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Kim- My surgeon does not require a prep diet but I am copying what some are doing. Two Protein shakes and dinner of a protein and veggies. It makes sense to me to start prior to the surgery so the transition after surgery is not so abrupt. How is is going for you? My surgery is on Thursday and I am very anxious because it will not know until after I wake from it if they were able to do the bypass. I will have the band out for sure but if the tissue does not look good the bypass will not be done. My insurance has very limited life time coverage for bariatric surgery so if the bypass is not able to be done, I will not have it done for a very long time as I will have to self pay. This is adding another layer of anxiety for me. Jennie

I don't go back to the bariatric doctors until December 30, but I am seeing my primary physician next Tuesday. I will definitely be upfront with all of them.

I had sleeve to gastric bypass in Mexico. Check here on bariatric pal for a surgeon. They have a fantastic system set up for surgeons, package deals including hospital stay, recovery house, personal valet, 2 years nutritional follow up.

I'm scheduled for the Gastric Sleeve on January 9th with Dr. Alejandro Gutierrez from Mexico Bariatric at Mi Doctor Hospital in Tijuana, Mexico. I'm kinda nervous and excited at the same time. My husband and I fly in the 8th and fly out the 12th.

Thanks. I am 5'6". I think my BMI was 37 when I started - now I am overweight instead of obese. High blood pressure can be a comorbidity and joint pain may be osteoarthritis, also a comorbidity. Why your family doc? My Bariatric Surgeon worked with the insurance. Where are you? I'm in Dallas, TX.

My insurance required 6 months of weigh ins, nutrition evaluation, psychologist eval and blood test for stomach bacteria. I recommend you continually stay in touch with both dr office and insurance. I found out after doing all the requirements and dr submitting surgery date that my insurance required I enroll in the Bariatric Resource Services program they had! I had no idea about this requirement. It delayed my surgery almost 4 weeks. . I am happy to say I had my sleeve surgery on 10/20 and doing fine so far. Stay on top of your insurance company!! Best of luck!! Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Bariatric advantage.

I'm so sorry you are going through this, my hope is you can come out the other end better, and I feel you will. Do not take medication, and steer clear of people who tell you to, also doctors who tell you to. They don't help in the long run, and actually cause much, much more harm to your brain's chemical balance. I've a degree in brain health, and one thing that is very clear is that when you take meds, or any antidepressant, the natural serotonin level brain produces lowers itself to compensate for the fake serotonin that come in the form of medications. This is why psychiatrists will caution against going off them all at once. If a person quits their antidepressants suddenly, the brain cannot compensate and depression becomes worse, leading to suicide in many cases. And sometimes, some people can never go off them, even when they try to slowly ween themselves from the drugs. Some doctors will suggest a patient stay on them for this reason. An even worse doctor will suggest them at all. Medications should only be used for the most severely mentally disordered patients. What you are better off doing is finding a psychotherapist you connect with. Not all therapists will connect with their patients, so be aware it sometimes takes a few to finally find one you mesh with. Once you do, you can begin to unravel and reveal what is in your thought process. In the meantime, there are many things you can do to relax your mind and take the edge off. Meditation, yoga, listening to positive music, reading books about mental health and whatever you feel your troubled issues are, a healthy diet full of omegas (fish) and veggies, I suggest the Mediterranean Diet. Exercise and also hand writing in a journal. Try meet-ups and meet knew people to spend time with, go slow. If you do it just once, at least you gave it a shot and tried. Comfort yourself with things that make you feel good: baths, scenic walks, anything that you personally find joyful. You can also search out a bariatric support group and feel if they tackle any of these issues, but do those in person. Stay offline as much as you can, or use social media less - sometimes it can worsen depression as the connections are not very deep most times. Whatever you do, be gentle on you and don't berate yourself. It's natural to go through changes about ourselves and our lives, whether it's related to bariatric surgery or not. I'm hoping all the best for you.

