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Have any of you gotten your surgery done at NMCSD? If so can you tell me what are the requirements. I'm enrolled in the class, and have an appointment for the introduction class for bariatric surgery and have been seeing a nutrionist at NMCSD for 3 months. I want to make sure I am prepared. Thank you!

Phillip- You need to call your insurance company. Speak to a supervisor if you have to. I have bariatric coverage on my policy. However, the benefits aren't very good so I too am doing cash pay. Because baratric surgery isn't an excluded condition, complications would be covered. If your policy has a bariatric exclusion, it could only exclude the surgery itself or it could exclude the surgery itself and and resulting complications. Best of luck to you!

I also was a smoker. From the age of 15 till I was 56 when I watched my X brother in law die of pancreatic cancer. I had other family members and friends die due to smoking. But that one really got to me. I had tired quitting at least 7-8 times!! But now I've quit for good and have been off them for about 2 years now. So it can be done!! But just know that, my insurance will NOT bariatric surgery on you if you smoke. They also test your blood to make sure you don't have nicotine in your body. If you do, they will cancel the surgery. Best of luck to you and I hope you can quit!! You can, but YOU just need to be ready.

Hi there, so happy for you and your renewed commitment to yourself. We are on the same track -- so happy to have exercised today and to have had a protein shake AND exercised. Now that's a good day. Here's to tomorrow!

I am on day one of a 1200-1600 calorie diet and I don't even have a surgery date yet. I have to lose 5% of my starting weight before I can even get an appointment with a surgeon. My insurance company has approved me and makes all bariatric patients pay $1450 for a nutrition program that helps you stay on track. They help you lose the initial 5% and then monitor you after to help you for the months following surgery... I hope to lose 15 pounds in the next month so I can get in with the surgeons and get a surgery date. Today I had 2 Meal Replacement shakes blended with frozen blueberries. Almonds,low fat string cheese, roasted pork loin and green Beans, toasted seaweed Snacks and mango. I plan in staying within this calorie range until surgery just do I can adjust to the extreme diet changes I will be making. This could potentially be 3-4 months away still, but I'd rather be over prepared than not.

I had an eval in 2010 for bariatric surgery that I didn't end up having and that one took 3+ hours with tons of testing, hundreds of dollars. Then I just had one done and it took 20 min of talking and discussing changes that will occur for me and it cost 60 dollars.....self pay 60 dollars. The counseling office has a deal with the local bariatric surgeons to help reduce our costs! Call around and get another psych consult! If nothing else PM me and I'll send you the name of the counselor and you can fly here cheaper for your appt.

I think for all of us this would be so difficult to deal with. Sounds like you sincerly want to lose weight. I like my surgeon but I love my dietician/nutritionist. I think if I ever experience any problems I would seek her advice before my doctor's unless it might be surgically related. My nutritionist is a full time bariatrics nutritionist. She only works with bariatric docs and bariatric patients. Nutritionists are much less expensive to consult with than a doctor although it sounds like you could use a very competent and caring bariatrics doctor. I just don't know if they exist? Most docs I've spoken with want to keep their visits to 10-15 minutes where you can spend up to an hour with a nutritionist for $50. Each doctor is so wrapped up in his/her own practice that most will not take on a consultation type roll for a patient who had surgery elsewhere. I'm sure there may be one but where? I'm assuming you're relationship with your surgeon went South? You should try to see him or ask around about a bariatrics nutritionist. tmf

