BAA624

I was 10 years post-op on 9/9/23. I am up about 20 pounds from my lowest weight and working back to basics to get my weight back down! I'm almost 40 and I don't know if I will get back DOWN down, but even getting back into the 170s, I felt much better. The good news is that the diabetes, high blood pressure, snoring, etc. are all still in remission.

I was 10 years post-op on 9/9/23. I am up about 20 pounds from my lowest weight and working back to basics to get my weight back down! I'm almost 40 and I don't know if I will get back DOWN down, but even getting back into the 170s, I felt much better. The good news is that the diabetes, high blood pressure, snoring, etc. are all still in remission.

I was able to receive partial insurance coverage for the panniculectomy portion of my Tummy Tuck. Essentially, my plastic surgeon's office submitted everything to my insurance company (documents, photos, notes from the surgeon, etc.) and it WAS denied the first time. He's awesome though and he actually did a peer-to-peer review for me; after that, Medical Mutual did cover the panniculectomy, and I paid the additional portion out of pocket for the conversion to a full tummy tuck. My experience (though it may be quite different from others' experience) was this: my plastic surgeon told me in our first consult that he rarely does just a panniculectomy for a bariatric patient. He explained that if there were just minimal apron skin to be removed, it might be sufficient. For my case though, he was very honest and said to me 'If I just do a panniculectomy for you, you are not going to be happy with the results.' He was right and I went with the full abdominoplasty.

I’m 9 years post-op and this still happens! I was in a meeting last week and it was completely silent, except for my rumbly grumbly tummy; I actually apologized to the woman sitting next to me because it was so loud! 😂

Good Morning:
I just wanted to get some feedback in case anyone else has experienced this (I'm quite sure some have). My last bariatric follow-up was fine. He told me my numbers were good and to keep it up. This week, I had a visit with my new primary care doctor. My previous PCP retired after 15 years (which I was very sad about-her retirement was unexpected). I was with her before & after my RNY, and she was very knowledgeable about everything related to the surgery.
When I went to the new PCP this week, after he reviewed my numbers (BP was a little high-I was told to stop taking my birth control because it can cause high blood pressure for woman over 35), he looked at my weight and advised me to lose more weight, which could help with my BP. I wanted to go on the defensive but did not. My BMI stays around 28-29, and that is after having skin removal on my entire body. I wear size 6-8 jeans and small to medium in pants. I honestly don't know where the additional weight could be lost lol.
My question is: how does everyone else handle this with a medical provider when it's encountered? I wanted to tell him that I used to weigh 311 pounds, so my weight now is considerably better.

I agree with what others have said. My plastic surgeon did pulsed dye laser treatment for my scars after my thigh and arm lifts. We talked about microneedling but honestly, I don't know its effectiveness for improving skin laxity. I have had a standard microneedling treatment done by my dermatologist for acne scarring, but for me, I personally saw better results with the laser treatments.

I agree with what others have said. My plastic surgeon did pulsed dye laser treatment for my scars after my thigh and arm lifts. We talked about microneedling but honestly, I don't know its effectiveness for improving skin laxity. I have had a standard microneedling treatment done by my dermatologist for acne scarring, but for me, I personally saw better results with the laser treatments.

I thought the plastic surgeon who has done all of my skin removal surgeries was making this up lol...
I had 19.2 pounds of skin removed from my abdominal and mons area! Now, contrary to what may be some people's experience, that has NEVER been reflected on the scale. Somehow, my weight actually stayed around the same, maybe slightly less. Pretty weird!

Thank you so much for posting this! Wow. What a knowledgeable bariatric surgeon. He even said 27-29 for BMI. I really appreciated hearing him explain that ‘ideal weight’ is sometimes just not the goal for us bariatric folks. At a BMI of under 25, I think personally I would look sickly.