Surgeons use different methods for the psych eval. Also depends on the Psychologist you have been referred to. (different standards of practice and policies/procedures ) Evals are basic to rule out mental health issues and eliminate liability for the surgeon. My two cents on getting denied. (most of us get approved) Some people are not screened properly. Bariatric surgery may exacerbate mental illness. It may be a good thing to get denied. The psychologist can refer you to restart the surgery process after mental health issues are resolved.

Hey Everyone! Does anyone know of any good Bariatric apps that icon download OUTSIDE OF MY FITNESS PAL? Just interested in other options for tracking. Thanks!

I'd get a consultation with a dietitian who has some experience with pregnancy post-bariatric surgery:) I seem to recall Iron was stressed during pregnancy, calcium, a good balanced diet.

Today starts the first day of my two-week preop liquid diet. I can only have four protein shakes per day and can only use bariatric advantage. Bariatric advantage protein is so gross! I am gagging it down. This afternoon I got the worst headache and felt nauseous. How my going to do this for two weeks? When does this get easier?

I went to the surgeon who originally placed my lap band today to talk about the surgery I need to have to remove it due to erosion and subsequent revision surgery. I had my head completely reconciled with having vertical sleeve revision and then he threw in a new option. For the past year, he has been doing banded plication surgery. In my particular situation, due to the erosion, we would do the surgery to remove my band first, give my stomach time to heal, and then I would have a second surgery to revise to the banded plication. For those of you who are not familiar with this procedure, it involves folding the stomach in on itself and stitching it to achieve a sleeve like effect. This is a similar procedure to the old stomach stapling procedure but much more effective due to technique and the usage of sutures as opposed to staples. Then, he will place another band at the top of the sleeve thereby essential having two weight loss surgeries at one time. My understanding is that the plication is better for achieving immediate weight loss, the band is better for long term weight loss. Combining them is essentially the best of both worlds with a few added benefits. First, because you have restriction from the plication, you don't have to fill the band as fast or as much in order to achieve satisfactory restriction. Second, because of the more slender shape of the stomach, incidences of slippage are greatly reduced. Third, there is no need to dissect 90% of your stomach. Fourth, if you do have a problem with the band, it can be removed and you will still have restriction from the plication. As always, there can be complications. Sutures can come undone. There can be necrosis of the upper part of the stomach right below the band. My understanding is that so far, the complication rate is extremely minimal and weight loss results have been comparable to the sleeve. I have to admit that the thought of not having to cut my stomach is appealing to me. At the same time, the thought of putting in another band after my first one eroded is a little unnerving. My surgeon is not pressuring me to do either one. He wants me to do what I'm comfortable with but he is very excited about the results he has seen with this surgery. I am 52 and this is more than likely my last chance at getting to be where I want to be. This is still considered to be investigational and is not covered by insurance but I believe the majority of the costs will be covered by research study funds. I have complete confidence in my surgeon. He secondary specialties are liver transplants and pediatric surgery and he is always at the cutting edge (pardon the pun) of the latest and greatest bariatric surgeries. I just want to do the right thing for me. My instinct is to let him get in there and take out my band, take a look around and see what kind of damage my band did to my insides. Then, make a more educated decision about which surgery would be right for me. As an aside, he completely refuses to do gastric bypass. What would you do??

I was self pay and went with Dr. Hoehn and the Bariatric Center of Kansas City. Their website is www.kcbariatric.com. I paid about 16k. I'm not sure how much the doctors that you are talking about charge.

I just posted on the self pay thread......... Dr. Malley 16.5K, and other (big names) in KC are 16-20k I love Dr. Malley and staff and insurance coverd mine with him, but my mom will be self pay.... we are looking at Dr. K Denver or Tallgrass surgery center in Topeka KS.. I am getting ready to call them for their self pay package. Tallgrass Surgical Center Location Topeka, KS Bariatric Surgeons believe to have operated at this hospital: Bernita Bernstein, M.D. Carlyle Dunshee II James Hamilton, MD Brent Steward, M.D.