I'm getting my lease not renewed (effectively "kicked out" but not evicted). So, I used to smoke. This was a smoking building. I used to smoke indoors, as I was allowed to do according to my lease agreement. There is an office on the ground floor, and the receptionist used to smoke behind the desk there--this becomes important later. I quit in April of 2007. Around that time a very not nice neighbor who complained about EVERYTHING moved in on the ground floor (it's a 200 year old townhouse converted to one apartment per floor--I'm on the 4th). He wouldn't let the mailman leave our mail where he used to because he didn't like how it looked, he even called the City to cut people's bikes off of trees and signs and stuff when they would dare to park them not only in front of our building but on our ENTIRE BLOCK. He also started complaining non-stop about the smoking from the office on the ground floor (right next to his apartment). WHY he ever signed a lease in a smoking building right next to a woman who openly smokes in her office (obvious from the moment you step in the door) I will NEVER KNOW. I fell off the non-smoking wagon in about January of 2008. Apparently he figured that out because he started complaining about me too. In about March, a note went out the the whole building that this was now a non-smoking building and we can't smoke in our apartments (against the law for them to do in this tobacco-loving state at the time but I digress). Even though they technically can't do that by law and by my lease agreement, I do my best to be a model tenant and a good neighbor. I never smoked another single cigarette (and I don't smoke anything else at all) in this building ever. I quit smoking entirely in May, in part because smoking is stupid and because of this surgery. Apparently Mr. Jackass on the ground floor continued to complain about what must have been phantom smoke. I WAS NOT SMOKING indoors, and the woman in the office claimed to not be either (and I actually believe her because I'd see her outside on breaks during the day). He used this as an excuse to break his very long term (3 year) extremely expensive lease (about $3000/month US....mine isn't even half that the ground floor apartment is extensive--at least twice the size as mine and includes the back garden etc). So now, my lease is up and I was fully expecting it to be renewed just as it always has been every year for three years. I have never once received any complaints for smoke, noise, ANYTHING...the only indication I had that there was any trouble at all was the new non-smoking policy which I was in FULL compliance with. But nope--no lease renewal. Reason? Too many complaints about my smoking. (A) When I was smoking in here, someone should have told me it was bothering them and I'd have stopped instantly. I'm a nice, sympathetic person and I don't want to be a bother to anyone. (:thumbup: I NEVER smoked once they banned it in the building (which, again, they weren't even allowed to do in the first place!) Because this is not an eviction, just a non-renewal of a lease they don't actually have to have a reason at all (renewal is at the whim of the landlords here--they could not renew because they want to live there themselves, they need storage, want to save on utilities, whatever). The only good thing is that I will still have a positive reference from them because I wasn't evicted and apparently they aren't allowed to mention the reason for a non-renewal. But STILL. This was my HOME for 3 years and I take great pride in it, I love it and I love the neighborhood. It almost feels like they've forcibly euthanized my pets (seriously, I'm that sad about the loss of the apartment) but mostly I am SO MAD about being punished for something I didn't even DO! And besides, just because I "cost them a high cost long term tenant" (which I fucking didn't, I bet it was the receptionist sneaking cigs when she thought no one would notice), what use is punishing me now? He's gone and that apartment has been re-rented. She won't believe me I didn't break the rules, and won't believe me that I quit, and she said even if she did, a decision's been made and what's done is done. I feel like I'm losing a limb here, this house and this town are such a part of me. Finding another place that's similar to mine, anywhere close to my current neighbor for anywhere close to the price (and by anywhere close I mean like within $200-$400/month "close") is extremely difficult. This town is mainly privately owned townhouses--only a few have been converted to apartments like mine and they all run at quite a pretty penny. Oh, and about half of them are owned my my soon-to-be-former landlord. I am beyond devastated:crying:. Thanks for reading this much if you have. -Penny

i got a call from a doctor on base, calling to give me some info from the wonderful young doctor i saw a week or so ago. APPARENTLY, the surgeons on base didnt approve my surgery because i hadnt been to any bariatric classes. (im assuming this is to talk about the procedure, the band and the lifestyle change that it requires?) so in short, my doctor put in a referral for bariatric classes at the David Grant medical center general surgery clinic (the hospital on base). supposedly, after i attend the classes, i can get a referral to the surgeon i want off base. if this is the confusion im facing now, i cant wait until i have to deal with Tricare! :wink:

I'm in the process of making another soup right now that I'll let you know about once it's done, for anyone who really misses ethnic cuisine, particularly Indian food. I found a recipe on Bariatric Eating for a bean soup with an Indian flair that I thought I would puree with the hand blender. If it comes out good, then I'll be sure to pass on the recipe. It's got really healthy ingredients and a ton of protein.

Seeking Health is one of the few with methylfolate and methylcobalamin. Those are the only ones recommended by the heme/oncologist I have. This is not bariatric, this is the only one that my MD/PhD recommended and I sat for 1x for 5 weeks with his chemo patients since I had to get IV Iron. Only one was rail thin. The rest were healthy looking and dang sure weren't no 20-30 years old.

In addition to the issues of basic healing time, the prospect of transfer addiction, and "cheap drunk" tolerance changes the other biggie that tickles some docs more than others is liver health - as WLS patients, our livers usually aren't in the best of shape due to our obesity (hence the number of surgeons who put their patients through those "liver shrinking" pre-op diets,) and the extra load that the liver takes in metabolizing that fat that we are burning off doesn't leave it much margin for handling the added load of metabolizing the alcohol, which after all, is a liver toxin (that's not a moral judgement, it's just biology - there are plenty of things that we consume in small quantities that are toxic in larger amounts,) My doc is a bit more anal about this than most as he also does liver transplants in his spare time and doesn't want to see his bariatric patients coming back on his transplant table. His rule (which we sign up to when signing up with him) is no alky while in the weight loss phase; after that, moderation is fine once the liver has regained the ability to do its' job (though in his view, ideally never...) Those are the issues, we are all adults, take if for what you will.

