ehendrick
6-24-04
I went to the seminar at Baylor. There is a WLS Center at Baylor. There are 4 doctors on the staff. I have chosen to have Dr. McCarty to do my surgery. He is the most experienced there. He has been doing this since 1989! Can you believe it?
6-29-04
I called Katy at the doctor's office to ask if they had sent my letter of medical necessity. She said that Rose would call me back. I know it is early but.....I thought I would try!
6-30-04
I called the doctors office again and talked to Katy again. Rose did not call me back. I asked her again if they had sent my letter of medical necessity. She again said she would have Rose call me back. I am so not believing that! I am thinking....I am going to be buggin' these people like crazy!!!
7-1-04
I called the doctors office AGAIN!!! This is the key. Stay on top of it. I can't remember who I talked to this time but I did say that I had called the last two days and was told by Katy that Rose would call me back. She said.....okay....I promise I will have someone call you back today!! Lisa Carnie called back and said that the letter had not been sent out yet but would be in the next couple of days.
7-6-04
I called UHC at 11:38AM and talked with a lady who said that the letter had not been received yet. I called UHC at 4:00PM and talked with Tiffany who gave me the fax number to care coordination that the letter would need to be sent to. I called the doctors office @ 4:15PM and spoke with Monique who said that Lisa V. would give me a call. Lisa V. did call me back at 4:45PM and stated that she would fax the letter to the insurance company tonight.
7-7-04
I called UHC to see if they received the letter by fax. They said no and that was the wrong way to do it. They said that the doctors office would have to call them with a "tentative date", height, weight, and codes and such... I said okay. (not believing her) I called Dr. McCarty's office and left a message on Lisa V's voice mail and spoke with Monique who suggested that I call UHC back because it really does depend on who you talk to. I called UHC and what do you know? The lady was real nice this time. Her name was Rebbecca out of the Plano Call Center. She took all of that information and I set a "tentative" date for 8-15-04 (they said I had to and were aware that that probably wouldn't be the date I had the surgery on.) She gave me a Service Reference Number and told me that I would receive an approval or denial letter via mail when they were done. Other than that stuff....I am worried about the surgery. My husband isn't being as supportive right now as he was a couple of weeks ago. I think it is starting to set
in just how serious I am about this and that scares him! He is scared about me being "cut on" as he puts it. His parents are worried about it too. I'm going to do some more research for my DH!
7-8-04
I called Brenda at UHC. She stated that this was in CCR Review (Clinical Coverage Review). She said that the nurses would call the doctors office and then more would be done and I need to give it 30 days.
7-12-04
I called Neal at the Plano Call Center. He stated that that my case was received on the 7th by the Phoenix office and on the 9th by the Plano Office. He said that I need to wait 30 days.
7-14-04
I called Jose at the Plano office and he said that the doctor's office was called on 7-13-04 at 4:30PM and the doctor's office called them back at 5:30PM. WOW! Within 1 hr. IMPRESSIVE!
7-15-04
I called UHC and spoke with Frank in the Plano office. They said that my was was in CCR (Clinical Coverage Review) and that if I didn't hear anything within 2 weeks...I should call and have the case escalated.
7-20-04
I'm APPROVED!!!!
7/21/04
Called Sherry at Baylor WLS Center at 3PM to find out if the insurance company told them how much I am supposed to pay. She said that she would give me a call back when she found out the “deposit” I am supposed to pay. I told her that I know I have a Maximum Out of Pocket Costs of $1000.00 and a $200.00 co-pay to the hospital. She said that the co-pay will be payable to the Hospital. She also said that there is a $120.00 fee to see Dr. Golden…the Psychiatrist.
7/22/04
Called Sherry at Baylor WLS Center at 10AM to see if she found out anything. She said that she would give me a call when she found out. Sherry called me at 2PM and stated that I would have to pay $750.00 for the deposit to the doctors office.
7/23/04
Called UHC at 1:55PM and spoke with Tom in Phoenix Arizona Call Center. I asked him if they could fax me the letter of approval since I hadn’t received it yet. He said that the actual letter was generated on 7/20/04 at 9:46PM and that the notes in the computer showed that it would take 1-5 days to get to the post office. He said I needed to wait until Tuesday to get it. If I didn’t get it by then….then I should call back.
