ObesityHelp

Always By Bon Jovi   I am a 34 yr old female that has carried too much weight since age 3. My journey of surgery is only beginning. The weight loss jungle is one that I am very familiar with. From Weight Watchers to starvation, in my life time, I have lost hundreds of pounds. When they come back to find me, they return quickly.....I'm tired of being a yo-yo. I see surgery as the only option at this point and I am not going into this lightly...I am ready for the worst outcome which would be death......Inside, the thinner me is ready to walk up three flights of stairs.....get down on the floor and get back up again....dance without reservation..... My time has come and I am so ready!! 06/20/01 I received a telephone call from one doctor that told me to call them back when I am smoke free for three months. I am on day 2 now. I did locate a doctor that will do LAP and have an appointment with him in 3 weeks. Due to my lifestyle, LAP is the bedt option for me. I do hope that LAP is something that I can persue. 07/01/01 I have an appointment on Tuesday with a new surgeon that does LAP. I am borderline on whether he would perform the surgery due to weight. I am now 10+ days smoke free. wooo hooo I started exercising again and hope that I can follow a better diet until I can have surgery. I have vacation time in 3 weeks and would love to drop the 25 lbs that I picked up in the last two months. 07/19/01 I have a date!! I will be having LAP on 09/13/01 WOOO HOOO....I am ready... 08/05/01 Nothing new has happened to me except that I have lost weight. I have been working hard to loose some before surgery and a friend asked me if I should reconsider weight loss surgery. Only one comment to that "no way'. Been there done that!! My vacation was wonderful and the love of my life is the most supportive man. He loves me for who I am not what I look like. Now, I am just watching the days crawl by. I want to start posting big weight loss numbers when I talk to my friends in the chat room...HURRY 9/13....5 weeks to go!!! 08/31/01 Little sad today....surgery date has been changed...now it will be sometime in November...no specific date yet. Having problems with BP...trying a new med for 30 days hopefully this will help. Also having trouble finding a sub for my class for 2 weeks...need more time to get someone and have the training completed with them. Still hanging on and plan to have the surgery no matter what!!!!!!!!!! 09/12/01 The blood pressure medication is working!! My PCP has given me the go ahead. I will stay on this med until the day of surgery. I have been rescheduled for December 3, 01 at Piedmont Hospital in Atlanta!!!!!!!! :) 9/30/01 Met with the shrink again and everything is a go. I also saw the nutritionist and think that was wonderful for me. I know what to purchase before hand and have time to begin making some adjustments. Next week I go back to the PCP to check BP and to have an EKG and Stress test!! This is really going to happen this time!! I ammm soooo excited :) 10/2/01 I saw my PCP again this morning and the blood pressure is just a little higher then she would like but she has given me the green light for surgery. She did all of the tests that made her feel comfortable. I am so fortunate to have a PCP that takes good care of me. She actually was thrilled when I told her that I am totally smoke free. So now, the wait!! How do I handle waiting for the next two months. I am so excited about being thin for the first time in my life that those thoughts have gone to my dreams and that is what I think about every night or morning as I attempt to get some sleep. Can you say that I am BIG TIME anxious here?!?!?!?!? OHHH I also dropped 2 more pounds! I owe that to the personal trainer that I have been working with...whewww talk about some sweating!!..... 10/20/01 This week has been one that has had the stressors from hell...On Monday, I had foot surgery, Wednesday became a day of fighting with the BF, Thursday and Friday the relaionship went from rocky to over then my mother showed up for a weekend visit on Friday night!!! Ohhh man, do I miss my cigs!! I have lived on chat this week. I could never tire of hearing others successes and talking to those that I feel very close to. Withing the room, I have met people that I consider to be very close friends. It is so awesome to have support from other people that know what living MO is about. Self- esteem issues have biten me very hard this week. I lost my BF because I am having this surgery, hey what is up with that!!!.. no one except for my surgeon will stop my journey. Once again, I am ready to live the life of a person that enjoys life and everything that it has to offer. My list of post op activites continues to grow each day...I will need a big lotto win to finance some of those activities HAHAHAHA..:)....THANKS AMOS FRIENDS YOU GUYS ROCK!!! Ohh yeah, I took out the calendar and 41 MORE Days!!!!! 11/03/01 This week has been one that has been difficult at best. My son has now been hospitalized for 8 days. My comfort of food has been my buddy. I hate to see myself backsliding but you eat when you have the chance. One thing that I have noticed is that food tastes terrible now. I continue to pray that my son will recover . 