Dee Steppe

If you ever want to talk, I am OK with it. It has been a long journey and without a lot of support.

Hello, I just had my fistula surgery on 3/13 like you, my original surgery was in 2007. I did awesome for the first 5 years then I started gaining. I just figured I was a failure and accepted it. Fast forward 2022, I have a 9 cm umbilical hernia. Went to UPMC and they told me they wouldn't repair it and go back to where I got the bypass. I went and through all the testing and that's how they found my 2.5 cm fistula. Lot of drama with the insurance company and I ended up having to pay out of my pocket. When I woke up from surgery, I found out it was a bigger mess than they expected. They had to remove a bunch of adhesions, I actually had 2 fistula, my stoma at the bottom of my pouch was completely closed and that part of my intestines were attached to my remnant stomach. Essentially it was like I never had the bypass. They had to remove part of my pouch and intestines and remove almost all of my remnant stomach.

Unfortunately, my surgery has now become self pay. I have bcbs of Florida and they refuse to cover anything bariatric. Because my fistula is from the previous gastric bypass, they will not cover it. I have exhausted every option.

I had the same thing, acid reflux terribly, weight gain just all around miserable. I had had the roux-n-y 15 years ago. I had called to check into the revision surgery and the first thing they did was an upper barium test. Low and behold I have a 2 1/2 cm fistula attaching my pouch to my remnant stomach. At that point, it became a repair of a complication instead of a revision. My surgery is coming up and I am so excited.