7/27/04
I called Laurie at Baylor WLS Center and asked her if she could find out if I could make 3 payments of $250.00 for the surgery. She said that she would e-mail Mollie the CFO to find out if that was okay. She even e-mailed me to let me know she had e-mailed Mollie. I received the Approval Letter in the mail! It states:
Dear Elizabeth Hendrick,
We have completed our review of your request for coverage of Bariatric Surgery under “YOUR COMPANY” benefit plan.
Based on the information reviewed, we are pleased to inform you that coverage is available. All covered charges are subject to screening for allowable charges. The final allowable charge will be determined when the bill is submitted and will be based on the actual service(s) provided. Please note this letter does not guarantee payment. Benefit payment is based on the provisions of the “YOUR COMPANY” benefit plan and is subject to the guidelines, plan design, and policies effective at the time of service.
If you should have any question regarding this matter, you may contact our Customer Service Department @ XXX-XXX-XXXX.
Sincerely,
Nurse Consultant
Clinical Coverage Review.
July 20, 2004
Cc: Todd McCarty
Baylor University Medical Center
7/28/04
Laurie from Baylor WLS Center called me 3 times today to let me know what was going on with the Deposit Payment Schedule situation. The 3rd call…she told me that Mollie had called her during a break in her training class to say that it would be okay to do the payment schedule I suggested. I asked if I needed to pay that before I made a consult or had the surgery. She stated that it shouldn’t hold up my surgery in any way! I was surprised to hear that. She is so nice and easy to talk to. It is because she is a Minister as well.
7/29/04
I sent Laurie a Thank You e-card for being so helpful!
7/30/04
I called Sharon at the WLS Center. She stated that they probably haven't received the letter yet and it usually takes a week longer after I have received it for them to receive it. So...I am just waiting!
8/3/04
I called the WLS Center and spoke with Sheri Gail...she said that Dr. McCarty was on vacation this week and I would probably be getting a call later in the week to set up a consult for the following week when he gets back in. I said....so....my internal approval has been completed? She said yes. WHO HOO!! Its all gravy from here baby!!
8/5/04
I GOT THE CALL!!!!! My consult is set for 10AM on 8/12/04! I'm so excited! I will be meeting with the Psychologist and the doctor and I WILL GET A DATE FOR SURGERY!!!
8/9/04
I am nervous and excited about my consult! I will be getting my date. Then the countdown is on! I just can't believe this is all happening to me! And....its been relatively fast. Faster than I expected anyway!
8/11/04
I had my consult. The consult went just fine. I took a test that tested my knowledge.....I made a 100!! Thanks to Obesity-Help.com! I spoke with the Dr., the practitioner, & the psychologist. The psychologist said they didn't think that I would need any other testing done. So...I am good to go...or so I think. Remember back on 7/28/04 when I said that Laurie told me that making the 3 payments of 250 shouldn't hold up my surgery date? Well....she was wrong. She is new to the staff. She has been a volunteer for a long time there though. I knew it sounded too good to be true. So....I paid the 250.00 and have to wait to come up with the other 500.00 before I can get a date!
8/12/04
I called the doctors office to ask about a question I had forgot to ask the doctor. I then spoke with Sherrie Gail and she said that she had received an e-mail that morning informing her that my amount to pay had been lowered from 750.00 to 375.00!! I asked her why and she just said that sometime they do that! I didn't ask for it or get upset about the misunderstanding. I just couldn't believe it!!! I paid the other 125.00 right then and there over the phone and got my SURGERY DATE: 8/26/04 I also go in on 8/19/04 for my Upper GI, Pre-Admit testing which includes Chest X-Ray, EKG, & Blood test. Then later that afternoon I will be going to a nutrition class and psychological class. It is less than two weeks away and I have lots to do to get prepared! I have so much work to get caught up on at work to make my load lighter at the office when I get back! Also...I have to find a list to download that will help me be fully prepared prior to going into surgery!!
8/19/04
I went in for the Upper GI, EKG, and blood Testing. It all went well. My upper GI looked fine. That machine they put you in is weird and you have to turn around in it "log rolls" 2 times to coat you stomach with the barium. They also watch you take a barium pill to see how well it goes down. I also went to my Nutrition class and Psych class on the same day since I had to drive from Arlington to Dallas and don't need to take another day off. My sister went with me and this was very informative to her as well.
