I've always struggled with my weight. Always was a big girl. I spent several years without insurance so I have been unable to go to the doctors for regular check ups Until this year (2018).
Fast forward to this past October, I went in for an issue with my foot, most likely stemming from my weight and poor choice of foot wear. I weighed in at 316 lbs. My doctor was concerned about my blood pressure and overall health. She referred me to a bariatric surgeon. I have an appointment for a consultation after the new year. I know I will get a LOT of information at the consultation, and I've done a bunch of research on the 3 surgeries that Kaiser offers. I'm getting married next year, we want to have kids in the next few years.

From first hand experience, what should I expect? If I go through with the surgery how long does it take to schedule? How did you do recovery-wise? I felt like I could lose the weight on my own, have been working out and cutting out soda, sweets and carbs but I have only lost about 10lbs. Both my doctor and nutritionist told me to consider the surgery. I dunno, I'm nervous about surgery.

Insurance and your surgeon's office will dictate a lot of your experience. In my case, I was required to do a 6 month weight loss program that included visits with an exercise physiologist and nutritionist. I also had to lose 5% of my starting weight in this time. Additional requirements included a psych eval, 3 year weight history, and letter of medical necessity from my PCP. My insurance also requires a sleep study for those with sleep apnea. After those 6 months, my file was submitted to insurance for approval. Approval only took a day (this is not typical—typical approval time is 2 weeks, but insurance providers have up to a month to approve/deny). The time between my approval and surgery is 7.5 weeks.

My surgery is next month, so I can't speak to recovery but I will be off work for 2 weeks and will probably be working from home from home during the second week.

I definitely understand your apprehension. I think that after your consultation you'll have more concrete answers, so hopefully that will help ease your worries.

One step at a time. This is just a consultation - you're not committing to anything. You don't need to be sure to meet with the surgeon. And if you meet with him/her - even multiple times, you're not required to go through with anything. Go, talk, write down some of your concerns and talk to the doc about them. It took me a year to really decide to do this, but while I was thinking about it I continued to do the steps my insurance required. They also likely have a bariatric support group. Go to that and talk to folks who have had the surgery to see how it is.

In the meantime, read your insurance booklet. It should tell you its requirements (mine were 3 months supervised diet - 1 appointment a month, 2 years diagnosed obesity, and either a 35 BMI with comorbidities or a 40 BMI). Some insurance requires longer supervised diet, some require you to lose some % of body weight before surgery approval.

One doctor I saw had his own requirements. Things like doing an endoscopy, and seeing an exercise physiologist.

As for recovery - that will depend on the surgery. I had the sleeve and mine was fairly easy. Post-op diet will vary by doctor.

Again, go into the appointment with your mind open. You haven't decided anything. You're information gathering. That way you can make an informed decision one way or another. Good luck.

Good Luck on your Journey. I was self pay as i did not have insurance that covered it. I did all my research, researched the Dr. to see his stats, successes, and such. Did a lot of YouTube watching, and READING a lot of the message boards will also give you a lot of insight on how people are doing. The one thing i can say, is if you are ready, you will know it, you will not second guess your decision and you will be prepared for whatever may come.. Do your research now while waiting that way you will have all the extra knowledge they may not tell you during the consult.