It’s unlikely my insurance will pay. Given my BMI, I would need at least one co-morbidity. I (thankfully) have none, although the results of the sleep apnea test aren’t in yet (fingers crossed?).

Weight has been a life long issue for me. I’ve been going to dietitians since I was in grade school. Other than my weight, I’m thankfully healthy. The way I see it, why wait until I’m not?

so my question is, would you have paid out of pocket if insurance denied you (and you could scrape up the cash)?

i live on the east coast, so Mexico would be too long of a haul for me. I also just feel more comfortable being close to home.

Thanks.

No, I would not have done this surgery at a BMI of 35 with no commodities. In that situation, for me, the benefits would not yet outweigh the risks.

You know it's odd that I haven't thought of it much this way before, but I honestly am not sure. My tipping point for deciding on WLS was due to severe sciatica that was ruining my life. I could only walk for about 5 minutes before the pain would set in and was murder just to walk around. The weight had crept back on and I couldn't work out due to the back issues. My choice was either back surgery or get the weight off, so I went with option #2.

A year out I can say yes, I would do it all over again. Having shed over 100 lbs my back is 95% better and have gotten most of my life back. I've done more in the past year than I had the previous three combined. With that being said had I not had back problems would I have gone through with WLS? I honestly don't know. I had given it thought for years and years but was afraid of the surgery, and secondly insurance wasn't covering it at the time. Since insurance was out there was no way I could consider having it done.

I don't have any regrets in doing my surgery, but this is a bit tougher to answer than I thought it would be.

I would say in my situation I would absolutely do it again and wish it was done 10 years earlier. I would also say that Mexico isn't as far as it seems, I'm on the east coast as well and San Diego is very easy to get in and out of. I would not hesitate to use BariatricPal MX again, they were great to work with and made it super simple.

With my own stats? Yes, I would absolutely do it again in a heartbeat.

I am in the same situation as yours. I do not have any co-morbidity but been on a rollercoster to loss and keep my weight off.

I am at a point where my sciatica problem is getting worse, my back feels like it's in pieces, my knees are hurting all the time and don't even let me get started with Acid reflex and digestion issues, unable to walk for long, unable to sit for too long, and the list goes on.

I am done trying weight loss centers, B12 shots in my stomach, protein diets, fad diets, boot camps which are a killer with all the pain I am constantly in

I am scheduled for my gastric sleeve for 2/16. It was a very tough decision but had to be made. I know it's a lifestyle change and I am ready to make one.

I am going with BeLiteWeight in Juarex Mexico. I have heard nothing but excellent feedback on the staff, hospital, and the surgeons.

I was provided with the list of Patient referrals (actual patients) whom I contacted directly (about 10 of them) I spoke to each one and some of them we exchanged Text messages.

I did a lot of my research. I selected to go with this team mainly for 2 very important reasons:

1) Most importantly, I am staying at the hospital the entire time. Not in a hotel post op for couple of days unlike some others

2) Highly recommend and excellent surgeon credentials

I will be traveling to El Paso from Chicago. So my flight is approx 4 hours.Then driven to Juarex directly to check-in to the hospital.

I understand what you mean by staying closer to home. I was very skeptical about this myself. After talking to many of the patients, they indicated we have a choice to stay extra days close to the hospital till we feel comfortable enough to go back home. I opted out of that as I have my kids waiting for me at home.

I will be provided with direct nurse and patient coordinators cell phone numbers, will be added to the group so post op support is available to me 24x7.

Sorry for the long, lengthy post. I know what you are going thru. I can related thus shared my story.

If you have the funds yes, but Mexico will likely be a third to a half of US self pay prices

Me... I'd do it all again but I was not a self pay or have a low BMI

I had a lower BMI but really severe Type 2 Diabetes that was rapidly turning to Type 1. I had to lose the weight fast or be put on an insulin pump. Or worse.

I would do it again in a heartbeat! Not nearly as scary as I thought and my life changed for the better literally within days. Within 3 days I was off all meds & insulin and at 3 months I’m at my lowest ever adult weight. I feel amazing to say the least!@BariatricPal made it super easy to coordinate everything and I flew all the way from Canada!

You know it's odd that I haven't thought of it much this way before, but I honestly am not sure. My tipping point for deciding on WLS was due to severe sciatica that was ruining my life. I could only walk for about 5 minutes before the pain would set in and was murder just to walk around. The weight had crept back on and I couldn't work out due to the back issues. My choice was either back surgery or get the weight off, so I went with option #2.

A year out I can say yes, I would do it all over again. Having shed over 100 lbs my back is 95% better and have gotten most of my life back. I've done more in the past year than I had the previous three combined. With that being said had I not had back problems would I have gone through with WLS? I honestly don't know. I had given it thought for years and years but was afraid of the surgery, and secondly insurance wasn't covering it at the time. Since insurance was out there was no way I could consider having it done.
I don't have any regrets in doing my surgery, but this is a bit tougher to answer than I thought it would be.

Thank you for sharing this! I struggle with the same back issues. This is one of the main reasons I am looking Into getting this done. Not being able to walk or stand for more than 15 to 20 mins is killing me . Chronic back pain is killing me. I want to be healthy and able to walk and run and work out.

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On 2/9/2018 at 1:08 AM, annamolly760 said:

Thank you for sharing this! I struggle with the same back issues. This is one of the main reasons I am looking Into getting this done. Not being able to walk or stand for more than 15 to 20 mins is killing me . Chronic back pain is killing me. I want to be healthy and able to walk and run and work out.

Sent from my SM-G955U using BariatricPal mobile app

For that reason alone the surgery was worth it. My sciatica seriously destroyed my life for the better part of 3 years. I couldn't do much of anything for half an hour at a time before I had to stop and rest. Then to lay in bed at night was near impossible to get comfortable. Every once in a blue moon I'd have a good day, but so many things got ruined because I couldn't last long enough to enjoy anything.

It didn't completely cure my sciatica, but I do honestly feel that it's 95% better than what it was. Some days I still get a bit of numbness if I stand in place for too long, but outside of that it rarely bothers me like it used to.

For that reason alone the surgery was worth it. My sciatica seriously destroyed my life for the better part of 3 years. I couldn't do much of anything for half an hour at a time before I had to stop and rest. Then to lay in bed at night was near impossible to get comfortable. Every once in a blue moon I'd have a good day, but so many things got ruined because I couldn't last long enough to enjoy anything.

It didn't completely cure my sciatica, but I do honestly feel that it's 95% better than what it was. Some days I still get a bit of numbness if I stand in place for too long, but outside of that it rarely bothers me like it used to.

I'm so glad to hear that. I've struggled with back pain for almost 10 years.

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