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This was actually discussed last night as well. One of the main reasons for the follow ups, besides to make sure you're doing ok and bloodwork, is that they collect information for a database on bariatric surgery/results in order to decide best practices for the future. They have about 10 years of data now, but want to get to 30-40 years of data to understand the long-term ramifications. Non-bariatric surgeons are probably less likely to participate.

I had WLS in Massachusetts & about a year later moved to California. The hospital I worked with in MA is a bariatric center of excellence. However, once I moved, they weren't helpful at all. They wouldn't suggest any names to contact for followups. Instead, they told me to go online & find support. They said it in a nice way, but almost useless is almost useless. I hope your experience is better. Good luck!

Definitely it would be better to not switch doctors, but if you had to . . . Also, I think I'd be worried that my bloodwork might not be as thorough with a non-bariatric doctor. I am probably overly paranoid about long-term vitamin deficiencies and or excesses. After my little misadventure last month with my calcium getting too high, I don't want a repeat of that!

I live in CC. No bariatric physicians here as a previous poster discussed! My doctor is Dr. Chang, in Victoria. It may be a bit difficult to find fill doctors as they tend to only like to do fills on folks they've operated on! This message board is a good start. San Antonio, as poster suggested, is a good option as well. Shawn

Actually, you can take the bus from CC to McAllen - much less wear and tear on the patient, and very inexpensive. Just before I selected a doctor, I considered Reynosa. The nearest other doctors who will follow other doctor's band patients are in San Antonio. It is a bit further to McAllen, but there ARE docs on this side of the border who will see you, too. Go here to search for docs & contact info. http://www.asbs.org/html/about/membersearch2.html Type in your zip code, and select LB in the other box (that says "surgery type), then hit search. The list will be in order of how far away they are from you. Scan the list for those surgeons who list FOLL in their listing of "what they do" for that stands for willingness to follow other doctor's patients. The reason why a city the size of Corpus Christi with its economic draw area has no bariatric surgeons of any kind is that they were run out of town years ago by huge malpractice awards commonly awarded in South Texas. Don't know when they'll venture here again.

Has anyone tried these? They have the little banner ads that appear all over these forums. You can buy them at Costco. I compared labels, and they are right in line with these Bariatric Advantage shakes I have now. And surely nothing can taste worse than what I have now ....

My mom and I decided that we didn't want to tell anyone (specifically my grandma) simply because we consider it to be a private thing and not really anyones business (like if I had any other surgery for any other reason). But... the hospital sent me a info packet and for some reason (our mail is really messed up right now) it was forwarded to my grandma's... and of course my grandma "accidentally" opens it and is all like "did you attend a seminar? are you getting surgery? you know bypass is the best because these people had it" blah blah blah. I ended up spending 45 minutes telling her why I was NOT doing the bypass and everything else. So, our "keeping it a secret" lasted for all of a few days lol! I am not too surprised that someone asked straight out. Bariatric surgery in general, especially by-pass, is something that everyone has heard about at some point. Match that with the general lack of brain-to-mouth filters that most people have and well... you get bluntness! Congrats on your weight loss already!! I can't wait to be where you are right now

What stage are you in? You will have may more options once you get back to regular cooked food. For me that was 4 1/2 weeks. Before that, I used baby foods for purees. For soft foods, I just took what I wanted and put it in the blender with enough broth or Water to make it the right consistency. If you are already in the regular stage and lost about menus, go to: theworldaccordingtoeggface.blogspot.com She is one of us and understands what we are going through. She has many recipes and bariatric - friendly menu ideas and wonderful stories about world-wide travel while newly sleeved.

not all policies cover it. I had to change insurance companies to get it (fortunately, my employer had several options), but I had to go with the most expensive policy they offered. I stayed on it for two years, I think (in case there were issues...), and then switched back to my original policy. Five years later, of course. all of their policies covered it...oh well... anyway, it's not an issue with BCBS. It's an issue with your employer. Most insurance companies actually DO have a bariatric surgery rider, but employers can pick and choose which things they want to include in the particular policies they offer to their employees. I was told by our HR dept that it was pretty expensive to include bariatric surgery coverage, so they only covered it in their most expensive (to the employee, that is...) policy.

