HoosierGirl

Your blog is a RIOT!!!!!!! Love it and congrats on your weight loss! I'll be in TJ with Dr. Ariel Ortiz in February. And I just hope I do the surgery and weight loss as well as you have.

Great success! Hope I do as well as you have done...gives me hope....

WELCOME BACK! Thanks for sharing so much detail. Glad things went well and cannot wait to follow your posts as you lose weight....super excited/green with envy....haha!

Agree...been concerned for her too!!! Come back CoolMama! Come back!

Oh this is super funny.....but, um, I had not thought about this. Now I have a new worry to obsess over! UGH! Ha ha.

In all seriousness, does Dr. Ponce gives you a surgery DVD?

Today is YOUR day! Sending prayers and good vibrations your way!

I am totally obsessed to the point of having dreams. I super excited and did I say I am excited. I hope that I am not disappointed because I am hoping that I will be able to exercise and keep a routine to this new lifestyle

YES!!!! Like you, I'm so excited - did I say EXCITED?! - that I can do little else but think about this surgery. Believe my excitement is a huge believe that this surgery will work to help me lose the weight and regain a healthy lifestyle.

I am now ending Week 2 & moving on to Week 3 of my liquid diet. I meet the with the nutritionist on Friday to discuss my transition to soft foods next week. I was so stressed about another week of Protein shakes & Water. Well, my boyfriend just came home from his parents house & his mom had bought & put together a whole basket of things I didn't even know existed! Things from BariWise, Wonder Slim and Proti Diet all filled with Protein & meeting all my other nutritional guidelines...fruit flavored breakfast drinks, Jello Snacks, Soups and also pudding. All have at least 15 grams of protein each. Amazing! I am super excited & so grateful that his mom took the time to do this for me. I'm pretty sure that I have to wait another week for the pudding, but that's okay.

What a great gift basket! They are thoughtful! I am not familiar with these products, will have to do some research! Thank you for the information.

My name is Carrie im 40 from Springfield MO. Hopefully I will be having my sleeve sometime in Feb I have had my first consult with my surgeon and one nut appointment. Now waiting on my psych appt. Have to wait though till taxes come back cause I have a $1300 deductible. But my insurance is paying for the rest.

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Carrie P - woo hoo! Your deductible is fantastic and I'm excited that your insurance is covering it! Hope to have surgery in late February.

Right now, this all-consuming obession with VSG is getting the best of me! I'm making myself crazy with research, planning, and prepping for surgery. And its THREE MONTHS AWAY! I feel like a crazy woman....there are nights I can't fall asleep for thinking about this! Ha ha! Worse than a little kid - he he....

Hugs to you!

Planning on going in late feb or early march so I'm joining.

I'm 29

Bmi 39 I believe

Im in Missouri

Going to mx for surgery

Amytug - have you selected a surgeon in MX? Planning on Dr. Ortiz February 27 in Tijuana. All the best!

Hope you're all doing well on your preop diets! I started my 12 week liquid VLCD yesterday and I'm super excited for the ketosis to kick in. I hate the first few days of headaches and hunger. But I've done liquid diets before and I know how awesome it can be once the first few days are over. You can do this! Just don't forget to keep drinking your Protein. If you get hungry from not having the Protein in your belly, that's when binges can happen. Just take it one day, or even one shake at a time!

TWELVE WEEK liquid diet!? Oh man! You go!!!

Haha! This thread is a riot! Selected my surgeon at an International Center of Excellence, travel to an area that is not under a travel warning from the State Department, ability to get my questions answered, and price.

The fact that the doctors are attractive was just an added bonus!!! :-)

CONGRATULATIONS! You are a wise woman getting in front of a weight problem! Even better that your insurance was so quick to approve you!

Please share your story! My insurance has denied me and that is OK....I'm planning a trip to Tijuana in February!

All the best to you!

Woohoo! Super excited for you! Please share your experience!

Fantastic information! Thank you all so much!

In doing pre-op research, I read about everyone's "goal weight" and am wondering how it's determined? Is it simply the likely end weight based on VSG statistical weight loss averages? Is it your own goal weight? Does the doctor help to determine?

