kkandrod

Hi exoticheart. Thanks for your reply. I haven't been told by anyone NOT to worry about blood clots, lol. That's why I asked how long after a surgery can one take that off their list of things to worry about. I'm glad you posted the info. I'm sure that it's not going to help much since surgery is in a week and 3 days, but after what you said, tomorrow I will not be smoking any more. I have a 7 year old that will be waiting for me to come home to him and take care of him so I'll do whatever I can to cut my risks down. Tiffykins, thanks for the info. I forgot about the ROSE procedure for RNY patients, great idea to post there!! Hope to hear from some more of you all!! God Bless! Krystal

Hey everyone! I know this is the sleeve board but I don't really know where to post, there are no boards for the surgery I'm having. SO, if there are any POSE procedure people hanging out here, I'd love to talk with you! Or if anyone knows where there is a forum for U.S. POSE patients, I'd love the link! I'm scheduled for the 21st of this month along with a friend of mine. I'm excited but a little nervous since I can't seem to find anywhere to talk to anyone who has had it in the US so far. Dr. Lavin of Surgical Specialists of Louisiana is doing it and is a pioneer with this surgery. I do have a question for all of you here, were you intubated with your surgery? Is that something that happens no matter what surgery is being done? And also, when were you told you could quit worrying about blood clots after surgery? I'm only going to be out for an hour and up and walking within 2 so not alot of down time. Hoping that helps alleviate the blood clot risk??? But, I'm a smoker so that's something I am concerned with. Thanks in advance everyone!!! Krystal

Hi everyone! I got to know a few of you a little about a year ago when I was trying to get approved for the sleeve. It's official, I will have no insurance coverage for it. I've done all tests that would make it possible and nothing's wrong with me, not even sleep apnea! LOL I am thankful for that but it does make me so mad at insurance companies for not taking into consideration the build of the individual. I may not have the weight to be over 40 BMI to have the surgery approved without co-morbidities but my waist measurement is way higher than most females who do have a BMI of 40 or higher. And that is the most dangerous place to carry your weight, it's been shown over and over again in heart health studies. And my BMI is only like 3.4 away from being 40. But, hey, it is what it is. Over the last year I've done the usual, gained and lost weight a couple times, not big losses but enough to start telling it in my clothes and then something happens and I mess myself up and gain it all back. Same old song and dance. Just sick of it. I always come back here to read. I see some of you that I spoke with are now pregnant, CONGRATULATIONS girls!!!! And I see alot of other successes as well. So happy for you all!!! So, here's where I'm at now. I'm cash pay and choosing between 2 surgeries, leaning heavily toward one. VSG, obviously, but also learning about POSE. I know, I know, it doesn't take the Ghrelin away and the weight loss is way slower, and it's one of the new kids on the block. Was considering the plications surgery but since learning about the chances of necrosis because of blood flow (and me being a smoker as of now) and that part of the stomach not being viewable during a scope has made me take that option pretty much off the table. The reasons for POSE are less downtime, no leaks, no cutting, less surgical risks like blood clots, pneumonia and such, no reports of hurting after eating or food intolerances like broccoli or coconut. And, my hubby wouldn't have to take time off without pay to be home with me long enough to get past the risk of leak time frame. I know there's very low probability of a leak but I want him with me during that healing time just in case something would happen, he'd be there to get me to where I needed to be. The advantages of VSG are obvious to me and all of you so no need to list them here. So, there it is. Waiting on Dr. Lavin to call me for an over the phone consult since I'm so far away from him to talk about POSE. He also does the sleeve and is very highly recommended so I'm sure we'll discuss that surgery as well. I just wanted to tell everyone hi and I'm so happy for you all!!! Hope to be one of the post surgery and pregnant gals by this time next year!! God Bless! Krystal

and let's just say he's less than thrilled with the idea of me having this surgery. Before surgery was brought up I asked him if he thought that my lower back issues and my arches in my feet being messed up so badly (and my knee because my lower/back hips are all out of whack) could have anything to do with the fact that my weight is in my middle, mostly in the front. He said that it could definitely play a roll in those issues. Then I told him why I asked, LOL He's all about doing everything naturally, he doesn't even like the use of tylenol or ibuprofen if it can be avoided. So, I kind of expected that from him. He asked if I had had my thryoid checked, tried the exercise and eathing healthy route and all that. I had told him that when it came time for all the paperwork to be submitted I would appreciate a letter for the insurance company explaining my issues and how they are related to or aggravated by the weight. He said make sure I have SEVERAL consultations before deciding on anything and know the ins and outs of every single aspect. So, while he may write a letter for me when it's time, he's definitely going to be reluctant, which I can understand. But, just one more thing to add to the list that could and probably would be improved by me having the surgery. Have a great day everyone!!

