WitchySar

This is so very true. A good friend of mine went in for a routine surgery on September 5th (not WLS). She almost died and is still in the ICU over 2 weeks later. This happened at a very good hospital here in the states. Just because a surgery happens in the US doesn't mean it's going to go perfectly. And just because a surgery happens in Mexico doesn't mean it's going to go badly.

Have you heard anything yet?

I agree with @OutsideMatchInside. If you're an adult then what does it matter what they think? Do what you need to do for your health.

Currently I'm still up in the air as to whether or not I'll be able to have the surgery before the end of the year. My appointment with the surgeon went well but it feels like everything since then has been a struggle. * I have bipolar so the surgeon required a form be filled out from my therapist and psychiatrist. Well the clinic I go to wont' allow them to fill anything out. Nor are they allowed to talk to anyone over the phone about it. I've been working with the counselor at the surgeon's office to try and figure something out. I'm hopeful that we can work around it. * Medicaid requires a 6 month supervised diet. I started this in June with my primary, and did a weigh in in July with her as well. My surgeon's office has 6 months of classes which they prefer and I went to the one in August. Unfortunately due to finances I couldn't go in September so they said I could go back to my primary again. Cool. But then they told me there is a specific form they need filled out from the primary in order to count the visit. Oh, and I'll need that form filled out for my June and July visits as well. Hmm, could have told me that before, but okay. No big deal. I took the form in, we filled them out, and my primary signed off on all three. I contacted the surgeon's office to find out if I could scan them and email the forms. They said sure, but also make sure I include the chart notes from the visits. WHAT? Um, why did they not tell me this before too? So now I have to try and get the chart notes too and send everything in. If they accept it then I will have 4 months of my 6 month supervised diet completed. Which means I only have to do October and November, and then they can try to get insurance approval. * I will have new insurance starting January 1st. Cigna, with a $6500 deductible, after which they will only pay 80%. So if everything else doesn't fall in place then there is zero chance that I can afford to have the surgery in the US. I'm sorry you had a bad experience in Mexico. Seems like there can be a wide range of care available. Believe me though, I am researching the crap out of everything, and feel confident that the surgeon I've chosen in Mexico will be just as competent as any I could find here in the US. I still don't WANT to go to Mexico though. I do not like the idea of having to travel just a few days after surgery. That sounds like a nightmare to me.

Does you insurance require a history showing your BMI as over 40? Some require like a 2 year history, others do not. If yours doesn't then I would suggest gaining weight. Doesn't sound like you need to gain too much, so head to a buffet, eat what you like, wear heavy clothes to the weigh in, put rocks in your pockets... whatever it takes to meet their magic number.

Is that the surgeon's goal or the insurance goal? A lot really depends on your insurance's requirements. Some insurance counts the starting weight and that's what they base approval on, some insurance requires that you not drop below 40 BMI period. I would talk to your surgeon's office and explain your concerns. They have likely worked with your insurance plan before and will know if this is going to cause a problem.

Weight has no bearing on thyroid function, though thyroid function can have a bearing on weight. Make sure your thyroid is checked regularly during your weight loss and ensure you're on the optimal dose (may need to look around for a doc that tests more than just TSH) or it can cause your weight loss to slow down, even after surgery.

Yay!

Be careful of hidden carbs too. Certain cheese can have more carbs than others, some veggies are higher carb too. And most yogurt is pretty high carb too. Carbs can sneak up on you and sabotage your efforts. Low carb works great for me but only if I keep my carbs really low. I have to stay under 30 net carbs a day (preferably under 20) or the weight doesn't budge for me.

How much Water are you drinking in a day? If you don't get in enough your body will hold on to it and the weight will be nearly impossible to lose. The equation I've been advised to use if to take your current weight and multiply by .5 and that will be the amount of ounces you need in a day. For example: 300 pounds (I have no idea how much you weight) 300 x .5 = 150 ounces

Did you weigh yourself at the same time of day wearing the same things? Weight can fluctuate a lot so I find it most accurate to weigh myself on the same scale, positioned on the floor the same, at the same time of day (immediately when I wake up so it's not affected by what I eat that day), with nothing on (I don't care what my clothes weigh, I care what I weigh). If I weigh myself at home and then on the scale at the gym there is often an 8 pound difference. So it all matters. Congrats on your clothes fitting better and feeling better too!

7 weeks of liquids only? If I had been in your place I'd have been immediately looking for another surgeon. What was his reasoning for requiring such a long liquids phase? Like Shaydi said, that sounds cruel.

Care to share what this workout involves?

You're definitely not the only one. I am terrified at the idea of looking like I'm melting. I love being a fat woman and if it wasn't for my health I wouldn't do this. I'm sexy as hell and I don't want to lose that. I want to be able to look sexy naked, not just in clothes, after losing weight. But I have no choice in this anymore, my health plummeted in the last couple years so I can't stay big anymore. I love water too so I always stay hydrated but like was said, if your skin is stretched out, it's stretched out. I'm hoping that my new insurance I get next year will pay for some skin removal if I have rashes. I can't believe I'm hoping to get rashes! Everything else I'll need plastic surgery on. I have NO idea how I'll pay for it, but it's either that or be miserable. It's okay for your looks to be important to you, and don't let anyone make you feel bad for worrying about it!

I suppose that is true. Everyone is different. For me calories weren't a concern and I lost well without restricting them. But I also didn't have the overeating problem that many here do have.