12/10/01 I am now one week post op and I must say that I feel really good. My surgery was uneventful and so far no problems with being on the liquid diet. One more week of liquid then I will follow to pureed foods. I am still so excited and can not wait to see what my numbers are when I have my first post op visit on 12/18/01. 12/18/01 Today was my first post op appointment, 2 weeks after surgery. I made the nurse weigh me 3 times LOL....I knew she had to be wrong when she said 352...turns out she was right!!! I have lost 35.5 pounds since surgery!!!!! :):) BIGG HAPPY DANCE HERE!!! My doc said everything is great, wounds are almost healed and looked great. She encouraged me to keep up the good work and felt that I would have a big loss the first 3 months then would slow down. That is ok, I feel like I recieved a jump start to keep my spirits and keep me motivated... 01/04/02 Happy New Year and ohh boy so far this one has been a smash!! Finally got down and did the measurments. WOOWOWOWO what a surprise!!! Offical loss for one month post op is 52.5 with an amazing 33 inches gone forever!!!! When I see myself, I can see some small changes but I was NO WAY prepared to see 33 inches melted away!!! I thank GOD everyday for my wonderful surgeon and that I had this surgery. This time I am no holds bar, it is really happening and this is a lifetime change!!!! My new goal is to reach 300 by Valentine's Day. I have those larger goals as well but when you have so many pounds to lose it is much nicer to lose a little at a time!!! For my 50 lb loss reward, I am having my hair done. Time to cover some of this dreadful gray to look as good as I feel!!! 1/29/02 Hey I sent in a new pic...first time in years I actually get excited about having my pics made!!!! Last week, I experienced some weird food feelings. I had a friend visit for the week and we ate out most of the time. I felt sadness at times when I would order an appetizer and could only eat a couple of bites. One night, I was down right mad that I couldn't eat a rib at a great rib place. I felt that I had eneded my life for a short time since I couldn't enjoy food like other people. I really have no regrets with having surgery. Last week was the first time that I honestly felt food depression or remorse. Each day though, I see a little bit of subtle changes in my body and thank God everyday that I had surgery completed. In the past week I have recieved compliments from people that I didn't realize ever saw me as a person. This week, I am battling a new problem that is bothering me. Before surgery, I had very low potassium levels. Since surgery, it has only gotten worse. I am now on prescription postassium but still having big issues. I have to go weekly to have blood levels drawn to check my current levels. Yesterday, I blacked out at school. My blood sugar dropped so low that I couldn't keep my head up. Last night, I went to bed at 5:00 and stayed there until 6:30 this morning. My family has a severe history of heart problems and the potassium thing really worries me. My PCP is great though and is really on top of it. I am off from work today since I am so weak and have no energy. My meds are being increased and I am seeing her this morning to come up with a game plan. 02/03/02 Today is my second month anniversary and life continues to get better each and every day!! I did my measurements today and for the month I have lost another 23.5 inches for a total of 56.5!! My weight is down 90.5 pounds. I have had some problems with food this week but I think it is related to the amount of potassium supplements that I am taking. The med is very strong and my pouch doesn't seem to care for it. Many of you know that I have been very limited with exercise due to foot surgery. This week I am starting water aerobics to work on the flab. My arms and thighs have always been horrible but now I cringe when that fat swings!! In 2 months time I have stopped all medications for insulin resistance, my blood pressure meds have dropped significantly, many of the symptoms of PCOS is so much better and I feel great (minus the passing out from low potassium)..Each day I awake with a feeling of being refreshed instead of tiredness. Today I recalculated my BMI it is now down to 43!! YEAHHH HAWWWW.... This surgery is amazing..:):) 02/07/02 Decided to amend my weight loss numbers to include the numbers counting the pounds I lost the week before I had surgery. I saw my doc the day before Thanksgiving and was 400lbs on surgery day, 12/3 I was 387.5...I went on a self-imposed liquid diet. 02/18/02 Wow life is whizzing by. One of my very best friends is scheduled and I am so happy. For her this surgery means life or death. She is working hard and is losing as a pre op I am so very proud of my sis :)///I have to do the BMI on occassion, I love to watch it move on down!! It hit 41...yehhhhhhh hawwwwww!! I have watched the numbers drop a little less the past two weeks but that is ok. I can't wait to see what my measurements are the next time. I see the doc next week this is the 2nd follow up appt. since my surgery. I think she will be very surprised to see my numbers :)... 