Hi y'all! Ok, so I'm wondering if any of you that paid for your surgery yourself and used a US surgeon would mind sharing how much your monthly note is if you financed? We can't afford more than a couple hundred bucks a month so I know interest rate will be key in making that happen but I'm just wondering if anyone's note is around that or less? We won't have much to put down on it in cash, if any, so I assume I'll be looking at anywhere from $12,500 to $15,000 financed. Also, if any of you cash pay peeps happen to have UHC Choice Plus, do you know if they would cover any kind of complications or testing before/after surgery since you self paid and they didn't cover your surgery? Kinda worried about that now too. Don't want to wind up with a bunch of bills from testing before/after the surgery because they denied me coverage for it and then I went and paid myself. Thanks in advance!! God bless! Krystal

Hi kb! Thanks so much for responding! So, UHC paid for your testing beforehand but won't pay for follow up care that's coded as that nor any complications that may come from the surgery? You know, that just seems so wrong for them to do to people. I think it's ridiculous that they won't approve you between 35 and 39.9 without a co-morbidity. It's kind of like "duh, do this now and I won't HAVE any co-morbidities for you to have to pay for in addition TO surgery down the road". Ugh, I'm just so aggravated about it all right now. So, I guess when I contact the surgeon I want to use I should ask about the extra insurance you mentioned in case something goes wrong. $209 a month isn't horribly bad. Can you get a "pre-approval" with care credit or do you have to have already met with the doctor and gotten all that taken care of before you can apply? Thanks again for replying!!! I know there are lots of self payers on here but they may not want to share their financials in public so I appreciate you being so open!! God Bless! Krystal

I was denied by UHC Choice Plus. My plan is 35 to 39.9 BMI with 1 co morbidity or 40 or above BMI with no co-morbidities. I had a 36.1 BMI but no co morbidities so no go for me. Now in the process of trying to figure out how much it will cost me a month to finance it. I've been low carbing for a month now and lost around 12 lbs but I've cheated a week at a time twice and gained back 6 lbs and then lost that plus 2 more and the next time gained back 3 lbs within 3 days. I'm so sick of this and just want to get off the up and down crap. Hoping you get approved very soon!! From what I understand, if they approve you, it's great coverage!!

I can't find the other 2 US docs that do the plication for the life of me. In all my research I've found Dr. Cottam, the Mexico doc and I saw something somewhere about a doc at the University of Florida but when I looked him up I didn't find anything about him doing this type of surgery. Guess I'll just sit back and wait awhile and keep trying to lose weight on my own until more info becomes available. Thanks for all the info!!!!