Day 19 post-op and so happy to be here. Until September I'd never heard of a sleeve gastrectomy and was not looking at doing bariatric surgery. Being overweight/obese most of my adult life I assumed I'd carry the burden and the health consequences to my grave. I was diagnosed with diabetes in 2004 and have done a fair job of losing small amounts of weight, eating clean food and staying active BUT not enough to stop it's progression. At the age of 54 SO much of my mental energy has been spent on what to eat, how to eat it, shame over emotional binges, isolation due to my size and downright self- loathing. Several people I know had the Lap-band and I was curious about it. I got on the internet and Googled surgeons in the Dallas area (not my home) and filled out a form requesting information. That same day I got a call from a representative of Dr. Nicholson's Clinic and shared my heart and they offered a solution/tool in a Bariatric Vertical Sleeve. To make a long story short I planned my trip to Dallas for an informational class and personal Dr. consultation. I was sold and set my surgery date for Oct. 18th, 2011 at Forest Park Hospital, Dallas, TX. I was about a month out of surgery when I started doing some research and asking different questions. Because I live on a ranch an hour drive from any medical services the sleeve is an ideal choice. Three weeks post op the risk of surgical complications are nil. That has been a big peace of mind for me. I started my pre-op diet on Oct. 4th and found it to be a bit of a struggle. I despise sweet, milky drinks and gagged down Slimfast, HoneyMilk and Carnation Instant Breakfast Sugar Free. I did not know about the Bariatric Advantage Products or Unjury.....boy I wish I had. If I had one piece of advice it would be to hunt like crazy till you find something that you find pleasant and drinkable. It will make the days after surgery much less stressful. I've since ordered some of the above products. During this time I also meet with the psychologist, nutritionist and went through the pre-admit process. The whole time I wasn't sure I would go through with it. The Nicholson Clinic is really good about letting you know that you can cancel or delay until you are ready. Even the night before going in I was not sure. So many changes, so much to give up, so much unknown. It was by faith and the grace of God that I made it to the OR the next day.....and sooooo thankful that I did. My check-in was noon on the 18th of October. It went smoothly and I was in the holding area shortly after that. My husband went with me and was a huge support. It is good to have someone with you. Being dehydrated made some of the IV stuff a bit trying but that was over quickly and I was resting when the anethesiologist (sp) came in. I'd had a horrible cold the week before and had a nasty cough. He promised me he would get that cleared out and he was true to his word. Don't remember a thing after he injected a relaxing med into the IV. Woke up being moved to my bed. The whole day I kept dozing off and dreaming that the surgery was the next day and feeling the dread. Then I would realize it was OVER and feel utter elation. The 24 hour hospital stay is a bit of a blur. Good drugs. I will say that it was challenging to get up and walk regularly, not drink, and battle a crazy head hunger. I just wanted to eat big bites of some comfort food like mac and cheese or enchiladas. I thought I was starving to death and ask myself what the heck had I'd done. It was an internal battle. I'm not sure if anyone else has had a similar experience but it has really reinforced for me the need for the Sleeve surgery. It will be the tool that helps me finally overcome obesity and achieve my goals in life. It's just too short to waste sitting around in a love affair with food that doesn't love me back. Leaving the hospital and going to a hotel in the area worked out fine. I slept and sipped. On day three I was able to stop the pain medication and Tylenol...both were so sweet and gagging that I did better without. I used ice packs on my left side and it seemed to help. I must say that the pain was more than I had expected but not anything to keep someone from doing it. If I could have choked down the meds I probably would have taken them a few more days. Also, do practice sipping before your surgery. I used the one ounce cup for a week before just to get the hang of it. A week post-op and I was able to drink at just the right pace without thinking about it and loved feeling normal again. On the 8th day I flew home and had a 2.5 hour car ride. It went great and there is no place like home! I really began to heal quickly once I was in my own home. I've been following the Dr.s orders as well as possible and was back in Dallas for the 2-week post op exam. I've lost 22 pounds, yea, and can begin soft foods this coming Tuesday! Hello scrambled eggs! One note, I had really felt sore on my left side and was concerned that there was a problem. Turns out it is text book for week 2 due to the healing process and increased activity. This may not hold true for all Dr's patients but for Dr. Nick's he adds extra stitches in the left side muscles and they begin to pull. Who knew? Living in an isolated area it was recommended to me to find an online support group. My nutritionist suggested this one. I look forward to this part of the journey! It will be a pleasure to hear about each of your stories and learn from the experiences of others. There is no time like NOW! Source: Day 19 and I Can't Stop Smiling!