03/03/02 I missed my two month appointment due to the flu..UUUGHH I had a very hard time with getting in meds, water and protein last week. I lived on jello and toast cause that was all I could keep down. I know I lost early in the week and gainned as I began eating again as I felt better. I did weigh though and dropped another 4 pounds. I will take them however I can get them!! My monthly measurements were a little disappointing though. The first two months, I had huge numbers lost and this month I only posted a 7 3/4 total loss. Today has been one of those days that I haven't been happy with anything so tomorrow has to be better!! One of my close friends also had surgery this week and has had nothing but problems. I feel so bad for her having such a bad experience.... 03/11/02 Several new and exciting things happened this week!! I can now cross my legs and leave them there for an hour or so. Before, when I even made an attempt to cross them I had to pick up my ankles to get the leg there and it would only stay about 5 minutes before pain hit. I can now see collar bones to add to the list of ribs, a much smaller wrist and now I have knees that are beginning to resemble a kneee instead of a big fat blob...I just love to experience all the new and wonderful happenings!! 04/04/02 Today was the monthly weight and measurement day. Last month I was a little sad because I wanted to see the big inches like I did the first two months. After a month of telling myself that I would never again lose as fast as I did the first few weeks, I was prepared to see just a few more inches fall away..WHOOOO HOOOOO big surprise..this month measurements boast a big ole 15 inches melted away forever!!!! I have made anohter goal...now down under 250...the first time in a number of years...LIFE IS SO WONDERFUL..... 05/03/02 Each month I anticipate the 3rd so much. Never before have I been thrilled to take a tape measure and see where I am. The past 2 weeks many of the staff at my school have told me how great I look and that I have lost a whole person. Most of the staff are unaware that I have had WLS but know that I eat mostly protein, drink a lot of water and exercise a lot. Today, someone asked me when I planned to stop losing weight. I told them I still wanted to lose about 70 more pounds. Her reply was that if I did that I would strangle myself with my butthole..LOLOLOLOLOL...Compliments are often hard to take but at the same time, I am so happy to see the changes in my health, my appearance and most of all my affect. This month I charted another loss of 19.5 inches!! 06/03/02 Today was my 6 month anniversary. I did my measurements and was surprised to see that I really had lost some. With school closing for the year, a move to a new house and a lot of other things happening I was not very good with going to the gym. Last week I also changed gyms to attempt to get better workouts to really combat all of the hanging fat that I have. This month I lost 6.25 inches...that is a total of 114.25 in 6 months. The weight loss is beginning to slow down but that is ok. I know that it hasn't stopped just yet. 06/19/02 Addictions die hard. OHHH man!! This past week I have found myself in a lot of stress induced situations. My putter is down and my aol service isn't working. I have to rely on the service at the local library and they will not support chatrooms! UUUUGHHHH...with the insomia kicking up a notch lately, I have had a hard time managing to find suitable activites from 1 am - 4 am. I finally checked out some bestsellers and that is helping some but I still CRAVE carbs...GEEEZ... why didn't my brain have some surgery too :)???. I know that this hump will soon pass and life will be back to a pseudo-normal state before too long. On the VERY GOOD side...the shorts that I bought the last week of May are hanging so bad that I almost lost a pair the other day. Time to hit the thrift stores and find some that are at least 2 sizes smaller. I found some great Calvin Klein jean shorts last week in a size ****YIPPPEEEEEE****** 16!!! They zip, I can breathe and they were only $1.00...wooooohooooooooooooooo!! 