Hey everybody! I pray all of you are doing great!! Looks like y'all are from the threads I'm reading. I'm sure 99.9% of you don't even know who I am, LOL. I was here in Feb and March praying to be approved by insurance for the sleeve but it did not happen because I'm not a footstep away from dying on paper and my BMI wasn't high enough. Fooled around for awhile and finally got myself on Atkins at the end of May. Lost 9 lbs in 2 weeks with 8.5 of those in the first week. Went on vacation last week to Panama City Beach, went off plan and came back with 4.5 lbs of those 9 back on me so I'm back on plan as of today. Anyway, while on vacation my hubby saw me almost break down several times over different situations. On the beach, seeing all the normal people walking around in their cute suits and coverups. On the way down there noticing how fat the back of my arms have gotten. Having to crop all the photos before sharing with family and friends so I could cut out the parts I didn't want anyone seeing. Going into I don't know how many surf shops and not finding anything near my size in suits, sun dresses or coverups. And then going to one that advertised a plus size section only to find that most of them looked like nothing I would want to wear and on top of that, it costing like $40 for a no name swim top only. I don't mind paying that for a brand that I know but no way I'm paying that for these cheesy cheaply made things those shops along the beaches carry. I had a blast but there were hard times and every single one of those hard times was due to my weight. So, while there and again on the way home, my hubby tells me that he noticed how upset I had gotten and to find out how much it would cost us a month to just pay for surgery. I should be excited right????? Well, part of me is, but now that I know he would pay for this for me, I'm scared to death. So, I'm back researching and am also considering the POSE procedure. But since that procedure is so new, it's impossible to find people that have actually had it to see how they are doing so I can do my research. Only thing I can do on that surgery is talk to the only doc in Louisiana that does it and hope that it's all truth. So, if anyone knows where someone is that has had the POSE procedure or even the ROSE (same surgery except for ppl revising from bypass or other wls) I'd love it if you could point me in the right direction. If we are going to go into debt to pay for this, I want to do what's best and what is least likely to have complications but I also want to do what's going to help me get healthy and stay that way for the rest of my life. Don't want to do the POSE and end up revising that to a sleeve later on or something, kwim?? Anyway, sorry I didn't keep up with the boards and the buds I had started making here better than I have. I was kinda down and sad for awhile after I gave up the hope for surgery and still kinda am. But, thats no excuse for keeping in touch. Take care everyone and have a blessed night!!! PS posting this on OH as well so ya don't have to re-read it over there God bless ya! Krystal

Hey girl, yeah, he's in Salt Lake City. Can't find anyone in Louisiana other than the ones who do the POSE procedure. I might call Dr. Cottam's office and ask them directly about other US surgeons doing the plication.

Hi B! How are you doing? So, I've recently gotten back into believing it's possible for me to have WLS and was dead set on the VSG, then I read about POSE and now Plication. Pose and Plication sound very similar to me so I need to research the differences more. I'm wondering if you know of any other US doctors that are doing the Plication surgeries? And also, can you tell me when you had your surgery, was it done orally like the POSE procedure or laprascopicaly and how has your recover and return to normal foods and appetite been so far? I appreciate ANY information you can give me. I think this may be the answer to some major prayers!! Krystal

Hey girls!!! Yay, so glad to see all of you still here!!! How are you all doing??? Your weight loss tickers show some killer results!!! Ok Tiffy, you rock as always!!! Alright, so, plication would be the way to go. I have googled I don't know how many different ways trying to find plication surgeons, most definitely none have come up for Louisiana. Do you happen to remember off the top of your head a name or piece of a name of a Louisiana surgeon?? Much thanks!! Fixin' to do a search on this site for it, prolly what I should have done in the first place. I'm REALLY excited now!!! God bless you girls!! Krystal

