in Ypsilanti yesterday afternoon. I have a consultation with Dr. Kam on July 10th! Teresa was very helpful and answered all my questions. It sounds like my insurance (Blue Cross/Blue Shield PPO) shouldn't give me too much of a problem when it comes time for approval. I am on month 7 of my 12 month medically supervised diet, so I have to get that out of the way first.
I'm still not 100% sure about having surgery, so I'm looking forward to hearing Dr. Kam speak.
I realize this is a very long road, but I think I'm up for it!
I spoked with Teresa (sp?) from Barix in Ypsilanti yesterday afternoon. I have a consultation with Dr. Kam on July 10th! Teresa was very helpful and answered all my questions. It sounds like my insurance (Blue Cross/Blue Shield PPO) shouldn't give me too much of a problem when it comes time for approval. I am on month 7 of my 12 month medically supervised diet, so I have to get that out of the way first.
I'm still not 100% sure about having surgery, so I'm looking forward to hearing Dr. Kam speak.
I realize this is a very long road, but I think I'm up for it!
About Me
35.9
BMI
Surgery
01/29/2008
Surgery Date
Jun 17, 2007
Member Since