Yeah, google bariatric surgery and the 3 week stall and you'll see you're not alone. :-D

in my case, my new insurance policy (which DID cover bariatric surgery) accepted the six-month supervised diet that I did under my former policy.

i am happy with my results also . But this is sure tough . I dare anyone to say bariatric surgery is "the easy way out ".... Are you exercising? I am walking but not as much as I should. Im just tired when I get ho from work. I did swim today for 15 minutes . I feel like I should be all up into some kind of big workout ! Feeling guilty about NOT

I have an appt with Dr. Lautz at Brigham and Womens. I am a registered nurse and did extensive research on bariatric surgeons and decided upon this guy. In doing my research, I came across posts from previous patients of his and that he was fabulous. I also contacted the State Board Of Medical Licensure and he is clean as a whistle, has never had any infractions or lawsuits brought against him. He is board certified (this is important) and is the director of the bariatric department at BW. I see him for my first appt in May and am quite comfortable with who I have selected...hope this helps and good luck! kim

Thank you for your response. Definitely know his name as a weight-loss doc, but don't know if he's involved in a bariatric practice, but I'll research him. Thanks again.

I would look around and find out what different surgeons charge. I'm in Houston and the self-pay pricing varies by thousands of dollars depending on which doctor you use for the procedure. In addition to the surgeon, differnet hospitals have varied self pay pricing. I was lucky because my hospital is a Bariatric Center of Excellence and also had an excellent "cash" price. Also, in my case, I have a hiatal hernia so my insurance is subsidizing the procedure, making my out of pocket costs about $4,000 less than they would be with no hernia. My surgeon suggested that I do an EGD and take a look since he suspected it anyway and it would reduct my overall costs. Don't get too discouraged. It may take a little more work than you thought but you will find a solution that works for you.

To clarify, many surgeons will refuse to see a post-op patient if they had their procedure ANYWHERE other than with their practice. That means another state, or another city, or even another practice in your own city. Others only care if it was outside the US. And most, if they will see a patient that they didn't operate on, will charge a 'retainer fee', ranging anywhere from 500-2k. So it's not just a concern for medical tourists, but for anyone who wishes to go elsewhere. It is definitely something to think about. For me personally..... My gastroenterologist will be looking after me for any issues. This will be the simple things, like incision checkups, labwork, etc. Should there be an emergency, I will be going to one of two ERs. Both of those ERs happen to use general surgeons that do bariatric procedures on their oncall rotations. Any general surgeon can fix you up should something happen. You don't need to specialize in bariatrics to go in after a leak is found, etc. (I wouldn't want a 'routine' general surgeon to DO the VSG, obviously, but post-op complications don't require more than that). It is also important to note - if you are a self-pay patient, your insurance will most likely not cover emergency surgery once it's all said and done if the issue is directly related to the surgery. (A long time down the road is a different matter, but I'm referring to leaks, etc). It doesn't matter if it was in the US or in Mexico or somewhere else. You can frequently get 'coverage' through your original surgeon where he and his practice will go back in and fix things if something occurs. BUT, you're still playing the odds that if something happens, it'll be in your town, and you end up at their hospital where he has privileges. TLDR version - These are ALL things that should be considered when you do your research. But be careful about rumor mills and how some local surgeons may phrase things. It's a business, and they want you to go through them. They tend to conveniently avoid some of the facts at times.