So, no sleep apnea, which is was the last shot I had at getting insurance approval. I am sad and the worldly side of me wants to just say "forget it, I'm just gonna pay for it myself" but then I get a gut check in my soul about it and I know it's the Lord telling me "no, the doors didn't open for the surgery, don't force it". So, I'm not going to force it. I'm going to go back on the supplements that I was taking toward the end of last year that helped me lose 18.5 lbs. They are all natural and help me be healthier in general, and enhance my results when I put out a little effort in the eating department. I've bought an elliptical and it is kicking my rear end. I made it 7 minutes on it today going at about a 45-50 speed with level 3 resistance, no incline. It's going to be a slow process but I've got to do it. I have my Body Applicators to help my inch loss go faster like it did last year and when I see results like that it makes me work even harder to make sure I keep those plus more off. I'm going to be cutting out my Java Monsters gradually. I drink two a day so I'm going to quit one of them to start with. I can't decide wether to quit the Java Monster or cut out cokes first. I'm thinking I may cut out the cokes first and then after a week or so, cut out my 1st Java Monster of the day and replace it with a Protein shake for Breakfast and then in another week or so, cut out my mid afternoon Java Monster and add in another shake or something that can mimic that flavor but is good for my body. I have a Thermogenic food plan that my company put together to go along with the supplements and wraps that they offer. I broke the food list card out yesterday and looked it over and it is very healthy foods consisting of 5 groups of food: complex carbs (fibrous, natural simple carbs (fruit and dairy, complex carbs (starchy), lean Proteins and essential fats. You eat 6 meals a day if you are a female over 200 lbs. It tells you what combinations of the food groups to eat for each meal so that it has the largest thermogenic fat burning benefit. My whole family will be going on this plan in 2 weeks. Hoping to have my coke and Java Monster problem taken care of by then. I'm nervous and scared about doing this all over again on my own. But, this time it does feel different. I'm attacking it in a more rounded way where as before, everytime I would diet with extreme tendencies like NO carb and no exercise. Or I would exercise my butt off but wouldn't do much about the quality of food I ate, just counted calories which meant I was eating crap not good quality healthy foods that provided the nutrients my body needed. This time I'm going to go moderately into exercise and I'm going to work on getting rid of some bad habits and addictions before we start the new way of eating. And I want to make this new way of eating fun by actually learning how to prepare things and making it a family affair for me and my husband and hopefully get my son involved in some of the food preparation too. I don't know, I feel better this time for some reason. Maybe because my world isn't going to 100% change tomorrow. I'll have a little time to mentally prepare myself as each change happens and get used to it before the next change comes. Anyway, I just want to say that I have so enjoyed getting to know some of you and learning from ALL of you. I am so ecstatic for every single one of you who are able to get the surgery and admire the work you all put in working that sleeve. I had my heart set on being one of you. I still want to be one of you, as far as success stories go, but I just have to go about it a different way. I would say "unfortunately" about the different way I have to go about it but I can't because this is the Lord's plan for me so I can't be regretful about it. I hope y'all won't mind me coming and reading and keeping up with your stories and learning from the things y'all do in your way of eating. I may not post much because I won't have any experience with the sleeve but I'll say "whats upppppppp" every now and then, LOL So, there's my update. Y'all rock and inspire me so much!!! Looking forward to my journey and hope to join y'all on the loser's bench even though it'll be sans sleeve for me. God bless y'all!!!!! Krystal PS I'm going to post this on the OH board too. Just wanted to let those of you know who visit both so you wouldn't have to go through reading the same thing twice, LOL

Thanks girls!!! Y'all rock!! Hugs, Krystal

Too funny! It probably didn't feel quite "real" without money exchanging hands. But, that rocks you aren't paying anything up front. You won't know what your real balance will be til everything is submitted to UHC, discounts applied and then their portion paid. Just remember to keep up with all your copays and out of pocket and mileage so you can see if it adds up to enough next year to take as a tax deduction

WOOHOO!!! Congratulations Carla!!!! I'm so excited for you!!!! Keep us updated!!!! Krystal

UPDATE!!! I got a call this morning from the hospital wanting to set up a sleep study. I told them that my doc had said the results from the pulse ox were normal. So, I didn't schedule anything and called the docs office. She said they had gotten a call from the people who gave me the machine from the test and they said that I qualified for oxygen so my dr. ordered me a full fledged sleep study before just going off of that. I'm supposed to hear Monday on if they can find somewhere closer to me than the 2 hours that the hospital is and set me up there to have it done. So, I thought the door was closed but evidently there's still a little opening in it. Let me be clear though, I do NOT want to have sleep apnea and will be very thankful if it turns out normal like I thought the pulse ox test had. If it doesn't, then I'll be thankful it was found and go ahead with seeing about getting everything submitted again to insurance for approval. I'll update when I find out more. God bless! Krystal

Thanks girl!! Yeah, it doesn't make sense to me how they WANT something to be wrong with you when you don't fall into this 30lb or so range thats below the 40 BMI they require to be able to get it without co-morbidities. I mean, seems to me that if I gained the 26 lbs it would take to be at a 40 BMI, something would be wrong with me then more than likely. Why not nip it in the bud at a 36 BMI now instead of letting things get worse before they'll cover it. Who knows. If they change the rules and I haven't been successful by then, I'll definitely do the surgery. For now, I'll take my blessings the Lord's given me with my health and try once again to do my part to take care of the weight. We shall see :-)

Congratulations!!!!!

If I knew how to type a whistle I would, LOL You look great girl! Dresses/skirts are my hubby's dream for me, LOL Matter of fact, I'll go post a pic of an outfit he picked out for me back in the day when I was about a 13 (after some very hard dieting), go check it out Tiffy, I want to be that girl again for him!! Well, actually smaller, lol, but I'll take that size as a first reward Anyway, congratulations. You are such an inspiration and a great support to everyone here. You deserve every great thing that comes your way!!!! Hugs, Krystal