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Florida Sleevers!



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There seems to be quite a few Floridians on the boards here - this might be a good place to keep in touch.

I haven't really formally introduced myself yet - I'm 33, male, been overweight my entire life. I'm still on the fence about getting the surgery but it is very tempting as my my insurance does cover most of the procedure. I'm also a big wimp and have never had surgery so that's kinda scary. I watched a VSG procedure video today - bad plan.

Since my insurance does cover the procedure, I won't be going to Mexico. Has anyone used a doctor in Florida? I'm looking at Dr. Domkowski in Sebastian but I really can't find any first-hand reports about him or his practice online - good or bad. In fact I can't find too many details for any doctors in the Central Florida area.

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Howdy!

Islamorada here, sleeved in January - loving every second of it so far! All I can tell ya is DO IT!!! You really won't regret it, promise!!

About a surgeon - I was sleeved in Mexico by Aceves but a dear friend of mine was sleeved in March by Enrique Whitwell in Miami. We researched him extensively together. He's one of the best in the area, without a doubt. I would have gone to him myself had my insurance paid for it. I know you are in Melbourne but to me, a trip to Miami or any comparable distance would be well, well worth it for a top gun surgeon...!

Cheers and Good Luck!!

C

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Hi

I live in central Florida and was sleeved 2 months ago Saturday. I used Dr. Radulescu ? office downtown Orlando and ORMC. Both were great. Dr R is fantastic. I have been reading this board for some time now and had an idea what to expect after surgery like gas and ?feel like a kick in the stomach? I had neither. My only pain was when I came to in recovery and that only lasted a bit. The rest of my hospital stay was just uncomfortable. I went in on a Wednesday and was slated to go home on Friday ? but had a minor set back when I walked around the floor 3 times and my heart beat went up ? so I was released on Saturday.

Dr R. is great. He is over precautious which is good. He put me through many test/labs to make sure all was ok and I had to have a sleep study?.

I definitely would recommend him and his office staff?

Lou

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Hey there, we're stationed in the NW panhandle area of Florida. I had my revision at a military hospital so I can't help you there.

But, if you haven't already checked out Dr. Althar in Milton, he is amazing ! ! ! I almost used him for my revision, but he had never removed a band. I needed someone with revision experience as my band screwed the pooch and destroyed my stomach tissue.

I don't know if you'd be willing to travel up here, but, he has a fabulous rep, great stats, and his office staff is top notch. I spoke with them for well over a month during my research phase.

If you need anything, please feel free to contact me.

Get off the stinkin' fence ! ! ! Seriously, you won't regret it, and believe me if I can do this, anyone can ! ! ! I'm living proof this works, and transforms your life. . .

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Yes, Thanks Rommie :biggrin2:

I live in Tamarac, FL (west of Ft Lauderdale). Looking into scheduling surgery soon after months of researching and reading. I have to say that finding this forum has been great. People going thru similar issues/situations, so many successfull stories, lots of info..............the opportunity to share all of it!!

About me: Currently 245lb (not for long), 5'7'' and 36 y/o next Monday.

You all have a great weekend!!

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Happy Birthday Carolina!

I'm Christina 38. I live in Miami/Homestead area. I love all the support I get from everyone here. When I start to get a little scared I turn to the boards and all of you to lift my sprits. Thank you to everyone....Even to the ones who attact people..lol:001_tongue:

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I usually think time goes by so fast. Now that I have my surgery date it seems to dragging on and on. I would have scheduled my surgery for earlier but I have a cruise scheduled for mid-September. Oh well, it will come soon enough I guess.

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I live in Central Florida and had my sleeve done in Orlando at the Celebration Center. It is the only Center of Excellence in Bariatrics in the state. Dr. Keith Kim was highly recommended to me by some surgeons in Miami. Look him up...they have a website. Good luck, and if you have any questions, please hit me up.

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I'm in Central Florida. Having Surgery with Dr Keith Kim at Celebration Health. They have a great program here but in may be a bit of a trip from Sebastian. Good Luck on you Quest.< /p>

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I am in Miami, Florida and I had my sleeve with Dr. Nestor de la Cruz-Munoz at the university of miami. He is amazing. His staff is wonderful. Here is the link if you are interested: Surgical weight loss Institute |

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Thank you. It was a good day wiht the family. We went out to dinner and cake of course. Today i started a diet so i can loose a few lbs and show my PCP that I'm in this for real.

GOOD LUCK TOMORROW MY FRIEND!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I will pray for you (not that you need it but for a speedy recovery). Everything will be fine and before you know it will be out on the town looking fabulous. Let me know how you are doing when you get a chance.

BIG HUG........................

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Jacksonville Florida here.. I was sleeve in May by Dr. Webb. I don't regret my decision in the least. The only advise I can give is to just do it.