The bottom line is that I would like a goal weight that is really achievable.

THANKS!

Lindstrom Obesity Advocacy was helpful/knowledgable. It might be worth calling them to see what they think? http://wlsappeals.com/

Heyher - hate to hear all that! My story is much the same. Are you going to keep working with the insurance or self-pay? I'm heading to Mexico in Feburary. I almost feel my insurance denial was a blessing as I became a much more educated patient in the process of waiting. Hope you have a good outcome...defintately understand your frustration.

Very excited for you! Can't wait to hear about it!

Shelley are your dates that you will be there?

Tami - at this time, I am planning on Wednesday, February 27. I'll be traveling from Indianapolis to San Diego the day before. Let me know your dates as you finalize your plans. All the best to you!

I am going either late feb or eairly to mid march I am so excited my sister just came back from there she said they were wonderful she also said the town was very safe and the staff was excellent

Great to know! All the best to your sister and to you! When I finalize my date, I will let you know to see if we will be there at the same time.

I am getting ready to start my gastric sleeve journey.

WELCOME!

Hi -

Has anyone used Dr. Ariel Ortiz? Any feedback would be great!

Thank you,

Tami

Tami - I am a pre-surgery too. I have been denied by my insurance company and then started researching what options were available in Mexico. A bariatric surgeon who has done many procedures at a center of excellence were important to me. So, I verified Dr. Ortiz's credentials and did a lot of online research. He has a lot of information available on YouTube I have found beneficial. His Patient Coordinator Lori has answered all my questions and I feel comfortable and excited about going to Dr. Ortiz. Plus, I thought his rates were really competitive. So, I am headed to Tijuana in February!

I also read a lot of good things about Dr. Guillermo Alverez and Dr. Aceves.

Good luck and let me know who you select and when you go for surgery!

All the best -

Shelley

BCBS of Pennsylvania have denied me twice, said they don't have to offer external review because my plan is "grandfathered" and not subject to the healthcare reform laws. My BMI is high 35/low36 and I have hypertension and am on 2 meds ...although I completed EVERY step of the insurance requirements and met all requirements, I was denied becasuse my "hypertension is controlled with medication". My surgeon's office was stunned because they are on top of all the documentation requirements and have NEVER had a denial when all the requirements were met.

I'm currently working with Lindstrom Obesity Advocacy to see what my options are www.wlsappeals.com. They are VERY knowledgable. But I have been working on the denials and appeals for months.

So, I am deciding to take control and have been saving like a fiend. If I don't have a definative answer yes or no, I am on my way to MEXCIO! Then I will be in control of what I am getting for my money and when I get it.

Hey you guys,

I was diagnosed with diabetes about 5 mos. ago, which is when I started thinking of doing the sleeve. Other issues: I have serious sleep apnea, high cholestorol (on meds for this, plus the diabetes) I am 50, BMI of around 32, family history on dad's side of serious diabetes and heart disease/triple bypass-valve replacement.

Was hoping that my insurance, Kaiser would cover the vsg surgery, but they only do so with a min. of 35 BMI, even with co-morbidities. I do not want to gain weight to get coverage, I am already noticing some vision deterioration in one eye. Maybe it is not diabetes related, but it scares me enough that I really don't want make anything worse

So I am just going to pay for it myself in Mexico. The thing I am most frightened of about this is that if I have follow-up issues once I am back in the US - leaks or even more serious - Kaiser won't cover them because they didn't do the surgery. I am not sure that it is worth going bankrupt if something like that happens. Has anyone had follow up care under their State-side insurance after Mexican surgery? I am really, really worried about this and would appreciate any input.

You are very wise to take care of yourself vs. relying on your insurance company to tell you what is right for you!

I share your concern about potential complications. To try to "hedge" the liklihood of complications I am planning to address them by: 1 - having funds available to travel BACK to Mexico should a complication occur - enough money for an airline ticket and a couple of nights in a hotel. 2 - from what I understand, complications are more likely to occur if you are not following the post-op diet, so plan to follow the plan to the letter. 3 - planning to pay for a couple of extra nights in the hotel just to ensure I'm in the best shape possible before heading home. Hope that helps and you have a complication free experience!