educationrulz

Fingers crossed! :tongue_smilie:

As far as differing opinions about doctors go, I have a mildly similar experience. One day, a good friend and I were talking about medical issues and realized that we had both gone to the same specialist. My experiences with this doctor were totally positive, hers not so much. Granted, this was not a surgeon who had performed any serious procedures on either of us, but as with all doctors, there was potential for harm. After our discussion of our experiences, I had a slightly different perspective of how someone might feel about this doctor's care. So, while I still recommend this particular doctor to people needing a specialist, I do so with the caveat that I know of at least one person whose experience was not so rosy. I never once discounted or downplayed my friend's experiences or perceptions. Nor did I try to talk her out of her feelings about this doctor. I accepted what my friend had to say and integrated the information into my knowledge base. When appropriate, I include that information in my reporting to others about this doctor so that they can make informed decisions. Of course, this is the dreaded "hearsay" principle. But realistically, my friend can't and/or won't talk to everyone who might inquire about this doctor. If we can rely on hearsay for positive feedback and patient referrals, then we should be able to rely on hearsay to some extent for warnings and negative feedback. If we're being honest with ourselves, what's the more mature way to handle these kinds of discrepancies? BTW, this is a true story! :scared0:

Not sure about this one Stacie, but I wanted to pop in on this thread to find out how you have been doing. Has your healing improved since your posts in February?

I think the point is that those types of posts have been deleted, so you wouldn't read about it.

OMG! This is very distressing. I had no idea this kind of thing was going on. Now I better understand that other thread "Account Deactivation" from someone who was upset with all the politics here. I'm going to do my best to now let this destroy all the positives I have found here. :redface1:

Congrats valleygirl! It's always comforting to hear about others getting this surgery approved through insurance since it still seems to be relatively new for most insurance companies. I've got about a month of pre-op requirements to go before my paperwork is submitted. I'm basically on the edge of my seat at this point. :crying: What all did you have to do for your plan in order to qualify?

It's funny that I came across this blog today because I actually talked to my WLS therapist today about how I'm going to deal with the extra attention I'm sure to get after I start losing weight. I'm definitely stressing about this in the back of my mind because I've never been one to like too much attention from others, especially when it comes to my appearance. It sounds like you've come up with some good techniques to deal with this kind of stuff. I'm thinking about running away to a whole new state and starting a new life as a normal-sized person where nobody thinks anything about what I do and what I look like. Then I won't have to deal with the food police, weight police, exercise police, and whoever else rears their ugly head. (Heavy sigh!) Guess I need to get through the surgery part first before I start worrying too much about the after-effects...

Jen, I am so sorry to hear about the problems you're having. I am glad that you are up to posting here on the forums because you don't need to be alone in your head at a time like this. There are definitely people around the forums who have had these experiences and can help you get through it, so keep talking to them even if you don't always post on the public forums. I'm also very happy for you that your doctors are working with you and not turning their backs on you like we hear of with some other people who had issues after surgery out of the US. It sounds like you're getting great follow up care. Stay on top of things and do your research so that no stone is left unturned. We're all wishing you a speedy recovery.

Another (strange?) idea might be to put something on top of your cup or Water bottle right before you start to eat - like a napkin or paper towel. When you go to pick up your drink, the "reminder" will let you know that it's not time to drink. Then, just take it off about 30 minutes after you finish eating. I'm pretty sure I'm going to have to do something like this for myself because I can't stand not having something to drink while I eat. I'll probably also need lots of timers all over the place because there's no way I'm going to remember to keep track of the 30 minutes after I finish eating.

Then we need to stop posting the good reports as well. How am I supposed to know that the good reports are not falsified for ulterior motives - like increased profits? Let's all speak in whispers as if we have no voice. That would be great. :cursing:

I think you should be able to take most medications pretty quickly post-op, as long as it's not a big ol' horse pill. If it's small you should be ok, but of course your surgeon will have to make that call. As for the benadryl, I would definitely stop that until your surgeon gives you the go ahead. I vaguely remember being told not to take it before a previous surgery. But I was able to take Zyrtec right up until the day before surgery, so you may just need to switch to a medication with less chance of drowsiness.

It's sad that a doctor would even say or think something like this. It's not like you went to Mexico to have a new set of butt cheeks put in - something totally elective and pretty unnecessary. You went for a procedure that will improve your health and increase your life expectancy. Why would someone want to turn you down for treatment just because you had a procedure out of the county? There are plenty of incompetent doctors right here in the good ole US of A and I don't hear anybody refusing to treat the patients they've messed up. And besides, even if you did get some new butt cheeks in Mexico and needed follow up care, why should that matter? Doctors take an oath to treat people in need and if they don't want to do it they need to find a new profession instead of passing judgement. :cursing: (End of rant!)

