Apple1

Thank you so much for your kind words and advice. I have no doubt that given enough time I will gain the weight back. That has been the case for over 4 years now. That is one of the reasons I don't want to wait too long. I want to get this done while I still have the momentum going in the right direction so to speak. I have already started to see a pound or 2 creeping back... it is so frustrating!!

I agree. I am really hopeful that my diabetes will go into remission if I have the surgery. Do you have a date yet for your surgery?

Thank you for posting your opinion. My husband fully supports whatever decision I make and that helps so much. I am going to check into Dr. Illan because I have read so many good things about him and his team. Have you chosen a Dr. yet?

Thank you so much for relaying your story. The outcome you have had is what I would hope for. I have only had diabetes for 3 years, but I am progressing fast and this scares me. I think stopping this progressing and possibly getting off all meds is my main reason for wanting to get the surgery without a long delay. Even if I somehow managed through some miracle to get my insurance to cover the surgery, it would still be over a year before I could meet all of the pre-authorization requirements. I have a lot to think about.

Thank you for your help. I have been reading this forum about people that have been successful in Mexico. I am sure there are those that have not been happy or had complications also. It is a hard decision. I am going to ask my endo doc at my next appt. for advice.

Thank you for posting the video. Your process for deciding sounded a little like some of my thoughts. I am not morbidly obese, but I already have weight related health issues and I am only 48. Diabetes and heart disease run in my family and I really need to stop the progression now. I would much prefer to have the surgery closer to home but I don't have the $20-25 thousand. I am still undecided as to what I should do. I know a few people that have had surgery in Mexico and were very satisfied with the care they received. They did not have WLS so I am researching now to see if I can find a surgeon that I would be comfortable with. I could just wait for the inevitable weight gain back to a BMI of 35, but that also sounds crazy to me. My current changes to my diet should help me by successful with WLS and I don't want to go backward.

I noticed on the side bar in my post it says my location is Alabama. That is not true. I never said where I am from when I joined. I can't seem to figure out how to change that. Can anyone help me with that? Thanks.

This is my first post. I will try not to write a book. If this is in the wrong forum I apologize. I have been researching the gastric sleeve surgery for a while now. At my last doctor appointment in December, with my endocrinologist, he suggested that it could be an option for me because I have uncontrolled type 2 diabetes. To be honest I dismissed it right away because I was embarrassed that I would even qualify for weight loss surgery. At that time I weighed 248 BMI 36.5 and my A!C was 11.2. Since then I have been doing my best to eat low carb and get my diabetes under control. I also have hashimotos thyroid and this makes losing weight even harder. I have managed to lose 22 pounds in the past 4 months and have hit a wall. I always hit a wall and I am tired of being frustrated. I have lost and gained the same 25-30 pounds for the past 6 years and added dealing with type 2 diabetes 3 years ago. I am already taking metformin and Victoza and my doctor said if I can't get my A1c down insulin is my nest step. My ideal weight is 145 and I feel like I will never get there on my own. Am I crazy to be thinking about going to Mexico to have gastric sleeve surgery? My current BMI is 32 with the 22 pounds I lost so my insurance won't cover the surgery. They said I have to have at least 35 BMI and then with my type 2 they would approve me. I am not going to gain weight just to qualify for surgery. I have made some progress on my own, but I really want the help that this surgery could give me as well as the likely-hood that my diabetes would improve greatly. I am looking for advice from anyone in a similar situation that chose surgery. Are you happy with your decision? Thank you.