Hello to all,

I'm looking for sleevers in Chicago southland. Would like to get a small support group together. I had my surgery in the north suburbs. The support groups that they have are all on Saturdays. I work alot of saturdays. So it makes it difficult to make it to many meetings. I'm hoping to find some sleevers that live near me. This will make it easier to make regular meetings.

It may also be fun to find others to workout with. If you are in the area and would like to form a support group, please let me know. Thanks Jane

Hello ChiTownSleevers. I am in. I get sleeved on 8.23. I am live on the south side of Chicago. I am open to working out, walking or whatever. I am so excited; I got my news today that I was approved. Oh, my surgeon is Dr. Fred Tiesenga. I had my lapband at West Suburban in Oak Park but I think he will do this surgery at Westlake in Melrose Park. I live south but I love west suburbs.

Yeah...for you. I know Dr Tiesenga, he is a great doctor, a little quirky, but great none the less. Not to mention he has been doing wls for over 10 years. So he definatly has the experience. I would love if we can get a live meeting for the Chicago group going. I'm totally open to that.

Suburbs going to dr Joyce in New Lenox

chitowngirl, I am in.

Hi Chicagoans! New to VS Talk. Going for my first consult with Dr. Wallace at Alexian Brothers tomorrow. SUPER excited to get going with this. I have BCBSIL with a $1,000 deductible and 80% coverage. What kind of cash am I looking at paying out for this?

Hi Guys! Just starting my journey. Have a consult with Dr. Wallace at Alexian Brothers tomorrow but live in SW burbs (Romeoville). Anybody close?

Hi LawDiva312 ....I'm also starting out with the same Dr. group....I'm had my consult with Dr. Rantis at his Hoffman Estates office - really like him - he's partners with Dr. Wallace. My friend had her surgery last year by Dr. Guske and she is doing great...down over 100 lbs and she looks and feels awesome. No complications at all. I'll be having my surgery at St. Alexis hopefully in September. So far, everyone in their office is great. I've gone through the psych evaluation with Dr. Crane and I go for my preop dietary meeting on the 8th. I also have BCBS and those two items are required before they can submit the paperwork for approval. I've started scheduling some of the after approval appointments because there's a wait time...you have to meet with a pulminologist, do a post op dietary meeting and you have to attend one of their support groups that they hold on Sat mornings. Oh ya, I had an upper GI and a gallbladder/liver ultrasound because I was having issues - so far all is ok I guess. Do you know when you might be having your surgery?

Hi NicksMom! The sooner the better I know I have to schedule the psych eval and dietician appointment before approval but thanks for the tip on scheduling the other stuff early. I'll let you know how the appointment goes Thurs. So far I've just gone to the seminar. Glad to hear of good experiences at Alexian.

Good Luck on Thursday. I took 2 pages of questions with me when I went for my consult and Dr. Rantis took the time to answer each one. Really put me at ease so I would guess Dr. Wallace will be just as great!

Hi Chicagoans! New to VS Talk. Going for my first consult with Dr. Wallace at Alexian Brothers tomorrow. SUPER excited to get going with this. I have BCBSIL with a $1,000 deductible and 80% coverage. What kind of cash am I looking at paying out for this?

Hi, I just had a sleeve from Dr. Wallace on 5/21. Do you have a max out-of-pocket? I would say if so, you're likely to hit that. I have a big project due this week, but if you send me a message as a reminder I can give you my exact calculations. The hospital charges alone were $65K, but that's before the provider discount. I also had to stay in the hospital until the 4th day because I didn't pass gas - frustrating! I had already accumulated a number of medical bills that year, so I just ended up having to pay the rest of my out-of-pocket maximum ($1500 left out of a $2500 OOP max) and that was it.

Hi, I just had a sleeve from Dr. Wallace on 5/21. Do you have a max out-of-pocket? I would say if so, you're likely to hit that. I have a big project due this week, but if you send me a message as a reminder I can give you my exact calculations. The hospital charges alone were $65K, but that's before the provider discount. I also had to stay in the hospital until the 4th day because I didn't pass gas - frustrating! I had already accumulated a number of medical bills that year, so I just ended up having to pay the rest of my out-of-pocket maximum ($1500 left out of a $2500 OOP max) and that was it.

PS, Dr. Wallace was great! I had a single-site surgery, with my tiny little scar in my bellybutton, and a little puncture for the liver retractor which is already gone, and I still have a mark from where the IV was in my hand. I love showing people my tiny little scar!

PS' date=' Dr. Wallace was great! I had a single-site surgery, with my tiny little scar in my bellybutton, and a little puncture for the liver retractor which is already gone, and I still have a mark from where the IV was in my hand. I love showing people my tiny little scar! [/quote']

Thanks Kat! I just called BCBS I have a max out of pocket of $2K/year and I'm almost already there. Glad to hear you liked Wallace. What determines whether a patient is a good candidate for single-incision?

Kat - did you have your surgery at Alexian Bros or St. Alexis? I have a friend that had it at St. Alexis and they were wonderful. I haven't decided which hospital yet. Also, is the recovery easier with the single-incision? I was told that I may not be a good candidate for it since I'm longer from my belly-button to my stomach area and the instruments cannot reach.

I ended up paying just a couple hundred on a 60k bill so it was well worth it but i also had previously hit my deductable... either way it is so worth it and you can always go on a payment plan. I would call your insureance company and ask them how much you will pay out, you can be sure it will be at least 50k. I was in for 4 days too..

Thanks for the post. I talked to insurance today. My max out of pocket is $2K and I've already paid out $1K this year. I can handle $1K. I just wasn't sure how my insurance worked b/c I have an 80/20 policy. But after I've met my annual $2K they pay 100%. Whew! Going for my consult tomorrow. So excited!