I was going to do a poll but I am not that tech savy. Since you are in the process of looking into WLS, how many of you attended a weight loss seminar to get your information? If you did, where was it and how many attended? The reason I am asking is when I had my surgery in May, I just did research, replied to some ads and did a pro and con sheet. I did not attend a seminar. My sister had Gastric Bypass over 5 years ago, she said there were over 1500 hundred people at her seminar in Tulsa Oklahoma, that was a lot of people. I notice on the ads, there are a lot of surgeons that offer these informational seminars. I have a friend in Las Vegas that is now interested in the surgery since she saw my success. She emailed me about a seminar that is in Las Vegas on 10-1-2011 and asked if it is worth the time to go to get her questions answered, she said it is at a Library auditorium and the Surgeons are going to be there.

Please let me know your experience if you did attend a seminar, I would like to let her know.

Thank you.

my seminar was July 17 2011 I would say there was about 50 people who attended. I think it is worth attending because you have a over view of all the surgical procedures, also with most insurances its mandatory to attend one.

I attended 3 seminars before my band surgery, and YES, I think they are beneficial. It gave me a good grasp on the surgeon, his ideas, thoughts, general experience. I'm a "first impression" kind of girl. One surgeon rubbed me the wrong way, and his insurance coordinator really rubbed me wrong especially when I found out they were charging military dependents a $500 administration fee which totally ILLEGAL as part of Tricare's agreement(and they refused to file it with Tricare or allow us to file it with Tricare privately by not offering a claim code, or a real reason as to why they were charging it other than, this covers admin fees, not covering nut or psych visits) with civilian surgeons. This particular surgeon is prior military, about 80% of the attendees were retired military or retired military dependents. I felt as if he used his prior service to prey on military dependents, plus he had a "god like" attitude, and well, that just doesn't sit well with me. The other 2 were with the same surgeon who performed my band. He didn't have the best bedside manner, and wasn't warm and fuzzy, but that has never been a selling point for me. I wanted experience, and to have surgery with a man/team who I felt would meet my needs. Least to say, he put on a good show, and I fired him after only 5 months post-banding due to his refusal to help me when I started having major issues with my band.

kemo46, I had my surgery w/ Dr. Almanza also. I did not attend any seminars either. I did a lot of research through the internet. I feel I was knowledgeable when I made my surgery decision. I would have liked to have attended a seminar if there would have been one available to attend. I want to know as much as I could/can about my gastric sleeve surgery.

I went to a information session. In fact two weeks ago, I was the guest speaker at an information session for my doctor because I am one of his success stories. It's a great way to get to ask all the questions you have about the surgery before you undertake it, and if they have actual patients there, it's even better because you get a first hand account from a non medical point of view.

I attended a seminar. It was hosted at the hospital in a small room. There were only about 20 people there, but they have them multiple times a week. I would definitely say that it is worth because you get a good overview of all of the procedures as well as getting a feel for the surgeon.

I went to an informational seminar. There were about 13 people there, but I live in a rural area. It was most beneficial in helping me figure out about my insurance -- what questions to ask, etc. This is also where I learned about the sleeve. Prior to the meeting, I was looking into lapband. After the meeting, I began doing research online, and this forum was one of the places I found.

I'm in Las Vegas and attended a seminar. I was sleeved on Sept 23rd. There were around 30-40 people there.

I was required to do three from my doc, but only did one. (one of the perks of working in his hospital) It was small and kind of intimate with about 11 people. I think they are beneficial if you are new-new to the process, but Im big into personel research and with te VST board and youtube videos I feel like I could perform this surgery on myself! But if shes new then I would reccomend it. They even had people who have had the sleeve and were successful so you can see the results!

Mine was required by the surgeon. The surgeon himself actually ran the seminar and it was very informative. I had already known a lot of it from my research, but for someone without the google skills I have I think it would have been invaluable.

There were about 40 people at mine, and the presentation included all 3 surgeries he does (RNY, VSG, & Band.) The surgeon discussed his views on the pros and cons of each, they passed around a lap band / port so you could see what it would look like.

They even showed the surgeries (about 5 min. worth of each) on a projector screen being done. (yes it was kinda gross, but really interesting.) He walked through each procedure step by step telling you exactly what he was doing, and why they did it.

I went to three seminars, and found them very beneficial. I don't think there were more than 20 people at any of them, and I think the smallest group was 5 attendees. I benefitted from the surgeons' thoughts on the different surgical options, and found it a good opportunity to get a sense of their personalities. All the surgeons talked about recent research on WLS and went through the details of the various surgeries. Also, I had an opportunity to inquire about self-pay costs. One of them felt more like a sales pitch than an informational seminar (kind of a why you shouldn't have WLS with anyone but me approach), but it was good to know that side of the surgeon before paying for an appointment at his office! If it's not terribly inconvenient, I'd certainly recommend attending at least one.

I had done months of research both online and speaking with others who had had WLS. I had decided to go with a local surgeon and signed up to attend his seminar. There were about 30 people in attendance. Within minutes I was doubting my choice due to a boastful attitude, rudeness and trashing of other surgeons by this man.

I think these seminars are a great way to really get a feel for who you will be dealing with. I walked away knowing my research wasn't over. I did a webinar with the surgeon I choose because his office is several hours away.

I believe most Centers for Excellence require a webinar/seminar attendance to keep their accreditation.