8/26/04
I went in for surgery. I was a little frustrated that I had to be there at 5:30AM when my surgery wasn't scheduled until 1:30PM. Although Dr. McCarty requires this of all his patients since he is notorious for being ahead of schedule. But...here I am in the waiting room watching all the other family members eat chips, nuts, and drink soda pop....so wishing I could eat since I hadn't eaten since 9PM the night before. I will post more about the surgery when I feel better. I'm sore and tired right now.
8/26/04 cont'd
I went in for surgery. I got there at 5:30AM and didn’t get back to the pre-op holding until 12:00PM. The time went by slowly. My sister was there for all of the time and my husband was there for some of the time. He had to drop the kids off at the daycare and school. I never saw the doctor that day. Once they rolled me back to the Operating Room….they put an IV in me that put me straight to sleep. It was neat to see the OR before going to sleep. It is exactly like I pictured. Very cold and sterile. They even had country music going in the room! I woke up in a lot of pain. I was told that I would be attended by a nurse all to myself. That didn’t
happen. The nurse just sat there and looked at her Palm Pilot. She didn’t even bring my family back. She said that she didn’t know I had family there!! What?? It was ALL in my chart. Which leads me to believe that she didn’t even look at my chart. My sister was furious and made sure and told the doctor about it! Because by the time my sister had made enough of a stink out in the waiting room and came back….my husband had to leave to pick up our girls. So…….I was in pain. My back hurt mostly. I just couldn’t get my muscles to relax back there. I kept asking her for something to make my muscles relax. She just made me feel stupid by the looks that she was giving me. I was in holding until they had a room for me. I didn’t get a room until 9PM. My sister stayed the night with me. I had a morphine pump. I was supposed to push it every 6 minutes. I couldn’t do that while I was sleeping. So….I woke up to pain…..I had to push that thing every 6 minutes so that it would catch up. Then sleep some more. They had the tights on my legs and the air compressor things on my legs. Those actually felt good to me. Then… in the middle of the night about 2AM…the IV started beeping. My sister and I called the nurse for 2 hours to come get that thing turned off. FINALLY someone came and said….OH….it says there is air in the line. I was so mad about that!! My sister and I made sure and told them how we felt about it.
8/27/04
I came home today. I can’t believe it! I really wasn’t ready to go home…..but they (or the insurance company I should say) were ready for me to go. This was much harder than I thought it would be! I hurt more than I thought! It is strange to only eat a couple of bites and be full. I wonder how this is gonna work for me at home. Liquids suck!!
8/28/04
THIS SUCKS!!! I can’t do anything but lay here and walk every now and then! I’m in so much pain! I should have scheduled this on a Monday so I could of had the whole week to myself while the kids were in school.
8/30/04
TODAY is the worst! I have cried all morning. I called two girlfriends that are super supportive. They really lifted my spirits. One even came to the house and brought flowers and a card. I am feeling like I really regret this right now! I’m out of sorts. Things are not normal and the one thing I can usually turn to…..FOOD….I can’t turn to now! This is SO HARD!!!
9/1/04
My first outing! Went to Wal-Mart. I used the wheel around thing. It was kinda fun. Although I did wonder if I should be running a motorized vehicle while on painkillers. Had a much better day today.
9/2/04
My girlfriend called this morning and asked me if I had weighed myself. I said no. She said girl….you better go get on that scale right now! I did! I got back to the phone and squealed…..I lost 10 pounds! That was encouragement that was deserved!! My sister took me to my job to get my paycheck! I am still using the pillow everywhere I go. I still can’t believe I have been down this long!! I feel like I should have bounced back by now!! I’m not sure if I will be able to go to work on the 7th of September like they want me to.
9/3/04
For the last week I have slept all day (well 6 hours during the day) and also sleeping all night. This is the only day I haven’t taken naps. It has been hard on me too! I have been getting ready for this weekend. We are going to my in-laws. Don’t really feel like it…but Great Papa will be there so this visit is important.
9/6/04
I am glad I went to visit the in-laws. It did me some good. The family made fun of me and what I couldn’t eat. It lifted my spirits some. I know if they are playing around with me….then everything is okay.
9/7/04
I went back to work today and boy am I glad I did! I really needed to be back in a routine! Sick of watching daytime TV!! Sick of looking at the house!! Everyone could tell instantly that I had lost some weight in my face! I have now lost 15 pounds! I can’t believe it!!
