VSG AJH

I'm seeing Dr. Rivera at Baylor Grapevine, and though I'm still pre-op, he and his staff have been fantastic! Dr. Marin is also a surgeon in that practice, and I believe he's the Chief of Surgery for Baylor Grapevine. During my consult, he told me that they do loads of band-to-sleeve revisions, and said revisions are their only contact with Lapbands anymore. I'm not sure how many procedures per year that translates into, but it might be worth checking out. The office is well-run, never super busy, and I never feel like a number.

I've attached an image if a couple of really yummy vegan protein powders I have and use. the Amazing Meal brand also has a Vanilla Chai flavor, but it was so good I drank it all. . I don't have a dairy allergy, but I chose these because some of the ingredients in typical whey protein drinks were concerning to me, and the organic and/or grass-fed brands were super pricey. When I told my NUT about them, she said they whey protein is more complete and necessary for someone coming right out of surgery, but I'm actually searching the boards now to see if that's been the consensus, or if there's some kind of additional research I can take to her. Still, I think these would be good to use down the line as a snack, at least. In your case, the majority of your protein is coming from real food, so supplementing with a vegan protein seems reasonable. The Sunwarrior protein has 16g/scoop, and the Amazing Meal has 10g/packet.

So thankful for the fantastic news! I've been wondering about you. What a blessing!!

This may be a totally ridiculous suggestion and I may get blasted for this, but I wonder if really examining the types of calories you're taking in would help and choosing super nourishing ones. There's a book called Nourishing Traditions that really opened my eyes to the lack of true nourishment in the standard American diet and makes solid arguments about good quality, nourishing food. I wonder if choosing some healing, nourishing foods (like true bone broth, coconut oil, and raw milk, for example) might help your body heal and recognize that it is not indeed starving, and if then it will start letting go of the fat it wants to hang on to.

I wonder if you could make something similar with the reusable k-cup pod and a powdered or partially liquified buillion? I buy Better than Buillion at costco and use it to flavor Soup stock. I bet you could pack a bit of it into the reusable k-cup and instantly brew a cup of broth. http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00016LA7K/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1378335885&sr=8-1π=AC_SX110_SY165

I agree it can be a little confusing. I'm still in the pre-op stage and still learning, but at one class, the NUT went on and on about chewable vitamins. I've been taking food-based, non-GMO multivitamins for a little over a year now and asked if I could just continue those. She told me no and said chewable was best for the new sleeve. This week, she called me at home after my lab work came in to have me add vitamin D and iron. I asked about chewable and/or sublinguals, and she said pills were the best & most reliable bet and just fine on a new sleeve. So confusing!!

I was worried that my BMI would be just under 40 based on what I thought my weight was when I called the surgeon. We celebrated our anniversary the night before my consult appointment and had a steak dinner + loads of carbs. The day of my consult, I stopped for lunch on the way and had another steak dinner + a gutbusting helping of cheese fries. When I weighed in, my BMI was 41. A month later, I still feel like I'm digesting those steaks.

Thanks for taking the time to share your experience! My youngest will be about 6 months old when I'm planning to have the VSG, and I'm hoping to continue our nursing relationship. His pediatrician supports breastfeeding after surgery, and says I should have no supply issues as long as I'm religious about my vitamins, water, and protein. I'm so pleased to see you were able to continue nursing successfully!

Very happy to read this thread! I'm pre-op now and have a ten-week-old baby. He'll be about 6 months old when I have the VSG if all goes well with the rest of my appointments and insurance approval. Because I've read of moms in ICU (even in comas) pumping to feed babies at home when they primarily rely on IV fluids, I assumed I'd be able to continue nursing my little guy -- provided I'm religious about vitamins, water, and protein. His pediatrician felt there would be no issue when the day comes and encouraged me to continue trying to nurse as long as I'm able. So glad to read of other moms who've been able to take back their health with the VSG while caring for their little ones. Thanks all for posting!!

Excellent advice!

I'm very new to this and don't have all the answers, but in going to toss my two cents in here and expect that some knowledgable people will come in here with some experience. I'm thinking in particular about your insurance question. Though you're doing self-pay, are you certain your insurance would not cover any medical issues that might arise from potential complications? Using an extreme example here, but if I modified my body by getting a tattoo (not covered by insurance), and that tattoo got infected, I'd treat the infection by seeking medical care. They'd have a whole different set of medical billing codes unrelated to the actual tattoo itself. I'm wondering if your insurance would have the same kind of thing. It might be worth calling the local doc to find out what billing code they would use when billing the treatment of a leak, then calling your insurance to verify that code would be paid. Additionally, though my doc requires four nutrition appointments before surgery, my insurance only pays for three and I have to pay for the other. Perhaps your insurance pays separately for some nutrition appointments that you could schedule on your own? As for support group, the one my doctor's office feeds into is off the hospital campus and is free to the public. We signed in and listed pre- or post-op, but no one asked ever where surgery happened or where it would happen, so a little networking in your area might open up a group for you nearby. I'm obviously not telling you what choice to make, but when I was looking at 100% self-pay, I was thinking of some of the very same things.

Yesterday in nutrition class, the nutritionist said minimum 6 months out, and then only wine or distillers spirits in small quantities. No champagne or beer -- nothing bubbly.

Goo luck!

Lou -- you look amazing! Your persistence is inspiring. Thank you so much for sharing your story!

THANK YOU for this thread!! I've just begun my pre-op process, and so many of these threads are terrifying! I appreciate all of you "complication-free" folks chiming in. It's nice knowing there are people out there thriving post-surgery.

Yay! Congrats!! Very, very exciting!

