WitchySar

I thought I had to have a passport to get in and out of Mexico, but according to the Team MX page it says, under what to pack, "State issued photo ID and original certified copy of your birth certificate if you have no passport." So do I not need a passport after all? I'd love to not have to have another expense on top of everything else.

This was to be my first appointment with the surgeon's office. The 21st was the absolute soonest they could get me in. I made the appointment on June 3rd. The first appointment is a meeting with the surgeon, dietitian, and counselor so they only do them on certain days because the appointments take about 3 hours. Because of my husband's work schedule I'm even more limited (he has rotating days off). The 21st worked out perfectly. *sigh* This was the closest medicaid surgeon I could find that could get me in before September. One wouldn't even talk to me until I did 6 months with my PCP first. My county doesn't have dedicated case workers. You call a call center number, stay on hold for literally an hour or more, and then talk to a person who can only give you limited info. The whole process here is messed up. I just feel so defeated. It's like every step I take there is something there trying to push me off the path. I don't really have anyone else who can make the calls for me. There's my husband but he's not so good with calling doctor's offices. I checked the ACA marketplace and there is nothing we can afford. I'm going to have to wait until my husband is hired on permanently and then get on whatever insurance he gets through there (he thinks it's Cigna) but I don't know when that will be, or if it'll cover WLS at all. I know I just need to wait and call the surgeon's office tomorrow and see what happens. I'm just so frustrated right now I want to cry.

You're going to need to find the specifics for your insurance. Some insurance requires a BMI over a certain point for a certain number of years, and dipping under that BMI could cause your insurance to deny you. Some insurances are a lot less strict.

I'm at the point where I'm feeling like this surgery just isn't meant to be. I just want to give up, but I really really don't. 1. I am losing medicaid at the end of the year. This is definite. I may or may not have other insurance by then, no way of knowing for a while now. There is (was) a slim chance I could get the surgery done in December IF all the stars aligned up just right (already had two weigh ins with my PCP, so if those counted I might be able to get in by December if the surgeon's office accepted those weigh ins. 2. I was supposed to meet with the surgeon, dietitian, and counselor on July 21st and get everything started. Got an email today that they have to reschedule me. I have to call tomorrow to find out when. 3. I was already considering going to Mexico with my tax refund if I had to, but I don't want to do this. I need my tax refund for other bills. But now I may have to do this anyway. 4. I'm having trouble getting info about how everything works for surgery in Mexico. I have severe anxiety and can't make phone calls. But I get one line answers in email. I'm frustrated. I'm pretty sure I want to use Dr. Illan but I need more info. I don't even know yet how much it would cost at my BMI. He's already talking about needing a $500 deposit but I'm not doing that blindly and I just can't get any answers. I'm frustrated and sad and crying and I don't want to give up but I feel like everything is against me. *sigh*

Well my first appointment apparently has to be reschedule. So I won't be going on July 21st. I'm so sad right now.

I'm glad I found this thread. I have Hashimoto's and fully expect to not lose weight as fast as some others when I finally get the surgery. I was diagnosed with hypo about 18 years ago, and diagnosed with Hashi's about 7 years ago. Finally everything made sense, ya know? Nice to connect with others going through the same.

I'm in Colorado and hoping to use my insurance. I have medicaid through the end of the year so I'm hoping to be able to get it done in time. I've been seeing my PCP to start my medically supervised diet so if they will count my two weigh ins with her then I MIGHT be able to get it done in December. If not then I'm probably going to have to go to Mexico and pay for it with my tax refund.

Has anyone here actually gone through the company called Mexico Bariatric Services though? I'd like to hear more about them too. Ignore the link that comes up when I type Mexico... that's not the place I'm asking about.

I already joined that Facebook group actually. I'll probably end up going with Dr. Illan but I want to be sure I do all my research first, just in case I find someone I like better.

Hmm, I could have sworn I posted this last night but I was a little out of it on three klonopin because of fireworks, so maybe I just imagined it. Has anyone here gone through Mexico Bariatric Services? I am trying to research different places before making a decision. This place has an offer that includes airfare, which sounds amazing. I've already started the process with Bill Yanez with BariatricPal Team MX, but I don't want to just go with the first place I look at. I'd love to hear some info about Mexico Bariatric Services, good or bad. Thanks.

I'd heard of this. The theory I heard is that when you are obese you have fat pads on the bottom of your feet. As you lose weight you lose those fat pads too. It contributes to the change in shoe size, and also can affect height too.

Oh this is making me wish I wasn't allergic to peanuts!

I think I have an alt on Argent Dawn. My main is a Night Elf Resto Druid.

Thank you for the info. It's looking more and more like I'm going to be losing medicaid right before I finish the requirements for the surgery, so I'm definitely looking more into this. How long did it take to get the surgery, once you made your decision? How did you get started with the process? Is it done online? I have anxiety and can't do phone calls.

LOL I, too, am a geeky pagan. @CHM... Alliance or Horde? What server? I'm Alliance on Doomhammer.

Surely I can't be the only one.

I haven't had WLS yet but I did have my gallbladder out laproscopically last year. I was told that I could sleep any way I wanted, as long as it didn't hurt. Pain was the key. If a position hurt I was told to avoid it since that was my bodies way of saying that was a bad idea.

Three weeks left until I meet my surgeon, the psych, and the dietitian. I'm so excited and nervous. The days are just crawling by. I feel like I'm going to explode before July 21st gets here.

Thank you all for the different perspectives. I agree it's a personal decision for each person but hearing how different people came to their decisions is very helpful.

How did you decide who you were going to tell about your WLS? So far my husband knows (obviously), one of my best friends, and another really good friend. That's it. When I first made the decision to have the surgery I was sure I'd tell everyone, but now... I'm not sure. I keep going back and forth on who to tell. I have a couple friends locally that I'm considering telling since they'll know I'm having surgery (we're in a pagan group together so it's going to be obvious if I miss ritual for appointments and then for surgery) but I find I'm so nervous. I'll also be telling my birth mom since she also had WLS in the past and I know she'll be supportive. Not sure about my half-brother and half-sister though, though I believe at least my sister was supportive of my mom's surgery. So many factors to consider. Argh! How did you decide?

My gallbladder removal was done using just 4 tiny incisions, not a full open surgery. I didn't really have any gas pains, so I was lucky there. Hopefully I'll be as lucky with WLS.

10-14 days isn't so bad. Hopefully I'll be lucky and it won't take longer. If I get really lucky maybe I can have my surgery this January. That would be perfect. I'll ask about the robotic surgery. I'm pretty sure my surgeon offers it as an option. I had my gallbladder out last year and the pain after surgery was horrible. I couldn't even stand up straight for over 2 weeks. I really wasn't looking forward to going through that again.

I'm glad to meet someone else who has had the surgery with medicaid in Colorado. How long did the approval process take once you were done with the nutrition classes? I've chosen Dr Long in Parker at the Bariatric and Metabolic Center.

I don't eat pork rinds like chips but I do crunch them up and use them as a replacement to flour for breading things like chicken. Tasty.

Hi there! I live in Colorado, but I'm down in Pueblo. I have my first appointment with my surgeon on July 21st in Parker.