Hi! I hope you are doing well and are making progress towards your weight loss surgery goals, whether they are to get surgery, hit your goal weight, or maintain your new healthy habits. As you know, support is crucial to your success in this journey. BariatricPal is one of the places you can go for support. In-person support groups can be another important factor in your success. When you meet people every week or month, you can look for the following benefits. A greater sense of camaraderie – you’re not in this alone! Accountability – seeing other members in person can be more motivating. Personal growth – opening up in person is much harder and more rewarding than staying anonymous over the internet. Deep friendships – the people you meet in support groups may be the people you call to go walking or just hang out. Most surgeons recognize the value of support groups and many require or ask their patients to attend. Still, not all bariatric surgery patients get enough in-person support. Thousands of pre-op and post-op bariatric surgery patients use BariatricPal’s online forums every day. Now, BariatricPal is providing another way for you to build your support system. BariatricPal Local Chapters is trying to bring face-to-face support groups to your area! Members are the same members of BariatricPal who are there for each other day after day online. Now, you can extend that support into your real life. When Meetings run by your peers in a friendly and helpful atmosphere. In-person support to supplement support from other groups. Members whom you can talk to any time between meetings online at BariatricPal. The same values you get online at BariatricPal. Go to BariatricPal’s Local Chapters page to look for a group in your area. If there is not yet one that is near you and convenient, don’t worry! You can suggest one or start one in the Local Chapters Forum. BariatricPal has plenty of support for anyone who wants to become a Local Chapters Leader – no experience necessary! I hope you will consider joining or starting a BariatricPal Local Chapters group. Please post on the forums or send me a private message to get started. I can’t wait to see what this Local Chapters program can do for our members. Thank you for your support of BariatricPal.

@ i had my surgery done by Dr Foote in Grand Haven on the lake shore of lake michigan. He actually practices out of grand rapids but comes to GH. He is a leading Dr in the sleeves surgery and has done some ground breaking surgery with the sleeve. Hes an awesome doctor with an absolutely awesome supoort staff to back him up. I feel i made tue best decisiom by going to him. I live in muskegon but chose dr foote over the resident bariatric surgeon in muskegon. Best choice i have ever made. I can call tue office or email any of the staff and actually have cell numbers of tye staff to call them day or nite with pressing questions. They also have an awesome bariatric group that meets twice a month.

Thats the reason my surgeon told me to start the iron at week #3 because it tends to be kind of heavy for the new stomach and you may vomit. As far as I know the bariatric advantage the iron is separate, there is another company that everything comes in one chewable tablet if I'm not mistaken it's called bariatric fusion.

