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I recently bought/tried the Bariatric Pal Peaches & Cream Oatmeal. It is not good at all. Very weird consistency. It also tasted very bland. For the costs of these things, you would think they at least tasted good. Another waste of $$$.

I am on the fence with this topic- Yes, my weight was largely due to my own poor choices, and didn't expect the world to revolve around me. But, a doctor's office that caters to an overweight population should have bigger and heavy-duty chairs. Any bariatric doc should have this as a priority, especially if they care about having to replace broken furniture and, more importantly, subject their patients to the shame and discomfort of wedging into a chair that is too small. One of the things about losing weight is that I don't need the big chairs anymore. My Bariatric surgeon's office has mostly huge chairs, but now that I can, I seek out the small ones in the lobby, as a small victory.

I recently tried the Bariatric Pal's Honey Nut Protein Cereal. I don't think I would waste my $$ on it again. It is expensive. $15 for 7 small envelopes.

Has anyone had bariatric surgery at Walter Reed since COVID started? Looking for recent knowledge of the process. I have my 3-hour starter seminar later this month, but would love to learn more before then!

Just tried the Bariatric Pal Hot Cocoa. It is so good! It tastes just like regular hot cocoa. I was very surprised.

So...lets really think about this. If we can eat soup, broth, jello and protien drinks, why in the hell can't we drink? I have yet to hear anyone (on boards, at my bariatric group, or in bariatric literature and studies) offer a satisfying justification.

Not sure for you ... I have the same & a bad pe ..I could not become therapeutic on warfarin so I’m on Eliquis twice a day for life & my bariatric doctors are aware of this . & I also take atenolol .

Shannon, I'm so sorry to hear that you don't have a support team. Are there Bariatric Support Groups through your hospital? I would look there, you could find others that are in the same position you are in and also people that have had the surgery already. First and foremost though you have to remember that you are doing this for you, to make yourself healthier, and it really doesn't matter what everyone else thinks. None of them have offered to pay for it have they? It's your money spend it how you want! Just kidding. But seriously, it is your life and you have to live it for you and if this is what you want in your heart then follow your heart no one can take that from you. Hang in there you will do great!

Hello, everyone! So, after having little to no restriction for quite some time, I finally found a doctor here in South Carolina who was willing to do fills without charging a huge amount of money and making me jump through hoops like Roper St. Francis hospital systems did. After multiple appointments with this new doctor it became clear that I have some sort of leak or disconnection somewhere in my band. The very first appointment he pulled almost no fluid out, then even after adding fluid in the band for two more appointments in a row after that, the same amount of fluid was not pulling back out and I really didn't feel anything restriction-wise. On our 3rd appointment, after once again only being able to pull a tiny amount of fluid out, the saline had a yellow tint which my doc stated indicated that blood was present and getting into the band. This solidified his suspicions that I had a leak. He felt that was the issue at the previous appointments, but he said seeing that tint was a dead giveaway. This doctor and his staff were so helpful and wonderful, but I feel their total pricing for having a revision is a little steep. Perhaps I am simply ignorant, and I expected it to be expensive, but wow. It's not the pricing of the VSG itself that I'm surprised by, it's the price they're adding on top of that for just taking out the band. They want about $25,000 total to revise me from band to sleeve and it also seems like they want me to do two surgeries rather than one. Financing is available, but I worry about taking out that amount. To break it down, they are charging $15,500 for the VSG (which is fine) but then another $9,000 on top of that just for the removal of the band itself. Just to clarify, the only doctors who ever touched my port and/or band was my doctor in Florida who placed my band back in 2013 and then this new doctor in SC who only did those fills I was speaking of prior. I know that the doctor here in SC who did the fills did not cause the leak with a puncture or anything since there was little to nothing in the band in the first place at the first appointment. I also hadn't seen my original doctor in a few years, and in between him and this doctor here in SC, no one else has messed with my band/port. The last time I saw/had an adjustment with my original doctor, I was good to go and had the right amount of fluid and restriction. It's been the last couple years that my weight has started to creep back up and I began losing restriction. I have no clue why the band began to leak or what caused it. As stated before, no other doctor messed with it, and I've not had any sort of accident that could have caused damage to the line, port, etc. I even had an Upper GI in 2020 when I was trying to go through Roper St. Francis hospital's bariatric department for fills and they told me the band was in it's proper place and there was no indication of a slip. They just said the liquid they had me drink during the imaging was going through fine and there seemed to be no restriction present. The point of my rambling is this...since the issue with my band is not anyone's fault and seems to be some sort of malfunction with the band itself, does anyone know ANY loopholes, per say, in order to avoid paying an arm and a leg for the charge of the removal of the band. Again, I'm not haggling over the price of the VSG, I'm attempting to haggle the price of the removal of the band itself. I know business is business, time is money, revisions take more time and resources, and our medical system here in the US is crazy expensive. But, I personally feel like I should not be financially penalized by way of extra cost for the removal of the band itself. The VSG part of the surgery itself I'm happy to pay for and am not trying to negotiate the price of, it's just disheartening that the band is essentially broken and my options feel like, 1) either keep a useless foreign object inside my body that serves no purpose, or 2) pay an exorbitant amount for it to be revised even though its failure is not my doing. To add to my annoyance over the situation, the band has been intermittently causing me discomfort; particularly at the port area. My surgical doc placed the port in the center of my abdomen right above my navel and as of lately, it'll feel sore and has even felt slightly swollen a couple of times. It almost feels as if the port moved or was pulled from the inside. The discomfort is similar to the discomfort you feel when a surgical incision or a cut is still tender...that's the best way I can describe the pain/discomfort. **In addition. I do have insurance, but it covers nothing bariatric. Any constructive advice is welcomed and I appreciate anyone who took the time to read this long-winded post!

