TheWomanWithin

Grats on your approval! what you have to decide is how long do you want to wait for surgery. Some insurance co's have so many pre-requistes (sp?) that you have to do before, like a weight loss plan via a doctor for months. First find out what your particular insurance carrier requires, then figure out which doctor you want to go to, then call them and see what they require before surgery. I know with Dr. Grossbard here in Florida, it was going to be quite a few tests I had to go through (x-rays, blood tests, endoscopy (?) and some others) and his waiting period was quite long, but in his affiliate office of Dr. Ortiz, I only have to have those done the day before surgery at their facility and scheduled surgery within a month. Good luck and I am with the others, more money in my pocket is worth the wait - going to need $$ Im sure after losing weight )

Hi, Add me to the April list :clap2: yea! finally got everything set and going...now for my urologist to give me the go ahead on April 11th. Scheduled April 21 - Dr. Ariel Ortiz, Mexico Anyone else going to Dr. Ortiz? I've heard nothing but good things about him and his facilities in TJ and Cancun.

We also have our own pc's. The kids have a laptop and we all share our 3 pc's and only 1 has any type of firewall/spyware or anything it. We have never had a virus or anything, even though the oldest children (19 & 20) visit all kinds of websites. I think you can get viruses from anything you do on the web basically, even going to the white house website - this was in the news a few years ago and I thought it was ironic; the place you might feel safe was giving viruses out :paranoid If we had more room in our house, we would ALL have pc's lol we have always played on the computer and played with the kids on there - games, strategy homework etc. Sorry to hear about your husband Flower, sometimes I just can't figure out mine either :speechles like equating getting a swimming pool to getting WLS :phanvan

That was funny! oh did I mention that pig's tail is going to grow long for lying about me! lol the truth is painful <blush>:embarassed:

Im on the fence here about this subject. It's such a personal decision. I was only 17 when I first married and had my oldest son at 18, my daughter at 19. I didn't get to go through with my education plans like I wanted to and feel that if I had waited I would have been able to provide so much more for them had I gone to College. The up side to being young is, you kind of grow up with them and live and learn along the way. I got remarried at age 30 and my husband had never been married (he was 29) never had kids, so we talked about it and decided to try. After a couple of years, I went to a specialist and he put me on Clomid for 2 months, wa-lah we conceived our youngest son, and got quite a surprise 2 years later with me being almost 36 being pregnant again! I think with the younger 2, I am a MUCH better mother and do things a bit differently than I did with my grown kids. I was a healthy weight with the older two and youngest son; and not so healthy weight with our youngest daughter, but only had problems with pregnancy with our youngest son (Child #3) Good luck and many blessings for your families

ok, for those of you out there who have already accomplished your goal (or close to it) here is a link of a place I went to about 8 years ago. After getting my band and getting close to my goal weight, I am going back http://www.suddenlyslender.com/ I had a HUGE deep scar on my left forearm from changing a lawnmower blade (ugh the days of being single!) and after 3 sessions, it almost disappeared. I lost 17" the first wrap then 32" more overall after that. Im not sure what they charge anymore, but I got a package deal. My friend that went with me lost 60+" during our time there. Of course if you are not banded, then you gain weight back you gain all the inches back too :confused:

If you own a home, can you refinance or get a HELOC and pay the car off? that would help and give you tax benefits of the refinance or equity line. btw...if worse comes to worse - voluntarily give the car back to the dealership, don't let them repo it - and if you haven't talk to your finance co. first

opps I think we were all posting at the same time lol Tells alot right there...share with her what it was like and offer to "lend" her the money and even put it in writing, whatever you have to do. Sounds like a plea for help but not many options...

What a great thing to do. I agree with the others here, get with your doctor and get everything set up and PAY for it in advance, then she almost can't say no... if she does - she is really going to be thinking about it and heck how can she refuse if you're going to lose the $$ if she doesn't do it? I have a daughter who is 19, if it meant saving my life and making me feel better and she had the money she would pay for it. I would say no I can't do that because as parents WE are the ones who are supposed to take care of our children, it kind of makes us feel weak accepting that we might need help from our children before we absolutely have to. After a few months she will probably be so happy that she has such a loving and generous daughter and s-i-l and one day she will forgive herself when you succeed

Hooray!:clap2: hopefully I'll be on that list of May date's with you. Having blood tests monday, already had my pcp full physical and have to go for a kidney test then the real pre-ops April 11th.

