Jump to content
×
Are you looking for the BariatricPal Store? Go now!
$99 Yearly Supply Alert! 🌈 "1 per Day!" Bariatric Multivitamins

No more Chat Rooms ?

facorsig

By facorsig, in Website Assistance & Suggestions

Recommended Posts

facorsig    36

facorsig
Posted

The Bariatric Pal chat room was a great source for real-time information while I was making decisions to prepare for surgery. With the relocation of the chat room, it is really dead and difficult to find anyone. I think the veterans know about it, but I rarely see "new faces". Can the chat room be restored to the main menu bar?

Fred

Share this post

Link to post
Share on other sites

Alex Brecher    10,486

Alex Brecher
Posted

The Bariatric Pal chat room was a great source for real-time information while I was making decisions to prepare for surgery. With the relocation of the chat room, it is really dead and difficult to find anyone. I think the veterans know about it, but I rarely see "new faces". Can the chat room be restored to the main menu bar?

Fred

Fred,

Our live chat rooms have died down. We switched over to a new chat platform and it seems like members don't love it. The chat rooms are available within our main site navigation. We plan on adding chat to our mobile apps in the near future. I think that'll help quite a bit. I'm open to hearing and implementing suggestions from our members as well......

Share this post

Link to post
Share on other sites

esskay77    785

esskay77
Posted

I didn't know there were chat rooms. I actually find it hard to find anything on here. I have bookmarked a page and I rarely go away from it because i can't quite find what I am looking for. Note that I design software applications and web sites myself so I'm probably a little hard to please! lol. What I really need to find on here are menu plans for people at various stages and ideas of what to eat for the day. I don't always know what is best to eat so I have been sticking to the same things over and over and am really bored with it. Is there a section on this site for menu plans, food ideas? Also note that even though I don't move away from this page much, I have found it extremely valuable!! I got more information from this site than I have from my doctor and the NUT!!! So true. And I really appreciate this site. Just want it to be easier to find things and navigate around.

Share this post

Link to post
Share on other sites

facorsig    36

facorsig
Posted

Chat appears to have disappeared from the options this evening. I was expecting changes, but not this one! Perhaps this is temporary or transitional!

Share this post

Link to post
Share on other sites

Alex Brecher    10,486

Alex Brecher
Posted

Chat appears to have disappeared from the options this evening. I was expecting changes, but not this one! Perhaps this is temporary or transitional!

I've watched chat this entire week and it's barely used. How often do you use it and how many people are normally partaking in your chat ? Appreciate your feedback, thanks!

Share this post

Link to post
Share on other sites

chelly12A    15

chelly12A
Posted

I haven't been able to access the chat room for a few days. I don't see it anywhere. Please let us know if you discontinued it?

Share this post

Link to post
Share on other sites

Alex Brecher    10,486

Alex Brecher
Posted

I've been watching the chat rooms for the last few weeks and members pop in and out of there but there isn't a vibrant chat going on at all times of the day and night like we were all used to previously. It doesn't make sense for us to continue a feature if it's not being widely used by the community. We have other areas we'd rather be working on (food and health trackers etc.) which we hope will be more useful to our WLS community. If you disagree with me, please let me know and I'll consider adding chat back to the site if you feel it's a feature that's widely used and you can't live without.

Share this post

Link to post
Share on other sites

facorsig    36

facorsig
Posted

The difference between the chat and the forums is not the information content, it is how the people exchange. There are probably fewer than ten frequent users. To me, if we help one person who would not have been helped otherwise, we have been successful. I read some threads in the forums and see permanent nastiness. The chat content is gone once it scrolls off the page. I received a note from another chat friend today and see chelly12A here, too. For the chat to be more utilized, don't bury it in the Patients menu. The link we had 4-5 months ago solicited a lot more participation.

Share this post

Link to post
Share on other sites

Luvin_Life125    558

Luvin_Life125
Posted

I didn't know chat rooms were available for BP members. I access the site from my mobile device 99% of the time. I am always surprised when I do access from my computer, how much more information is available. Can the mobile site be expanded to match what I have access to on my mobile device? I think more and more people are accessing BP through mobile devices and we don't always know other services are available.

Share this post

Link to post
Share on other sites

Dolores33778    248

Dolores33778
Posted (edited)

Hi Chelly and Fred! Miss you guys in chat as well. My busiest time of the year is the fall, so I have been a little distant, but I hope @@Alex Brecher decides to bring it back.

Alex, you asked how many people use it, that's hard to say, but if just 2 people are active, it helps others to feel like they can jump in. We can easily have about 7 or 8 members chatting off and on. That may not seem like a lot to you, but I know it has been a big help especially to those on the fence or just needing a quick reply.

Let us know how we can help. We're happy to do so.

-dt

Edited by Dolores33778

Share this post

Link to post
Share on other sites

chelly12A    15

chelly12A
Posted

I have met a lot of people on this chat and I hate to see that end. I go in and out all day long. A lot of people don't know it's there because you don't really make it obvious. The last time you moved the chat to a different location on the site you didn't let us know and we lost a lot of regulars. I vote to keep the chat. It is much nicer to chat with someone then to have to go to the forums and keep waiting for an answer.

Hi Chelly and Fred! Miss you guys in chat as well. My busiest time of the year is the fall, so I have been a little distant, but I hope Alex decides to bring it back.