I just called and Ontario still has not opened up Bariatric surgery. The waiting game is killing me.

Developed GERD right after surgery. It was mostly controlled by diet and omeprazole until December 2020 when I began having massive issues. My PCP switched me to pantoprazole/famitodine which helped but as I was still continuing to have issues I was referred to the gastroenterologist. Gastroenterologist decided I needed both a colonscopy and endoscopy. Yesterday was the earliest they could get me in for one. Colonscopy came back with mild diverticulitis and they are recommending I increase my fiber and fluid intake to manage it. Endoscopy came back with a lax LES and a 12 MM antral nodule that has to be biopsied. Hoping the nodule comes back as benign and not cancerous. The lax LES seems to be the reason why I am having so many issues controlling GERD. I have a follow up appointment to discuss with the doctor in a few weeks. Google is telling me linx procedure is the best option but some posts here are saying revision to bypass is better for bariatric patients. Putting my concerns about the antral nodule aside, has anyone had any experience with a lax LES and severe reflux after VSG while at a healthy BMI? I don't want to have a revision and lose a ton more weight. I can lose more as I am in the upper range of a healthy BMI range but I am happy with my current size. Was linx reccomended to you or revision? If you had a revision did you lose a bunch more weight or just a little?

So it seems to be losing weight isn't the same after you've had bypass. Of course not right away! I'm a little more than a year post op and haven't lost weight since I don't even know when. I often think the surgery was a failure as far as weight loss goes, it DID reverse the type 2 diabetes I had! THANK GOD. However, before surgery I could do a caloric deficit and lose weight, count or watch carbs and generally lose weight. I have no clue what to do now. Am I eating too much am I eating too little?? WE DONT KNOW. In general in your opinion what is the ideal amount of calories for weight loss being a bariatric patient?

The BariatricPal Store carries a huge selection of Bariatric friendly Protein drinks at https://store.bariatricpal.com/collections/protein-powders. Here are some popular options: BariatricPal Protein ONE: MultiVitamin, Calcium, Iron, Fiber & Meal Replacement from https://store.bariatricpal.com/collections/protein-powders/brand_bariatricpal Syntrax Nectar Protein Powder Sampler Variety Bag - All 17 Flavors! from https://store.bariatricpal.com/collections/protein-powders/products/syntrax-nectar-protein-powder-sampler-variety-bag-all-17-flavors GENEPRO Medical Grade Unflavored 30g Protein Powder - 2nd Generation! from https://store.bariatricpal.com/collections/protein-powders/products/genepro-medical-grade-unflavored-30g-protein-powder-2nd-generation Bariatric Advantage HPMR High Protein Meal Replacement - Available in 8 Flavors! from https://store.bariatricpal.com/collections/protein-powders/products/bariatric-advantage-high-protein-meal-replacement Protein tubs from https://store.bariatricpal.com/collections/protein-powder-tubs Protein Smoothies from https://store.bariatricpal.com/collections/smoothies Hot Protein Drinks & Soups are great alternatives to protein shakes: Hot Protein Drinks: https://store.bariatricpal.com/collections/hot-protein-drinks Hot Protein Soups: https://store.bariatricpal.com/collections/soups-bouillons-broths

I’m sorry you are going through this. I don’t have personal experience with this procedure but I have had complications with the procedures I did have and I know it is hard. You may want to see a bariatric surgeon to see if they can do some kind of revision procedure on you. what you describe sounds similar to a procedure that used to be done that’s called “vertical banded gastroplasty” and I know that many people who had problems with that surgery ended up having revisions. It sounds like this issue should be fixable. Hope you find answers soon.

