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I, too, am a healthcare worker. For me, I didn't feel a need not to share my choice to have bariatric surgery... just like I wouldn't mind sharing if I had my appendix out. It is what it is, I am not ashamed nor embarrassed. I have a treatable medical condition and I chose a common and approved method of treatment: surgery. My co-workers were interested and supportive... and then the matter was soon almost forgotten. I do get occasional interested inquires such as, "How much have you lost now?" (And I proudly give the answer!) But I do understand that others may feel differently. Good luck, I'm sure you'll do well!

I’m 152 lbs down today so I’ve met all my goals but the final one- hitting a “normal” BMI. I’ll hit that one in 16.4 lbs. A few more milestones I hadn’t considered: 1. Went for a hike yesterday in 3 inch inseam shorts because my legs don’t rub together anymore! Last summer I didn’t even wear shorts- just size 4x leggings that I overheated in. 2. I am almost to the weight that my drivers license has said for like 20 years. I love that last time I renewed it and was clearly more than 150 lbs above that weight the lady didn’t even blink an eye. I renew in about 6 months so hopefully I’ll update the weight down this time.

Hello Friends! I had a lap band done years ago and have a ticker here showing that and my status as lap band patient. I now have had the revision from lap band to bypass and would like to add a new ticker and change my patient status. Can anyone give me the directions on how to change all this? I can't find it anywhere and don't remember how I did it 14 years ago! If anyone from Bariatric Pal sees this, please include an instructional section to the website. Thanks!

I feel so fortunate that I did not need anything for pain. I've been uncomfortable trying to sleep as I sleep on my side --the abdominal binder is amazing!!! Once I put that on, I could sleep in any position I wanted. I got the NyOrtho one from Amazon. It does not roll down -it stays in position. Today is day 3. I made an egg since I figured I should have something other than the protein water. I could barely eat it all. I didn't get sick, I took small bites, but I couldn't eat the whole thing. It's sad --before surgery, I could have eaten 3 eggs with no problems. I did eat about 1/4 of Split Pea Soup. The Protein Water is Tropical Punch Flavor --it's really sweet. I added some lemon juice and that helped a lot. My weight the day of Surgery was 184. I'm 180 now. When I see the 170's!!!!! I'm gonna be so excited. Guess what -- something else has happened. Baby sister needs bariatric surgery but doesn't have insurance. She needs it way more than I did. I felt so bad the day of surgery going in knowing she was rooting for me but at the same time, feeling a little jealous. She always puts everyone before herself. After my surgery, her husband felt badly for her. He has decided she can have it and is being supportive! Hooray

like kristieshannon, I also did what I had to do and followed the guidelines to a "t", esp that first year, because I'd been fat for six decades and I was done with it. I was going to do what I had to get down to a more normal weight (which for me at the start was anything under 200 lbs - but I ended up losing quite a bit more than that). the difference between this and other diets is that this time my effort actually paid off. It worked. Even though it wasn't easy due to ingrained habits (psychological), at least I wasn't fighting biology every step of the way (physical). I'd also agree it might be worth it to see your dietitian and a therapist who understands bariatric surgery and/or disordered eating. A lot of us have done that and find it helpful.

Good Luck to you on your renewed journey!

I considered wls for many, many years, but never seriously. When I was a new RN in 1997, it was fairly new and I saw people die from it, so I was always scared of it. I also never had insurance that concerned it, so I knew I'd have to pay out of pocket, and I was overall healthy, so I figured I could do it on my own. I had my son in 2010, and that's when I really started to gain a lot of weight. I had done WW before I got pregnant and had lost 45. I was down to 263. After he was born, the weight started piling on. I was sick all the time and got diagnosed with asthma. I was in pain all the time. My liver enzymes increased slowly year by year, until 2020 when my doctor decided I needed to see a liver specialist. That same January, I had my gallbladder removed and that surgeon offered to biopsy my liver and it showed Non-alcoholic Steatohepatitis, with hepatic fibrosis. As a nurse I had seen people die of liver failure and it is awful. This scared me to death. That surgeon recommended wls, and he was one of the only doctors who had ever acted compassionate and non-judgmental about my weight. He told me I had very little chance of losing it and keeping it off on my own. I took his advice and made an appt. That day with a bariatric surgeon. I saw him in March and he recommend gastric bypass. I started getting the required testing and had just had my EGD when the hospital decided to let a bunch of staff go due to COVID. That surgeon was one of them. I decided to go to a different hospital and surgeon and this one recommended Loop DS. I had not heard of it, but he said I was a perfect candidate with a BMI of 69.9 and since I was paying for it myself, as it was a newer procedure that insurance didn't usually cover. I researched it and decided to go with it. My high weight was 393 pounds. I am 5'3". I was 368.8 on the day of my surgery, July 23, 2020. As of today I am 226.4. I never thought I'd be even close to this weight again. I am hoping to lose at least 200 pounds total. I am getting close. I was close to borderline diabetic, had just been diagnosed with hypertension, and had liver disease. I could barely get around or keep up with my active 10 year old son. My hypertension is gone, my blood glucose is normal, and my liver enzymes are now normal, so I have reversed my fatty liver disease. I turn 50 on August 2nd and this will be the best birthday ever! I am so happy I had this surgery! I can't get my befores to post right now but I'll put them here once I do. Here is me today. Sent from my Nokia 7.2 using BariatricPal mobile app

