iluvthesun

Hi Stoongal, I'm sure you must be packed and anxiously waiting to leave tomorrow. Best of luck travelling and with your surgery. We'll be thinking about you. I look forward to hearing all about it when you get up and around. Nancy

Hi Jeff, Thanks for posting the links to your story. I googled baldrick (now that I see you have lots of hair and your name is Jeff!), and found this youtube link: [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=328Q79GoR7g]YouTube - Blackadder II - Teaching Baldrick Mathematics[/ame] Is this the same baldrick?? Tom is obviously a very special person and I'm glad he reached out to help you. Good luck with your trip to the U.S. I live in PEI and I have been referred to NS for surgery with Dr. Ellsmere, however I hear the wait may be 5 or 6 years..... Keep posting so we know how you are getting along. Nancy

I live in Prince Edward Island, Canada. There is a hospital in Halifax, Nova Scotia that is now doing these surgeries. My family Dr. has one other patient that has gone there and she has sent a request for the costs of the surgery to be covered by the Province. If approved I will need to attend a number meetings / interviews to see if I am a good candidate for the surgery. The process of getting approval and being accepted into the program may take 6 - 9 months, and then a wait for a surgery date. Since she sent in the request, I have been reading the boards. The information has been great. I haven't noticed anyone who has had the surgery performed in Canada, and I'm just wondering if anyone is out there? Thanks.

Hi Stoongal, Yes the Dr. in Halifax only does VSG's. The referral and approval from the Prov. didn't take much - but who knows how long the wait will be. It is such a small world. My husband's father was in the military in Summerside, then they went to BC and his last posting was - guess where.....Chatham, NB. That is actually where we met. I was working in the BCPO's office one summer while at University and staying at the campground in Loggieville (now a KOA) where he was working. So you graduated from James M. Hill? What year - if you don't mind me asking? So where are you having your surgery done? Nancy

I received a letter from the "out of Province" coordinator advising Dr. Ellsmere in Halifax, Nova Scotia that they have agreed to pay for the surgery. Now I wait to be contacted. On the Obesity Help forum people have indicated that it could be 5 - 7 years.....however the other patient that my Dr. sent waited less than 1 year. The hospital Q's & A's says there is no list, they evaluate each person to determine who to accept and when they will be scheduled. I was admitted to the hospital in a neighboring province last week and the neurologist said I had a small stroke called a Lacunar stroke due to untreated hypertension. However the CT scan was clear, so my family Dr. says there is no proof of a stroke so she is referring me to a PEI neurologist to get an MRI which could take months. it sounds strange and terrible to say, however I was thinking the upside of having a "small" stroke was that I might be a better candidate for VSG..... I still have tingling on the left side of my body which the neurologist said may be permanent. That may not be a bad thing if it reminds me of the stroke everytime I go to put something in my mouth - maybe I will make better choices... Other good news - I was down 10 pounds from when I saw my Dr. last month.......hospital food isn't that great! I did meet with the dietitian twice and I am now trying to eat according to Canada's food guide. I know it is mostly fluid (since the puffyness is gone from my feet) - but it is still nice to see the scale go down instead of up......