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1. Are you a candidate? if your BMI is over 40, then yes. If your BMI is over 35 and you have co-mobitities (sleap apnea, diabetes, etc). then yes you are a candidate. However, discuss with a surgeon your options. I live in Manhattan and my surgeon is listed below. 2. Do fills hurt? No more than having blood drawn. Ya know, being fat and uncomfortable hurts way more. **Your best next step is to make a consultation appointment with a bariatric surgeon who has done several lap-band surgeries. Good luck in your journey.

VerticalSleeveTalk Newsletter Hey, Sleevers!Happy New Year! It’s time to leap into 2013. You might have slipped a little during the holidays, but January is a great time for a fresh start! Of course, VerticalSleeveTalk.com is here for you as you work to lose weight and get healthy. Allow the January Newsletter to motivate you to get back on board if you lost your focus in December, or to inspire you to keep up the good work if you were able to stay on track during the holidays. Here’s what we have in this newsletter. Looking Ahead to 2013! Member Spotlight: Meet Velena! New Year’s Resolutions that Work! Sleever Challenge: Make Your New Year’s Resolutions! Casting Call: Looking for VerticalSleeveTalk.com Members to be in a Book! As you get back into the swing of everyday life and your commitment to your health, we hope you continue to make VerticalSleeveTalk.com a regular part of your day. So, enjoy the newsletter and then talk about it or anything else on the forums! See you there! Sincerely, Alex Brecher Founder VerticalSleeveTalk.com Looking Ahead to 2013! 2012 was a phenomenal year for VerticalSleeveTalk.com. The forums grew tremendously and we came out with mobile apps for the Android, Kindle and iPod, iPad and iPhone. We have plenty more changes in store for 2013! Keep watch for even more improvements. We’ll be sure to let you know in the newsletters and on the forums, too. 2013 will be an exciting year! Thanks to you, our members, for continuing to support the community. Member Spotlight: Meet Velena! We’re delighted to start off 2013 by shining the spotlight on Velena from Madison, Alabama! She says she spent most of her adult life obese. She didn’t want to spend “second half” of her adult life obese, too, and set the goal of weighing under 200 pounds by her fiftieth birthday. She lost about 25-30 pounds through dieting, doing fitness DVDs and taking weight loss pills, but was still 30 pounds short of her weight loss goal. She wanted to lose weight to be able to enjoy life instead of being limited because of her obesity. Velena wanted to be able to ride a motorcycle and enjoy hiking with her husband; the final straw for her was on a hike when she couldn’t follow him down to the falls because of the steep stairs. She had high cholesterol and high blood pressure. In addition, Velena has diabetes and needs to eat well to control it. She says she always ate healthily, but portion control was a problem. When Velena started looking into weight loss surgery two years ago, her insurance didn’t cover it. This year, she attended another seminar and found out that now her insurance would cover the sleeve. She didn’t like the idea of bypass “rearranging my plumbing,” and a friend had had a bad experience with the lap-band. Velena did like the idea of the gastric sleeve, and got her surgery in September of 2012. Her top weight was 264 pounds. Now, Velena is down to 197 pounds! She feels light on her feet and her balance is much better after losing so much weight! Velena now has her own bike to ride around the neighborhood. Some of her great moments have been buying a jacket in the Misses section, instead of the plus size section, and trying on a winter coat at costco and finding out that it was too big. Of course, stepping on the scale and seeing a number under 200 was a thrill for her! She faced some challenges along the way, such as having trouble swallowing right after surgery. She got dehydrated and had to get hooked up to an IV! Eating slowly enough and ending her meal before she’s too full are still challenges for Velena, but she’s working on them and it’s paying off. Velena uses Vertical Sleeve Talk daily to catch up with friends, get ideas and encouragement and provide support. She says the forums keep her focused on her nutrition. We’re sure that you’re keeping up with your nutrition because you even managed to lose weight during the holidays! Congratulations on your success so far! Thanks for being in the Member Spotlight, Velena! Welcome to 2013 and the second half of your adult life! The Member Spotlight Forum is the place to go to