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Hello everyone, and Happy Holidays to each of you! My name is Susan, I'm 41 years old, single with no children. I live in the South Suburbs of Chicago. This journey for me has been a long, but enlightening one. I've been heavy pretty much all my life, with my highest weight coming about 2 years ago after thyroid issues leading to thyroidectomy, discovering thyroid cancer, and being hypothyroid for several months while have treatment. Also going on anti depressant meds didn't help Anyway, bariatric surgery is not new to me as my mom had RNY bypass back in the early 1980's. She has been successful at keeping about 2/3 of the weight off, but has had anemia and B-12 deficiency since the surgery. I'm not sure how I started reading up on LapBand, for a long time I was kinda anti-gastric bypass. But I researched starting in Sept 2009 and attended my first seminar in Nov 2009. After all the requirements hoops and such I was approved and set for November 8th. I think some of you have heard this in the post op thread but technically I "had" the surgery, minus the band There was a little complication not related to the actual banding and my wonderful surgeon decided to hold off for a few weeks to make sure no infection came up. Sooooo I have been thru the gas pain, abdominal pain, etc, but got to go back on solids for 2 weeks and just have to do 3 days liquid now before Monday So round two the 29th... I am very anxious to get started with getting healthier. I have a few comorbidities such as hypertension and prediabetes that I trust will get better by losing weight. Also there are so many things I want to still do while I'm "young" lol most of them involve being ACTIVE. But in my head and what my body can do now and two different things. I thank God often for this gift and opportunity. Best wishes to you all and I appreciate your posts and updates! I think that support by others who are going thru it is important for all of us!!! God bless and see you around!

Who’s your surgeon? Anyone using cooper Bariatric?

Hey Kesia! I too live in Ga. and have medicaid. And MA does cover the Lapband. I rcvd my approval on Monday, but u have to go to a Center of Excellence, and you need to sign up with Peachstate as your carrier. The center I am using is Peachtree Surgical and Bariatric at Atlanta Medical Center. They have a seminar on June 21st. the website is peachtreebariatric .com . Check them out and if you have any other questions feel free to send me a private message.

Medicaid is definitely different from state to state. I work at a hospital in Virginia and we can only see patients from Virginia and West Virginia. West Virginia is covered in Virginia because they have such limited options for medical care in parts of their state - many of them drive 6+ hours to see us. Otherwise, no other state's Medicaid program is accepted in our state. Additionally, there have been recent changes to Medicaid programs and many states are now contracting Medicaid benefits with regular HMO companies. (Medicare is different - that's generally what we all get when we're 65 and over. That works anywhere in the country.) I do know that Medicaid even pays for Viagra, so I would be really disgusted if they didn't cover something like banding. I would do what someone advised above - call the number on your card and ask a) if bariatric surgery is covered and :tongue: which providers in your state participate. Good luck :cool2:

I can't believe I missed the show! Darn! So I just went to TLC.com and checked it out to see if they are rerunning the show anytime this week (like they so often do), but sadly they're not going to. Though in my search about the show, I discovered what one of my dear old friends that I have lost touch with is doing... I remember Garth Davis when he was a first year resident. He is in my list of top twenty all-time favorite residents ever. I remember being so sad when he told me he was moving to Texas to go into practice with his father. Then when I looked at the "About" page for Big Medicine and it mentioned a father-son team in Houston, I thought: "No way, could it be Garth?" And yep, it is! What a fantastic person I recall him being. How excting for him! He never mentioned Bariatric Surgery to me, but that was a few years ago (probably nine years) and surgery for the obese wasn't as accepted as it is today. Besides, I've been heavy since I hit puberty, perhaps he didn't wish to offend me. He's a wonderful, caring person. Anyone here go there? When the time comes for plastic surgery, I might consider a trip to Houston... We'll have to see as the show progresses how skilled the plastics guy is.

Great news! If you have Presbyterian Insurance and live close to the Albuquerque area, we no longer have to go to El Paso Texas for bariatric surgery. Presbyterian now has a brand new startup local Bariatric program affiliated with Presbyterian Rust Hospital in Rio Rancho. Del Sol is still contracted with Presbyterian insurance and you can still use their bariatric program there, but, if you live closer it may be worth looking into. Dr. William Van Rice is the bariatric doctor for their program. I had lap band to sleeve revision surgery and can only give Dr. Van Rice the highest of recommendation. Jake

I ultimately told UHC to go f@*& themselves and wound up self funding. They can kiss my large arse and the sting of the cost is subsiding with every pound I lose. My experience, though, came from me following up on a number of health issues over the last year. Each surgeon/doctor I met with coached me to have bariatric surgery. I took their referrals and went straight into THE bariatric program. Seemed a logical progression. The problem is that THE program, while affiliated with the area's most prestigious hospital (out of 6 hospitals) wasn't yet certified as a "center of excellence" (bariatric certificate). They had a great staff, very supportive....and each were former bariatric patients, too.......excellent surgeon...etc, etc. They told me that it'd be no problem to continue and they'd had UHC patients go through all the time. 1/2 way through the deal UHC....who'd been supportive....all the sudden balks over the lacking "center of excellence" bullcrap. I involved the HR department of my employer......and found out that we were actually dropping UHC and moving over to BCBS. The games continued. Our policy with UHC would have only covered me at 50% anyway.....and UHC was delaying. It was looking as if the surgery would be delayed to 2016....by then I'd be under new insurance and no telling how long I'd wait then. Good news was for me, that when I did contact the center of excellence program they were fast in getting me started. They also had been at this for a while longer and had special self-funding insurance safeguards....you self fund and part of your money purchases a policy that covers ANY complication that comes from your bariatric surgery for out to 8 months. This was very appealing to me and I jumped all over it. I'd already met most of my pre-op requirements for the surgeon and my patient advocate at the new center was extremely fast, aggressive and organized. She and I stayed in contact and had everything wrapped up swiftly. The end result was that I had my surgery on October 13, 2015.......when it was looking like at best it would be late December or beyond. By self funding I was able to anchor down the timeframe and it actually cost me less than it would've to use my insurance. Wild ride. The upshot of my story is this.....when working with UHC, or any of them for that matter.......stay in step with them upfront and avoid any bs later on. Involve your HR department at work if/when you are able to. It's amazing how much they can help. Best wishes.

Although I agree insurance companies try to save money, I completely and respectfully disagree with this statement. Some people have physical and mental issues which prevent them from ever being good candidates for bariatric surgery. The process is in place to make sure the right people are chosen, and to provide those people with the tools necessary to be successful long term.

I would definitely consider Mexico. Tijuanna has a top notch facility dedicated to bariatric and plastic surgery only. Just remember if you have a complication like with your gallbladder for example, you might have to return. Although your insurance here will likely cover gallbladder stones. Mexico is a great choice.

And @GotProlactinoma I am very happy to know you. I yearn for and am working towards the day when i am no longer morbidly obese. If I end up in the overweight ranking where my personal weight goal will still put me, I will still be grateful for the chance bariatric surgery will give me, I will use my tool,to the good of ME. And bottom line that is who I'm working for, although my family may reap some benefits, the surgery is still mine.😝👍

when I was looking for a plastic surgeon three or four years ago, I was told (by people on this and other bariatric forums) to expect about $8K-10K per procedure, and I found through my five consults that that rang true. It'll depend on the surgeon's experience and reputation and his/her location (urban areas and the coasts are usually more). PLUS my consults were three or four years ago. So this is a long-winded way of saying, that $25K figure for two procedures in the Boston area doesn't surprise me at all. and yes - insurance usually won't pay unless there's some medical issue going on, like chronic rashes that don't respond to traditional treatments. If you do have such problems, make sure you see a doctor about them and that they're well-documented. The surgeon I used for my body contouring surgeries (two of them) didn't file with insurance, either, because he knew it wouldn't be covered. you can always shop around. You can get the same procedures done in Mexico for probably half the cost. There are a couple of excellent plastic surgeons there who've worked on many bariatric patients I've run into on these forums. Also, there are people on here who've gone to Miami for plastic surgery, because oddly, it's cheaper there than many other parts of the country, even though it's urban and on a coast. But yea - what you were told is pretty normal.

