Deegirl31

I do love Atlanta also, same here about the commute though. Lol. Ya I don’t drive in Orlando especially with the I4 Ultimate project, the construction is crazy and confusing! I will surely wave as you come through. Winter Park is beautiful, especially down town. We take the Sunrail sometimes to Winter Park when family comes to visit. I never use the site. I call them directly and leave a message and the Dr calls back directly or whom ever you are trying to reach there. The nutritionist actually gives you her person cell to text her with any questions or concerns you have regarding weight or diet. I just saw about the gas. Yes, you will have gas and it is painful, I was only in pain for about 2 days that’s it. They do encourage you to walk, walk and walk. That’s what I did and it really helped. I have had ZERO complications since the surgery. Just now dealing with the hernia complications.

I actually was shocked with the insurance, it’s not through our regular health plan, its like an add-on that my husbands company has. Every procedure they cover is based on The Dr’s recommendation and not insurance guidelines. The only requirement is our deductible has to be met. It’s really a nice benefit. I was supposed to see Dr. Gorjala but he only sees patients on certain days. I was nervous about Dr. Lytle but ended up completely at ease. A little back story, I did not want the surgery, but all of my local doctors said I needed it. My BMI was only 32 I weighed 188 and am 5’0” and had been on weight watchers after a botched hysterectomy. I had gotten up to 201. I developed a large incisional hernia and no one would fix it until I was down to my ideal weight and weight watchers and gym was not doing it fast enough. My regular insurance would not cover it because my BMI was to low, I was only borderline diabetic, and no cardiac issues or high blood pressure. I was going to file a complaint with the health insurance and our insurance advocate told me about the program. Dr. Lytle reviewed my medical records and had to convince me that my local Drs were right and that I needed to have this surgery to get the hernia fixed. I just met with a local surgeon for the hernia, through the same program and found out how bad things really are, but because I had the surgery I can be fixed. All of my large and small intestines are outside of where they are supposed to be and I have no stomach wall so they need to rebuild it. I will lose my belly button. I live in Central Florida half way between Daytona and Orlando. My next surgery will be in Orlando at ORMC. Atlanta is huge and I do not miss driving around there. Thankfully we were staying in Sandy Springs around the corner from the hospital. We did travel to Centennial Park when we were there for consult. The traffic is horrible there so I can understand your concern. Lol. I want to wish you luck with everything. It sounds like you have been through a lot yourself. I know everyone at Bariatric Innovations will take great care of you! The trip was well worth it. I wanted Dr. Lytle to fix my hernia also and he agreed to do it, but I needed to consult with a local surgeon first. If it wasn’t so far I would have gone with Dr Lytle but because of the seriousness of the hernia I decided to go with a local surgeon to avoid all the traveling.

I’m rooting for you! Keep me posted, you will do great! 🤗😊

Actually my insurance company paid for my flight and cost of the surgery. My husbands employer carries an umbrella policy for medically necessary surgeries with tops surgeons all over the United States.  Anyway, yes I needed a cardiac clearance, which was an EKG, required by Dr. Lytle. I was 2 weeks away from my 50th birthday 8/15/19. Congratulations on quitting smoking so long ago. You will love Dr. Lytle, he is easy going but open and honest. His requirements are not super strict in my opinion. 

Hi Bezy, I have extenuating circumstances so there was no medical insurance requirements because it was strictly for medical reasons. The office required the following: Testing: EKG, colonoscopy, endoscopy, psych evaluation, support group. They also give you information to watch videos online to understand the procedure and the transition. Diet: Depending on your weight at your meeting with the nutritionist, the pre-op diet (for me) was 2 weeks soft, 2 days liquid. Yours will be based on your specific situation, so it may be longer I believe. You MUST BE SMOKE FREE and they will test you, No carbonation and no caffeine. I hope this is the info you needed and it helped. They will give you a packet once you meet with the surgeon and nutritionist.

Dr. Lytle is an AMAZING Dr!! You will love him and his staff at Bariatric Innovations of Atlanta! He is kind, compassionate and very honest about everything from beginning to end! He is quick with responding to any questions you have at any time. The entire staff is friendly and helpful. They truly saved my life emotionally. I have had no problems at all getting in contact with the nutritionist, or Dr. Lytle for any follow-up care needed over the phone. They will work with your local doctors as well, being that you are out of state. I have NO complications from surgery, he is very careful and thorough. I am 6 months out. Good luck with your upcoming surgery, you are in excellent hands. I hope this helps. PS since we will be surgeon sisters, please feel free to reach out to me at any time. I’m very happy for you!

Today is surgery day! See those on the losers bench soon

Deegirl, another thing we have in common. I'm flying to Las Vegas for my surgery! Whoohoo!! Together, we got this!!!

My surgery is August 15th I am having the sleeve. The rest of this week and next is going to fly by. We are flying to Atlanta for the surgery, so I have lots going on. I have a phone pre-op this week for the hospital. Then dr pre op next Tuesday and hospital pre op next Wednesday then surgery Thursday.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! For sharing and updating your experience after surgery. I’m so exciting for you and that all has worked out well so far for you. Best of luck on the rest of your journey and positive thoughts that it’s as smooth as possible.

I know you got this! It’s interesting to read the different ways the doctors do things from pre-op to post-op. I wish you the absolute best on your surgery and will be watching and supporting you!

Hi nssmia, this is just my personal input. I am having the sleeve strictly for medical reasons. I am 50 pounds from goal, I too was on WW and I still do Walking CD’s with Leslie Sansone. It is low impact but works! The WW and exercise is just not enough to lose the weight to fix an incisional hernia, which is getting bigger. Ultimately the decision is yours, however if I did not have this issue, I have no doubt I would have lost the 50 pounds between WW, the Walk CDS and Gym. I know you can do it too! You got this! BTW I will be 50 on 8/31 my surgery date is 8/15.

That's awesome! We're like Surgery Sisters! Have you started the preop diet yet? I did and it's a killer! The only thing keeping me going is knowing what good lies ahead. Good luck!! Hey! Gosh it took forever to find your response so I could respond. Not sure how the site works. Anyway, I love that we are Sisters now and we can certainly go through this together! Yes I have started the diet, not to bad right now. Low calorie, low fat high protein for 7 days, then liquid diet for 4, the 3 days clear liquid. There has to be a way we can keep in touch easier than searching through pages of comments. Lol

Thank you! I have decided to move forward and surgery is August 15th. I am very happy with the way things are going and feel it is absolutely the best decision I could make for myself. I know in my heart it can only get better from here. Thank you for your encouraging words and best to you on your continued journey. 😊😊

Deedee12 you are kinda lucky. I have been struggling with what to buy. I have bought and returned so much to the store already and I’m 4 days in. I have to be on low calorie, low fat low carb diet for 7 days, then liquid diet for 4 then clear liquids for 3.