dust

be persistent. if the lady isnt handling the job then as for the office manager or speak to the physician.

congrats! i just had my sleeve yesterday.. less than 2mo after i first talked to the doc. it's quite a ride and you'll have a good time! READ READ READ this forum to learn what to expect. little tips like bringing lip balm to the hospital were lifesavers for me.

same here. no more carbonated beverages. ever.

i want to thank everyone here for the great discussion, comments, and information that i used in helping make my decision. after a smooth and easy insurance approval process i am going under the knife on Wednesday for my sleeve. i'm not terribly nervous, but that might change the morning of surgery. i feel very well prepared and my wife is 100% on board to take care of me. all of the little details are covered - from sending the kids off to my parents' house the night before and night of, to a stockpile of supplies i need, to the mental preparedness. i'm ready to do this, deal with the "issues" for a couple of days, and get on track. i have big goals (maybe i should say small goals? haha) and a plan to track my progress very closely. my engineering mindset requires that i geek out on the details. furthermore, i CAN NOT WAIT to get back on the mat to continue my jiu jitsu training. after a knee injury in september of last year i haven't been able to train much, which has had quite the impact on both my mind and my physical fitness. the weight i drop in the 4-6 weeks that i'll be out of action will do nothing but help the knee situation and drive me to get back at it hard core. thanks again, and i look forward to my first post next week with a new stomach

I'm able to drink a good bit of Water now, so the dry mouth has almost gone away. I'd say I turned the corner about an hour ago, and I feel pretty normal. I'm heading home in the morning. Looking forward to a few days off to rest.

Well here I sit in the hospital bed after being sleeved this morning. I am feeling great. No has pain to speak of, and my abdominal area just feels like I've done too many sit-ups. I did have about 2min of nausea the first time I got up to walk, but that's gone now. The worst part has been the dry mouth. Originally I was going to go home today but the doc offered an overnight stay and I took it. They have better drugs and I want to put off my hour long car ride until tomorrow. Thanks to this site I was well prepared for the surgery and I am ready for the next steps. Thanks everyone and good luck to those heading down this path!!

you need to ask your insurance company. my surgeon required some testing that the insurance company didn't. if all the insurance requirements are met then you can ask them to submit, but my surgeon's office wanted his own requirements met first before they would submit. good luck, stick with it!

"mega does of vitamin d3" can be dangerous. if you decide to try it then consult with your doctor and start with no more than 10,000iu daily. i started taking d3 a while back and it made a HUGE difference in how i feel. i am holding off on all vitamins and meds until surgery (2/20) but will continue the d3 regimen as soon as I am able.

note that the nausea isn't solely related to anesthesia. remember they are removing upwards of 75% of your stomach, so the swelling and trauma adds to the effect. even if you haven't felt nauseous from anesthesia in the past the sleeve process itself might induce it. stay ahead on your meds. my surgeon told me i would have the option to take pain meds / nausea meds in the hospital every 4 hours for the duration of my stay. he mentioned that i must ask for the meds - they don't automatically deliver them. so set a timer and ask every 4 hours to make sure it stays in your system and you shouldn't have any issues.

that's great advice and i had already thought about that. i mentioned the engineering mindset - i am always ready with a contingency and a margin of error.. managing big, complex projects will ruin you when it comes to spontaneity, that's for sure. being adaptive is the key to success.

emend - that's the one they are going to push IV. couldn't remember the name of it.

anti nausea meds are amazing these days. i'm going in on wednesday the 20th for surgery, so i don't speak with direct experience. my mother always has bad reactions to anesthesia and phenergan, zofran, and particularly the scopolamine patch have always worked wonders for her. my doc is giving an IV anti nausea med starting as soon as they poke me and will stick the scopolamine patch on my ear at some point before surgery. he prescribed zofran sublinguals for afterward. worst thing they can do is say no if you ask!

id suggest counseling after surgery - both for you alone and for you and your husband together.

well here we go! had my pre-op with the doctor all day yesterday. the subject matter was very interesting, as it was more specific to what I'll face at the hospital, right after surgery, and for the next 4-5 weeks. i also visited with the anesthesiologist. a week from tomorrow is the big day. surgery is scheduled for 9am. i'm ready, my wife is ready, and i'm at peace. i can't wait to be on the other side of this!