Murphles; I feel for you, I recently went through this also. I finally found a way to help myself to get healthy and actually LIVE life again and my husband threw me a roadblock. I was angry, depressed and almost gave up. THen I said NO WAY and fought back... He told me if I got what I wanted with WLS he got to go party "alone" :Banane20:for 3 days at his reunion next year! omg like I was asking for a swimming pool or a new car instead of something that would save my life. I decided to write him a letter and tell him how I felt and how much it hurt that he did not support me in this decision. What is Morbid Obesity? Though we all use the terms "fat" and "obese" casually in conversation, there is a medical definition of the condition—and yes, obesity is considered a health "condition." According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), a person is considered "obese" when he or she weighs 20 percent or more than his or her ideal body weight. At that point, the person's weight poses a real health risk. Obesity becomes "morbid" when it significantly increases the risk of one or more obesity-related health conditions or serious diseases (also known as co-morbidities). Morbid obesity—sometimes called "clinically severe obesity"—is defined as being 100 lbs. or more over ideal body weight or having a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 40 or higher. According to the NIH Consensus Report, morbid obesity is a serious chronic disease, meaning that its symptoms build slowly over an extended period of time. Health Threats Double the risk of early death if your weight is more than twice your ideal 5-7 times greater risk of death from diabetes or heart attack High risk of "end-stage" (untreatable) obesity. Numerous negative social, psychological and economic effects Obesity-related Health Conditions Obesity-related health conditions reduce life expectancy. Here are some of the more common conditions. Type 2 Diabetes. People who are obese become resistant to insulin, which regulates blood sugar levels. They end up with high blood sugar, which causes Type 2 diabetes. More information about Type 2 diabetes High blood pressure / Heart disease.The heart doesn't work right when the body is carrying around excess weight. So the obese person usually gets hypertension (high blood pressure), which leads to strokes and damages the heart and kidneys. Osteoarthritis of weight-bearing joints. Additional weight placed on joints--especially knees and hips--causes rapid wear and tear, along with pain and inflammation. Similarly, the strain on bones and muscles in the back leads to disk problems, pain, and decreased mobility. sleep apnea / Respiratory problems. Fat deposits in the tongue and neck can block air passages, especially in patients who sleep on their backs. This causes them to lose sleep and results in daytime drowsiness and headaches. Gastroesophageal reflux disease (Hiatal hernia and heartburn). Excess weight weakens and overloads the valve at the top of the stomach, which then allows stomach acid to escape into the esophagus. This is called gastroesophageal reflux, and "heartburn" and acid indigestion are common symptoms. Approximately 10-15% of patients with even mild heartburn develop Barrett's esophagus, which is a pre-malignant change in the lining membrane and a cause of esophageal cancer. Depression. People who are obese must deal with constant, depressing emotional challenges: failed diets, disapproval from family and friends, remarks from strangers. Plus, they often experience discrimination and cannot fit comfortably in public places. Urinary stress incontinence. A large, heavy abdomen relaxes pelvic muscles, compounding the effects of childbirth. This weakens the valve on the urinary bladder allowing leakage when coughing, sneezing, or laughing. Menstrual irregularities. Morbidly obese individuals often experience menstrual disruptions, such as irregular or absent periods and increased pain during the cycle. It had such an impact on my husband, he has actually started reading the things I gave him and even talked to me about the surgery and I think he is actually coming around to the real "conditions" of me being overweight. In the mean time, I am going through with my appointments to get pre-qualified and get my surgery set. Bloodwork on Monday and have to see a Urologist in 2 weeks for kidney problems BUT THEN I can schedule my surgery!! woohoo :banana (does the happy dance) Don't give up hope

Make a new thread with the info about the wish center and link to it and then make it a sticky (not sure what it's called on this forum) so it shows as new or important info. I would have never looked anywhere else but there if I had seen this info first, they have such a great reputation helping people. I have even asked about prices for the US in another thread but $20,000 was just way too high. Thanks again )

wow! thanks for that info. Ive been looking for drs in the US that compare with the prices of MX and this is really close to the $9500 for Dr Ortiz What pre-surgery lab tests do you have to have? Ive seen some of them and Im sure BCBS will pay for all of these - or I can get my dr to do them :heh: on the pretense of finding out "what" is wrong with me lol Can someone put the name and link as a sticky? that would be very helpful to all of us new people here and helps alot with Self payors Thanks :nervous

I found this post from another section of the boards about fill dr's the center is http://www.fillcentersusa.com/ Hope this helps some, if not do a google search or askjeeves.com and see if you can find a fill dr in your area