Alex, you asked how many people use it, that's hard to say, but if just 2 people are active, it helps others to feel like they can jump in. We can easily have about 7 or 8 members chatting off and on. That may not seem like a lot to you, but I know it has been a big help especially to those on the fence or just needing a quick reply.

Let us know how we can help. We're happy to do so.

-dt

Share this post

Link to post
Share on other sites

Rach8610    60

Rach8610
Posted

I have met some very wonderful people here in the chat room and it had some great busy days and not so busy days...I myself work during the day so I would stay logged in for long periods of time and I saw a lot of in and out traffic....

I would really like to have this chat room back, it is what set this site apart from other weight loss sites....no one else has an interactive live chat room....

BRING IT BACK!!!

Share this post

Link to post
Share on other sites

Lisa00    14

Lisa00
Posted

I really miss the chat room even though I was in and out at times. Was really nice to connect with others in real time and chat about weightloss stuff and give helpful info to others just starting their journey's. Always nice to meet new friends on it as well. I do hope that Alex will decide to bring it back. PLEASE :)

Share this post

Link to post
Share on other sites

Dolores33778    248

Dolores33778
Posted

Send him a message at alex@bariatricpal.com.

I get so lost on this site without the chat.

Share this post

Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
Go To Topic Listing Website Assistance & Suggestions

  • Trending Products

  • Trending Topics

  • Recent Status Updates

    • Aunty Mamo

      Aunty Mamo

      Iʻm roughly 6 weeks post-op this morning and have begun to feel like a normal human, with a normal human body again. I started introducing solid foods and pill forms of medications/supplements a couple of weeks ago and it's really amazing to eat meals with my family again, despite the fact that my portions are so much smaller than theirs. 
      I live on the island of Oʻahu and spend a lot of time in the water- for exercise, for play,  and for spiritual & mental health. The day I had my month out appointment with my surgeon, I packed all my gear in my truck, anticipating his permission to get back in the ocean. The minute I walked out of that hospital I drove straight to the shore and got in that water. Hallelujah! My appointment was at 10 am. I didn't get home until after 5 pm. 
      I'm down 31 pounds since the day of surgery and 47 since my pre-op diet began, with that typical week long stall occurring at three weeks. I'm really starting to see some changes lately- some of my clothing is too big, some fits again. The most drastic changes I notice however are in my face. I've also noticed my endurance and flexibility increasing. I was really starting to be held up physically, and I'm so grateful that I'm seeing that turn around in such short order. 
      My general disposition lately is hopeful and motivated. The only thing that bugs me on a daily basis still is the way those supplements make my house smell. So stink! But I just bought a smell proof bag online that other people use to put their pot in. My house doesn't stink anymore. 
       
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
    • BeanitoDiego

      BeanitoDiego

      Oh yeah, something I wanted to rant about, a billing dispute that cropped up 3 months ago.
      Surgery was in August of 2023. A bill shows up for over $7,000 in January. WTF? I asks myself. I know that I jumped through all of the insurance hoops and verified this and triple checked that, as did the surgeon's office. All was set, and I paid all of the known costs before surgery.
      A looong story short, is that an assistant surgeon that was in the process of accepting money from my insurance company touched me while I was under anesthesia. That is what the bill was for. But hey, guess what? Some federal legislation was enacted last year to help patients out when they cannot consent to being touched by someone out of their insurance network. These types of bills fall under something called, "surprise billing," and you don't have to put up with it.
      https://www.cms.gov/nosurprises
      I had to make a lot of phone calls to both the surgeon's office and the insurance company and explain my rights and what the maximum out of pocket costs were that I could be liable for. Also had to remind them that it isn't my place to be taking care of all of this and that I was going to escalate things if they could not play nice with one another.
      Quick ending is that I don't have to pay that $7,000+. Advocate, advocate, advocate for yourself no matter how long it takes and learn more about this law if you are ever hit with a surprise bill.
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
    • BeanitoDiego

      BeanitoDiego

      Some days I feel like an infiltrator... I'm participating in society as a "thin" person. They have no idea that I haven't always been one of them! 🤣
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
    • ChunkCat

      ChunkCat

      Thank you everyone for your well wishes! I totally forgot I wrote an update here... I'm one week post op today. I gained 15 lbs in water weight overnight because they had to give me tons of fluids to bring my BP up after surgery! I stayed one night in the hospital. Everything has been fine except I seem to have picked up a bug while I was there and I've been running a low grade fever, coughing, and a sore throat. So I've been hydrating well and sleeping a ton. So far the Covid tests are negative.
      I haven't been able to advance my diet past purees. Everything I eat other than tofu makes me choke and feels like trying to swallow rocks. They warned me it would get worse before it gets better, so lets hope this is all normal. I have my follow up on Monday so we'll see. Living on shakes and soup again is not fun. I had enough of them the first time!! LOL 
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
    • BeanitoDiego

      BeanitoDiego

      Still purging all of the larger clothing. This morning, a shirt that I ADORED wearing ended up on top. Hard to let it go, but it was also hard to let go of those habits that also no longer serve my highest good. Onward and upward!
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.

  • Recent Topics

  • Hot Products

  • Sign Up For
    Our Newsletter

    Follow us for the latest news
    and special product offers!
  • Together, we have lost...
      lbs

    PatchAid Vitamin Patches

    Bariatric Forums

    For Patients

    Health Professionals

    Search Surgeons

    Bariatric Surgeons: Want to research a weight loss surgery surgeon? Enter their last name below to start!

    ×