When eating very low carb (20 or under) calories aren't really a concern. That's one of the appeals of low carb. I lost over 100 pounds on low carb before while eating over 2000 calories a day. There are other reasons to watch out for too much cheese though. On Atkins phase one it recommends no more than 3-4 ounces of cheese a day. http://sa.atkins.com/new-atkins/the-program/phase-1-induction.html

I didn't read the pictures but it sounds like she wants you to follow a strict low carb diet. That's a good choice. It's the only way I've ever been able to lose weight actually. Reading labels is very important though, even with cheese. Some processed cheese will actually have some carbs in them. Some isn't a problem, but if you eat too much of it they do add up quickly. Eat lots of meat, cheese in general is good but be careful how much because of hidden carbs. Stay away from starches and grains. Some veggies that are good on low carb are broccoli, cauliflower, green Beans, spinach, lettuce, zucchini, cabbage, and green peppers. Definitely stay away from rice, potatoes, things like that. Compared to a lot of other diets, especially the non-diet that most of us used to eat (cheap, junky foods), it is definitely more expensive. And being unable to plan well will make it more so. But it can be very successful at weight loss, so if you stick with it I feel confident that you'll lose the weight needed, and more.

I just finished reading this thread and WOW, what a wild ride this was! I know quite a few people who have had WLS. Most recently the sleeve but the ones who had it years ago had the bypass. I know at least a couple of them 100% regret the surgery even now, MANY years later (and when I say many, I mean MANY... one women had the surgery about 11 years ago). So is it possible to regret WLS? Yeah, I believe it is. Some people regret it right after surgery and then change their minds over time. Some people don't. The OP seems convinced she will never not regret it. Well I'm not her, who am I to say she's wrong? I hope she doesn't always regret it, but that's not my call to make. As one who hasn't yet had surgery I want to read about both the good and the bad. Threads telling about complications and regrets are just as valuable as threads telling how awesome and life changing WLS is. So for that, thank you for this thread. Also thank you for the entertainment. This was a hell of a read.

I don't know if it varies by state. I have Medicaid and I'm going for the sleeve. Here in Colorado it's covered for BMI above 35 with sepcific comorbidities, and above 40 without one. According to the info I have under 40 BMI has to have one of the following: 1. Severe cardiac disease 2. Type 2 diabetes 3. Obstructive sleep apnea or other respiratory disease, such as chronic asthma 4. Pseudo-tumor cerebri 5. Hypertension 6. Hyperlipidemia 7. severe joint or disc disease that interferes with daily functioning 8. Intertriginous soft-tissue infections, nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, stress urinary incontinence, recurrent or persistent venous stasis disease, or significant impairment in Activities of Daily Living (ADL).

Had my appointment with my PCP and I was down another 10 lbs. Thank you for the snack ideas. My dieititian wants me to eat 3 meals and 3 Snacks a day which I admit I've been having trouble getting all that in. Definitely need to work on my head. It's hard for me to feel right eating so much through out the day. I discussed this with my PCP and she was very helpful actually. Thanks for all the support.

I already have a therapist and believe me this will be discussed at my next appointment. I was doing fine until my PCP said 5 simple words. Words that most anyone else would love to hear, but instead for me it was doom. "I'm so proud of you." Ever since I was a kid the moment someone would tell me they were proud of me I instantly would do ANYTHING to never disappoint them. And I'm losing weight okay right now. I will easily reach the 10 pounds lost that my surgeon wants. He wants it by December, I'll probably have it by the weigh in on the 9th. I wish someone would just say "Not bad." instead of telling me they're proud of me. As for my current diet, I'm not on a low calorie diet. I'm on a low carb/high fat/moderate Protein diet. I try to stay under 20 net carbs a day, okay with going up to 30. Today I've eaten 7 so I definitely have room for something else to eat. I've already done all my tricks for combating head hunger. - Read a book - Put away laundry - Watch a show - Watch my fish - Drink more Water - Play a video game - Text a friend And through out it all the hunger has remained. That tells me I'm actually hungry. I just am having a hard time telling myself that it's not going to disappoint anyone if I do eat something. I have a lot of food allergies so I lot of the easy go-to Snacks I can't have. Like Peanut Butter or nuts (as an example, I'm allergic to a lot more than that). And yogurt is far too high in carbs, my PCP wants me to stay away from it and dairy as much as possible. I'd love some other snack ideas though.

***I just realized where I posted this. This probably isn't the right section for this. Sorry.*** I can not shake the feeling of hunger tonight. I have tried all my tricks for head hunger and still the feeling persists, including stomach rumblings. My PCP put me on a low carb diet and I’ve only eaten 7 net carbs tonight so I have some wiggle room (try not to go over 20 net), but I hate the thought of eating more. I feel like I’m failing if I do. I’m not, right? I’m just hungry and there’s nothing wrong with eating when actually hungry. Ugh, this stupid diet and having weight loss goals that I have to meet for someone else is messing with my head. When I lost weight before on my own if I was hungry I would eat something and not worry about. I was the only one concerned with my goals, no one else would be disappointed in me. I lost well over 100 lbs that way. This time though since it’s monitored by my PCP and my surgeon I feel terrified about putting anything in my mouth. I have a weigh in with my PCP on the 3rd and one with my surgeon on the 9th. I'm so scared of letting them down or having them be disappointed that I didn't lose enough. My surgeon said he would like to see me lose 10 pounds before surgery. That's it. It's not a hard goal, I know that, and yet I'm so worried about not losing at every weigh in. Has anyone else felt like this? I'm so afraid of failing, I hate being monitored by other people. I've always had a problem with disappointing people (I blame my childhood) and I feel like this is playing right into that.

So you had to get approved before you could do your six months? Ah, that's a little different from mine. I have to do the 6 months first and then toward the end the surgeon submits to insurance for surgery approval. I'm hoping December.

How come you can't have the surgery until next June?

Caramel is by far my favorite Premier Protein flavor. I hated the chocolate.