Another vote in favor of a new doctor. He seems like the type who's going to default to "lose weight" as the answer to anything and you don't want to find yourself six months into fighting him to get him to take some seriously while he's insisting you just need to lose weight to fix your compound fracture.
If you've never seen this video, I found it to be a really great explanation for why the best weight for a bariatric patient will almost never be the "ideal" weight according to the BMI chart:

Thank you everyone. That’s a really good point that was made, whether or not he even looked at my records. It is certainly frustrating that doctors just seem hyper focused on one measure. I am giving thought to moseying on down the road to another doctor. And, my husband had the snip, so I was able to stop the pill and hopefully my BP continues to go back to normal. He also reminds me that BMI is not an accurate measure of total body composition. 😊

Good Morning:
I just wanted to get some feedback in case anyone else has experienced this (I'm quite sure some have). My last bariatric follow-up was fine. He told me my numbers were good and to keep it up. This week, I had a visit with my new primary care doctor. My previous PCP retired after 15 years (which I was very sad about-her retirement was unexpected). I was with her before & after my RNY, and she was very knowledgeable about everything related to the surgery.
When I went to the new PCP this week, after he reviewed my numbers (BP was a little high-I was told to stop taking my birth control because it can cause high blood pressure for woman over 35), he looked at my weight and advised me to lose more weight, which could help with my BP. I wanted to go on the defensive but did not. My BMI stays around 28-29, and that is after having skin removal on my entire body. I wear size 6-8 jeans and small to medium in pants. I honestly don't know where the additional weight could be lost lol.
My question is: how does everyone else handle this with a medical provider when it's encountered? I wanted to tell him that I used to weigh 311 pounds, so my weight now is considerably better.

Thank you everyone. That’s a really good point that was made, whether or not he even looked at my records. It is certainly frustrating that doctors just seem hyper focused on one measure. I am giving thought to moseying on down the road to another doctor. And, my husband had the snip, so I was able to stop the pill and hopefully my BP continues to go back to normal. He also reminds me that BMI is not an accurate measure of total body composition. 😊

Thank you everyone. That’s a really good point that was made, whether or not he even looked at my records. It is certainly frustrating that doctors just seem hyper focused on one measure. I am giving thought to moseying on down the road to another doctor. And, my husband had the snip, so I was able to stop the pill and hopefully my BP continues to go back to normal. He also reminds me that BMI is not an accurate measure of total body composition. 😊

Thank you everyone. That’s a really good point that was made, whether or not he even looked at my records. It is certainly frustrating that doctors just seem hyper focused on one measure. I am giving thought to moseying on down the road to another doctor. And, my husband had the snip, so I was able to stop the pill and hopefully my BP continues to go back to normal. He also reminds me that BMI is not an accurate measure of total body composition. 😊

Thank you everyone. That’s a really good point that was made, whether or not he even looked at my records. It is certainly frustrating that doctors just seem hyper focused on one measure. I am giving thought to moseying on down the road to another doctor. And, my husband had the snip, so I was able to stop the pill and hopefully my BP continues to go back to normal. He also reminds me that BMI is not an accurate measure of total body composition. 😊

Good Morning:
I just wanted to get some feedback in case anyone else has experienced this (I'm quite sure some have). My last bariatric follow-up was fine. He told me my numbers were good and to keep it up. This week, I had a visit with my new primary care doctor. My previous PCP retired after 15 years (which I was very sad about-her retirement was unexpected). I was with her before & after my RNY, and she was very knowledgeable about everything related to the surgery.
When I went to the new PCP this week, after he reviewed my numbers (BP was a little high-I was told to stop taking my birth control because it can cause high blood pressure for woman over 35), he looked at my weight and advised me to lose more weight, which could help with my BP. I wanted to go on the defensive but did not. My BMI stays around 28-29, and that is after having skin removal on my entire body. I wear size 6-8 jeans and small to medium in pants. I honestly don't know where the additional weight could be lost lol.
My question is: how does everyone else handle this with a medical provider when it's encountered? I wanted to tell him that I used to weigh 311 pounds, so my weight now is considerably better.