@@erinkath you are certainly not alone in your dislike of the pre-op diet. I think that Kinda was spot on in his reply, too. I used pre-mixed shakes on work days.....just easier to handle and mixed my own using powder and Water on my days off. I had 3-4 a day. I did use unjury chicken Soup flavor powder some, too. When mixed with warm-hot water it was a nice savory change over the other shakes. Water....water....water. It was my friend. I did not go caffeine free on my plan....surgeon was okay with that. I was not allowed salad, milk or anything like that. I'm glad....as I'd have been chomping on stuff and surely add in items that I shouldn't have. One thought keep resonating around in my skull during the pre-op liquid diet......one main thought. It was a tremendous fear. It was the visions of watching the surgical videos from our seminars. Seeing the part of the surgery where the liver is lifted out of the way was scary. Both times I went through this seminar (two different bariatric programs prior to my surgery....as I switched surgeons....switched bariatric centers)....both times....the surgeons stopped the presentation with this image on the screen......they drove home the point about easily damaged the liver can be from raising it up and holding it there throughout the process. They emphasized how critical it is that we remain vigilant during our pre-op liquid diet in order to shrink the liver as much as possible. They each recounted having patients that they had to abort the surgery up getting to this point due to their assessment of the patient's liver at this time. I did not want to be that guy.....the one who wakes up in recovery to find that his surgery was aborted. Now....the above scenario was a worst case scenario that the surgeons portrayed.......but it hit me like a hammer. It was a singular reason to adhere to the liquid diet. It was enough. My pre-op liquid diet was 14 days. I lost 10 pounds during that time. This followed losing 45 pounds in the four months prior after starting my bariatric program. That is a big change in rate of loss and was a very pleasant byproduct of adhering to the diet. It had me rolling into my surgery with confidence and momentum. Please.....consider this your way to take action.....to own your safety.....to do your part to ensure a safe surgery. You will find the same liquid diet is a piece of cake to adhere to after surgery. So easy, in fact, that I stayed with it for 4 weeks vs the normal 2-3. I had no desire to do the puree phase as I was completely satisfied with the liquid and the rate of loss. I didn't then......nor do I now....have any type of hunger. None. If I get the urge...it is in my head and not real. I wish you the best and know for certain that you can do this.

This is the hardest thing I've ever done! The physical part is very challenging but the mental/emotion aspects can, at times seem overwhelming. I try to remember this thing. Feelings/emotions and thoughts are fleeting. They don't last for long. Try distracting yourself with something else. I color in color books, read, watch a movie, call someone to talk go on line. Just fine whatever you things are to get your mind off of "I must eat, I want to eat, EAT-EAT-EAT!!!! The mental aspect of why we've all eaten ourselves in to bariatric surgery and how to overcome/deal with the new stomach/life style, etc. should be worked on so we don't return to those same habits. I hope my opinion is helpful to you. May God bless you and keep you!

I think my insurance will cover the surgery, but it has a history of not covering stuff 100%. For my mom's knee replacement surgery, for example, it only covered around 80%, and she had to have the surgery or be put in a wheelchair. Of course, I don't know if that was their usual practice for every surgery, or if it was just because the doctor wasn't a participator in their insurance program (don't know if he was or not). I have found several bariatric surgeons that do participate in my insurance program, so I am hoping to get it covered 100%. I am just hoping they consider my health conditions that are caused by my weight to be severe enough to cover it.

I use this app. I like it because it reminds you exactly where to measure to take consistent measurements. Baritastic - Bariatric Surgery Tracker by NBL Media LLC https://appsto.re/us/vB6L1.i Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

There are tons* tons of Protein drinks out there. Some are better than others. unjury is one of the top rated quality protein sources. I used them during my 2 week pre-op diet. They are good to add sugar free syrups & PB2 to for flavor. Post surgery I have been drinking Premier Protein chocolate.. 30 gr of protein in 160 Cal. RTD 11 oz drinks. It takes me about 1 hr to get the 11oz down. Again I add things to it. PB2 is a staple for me. It's a powdered Peanut Butter. Vitamins- you'll be on them forever I used Centrum vitamints And chewable Calcium chews with D3. (Chocolate) Both available at the pharmacy. I liked both of these. I'm trying Bariatric Advantage berry multi Vitamins.. Yuck Bariatric Advantage caramel calcium chews- not bad Good luck

Please look at Pinterest, Bariatric food recipes, and you will find a cookbook is not necessary!!!! Good luck!

That is not particularly high bp! Mine with meds was higher than that for surgery, then it went down the next week and my pcp had me quit meds altogether. It's gone up and down and seems to be evening out at about 125/80 or so for now. Could you go to a walk-in clinic? Seems kind of nuts your doctor can't help you out! My bariatric surgeon didn't want to deal with the bp either. I can understand that. good luck to you!

So I just joined FitnessPal.com. One of my friends recommended it in order to help me get out of my stall. She told me that maybe I am not getting enough protein and this app will tell me exactly how much protein I am getting. Anyways I notice that a lot of people here have joined FitnessPal so I had a question. Does the app give predictions on how much weight u will loose following your food plan? Or do I have to upgrade to premium for that? I use to do food diary.com a few years ago and what I liked about that website is that it would give me a prediction on how much weight I would loose after a certain amount of time. Also is there anyway that I can change the recommended calorie intake? Obviously I cannot eat the recommended 1500 calories that they say I have to eat. Every time I input my food log it tells gives me a warning that I am not eating enough calories. Or is there another bariatric friendly app I can use?

check this link http://www.bariatricpal.com/topic/309765-questions-i-need-answers-too/ they are listing some recipes...there are others on this website if you search for recipes... also a great source is The World According to Eggface...she has some great recipes for bariatric members!