Wow, guys, that sounds really bad! I do know there are bad tenants out there (I've encountered them) but it really is crazy the things people will do. A friends father is a landlord in another town in this area and they have a 13 page lease....it's actually famous among my friends because pretty much everyone has rented something from him at some point before--usually right out of college. Anyway, I saw it once and was laughing at the stipulations in there (can't remember specifics but I'll ask) thinking that he must be the most paranoid man on earth. Nope, they said. All of that comes from specific experience. He has a million crazy stories, apparently. But I'm just not one of those people (as far as I know anyway...this whole thing has started to make me worried that I'm some horrible tenant that no one would want). I always pay on time, and have never complained about a thing. Only times I've ever called them is when my toilet was broken (and I couldn't fix it) and when a window air conditioner needed replacing because it was blowing hot air--in three full years. I'm not silent but I'm not loud (I play music while I'm cooking, and am often up late and need to walk through the apartment). I used to smoke in here, but had I known anyone was complaining would have stopped immediately...I....I don't know what else you could complain about me about. Oh well. What's done is done. But good news.... I'm off to sign a lease! In a building kind of like the one I'm in now. Not nearly as old or historic--this one I live in is 220 years old and on a cobblestone street while the new place is (I'm guessing) just over 100 but age and historic factor were never the issue, I'd have moved into a brand new construction just as easily--I'm just pointing out the differences. Anyway, it's a converted townhouse, one apartment per floor. On the same street, but 6 blocks up. I have the ground floor this time instead of the old attic which is different but nice. I loved living up here even with the 4 flights of stairs because it's cute and pokey and the ceilings are slanted and it feels very cottage-cozy. But with the ground floor, I have no more grocery issues (planning shopping trips around weight and size of purchases is not fun), and "possession" of the little backyard area--mostly a patio with paving stones but some dirt areas in which to grow things (the landlady said, when I asked, "oh please do...I'd love for someone to get some good use out of this"). It also comes with a parking space in the alley behind the building which is a godsend around here. Where I live now is very close to the river, bike trails and the tourist stuff so getting home past 7pm means a loooong time circling for a space, and moving the car at all on weekends in summer usually means parking in a parking garage when you get back because there's no point in even trying. I have the parking enforcement number in my cell phone to report when things get bad (it's supposed to be 2 hour parking only for everyone but residents. That never happens). Size wise it's practically identical--one bedroom plus a den that many people choose to use as a bedroom (here that wasn't possible because of the location of the only bathroom so the den is a den). It's about $150 more per month than I figured they'd raise my rent to this year had they renewed, and $50 more than the kind of ugly one bedroom I looked at farther away and on the busiest intersection in town (all of this includes utilities too). Because it's share-able though, and I've given the option to several friends of mine who are looking to move to this part of town, my costs will actually wind up lower than they have been in 4 years.... So basically....I'm still sad to leave but this will be a great move physically and financially. I love this place and this couple of blocks (the waterfront, the cobblestone etc) and my neighbors (not the ones in the building--the ones who love up and down the street) but I can easily come down for visits. Hey, I can plan my daily walking regime to come by here :tongue:. I've been spending the afternoon researching shade-loving plants and debating climbing roses (for the fence not the house) or jasmine :tt2:

Bariatric advantage shakes aren't too bad. I love the Iced Latte!! Also try Syntax Nectar. Really like the lemonaid. Hope it helps, Ms Tink

hi; I had to be on liquids for 2 weeks pre op and almost lost my mind and my cookies (pun intended)! I spoke with a bariatric nurse at the Cleve Clinic where I had my band put in and she said you can have creamed soups and yogurt. It isn't easy but it will pay off in the end because it gives you a mind set about a new way of eating. Keep up the good work, you will be happy you did. Jugazi:thumbup:

Unflavored means no flavor added, not that the protein itself does not have flavor. You might try Bariatric Advantage. It is a full meal replacement, meaning it has protein plus 50% of most daily vitamins, not just a protein drink. Call to get samples first--always good with any protein mix.

I have the band and I'm getting ready to have a revision to the sleeve due to issues with the band. My insurance won't cover anything bariatric related so I'm looking at going to Mexico. Anyone recommend a good surgeon or have good advice for me? Thanks.

I was told by my doctor's nutritionist, and a couple of other bariatric surgeons I consulted before making my final decision that hair loss is a product of slacking off on Vitamins and Protein. I remember I diet I went on in 2005-ish where I lost a LOT of weight (nearly 80 pounds) in about 4 months and I lost a lot of hair on that one but I know my calories and protein were all wrong. I was barely eating, not taking vitamins, and exercising like 3 hours (straight catabolic cardio) every.single.day. Once I got off of it, the hair came back quickly though.

The cinnamon chewables from Bariatric Advantagearen't overly sweet. They are very chalky though, which is why I switched to the Chewy Bites, which are just like a Starburst.

You should feel good about yourself now laneydasilva, I don't know your story, but if you are on this bariatric journey, you took a massive step already, and should absolutely feel fantastic about that.

https://www.bariatricpal.com/magazine/710-keto-and-bariatric-surgery/

It was several months after surgery before I tried any fruits, and I have tolerated them well. But just because it's a banana and not a Twinkie doesn't mean it won't make you sick or won't make you dump, so tread lightly here. I don't have a goal for grams-of-sugar-per-day, but I do have a limit of 10g per serving of anything. And that's a regular serving, not a bariatric serving, because it's mostly about the proportion of sugar-to-other-macros that I care about. So bananas are mostly out (except for occasional post-run recovery) and strawberries and other berries are in. There are simple and complex sugars and different kinds of sugar (e.g., lactose, fructose, glucose, maltose, sucrose, galactose), and so there's a continuum of badness that has lactose on one end and Twinkies on the other. My nutrition said that lactose was so far on the side of goodness that I shouldn't worry about limiting it, which seems to be common advice. But basically everything else is still a potential danger spot for your RNY-shortened digestive tract, so please be careful with the fruits and sweeteners until you know how they affect you.