nominate another member to be in the spotlight section of the newsletter. You can also nominate yourself – everyone on the boards will be pleased to meet you! You can even send Alex Brecher a private message telling us that you want to be featured. Everyone has a great story to share. Thanks! New Year’s Resolutions that Work! What are your New Year’s resolutions? Whatever else you’re resolving to do in 2013, your resolutions almost certainly include losing weight or maintaining your goal weight. Too often, we stop following our New Year’s resolutions pretty soon and fall back into old bad habits. How can you make New Year’s resolutions that you’ll stick to so that you can meet your goals for 2013? Try out these simple tips as you make your resolutions. Make them specific. You want to get healthy and lose weight. Those are great goals, but those resolutions aren’t specific enough to be helpful. Instead, choose resolutions that will help you meet those goals. Resolutions to help you get healthy might include exercising at least three days a week and choosing olive oil instead of butter for your servings of fat on your bariatric surgery diet. To lose weight, you might resolve eat at least 80g Protein per day so you feel more full. Make them doable. Keep your resolutions realistic so you’re not setting yourself up for failure. Nobody’s perfect, and your resolutions’ success shouldn’t depend on you to be perfect. Instead of resolving to drink more Water, resolve to drink an extra 8 ounces of water in the morning at least 5 days per week. This resolution gives you some room for error just in case you forget your water a couple of times in the week. Plus, the resolution is specific, so it fits with the first tip! Make them controllable. You can’t control whether you lose a certain amount of weight within a certain amount of time. What you can control are resolutions such as sticking to your diet or exercising to burn off an extra 300 calories per day, 3 days per week. Keep these tips in mind when you’re making your own New Year’s resolutions. Solid resolutions together with your best intentions can help you make 2013 a great year for your health, weight and happiness! Sleever Challenge: Make Your New Year’s Resolutions! This is the part of the newsletter where we challenge VerticalSleeveTalk.com members to take a step forward by doing something new. The experience can help you grow and gain confidence when you do something you hadn’t even thought about before, or you find out that you can do something you hadn’t even realized that you could do. This month, we’re sticking to the theme of New Year’s resolutions. The challenge for this newsletter is to make one or more resolutions based on the advice in this newsletter. We challenge you to make your resolutions specific, doable and controllable – and we’re eager to see what you decide to do in 2013! Tell us about your resolutions in the Sleever Challenge Forum. We’d love to hear about why you chose those resolutions and how you think you’ll do on them. When you post, you get to help other members who may need ideas for their own resolutions. Of course, if you ever miss a challenge, you can always go back to the archived Newsletter Forum to check out the old ones. It’s never too late to try – or retry! – a Newsletter Challenge! Casting Call: Looking for VerticalSleeveTalk.com Members to be in a Book! Are you eager to have your gastric bypass story published in a book? This is your chance! Our first book was focused on the lap-band, and it is called “The Big Book on the Lap Band: Everything You Need to Know to Lose Weight and Live Well with the Adjustable Gastric Band.” It was inspired by our sister site, LapBandTalk.com, and we’re so pleased with its success that we’re going to add a vertical sleeve book to the series! If you want to have your story published or you have advice, tricks or recipes to share, let us know! All you have to do is contact Alex Brecher (username Alex Brecher) via VerticalSleeveTalk.com’s private messaging system. We’d love to hear from you no matter where you are in your sleeve journey, even if you’re just thinking about the surgery. Thanks! That’s it for this month’s newsletter. We invite you to head on over to the forums and get a head start on a healthy 2013. Again, Happy New Year to you and your loved ones! May 2013 be the best year so far. Take care of yourself and each other. Sincerely, Alex ============================================================== If you no longer wish to receive this newsletter, you may unsubscribe by going to your Control Panel and clicking on the Newsletters tab, or clicking on the following link: {unsubscribe}

