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I actually was shocked with the insurance, it’s not through our regular health plan, its like an add-on that my husbands company has. Every procedure they cover is based on The Dr’s recommendation and not insurance guidelines. The only requirement is our deductible has to be met. It’s really a nice benefit. I was supposed to see Dr. Gorjala but he only sees patients on certain days. I was nervous about Dr. Lytle but ended up completely at ease. A little back story, I did not want the surgery, but all of my local doctors said I needed it. My BMI was only 32 I weighed 188 and am 5’0” and had been on weight watchers after a botched hysterectomy. I had gotten up to 201. I developed a large incisional hernia and no one would fix it until I was down to my ideal weight and weight watchers and gym was not doing it fast enough. My regular insurance would not cover it because my BMI was to low, I was only borderline diabetic, and no cardiac issues or high blood pressure. I was going to file a complaint with the health insurance and our insurance advocate told me about the program. Dr. Lytle reviewed my medical records and had to convince me that my local Drs were right and that I needed to have this surgery to get the hernia fixed. I just met with a local surgeon for the hernia, through the same program and found out how bad things really are, but because I had the surgery I can be fixed. All of my large and small intestines are outside of where they are supposed to be and I have no stomach wall so they need to rebuild it. I will lose my belly button. I live in Central Florida half way between Daytona and Orlando. My next surgery will be in Orlando at ORMC. Atlanta is huge and I do not miss driving around there. Thankfully we were staying in Sandy Springs around the corner from the hospital. We did travel to Centennial Park when we were there for consult. The traffic is horrible there so I can understand your concern. Lol. I want to wish you luck with everything. It sounds like you have been through a lot yourself. I know everyone at Bariatric Innovations will take great care of you! The trip was well worth it. I wanted Dr. Lytle to fix my hernia also and he agreed to do it, but I needed to consult with a local surgeon first. If it wasn’t so far I would have gone with Dr Lytle but because of the seriousness of the hernia I decided to go with a local surgeon to avoid all the traveling.

I’m rooting for you! Keep me posted, you will do great! 🤗😊

Just had my surgery 10 days ago! I was very excited, but very nervous too--even thought about backing out a couple of times as the day drew near! Honestly, the first day after surgery was the worst, not because of pain, but because they kept trying to get me to drink fluids, and I just didn't want to. I had some nausea, but no unbearable pain--it was more like an achy discomfort, like when you have a tummy ache. The doctors were great with intravenous pain medication so if I got too achy they gave me this very cool stuff that made me feel oh, so nice, and put me right to sleep...lol I was sent home the day after my surgery with pain pills, but never needed to take them--a couple of Tylenol did the trick for any residual soreness. Really, by day 4 I felt completely normal, as if nothing had been done at all! Just get ready to enjoy a few days of pampering, and a reason to get some extra sleep. Aside from feeling a little groggy from the anesthesia, you will be fine in a day or two and ready to begin your journey to freedom!

Thank you for the information!!!! I will definitely reach out with any questions. #surgeonsisters

I've lost just under 40 pounds in the last 6 months on my own; surgery for me isn't until April 13. I had lots of bad habits that I needed to break, like soda, diet soda, chocolate, candy in general, chips, white rice, eating out too much, etc. I picked one or two things each month and weaned off of them. The first month, I gave up candy and chips. Next month I gave up sugared soda, limited diet soda to 2 per day, and stopped eating at fast food restaurants. Do it a little bit at a time. Making small goals will start the ball rolling for you, and that will motivate you to change the next bad habit. For me it was also motivating to have to weigh in every month. My insurance stipulates that once I started the journey and had my first weigh-in, that I couldn't go up so much as an ounce (from that first weigh-in) during my four months or I would be denied. No lie, that was a huge motivator. Also, remember why you want this surgical tool to help you control impulse-eating and binge-eating. Find what works for you and what motivates you, and start tracking your food and water intake. Come out on the forums when and if you have a hard day and talk to us. We're all here to help and support you. You can do this!

That was quite a drive for you! Usually insurance still levies requirements unless in some extremely rare case where it’s done on an emergency basis. But I really am taking about on the surgeon’s requirements 🙂. Do you remember if it specifically said EKG or it just said cardiac clearance? The paper I have says Medical or cardiac clearance but the info itself doesn’t specify particular requirement (as to certain test) on that (since there are many cardiac tests that can be done of different complexities). Do you mind sharing with me how old you were at the time? Thanks! (PS thank God I stopped smoking more than a decade back - I have two insurance policies but their requirements aren’t bad at all and I already had a sleep apnea and scope set up for my own knowledge so at least not a huge and horrible list)

I will still be 61 when I have my RNY March 17th, just a few days before my birthday. The skin and boobies issues are things I'm not looking forward to though...

almost five years out here. It is NOT the easy way out. The first few months aren't too, too difficult because most people lose their hunger for a few months, but for most of us, hunger eventually comes roaring back - and then things get a lot more challenging. And maintaining your weight loss is TOUGH - as tough as it was before surgery. It's just a tool that works as a strong tail wind to help you to drop a lot of weight quickly. But once you're there, it's a lot of work to keep it off. if you don't want people to know you had the surgery, then don't tell them. They have no right to know your medical history. I hardly told anyone - just my family and my close friends. and willpower is a myth. You are constantly fighting biology when you're trying to lose weight. Your hormones - your gut bacteria - everything is working against you. Only 5% of people manage to do it because you are fighting your body every step of the way. Luckily, surgery resets a lot of that, so it won't be as much of a struggle to lose it. It does make things easier - at least for losing it (as I mentioned, maintenance is really tough - I work at it ALL THE TIME). But even with losing, it takes work on your part, too. You have to be very committed to your program.

me too - had gastro endo another swallowing test, etc... they're ridiculous - they are also stating I didn't maintain loss for 2 years.... they are missing the point

I hope so, on hold with insurance now.... pathetic, its gastro related due to sleeve and they want more clinical visits and a nutritionist again.... I think someone dropped the ball on this one