Sure, I paid about $6900 after my insurance paid for the panniculectomy. That was the out of pocket portion to convert to a full Tummy Tuck. I paid my deductible and coinsurance for the insurance approved portion (my deductible was $400).

In total, all of the skin removal (tummy tuck, arm lift, thigh lift, and liposuction of the back and neck/chin) was around $28,000.

No, no diabetes medication since about three months after my surgery. I wonder if she was just cranky that day haha. 😆

Hi all! I’ve been reading a few posts here and there from folks who are many years out from surgery and now I am curious too: how much of a portion in one meal are other RNYers able to eat? I’m 9 years post-op. Some days vary. Usually, I notice more that my appetite is still lower. However, I’m able to eat, say, a small turkey wrap and a small side dish, and not feel much restriction. The last time I felt stuffed was unintentional: I ate too many raw baby carrots and was miserable for hours!

So basically, have others noticed with meals that over time, the restricted feeling that was so common in the beginning, just isn’t there as much?

Hi all! I’ve been reading a few posts here and there from folks who are many years out from surgery and now I am curious too: how much of a portion in one meal are other RNYers able to eat? I’m 9 years post-op. Some days vary. Usually, I notice more that my appetite is still lower. However, I’m able to eat, say, a small turkey wrap and a small side dish, and not feel much restriction. The last time I felt stuffed was unintentional: I ate too many raw baby carrots and was miserable for hours!

So basically, have others noticed with meals that over time, the restricted feeling that was so common in the beginning, just isn’t there as much?

I’m 9 years out from RNY. I will mimic what a couple other people have said. While I do eat ‘mini’ meals still, I also could order a small sized appetizer or an entree and eat one half of it and leave the rest. I can also eat most of a small sized bowl at Bibibop or similar places that have the make your own bowls. And some days are weird. Today, I had a small lean ground beef patty and a small side salad. Some days I can eat more and other days I am barely hungry. I heard someone say at a seminar years ago that years out from surgery, RNY patients ‘eat the same sized portions as most thin people.’ Not sure if that’s true but it makes sense. 😊

I’m 9 years out from RNY. I will mimic what a couple other people have said. While I do eat ‘mini’ meals still, I also could order a small sized appetizer or an entree and eat one half of it and leave the rest. I can also eat most of a small sized bowl at Bibibop or similar places that have the make your own bowls. And some days are weird. Today, I had a small lean ground beef patty and a small side salad. Some days I can eat more and other days I am barely hungry. I heard someone say at a seminar years ago that years out from surgery, RNY patients ‘eat the same sized portions as most thin people.’ Not sure if that’s true but it makes sense. 😊

Sure, I paid about $6900 after my insurance paid for the panniculectomy. That was the out of pocket portion to convert to a full Tummy Tuck. I paid my deductible and coinsurance for the insurance approved portion (my deductible was $400).

In total, all of the skin removal (tummy tuck, arm lift, thigh lift, and liposuction of the back and neck/chin) was around $28,000.

I had a full Tummy Tuck in July 2020 which was covered in part by insurance, as others have mentioned. Typically, the panniculectomy is covered when it's pre-certified, and then the excess fees to convert to abdominoplasty are paid out of pocket. At my very first consultation with my plastic surgeon, the first words out of his mouth were 'If I do just a panniculectomy, you are not going to be happy with the results. I very rarely anymore just do a panniculectomy.' He explained the difference to me: the panniculectomy is the removal of the apron of the hanging belly, or the pannus. The abdominoplasty goes a few steps further and tightens the loosened abdominal wall, and also includes liposuction. It also improves the appearance of the upper abdominal area and the belly button, as well as helping with posture and abdominal strength by tightening the abdominal muscles. However, in the insurance world, they are concerned with the functonality part of the skin removal, and the conversion to the full tummy tuck is beyond what is considered 'medically necessary.'
I am pleased with my tummy tuck and my surgeon is very talented. He works closely with bariatric patients, and I felt comfortable with what he was telling me and knew that he knew what he was doing.