Mid Week with Pete

So I decided last night after doing the crappie flop in bed in an attempt to get Pete to stop snoring and totally failing for about 30 minutes, that Wednesdays would be about Pete.  Seriously, my office has been hovering about 85-87 degrees for the last two weeks with no end in sight.  I spent an hour on the phone Monday (in the heat) with the insurance company.  I've been getting little sleep because I had a box of American Girl Doll stuff worth about $100 (don't tell Pete how much, ok?) stuck in my locked mailbox for 24 hours.  I have some presents for Pete that I had delivered to my sister and didn't think about them needing a signature.

Needless to say it's been a long week and it's only Wednesday.  So if I'm not coherent, please bare with me.

I think that a man's journey about weight loss and healthiness is both similar and different than a woman's.  I think that a journey that consists of bariatric surgery is also similar and different.  I want to detail some of what Pete is going through on his journey.  So from now on I'll try to remember to devote Wednesdays to Pete.
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Currently Pete is in the process of what will likely be lap band surgery.  I don't mean that he's been in an operating room, but that the process to even get to the surgery is a long one.  First he had to go see his GP and find out if he thought that Pete would qualify.  Then he was referred to a surgery center in the Twin Cities.  He's met with the surgeon once and she confirmed that he met both the center's criteria for surgery and our insurance provider.

After that he had to attend an seminar about the various surgeries.  I went with him that night and we learned about the events that lead up to the surgery, the surgery itself and the follow up.  They outlined the risks and benefits to each surgery and how each one works. 

Then he met with the nurse practitioner about continuing the process and what else he needs.  It's different for everyone, depending on your insurance, your surgery choice and other factors.  I'll go into the surgeries and those choices at a later date and why Pete is leaning to the band.

For now, Pete has to have a sleep study (and we are battling the insurance company for payment of this), a meeting with a dietitian, a mental health evaluation, a 5 session counseling program through the insurance and additional blood work.  He also has to lose 13 pounds.  When these things are completed, he can schedule the surgery.  The doctor told him that he'd likely be ready sometime late February or March.

So, that's the start of it.  Each week leading up to the surgery I'll talk about his status and one part of the process that he's gone through/going through.  If you have questions, please leave them in the comments section and I'll be sure to answer them.