I don't think there is a limit to how much protein the body can absorb, there is a limit to how much it needs for muscle repair. The rest goes into energy. http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/health-fitness/healthy-eating/know-your-nutrients/how-much-protein-can-the-body-absorb @@reachbree - I still mix some unflavored in my flavored mix. That is just personal taste. I also add a little unflavored to my yogurt. The American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery website says... Q: Can I take all of the protein in one dose? A: Protein should be taken in multiple doses, across multiple meals or healthy Snacks. The body cannot absorb more than approximately 30 grams at once. Also, protein is a nutrient that helps us feel fuller, longer. If we try to include Proteins in each of our meals or healthy snacks, we’re less likely to feel hungry when it’s not time to eat. https://asmbs.org/patients/life-after-bariatric-surgery My Dr made very clear that the body can only absorb so much at one time. There is a reason we take Vitamins apart, not just because some of them interact badly with each other.

Looks like we got a great answer from the OH board. This was just posted in response to my same question. Post Date: 1/6/10 9:00 am ASMBS Insurance Committee Updates Jaime Ponce MD, FASMBS Chair, Insurance Committee New 2010 CPT code for Laparoscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy Laparoscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy has a new CPT code effective January 1, 2010: 43775 -- Laparoscopy, surgical, gastric restrictive procedure; longitudinal gastrectomy (i.e., sleeve gastrectomy) The relative value of this CPT code is set by CMS and it will be 21.56 (work RVU) which is between the laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding and the gastric bypass roux-en-y relative value. Medicare will not be covering this procedure at this time. Bariatric Coding Email Hotline The ASMBS Insurance Committee in response to multiple requests from our members and their office staff have decided to offer an ?Email Hotline? for bariatric coding questions. We have accumulated previously asked questions and will be able to adapt answers according to your specific case in question. In within the Committee members, there is significant expertise and will do our best to answer your coding question. Please send your questions to the following email: insurance@asmbs.org SOURCE: http://www.asmbs.org/Newsite07/EmailArticles/ASMBSInsuranceC ommitteeUpdates.pdf

I am in shock and so upset. I needed my pcp to fill out a form for medical necessity for the surgery. She also needed to fill in my weights, comorbidities and also a years worth of progress notes from my visits. I faxed the form from work to their office, with a letter stating they could notify me when completed and I would pick it up. Well......a coworker came in to me today with a fax for me. All of my personal health information, my weight for the past year AND the fact that I am in the process of qualifying for bariatric surgery was for anyone to read. They randomly faxed this information to my employer. I have no idea how they got the fax number. I could not believe it. My employer has no idea I am having surgery. Or at least HAD no idea. A good friend got the fax and brought it to me. Next thing I knew, another person gave me another copy that was faxed. Not sure what else is floating around. I am hoping it wasn't read, and I did ask the coworker to keep it quiet. I blasted the doctors office. But I am truly so upset. I wanted to wait until I was approved before i told work. I just feel like any moment someone else is going to drop off my personal health information at my office door Just venting. Ugh!!!

You posted that you work within the same hospital system as the office where the fax came from. If you look at your HIPPA documentation there is a statement in there that there is a relaxing of HIPPA rules when "communicating within the same hospital systems, and their representatives." Was there some mistakes made? Yup.--on both sides. In this day and age, no one should never fax personal information that you want to keep confidential--unless you KNOW that the fax is going to a PRIVATE fax machine/computer. Once again, I have to question the reasoning of "hiding" one's bariatric surgery?? Are you ashamed of having it?? --afraid of what others with think?? Does it really matter? Aren't we all supposed to be having WLS for OURSELVES?? Especially those of us who work or have worked in the Healthcare field. I would hope that we would want to set an example.--to stand up proudly that we had the courage and determination to conquer our "disease demons". I find absolutely nothing to hide nor be ashamed of by having WLS. Once we try to hide it, cover it up or lie about it, --that is when the spider web of telling two lies to cover up one lie and so on and so on. I don't know about you all, but my memory isn't good enough to remember what lie I told to whom. Getting back to the faxing fiasco: Lesson learned by all involved--I hope. You know. I've been sitting reading and rereading this trying to decide if I was going to comment. Sorry, but the ugly monster got the best of me. Valentina- I may be new-ish to this forum but why do you think it is ok to bash someone who was sickened at the thought of her personal information being spread around a large office? You say you aren't ashamed of having surgery- good for you. But do not project your opinions on others as though you are right and they are wrong. In fact- YOU are shaming anyone who does not subscribe to your belief that you need to tell everyone your business. Heck- I bet you have told tons of people who actually couldn't care less. Who we choose to share our surgery with is our own business and ours alone. That goes for you. Rent a billboard for Petes sake. But don't think for one moment it is ok to tear down those who think differently from you. As for Hippa laws- there has not been any "relaxing" since the days it was set in motion. Your facts are wrong. I've been a healthcare provider since 1985. Been there. Done that. When she is acting in the capacity of a patient, her rights are to be maintained just as any other non-employee patient.

This is a quick question, I'm rereading my letter to meet the surgeon and says "initial assessment for bariatric surgery" I'm from the UK so may be different from other places but does anyone know what this means/what I'll have to have done? I'm just so nervous, I feel like I just need to know everything when meeting them.

