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gr8ful1

Gastric Bypass Patients
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Posts posted by gr8ful1

  12. Posted

    9 hours ago, tera73 said:

    Today is the day!! I have to be there at 1:15....surgery at 3:15. liquid diet was fine...didn’t start feeling hungry and cranky till yesterday. Today I do have a headache...but I didn’t sleep well last night...so I’m sure that has something to do with it. Getting more nervous....

    Woohoo! Looking forward to hearing about your progress once you are feeling up to sharing about it.

  13. Posted

    On 4/15/2018 at 6:20 PM, tera73 said:


    Yea, I was looking it up, and we have that right to choose not to be weighed. The only weight I care about is the one at Dr Fitzers office. I only had to lose 10 pounds for Dr Fitzer but my insurance required 10%...so I lost 41 pounds. 17 of that was in the last month. I think I just messed my self up...I normally have no issue at all in the bathroom area. Good news is, the milk of magnesia is working...still very bloated...but hoping the Water I’m pushing today will alleviate that by tomorrow. It was just hard looking at the scale and seeing 6 extra pounds :( I’ve been upset all day.

    41 pounds?! That's fantastic! You've got this.

    tera73 reacted to this

  14. Posted

    15 minutes ago, tera73 said:

    Just a quick question....my insurance states I can not gain during this whole process. I met my goal weight for surgery at my last apt with Suzanne. Over the past week, I’m not sure if it’s the drastic change in my diet to lose the weight or what...but I haven’t gone to the bathroom...been taking different meds to help...but my weight is up some. I go to my apt Thursday with my primary dr to get surgery clearance...during this past year, I have opted out of getting weighed at my drs office...just because I weighed in on the scale at Fitzers office and didn’t want the stress...I wonder if I can still opt out of that on Thursday? I don’t have my pre op at Fitzers office until the 26th. Just wanted your guys advice...I like only getting on one scale...lol

    Opt out if you're worried about it, and then do what you can to make sure you're down a bit at the time of your pre-op w/Fitzer. I think you'll be fine either way, though. I also have a requirement to "not gain weight during the supervised diet period," but I was up a couple of pounds at my last appointment with Suzanne, and she said I'll be ok as long as I'm at Fitzer's goal weight for me by the time of my pre-op appointment 2 weeks before my surgery date.

    tera73 reacted to this

  15. Posted

    16 hours ago, ByeFelicia said:

    What plan is GEHA with? I don't know any federal employee that has something other than Fed BCBS.

    With Fed BCBS, all I've paid is co-pays

    Psyc Eval $40

    Diet I did through my Primary Care Dr. 4 visits at $30 = $120

    Surgeon Initial Eval $40

    Cardiologist Clearance $40

    Swallow Test $0

    Total $240

    Then for the surgery, Fed BCBS covers everything except a $100 Dr. Fee and then $175 per night hospital stay, and IF I'm in the hospital more than 5 days insurance pays 100% of the hospital stay.

    I think GEHA is available in all states. There is GEHA Standard and GEHA High. I think this is similar to BCBS. The premiums are much lower than BCBS, and my co-pays for primary care are just $15 ($30 for specialists). $10 prescriptions. Great cheap insurance if you just have routine doctor visits and prescriptions. Not so great if you need to have surgery, apparently. I could switch to BCBS in open season, but I don't want to wait until next year.

  16. Posted

    I'm also a fed and I have GEHA. Any idea on total out-of-pocket costs for BCBS Federal? My out-of-pocket costs are adding up quickly, and I'm still a few months away from surgery. For example:

    - Initial surgeon consult co-pay: $30

    - Dietitian/nutritionist pre-op visits (not covered): $350

    - Psychologist eval (not covered because annual ded not met): $360

    - 6 post-op dietitian visits: $350

    - primary doctor pre-op clearance, ekg, and other testing: $?