HI everyone! This is my very first post on the forum. :thumbup: I've been reading posts for several weeks since I made the decision to get this surgery. I decided that instead of doing my usual routine of observing and reading forever (lurking), I'll just jump in and get as much preop support as I can from the great people on this site. VSG has just been added to our WLS coverage options and I'm so excited. This is the only WLS that I've researched that hasn't scared the wits out of me. :biggrin0: I've started the ball rolling with my preop requirements by getting a psych assessment, scheduling my counseling sessions (I'm not the support group type), and getting my PCP on board with the requirement for 6 months of weight loss/nutritional documentation. My question is, does anyone here have some insight on the documentation requirements for insurance coverage? I'm particularly interested in those with UHC policies, but would love to hear from those with other coverage as well. My main concern is being sure that I have the proper documentation for the nutritional/exercise components. My nurse coordinator explained to me that I could do something like weight watchers or go to my PCP and have them document my weight, diet, and exercise once a month for 6 months. I didn't see any point in paying for weight watchers when the PCP visits would be the same cost or cheaper. When I talked to my doctor about it, he readily agreed to complete the documenation for me, but was kind of vague about it. He gave me a handout with a diet plan, so I guess that's what he'll document as my diet. They weigh me everytime anyway, so that's not a concern. But, I wasn't clear on how they'll document the exercise part. When I pushed the issue with the doc and asked how we would document the exercise, he just said something about me needing to do 30 minutes of exercise a day. I guess that's what he wrote in my chart. We all know how dismissive docs can be. I'm no shrinking violet, but I was sick when we we talked about this and was actually focused on my other health issues so I didn't push things as much as I could have. After all this babbling, my point is that I want to know if anyone had any difficulty with this part of their documentation for WLS. Did the insurance company question this aspect of the info sent in? Did you have to go back and provide additional documentation? Or, was it pretty much the formality that it seems to be and that my PCP made it out to be? I plan to contact my nurse coordinator again to revisit this issue but I would love some insight from anyone here who has experience with this. My biggest fear right now is to go 6 months thinking I've done everything right and then get turned down over something so minor. (By the way, I still may add the weight watchers piece just to cover my bases.) Happy to be here, Mary

That's good to hear. I talked someone at my doc's office yesterday and she indicated that all they will have to submit is the 6 MD notes from my PCP, the psych eval, the 6 counseling sessions, and the letter from the surgeon requesting approval. I've been driving myself crazy thinking I needed tons of documentation from every doctor I've ever seen. So, now I'm going to focus on tracking down the psychologist and getting the copy of my eval to the surgeon. Having no luck with that at all...:cursing: My advice to others on this issue would be to use a psychologist who works frequently with the surgeon you are going to use. It probably wouldn't be an issue then. But, I've got a month before it's time to submit my surgery request so I have no doubt that I'll get it done - even if I have to sit through another eval to expedite things.

Why does this issue have to be secretive and remain in PM's? Why can't we post the GOOD and BAD about our doctors if we had direct experiences that might help others? Although many negative medical experiences are simply bad luck or coincidence, some things could be avoided with proper care and procedures and might fall in the category of negligence. These are the kinds of things people need to know about so they can make informed decisions. I think this is particularly important when we are dealing with outside countries where the doctors and medical facilities are not under the jurisdiction of our residential law, or where things may not be as regulated as we are used to. The only recourse we have in these cases is to help someone down the road with knowledge. This is an open, public forum and I think something's wrong somewhere when certain things need to be said behind closed doors.

I hope this works out for everyone scheduled for the next couple of weeks and that everyone there is safe. I can imagine how agonizing it would be to have your surgery on hold but it's probably a good thing to have missed out on the worst of it. Hopefully we'll get more updates from the people there during the earthquake and learn that all is well.

I can see this from both sides, but what would be the problem with waiting until you return from Mexico to tell the PCP about the surgery and providing them with the surgeon's reports? Then, if they're not supportive, you can start looking for a new doctor. If the thought of the stress you might suffer from dealing with negative, unsupportive comments from the doc is bothering you, why put yourself through that? Now, the issue of not telling AT ALL after surgery...that seems really risky, but I can see OreganDaisy's point about that also. I hate that some of us even have to be put in that position because of these BS insurance companies.

From the posts I've seen here, people haven't had any significant problems flying home from Mexico after surgery, especially since the doctors there seem to keep you in hospital longer than they do in the US. But, hopefully someone with personal experience will chime in soon to help you feel better about this. Personally, I wish I was going to Mexico too, but I'm going to wait for this stupid insurance to kick in...

I can understand you not wanting to share the WLS thing with him at this point. That may change in October, or soon after that. But, if you really are "pretty good friends" at this point, you should at least be able to tell him how uncomfortable you are with his vacation idea. If you're bold enough to tell him, he'll be flattered that you don't want to risk sharing him with other women. Get your thoughts together about a non-threatening way to tell him this and plan on presenting at least 3 alternative ideas, like the one Tiff suggested. Think of some alternatives that fit with what you know about his personality and likes/dislikes. Also, try to think of how much more confident you'll be by the time October rolls around. You'll probably breeze through the whole thing.

I think this is judgemental and harsh to say that she is "stringing" them along. Not only do men date several women ALL the time, without any harsh judgements placed upon them, but they are often sleeping with multiple women. Maybe that's a little judgemental and/or presumptuous (sp?) of me to say, but I have a HUGE problem with double standards. OreganDaisy is taking her time to get to know these men and exploring her options - what's the crime in that? I'm sure when she gets to the point of making a decision about who she prefers to spend her time with, or when one of or both of her male friends wants to step things up a bit, she'll do what she needs to in terms of making a commitment or ending the relationship(s). Until then, OreganDaisy, keep livin "la vida loca!"...or at least as wild as it gets for ladies like us who think it's a big deal to be dating two men at one time. :drool5:

Yes, we definitely need to put together an Atlanta/GA club. Are you guys going to go back to work after Spring Break? We're doing CRCT the week after spring break so I'm not sure how that would have worked out for me had I been able to do it this week.

Are these two issues a possible side effect of the sleeve surgery or has it just been a coincidence for the people who have had GB and pan. problems?

Congratulations guys! I am so jealous but in a totally happy for you kind of way. :thumbup: Keep us up to date.