My consultation with Dr. Gangemi at UIC, and I’ll be starting the 6 month process in January. Anyone have experiences at UIC that they wish to share? Complications? Recommendations? TIA!

I have two questions... with planning to have a VSG in Mexico, Puerto Vallarta to be specific, how does the pre testing differ than if you were to go through a US bariatric surgeon? I'm assuming your PCP still had to clear you? What tests were done? Are there some tests that aren't needed since I'm going to MX, like a psych eval? I don't have any medical issues other than the usual aches and pains that come from being overweight. Also, how did you approach your PCP about it? I'm asking because my husband and I have been in Houston for 4 months and I have not met my PCP yet. I will be upfront about what I would like to do but have no idea about how to even begin that conversation, aside from blurting out "HEY! I'd like to go to Mexico to have a VSG done! Whadaya think!?" I'm making calls on Monday to both potential surgeons, my PCP and my HSA account but I'm a little anxious about getting information beforehand. I'm just impatient like that >.<

I have only seen my surgeon once since I started the process of being banded. I'm scheduled for surgery on Tuesday. The time I saw him was for my consultation. He was very kind and informative. Since then I have seen his staff on all my other visits to his office. I've seen his nutritionist twice and his NP twice. I also saw his psychiatrist once for my psych consult. His NP said he will do my first fill and then she does the rest unless its an emergency. His staff is awesome. They are so supportive and friendly. So far I'm happy with his practice. To be honest though, I have a PPO for my insurance. There are 2 bariatric surgeons in my area but the other is out of network so I didn't have a choice of surgeons to choose from. I'm not sure if I would have chosen differently if I did have a choice. I would have had a consultation with the other if I could have but that was not an option for me. Either way I am going to be successful. The band is a tool and I've done a lot of research to learn how to use it. It seems to me that people who are successful with the band are the ones who follow the rules and the ones who fail are the ones who don't follow the rules and don't follow up with their doctor. My doctors staff has provided me with all the information I need to be a success and I plan to follow their rules and keep up with my follow up appointments.

I go to an excellent Bariatric Center who have 4 Bariatric Surgeons, 2 NUTs on staff, 2 offices in NJ and about a dozen staff workers. None of the surgeons or staff workers have had weight loss surgeries. The surgeons are hands on and get very involved once they have worked on you. They are experienced in their work, even not knowing what an individuall goes through personally, only by what they document per patient. I feel if you are honest with your surgeon, he/she will be honest with you as well. Now I have seen all 4 surgeons and everyone has different personalities. Some are more strict than others (I won't mention names), LOL However, I personally like to see the surgeons who actually performed on me and if I don't I know I am in very very good caring hands. I personally have nothing but good experiences when I visit. The staff is super friendly. The surgeons are attentive and caring and I like they take personal time with you, its not a bum rush office visit. They really want to know everything! Everytime I go I have to fill out an entire sheet of paper of what I eat and how long do I feel satisfied on a meal, how many hours, etc.. They have a reputation to live up to as they strive to be the best Bariatric Center in NJ.....

If you are thinking of having a particular clinic or hospital do your surgery, just call them up and ask them how much it is. I did that with the Scottsdale Bariatric Clinic, and when they told me $19000 (this was last year) I decided I was going to Mexico.

Oh no! PCS during recovery! A few options: 1. Pack a cooler with protein shakes in case you end up in some food desert (LOOKING AT YOU WESTERN TEXAS) with nothing you can eat. Also, get some Isopure which helps with protein if you're truly stuck. 2. Meal prep some if you can. Maybe you can freeze it and keep ice on it? I transported frozen pork roll from New Jersey to California in February in the cab of my truck. 3. Order small portions at restaurants and then just throw away what you can't eat. Wasteful, but better than starvation. Also, just to reassure you—truck stops have AMAZING c-stores with things like protein shakes and protein bars and cheeses and things. Like, I was blown away that in way-the-he||-and-gone western Oklahoma, the Love's Travel Stop had a HUGE range of stuff that would be bariatric-friendly. If there's stuff you can eat now that you love that's Georgia-specific (my dad used to live outside of Brunswick), take some with you for comfort. Boiled peanuts spring to mind... If you want, share the route and maybe I and other Bariatric Pals can share suggestions for places to go. I've driven all over this country.

I went to a bariatric specific hospital so my insurance advocate had it on her calendar to request my records from my PCP the day after my last appointment. She submitted it that day and she called me 2 days later with the approval. From there it took 2 buisiness days to get scheduled. My surgery ways 10 days from scheduling. I’m pretty sure my experience is best case senario. I would just make sure to be your own advocate and follow up and make sure records are getting where they need to go.

