Cee Cee 3

I don't think anyone here will tell you you don't need surgery and instead you need to eat more healthily! Most of us have been exactly where you are. My one regret about my sleeve is that I didn't do it many years ago and save myself years of yo-yoing and stress and obesity and self-loathing. My advice would very much be to forego the final attempt to lose weight and keep it off, given the tiny chances of success long term. I say cut to the chase and see your bariatric surgeon again and tool yourself up! Good luck whatever you decide.

I would've had to get an endoscopy but I had one in their network less then a year before. I had bloodwork, EKG, and a chest x-ray. I already had a Psychologist that I saw regularly that was ready and willing to write me a letter and my doctor accepted that and my Cardiologist had to sign off. That one had me sweating because he was a skinny little man that was always after me about losing weight but was NOT supportive about WLS. He actually told me to just stop eating. He did write the letter but he took his time. 😕 I have a new, more supportive Cardiologist now.

Hello everyone! I’m new to the site! Just had my initial consultation appointment today with a weight loss surgeon. When he walked into the room, his first comment was, “Hi I’m going to make you mad first. How did you get this big at 34?” For some context, I’m 5’10, 350lbs….size 28. I’m not going to lie, I didn’t know how to answer the question besides saying, “food”. Then when it got to the questions portion of the consult, I had just begun asking my question (didn’t even get to get the whole question out) before he cut over me and began giving an answer which wasn’t even remotely related to the question I was about to ask. So I waited for him to finish, to which I started to ask again and he once again cut me off. He also kept pushing for the bypass option, and when I finally asked my question about vsg, he quickly turned that option down. Now I’m just rethinking the whole thing because it made me feel invisible, and just awful. Has anyone else had a similar experience, or maybe some words of encouragement? It took a lot for me to make this first step, and now I’m completely discouraged.

Yay! I was avoiding the scale over the past few days and only checked this morning to find myself below 100 kg! I can't remember the last time I was at this weight but I'd say at least 20 years ago. What a pleasant and timely surprise. I turned 40 yesterday. So excited for my next birthday already 😀.

I'm looking forward to getting off this ghrelin/leptin hunger rollercoaster. I'm looking forward to getting off some of my prescriptions. I'm looking forward to having a better relationship with food. I'm looking forward to not being hot all the time. But the biggest thing - the #1 thing - I'm looking forward to is having more energy. There are things I want to do and I need energy to be able to do them. I want to be able to say, "Yes!" when my friend invites me to go on a hike with her. The fact that I will look better in clothes, is just icing on the cake.

So excited about finally getting my surgery date today!! I'm scheduled to have the Gastric Sleeve Surgery on 11/28/22 . I'm so ready to start losing weight and enjoying my journey while doing so. The scale only goes down from here !!! 250 here I come !!
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Nothing. Not to be a **** head. But, for literally 4-5 months I read everything you could imagine.
Read back for years on this forum and another one. Asked so many questions, talked to people who had WLS. Read every article I could find, even watched a few Utube videos.
I was so prepared. I wanted to know every single thing that MIGHT go wrong. Any side effect, changes that may or may not occur. Literally everything, good or bad.
So, nothing really surprised me although I will say I had about the smoothest recovery you could imagine. Which I am so grateful for!

I'm nearly 2 years post op (bypass) and most foods still make me ill after only a couple of bites. I take small bites, eat slowly etc., not heavy/ greasy food, but yeah. Most food makes me a bit sick and I'm so over it. Like, it's a struggle to remain over 115lbs, which is crazy! (I still have a bunch of skin removal to go too, at least 5lbs worth and my weight ranges between 117 and 125.) I'm putting a call in to my doctor because it just seems a bit weird that I'm still getting nauseated so very often. Keeps me skinny I guess. *sigh* 😓 Anyone else have this issue?

Yeah, usually it's a revision from sleeve to bypass. I've never heard of a bypass to sleeve revision. How does that work?

Iv'e had BOTh the ruen-y bypass surgery that was successful FOR over 10 years, after having a baby, gaining weight back and having Vitamin deficiency issues I had a revision to a gastric sleeve. The sleeve has been a joke, there is no stopping me from over eating sweets or fried foods, I was sick when I ate those things with a ruen-y. I had an upper gi last week (I am 7 years post op of revision) Dr says my stomach looks like any other non surgery stomach he sees. So much for my surgery dr saying stomachs dont stretch.
1.Ruen-y is more evasive but it keeps you from eating sweets/fried foods without becoming so ill you have to lay down for 2 hours. (not dangerous, just very uncomfortable)
2.If you have weight loss surgery be SURE to have Lipo suction after you've lost most of y our weight. Once you grow a fat cell you NEVER loose it unless you have it removed by having lipo suction or cool sculpting. A fat cell will lay flattened until you have extra calories that need stored then they pop right up. Get rid of them b&&*$ right away, you can still grow more cells if you over eat but it takes time to grow them new, old cells are like little saboteurs waiting to fill up again.
3. If you don't like aerobic activity try chill-aerobics. Sit somewhere cold.. shiver and ur body burns fat. 15 min. of shivering equals 30min,. of aerobic activity. Your body will burn fat to try and warm you up. (it's actually opposite in a polar bears body)

Rewards for weight loss? 🤔
The weight loss is the reward.