I'm curious Curvyjudy, why you would want to fly across the United States? There are Bariatric Centers of excellence back East. I tell you, I would not want to fly for hours and hours only 3 days after having this procedure. It wipes you out. Granted you feel fine in a week or two, but that first week is hard.

I only take protonix for reflux since surgery. I called my surgeons office today and they gave me conflicting information.. I asked if I had any deficiencies that I was not told about in my blood work 3 weeks ago and everything was good with the exception of vitamin d, she said it wasn’t low to where I needed to supplement, but taking one every other day or so won’t hurt.. she told me to come in to be seen because most Bariatric patients don’t experience hair loss until 6-9 months post-op (which is where I felt conflicted since a lot of people on this forum have experienced hair loss around 3 months post-op). I have been using Ultrax Labs Hair Surge for 2 days now and taking silica supplements for 2 days as well. I didn’t have “as much” hair in the drain and my brush this morning as I did Friday/Saturday. I am hoping this is over quickly. I am going to my stylist Friday to cut 8” off my hair. Going from my butt to my shoulders I was hoping to go back blonde for summer too, but with as much as my hair is falling out, I’m terrified!

I have tried: Bariatric Advantage Protein Powder: Orange Cream, banana, Iced Latte They were ok tasting, overpriced. Premier Protein: Strawberries and Cream, vanilla Best bang for the buck if you can get them at costco or Sams. Taste is good Isopure whey Protein Powder: Alpine Punch I like this one. Its not as thick as other shakes. Wanted something Fruity. WheyTech BodyTech Pro 24: chocolate Mint, Banana Cream Hands down my favorite Protein shake. I was always a Vanilla guy, but this Chocolate Mint shake is amazing. And you don't have to buy a huge tub of it either. The Vitamin Shoppe sells single serve packets of it. Pure Protein Premade Shakes (Pop Can size): Banan Cream I liked these a lot too. Best Banana flavor I have tried. nectar Protein: Sample Pack. You can get 13 individual packs for $15.00. One time only. Its really worth it. They have some good flavors but buying a large canister for 28+ is a gamble. http://www.si03.com/EMAIL/nectar_gng_sampler/nectarsampler.html Isopure Protein Zero Carb DRINK: Alpine Punch, Apple Melon, Orange-Pineapple-Banana I like these drinks. I got sick of the shake thickness after the 3rd week post op. I also did them for 2 weeks pre op so by then I had enough. The drinks are not for everyone. Its like gatorade but with a weird aftertaste. I suggest trying one to see if you like it. It might not be for you. Vitamins: I started with Centrum Complete Chewables but after the first bottle, switched to Kroger Childrens Complete Chewable Multi Vitamins. Better price. I got B Complex Chewable wafers from The Vitamin Shoppe but didn't care for the after taste of the Kiwi strawberry flavor so I went back and got Strawberry flavored Gummies from The Vitamin Shoppe. Calcium Citrate I bought through the Pharmacy at my local hospital but you can get them online. Bariatric Advantage Cal Citrate 500mg Chews, Orange flavor. My Surgeon told me to wait till I was a month Post Op to take these. D3: I just got the cheapest bottle from the local Meijer or Kroger. 2000iu, once a day. If you go to The Vitamin Shoppe, sign up for their rewards program. After the 3rd week after you sign up, they will send you a 20% off coupon in the mail. Try a few things from there at first and once you get that coupon, make a list of things you want to buy large amounts of, that 20% off is for the total of one shopping trip. I saved like 50 by buying a bunch at once. Good luck!

I went big time money and oredered from Bariatric Choice off internet and all the flavors sucked and tasted terrible. Went to my doctor and asked if I could take the following and he said absolutely. Walmart sells One a Day Vitacraves (gummies) and Vitafusion Calcium. I'm not telling you to take one or two each time because that information will come from your doctor or dietitian. Some will have to take additional vitamins/minerals/iron supplements. costco also sells One a Day Vitcraves (big discount and twice the size than Walmart) Good luck

I wasn't brought up with healthy habits, and even kept a lot of my bad habits up due to time constraints, so even though I am on "Normal" foods I wanted my changes to be forever so I have learned to read nutritional values, memorize carb and protein amounts in foods, and even taught myself to use a Wok to stir fry, and grill indoors, a change recipes and alter them to fit my diet and I stay away from fast food, I learn a lot on Google about cooking, and and even found some websites that give bariatric friendly restaurants, and I do give myself 1 cheat day per month