9/9/04
Today I feel like I overdid it. I was in and out of my car today. That really takes some working to get in and out of my little car. I think if it was a larger vehicle…..it wouldn’t be so bad.
10/15/05
I went in for my 6 week check up. I didn’t see Dr. McCarty today. I was surprised. I thought that he would want to see me. I remember when I had my first daughter. I thought that the doctor would be there with me through the whole birthing. He is only there to catch the baby. I am disappointed by the medical community that they don't take as much of a personal interest in the patients as they used to. I really thought that he would want to know how I am doing. I did see the psychologist and surgical assistant. They said I am doing fine. They said I need to eat more protein. They said it was okay to start taking regular vitamins and calcium. NO MORE CHEW-ABLES!! Yippee!! I am sick of the chew-ables!
2/18/05
I went in for my 6 month check up. I didn’t see Dr. McCarty. I am VERY UPSET! I was sure that I would see him at this visit! I feel like I am not important to him. I saw him for the initial visit and right after the surgery in the hospital room for a brief minute and that is all. I thought that he really cared about me and my progress. It doesn’t feel like he does right now. They don’t do lab work in their office anymore either. They gave me paperwork to take to Lab Corp to have my lab work done. So…I took the day off and drove into downtown Dallas (yuck!) just to walk in say…yes I’m doing fine….no throwing up…no diarrhea….still losing weight. They said good…..keep it up…..here’s some paperwork to go get the lab work done. It makes me not want to go in to do my 1 year check up.
3/28/05
I am now 185 lbs. I have lost 70 lbs! I still can’t believe it!
Negatives:
I do have the sagging skin under my arms. I call them my bat-wings. My boobs are now what I call…tube sock boobies! I have gone from a Double D to a very small C. Almost a B. : ( I am losing my hair like crazy! I cut my hair drastically! I got a perm on it shortly after the surgery so that when I started losing my hair….it would look full at least! So……at least it still looks full. I still like my hair right now. I do hope that my hair stops falling out.
Positives:
I have SO much energy now! I have been cleaning house like crazy! My house stays clean on a daily basis now! I never realized the reason that my house was dirty was because I didn’t have the energy to clean it. I just thought my values had changed. This is a huge plus! I remember just sitting on the couch and hating that there were dishes in the sink and I just didn’t want to stand anymore to clean them. I was okay with them sitting in the sink for days! Now I don’t do that anymore! My laundry is staying caught up…the dishes are staying caught up…everything! Right now…I look how I have felt for the last 4 years. My DH (dear hubby) has made sure that I feel like a Goddess! He even calls me his Goddess! He totally raised my self-esteem and made me happy with who I was even as big as I was. I was happy because my life partner was happy with me no matter how big I
was. It wasn’t until I started having health problems with the Obesity did I start to worry! I’m a size 16 now! I can’t believe it! So…now I wonder what my head will tell me I am when I’m a size 8. Will I still feel like a size 16 on the inside? I’m worried about how much more sagging skin I will have. I just hope that insurance will pay for skin removal. I’m not even sure where to start with that. I am going to have to start doing research on that now. I will log every step of the process just like I did with the WLS Surgery.
You know….even with the negative things….I am so happy that I had this surgery and am so thankful to God and my surgeon for making sure I made it through it! This is fabulous!
7/16/05
I am still in a size 16...although...they are a little big....and the 14 are still too snug. So...I just wear the 16's right now. I was on a plateau for a while....but that seems to have passed now. The scale certainly isn't moving like it did before. This is okay with me. Its not so bad. I'm just happy to be where I am right now!
1/15/06
I lost another 5 lbs so...I went to my local resale shop and tried on a pair of NON-STRETCH size 14 jeans! LO & BEHOLD......THEY FIT!! I was so happy!
3/6/06
I have lost another 5 lbs and am now in the CENTURY CLUB! 100 lbs down! I just can't believe it! I feel really good. I wish I could afford plastic surgery. I do not like the way my stomach and the ladies (if you know what I mean) look. My husband doesn't seem to care...but I am feeling self conscious about it. Strange...considering I never felt that way about my weight...but here I am feeling that way about my skin!
4/7/09
WOW....it has been 3 years since I've posted here.
I'm divorced now.
I'm 165lbs and wearing 12/14's. I've been this weight for about 2 years now. I really don't want to lose more...because the skin just hangs more. I'm very happy with how I look for the most part. I do not like the sagging skin....but it could be worse.
