Kari J.
I've been around on these forums for several months now and I'm finally getting around to posting my story....here it is (in a nutshell). I have been overweight since I was only 9 years old. Growing up with a weight problem was probably the most difficult thing I've endured during my lifetime. Children are cruel--I endured being made fun of for my weight on a daily basis. I developed a very hard exterior with the motto of never letting them see me cry...if I showed weakness they would win. So I endured it and never let it seem as though it bothered me at school, with friends, or even around my family. Privately when I was alone I was in my own little hell. I probably can't count the number of nights I've cried myself to sleep. People who have never had a problem with their weight cannot understand what obese people go through every single day. If they did, this would be a much more sympathetic nation.I've tried every diet known to man--seriously--beginning when I was about 10 years old. The beginning was my parents taking me to a nutritionist when I was 10 or 11 at the urging of my pediatrician. This didn't work (obviously) and since then I've tried them all--Weight Watchers, Medifast, Atkins, South Beach, The Diet Center, portion control, the Cabbage Soup diet, quite literally starving myself....and well the list goes on. I have yo-yo dieted my metabolism right down to nothing. Now it doesn't matter what I do, the weight simply will not come off.
Over the past 6 years or so my weight has pretty much been the same except for a lot of yo-yo's. I have done extensive research on Bariatric Surgery for several years and was always scared away for one reason or another. Usually it was the dietary restriction following surgery. Most recently it was being too scared to tell my family it was something I wanted--and I knew I would need their support. Finally I hit a breaking point earlier this year and it was like I woke up one morning and it was completely clear to me--surgery is my only option to get healthy and I have to do it. Telling my family, dietary restriction, and other worries I had suddenly seemed so minor. The writing was on the wall and I had to follow it. I soon joined this website, did more extensive research on my options, talked to others who have had various types of surgeries, and made my decision to go with Laparascopic Roux-En-Y Gastric Bypass.
The first step was getting an appointment with my physician. We very fortunately have a fabulous Bariatric Program associated with the hospital system I work for. I made an appointment to go to the information seminar that is required prior to a surgical consultation. Within a few weeks I had all my requirements met for the Bariatric Program but then there was that little hitch---insurance! Wouldn't you know my insurance requires a 12 MONTH physician supervised diet. Quite a snag. Luckily they will be changing that to 6 months in January. Soooo.....right now I'm doing the Physician supervised diet and am hoping in October when I have completed 6 months insurance will go ahead and approve me because they will be changing the requirements in January. If not--January it is. In the mean time I'm going through the denial/appeal stage as a formality. I just got word my first appeal was denied (as I knew it would be). My second appeal will be in October armed with a completed 6 month physician supervised diet.
Onward and Upward...I will keep fighting until this dream is a reality!!!!
