New to forum and WLS... many questions.

[jbrizz 5]

Ok so I've made the decision to pursue having a gastric sleeve procedure done. I am 34 380lbs been overweight my entire life, suffer from severe sleep apnea and degenerative joint disease in my back and well its time to provide myself with this powerful tool to help me with this battle. With that being said, my insurance does not cover WLS. At this point I need to look into other options and Mexico seems like the best one as well as i have some extended family members that went the mexico route with great results.

My main concern is that I am single and finding someone to complete the journey with me to mexico may be difficult has anyone gone this route as crazy as it seems? Second concern is I work a job that requires some heavy lifting, being on my feet all day, bending,twisting, stooping all that stuff, so it seems like with that being the case the recommended time off work is about 6 weeks. I do have short term disability through my work but my concern is having the procedure outside the United States if it would be approved or not. Has anyone successfully used short term disability for weight loss surgery in mexico? Third question may be more appropriate to discuss with a doctor but I use ibuprofren daily for joint pain and arthritis that I have, Im sure this is a concern and major no no when having this procedure done, What should I be looking at as alternative options? I think thats where I will start now, I feel a bit intimidated, and shy about this process but also excited to finally do something about it all and I just want to be fueled with as much info as possible going into this. Thanks.

[Djmohr 6,965]

Welcome!

Everybody has to start somewhere. I would suggest taking some time and searching on this site. There are so many great posts about WLS and there is a ton on here about having it done in Mexico.

As of the ibuprofen question, you are right....in both Bypass and sleeve they prefer you dont take it as it can cause ulcers which can be very serious when a good portion of your stomach is no longer there.

I suffer from severe osteoarthritis and Psoriatic arthritis. I used to have it something fierce in my ankles and knees. I also have it badly in my spine and shoulders. I take NO ibuprofen ever. Since losing weight, My knees, ankles and feet no longer bother me at all but if they did, I would go and have some cortisone.

My back on the other hand is much worse and i suffer with pain everyday. I use alot of heat, ice, bio freeze and when desperate i take tylenol and muscle relaxers.

I have also used essential oils for pain relief and relaxation. Regardless of the pain in my back, I feel 1000 times better than when i weighed 310lbs. I have more energy and get way more out of life.

It is very likely that your arthritis will improve greatly with weight loss. I wish the very best for you and hope that you are able to get in and get things moving so you can enjoy life. You are young and have lots of time to bounce back.

I always say if I have had any regrets it is that I waited too long but thank goodness i am there now. I am 53 and was 51 when i had bypass.

[OKCPirate 5,323]

I was single too. I eventually used my frequent flyer miles to fly my mom to join me (she is a retired RN, with survival Spanish skills so that helped). But to tell you the truth, I really didn't need her but it was worth it to get all my friends and family members off my back. There were two other singles on my floor and they were fine.

You will really need to be light duty for a month. Talk to HR. But if you sell them on the idea about how much better you be much lighter they may go for it.

In the interim, try to lose as much as you can and pack on as much muscle as you can. At your age you might start seeing some results very quickly. I walked an hour a day and started lifting to get ready to go. You don't eat much for a month (pre-post op and very little for several weeks there after so you will lose some muscle mass during that time.

Good luck. PM me if you want to know about Mexico (oh and make sure you have your passport now).

[highfunctioningfatman 2,675]

I had an excellent experience in Mexico. I went through Trinity Medical. I see that you are in Oregon as well. If you are in Southern Oregon I can hook you up with 4 of us that have all gone there. One is an owner operator of a log truck, one is a respiratory therapist, one works in a hospital and the last is myself. I work for a national home oxygen and respiratory company. I manage the drivers and run the warehouse as well as duties in the field.

[JamieLogical 8,727]

I've traveled to Mexico for surgery twice by myself. There is no need for a travel companion. In fact, I feel like it's better to go alone because then you can focus 100% on yourself and not worry about keeping someone else entertained the whole time. You will be well taken care of by the surgical staff and by the time you are sent back to your hotel, you will be perfectly capable of fending for yourself. You can wallow in your misery and discomfort without having to worry about anyone else.

As for the ibuprofen, that is definitely something to discuss with your surgeon. Maybe you can find some other way of managing your pain.

Finally, I don't know about short term disability, but I know that I was qualified for FMLA when I had my surgeries (VSG and plastics) in Mexico.

[Pescador 1,374]

It is time to work on saving you from disability and severe health problems. My husband has lost 100 lbs, and we were at a point I knew I was not going to have him long if we did not jump off the cliff and get the sleeve. It was scary, and now it is funny because neither of us even felt like we had surgery. No more WL seminars like we did for so many years, and backed away! Good luck!!!!!

BTW if you think you will have a job problem most of us had hernias. Your job does not need to know your business.

[newjerseygirl60 45]

loopylulu is right I had bilateral degenerate bone disease in both my knees last year and had both replace the end of November will be a year. I did FMLA and short term disability for both. Next month I am doing the bypass FMLA knows about it and it is approved. My job knows I about me going out to have surgery, but I did not tell my job what I am having surgery for that is not their business. On my job FMLA also files for my short term. That's why I am doing the bypass because I want to give my knees the best possible chance I can give them I need for them to last a long time hopefully past the 15 to 20 year life span for replacements. I hope that helps you any. And good luck to you whatever you choose to do!!

[Oregondaisy 2,021]

I was single too. I eventually used my frequent flyer miles to fly my mom to join me (she is a retired RN, with survival Spanish skills so that helped). But to tell you the truth, I really didn't need her but it was worth it to get all my friends and family members off my back. There were two other singles on my floor and they were fine.

You will really need to be light duty for a month. Talk to HR. But if you sell them on the idea about how much better you be much lighter they may go for it.

In the interim, try to lose as much as you can and pack on as much muscle as you can. At your age you might start seeing some results very quickly. I walked an hour a day and started lifting to get ready to go. You don't eat much for a month (pre-post op and very little for several weeks there after so you will lose some muscle mass during that time.

Good luck. PM me if you want to know about Mexico (oh and make sure you have your passport now).

I was just wondering where you live in Southern Oregon. I live in southern Oregon , too. We have a great bariatric team here, but I went to Mexicali 7 years ago. The price was 3,000 cheaper, plus I liked that I would be in the hospital for 3 days. I didn't need to be, but I thought I'd rather be safe than sorry.

I went alone. I had no trouble being alone. I flew to the San Diego airport and they took care of the rest .I LOVED being in Mexico. Every day I went for a nice long walk outside . The weather was gorgeous and freezing cold at home.