07/08/02 WOO HOOO I have lost 200 lbs!! WOWOWO life has never been so good. I have continued to keep the inches moving as well. This past month I lost 18 3/4 inches!! Total inches lost since 12/3/01 is 114 1/4. I am half the woman that I used to be!! I continue to find things to enjoy that I haven't had the ability to participate with in a number of years. Going to the movies is such a thrill. No longer do I have to sit in an outside seat with the armrest raised up. Now I can walk past people and sit in the middle of the seats without stepping on anyone or rubbing my rear in the faces of people. I am enjoying just living...walking....being the person on the outside that I have been on the inside for a long time. My 6 month checkup went really well. My weight loss has slowed down a great deal and I can't exerecise still due to having a fracture in my sternum but soon I will be back on my regimin and doing well. I am beginning to realise that I deserve so much more then I have ever had in the past. I am a worthy person and I will do what I need to do to be successful. Watch out plastic surgery...my days are coming..:)))).... 07/12/02 MY new pic is up and I dont weigh 299 in that photo!! that was from an old pic..I am size 16 shorts in that top and MINUS 200 lbs...weight 201 in that photo.... 09/17/02 Last night I attended my local support group meeting. We had a plastic surgeon that is highly regarded as a fantastic doctor for people that have had weight loss surgery, The disappointing fact is that almost every doctor that I have talked with in TN states that insurance usually will not pay for surgery even when medically necessary. This doctor quoted a price of around 20,000 for my first round of surgery. I would be able to have his version of a "beltplasty", arms, thighs and breasts for this amount. There is no way that I can afford this amount for surgery. I do have a beltplasty scheduled with another doctor for December but insurance has not approved. I do like the thought that all of my inital surgery could be completed at one time. I think that I will schedule a consult with the new doctor and file with the insurance and see what happens. I just sent in another pic that seems to depict my current weight loss more then the other photos. I continue to be happy with my surgery and would highly recommend to anyone that is obese and has tried all of the hoops to consider surgery. DATE BEGINING WEIGHT # LBS LOST TOTAL LOST 11/24/01 400.0 12/3/01 387.5 12.5 12/18/01 352.5 47.5 12/27/01 344 56.0 12/31/01 335 65.0 01/08/02 329 71.0 1/15/02 01/22/02 307 93.0 01/31/02 299 101.0 02/08/02 295 104.0 02/13/02 291 108.0 02/20/02 285 114.0 03/03/02 281 118.0 03/09/02 276 125.0 03/13/02 272 129.0 03/19/02 266 135.0 03/29/02 253 147.0 04/04/02 249 151.0 04/16/02 242 158.0 04/30/02 229 172.0 05/03/02 227 174.0 05/10/02 222 179.0 05/19/02 216 185.0 06/04/02 212 189.0 06/18/02 208 193.0 07/08/02 201 200.0 08/06/02 189 211.0 08/24/02 180 220.0 09/03/02 177 223.0 09/11/02 170 230.0 10/03/02 165 235.0 10/17/02 158 242.0 10/31/02 156 244.0 12/03/02 154 246.0 01/03/02 149 251.0 08/06/02 Just celebrated my 8th month anniversary. Life continues to go well for the most part. This month I lost 9.5 inches. I have been unable to work out for 5 weeks now due to having a fracture in my breastbone then having cervial surgery last week. I hope to be back in the gym soon!! I continue to lose weight though. Somedays are more difficult then others to get in the protein but I will always make that a priority. 08/24/02 Just spent the last few days in the hospital. I have had the worst pain in my tummy that I have ever expereinced. I had food poisioning. I have had major problems with my blood pressure running around 70/40 and pulses in the 30s and 40s. All of the necessary cardio testing was done and I do not have any heart problems. My blood pressure continues to be low and I will have to keep a monitor on that. None of these issues are a result of the WLS though. I still can not keep any food down really. The diarhea is so bad. My doctor said that I could be on liquid for around two weeks until my system can regroup and get better. I don't think I have ever been this sick in my whole life. While I was in the hospital I had the chance to educate many people about WLS. For the first time I can talk to people and not feel shame that I allowed myself to get to this point in my life. I tried on a pair of jeans in a 14 this week. My next big accomplishment will be to have plastic surgery so I can breathe in a size 14. Getting all the compliments of "your so little" is the funniest thing!!~ I LOVE my TOOL!!! Today is my 9 month anniversary. Life continues to be better each and every day as I slim down and gain more self confidence. This month my inches lost severly decreased which I knew it would. So far, I have lost 151 1/8 inches so that is nothing to sneeze about! My biggest venture at this point is to begin the road for plastic surgery. Your 10/02/02 Today is my 10th month anniversary. I am to the point where I will probally lose very little if any more weight. This has been an adventure where I have learned to love myself and to accept that my body will never be perfect. I have decided not to use the plastic surgeon that gave me a December date. Instead I have some appointments with doctors in Nashville and will look at having surgery in early