I finally have my 1st appt for bariatric surgery but it is w/ a nurse practitioner instead of surgeon...anyone else have this? What type of questions should I ask since it is not w/ the surgeon.

The BariatricPal Store carries a huge selection of Bariatric friendly Protein drinks at https://store.bariatricpal.com/collections/protein-powders. Here are some popular options: BariatricPal Protein ONE: MultiVitamin, Calcium, Iron, Fiber & Meal Replacement from https://store.bariatricpal.com/collections/protein-powders/brand_bariatricpal Syntrax Nectar Protein Powder Sampler Variety Bag - All 17 Flavors! from https://store.bariatricpal.com/collections/protein-powders/products/syntrax-nectar-protein-powder-sampler-variety-bag-all-17-flavors GENEPRO Medical Grade Unflavored 30g Protein Powder - 2nd Generation! from https://store.bariatricpal.com/collections/protein-powders/products/genepro-medical-grade-unflavored-30g-protein-powder-2nd-generation Bariatric Advantage HPMR High Protein Meal Replacement - Available in 8 Flavors! from https://store.bariatricpal.com/collections/protein-powders/products/bariatric-advantage-high-protein-meal-replacement Protein tubs from https://store.bariatricpal.com/collections/protein-powder-tubs Protein Smoothies from https://store.bariatricpal.com/collections/smoothies Hot Protein Drinks & Soups are great alternatives to protein shakes: Hot Protein Drinks: https://store.bariatricpal.com/collections/hot-protein-drinks Hot Protein Soups: https://store.bariatricpal.com/collections/soups-bouillons-broths

i was having the same issues ,I now take all my vitamins and iron via vitiamin and iron patches which you can get from the bariatric store and find them great

I don't do much fast food these days, or even before, but what I preferred when I needed to during my early days - loss phase and early maintenance - was a Chipotle order of soft tacos, whatever fillings you like but I biased it toward the basic meat, cheese and veg. Early on just ate the filling out of the tortilla, but later included that, too (I never was big on the low carb game - just give me nutrition.) One taco was enough, and I would save the other two for future meals. Generally when we ate out we went to regular restaurants, more often independents rather than chains, and just ordered the healthiest things that looked good on their menu - nothing really special as ?bariatric food" - and split things up to take home the leftovers. Even today, ten years out (call it 16 for my wife) it is disappointing not to get two or three meals out of a typical restaurant meal.

Thank you both. I have it in my plans to have the skin removal surgery. I think I will wait a year or so past my WLS date. Also can someone tell me how to update my Surgery info on Bariatric Pals?

Your BMI is low (at 33) for bariatric surgery. Most bariatric surgeons have a cut off of 35 with comorbidities. 40, without them. Have you found a surgeon willing to do someone with your health and BMI? Will your insurance cover the surgery with a BMI that low? Many won't. "If I could do 3 weeks of healthy eating then why would I need this surgery??" this line in your post concerns me a lot. Commiting to the surgery and doing the recovery safely...requires a hell of a lot more willpower than simply eating healthy for 3 weeks. It's a months long process of severe diet restriction. Three weeks of "healthy eating" would seem like an indulgent feast to many of the folks in the process right now. I don't mean to scare you off....but you really should research the foods you're allowed to eat and for how long after surgery. Also, the many hoops you have to jump through. The surgery doesn't do the work for you. You can regain every pound and more. It's a tool that helps you get closer to your goal faster. Once you're there....finding a way to permanently change your habits is daily effort. What does your general practioner think of you having weight loss surgery?

I am told Bariatric Advantage. Your Doctor should have a calendar of when to begin taking what.

Yes, I took a road trip a few weeks ago and had to stop for food, and I got a Chick-Fil-A grilled nuggets kids meal (grilled nuggets & fruit cup). One of the best bariatric-friendly options in fast food. Awesome to hear! What is the fruit cup?

Yes, I took a road trip a few weeks ago and had to stop for food, and I got a Chick-Fil-A grilled nuggets kids meal (grilled nuggets & fruit cup). One of the best bariatric-friendly options in fast food.

I haven't tried it, but I know several bariatric "vets" who've used WW to deal with regain, and most of them really like it.

When I had surgery, I said I would never drink again. At two years, I now have a half glass of wine every few weeks. Regarding food costs: it depends. I obviously eat way less than before, but I do purchase specialized high-protein, low-carb products (including from the Bariatric Pal store), and they can be pricey. Also, skim milk is a regular part of my current diet--mostly in coffee!