Gregorio Punderschmidt

Without getting into any good parts/bad parts of Mexico argument, I guess you really only have to ask yourself one question if you are thinking about going to a third world country for medical care. If your dog was sick, would you want him treated by a Mexican veterinarian? Don't panic, I'm just asking.
Tom

I just recently turned 20 on the 28th of February and have been talking to doctors about this surgery since I was about 18. I finally met with my surgeon the first week of March 2011 and I am now awaiting approval from my insurance company! I wish I would have taken more aggressive action when I was 18. I have lost 3 years of my life that I can never get back. Because of my weight, I never want to go anywhere or do anything because of my weight. What fun is that? None. I'm constantly being a hermit at home and DREAD running into friends from high school because I've gained so much more weight since then and know they all talk crap about me. We are supposed to be enjoying life and the freedom we have being young. I think it's a great idea if you have honestly tried everything else to lose. If nothing has worked, go talk to your Primary care doctor. I wish the best of luck to you!
SN- You might and usually have to meet a certain criteria for your insurance company to cover (a BMI over 30 for 3-5 years, a history of high blood pressure, sleep apnea, heart problems, diabetes, back problems. Usually any of those will get you approved. Oh and you have to show proof of trying and failed diets and your primary doctor has to write a letter to the insurance companies saying the surgery is necessary! Hope this helps!!
-Ashley

Thanks to everyone who replied, and for your kind words. As a former prosecutor/public defender, I do tend to have a sense of humour on the darker side. Like nurses and ER doctors, we get to see the repellant side of human nature up close and personal. (As in, sitting next to you in a suit that only a kodiak bear could possibly make look less well fitting.) It's a bit of a defense mechanism. It's hard to not empathize with your clients and feel low when you can't help them (not that they should go around shooting people, no matter how much you agree with their "enemy identification") because they're really not all that bad. It can take it's toll, unless you're a full-on sociopath, which, unfortunately, my profession seems to be OVER-represented with. Didn't Ted Bundy make Dean's list or somesuch?
Anyway, as I said, I'm two weeks out, but work has really kept my mind off the epic life-change I'm about to go through. It's not the surgery, that's kind of like flying. After two-three times, it's just not that big a deal. Besides, the older you get the more welcome death seems by comparison anyway. Getting used to a new way of eating isn't that big a deal, either. I don't eat all day long as it is. I don't stop from the minute I walk into the office until I leave. So the liquid diet/soft food phases *shouldn't* be too rough. I'm sure eating out/travelling will be much trickier, but I'll adapt quickly. Besides my Irish whiskey, there isn't much diet-wise I really can't live without. Except really hot foods. Any feedback on how that goes over? Just as a reference point, I mean hot enough to melt the lining of a reactor. I put away bottles of Dave's Insanity Sauce, the only hot sauce (to my knowledge) that has a confirmed kill to it's credit. For anybody reading, that wasn't a joke. This hot sauce has actually taken a human life.
Again, thank you to everyone who has replied. This kind of information just isn't available from anywhere but firsthand experience. Without people willing to share it, it wouldn't be available at all. So everybody give yourselves a little chuck on the shoulder.
Thanks,
Tom