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Hands down the worst experience of the pre-surgery prep(see my blog). My bariatric center pretty much mandates sleep lab and cpap - in fact its almost like they go looking for any minor blip to equivocate the need for the cpap machine. I now have one and am ashamed to say that as much as I thought it was a bunch of crap, the three nights I've used it, I've awaken much more refreshed and haven't needed a nap during the day or fallen asleep while watching TV at night. Still haven't managed to wear it all night. It has a humdifier and last night I set it too high. In the middle of the night it dripped water on my upper lip and freaked me out - kinda like that scene in Alien!:biggrin:

Hi Debbie. Yes I go to Dr. Woodhead (referred to by my clinic) and hopefully a few of his patients will respond to your post. I like him very much. Dr. W. does not have a clinic but he does his surgery at the Delta hospital. I find him very supportive. Here is a list of questions prepared by a successful bandster. I had my band in Toronto, but the distance is so far away that I cannot take advantage of the support so I pay for my fills. I get my support from Dr. W. and the Support group that meets at the Lions Gate Hospital and from the Slimband website. These are just a few of the questions that come to mind that are important in helping to make a decision in deciding which band surgeon and/or clinic to go with: · Is there a fee for consultation? · Are any of your staff at the clinic banded? · What other staff are available to patients such as dieticians, nutritionists, psychologists? o Is there a cost for their services? · Does the clinic have a website and a messageboard and or chatroom available for Lap Band potential patients to access? · What percentage of your bariatric clinic is devoted to lap band patients? · What is your medical education? · What experience in term of years and number of procedures do you have in lap band surgeries? · What experience do you have in performing revisions? · If you are a revision, what tests will you need to have done ahead of time to be sure you can have a lap band? · Do you have any statistics regarding your lap band practice and number of patients who have had slippages, band erosions or other complications? · What type of warranty comes with your lap band surgery? · What type of bands do they use and how do they determine the type and size? · Is there a pre-op diet you need to follow? o If so is there a cost involved? How much? · If I don't follow the pre op diet perfectly am I still allowed to get the surgery? · What tests and paperwork do I need to have done prior to being accepted for banding? o Is there any charge? How much? o What is the time span? · Is the surgery performed in the clinic or at the hospital? · In case of an emergency what is the procedure that is followed? · How soon after surgery can I go home? · What type of accreditation does your clinic have? · How do your operating rooms compare to those in a hospital if surgery is performed at the clinic? · Can you give me references from other patients I may talk to, especially those who are a revision from past weight loss surgery? · How long am I required to be in town before my surgery? · Is there a hotel that is recommended? o If so, is there a preferred rate at this hotel? o Is there a shuttle available from this hotel to clinic and back and how much does this cost? · Are my family members allowed to remain in the waiting room while I am in surgery or are they asked to leave until I am in the recovery room? · How long after I wake up can I go home? · What special medications will I need to purchase before hand? o Gas-x? liquid Calcium? chewable multi Vitamins? .... · How long would you recommend I take off work after surgery? · If I have a hernia do you fix this? o Is there an extra cost associated? · How long do I have to have a caregiver with me after surgery? · Is there someone I can hire to be my caregiver if I come alone? · Do you use latex? · Is there a deposit I have to pay to hold my surgery? o How much? o Is it refundable if I change my mind? · How must my final payment be made -- money order/visa/cheque? o Does it have to be in before my surgery or do I bring it with me on my surgery day? · If I have further questions may I contact you or your clinic with them? Even more important is follow up care: · What type of aftercare program does their clinic have? · What is covered in the cost of your surgery in regards to aftercare? · Is there an after hour phone number in case of an emergency or concern you encounter outside of normal business hours? o Is he/she available on call to answer or return your call? o Who responds to calls? · Do you have support groups available locally and in my area? · Is there a fee for any aftercare services? · How soon after surgery is your first fill usually? · What hours am I able to come in for fills and days? · How often between fills are you eligible for your next one? · How are the fills performed and are they with or without fluoroscopy? · Do you have to pay for your fills or are they covered in your surgery fee? o If they are not covered what is the fee? · If you live far away from the band clinic, do they have anyone local or closer to your home who is trained by the clinic to do your fills? o If so do you pay a fee to them and if so how much? · In case of complications post op, if you had a slippage or worse case scenario band erosion is any further surgery to remove the band covered or would you have to pay? · In case of a defective port or leak is the surgery to replace it covered in the lap band surgery cost? · In case of a defective lap band is it replaced at no cost to you the patient? · If you needed a new band for any reason such as the above or band leak, etc., is it replaced free of charge to you? o If not what type of cost would you be responsible for? · At the clinic does the surgeon do your follow up fills or fill nurses? o If nurses, what training do they have and can you meet them before committing to this surgery? · What criteria do they base your needing a fill or defill? · How long does it take when calling to book a fill does it take to get an appointment? · How much time is the fill nurse allotted to spend with you answering any questions or concerns also? · Are any of your staff at the clinic banded? · What other staff are available to help patients, i.e., dieticians, nutritionists, psychologists? o Is there a cost for their services? · Does the clinic have a website and a messageboard and or chatroom available for Lap Band patients to access? Pick out the ones may help you to make a decision.

I'm an OR nurse in a large Boston OR that also does bariatric surgery. I have been and OR nurse for 25 years and I have to tell you that I can probably count on two hand the amount of times someone died from general anesthesia. It is extremely rare unless you are a very sick individual. It is a myth perpetuated by TV,the movies and people's fears that "I won't wake up!" I have assisted tens of thousands of surgeries and am happy to be having general anesthesia for a lapband in the future. The biggest risks of surgery are not the anesthesia but the postop course which for a lap-band is very safe compared to gastric bypass which holds the bigger risks. Postop they have to watch for blood clots,pulmonary embolism and infection.

Cripes- whaaaat a mess. Let us take it one question at a time. Research I would definitely suggest you do your research on the sleeve, and sooner rather than later. You can learn about it in obesity help, or go to www.surgicallyslim.com and look up the vertical sleeve operation. I don't know where you are located but the doctors I am using are on the surgically slim website- I am using Dr. Kini. Or put in vertical gastric sleeve on your browser and see where it takes you. One place it may take you is to an Australian forum so if you are in the US be aware of where you end up. Also there is a site called obesity help that is OK, not great, but OK. No way would I suggest you get that band back in- quite a few people go from the band to the sleeve- you can read about some of them on the lapbandtalk site, also on the Australian forum. The only insurance company that will pay for the sleeve in the metro NY region is Oxford and there are not a huge number of surgeon's familiar with the procedure. It is designed to be almost as safe as your initial band surgery and I think (after a lot of rapid research) it is a better choice for most, however it has not been around for that long which is why most insurance companies don't cover it. Seems to me that you have a really good case for your surgeon absorbing the cost of the sleeve since it looks like he made a few booboos on your band. And that you should be able to get either the bypass or the sleeve out of the insurance company as well (although I think they are more likely to go for the bypass unless it is Oxford). Meantime I would get that band out of me pronto, and get well, and tell them they owe you a working bariatric surgery. Please stay in touch and let me know how you are doing.

TravelLady, I am sorry you are experiencing some challenges in finding a surgeon at this point but glad you are refusing to accept just any old kind of treatment. I remember your previous surgeon was less than supportive. www.obesityhelp.com maintains a physician listing of bariatric MDs. You may find this listing is a good place to start. Wishing you the very best! Tammygirl

ok...so I started at Nordstrom yesterday. And they have Aetna PPO insurance. The HR manager is checking to see if they allow bariatric surgery. If they do...I am a shoe in. way over BMI of 40. Way over the 100 pounds over weight. A few comorbidities. No problem. Dh's insurance is United Healthcare. Great right? No. All of their new policies they are sneaking in an exclusionary clause for no bariatric or nutrition coverage. So we are not covered. So we have chosen to get my surgery with Dr. Sanchez in monterrey Mx. But now there is the possiblity that it will be covered. Dr. Sanchez is an amazing doctor. He has done a lot of lap bands. (over 5k) And the hospital is a great american owned hospital in one of the most beauiful cities in Mexico. What do I do? If I go with the insurance I can't even start the process until july 1st. There is a waiting period before the insurance kicks in. Do I go for the insurance covered surgery, wait the extra time? Is there anything I should do until then to help make the process go quickly after the insurance kicks in? Or do I go with the years of exp and the many many lap bands under his belt, and the amazing hospital in the amazing city in mx? To some this may be a no brainer on either side, but I am really stuck trying to figure this out. Thanks in advance.

Hi everyone!!! My name is Krystyne and I started my weight loss journey back in September/October time at 315 pounds. I'm currently 268 pounds as of this morning. I started out on the lap band talk website because my heart was set on going for lap band surgery until I met with the dietician and nurse practitioner at DHMC. I have been overweight since age 12 that's when my PCOS kicked in. PCOS is the number one leading cause of infertility in women. I found out that gastric bypass can help reduce your PCOS symptoms and in some women it gets rid of it all together. So at age 12 I went from 110 pounds to 289 pounds in 1 1/2 years. I never changed my eating habits to gain the weight until at like age 16. I was getting picked on at school and the children would "MOO" at me and push me down the stairs so I've had 3 knee surgeries due to that. My husband and I have one child together and last year I suffered 2 miscarriages and even my OBGYN recommended me for bariatric surgery. He wanted me to go for gastric bypass but didn't know if I was big enough and thursday they confirmed that my BMI still qualifies me for it WOOHOO lol. I go on June 14th for my second appointment with the dietician and the nurse practitioner and then I meet with my surgeon afterwards because I got the bright green light to go from the nurse practitioner. Usually at DHMC you don't get to see your surgeon until the 4th or 5th appointment. They said that on June 14th, that after my appointments that they will be sending a request for my insurance to cover my surgery and that could take up to a month. I'm excited because they said that I should have my surgery hopefully by the beginning of August but I'm hoping that it's sooner My HUGE reason for the surgery besides getting healthy and to be around longer for my family is to add to our family my husband wants 4-5 more (OMG I don't know if I could handle that many lol) but we do want a big family but he's a truck driver that is only home every 1-2 weeks for a few days lol. But that's basically my story. (The pic is of my husband, daughter and I)

I'm not sure if you will get any responses right now about Renew Bariatrics, but if you use the search tool here on BP you can find threads from the past, which might give you some insight about your topic... Best wishes. https://www.bariatricpal.com/search/?q=renew bariatrics

I agree. Even our family Dr overrode our bariatric Dr on our frequency of eating and I agreed with him. There's been a few unrealistic "rules" our bariatric Dr tells his patients that are against common sense even. We no longer go to him, for those and other major reasons. Like I said, I drink less air with a straw than I do just drinking out of a cup. To each his/her own.

@@Alex Brecher Your advocacy for Bariatrics is appreciated. I love your site. I believe the members can get things back on track. Thanks for all that you do, Jenn

I am looking to have the sleeve surgery and my insurance does not cover any bariatric surgery. I am looking for affordable self-pay options in the USA. Any suggestions?

I have been faithfully taking one Bariatric Fusion Multivitamin, B12, Calcium/D3 and Biotin since day one as instructed by doctor in postop orders. Been a little confused about multivitamin. I take fusion chewable once a day according to discharge orders. But bariatric center in preop education said I needed to take 4 each day. Will double check on Monday on postop visit. One thing I don't like about fusion is they do not include Vitamin K. Will ask if I need to get separate Vit K. If I take Fusion 4x a day, I get 1200mg Calcium in addition to the 1200 mg I get from Calcium+D3. I think that is too much Calcium (2400 mg). Until Monday, I am taking just one Fusion a day which gives me 1500 mg Calcium. I already have early osteopenia in hips by bone density scan so Calcium/D3/Vit K are all necessary to rebuild lost bone. Recommded D3 for me is 4000 IU per day so I take additional two D3 2000 IU per day. I really don't like that I get no Vit K in FUSION. The company that makes FUSION told me the don't include Vit K because interacts with a few people on blood thinners and that deficiency of Vit K is "rare". Then why do ALL OTHER Multivitamins on the market (bariatric, OTC and kids) all include Vitamin K? I am not believing I don't need Vit K supplement. But will wait to see doctor before I add Vit K supplement.

@@Ashlegal speaking for "most" bariatric pals of course we care silly head!! do you have a spare ticket? you are buying!!! enjoy the concert kathy congrats

@@Katieisin Good luck post op, and I hope all goes well for you. I did not have a band, just the sleeve in March 2016. Initially I had bad reflux problems, and I swapped from rabeprazole to Nexium 40mg, and this worked wonders for me. Now, 5 1/2 months later, I am slowly weaning myself of Nexium, and so far so good. Nexium is long lasting, so I am now taking it every 2nd day, instead of every day. I have lost 28 kg so far, and even though I am not exercising much lately, I still keep losing. I also see my bariatric psychologist for support, and read up a lot on this forum. I have an auto-immune thyroid disease, and this helped my massive, rapid weight-gain in the past 2 years. At 54, I hope you also had your female hormones checked, as an imbalance there can also help weight-gain. You are early post op, and it is great that you are following your post op plan. For me, the only time I had few stalls or small weight gain was when I deviated from my food plan, and had slider foods such as ice-cream or frozen yoghurt in larger quantities. This aggravated my sugar craving, so I stopped eating those foods and substituted fruit instead. I also weaned myself off Equal, and have been using Stevia instead. Much better as Stevia does not play havoc with blood sugar levels. As far as I know, the sleeve has worked for many of us, providing we stick to the food plan and portion sizes. My appetite has diminished significantly at the moment, even though I can now eat slightly larger portions, but with Protein first and eating good food, I am still losing weight. Next step, after I reach my goal weight-gain, will be maintenance. I will see my dietician then, again. So, give it time and good luck! Say hello to Melbourne from me I used to live in Melbourne and in Sydney before Queensland.

Hello Bariatric Buddies (corny right? lol) I thought I'd come on here and share my experience so far for those who may be thinking about weight loss surgery OR are scheduled to undergo surgery soon. I started my bariatric surgery journey May 4th 2021 after YEARS of wanting to do it but not having the courage to start. At that point i was 298LBS. At my heaviest i was 305LBS. What prompted me to just go for it and conquer my fears was just wanting to be healthy again. I was tired of making excuses and as sad as it sounds i was tired of looking in the mirror every day staring at myself morphing into this person i no longer wanted to be. Fortunately for me, i didn't have any MAJOR health issues, however i did/do suffer from PCOS (Polycystic ovarian syndrome). For anyone who knows the struggles of PCOS you know trying fad diets and exercising isn't really helpful when trying to lose weight when your hormones are so imbalanced. Any who, going forward - i contacted my local bariatric surgery center and set up my initial consult. Since we're still being affected by covid, majority of my appointments were via video. My first consult they went over my eligibility requirements, health history and goals. After speaking with the nurse navigator they then scheduled my next visit with the Surgeon who would then change my life forever. So, two weeks later, i meet my surgeon VIA zoom (and let me say, i love that she was blunt, super honest and made sure my goals and perception of the surgery was realistic), she told me about herself, she asked me a few questions about my life, health history in depth, and she then went over my surgery options and what she felt would be my best choice (Gastric Bypass RNY). We ended the appointment on a good note. At that point i was feeling good, motivated and just proud of myself, like - GOSH, I'M FINALLY DOING THIS! At this point in the process, i have scheduled an appointment to get an EKG, chest X-RAY, cardiology, pulmonary, and a behavioral specialist. Over the course of 4 months i would complete each appointment and the specialists would send over their impressions over to the surgeon. September 3rd. I had my pre op class (with a dietitian). I signed a bunch of papers stating that i would not consume alcohol or use tobacco. I watched a video and then the dietitian stated that starting September 9th - until September 19th i will need to be on a full liquid pre op diet - at that point in the liquid diet you are not allowed to take any vitamin supplements, and or specific medications (they would go over that with you). September 9th came around and i started my three protein shakes a day, with drinking 64OZ of water until September 19th as advised. Let me tell you, that was the single most hardest thing that i have EVER done, but in the end i was so proud of myself. September 20th at 10:00AM i had to drink 10OZ of Magnesium Citrate to bowel cleanse in preparation for surgery the next morning. I spent all day in the bathroom. Around 1:30PM i received a call from the hospital letting me know what time i needed to be at the hospital for surgery the next day (9/21/21) which ended up being 7AM. I had so much trouble falling asleep that night as i was so excited yet SO nervous! Surgery day rolls around and i am up getting ready. We (my boyfriend and i) then make our way to the hospital, check in, and head to my pre op room to be prepped. They took my temperature, and my weight. When i started, i was 298 - the day of surgery i was 282LBS! At 9:40AM i went in for surgery and was in the OR for about 4HOURS. I spent about an hour and a half in recovery where they gave me 1OZ water every half hour, that would continue as i was transported to my room that i would stay for the next 24HOURS. My hospital stay wasn't bad, and my nurses/doctors were super attentive, supportive and courteous! They came in almost every hour to check my temperature, blood pressure, and incisions. I went home 9/22/21 at 9:40AM. 1st day home was challenging. I was in so much pain and discomfort. That quickly subsided as the days passed. But in those days, i attempted to drink water and protein and move around as much as possible because walking truly helps with the pain. Here i am 9 days post op and i am not at 100% yet but i am improving i still feel slight pain only where i have internal sutures, and i am gassy (like burping and stomach feeling bloated) - for that i use GAS-X - it's amazing! I currently weigh 273LBS which makes a total of 25LBS lost and 9LBS lost since surgery. 6 Day's post op i was back at work (I KNOW I KNOW I AM CRAZY - BUT I WORK IN AN OFFICE AT MY DESK MAJORITY OF THE DAY SO I AM OKAY).. Hopefully this helps! & if anyone has any questions, please feel free to ask :)

Hi all. I'm brand new here and brand new to the whole surgery thing too. I have a BMI of about 60 and also have high blood pressure. I haven't yet spoken to my primary about weight loss surgery but I know she'll agree. I am just having a hard time finding out if it's even worth it. There is zero chance I can self pay and I have medicaid in Colorado. Does anyone here know for sure if Colorado Medicaid covers bariatric surgery? If so, any chance someone knows the procedure they require? Thanks.

My all in one Bariatric Choice chewable wafer supplement has Iron in it~ and it is like sucking on a candy- yum But just in case your tiredness isn't from low iron, the nurse at my clinic always says that if we start to feel that way to start charting: 1)how much Protein we are getting in 2)how many fluids 3)how often we are taking our Vitamins and are e taking enough? She said that often we will find that we aren't doing what we are supposed to be doing and that's why we get really low energy. Also~ my sister had extremely low Bs. It affected her very badly with low energy. She ended up getting a B shot every week. She said she felt so much better right after getting it too. If it continues def go to the dr and see what's up! I hope it passes quickly, I hate that feeling

That would be nice. I called Friday to see what I needed to do from this point, and it already had a bariatric nurse working on it. Not sure if that is good or not. However she was already gone for the weekend. With it being a holiday week just not sure on turn around time.

Thank you. I consider myself a slow loser, but I guess I am the tortise and not the hare! I don't care, I still have a ways to go...just six months out, this isn't a race and I am pleased with my skin, sometimes if you lose too fast, you have major loose skin issues...I do have some, but I am pleased that in some places, it is getting better and not worse, like my thighs. I have lost about 60% of my excess weight, so I am in line with what my bariatric doctor said is considered a good success rate for the 6 month mark. I am on a very restrictive low carb diet right now and it is making me a little cranky today though!! Not cheating though...just craving

Yes, it sounds like reflux; do they have you on any anti acid medication for it (omeprazole, pantoprazole, etc)? Those are commonly prescribed for the first few months after any bariatric surgery (and many other surgeries, for that matter.)

@Christinamo7@VSGAnn2014 @@summerset SAYING IT LIKE IT IS. I wish people would put on the adult panties and stop the us against them mentality. Be accountable if you are dividing this community! Decide for yourself what a vet is. Don't let anyone define you...You get to define yourself. I think i said vet = beginning to goal. I admit that was pretty narrow..So All of us Newbies, Vets, Revisions, People Reconnecting and anyone else in between. Are valued in sharing your experiences on this site. All of us share the experience as a bariatric patient. All of us share that we were once so unhealthy that we made the decision to change.

Hi. I couldn’t imagine any bariatric surgeon not requiring their patient to get protein in post op. It is very important for healing. The cardinal rule for bariatric patients post op and for life is “protein first” i had sleeve in 2018 and revision to bypass last Friday. Both surgeons required 60grams of protein post op. Good luck with your research and hope that helped.

I had mine done in Mexicali, MX at Mexicali Bariatric Center with Dr. Antonio Esquerra. www.mexicalibariatric.com Wonderful doctor, wonderful staff, nice private room.....would do it again in a heartbeat!!

Hello Minnah: You legally do not need to tell anyone at work the details of your medical issues. You are protected under HIPPA and you do have the right to take FMLA. Of course your co-workers are going to know your gone, but they don't legally get to know why. Your HR department should be aware of that. (There are some requirements to qualify for FMLA, talk to your HR department or do a Google search). I did not tell my co-workers. I went on vacation for two weeks and had the surgery. I had my bariatric doctor complete my FMLA form, so I could take time off work to go to my monthly doctor appointments. I requested that my doctor not use her stationary or any identifying stamps that stated bariatric on it. It is my right to protect my medical information. My weight loss has been slow and gradual, which is why I chose this procedure. People are now commenting on how great I look. No one has asked what am I doing to lose the weight. I thank them for the comments and tell them the truth. I work my butt off. I am now jogging on my treadmill for 60 minutes on an incline at least five times a week. I count calories, get plenty of rest, cut back on my portions and stopped the snacking. I have had many surgeries and I have never felt compelled to discuss those procedures with my employer and co-workers. Personally, I believe keeping my personal matters and job matters separate. When I go to work, I don't talk about my personal life and when I go home I don't talk about my work life. Anyway, just my thoughts on the matter. Best of luck to you!

I'm 2 weeks post op, and I was using Premier Protein also and couldn't stand them. I've tried a few different ones...Premier Protein, Isopure, Bariatric Advantage. I just started using unjury and it's amazing. It's not chalky or gritty. No bad aftertaste either. The chocolate splendor with skim milk tastes just like chocolate milk and it gives you 30 grams of protein in 8 ounces. Good price on it also. I believe it's 22.95 for a container and you get 17 servings per container. Good luck! Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App