Hey, my name is Joe, I am a 46 year old man in Granada Hills. I will be having the gastric sleeve at Kaiser West LA. I was 422 at my highest. I have completed the options program required by Kaiser, and I am 10 pounds away from meeting my 10% weight loss required by Kaiser. I have my first appointment with my surgeon on January 6, 2016. I am busting my butt this week to get closer to my goal prior to my appointment. We will see how close I get. I also took my "Before" pictures at Picture People. My daughter works there, and wants to document my journey. I will post them soon!

Congratulations and welcome to the forum. This is a great site for information and encouragement.

Best of luck with your surgery and weight loss journey.

Keep us posted on how you are doing!

What Dr are you seeing? I saw Dr. Zelada last week. I have not done options yet. I have to have a medical clearance due to a congenital heart defect. I am waiting for the anesthesiology department to give me clearance. I start options on the 7th in OC. I want to do the bypass, but I take aspirin everyday so Dr. is wanting me to lean towards the sleeve or change from my cardiac aspirin regimen to something that doesn't cause ulcers. I hope everything goes well.

Stacy

Hey Stacy, I am seeing Dr. Kim. I am having the sleeve done. I took mine at Woodland Hills. A lot of the stuff they taught was stuff I already knew, but at 422 lbs, I needed to do something more than just know info. Lol. But the Options class was definitely a great support group! I wish you luck on your journey!

Let us know how soon after you see the surgeon, the surgery is scheduled for. Best of luck to you, and good job on the weight loss so far!

One of the girls in my class had her surgeon consultation on Christmas Eve, and asked to be put on the cancellation list. She just checked in, and will be getting sleeved this afternoon!

That's awesome. I have to have a whole cardiac team, my cardio emailed me this morning....they are working on it. So I won't be able to be on a cancellation list, they will have to schedule it, but since I haven't gotten too far into classes I am hoping they will get it all together right around the time I finish options. Praying for your friend!

How long did the process take you guys with Kaiser?

I'm just starting options. At the orientation they said it's taking anywhere from 1-3 weeks after the last class, but that's Southern California. It's different for the different Kaiser regions.

I'm just starting options. At the orientation they said it's taking anywhere from 1-3 weeks after the last class, but that's Southern California. It's different for the different Kaiser regions.

Did you sign up for your first options class? My orientation is today and I read in some of the other forums that the classes fill up and you can get stuck waiting for the next group to start.

Kaiser and Options is a great program. I'm in the San Diego area of Southern CA and we're a little different in that we have six months of classes. But it was well worth it. I had my RNY done by Dr. Tanaka on 07/29/15 and I couldn't be happier! I'm down to 152 and still losing. You all will not be sorry and congrats!

Kaiser and Options is a great program. I'm in the San Diego area of Southern CA and we're a little different in that we have six months of classes. But it was well worth it. I had my RNY done by Dr. Tanaka on 07/29/15 and I couldn't be happier! I'm down to 152 and still losing. You all will not be sorry and congrats!

Wow! 152 in 6 months, that is awesome! What was your starting weight? I had my consultation with my surgeon, Dr. Kim, at West LA yesterday. I got my clearance! Just waiting to get scheduled now!

I was 244 when I started Options and 218 by the end. You are going to love your new life!

What made you choose bypass vs sleeve?

I originally wanted sleeve but as I went along in Options I decided that the bypass might be a better fit. Some personal reasons were that I was concerned about developing GERD issues post op. And as I had a wicked sweet tooth I thought I might benefit having the "possibility" of dumping to help keep me in line. And being older (54) with a slower metabolism I wanted both the restriction and malabsorption aspects to assist me in reaching goal. I've always taken vitamins so I knew I would be able to ensure that I kept any possible vitamin deficiencies at bay.

For the record, I've never dumped and had zero complications. I'm also adhering completely to a healthy diet: no bread, soda, sweets, rice, pasta, etc., and I exercise regularly. I was pre diabetic before surgery and am no longer. All my vitals, including blood pressure are perfect. I just had my six month blood work and aside from being told to cut back on Beta Carotene (as my Vitamin A was a tad too high), it was all great.

I was left with the choice of either sleeve or bypass. I ended up choosing the one I thought fit my lifestyle the best and I've had no regrets. It's amazing! Good luck!