I'm a newbie to the boards and I have my consultation for the sleeve in 2 days!

Congrats on taking the first steps toward your new life!

Edited October 7, 201411 yr by JamieLogical

Welcome, Mark.

@@MarkX welcome. you will find lots of info and even more support on this site. good luck and keep us posted!

newbie to the boards - consultation in 2 days!

@@MarkX

wonderful decision to have WLS

I'm biased - but i think the sleeve is the greatest

consult on thursday!!!

prepare a list of questions to ask the doc

its ok to ask him how many sleeve surgeries he's done

how many people are alive to talk about them!!

i'm sure you've done your research on the sleeve

but ask doc to explain the procedure to you so you get it from the horses mouth

he might say things you hadn't thought about

recovery time

how long will you stay in hospital

i've heard of some people staying anywhere from one to 3 nights (some even longer)

i stayed in hospital over night

pain/meds

meds you can take post op

you'll hear on the board many people saying "the one thing in common that we all have is that we're all different"

we're here to support you and everyone

do you have a NUT (nutritionalist)

her directions will vary from from other peoples NUTS

verify from nut about your stages of eating

time periods between each stage

Protein shakes

pureed food

mushy food

soft foods

solid foods

ask about measurements

maybe take notes - but sometimes they hand out a pamphlet

other questions that i can't think of (having a senior moment )

others hopefully will chime in

ask your questions on the board about peoples experiences, hear/listen to answers

we are all very smart - but we are layman - ask doc/nut medical questions

but at the end of the day ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS follow directions of your nut & doc

you are just starting on the road to a healthier, happier, longer life

ENJOY the ride

have "fun" at your consultation

good luck through the process

stuff to do before approval

jumping through all the required hoops of insurance

finally getting approval and then a surgery date and then....

kathy

Edited October 7, 201411 yr by proudgrammy

Thanks everyone for the welcome. I agree that the sleeve is the best option! My sister had the sleeve about a year and a half ago and last she told me she was down over 110 pounds.

Welcome, Mark!

Welcome where are you having your surg

I guess I'm not. Went to my consultation and I'm a great candidate for surgery. They are running a $3499 special (bill insurance for hiatal hernia) but was told my insurance wouldn't pay anything so I have to come up with $10,500. Not an option for us.

I guess I'm not. Went to my consultation and I'm a great candidate for surgery. They are running a $3499 special (bill insurance for hiatal hernia) but was told my insurance wouldn't pay anything so I have to come up with $10,500. Not an option for us.

Are you open to the possibility of going to Mexico for surgery. There are many great surgeons there who do VSG for well under $10,500. My surgeon is on the upper end of the price scale in Mexico and still cost less than 2/3 that amount.

I was open to Mexico until last night reading stories of botched surgeries where the people are happy until 3 or 4 years out when they had major complications

I was open to Mexico until last night reading stories of botched surgeries where the people are happy until 3 or 4 years out when they had major complications

Where did you find these stories. I did pretty exhaustive research and only found one or two doctors with any significant history of taking shortcuts that led to problems years out. My surgeon has been doing surgeries for years and years and I've yet to hear of any complications arising further down the road. Just like in the US, there are good surgeons and bad surgeons. You need to do your research on specific surgeons, not just lump them all into one category because they are in Mexico.

On bariatricpal. The main person who started the conversation is an administrator here and had been a coordinator and advocate for Mexico surgeries. She isn't anymore. Not to say that problems don't happen here in the US but at least here you have legal recourse and rights.

On bariatricpal. The main person who started the conversation is an administrator here and had been a coordinator and advocate for Mexico surgeries. She isn't anymore. Not to say that problems don't happen here in the US but at least here you have legal recourse and rights.

I think I remember the thread you are referring to. I read that whole thing and it seemed to only indict one surgeon, Dr. Kelly. Like I said, it's not fair to judge an entire nation of doctors on the malpractice of one or two. There are many many many thousands of people who have traveled to Mexico for bariatric surgery and had zero complications and tremendous success. Of course, there's risk associated with any surgery no matter where you have it performed or by whom. It's up to you to judge whether the potential benefits outweigh the risks, but I would make sure I am accurately measuring those risks before weighing them against the benefits.

I agree with you completely. For me, I can't afford to risk being in that small percentage if I have to recourse. At least here in the US if I am in that unfortunate group that has issues I can sue and have whatever needs fixed, fixed. That's not the case if it happens anywhere else.

I agree with you completely. For me, I can't afford to risk being in that small percentage if I have to recourse. At least here in the US if I am in that unfortunate group that has issues I can sue and have whatever needs fixed, fixed. That's not the case if it happens anywhere else.

You should contact your insurance company to see if they would cover any potential post-operative issues. I contacted mine and while they would not cover my WLS, they did assure me that they would cover an infection or hospital visits necessary after the surgery and my PCP told me she would order and monitor my bloodwork to track all my vitamin/mineral levels.