DO NOT PRE PAY YOUR 20%!!!!!
Wait until the bill has gone to insurance, gone through pricing and re-pricing and then pay when you receive the bill after surgery. You want to make sure the portion you pay is the same as your Explanation of Benefits (EOB) from the insurance company.
Also, find out what your Out of Pocket Max is. If you reach your Out of Pocket Max before surgery, you wont be paying anything for surgery.
Depending on your insurance plan year, your deductible may reset at a certain point (January 1st is a popular reset date). If you're starting the process now, anything you pay this year will not be used next year, and you'll have to satisfy the deductible again.

Nearly 102 down since November 2021, I like the before and after!

There are risks involved in any surgery, but there are also risks in not taking decisive action to recover from obesity before it corrodes your health and likely shortens your life. Obesity can be profoundly destructive, and the longer you are obese, the more damage it can inflict. I assessed the risk of the VSG and compared it to the long-term risk of not having the surgery, then decided to go for it. My BMI fluctuated in the low 30s. That's "mild" obesity, but the worry was that as I age it would become increasingly difficult to control my weight, and my BMI would rise to the morbid stage. My reproductive endocrinologist was the one who recommended the VSG because I have PCOS and hypothyroidism, and other patients my age and size have benefitted from it. If you're wanting to have more kids in your future, achieving a healthy weight can help.
That's in addition to lessening the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, heart problems, some types of cancer, and the damage caused to your frame from excess weight over time.
For me the only negative to having the surgery at a lower BMI was my insurance refused to cover any of the costs, so I had to pay for it on my own. It was a worthwhile investment! I sailed through the surgery with very little pain or discomfort. Besides dry-heaving on the first day and having unbelievably intense cramps (my period started during surgery), I felt fine. I was anticipating being in more pain and more tired than I actually was. I had a mild allergic reaction to the surgical tape used on my incisions, and got itchy little welts from it, but it healed quickly. I had a few stomach issues in the first couple of months, but nothing severe. I'm a professor on my feet for hours a day, and haven't taken a day off since the fall quarter began (three weeks after my surgery).
It is important to know that it's very common for people to regret the surgery (though I didn't) in their first month post-op and have what's known as "buyer's remorse." This is when your body is healing, you're still on a restrictive diet, and you are craving normalcy. The feelings pass for the majority of people. It's also important to know that since you are starting at a lower BMI, you'll likely lose weight at a slower pace. Don't feel discouraged, and don't compare yourself to others who've had surgery and are losing much more rapidly. In the eight months since my surgery I've gone from being in the "mildly obese" BMI to comfortably within the "normal" weight range for my height. My weight loss has been much slower than those who started off with higher BMIs, and I've had several stalls along the way, but it has come off. I've gone from a size 14 to a 6/8, and am still losing. I feel lighter, happier, and more confident. Hopefully the same will be true for you.

I had my sleeve on 4/26, BMI of 35, spent three days in the hospital, passed the swallow test, discharged, and have been recuperating since. Plan on going back to work after a three week hiatus next Monday. Stepped on the scale for the first time this past Friday and was amazed at the weight loss (39 pounds). A fellow "sleever" recommended I weigh myself at the same time once/week. I intend to follow his advice. The pain has been minimal. Trying to walk as much as I can, but get fatigued fairly easily. As my wife told me, "10 days ago you had a major organ removed. Don't you think it will take awhile to fully recover, you idiot?!" LOL
I can't say enough about this surgery. My blood work has all come back within normal ranges and I look forward to more positive results as time moves on.
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I wanted to write about my experience with a lower bmi because while I am about 50 lbs overweight 182 5 ft 4 inches - I haven't seen too many posts that describe the surgery with this kind of weight loss. It took me a long time to decide to do this but I kept gaining and have a history of family members who get very very obese after their 40s. I am on the same track.
Anyway I am getting sleeve may 13. flyint to texas bc I actually have a friend who is a surgeon that does this. I feel good about that and I am staying with another friend.
I have 10 days and started the first day of a soft diet which is various soft Proteins, shakes, cottage cheese, eggs. I was basically good but ate too much. My goal today was just to get used to no carbs. I have had a splitting headache from giving up the caffiene but I am taking liquid tylenol and that helps a bit.
I was nervous about this but feeling better about it now and committed to doing this. Ill write about my experience so someone else in the future can decide if this makes sense for them. Ever since I decided to do this surgery I felt like I had control over my body for the first time in a long time. I also had smoked which I stopped. And started drinking tons of Water. Never could do that before.
So the surgery has instigated a number of great behaviors. all good. And this forum is key because people are so supportive. I really appreciate it.

I'm one week post op, terrified the entire time leading up to the surgery I would drop below BMI and lose my chance. Obviously successful. My surgeon told me to skip the liver shrinking diet as the BMI was more important. How INSANE!!! Well, it is what is.
My mindset dealing with pre-op was that I knew I was stuffing myself with food that wasn't good for me and that I didn't even want to eat but it was for a short term, specific goal. It was SO hard! At the same time I really concentrated and meditated on post surgery/rest of my life eating habits, why I was going through this and what I wanted to get out of it.
My first thought waking up after surgery was that I didn't ever have to do that again and felt so relieved.
This is just the price of admission to a fabolous tool that, if used correctly, will make a huge difference in the rest of my life.
Hang in there and commit to the work after.
And DON'T get me started on the absurdly, inaccurate and arbitrary decisions based on outdated BMI requirements!!!! LOL

I had a lower BMI I was told by many people “ your not fat enough to have WLS@ well I fought my weight for years now I’m at my lowest since I was 24 years old! The weight loss surgery is very successful with people with lower BMI (VSG) best choice I ever made I’ve lost 46 lbs. since my surgery 12/14/21 wish I did it a long time ago! I love not eating much it’s great! I felt same way wondered if I’d loose to much pre op I did put some on wish I’d not thought that way I’d be lower now then I am! It was a mental struggle for a few weeks follow surgeon and don’t follow your own plan there the pro’s ! I finely feel I will be done with my weight for life!

wow ppl where really nice responding to you.

i was low BMI and years ago for this post, based on responses youd never post again,
eat like its christmas and get your surgery or eat like its january and dont.
you decide,

check what you are eating for sugar alcohol sweeteners.. they can cause diarrhea issues (if you need a laugh, google for reviews of haribo sugar free Gummy bears… lol)
Erythritol Maltitol Mannitol sorbitol Xylitol Hydrogenated starch hydrolysates (HSH) Isomalt

I am writing this to help those whom have United Health Care. Here are the following things to know and tips:

Before reading these tips, contact UHC for confirmation that Bariatric surgery is covered under your plan. Confirm the requirements. Confirm that your surgeon and his associated hospital is In-Network (if they are not, it will be like paying for the surgery without insurance). Make sure you have an understanding of what the insurance wants to see or have done.

1) You are eligible if you have a 40 BMI or Higher / Greater than 35 BMI with Co-Morbidity.

2) Once you find your surgeon, you will have to do 6 months worth of testing, dieting and education.

3) You will have to make 6 visits (once a month). This does not include your consultation.

4) One of your visits will be with a Psychological Evaluation. This will determine your surgeons view and the insurance company's view of your case. They take a look at your mental and emotional health. They ask about your family and your support systems. They may ask you how you feel about yourself. Stay away from the negative views you may have of your body. Understand that they have seen hundreds of people like you and may have some prejudice in regards to whether you will succeed or not. Remind them that you are a person, not a statistic and bring some human to your discussion.

5) Your surgeon may require you to keep an eating and exercise journal. I use MyFitnessPal and I have a FitBit.

6) You will be asked to do an EKG to see how strong your heart is.

7) You may be asked to do a sleep study. Depending on your surgeon, it can be a requirement. In my case, the insurance company denied it. They did not deem it as a necessity.

8) You will have to do an Ultrasound which is to see if you have any issues with your liver (fatty liver disease) or other organs.

9) The next thing is an endoscopy. This requires you to head to an outpatient clinic, be sedated and have a tube stuck down your throat. I learned that I had an hiatal hernia (where part of the stomach enters the diaphragm). This can cause you heart burn. Be aware of H. Pylori. This is a bacteria that can cause ulcers and heart burn as well. It takes a lot of antibiotics to cure. Be mindful that your throats will be sore and some sharp pains may occur as they most likely scrapped some samples from your digestive tract.

10) In between these visits, you will see an dietitian and nutritionist for further help. They will slowly walk you through changing your eating habits. Be honest with them. It is very important in the long run. Also try to keep your weight lost in small amounts. If you lose too much in a short period of time, the surgeon and insurance company will feel like you can lose the remaining weight alone.

11) Your last visit will consist of an overview. The surgeon will check your weight and may discuss further with you about your feelings towards the surgery. Hopefully you are approved by the surgeon. My surgeon was great during the process. I met with him more times than anyone else. He literally kept giving my information and sites to read to understand this tool.

12) They will then submit your information to the insurance company. Now it can take up to 2 - 6 weeks for approval. I was approved in one week.

My fellow UHC Members, I hope this assist you in your endeavors. 6 months will fly by so quickly you won't even realize it.

Remember education is the key to success.


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