hi everyone! as made obvious by the topic, i am a new member headed down the WLS road. i'll keep it short and sweet. i've always struggled with my weight. my mother is overweight and my situation is due to learned behavior. i am actually somewhat athletic, training and competing in brazilian jiu jitsu on a top performing team. but at 34 years old losing weight isnt getting any easier. i did the low carb crash diet thing and it worked great, but the pounds came back along with some new friends... my knees and back take a lot of punishment on the mat. a recent, somewhat serious knee injury has slowed me down and made me think more about the future. it's time for some extra help. i have 2 small kids (5 and 6 as of this post) and a beautiful, healthy wife who i want to be around for. not only that, but i want to be a good example of health and vigor for my children. i could keep trying the old fashioned way and failing or i could go the WLS route and make a permanent change. i'm not 100% sold yet, but i have a good level of comfort with my doctor and feel that he will be give me the information my wife and i need to make a good decision. i looked into WLS a few years ago but was put off by the cost. my employer at that time excluded all bariatric care, and i wasn't in a position to afford surgery. a recent change in employers, however, came with amazing insurance benefits which cover all bariatric care and surgery at 100% with no deductible. they don't require any pre surgery "work", so no 6 month doctor supervised diet or any of that. my first appointment is this thursday, 12/13. we'll see how it goes. in the meantime, thanks for all the great, honest posts here. i know it's not easy, that it's not a silver bullet to solve my problems, and i am glad to draw from your experiences while making my decision.

thanks everyone for the input. i talked to my team yesterday and they are prepped for me to take another day or two in case i need it.

well this has moved FAST. i was just approved on 2/5. the scheduler called today. i have another pre-op class and meeting on Monday, 2/11. surgery is scheduled for 2/20, follow up at the surgeon's office on 2/28. so less than 2mo from first visit to surgery. woop! wish me luck!!

well i found out that as of this morning i am approved! the scheduler is calling tomorrow to get me set up. wow.

the feather blades are a little bit aggressive.. i admit i nicked myself a bit when i started with them, but now it's fine. i use a combination of things for the soap / oil.. every man jack unscented shave cream is awesome. i use a tweezerman brush with your basic soap in a cup you get at CVS - does a great job. i also have some sandalwood shaving soap, unknown brand, that my parents gave me that works well. if you've never tried a pre-shave oil, then you're missing out! it's awesome and i use it once or twice a week to keep the skin nice. the Art of Shaving brand lemon oil is killer.

nice i've been shaving with a merkur for a while now myself. i love it. what kind of blades do you use? i like feather brand. took me a while to find some that i really liked. they're cheapest on amazon.

i disagree strongly with this statement. the stress and health impact of high amounts of credit card debt is intense. sure, money is just money, but if you have a family that relies on you then you have to be smart. taking care of your weight is a fantastic move, but saddling your family with debt to do so can have serious consequences. if you are up to date on your bills and can handle the minimum payments and a small "debt snowball" then go for it. otherwise get your finances in order before you do it. for what it's worth, i have 2 kids in an expensive private school which precludes my ability to self pay. i was interested in surgery a few years ago but it wasn't covered by my insurer. i changed employers and, again, it wasn't covered. after another change in employers it's covered 100% and i'm currently waiting on approval. if i had paid out of pocket or run up my credit card then it would impact my ability to care for the kids. i'm not saying don't do it - i'm saying you should evaluate your options, run the numbers, and see if it makes sense right now.

alright.. all of my pre-op requirements have been met, and the surgeon's office is faxing my clinicals to the insurance company today. i have requested clarification regarding this - does it mean i'm fully submitted to insurance, or are there more hurdles to jump? either way, i am getting close. my insurance company told me they have a 5-10 day approval process. i am hoping that today's submission is the complete package and i'll have a determination by 2/7. i'm looking forward to being a little more trim on my birthday in late may this year

you need to pay the expediting fee for your passport / passport card.. last i heard they are super backed up.

this kind of post is inspiring for pre-oppers like me congrats!

congrats!!! hope to join you soon!