Hey Travis -- welcome! I relate to your hope to get in, get out, and her on with life with your sleeve. I'm about a decade older than you, and I don't have time to deal with a leak or complications. I really hope we both do well.

Hi all -- love the threads! So much good information and conversation. My name is Amanda. I'm a 37yo homeschooling mom to six kiddos, and I'm hoping to be a December sleever. Having been overweight since late childhood, I've been hoping for bariatric surgery since seeing a documentary about RNY fourteen years ago. I've not had insurance coverage for bariatric surgery before last year, and even then, it came as a surprise. I would check at the beginning of each year when we'd renew our benefits, and my husband's company would not only not cover it, they would specifically exclude it. The surgeons I'd call would tell me that exclusion would make an appeal impossible. Anyway, last January I didn't bother checking because I assumed after years of exclusions, there would be no change. I've been looking at the VSG for about a year now and lurking here on these boards, and I began exploring cash-pay options with surgeons in the U.S. and abroad. At the end of last summer, just as I was making a plan to go to Mexico for surgery, my husband double-checked our benefits, and LO AND BEHOLD, our insurance now covered bariatric surgery just like any other surgery -- standard deductible and 20% copay with a few other minor costs here and there up to a $5000 max. Thrilled, at the end of September I made an appointment with a bariatric surgery group just down the highway from our house. I then cancelled in early October because we discovered I was pregnant with my sixth babe. I was told to call back after six weeks of post-delivery recovery, and for those weeks after baby, I wrestled with the choice to call the WLS. Maybe this would be the time I could get the weight off. Forget the fact that I've been over 100 pounds overweight since middle school and have tried every single diet and pill and plan under the sun -- maybe this would be the year. In retrospect, I was terrified of seeing the doctor because I was afraid he'd reject me for WLS. It had always been the option in my pocket, the secret bullet for the day when I realized I really couldn't do it on my own. If the doctor rejected me, I would truly be without options and hope for real weight loss and health. Despite being severely overweight, I felt like I was in pretty decent health and would be rejected because of a lack of serious comorbidities. I have prediabetes and have had gestational diabetes when pregnant -- both of which increase my chances of Type 2, a disease that killed my grandmother. My mom died of cancer last year, and my obesity increases the risk of my developing cancer. My dad had high cholesterol and HBP. Stroke and heart disease run in my family. I also have Hashimoto's Thyroiditis, and while that's not caused by my obesity, it complicates any effort at weight loss. Other than that, I have neuropathy in my feet and weight-bearing bone problems in my feet. I'm prone to injury and have to see the podiatrist several times a year for medical care. I also have numbness in my arms and hands, and I'm concerned it's moving towards a total loss of feeling like my feet. My knees and back ache, and getting up and down and moving around a lot is exhausting -- a real problem when you're with six kiddos all the time! So, while I don't have a large number of documented medical comorbidities, I'm feeling the chronic effects of a lifetime of obesity beginning to creep up on me, and I just don't like it. Additionally, my mom died from a type of cancer she could have avoided (lung cancer specific to smokers), and her grief was complicated by the fact that she could have made different choices all the years she smoked and maybe lived longer. I don't want that to be me. I don't mind dying at 56 like she did, but I'd rather die from falling off a mountain I've just climbed or because the chute didn't open when I went skydiving, not because I chose a habit that destroyed me, and I never got a handle on it. After that brief post-baby wrestling period, I decided to pursue surgery, and if by some miraculous chance I lose 100 pounds between now and my surgery date (ha!), I'll call off my surgery. I saw the surgeon on August 5 -- my 13th wedding anniversary -- and not only did he not reject me, he said I was the perfect candidate. (He probably says that to all the girls. *wink*) I weighed 262 at the appointment, and I'm now 5'7" (was 5'10" before my weight began destroying the bones in my feet -- sigh.) My BMI was 41.1, thanks to my new shorter stature. I'm still very new to all of this, and while I have a few hoops to jump through, they don't seem all that complicated to me. Maybe I'm missing something. My insurance (Cigna) requires a 3 month diet with the nutritionist (4 total meetings), and I see her this coming Tuesday -- just a week after my first appointment. I also attend my first support group at that time. I'll have three more nutrition meetings and one or two more monthly support group. I've already had initial labs drawn, and I'll see my PCP on Monday for a physical (per his request) to have him write the letter of recommendation my insurance requires. The surgeon requires a physical therapy evaluation, which I also already have scheduled on Tuesday. Besides that, I'll do an EGD and a psych evaluation, and that's it. It doesn't seem like a lot to me, and the fact that half of the requirements will be completed within a month of my initial meeting with the surgeon blows my mind. It's impossible for me to believe that after 25+ years of obesity and 14+ years of researching bariatric surgery, MY day is coming.

I'm hoping to be a December sleever, too! I had my first appt. with the surgeon August 5th. My insurance (Cigna) requires a 3 month diet with the nutritionist. My first nutrition meeting and support group is on Tuesday. I've just done labs. I'll have to do a psych eval, physical therapy eval, and and EGD. My PCP also requires a physical to send a letter of recommendation for surgery, something else my insurance requires. It feels like a few hoops to jump through, but nothing insane. I'm also feeling excited! Good luck to you!!

Muscle Milk vanilla doesn't have that multi-vitamin flavor. I wonder if you could get some free samples from their website?

What a great idea! I'm in the exploration stage (consultation on Thursday), and the idea of chugging Protein shakes makes me sad. They make me feel sick now; I can't imagine how they'll make me feel with a smaller stomach. However, I've always made a practice of taking Vitamins and supplements at bedtime to sleep through the queasies. What a super idea to do the same with protein shakes!