Checking in. How are you?

Hello everyone in TN! How is everyone doing? I haven't been as active on the site lately. I have a lot going on. But wanted to say hi and see how everyone is. Sara M, I saw your post. I hope you get to feeling better soon. We have missed you on here - especially your jokes! Kathy Newton, congrats on your success from your surgery. You are doing great! It sounds like you are coping well. Welcome to all of the new posters to the board. I am still working on my 6 month diet. I haven't done so well on it. How much did any one else lose on the 6 months diet? Will insurance deny you if you don't lose enough or if you lose too much? What has your experience with that been? I rebelled against taking any medicine from my Dr but I am starting to rethink that and ask the Dr. for it. What does the insurance need to show you have done the 6 month diet? Just another letter from the Dr saying I did it? I am just ready to get this over with and get approved. Thanks! Misty

Misty honey, slow down. You are starting to sound like Cathy the cartoon, or me! If you are starting to sound like me, girl you are in to deep in the pond. That wouldn't be a good place to be right now. During this 6 months, you can be getting all your other tests done. Such as sleep study if needed, heart and lung check ups if needed. If you have a Hiatal Hernia, that will need to be checked, a mammogram, a yearly physical. Plus Dr.'s release and records from all Dr.'s, then once your six months is up, you will have everything ready for the insurance company. I think the insurance wants to see if you can stick to the 6 months diet program before they invest in major money on having the surgery. Plus whatever you lose goes towards your gone for good weightloss, and will be easier in the long run when you do have your surgery. I'm at a plataeu, I haven't been able to lose anything in a little over a week. Even my clothes that were too tight last year and now I'm getting into either they shrunk in the dryer or I gained. Not good either way. I'm going back on liquids for a few days and see how that does. I'm not getting sick to my stomach much these days, but then I'm not losing either. Best of luck sweetie, miss you on board, Kathy's

Hi Kathy! Yeah, I already completed all of the tests. I started last March. I was told that as long as I completed all the necessary tests, then it would be approved. There was not a 6 month restriction in my insurance plan and I had other weigh loss attempts (like weigh****chers). So, I went from March until October of last year completing every test imaginable. Sent it for approval and Cigna came back and said denied until I do this 6 month diet! It was their requirement regardless of what was stated in my employee plan. If I had known that up front, I could have been doing it. But I didn't know and the surgeons office said I didn't have too. So here I am. Just sitting still until the 6 months is over. It has been a long road. I feel like I get sicker and sicker every day (mental I know!) I am just ready to do this. I have been to my doctor about 10 times in the past year. These past few months (3) have been specifically for weight loss and blood work. I was wondering if I had my Dr send a letter stating I completed my 6 month dr supervised diet, if that is all it would take for my insurance. Seeing how I have to weigh in every time I go regarldess of why I am there. I don't know. I know that is kind of cheating! But realistically, my insurance is just stalling. There is no way I am going to lose enough weight in 6 months to have a normal BMI and correct all of the health conditions I have. I have been under so much stress these past few months from several things going on in my life and finding time to diet and exercise is taking a back door. I don't want to get denied again because I didn't lose enough weight on the "diet". Do you think that can happen? I guess I am just stressing. And Impatient since I want this to be over (and would cheat to do it!) I know my Dr would write the letter stating I did it. But would that be all it took?? Hmmm. Thinking hard about it.

Hey Misty, I'm still waiting on insurance. I'm really about to go bananas. I'm tired of being almost obsessed with it all... the waiting especially and then what if I don't get approved?? I think I've thrown myself into a depression over it. I don't want to do anything. I don't want to clean, cook, go to work, hang out with friends, and my husband is taking the brunt of it. I sleep all the time, I don't wear makeup anymore and never dress up. When I first met my husband, there wasn't a day I'd go without makeup or wearing something nice and actually felt feminine. I took a break last week from everything, I ate what I wanted, didn't do any significant exercise (which the scales promptly showed) I tried to stay away from everything related to obesity and weight loss surgery though I did find myself coming to this site once in a while. And to be honest, I'm tired of reading about people getting approved and beginning their weightloss. I started my 6 month dr. supervised diet at the end of June. My PCP wouldn't write a letter until it was completed (first of January) and then it took 2 weeks to get the letter sent to Centennial. Your PCP may be different, wouldn't hurt to ask him/her to use whatever necessary to expedite things. I haven't done any pre-op testing since Centennial requires pre-approval before I even meet with a surgeon and set up testing. So I'll still have to do all that when I do get approved. During the six months I consistently lost and gained the same 10-15 lbs. I really don't know if this would affect my approval/denial. I've read of people getting approved with only losing 5lbs during that diet period. I wouldn't worry about that part. Are you doing a food/exercise journal? Monday, one of the insurance specialists from Centennial called to tell me that I may get denied because my 5 years of proof of obesity was missing a year. I had records going back to 1999. 2004 is missing since I didn't have insurance that year and really had no need for a doctor anyways. It was sent to the insurance company anyways, so that leads me to today...waiting. My husband said if insurance won't pay for it, we would pay out of pocket which leads into a whole new set of worries and stressors. I never thought this process would be so stressful and mentally straining. This process along with other everyday worries and stress is really starting to take its toll. I don't know how people stay at this for years. I wish you the best of luck with everything!