summer once school is out. The fact that I have to drive 3 hours plus a time change is absurd to me. I live in the 4th largest city in the state yet there is not really any doctors that have expereince with body contouring with weight loss surgery patients. My insurance will pay for very little of the needed surgery as well. I will fight to get approval but the doctor that I plan to use does not accept the "usual and customary" charges. I gave a lot of thought to going out of state and using a doctor that has done surgery on other patients but I have some fears about the amount of travel that could be needed if any complication arises. Today, I had less of a loss with my measurements then most months. However I continue to workout and continually notice in some areas where some skin/fat is now muscle. As of today, since my RNY surgery on 12/3/01 I have lost a total of 156 inches. Life is wonderful in many ways. Leaning how to live with myself and see this nasty skin is hard at this time but I do know that time is my only barrier for its removal. During the past 10 months I have learned to love myself more and appreciate the woman that I am. Without my tool my health would be desperate. I thank God everyday for giving my back a life! 10/31/02...couldn't wait until my 11th month anniversary to do an update :)...I have made it to a full fledge size 14!! wooo hooo that is in levi's, in calvin kleins and a couple of other brands. Actually, today I wore a size 14 pair of new lee jeans and before the day was over I had some of the "baggies" going on in the hip, thigh and butt area. Wish I could say that about the tummy but without the reconstructive surgery...that "ain't" gonna happen!! Notice that I have a one way mind lately? Halloween was interesting. I did try a couple of pieces of candy and that was all I needed. However, I dumped on Milk Duds but had no trouble with another type of candy. So, I think that maybe I am getting there by being able to stop if I chose to eat something that is not really good for me. The head issues continue to plauge my thoughts and some days I feel so fat that I hate it. The first few months after surgery your body changes so rapidly that when you do slow down it is almost a disappointment that the changes are not more noticable. I continue to have an almost daily need for someone to tell me that I look thinner or that I look good just because I still can not celebrate my loss "inside". The counseling that I just restarted hopefully will help me address that issue among many others. 12/06/02 I just celebrated my first year anniversary on 12/3/02. The multitude of changes that have occurred have been overwhelming since surgery. I am now smaller then I was in the 4th or 5th grade. Each day I continue to be so thankful for everything positive that has happened in my life. Awaiting the time until I can have reconstructive surgery is what motivates me most of the time. I try not to dwell on all of the "ugly skin" but it remains as one of the largest sources of disappointment right now. I knew that I would have skin and would have to find a way to deal with it sooner or later. I never expected to lose this much weight this quickly though. More then likely that is one of the reasons that I have so much skin plus I was a very large person to begin with. Finally, the list of things that have happened since WLS is written...it is long but here goes: 1. Cross my legs..this was a biggie for me! 2. Sit in the bathtub 3. Not find the largest clothes in town 4. Decreased shoe size...width and length 5. Sit on the floor AND get back up again 6. Breathe in "compromsising" positions 7. Wear a misses size 14 LEVI'S 8. Buy clothing at thrift stores and yard sales 9. Walk naked and not have the need to run for cover 10. Drive a car instead of a van 11. Walk 5 miles 12. Major, major increase in self-esteem 13. Shared my story publically 14. Shave my legs without taking a break 15. Stop all meds for HTN, PCOS, IR 16. Know that I am worthy of love, happiness, life 17. Think of career options 18. Seriously think of having a baby 19. Wear others hand me downs. 20. Wear clothing that is smaller in size then my Mother 21. Have the honesty to seek counseling 22. See my collarbones 23. Walk/run a marathon 24. Feel my ovaries (important since I am prone to cysts) 25. See and feel my RIBS! 26. Sit in a movie theatre seat without being pinched or fear of being stuck. 27. Sit on a standard bar stool 28. Go out to eat without having to sit at a table 29. Not arrive somewhere 1 hour early so I don't have to brush my backside in others face. 30. Sit in a normal lawn chair 31. Resist drinking soda. 32. Not have a plate "piled high" when eating 33. Work outside and enjoy myself 34. Not sweat when doing light jobs. 35. Wear pretty underthings 36. Have a choice of stores from which I can shop. 37. Wear PJ's to keep warm. 38. Avoid the embarassing stares of other people. 39. Climb the ladder to the attic. 