Re: Possible Stupid Question - some possible answers

July 12, 2001

:

I do not know your age, weight, height, or BMI, but if you are MO (40+ BMI)

you probably have problems that you've learned to live with everyday. Can

you not fit into most armed chairs, restaurant booths, airline seats,

stadium seats, never trust a folding lawn chair? Standing for any length of

time bothers your back or joints because your large stomach pulls on you.

Cannot walk long distances comfortably without sitting down or becoming

breathless. Cannot kneel at church because you won't fit between the pews

or you know you will have a hell of a time getting up? Trouble maintain

personal hygiene because it is getting harder to reach some areas? Do you

have any of the following: Swollen feet, ankles, rashes in the folds of

your skin, between your thighs, excessive facial hair, hump on the back of

your neck, urine leaking problems, irregular periods or excessive periods,

acid reflux. Have you suffered social discrimination or career advancement

discrimination at work because you are MO? Has you blood pressure and pulse

rate been rising through the years? What about you cholesterol and blood

sugar numbers are they moving up? Do you know if you snore?

Make sure you recount to your insurance company all of the weight loss

programs that you have participated in all of your life. Especially those

that were doctor or professionally supervised. Take a close look at your

family on both sides. How many people are obese or MO? What did your

family members that are deceased pass away from? Were they obese or MO?

Did that contribute to their demise or impede their recovery (Ask older

member about the family members you never met.) . Are there members of your

family with serious conditions like diabetes, heart conditions, high blood

pressure, etc.?

These are the things that your insurance company will look at to evaluate

you. I think if you look more closely at yourself you will find that you do

have many hidden co-morbidities or the potential for serious conditions base

on your family history if you remain MO.

Hope this helps. Good luck to you.

Kathie from MD

Lap DS, Dr. Gagner, NY

Possible Stupid Question

> Okay, this may be a dumb question, but I'm just curious....

>

> As anybody had this surgery that isn't suffering from problems due to

being

> overweight?? What I mean is that I know that BCBS is going to deny me and

> I'm not sure that I really have anything to fight back with. I don't

really

> have any other health issues other than being overweight. I have normal

> blood pressure, I'm not diabetic, I don't have any heart problems, nothing

> really. If you look at me on paper....I'm perfectly normal except for the

> weight thing. I was just kind of hoping to nip this in the bud BEFORE

> having any of these other issues come up, but I'm not sure that they'll go

> for that. Not to mention that my current doctor doesn't believe that I'm

at

> a point in my life where the risks are worth it since I have no other

> problems. Does anybody have any insight??

>

> ----------------------------------------------------------------------

>

July 12, 2001