I waited a few days after getting the IVC filter placed to see if I would get the call, but never received it, so I decided I would email my coordinator and see what else needed to be done. Monday afternoon I got a call from my surgeon's nurse and now I have a date!!! May 14th!! A couple months away but that's okay. I've been doing this since Sept 2014, what's a couple more months right?
I'll go for my packet meeting on April 10. That's when I meet the nutritionist, start my optifast diet, get the EDG and some blood work and I think meet with the surgeon again. Then May 11 will be preop and finally May 14th!!! It's scary and exciting. It's hard to imagine how my eating is going to change but I'm trying to make some now.
My niece came over today and helped me go through my closet to get out all my winter clothing that I won't be wearing again. That's another thing that is hard to imagine. I feel so scared to get rid of them because it really hasn't hit me that I won't be this size again. It actually made me cry a bit because it was hard to get rid of some of the clothes. I really liked them! I think it was more about realizing how much my life is going to change. It's for the better though. It'll also be fun getting new clothes in smaller sizes.
Showing posts with label IVC Filter. Show all posts
Showing posts with label IVC Filter. Show all posts
Thursday, March 19, 2015
Friday, March 13, 2015
Still No Date :(
So... there is still no date for the surgery. I got the IVC filter placed yesterday so I'm hoping that I'll get the call next week. I'll probably email my coordinator on Monday.
Getting the IVC filter wasn't bad at all. What's ironic is that I got more "feel good" medicine with that versus the heart cath. The filter goes through a vein and the heart cath goes in an artery... go figure. Anyway, I didn't feel anything and I was pretty loopy. Because they went through the groin I had to stay flat for a couple hours which was ok because I was still loopy and slept most of that time. The worst part was having to be there at 6:30 am!! Afterwards, it hurt a little bit so I took some aspirin and then slept most of the rest of the day. All-in-all, it's not a bad procedure if you have to have one. It's nice knowing that I have it and it decreases the chance of having a blood clot again.
Getting the IVC filter wasn't bad at all. What's ironic is that I got more "feel good" medicine with that versus the heart cath. The filter goes through a vein and the heart cath goes in an artery... go figure. Anyway, I didn't feel anything and I was pretty loopy. Because they went through the groin I had to stay flat for a couple hours which was ok because I was still loopy and slept most of that time. The worst part was having to be there at 6:30 am!! Afterwards, it hurt a little bit so I took some aspirin and then slept most of the rest of the day. All-in-all, it's not a bad procedure if you have to have one. It's nice knowing that I have it and it decreases the chance of having a blood clot again.
Monday, February 23, 2015
Last Group Meeting
Tomorrow will be my last group meeting. Hopefully, I will then be scheduled to see the dietician, start my 4 week Optifast diet and weekly nutrition groups. I will also have to have an EDG and IVC filter placed before having the surgery. I think that covers it all :).
Some are lucky with what they have to do, but I'm with Humana Medicare and I've had quite a few things to get done before having the surgery. First, I had to attend an information seminar at Bariatric Solutions. I had already decided that I was going to do the program so after the seminar I signed up and paid the $100 fee. Right away I had to start attending group meetings. They require us to attend 2 meetings a month and there are 5 that are required. Surgery 101, a surgeon led, psychiatry led, dietician led and RN led. They have been pretty easy to get done although this month I've had to be careful because of bad weather.
Once I completed the 5 required groups I was able to see the psychologist for clearance but because I'm bipolar they had to get my records from my therapist. That took about a week and then I was cleared. Next I had my appointment with my surgeon who is fantastic. She went over a lot, helped me decide on what surgery I want and answered my many questions. Then I saw my pre-surgery coordinator to go over everything that I've done and what still needed to be done. They then filed with Humana and I got approved in 2 days!! I still needed to get cleared by cardiac and vascular though. I needed vascular because I had a PE in April, 2014. They decided that I will have to take Lovenox and get an IVC filter put in. Then I needed to do cardiac because of my age (48). I had to do a nuclear stress test which showed abnormalities and because of that had to have a cardiac cath. It showed no blockages so I'm now cleared to have the surgery! I'm hoping I'll have good news this week.
Some are lucky with what they have to do, but I'm with Humana Medicare and I've had quite a few things to get done before having the surgery. First, I had to attend an information seminar at Bariatric Solutions. I had already decided that I was going to do the program so after the seminar I signed up and paid the $100 fee. Right away I had to start attending group meetings. They require us to attend 2 meetings a month and there are 5 that are required. Surgery 101, a surgeon led, psychiatry led, dietician led and RN led. They have been pretty easy to get done although this month I've had to be careful because of bad weather.
Once I completed the 5 required groups I was able to see the psychologist for clearance but because I'm bipolar they had to get my records from my therapist. That took about a week and then I was cleared. Next I had my appointment with my surgeon who is fantastic. She went over a lot, helped me decide on what surgery I want and answered my many questions. Then I saw my pre-surgery coordinator to go over everything that I've done and what still needed to be done. They then filed with Humana and I got approved in 2 days!! I still needed to get cleared by cardiac and vascular though. I needed vascular because I had a PE in April, 2014. They decided that I will have to take Lovenox and get an IVC filter put in. Then I needed to do cardiac because of my age (48). I had to do a nuclear stress test which showed abnormalities and because of that had to have a cardiac cath. It showed no blockages so I'm now cleared to have the surgery! I'm hoping I'll have good news this week.
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