I have bariatric fusion. they have everything in them. they are chewable. makes it easier.

Hi All, I just got my “welcome to the bariatric dept” letter and a denial letter on the same day. The denial said I don’t have a history of failed diets. My GP noted my failures specifically in my chart though. I’ve done so many diets, and Weight Watchers more times than I can count. I remember being on WW in my teens. My first prescription diet was early elementary school for G-d sake! Now I have to jump through appeal hoops. I have Kaiser (Oregon) via Medicare (I’m disabled). Any tips and encouragement is welcome!

If you are interested in participating in a focus group regarding WLS(band or bypass), call Rose at the Murray Hill Center in Los Angeles, near Culver City. Each group is 3 hours and pays $150. They are scheduling for 12 noon and 4pm based on your answers. I am in the 12 pm group. 310-923-9625 Ask for Rose or tell them you are calling about the bariatric study. I don't have any more info that what I have posted. Melissa

I'm 3 week out and so far I've been using specialist Bariatric Vitamins that I'd bought prior to surgery. However, my surgeon suggested there was no need to have these and he recommended some for me. The Iron he recommends is 200mg ferrous sulphate, and the Calcium is the AdCal-D3, which is calcium carbonate. Doing my own research I've read that calcium citrate is much better absorbed and there are more gentler iron supplements I could be taking that are also better absorbed. I just wondered what people's views were on this? Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Something isn't adding up here. If she's getting in 109g protein, that's 436 calories right there. If she's only taking in 662 calories, then her protein would be about 65% of that. Maybe some misinterpretation of what MFP is reading? I can see that they might "recommend" 35% protein for her low calories - a typical normal diet might be 15-20%, and a bariatric weight loss diet might well be 50-60% (or more, at the beginning when we are eating little else other than protein.) 60-80g would be a typical recommendation for a woman with a sleeve, as there is no significant malabsorption involved, though some go higher than that as a means of avoiding "carbs", or under the false assumption that the extra will help avoid loss of muscle mass (it will to the point that one is actually working to build muscle mass, but the only thing the excess does, other than make expensive urine, is to avoid deficiency, but one doesn't need much extra to avoid that - the typical bariatric recommendations will cover it.) It does sound like a bariatric RD would be a good person to consult, and if she is truly only getting 6-700 calories and still struggling, then there may be some other metabolic issue going on, and some other appropriate specialist may be in order. But a good RD would be a great start in getting a good baseline of what is really happening dietwise. Starting at 400 lb, a sleeve is often somewhat marginal for getting to normal, particularly for a woman of that size (how tall is she - that's a factor as well in determining an appropriate goal and understanding metabolic issues.) You say that she recently moved cross country - where is she now - that can be a help in finding new specialists. It might be that the VSG is indeed marginal for her needs, and she really needs something stronger. A DS is a straightforward conversion from the VSG (as it uses the sleeve as its basis) and is typically the strongest metabolic tool of the mainstream procedures, so that is also a longer term consideration.

I mean chat. Talk.exchange information. Discuss. I have no idea what porn has to do with my question. The whole world is bariatric not chat. Message boards

OMG I am so sorry for you. I was sleeved on the 3rd of December and slipped into atrial fibrillation as well. Totally feel your frustration at being a bariatric patient with cardiac complications (my heart rate pegged at 200 every time I got out of bed). 4 days after starting afib I converted back to normal rhythm. Hang in there....I can't answer the vomiting question as I only did it a couple of times...although one was after the swallow test.

I know there are some bariatric surgeons in Columbus Ohio. There is a Barix Clinic there. You must check with your insurance company to make sure the surgeon and the hospital are within your network. If they aren't your costs go WAY up! There is a Barix Clinic there (they were not in my network) and I know of another surgeon named Stephan Myers. He operates at Riverside Hospital. The way I understand he charges each patient about $3000 out of pocket for follow up visits and he sets you up with a nearby gym or you go to their gym after surgery. He's the only one I've heard of that does this. I know some people who have had RNY's at Barix and they have done very well. I don't know anyone that's been sleeved there.