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Hi!

My name is Kim and my surgery date is 8/26. I'm so excited. I'm a self payer as I did not want to wait the 6 months of jumping through hoops for Aetna to pay half. I'm going to Dr. Althar in Pensacola/Pace area. You can go to his website at weightlosssurgerycenterofnorthwestflorida.com. So far, I'm very pleased with the process and Dr. Althar and his staff. I will keep you posted!

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    • LeighaTR

      I am new here today... and only two weeks out from my sleeve surgery on the 23rd. I am amazed I have kept my calories down to 467 today so far... that leaves me almost 750 left for dinner and maybe a snack. This is going to be tough for two weeks... but I have to believe I can do it!
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
    • Doughgurl

      Hey everyone. I'm new here so I thought I should introduce myself. I am 53y/o and am scheduled for Gastric Bypass on June 25th, 2025. I'm located in San Antonio, Texas. I will be having my surgery in Tiajuana Mexico. I've wanted this for years, but I always had insurance where bariatric procedures were excluded. Finally I am able to afford to pay out of pocket.  I can't wait to get started, and I hope I'm prepared for the initial period of "hell". I know what I have signed up for, but I'm sure the good to come will out way the temporary period of discomfort and feelings of regret. I'd love to find people to talk to who have been through the same procedure or experience before. So I look forward to meeting you all. Hope you have a great week!
      · 2 replies
      1. Selina333

        I'm so happy for you! You are about to change your life. I was so glad to get the sleeve done in Dec. I didn't have feelings of regret overall. And I'm down almost 60 lbs. I do feel a little sad at restaurants. I can barely eat half a kid's meal. I get adults meals often because kid ones don't have the same offerings at times. Then I feel obligated to eat on that until it's gone and that can be days. So the restaurant thing isn't great for me. All the rest is fine by me! I love feeling full with very little. I do wish I could drink when eating. And will sip at the end. Just a strong habit to stop. But I'm working on it! You will do fine! Just keep focused on your desire to be different. Not better or worse. But different. I am happy both ways but my low back doesn't like me that heavy. So I listened (also my feet!). LOL! Update us on your journey! I'm not far from you. I'm in Houston. Good luck and I hope it all goes smoothly! Would love to see pics of the town you go to for this. I've never been there. Neat you will be traveling for this! Enjoy the journey. Take it one day at a time. Sometimes a few hours at a time. Follow all recommendations as best you can. 💗

      2. Doughgurl

        Thank you so much for your well wishes. I am hoping that everything goes easy for me as well. We don't eat out much as it is, so it wont be too bad in that department. Thankfully. Also, I hear you regarding your back and feet!! I'd like to add knees to the list. Killing me as we speak! I'm only 5' so the weight has to go. Too short to carry all this weight. Menopause really did a doosey on me. (😶lol) My daughter also lives in Houston. with her Husband and my 5 grand-littles. I grew up in Beaumont, so I know Houston well, I will be sure to keep in touch and update you on my journey. I may need some advice in the future, or just motivation. Thank You so much for reaching out, I was hoping to connect with someone in the community. I really appreciate it. 💜

    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
      · 1 reply
      1. LeighaTR

        I hope your surgery on Wednesday goes well. You will be able to do all sorts of new things as you find your new normal after surgery. I don't know this from experience yet, but I am seeing a lot of positive things from people who have had it done. Best of luck!

    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
      · 1 reply
      1. summerseeker

        Life as a big person had limited my life to what I knew I could manage to do each day. That was eat. I hadn't anything else to look forward to. So my eating choices were the best I could dream up. I planned the cooking in managable lots in my head and filled my day with and around it.

        Now I have a whole new big, bigger, biggest, best days ever. I am out there with those skinny people doing stuff i could never have dreamt of. Food is now an after thought. It doesn't consume my day. I still enjoy the good home cooked food but I eat smaller portions. I leave food on my plate when I am full. I can no longer hear my mother's voice saying eat it all up, ther are starving children in Africa who would want that!

        I still cook for family feasts, I love cooking. I still do holidays but I have changed from the All inclusive drinking and eating everything everyday kind to Self catering accommodation. This gives me the choice of cooking or eating out as I choose. I rarely drink anymore as I usually travel alone now and I feel I need to keep aware of my surroundings.

        I don't know at what point my life expanded, was it when I lost 100 pounds? Was it when I left my walking stick at home ? Was it when I said yes to an outing instead of finding an excuse to stay home ? i look back at my last five years and wonder how loosing weight has made such a difference. Be ready to amaze yourself.

        BTW, the liquid diet sucks, one more day and you are over the worst. You can do it.

    • CaseyP1011

      Officially here for a long time, not just a good time💪
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
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