    - final pre-op appointment w/surgeon or his PA: $30

    - 4 post-op visits w/surgeon or PA: $120

    - surgery/hospital/anesthesia costs: 15% of ~31,000 or $4600

    Total cost to me: $6000 or so.

    This seems somewhat shockingly high now that I've added it all up, and I'm not even sure my list is complete. How does BCBS Federal compare?

  17. Posted

    1 hour ago, nia24 said:

    I wish I would have found you guys before surgery! Lol. You guys are awesome. My Surgery date was April 9th. Home and resting now. I have 2 jobs so the time off is different between the two because of the type of work they are. One desk the other way more physical.

    I do have to add that this office is AMAZING!!! I actually started my process at MedStar Washington and it was the worse!!!! Night and day to Dr. Fitzer and his incredible team! So much so that my bestie who dropped me off went up to get her process started while we were waiting to get checked in for pre-op.

    No regrets!!

    I look forward to getting to know ya’ll

    Welcome to the group! We're glad to share our experiences here, and looking forward to learning from yours as well. Have you also been to either of the support groups at Reston Hospital? Those are wonderful resources, too. There is also a 'secret' Facebook group for Dr. Fitzer's support group that is pretty active.

    nia24 reacted to this

  18. Posted

    4 hours ago, tera73 said:

    My only worry at this point would be that I can’t take Water or anything with me around the students.

    This would be a major problem if it means you won't have access to Water for hours. You're not drinking while you're sleeping, you're not drinking within an hour of eating, and if you're not drinking while you're working, that only leaves a few hours per day to get in lots of water. And you can only drink a small amount at a time. Can you wear a hydration waist/backpack or something with a drinking tube? If it's a work policy issue, maybe a letter from the doctor that states you have a medical condition that requires constant access to drinking water would help.

  19. Posted

    Good news! I was in the office today for Suzanne visit #3. While I was waiting, Heather told me that my insurance company, GEHA, denied my surgery. She submitted it to the insurance company for approval several weeks ago because I had previously participated in a medical weight loss program that met all of the requirements. I completed that program about 16 months ago, however, and that is the reason for not approving my surgery. The good news is that I just need 3 more appointments with Suzanne, and Heather will resubmit to insurance. The really good news is that Heather offered me a surgery date today, which I was not expecting to happen at this stage, especially after hearing from her that it won't be right after dietitian appointment #3.

    My surgery date is 7/25. Woohoo!

    nia24, domi and tera73 reacted to this

  20. Posted

    On 4/10/2018 at 5:05 PM, tera73 said:

    I know some of you went back to work after just two weeks...what does Dr Fitzer put on your paper work as far as how long to stay out?

    I was in the office today and asked Heather how long (at a minimum) does Dr. Fitzer require patients to take off from work? She didn't give me a specific answer. Just said it depends on the type of work, and it was really up to me when I felt like returning to work. She said the only restrictions he has are 1) no driving for a week, and 2) no lifting >25# for 4 weeks. This doesn't help me tell my boss how long I'll be out, but I think I'll tentatively plan to return to work the day after my 3-week post-op visit.

    tera73 reacted to this

  21. Posted

    27 minutes ago, tera73 said:

    Hey guys! Hope you’re enjoying your Sunday! :) For those that have already had surgery, did you have to take the Bariatric surgery class with Azra at Reston? My paper has that on there, but I wasn’t sure when I should do it or what all it entailed.

    I sent Azra an e-mail asking her about that, and she sent me a link to a youtube video where she explains the logistics of surgery at Reston.

    tera73 reacted to this

  22. Posted

    20 minutes ago, tera73 said:

    Ok....the past 3 hours have been a whirlwind! I called insurance this morning and they received everything...said they would request medical records and they normally have a decision within 3 days. Imagine my surprise when Danielle calls and says that they called her and that I had paper to sign and then it would be approved!! She quickly emailed me the form and I signed it and sent it back to her...next thing I know, we are scheduling my pre op with the PA and my surgery!!! A year ago when I started this, I was totally discouraged when I found out I had to wait 12 months...and complete all these different requirements from the insurance....including losing 40 pounds! Every visit, I would see people scheduling their surgery and felt like mine was never going to happen...I go for my pre op April 26 and then my surgery is May 7 at Reston hospital. We at first were aiming for May 15 at Haymarket, but my insurance wouldn’t cover there. Now, the nerves have set it; but the excitement is through the roof! Thank you guys for all the encouragement and motivation!!