Bariatric Pal 1-a-day capsules are great! I do iron-free, then take a separate slow-release iron for less pouch upset.

Hi there! I'm an RN and having a revision surgery (sleeve to RNY). I'm currently being seen at the UCSD bariatric dept but have had nothing but problems with them. I had insurance approval, but without explanation they literally refused to let me make an appointment for almost 6 months. I finally called them and said that I've been getting railroaded for 6 months and that I wanted to speak to someone who could actually help me. That worked and I got an appointment, but not until after they told me that my original approval had expired and that I needed to get another one from my primary doc!!! Anyhow, I've been through the entire pre-op process and weekly classes etc. a few times. Once when I was considering a lap-band. Once with my ex-husband, and the third time when I had my sleeve. Needless to say, I know what to ask and was very upfront and direct with my doctor. He ended up lying to me about the pre-op weight loss requirements at every single visit (3 in total), and then refused to refer me to the surgeon (When I saw him 6 weeks prior he said that he would write the order to see the surgeon). And no, I didn't gain weight. Lol... I'm just curious if anyone else has had a negative experience with UCSD and if you were able to get it resolved? When I asked for a different doctor I was refused, but after I put in a formal written complaint they decided to let me see a different doctor. In the meantime, my insurance has approved another bariatric group and surgeon. Yay! Hopefully my experience with UCSD is just an anomaly.

Here's the preop diet from sage bariatric Sent from my Pixel 4a using BariatricPal mobile app

I had bought the cookbook, by Sarah Kent, which I really like a lot. Easy to follow with a lot of good recipes/tips, etc.. but my reason for coming here today is that in the book they mention using powdered unflavored egg whites. I find powdered eggs with yolks and vanilla flavored, but not just unflavored powdered egg whites and don't want to get a huge container to start with. Does anyone happen to know where I get them? Thanks in Advance, Lynda

I take Procare bariatric multivitamins, because they have the iron in them and it's one capsule. They are great and pretty reasonably priced compared to most I've tried. Sent from my Nokia 7.2 using BariatricPal mobile app

I'm down 30 since end of May. Started regular vitamins (not chewable) today, those things are huge! (Bariatric Advantage) Got them down, but definitely felt it. No food issues, still "full" after 3-4 oz. Have not incorporated grains yet, as I still can't eat all my vegetable portion. Full after the protein. I really have to watch myself to make sure I don't eat too fast, especially with snacks.

vitamin brands don't matter as far as sleeve vs gastric bypass go. single dose bariatric-specific vitamins tend to be more expensive, but then you also have to figure out the cost of buying separate vitamins (and taking two multivitamins a day, too). I do the latter, but I don't buy expensive brands, so I'm probably still coming out ahead. And there's the convenience factor to consider. As long as you're meeting the requirements, either option will work - it pretty much just comes down to personal preference.

150 lbs at 5'11"? That's a BMI of 20.9. Only 10-15% of bariatric patients make it to a normal BMI, let alone one that low in the range. Plus 62 lbs in 15 weeks is really good progress! I think this guy is insane.

Simple fix. Switch doctors. And write him up on every patient opinion site you can find. He sounds like a turd who wants to bolster his image with you looking as thin as possible regardless of how unhealthy it might be for you. You are not his personal bulletin board and his behavior is not only dreadful, it reinforces disordered eating that can lead to future gain. Find a new bariatric group. Wouldn't surprise me if another group near you has others of his refugees. Run. Today.