I was diagnosed with mild sleep apnea during pre op testing and was worried that would delay my surgery date since the tech told me they want to get it under control before I undergo surgery. Fortunately, my surgeon said it wouldn't make a difference and that the RNY would more than likely resolve it, which I'm hoping it does. Now I'm wondering if I should have gone ahead and got the machine since my out-of-pocket expenses have been met for the year. But I'm trying to be optimistic and believe I'm not going to need it in the future and hope the same for you. Anyone here can say their apnea was cured following surgery/weight loss? Oh, and I ran across this article after my diagnosis. Yikes!!! Just another reason to get the Bariatric surgery. Up, down, or no change: weight gain as an unwanted side effect of CPAP for obstructive sleep apnea | Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine (aasm.org)

books, magazines, binging on "My 600 lb life", looking for new bariatric-friendly recipes, logging into this site and Obesity Help several times a day (and spending lots of time on them), exercising - that sort of thing. It's probably the central focus in my life (although not the only, of course)

Hello, I’m new here and just wanted to introduce myself. My name is Gina and I’m in process of securing a date with a Dr in Tijuana for VSG. I’m trying to do my due diligence in researching, but it’s been hard. I had a patient care coordinator scare me from using one facility and now I’m back to square one in my search. I do know my date will be 7/12/18 as that’s when I have the time to go to MX. A little about me; 5’5, always been big girl, yo yo dieted most my life, worked out most my life & now that I’m almost 40 the weight just won't stop adding up. I’m over it and know the VSG will be the right tool for me. Anyone looking at Pompeii Medical, Mexico Bariatrics or BariatriPal? Maybe we can meet in MX.

Or my recommendation, head for the nearest Bariatric Center of Excellence hospital, doesn't hurt if they also are a teaching hospital. I just had mine at Ohio State University-Wexner Medical Center in Columbus Ohio. My surgeon as well as being Chief of Bariatric Medicine and Metabolic Weight Loss is also a Full Professor in the College of Medicine. In my book, teaching hospitals are the best and always on the cutting edge!

I've only read it in the waiting room at my dog's ... maybe they should be called "weighting" rooms at bariatric clinics?... Anyway, it was all RNY stuff, nothing useful for me, as far as I could tell. Oh, there was one article that talked about the psychological impacts of losing weight, but there again, the focus was on the impact of losing really fast.

I added magnesium citrate to my supplements. I had no idea that there were so many forms of magnesium. https://www.globalhealingcenter.com/natural-health/types-of-magnesium/ Despite, what is said in this article, when it comes to the bariatric community, the form that works best for us is magnesium citrate. Take magnesium with calcium for better absorption. My cramp hasn't improved yet, btw. I hope the magnesium helps soon if that's the cause for my pain.

It's called bariatric chewable one a day. By procare health. I bought mine there but the website is procarenow.com

I do Bariatric Advantage non flavored to add to Water or other things. And Premier shakes from costco. Once I figure out my surgery date then I start the two week liquid diet. I will be only allowed liquid. No solids. I do two to three shakes a day, plus a light dinner. I'm using anywhere from 900 to 1100 cal a day.

Hi Marcey, All had to do is tell my PCM about how I've repeatedly tried and failed at weight watchers and the adkins diet and she put in a referral for me. The hoop jumping came after going to orientation last Sept. I finished the pre-op checklist last Nov, got in for a consult with a surgeon in Dec and am scheduled for RNY Feb 20th. There is a whole bunch of info on Walter Reed's Bariatric web page as well. I think that most of the material they pass out in the orientation class is on the page.

If you all order from bariatric choice here is a code to get $20.00 off. Use this site https://www.bariatricchoice.com/rewardsref/index/refer/id/128639/ or put in code 9905203 and it will give you 20.00 off your order. They have soup with protein for those of you on liquid diets.

If I were in your situation, I would get the insurance funded lapband removal, wait 6 - 8 weeks, then head to Mexico for my sleeve. You can get sleeved by a reputable Mexican surgeon for $4500 - 6000. I do think it's shady that your surgeon isn't giving any discount on the surgery. I've never heard of that before. If you don't want to go to Mexico, maybe shop around with local bariatric surgeons who take your insurance and see if you can get a better deal with someone you are comfortable with.