40. Not be the largest woman or PERSON in the room. 41. Fit in a student desk. 42. Enjoy typical activities like most people. 43. Discover that 40 degrees is in fact COLD! 44. Look at others in the eyes and not feel as if I am always being judged for my size. 45. Wear tights. 46. Avoid the negative issues of PCOS 47. Clean the entire house in 2 hours...no working for a short time then breaking for an hour 48. Sleep in a twin bed 49. Wear clothing without elastic 50. Have fun trying on clothes 51. Fly without an extension OKK that is enough for now. I bet if I sat down and gave this some serious thought that this list would be to large for my profile!! January 10, 2003 Life in a new year is great. For the first time in many, many years I did not make a resolution to lose weight. I am very happy with my weight and I will maintain my loss. My days are still consumed with health and weight loss. Funny thing, my mind is still trying to convience me that I am fat. That is one aspect of living SMO for a long time that takes a while to decipate. I tend to focus on keeping my health up to par and living rather then what am I going to eat these days. I suppose after living fat for more then 30 years it is one of those issues that will not just jump in the back seat. I still visit and spend a lot of time on the site almost daily. The support that you can find in this community is awesome. Without people willing to share the expereince of losing and living life we do not have a clue as to how much our weight truely affects us only a daily basis. My food obsession has been replaced with plastic surgery obsession. HUMM...my OCD is so much better but I still have a need to have one major focal point in my life. Maybe after plastics are completed I will find an exercise obsession and finally go for that jumping out of planes things...not holding my breath though that is one of the listed items that I have always wanted to do. HAHAHA life is so good!! Your 02/09/03 Lately, I find that I can eat so much more then before. It has taken me a while to realize that I still eat small portions compared to other people. The first time I ate a small roast beef sandwich with one bun I almost had a "freak attack". In my mind I heard the doubts....you will gain the weight back...you are a failure. Having lived a number of years considering myself a failure it is very hard to just let that go. This week I wore a size 12 top and jeans!! Didn't have to lay down on the bed or anything to zip and button the jeans and felt comfortable all day. Life is really good. Now, if I could just get my mind to accept that I will not regain 250+ pounds because I do have a handle on what I am doing. The head game continues BUT at least now my understanding of what is happening is different. I have developed this pudge in my tummy area...at first I thought I was gaining weight. Due to some "female" issues I have been bleeding for almost 2 1/2 months now. I think it is just plain old bloating. As a big gal I never noticed "bloating". Even though I don't like this stuff it is rather nice to know that I am now small enough to feel when I am bloated or carrying around extra water weight. I am awaiting my latest test results after having two unsuccessful DNC's. Hopefully, this too will resolve itself shortly. 03/06/03 Life continues to be really good minus a couple of setbacks. I just spent another few days in the hospital from another bowel obstruction. Thankfully, it resolved with complete rest, IVs and that wonderful pain pump. I have to say this is one of the most painful things that I have under undergone in my life. I know that it is a result of my surgery AND other surgeries that have been done on my abdomen. I would still undergo WLS any day for the type of life that I am now capable of leading. My sights have changed so much since I became a person that has the ability to live and breathe so easily. I want to cross the days off until my skin is capable of being removed so I can look somewhat normal once more. The skin hurts...that may not make any sense to most but to those of you that live with a lot of skin or have underwent reconstructive surgery then you can relate to that statement. Life does have a way of making you see how far you have come in such a short time. Lately, I have looked at where I am going personally and professionally. Today I prepare to take the GRE test to hopefully return to school. Keep me in your thoughts and hope that I do gain admission to a program that would take me in a totally new direction ...helping children that are obese. I know how children feel as I lived a life inside a fat person pleading for help but not understanding how to ask for the help that I needed. Society does not give the type of support that children need....look around the average grade school. WE as a nation are growing children larger then ever before. My heart goes out to the children as I see the frustration that they live each day. Then, watch the typical family hit McDonald's for a fast dinner....super size this...super size that. Our nation one that thrives on large everything EXCEPT for large people. We cultivate a group of people that have expectations of BIGGER and BETTER yet we are preparing a group of children for serious health risks and shorter life spans. OKKK sorry...my soap box. Life is good for me and I want to share some of my experiences if I can only help one person then what I went through as a child is not in vain.....Have a fantablous (my word for wonderful) DAY!!!! Smiles ahead. 