I am considering having a Bariatric surgery. My insurance company only covers Gastric Bypass surgery. I was really leaning towards Gastric Sleeve operation. My thought is Sleeve is less complex so it’s safer, fewer cuts and staples. It essentially costs about the price of a used car, which I can afford. Should I pay out of pocket for Sleeve or use insurance for ByPass? ByPass seem to have greater weight loss effect. Any advice?

Hi Nikki i had mine done in the U.K. with Ramsay Health care at my local private hospital with Mr Sutton. I paid £10,400. With life time after care support. 2 years dietician, 2 years psychologist support. i did a lot of research before choosing this consultant. i ‘interviewed’ three consultants from different clinics around the U.K. I chose Mr Sutton based on reviews (if you Google him you will see his history) and also I had used the local private hospital before and really liked it so it made sense. They offer a financial package, however I found a loan from my bank was lower interest and easier payments to manage. I am one week post op and I have no complaints at all with how everything went. I have my bariatric nurses number and has contacted her a few times 24hours a day and she’s extremely helpful and lovely. Everything is included in the price, all meds, follow ups etc. I would just say do you homework. Read up about the consultant and even have a free consultation with them and talk with them. Like I did. It’s the best way good luck in your search! ❤️

HI! My surgeon is a GREAT bariatric surgeon, as far as doing the surgery, but she isn't on top of much regarding the nutritional aspects of the program. I finally called one of the nutritionists associated with the bariatric program. She said it's not uncommon for people to have more issues eating after the HH surgery than after the initial VGS surgery. She said that she thinks it's because when having VGS, there is that long internal suture line from forming the sleeve, but it's not connected or stitched to anything. With the HH repair, I've had my sleeve "tacked" to something internally, as well as mesh stitched into my diaphragm. Every time I breathe or swallow something, that all gets "pulled on" and that's what she thinks the pain is from, and also that the mesh repair narrows the opening in the diaphragm through which the esophagus passes. I don't know... I'm not a doctor and I don't play one on TV, hahaha, but it seems kind-of a reasonable explanation! It's still a guessing game regarding eating. I eat soup for dinner at least half the time; not so much fun in the middle of summer, but it's food. I make sure the veggies in it are really soft and I can mash them up. Sometimes I can tolerate crackers in the soup, also. No pasta unless it's well mashed in sauce, but even then it's questionable. I mash up the macaroni in macaroni and cheese and it's OK, but when we had stuffed shells I only ate the filling and the cheese from the topping. No rice, no breads, even with a lot of butter. I had cereal recently (Lucky Charms) but had to wait for it to get soft in the milk. Eggs are OK, as is tuna salad and egg salad, but chicken salad today was disastrous. It's a different kind of pain than from the HH, more like a line of pain across the top of my chest. Salad is a no-no, has been all along, but right now I still struggle with ground meats (burger, turkey burger, etc). I do OK with corn on the cob, though, which is a gift as it's one of my favorite summer treats! I honestly never know what's going to sit well, although anything that is smooshed up in a gravy or sauce is usually OK, or meat that is fatty. I still have to take small bites and chew, chew, chew, but once it goes down, it STAYS down, which is a plus, and still NO GERD! Also no PPI, no tums, etc. I'm still not sure how any of this is supposed to go, but I am glad I had the HH repaired. I was tired of drowning in acid every evening and of vomiting up food daily.

Citi, Amazon, and Amynta I know are all hiring and offer full benefits that cover bariatric surgery. You may also want to look into having surgery done in Mexico. Many folks, myself included, have found that going out of the country is actually cheaper, and can be done much faster, than using insurance and having it done in the US.

My 15 year old neighbor had sleeve surgery after years of therapy, "fat camps" and depression. Three months after surgery and a pretty significant weight loss, I actually saw her smile for the first time! She began walking, working out and would actually engage in lengthy conversations. Fast forward 5 years...…she's in college, enjoys hiking, is in a serious relationships and looks wonderful. Her parents had to go through a lot of family counseling and do a lot of research to find a surgeon who performed bariatric procedures on children. But they knew it was in the best interest of their child to set her up for a healthy adult life. So in answer to your question, you should have the surgery when you are mentally ready to commit to a healthy future. Sleeve surgery only works in the long term if you make the necessary life style changes in that first year after surgery. If not, the weight gain will put you right back where you are now. So I would suggest that age isn't as important as attitude. Good luck with whatever decision you make!

