Hey has anyone worked with or heard of Dr. Felix in Fresno, CA? I've submitted my insurance information and now I'm waiting.... So I thought I'd see if anyone could tell me about their experiences with him. It's so much money and if insurance doesn't approve I guess I just need to know that he's worth it.

Thanks for your help.

With love, Sheila

Hi Sheila,

Yes, he is my doctor! I had the surgery on Nov 15th and it was a great experience. Dr. felix andhis team are very professional and very helpful.

I live up in Santa Rosa (an hour north of SF) and it was (is) TOTALLY worth it for me to drive 5 hours to have him be my doc. What insurance do you have? I have BC and was approved because I was 40 BMI. I am very happy to say I am no longer that- have lost nearly 40 lbs.

just remember the doc and the lap band are a tool- it still takes dedication and effort. But YES I highly reccomend Dr Felix! Fell free to contact me if you have further ?'s. Or just reply on this thread and I will get back to you.

All I can say is this is the best thing I have ever done for myself. I can't believe I didn't do it sooner.

jill

Thanks soooo much for responding! Today I was denied by my insurance company so I'm kinda bummed but I'm encouraged by your words. Thanks so much. With love, Sheila

:thumbup:I just had my LapBand done by Dr. Felix as his first Patient on Valentine's Day! (No Joke!) He and his team rate an A++!!! They (and Clovis Community Hospital) took care of me the best ever!

Here are a few things to get the insurance company to approve you...

1. Have your Physican state in a letter that you need the surgery because

it is 'Life Threating'. (If you have Apnea, have him state that too.) You

can write the letter and have him sign it for submittal to your insurance.

2. IF your BMI is 'over 40' then you should be considered as 'severely obese'.

(That should go in the letter too.)

3. You will probably have to prove or go thru a Physican approved 'diet' for

3 to 6 months with daily intakes of calories, etc. (I did mine in Excel.) It

also goes into submittal.

You'll have to jump thru some hoops and spend some time buliding your case to the insurance company. When you finally have all your documentation then submit it to your insurance with a copy of your medical records for review. The review takes awhile.

My best advice is to contact your insurance provider or local rep, sit down with them to see what 'their' qualifications are for approval. I listed mine by bullet point. Once you have that, then you can attack them one at a time. Once they are all done, the insurance has to approve. It's also good to have a good general doctor that your are going to and work with him. The winning edge is to be 'Proactive'!!! Take control and go thru the requirements. You can ask about their BMI qualifications too.

I'm still bruised and shaved, but I feel great!!! Lost weight already! Do the Vits and pills, Protiens, etc. Let me know how you do or if you need more suggestions. Going thru the Prelim stuff w/ Dr. Felix's staff in Fresno will help. They have great materials. Good luck with everything! -Nick

You can reach me at: nkeg@mindspring.com

Dr. Felix is my doctor, well, will be my doctor. I was recently approved by my insurance and scheduled on surgery on MArch 27th! So far he has been wonderful. I'll let you know how everything goes Shelia. :thumbup:

Congratulations! :thumbup:

I hope my advice helped! You will be fine! The care is great! You’ll be ‘out’ then awake in post-op before you know what happened.

:blink:Plan on spending a day at least in the hospital before going home. Drink plenty of liquids and walk the halls as soon as you can.

When you get home leave the bandages on, but you might want to have some good skin lotion to rub over the areas for a few weeks. They’ll itch too, so if it’s medicated the better. Let any scabbing (there won’t be much) fall off on its own and don’t scratch! (If you've ever had a tattoo, you'll know how to care for it.):shades_smile:

For the first week eatdrinks lots of: liquids, Water and sugar-free jello! Be sure to do the Vitamins as prescribed too. Light broths are great, later on hard-boiled eggs sliced are a great Protein snack. (I put them in a slicer, salt and pepper and Taco Bell hot sauce! It saves me.) :thumbup:

There are protein powders that you can mix with coffee, milk, instant Breakfast drinks, oatmeal, etc. Oatmeal is a great friend first thing in the morning.

:blush:Don’t get the regular Protein Drinks at the store as they only have 4-9g of Protien. Go to Rite-Aid in the diet section and look for the ‘protein drinks and shakes’. They’re usually in the ‘muscle building group. They have protein in the 25 – 65g range! There is flavored protein water made by Stacker 2 that is around 25g per bottle. Hard to drink a whole one at a time, but you can put it over ice or blend it. => Be careful… they make a regular ‘diet’ water that has no protein in it! (It looks exactly the same but it has a yellow tape measure as part of the design. You don’t want that one!):teeth_smile:

A single order of Pinto Beans and cheese from either Taco Bell or Del Taco is perfect too. I had my surgery on Valentine’s day and have lost 30lbs! About 6 shrimp at night is a great dinner. Chew and eat slow. There's lots out there to eat if you just take the time to read the labels.:crying:

I walk several times a day and feel great! Keep at it and keep posting! I’m even finding stuff I could wear last year that is too big now! -N :thumbup:

Fresno here! Dr. Swartz at Dr. Felix group did my lap-band. I too am very happy with his work. I just did my band on the 21st of Jan. 2009, so vry new to this, but I am feeling so good. I am looking forward to this new journey. Hope to hear from you, let me know how your fills with the dr. have gone. Insurance cover?? anything else to be prepared for?? Thanks.:w00t: