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Omg I feel the exact same way! And I am afraid I will have to go to the hospital soon too because of dehydration. I literally decided not to eat or drink anything just bc of how it makes my stomach feel terrible. Even though I know I need to I just don't want to feel that feeling in my stomach. I feel weak constantly and I'm out of breath doing the simplest things that I never had trouble with before. And you're right they don't explain this part. I definitely feel like if I would have known exactly what it was like I would have never done it. But it does seem like in the long run everyone thinks is worth it.. WHEN WILL THAT FEELING COME FOR ME!!? And I feel the same about water that was literally all I drank 😩 can't even wake up and start my day of with it like I used to and make me feel refreshed.. I hate this soooo much 🥺🥺🥺

The first 4 days I asked myself why I did it bc no one told me the pain would be so bad , maybe I just did not do enough research, then I hated the liquid diet the worse but not I’m 5 weeks out and 18 pounds down (which I think is minimal) but I’m glad I did give it time your regrets will disappear

•My knees and ankles hurting every time I work out •being on yo-yo diets •Being the biggest person at any family event or social gathering •Not being able to take a bubble bath bc I couldn’t fit in the tub comfortably •not wanting to take pictures •having to get drunk to feel comfortable in my own skin •not dancing or acting goofy with my friends bc I felt like nobody should have to see that •my back hurting from standing too long •the crying sessions I would have in the dressing room while trying on clothes

The Fairlife milk can replace water and juice and give you 13g of protein. My dr recommended I use Fairlife bc water doesn’t go down well for me. I get the Fairlife skim milk and it’s been a life saver since day 1. I’ll be 6 months post op Aug. 17. I’ve lost 90 lbs. I weigh my food and plan my meals and focus on protein. I don’t deny myself a scoop of ice cream when I want it which has been twice a month. I make sure it’s 2oz. and only if I’ve reached my protein goal for the day. I look at everyone’s systems to find tips. I wanted to share mine in case it may help. I don’t want to leave out that I exercise 3 days a week for 60 mins each but nothing extreme. Leslie sansone’s Walk Away the Pounds and an ab workout. You are already doing everything right! You are monitoring yourself and making changes where you see fit! That’s LIFELONG changes. How awesome is that!

I was sleeved 7/14 and I did the same thing, worried about my calories bc I wondered how was I surviving lol but honestly you don’t need any. Just focus on your protein shakes and water and take your vitamins:.. you will be great!!!! Soon you’ll be able to eat soup I did Bariatric soup low calorie and high protein... best of luck

I have only told a few people. I didn’t plan on telling anyone at work but we have lots of work lunches and I had a rougher recovery than I thought I would. Plus I had only started my job a month before I had surgery. I thought it looked bad with me needing additional time off. I will say those I did tell at work have been extremely supportive and nice. What surprised me was the one friend I did tell had lots of unsupportive questions like aren’t you gonna have lots of excess skin, do you think you’ll keep it off bc I know someone who gained all their weight back, etc.... So I think you should tell who you want, as little or as much as you want!

I’m going from a sleeve to bypass in a couple of months. Almost no iron , lowBs, low calcium. Taking high doses of calcium and Bs, but will be having iron infusions in 2 weeks. Pills and shots aren’t enough. Ask you doctor about infusion, maybe you’ll only need a couple, then back to shots or pills. Try to take care of yourself, because you can’t take care of others if you’re out of commission! God bless you!

Hi I'm having my surgery on 19th too and wish you all the best with your surgery. I'm quite calm at the moment and a bit fed up with the pre-op diet but it's not for long hey? I am in London England and having my surgery so that I can continue with the things I love. I play tennis a lot - think I'm addicted - and a bit of golf and as I've got heavier its getting more and more difficult. I have been a yoyo dieter all my life and have had enough of it. I will be 60 in September. I weigh about 250lbs at the moment and am having a gastric bypass (I have reflux so sleeve was ruled out). I decided to go ahead with the surgery in June so I haven't been waiting too long. All the posts help and I look forward to hearing from those who have had their surgery in the last couple of days.

Happy Anniversary to the July 7th surgery pals! We did it and survived the craziest of times:) I for one have had ups, downs and some emotional trials and now know it is worth it. 34lbs down! Hitting the ones again is so close ... my next goal:) Got the good ahead to include more seafood and actually laughed about how happy that made me. What a difference one decision and learning to push myself has made. Congratulations to everyone and keep pushing especially for those with the bathroom issues bc I for one know how that is really painful.

I read a few of these when I was considering surgery and I promised myself that I would do the same thing once I was post-op so that maybe I could help anyone who may need to know the details (like me), or anyone sitting on the fence at the time (like me), or just looking for signs that this was the right thing to do (me again). I discussed the sleeve surgery with my doctor over 2 years ago after countless weight losses and re-gains. That's basically been the story of my life forever. I was a chubby kid, I've never been thin. I probably starting yo-yo dieting when I was 15 and I had my 1st boyfriend. I've done all the diets. Starvation, jenny craig, weight watchers, nutri-system, herbalife, keto, low carb, optivia, ideal protein, bars and shakes, etc... the list could go on and on. I'd lose the weight (sometimes), I even got down to a size 6 when I was about 38. But eventually, overeating called my name and I'd be back to where I started plus 10. Relatable huh? It's not even that I eat poorly, to be honest. Yes I love bad and delicious food, fast food, desserts, etc... but 80% of the time, I am eating a home-cooked meal with veggies and protein (and likely a starch), I just eat too much. My appetite is monstrous. I'm 4'11 and I can eat the same size plate as my husband who works out every day. I come from the 'clean plate club' and always finish my meal. In discussing the sleeve with my doctor he agreed it was going to be the solution I was looking for. Then I told him I wanted to go to Mexico and he agreed that travel tourism can be wonderful (he sends patients to Brazil for plastics) and that he wanted to be part of the decision making process for the doctor. So I took my list of 25 candidates that Facebook told me were awesome, and I narrowed them down to 3 choices: Dr Alvarez, Dr Elias Ortiz and Dr Illan. I presented them each to my primary care physician in the states with their resumes and credentials, we got on a zoom call to discuss the 3 of them and he told me that Dr Illan was his 1st choice, hands down. He chose Dr Illan because he is a board certified master surgeon, his anesthesiologist is also board certified specifically for bariatric surgery, his hospital is private and has an ICU, his hospital has been given awards of excellence, and he only performs 3 surgeries per day. So I called, paid my $500 deposit to get my date, and promptly pooped my pants from nerves. The 10-day pre-op came quickly and was not that bad. I was too excited to be annoyed by it. I got headaches and was hungry, but all in all it wasn't terrible. Before I knew it, my flight from Florida to San Diego was the next morning - I couldn't believe it! My bestie and I arrived in San Diego the day before my surgery (arrived Friday, surgery was Saturday) and we were met at the airport by Carlos; along with one of my surgery sisters that I had already met on Facebook. Get you a surgery sister (or brother) - find out who's having surgery the same day as you and you will become friends! We hung out a lot post-op and I've made friends for life. The drive to the border was quick and easy, before I knew it we were at the hospital dropping off the other person b/c her surgery was bright and early the next day. Carlos whisked us off to Hotel Real Inn, only about 10-15 minutes from the hospital. Mexico treats covid more seriously than we do in the US; so feet wiping, temp taking and hand sanitizing is a requirement literally every single place you go. Carlos pointed out that to the right of our hotel was a open-air shopping plaza and to the left was a grocery store. So after we got settled in, we went to explore and had such a great afternoon in Tijuana! I bought a size small goal outfit for $7 at one of the little boutiques and little knick nacks to bring home to my family. I love that my friend and I had that time to settle in and do some safe exploring. I didn't feel unsafe even for a second, its a very populated area with lots of folks shopping and walking around. That night I ordered my bariatric meal (best popsicle ever!) and my friend ordered authentic mexican street tacos from Uber for like $7. The next morning, we were picked up at 9am to head over to the hospital and get ready for surgery <insert panic>. When you get there, more sanitizing and temp checking and then you head off to get your blood drawn after filling out paperwork. Next comes, chest x-ray, EKG and just a general check up from a doctor to clear you for surgery. So I'll tell you that this part is likely the part that doesn't leave me with the best feeling. The doctor that looked at my EKG seemed to glance at it for about 2 seconds. The cardiologist is probably an awesome cardiologist, but lacked that bedside manner that we see in doctors in the states too. He cleared me for surgery and I said "so my heart looks good?" and he replied "yeah its ok" and then left the room. My bestie reminded me that that not all doctors gush all over you and that he was probably just one of those. Suddenly, Dr Illan and the anesthesiologist were in my room and it was almost go time. Dr. Illan explained the procedure and had a lovely chat with us, I didn't feel rushed or like I was asking too many questions. He explained the OR and that the surgical team in the OR were all also bariatric surgeons (not general surgeons). He told me that I was important and my safety was his #1 priority. He was so wonderful. Them standing there suddenly made me very nervous and I started to cry because I was scared. Dr Illan came to the side of my bed and rested his hand on my leg to comfort me and promised it was going to be ok, told me not to cry. It seemed to upset him to see me upset! In the meantime the anesthesiologist called for some anti-anxiety meds in my IV and I was calm again. Before I knew it, I was in the OR being asked to scoot onto the table and the nurse was signaling to me that it was time to go to sleep. I think some of the nurses in the OR don't speak English, but I speak Spanish so I told her I was ready and before I knew it - I was awake and in recovery. Coming out of being under is funny, as I'm sure many of you know. You're there, but you can't quite open your eyes. I was listening for alarm beeps of monitors or conversations on Spanish that something was wrong, but I was ok. I also had no gas pain. Everyone warns you about that gas pain and I had zero. I was in the recovery room for maybe an hour? My BP was a little high so they gave me something sublingually to lower it, but I don't remember much else. Wheeled back to my room, I spent the rest of the day hearing movies played in the background by my friend and dozing in and out of sleep. I don't actually think I slept much though. I was so groggy I could hardly stand. The nurses came to check on me often, they were giving me lots of drugs in the IV (antibiotics, anti-inflammatories, etc) and a chewable gas pill. Here's something no one told me - you do not get to drink anything until the day AFTER your surgery and you've had your leak test. All you can have is an ice cube to put in your mouth and you have to spit it back out. That's it. I had a sore throat from being intubated and I badly wanted a drink of water - but I didn't get one until the next morning. I really only got up to pee once and felt woozy. I didn't do all the walking they said you're supposed to, I definitely physically couldn't have! I was groggy to the extreme. Getting up to pee was hard enough. I didn't have any gas pain though, thank god for small miracles. My hospital stay was uneventful medically. I had low pulse ox, so had some oxygen for awhile (over 24 hours) and my BP went up a little sometimes but was controlled by the meds they gave me. The 2nd day I had my leak test in the AM and was cleared to have some fluid and had the best tasting water of my life! I sipped slowly and that 1st liquid to hit my new belly felt weird. Our instinct is to chug and you definitely can't do that. I did have some internal soreness and they gave me toradol for that and I felt fine afterwards. Sunday morning I was out in the loser's bench area with my surgery sisters hanging out. That day, we had a valet named Julio. He was AMAZING. It was my bestie's birthday and he helped me order a delicious cake to be delivered from Uber and even went to find a sign for it. We gathered our new friends and Julio gathered some staff and we all surprised her by singing happy birthday and another yummy mexican meal. It was awesome! We hung out with my surgery sisters (we met a 3rd) and their companions in the hallway and all got to know each other, it was great. Monday morning came quickly and then we met Bill and Stacy. Dr Illan came back to my room to check on me and we had another lovely chat. He told me that my stomach was big! lol I knew it was. He got a picture of it for me, which of course blew my mind. He had us take a picture together and he wished me all the luck and told me he couldn't wait to hear about my success story. We left the hospital, hit up a pharmacy, and then Miguel drove us back to the Hotel Real Inn around 10am and then we had a whole other day in Tijuana! I felt perfect so we ventured out again, hit a few shops, and went to the grocery store to bring home Mexican goodies for my family. (I had to go and buy a duffel bag for all the fun stuff I got). I ordered my bariatric meal again and took a nice shower and went to bed, ready to travel back to Florida on Tuesday. Julian picked us up at 7:45 for our 12:15pm flight (you never know what can delay you at the border) and we had an awesome drive with him. Some roads were blocked, so we were delayed but still had gobs of time. Julian lived in NYC for a long time, so he's pretty American - we loved him. We laughed and joked around the entire ride and he told us about life living in Mexico. We got on a jet plane and we came home! I've been home 3 days now and I continue to feel awesome. I'm sore and my belly is bruised (where they took my huge stomach out), but I work from home - so rest is all it I need. I haven't been nauseous once or vomited. Day 5 post op and I'm down 13.6 lbs already - since pre-op. So this sounds like a dream huh? Because it was. It was like going on vacation where I also happened to have an organ removed lol. I will tell you that I would give one piece of feedback for the ultimate experience, the only thing I thought was lacking or could've been done differently. I wish I could've met Dr Illan before I got to Mexico. It's pretty standard to have a conversation with a doctor prior to surgery and you don't get that until you're there. I wish he had emailed me personally, or had a phone call or a video chat. He could've even made me a personal 1-minute video and emailed it to me - just so I knew that he knew I existed and was going to be a patient. That would've calmed me even before I got there. I realize that a lot of people consider surgery and probably don't go through with it, so it could be a waste of time - but that's the cost of doing business. I am a business owner and have consultations with people that never hire me either. It's built into my business model and daily schedule. Not meeting Dr Illan ahead of time obviously didn't stop me from choosing him, but it almost did. The other doctors I considered contacted me directly (one with a personal video and one with a whatsapp video call). If you are thinking about doing this surgery, let my testimony help you decide that it is going to be ok. That chances are, it will go amazingly, There is this new life waiting for us that maybe we don't believe is real or we don't believe we deserve. But it is real and we do deserve it! Give yourself the gift of this weightloss to take your life back. I'm so glad I did and I can't wait to see this weight melt off me and stay off me. Having my surgery with Dr Illan was the best medical experience of my life. I felt cared for, safe, attended to, and healthy the whole time I was there. The hospital is like a resort, very modern and very clean. The nurses and valets were insanely attentive. Now go leave your stomach in Mexico!

Thank you. @ms.sss I started to write a response and I lost words ... maybe when I get up the guts I’ll post the picture from my birthday right before my gastric bypass surgery. The only picture I have, a very unflattering one from the zoo. I was miserable that day, not knowing if my surgery was going to happen or if I would ever get my weight under control. And take an after picture ... I just don’t like seeing my face ... I have pictures of my incisions if anyone is curious and what I look like in Faja. It feels strange to share these things even though I technically already have through the Hospital BC page. with body dismorphia I don’t know if my self image will change. I guess with time I will see ... it’s gotten hard to hide the chronic pain and fatigue from my face and day to day and it tends to reflect how I feel around other people. But I guess because I’m on the Autism spectrum I don’t know my own facial expressions ... or how to interact with people. I find trying to understand people exhausting. Of course with Covid I haven’t been around anyone ... my mom keeps asking when can I go swimming. I don’t even know. well that’s why I never finished writing the response 🤣 do I make any sense? I don’t think I know a normal body. So I’m critical. And can’t exercise to firm things up more I hate that. I’m critical of my knees and excess skin on my calves. And my butt isn’t as perfect as it looks in the Post op pics. But probably is just natural laxity that returns. Though I could use some volume there. I didn’t want to look before the excess skin was so horrible it was like well ... flaps. My skin is extremely thin as well like someone twice my age. i guess I’ll ease my way into this and how the few people I do know will react. It’s more how they expect me to feel about it that’s hard ... I think that’s partly why I’m afraid to buy a swimsuit. The attention, I honestly don’t deal well with it.

OYYY. I felt this post deep in my soul! I'm almost a month out from surgery and I felt ALL of this my first week. 5 days out isn't a lot. I know that you want to move and feel better, but you have to remember that your body is healing. Maybe it doesn't look horrible on the outside, but inside, your body is adjusting to all of this. I couldn't tolerate jello at all.. and i had to learn to take small sips of my protein shakes (which i cannot stomach bc i was so over them) and am slowly getting better and gauging how much my stomach can handle. I cried and had a panic attack my first few nights home and even in the hospital because of the pain and my buyer's remorse.. esp with being on liquids for 2 weeks after surgery.. but you WILL get better and your body will start to show some progress. be gentle with yourself.

It’s good to hear I’m not alone! I’m barely consuming 500 calories a day and that’s bc the two protein shakes I take: I read so many other people losing so much so fast I’m stuck at the same weight for an entire week... my dr found it odd too but told me to let’s see what happens at my next appointment in two weeks I was told no exercise for 6 weeks not that I’m looking forward to it lol but I’m walking a lot so I’m surprised my results aren’t more but maybe this is how it happens I’m trying to be positive

Hi! I realize that I don’t have all the details here, but want to share some thoughts as a Fed too. If you change insurance this open season, your new plan won’t start until January. Also, I’m thinking you’ll have to start over with the all the pre-auth stuff because you’ll have a new company with new rules. FEP Blue is BC/BS and I was told they require 6 months of dieting prior to surgery. UHC doesn’t. At least not for me. I suggest checking it out beforehand. Plan coverage differs within the fed gov (I’m VA). If this isn’t an issue for you then, great! Good luck and stay healthy!

Hey, new here and I’m just wondering if any Canadians are on this form? Specifically BC people. I’m just wondering if anyone has had MSP pay for weight loss surgery and how long it took? And I am also wondering if anyone has gone out of country for it?

Wow! U sound like an over achiever. Lol At least you'll have a nice nap pretty soon. I wish u much luck and success. I had mine 7/15. No problems and went home next day. It is hard but worth it. Today was very hard bc I'm weak, tired, depressed, and rebelling against protien shakes. But it's one day and I will continue to fight no matter how many days might go bad. I've lost 30 pounds since liquid diet. Can't be more glad than that! You are gonna do great. This is it! Let us know how it goes!