If you're going to be inquisitive aka ... nosey, a snoop etc then be prepared to pay the price! lol Why I decided to go ahead with surgery was this: 8 years ago I weighed 173 and I'm 5'7. I was in a car accident, messed up my pelvis and had to take it easy exercising for awhile. I used that as an excuse then when I became pregnant the next year. I was on bed rest the WHOLE time so I used that as an excuse and after my youngest son was born... When my youngest daughter was born the next year, my OB said I couldn't tell I was pregnant because you are so large (insert extreme mortification here) I STILL did not know what I weighed, I would turn around backwards and never look at the scale. This is the most I ever weighed was 255 at 9 months pregnant.After she was born, I exercised and lost some weight, went on Atkins and lost some more. A year later, gained it all back and started having female problems that ended in surgery.. Long story short: I was at the Doctor's office about 3 months ago because I was still not feeling well and just HAD to look at my chart because I knew I had lost 17 pounds according to them.. That is the day I decided to do something - Being the nosey, ahem; inquisitive person I am, I peeked at my chart! I weighed 271 pounds and sat there in disbelief and cried. I started doing the math after I left and said OMGosh I can't believe I weighed 288 pounds before. I could barely see to drive home and when my husband asked me what was wrong, I just said they gave me a shot. A shot, a dose of reality is more like it. I had been having problems breathing, and not able to walk at the Zoo or around Disney like I used to - but now I know why. On top of those symptoms, Ive had to delay my surgery so I can get my blood sugar and kidneys looked at - sugar and Proteins showed up on my urinalysis and the Dr thinks Type 2 Diabetes. I started doing more research and decided now was the time. I'm doing this because I want to be healthy and live - not die in the middle of the night from sleep apnea...So I can be healthy again and live life not just let it go by...

Ok, I am trying to decide what the benefits and cost difference is in the US vs. MX. If you did self pay in the U.S. please help me with some insight on a few things if you can: 1. Cost of surgery 2. Cost of fills 3. Name of Dr/Facility 4. Good/Bad or otherwise about your surgery I have been in contact with several doctor's both in the US and MX and can't decide :omg: I'm pretty sure I am fixed on Dr. Ortiz in Mx, but I want to make sure before I place my appointment. Thanks for all your help

My son has T-Mobile prepay plan and I get that message when he hasn't put any money (minutes) on his phone.. My daughter also has T-Mobile, but a normal plan and I get that when she doesn't want to talk to anyone and blocks all incoming calls :phanvan This link: http://www.freeality.com/findrev.htm you can find all kinds of phone info and even a location where it is, but if it is unlisted, you can't do it anymore. www.anywho.com www.whitepages.com on both of these you can do telephone searches and reverse searches

I am so sorry to hear this. I went through almost the same thing 2 years ago. My PCP was more concerned about his golf game and getting HIS nails done than about what I was really telling him - something was wrong. He told me to exercise, lose weight and ALL my problems would go away! *sigh* 5 doctors and 2 surgeries later, I found out I had non cancerous tumors (similar to your wife) uterine polyps, Endometrosis and Adenomyosis, which I was put on 4 months of chemical therapy. If anyone hasn't had this, DON"T do it - I was a normal sane (ok almost sane) woman that did not get the monthly "crazies" as my daughter and some friends get. When they convinced me to be put on the meds first, my symptoms; severe bleeding and pain got worse - change meds - start over; until I told them no more. My ins BCBS of Florida requires a certain amount of meds before they will even consider a hysterectomy; unless you have cancer of some kind. Alot of research I have done corelates being overweight with many female problems, as well as the other problems it can cause; so it bewilders me why insurance companies do not cover WLS or any type of programs here in FL. Just a thought if the DR wants to put your wife on meds first - RUN - LOL j/k I can sympathize and glad she had a DR to listen to her, it took me a year of changing dr's monthly to finally find one who didn't use the old just lose weight cop out. GL

Estela, I loved your story also, and can relate to what you are saying...part of what you said about your husband is one of my reasons for finally deciding to take the plunge and make my mind up and have the surgery done. I want my husband to look at me the way he did 8 years ago when we started dating and REALLY think I look great! He has been such a great guy over the past 8 years and never has said one thing about my yo-yo lifestyle, but loves me no matter what. When I read your post, I cried, that is a moment I can't wait for - my husband to say you've lost enough weight NO MORE! Now if my doctor will get off of vacation so I can get back into her office and give her the yes to go ahead with my paperwork for my ins co LOL It took me over a year of research and deciding (although there really wasn't anything to decide) and I call and find out she's on vacation for 2 weeks:speechles I feel like I finally have a chance to be me again. BTW you look gorgeous and I hope in a year or so I can post my success also.

What about Slim Fast? Not sure if you can have that because I'm still waiting for my first appt to my pcp to even get started. I use Slim Fast for when my stomach doesn't feel so great, works even when meds wouldn't:phanvan