I agree with what the ladies above wrote. Let me also say that you can probably find a lot of information on the internet and youtube videos. I will be in the same boat you're in because I'm having my surgery done in Mexico. I will have folllow up check ups done by a general practitioner rather than a bariatric Dr. Send good vibes. I hope my diabetes goes away.

I would encourage you to continue the battle with your insurance company if they have not listed bariatric surgery as an exception. But, to answer your question, I am going to Dr. Kelly in Tijuana on Monday and I am using a passport card. A portion of the monies paid for the surgery also goes toward ground transportation from San Diego to Tijuana. It took two and a half weeks for me to get a card (I paid for it to be expedited).

What a shock that must have been! You may want to go to a support group for Bariatric surgery and go see a bariatric surgeon too. They might be able to advise you through this because they deal with this surgery day in and day out. We do a lot of preparation and meet with nutritionists. It might be helpful. I do think you probably could stretch out the stomach eventually.

Good luck!! I am also waiting for my surgery approval.. Had my last doctors appointment friday Feb 24th and my bariatric coordinator submitted everything to my insurance company Monday.. Hollly nerves! My surgery is scheduled for March 28th.. so insurance company please call! lol My insurance company is Excellence bcbs

I have anthem bcbs and it was listed under gastric & intestinal when I tried bariatric it wasn't listed buy I found the lapband under gastric & intestinal

Does anyone have any reviews on either place??

Have you googled Bariatric shake recipes? I have many great sounding ways to modify plain shakes. I ordered this and am so glad I did as it not only has ideas but ways to work with the powder to make it the texture/consistency desired: http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1480101095/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1441633999&sr=8-1π=SY200_QL40&keywords=bariatric+shakes+book&dpPl=1&dpID=41Q8WEwHzpL&ref=plSrch

I bought a pack of six 2 oz for when I make dairy/protein items to freeze and a pack of six 4 oz ones too. Someone privately messaged me and suggested a Zoku Slushy/Shake cup for Protein shake or juice slushies. I bought it at William-Sonoma for $15! Plus, I know my husband will use it for stuff too, so I thought it would have more than a bariatric diet purpose in my house.

I was sleeved at Mexico Bariatric Center, Dr Christian Rodreguez Lopez in Tijuana. It was a near perfect experience. I also have heard that weight loss can be affected by the surgeon. If I remember right it was determined by how close to the sphincter they get and how well they shape the stomach. Only time will tell for me. I am almost 6 weeks post op and down 24 pounds. No complications. I went to Mexico because there was no insurance interference and of course in the USA I did not qualify due to not being obese enough or having other pre-existing conditions. Good luck in your decision.

LOL I too in similar predicament. I am having my band removed this year due to scar tissue causing overtightness of normal non-erosion, non-slipping. Went though a battery of testing as this is my second band. First band leaked and I had a lot of scar tissue then so I think everyones body is different besides the fact we have a foreign body around out stomach. I chose the band after tons of research and talking to three surgeons and asking a bizillion questions. The fact the what I do for a living is read numerous surgeries a day and code them for medical reimbursement I have been lucky enough to read all types bariatric surgeries I was able to form a comfortable decision on what I wanted done. Two surgeries later I am rethinking what will serve me in the long run with all the new techniques surgeons use for bypassing. Due to the scar tissue it was recommended for my age and metabolism that i select the bypass instead of the sleeve. The sleeve is just like the band without the apparatus and if someone is having issues with scar tissue or pain in there upper stomach it likely they will have the same with the sleeve as so I am told. However I have a friend that was sleeved the same time as I was banded and she lost approx 60 lbs the first year and not a pound since. So I am understanding that each surgeon has a protocol for there banded patients and there issues. My guy says that each MD bypass differently to which I have noticed in my other family and friends weight losses and struggles. I am happy to have a conservative Surgeon in doing his bypass patients as not to over malaborb them...I am looking forward to my band to bypass sometime in Oct date still pending insurance. Good luck to all of you hope to stay in touch:-)