Hello All, Im 5 days Post Op Now And Im Still Really Sore Can Barely Move, Bruising Is Outta This World. I Feel Like Im Not Drinking Enough Water. I Just Took My First BM This Morning So Maybe Itll Get Better. The Things I Get Excited About Already On This Journey Is Pretty Crazy Ppl Look At Me Like Why You So Excited Bc U Had A BM Bc You Dont Understand Til You Gone Thru It. Sent from my SM-N975U using BariatricPal mobile app

It’s odd bc I can be laying down and get dizzy really hard too it sucks

My Dr recommended that I take the bariatric multi vitamin but it is hard to chew and swallow bc of the taste. What other kind do yaw take? Sent from my Nokia 3.1 Plus using BariatricPal mobile app

Hospital BC Facebook group has my before and after pictures up. You can have to join to view. I’m not sure if they share pictures here on the forum. https://www.facebook.com/groups/HBCPlastics/

The hotels are very near both a Walmart and Target. Easy, quick Uber trip if you need anything. I agree, way too hot for walking! The companion care is great! I had to hire one too bc I went at Christmas time and no one could come. My gal was so sweet and made sure I walked. Plus, I liked that she worked for Blossom and was experienced in taking care of post op bariatric patients. Good luck!

I am traveling to Vegas next week, I have to do the seven day stay bc my surgery is scheduled for 7/28, a Tuesday, I am flying across country as well. I have been so nervous about the journey but can update you with my experience after if you’d like. So far they’ve been great. The pre op “meal plan” hasn’t been bad- I just remember every time I feel hungry or irritable it’s for me and for my kids!

I need a little help from others that have been approved with CIGNA. THIS Is the most up to date policy (see below). They actually update their policy on the 15th of July so it was revised and updated today. No changes were really made. Anyways, I do meet the requirements but my question is regarding Cigna coverage. Most plans require a monitored 3, 6 or 12 month diet/nutrition/weight loss management through PCP or somewhere similar. Cigna's policy says NOTHING about this, only that "a statement from a physician other than the surgeon, that the individual has failed previous attempts to achieve and maintain weight loss by medical management" - it gives no other requirements or indicators. I called Cigna and two different reps confirmed that it is not required. Although when I went to my Drs appointment they told me they thought it was six months worth of supervised diet! I think they are confused bc of the “within the last six months” part. SIGH! They said they will look into it more So, for those of you that have been approved in the past few months, do I have to have a letter from my primary that recommends bariatric surgery? Would this be the same letter or separate from the on where they state I have made several attempts and failed? And what did you submit/have your PCP write to say that you had failed previous attempts? Thanks in advance for your help! Sorry I just know Insurance’s are so picky! below is link to coverage https://static.cigna.com/assets/chcp/pdf/coveragePolicies/medical/mm_0051_coveragepositioncriteria_bariatric_surgery.pdf

Updated news: Hello, I had followed up many law firm related lawsuit class action for medical default and personal injuries. Unfortunately Jacquelin Palef from Lerners Lawyer firm unable to take on this matter due to a conflict. Gold Batt Partners firm mentioned about to aware that in general a person in Ontario has to start a lawsuit within two years of the event harming them or the knowledge they were harmed. If you do not start your case within two years, the defendant may say your case it too late and is “statute barred. I had couple lawyer was interested then once they took up the board it was not good case i guess.. The lawyer asked to keep eyes on BC firm because at the moment the court isn't currently approved the case yet.

I am still in the beginning stages of the process so i have only told my husband, sister, best friend and asked advice of 2 friends who have done this already, one of whom wants to be my “sponsor.” 😂 My husband is very supportive, my sister does NOT want me to do this, but she is borderline anorexic so she has her own struggles. My best friend is trying to be supportive but doesn’t really know what to say. She doesn’t want me to do it but understands why I want to and is trying. I am bursting to tell other people bc I am so excited at the prospect but I’m not going to tell anyone else until I have a date. Then I will inform the director of my massage program (in a student) and my work. Both of my parents died so I don’t need to deal with that. My dad was a diabetic and died of pneumonia, my mom was morbidly obese and died from a heart attack. I see myself going down those same paths so I am determined to do this. My main problem with telling people is that I have been a huge advocate for fat acceptance and body positivity. I feel like I will be judged as a hypocrite. 😢 But I am doing this for my health. It’s not the right choice for everyone and I will always advocate for fat acceptance, but I feel there will still be judgements made. You can’t please everyone.