03/28/03 During my spring break, I had my "final" meeting with the plastic surgeon that I want to have surgery with. This appointment brought me comfort, tears and sadness. I know that I will have to pay for the surgeries that I need as my insurance has deemend that they are cosmetic. I should consider myself lucky in that I do not have a pannus or the problems with skin that many have but at the same time I do not have a ton of $$$ sitting around collecting dust. This is a cost break down of what I need and the expenses. Unless noted all planned expenses are listed and must be paid prior to the surgery itself. Any complications or lab work is extra. One surgery: trunk lipectomy, standard mastopexy with augmentation, thighplasty and brachiplasty ( 2 hospital days) 23,645.00. Lower body surgery: trunk and thighs ( 1 hospital day ) 14230.00. Upper body: arms and breasts ( 1 hopsital night ) 10,515.00. I may end up having to do the surgeries seperatley and over time. Right now I am looking into options to see if I can locate finances for what I want done. Looking at myself in the mirror is hard to say the least and for me, this surgery is necessary regardless of medical implications. From talking with my surgeon it really would not matter if I had a differnt insurance. Most would only pay a very small percentage and he and most other plastic surgeons that I have consulted DO NOT accept the standard insurance payment. Our state does not have an abundance of doctors with experienced surgeons when it comes to body contouring of people that are post WLS. The doctor that I have choosen typically does two body procedures a month. I like his bed side manner and his expereince. I know that I have so much skin to be removed that I need a doctor that has a proven track record and knows what he is doing with posties. This surgeon is three hours away from me so I would have a lot of follow up care that would involve travel. Locally, I have not spoken to any doctors that have extensive expereience with body contouring of WLS. Many doctors have "specialities" in one area like breasts or arms but not the type of expereince that I am seeking. I might end up using someone local to do a couple of procedures if I have to have each completed seperately. I still have many good years left to live and for me this is a top priority. The mind games continue to haunt me and I am ready to see less skin each time I shower, change clothes or look at myself in the mirror. Your 4/28/03 Today I called yet another plastic surgeon that is out of state. There office does take my insurance and this doctor does file for benefits. I have been told that he has a lot of experience in dealing with post gastric bypass patients. I have to wait until this school year is out to have my first appointment with me. I have a lot riding on this appointment and hope that it works out better then the previous doctors that I have seen. According to the staff at the office they have been successful getting BCBS to pay when a need of medical need is demonstrated. I posted new pics on my website. They are not for the faint at heart as they are skin pics and they are really bad. But, again I wanted to share so others that might wonder what the skin of an SMO looks like after losing 261 lbs. Each person is so different and there is no way to know what others will look like. I hope to be adding some after surgery pics before too long!! font> Your YEAHHHH HAW!! I have a date for round one of reconstructive surgery!!! With the pending approval of insurance I will have a panni and a beltplasty on August 6, 2003 with Dr. Eich in Bham Alabama. Dr. Eich felt that I would not have problems with the panni approval but told me that there wasn't even a code for BCBS for the beltplasty. They will file and we will see what happens. God willingly if need be I can get my $$$ together to start this new chapter of my life. Thanks to the AMOS folks that told me about Dr. Eich. He seems like a wonderful man!! Entry Goes Here! It is almost time for round two of reconstruction. That information will be on my second obesity help profile. http://www.obesityhelp.com/morbidobesity/profile.phtml?N=B1057485734&nostatic=1 Your Newest photo........5/03 http://www.picturetrail.com/gallery/view?p=9998&gid=1355090&uid=774255 ! Webpage Designed by Donna Blansett Graphics where not made by me. If you would like your profile spruced up click on email button below!