For me, the surgery wasn't worth it. I believe it is the reason that I ended up with a hiatal hernia (I didn't have one before the surgery) and I have some moderate GERD problems since the surgery (though my GERD is not as severe as the GERD that some unlucky people end up with after the sleeve). Looking back on it now, I wish I would have just avoided any bariatric surgery at all, but if I were still going to get surgery, I personally think that the gastric bypass would have been a better way to go actually. I chose the sleeve because I was scared of the bypass and didn't want to take the risks of the bypass, but the bypass at least is the "tried and true" method that has stood the test of time over decades. The sleeve has a pretty significant risk of ending up with severe GERD, and if you get severe GERD, many doctors will tell you to get a bypass to fix the GERD. Then you end up going through ANOTHER surgery, which is riskier than just getting the bypass to start.

Hello, are there any companies hiring that cover bariatric surgery under their health plan? Preferably work from home and customer service. I'm located in Texas near Dallas if its not work from home. I can't afford to go the self-pay route. Thank you in advanced. You can send your referral link, I know some companies give bonuses for referrals.

Straight up!!! Unless someone tells me I can't eat the comparable amount to a shake in nutrients of cottage cheese on this diet (the carb/fat content is lower than the shakes and the protein is equal ---Good Culture lowfat cottage cheese---) I'm starting this tomorrow. Got almost no help from the dietician. I was also told to keep my diet to 1000 calories a day, which is normally not a problem for me, but with super low carbs and fat it is. I have been at around 800-900 cals on this diet and lost one lb this past week. I will stop eating any cottage cheese or egg white 3 days before the surgery, but my preferred choices seem to be healthier than my dietician's! I so hear you on the non-dairy, and I like dairy! My brother is vegan, so I could perhaps give you suggestions if you like; DM me. This is for post-surgery: I love a pureed red lentil soup with lemon and herbs, and you could incorporate protein powder and broth, for example. I've also been doing Brodo bone broth. It has more protein and helps with hunger. Mine is a major university bariatric center as well and they seem stuck in 1985 with respect to diet! Prior to the VSG project, when I thought I could "eat less and exercise more" (ha ha) I was put on an 1100-1200 calorie diet (high protein, low fat, low carb) for months and months and didn't lose weight. It was not that hard to implement, as I already pretty much ate that way. I measured and weighed every single pea I ate. Their dietician told me I could eat up to 1800 calories a day without gaining weight, so I'd lose weight at 1600. I told her that I'm not even losing at 1100! (I laughed, but inside my own head because that was such a load of hooey) She shrugged and had no idea why (she clearly thought I was lying to her, which I was not- again, infantilizing when I needed actual help.) . So: disappointing, but not that surprising. And now, Im losing a single lb in a week on this horrible preop diet. Does it still de-fat your liver if you don't lose weight? I'm following every dietary restriction I was given except that the diet comes from pre-packaged shakes. I'm making my own now with Isopure, low fat/low carb nut milk and a LOT less artificial sweetness or none at all—had a great espresso one today. And yet: the weight is not coming off me. But this is why I'm having this surgery. Makes me worry I'll not lose any weight at all afterward, but my surgeon thinks I will. I do not have cravings for anything except really any real food when I'm hungry. Now Im stomach-growling hungry for huge parts of the day, exhausted, peeing constantly, and not losing any weight. This sucks. I'm saying this because I know there are other just like me out there, and I'm saying, "Guys, it's really ok to not be positive and cheerful all the time. Truth is really healthy." I'll also add that if this diet makes you pissed off and tired and unable to work properly, that seems normal to me. And I don't think it means that you won't be committed to your health or your diet afterward. I also don't think adults need training wheels or to be lied to about numbers to incorporate that most people cheat. I'd prefer to be told the actual truth about what is medically necessary and why.

To provide an update now that it has been 4 and a half months since the surgery, I have lost a total of 75 pounds, 62 post surgery. I have been really happy with the steady loss. I eat between 690 and 730 calories a day now and make sure I get between 65 and 90 grams of protein. I try to keep my net carbs to 30 and under but it sometimes can go up to 35. I still only manage about 1.5 liters of water on average and make sure I keep up with my vitamins. My doc said I could start eating rice, pasta and bread at the three month mark if I wanted to, but I don’t react well to those foods normally so decided to not reintroduce them yet until I reach the maintenance phase. I have no regrets and love that I can walk into almost any shop now and buy clothes off the rack. I’ve lost over a 100 centimeters and dropped 4 to 5 dress sizes (currently in between sizes at the moment, which is always challenging). my fitness has greatly improved and can hike steep hills without puffing my lungs out and stopping along the way. If you are thinking of taking the bariatric leap, I highly recommend it 😊