    Awesome! Is now the time when you also go to see your primary care doctor for the "pre op clearance" and tests that are to be done in the 30 days prior to surgery? Do you need to do an EKG/ECG, endoscopy, bloodwork, or other stuff?

  23. Posted

    3 hours ago, reboot said:

    I thought I would jump on the "official Dr. Fitzer thread" to say Hi. I had my initial consultation with him this week and I know I made the right choice of surgeon. Everyone there seems to be great! I really appreciate Dr. Fitzer's no B.S. style. This is going to be a LONG six-month wait to make it through the insurance requirements.....

    Welcome, reboot! I'm about 1.5 months into what will likely be a 6-month journey for me, as well. This forum is a great source of information and support. So are Dr. Fitzer's monthly support groups. Ask Heather for a list of the support group dates/times, and try to make it out if you can. There is also a 'secret' Facebook group for the support group. You'll get an invite to join that group the first time you attend a support group.

  24. Posted

    On 3/14/2018 at 9:23 PM, Roxine said:

    Also placing liquids in smaller cups reminds you to sip slowly. No gulping allowed :) With gulping not only are you taking in too much Fluid but you’re also introducing air into your pouch. And we don’t have much room in there!

    I like to take Metamucil, and it looks like this is something that a lot of folks here are taking post-op. But you've got to mix it with a glass of Water and gulp it down within seconds, otherwise the Metamucil clumps up in the glass. How is it possible to drink Metamucil post-op when you can't gulp water or take in much of it at a time? Is this something that you can't do immediately post-op, but can do after several months?

  25. Posted

    On 3/27/2018 at 12:51 PM, Roxine said:

    Ok - had my 3 week follow-up with Dr. Fitzer yesterday - everything went well. Incisions are healing nicely - verified my weight loss on their scale "YAY!" - I have to add a Calcium with Vitamin D to my regimen starting next week and follow-up again in 3 months. BP was amazing at 110/78, pulse was slow and steady at 62, no temperature. Have not had any issues with regurgitation or nausea - overall it's been a relatively easy recovery (knock on wood!)

    I will see my Primary Care Physician and get all of my labs redrawn and see how my body has reset prior to my next in-office visit. I have a call with my dietician in about 3 weeks - at that point I will begin introducing foods of my choice and off the "green sheet" at the start of week 7.

    This week i get to introduce flaky fishes and soft cooked vegetables (as well as soft fruits, hummus and other goodies). I broiled a salmon last night and made some cauliflower mash - it was AMAZING! ate about 3 ounces of salmon and just a little bit of the mash but it was so yummy. I will definitely have that again.

    Today went to lunch with a co-worker - went to Au Bon Pain - ordered a smoked salmon wasabi on a skinny bagel (extra toasted). Ate all of the smoked salmon, and about 1/4 of the top of the bagel (it was crispier!) - the flavors were incredibly delicious! It's nice to be able to eat things with seasonings and textures again. I am perfectly full and am now working on my Fluid consumption (I've started having coffee in the morning and afternoon to help break up the monotony of just water.)

    I hope you guys are doing well - check in and let us know how it's going. And we still have a few days - if you're a March Gastric Bypass Groupie *grin* - come join us!

    Roxine

    It sounds like you're doing great! It's encouraging to know that eating can still be enjoyable after WLS. I believe I've seen some cauliflower mash in the refrigerated aisle in costco, near the cheeses and cold cuts, etc.

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