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I have something new to whine about, Sharon's posting reminded me, okay? Am I the only woman of my age or on this forum to NOT have had a hysterectomy? My previous to current PCP every time he did a pelvic and/or Pap test made disparaging remarks about my cystocele and rectocele. Kept saying,"You ought to have that fixed" And we all can figure what he meant, he wanted me spayed in the process. Finally after hearing this repeatedly and thinking since was a bono fide doctor, I drug myself off to the friendly neighbour gynecologist. Mine had retired,so I. had to see his replacement, Dr Prior. I'm going to speak his name because I'm sure he doesn't know of Bariatric Pal, let alone frwuent here. So here I am trussed up on his examing table like. a virgin ready for the sacrifice. So I told him what I was there for, to offer myself for a hysterectomy, if necessary. Durn fool,laughed at me while he was examining me, said if PCP thought my innards were bad he should see some of the things he'd seen. I offered myself for an uterine sacrifice and he DId not Want it. Some days you just can't win, made snide remark that unless I decided to service an entire army,camp I wouldn't get enough mileage to justify it. Fast forward a few yeas and it's the day I met Bariatric Surgeon #1. .August,2015. I am in his office, still,fully clothed. He tells me to lie back on his table, pushes my slacks down enough that entire abdomen is exposed and starts palpating my abdomen. Has some sort of junior doctor trailing along with him, perhaps a resident? Anyway he's prodding my belly with,his fingertips like a wayward bowl of bread dough, looks up and says Dear and what year did you have your hysterectomy? I said"I've never had a hysterectomy!" He says to junior doctor "She's gynecologically,intact, can you believe it?" Junior doctor,put half-smile on his face out of embarrassment. El Surgeio keeps muttering,to himself over and,over that phrase.Finally tells me he's through and pushes my slacks back up. Now I admit this still shocksme, I never knew it was an entrance exam , do you not qualify,do,you have an uterus? I admit at my age. I'm not using it for,much. The gynecologist didn't want it, now the general surgeon is lusting after it? Don't make sense to me! Then I had been having some urinary problems so went to urologist here in my town. First question they asked,me when I get in that doctor's examining room " Have you had a hysterectomy?" Now listen to,me folks, I offered my female parts to the proper specialist, he yawned in my face, said the equivalent of Thanks but No Thanks. Now all the sudden you're interested too. So I go through the ecplaination, they must not have written anything down because every time I visit they ask the same thing. About ready to tell them to give me a chair with half the seat missing, a weedwhacker,with string, plug it in, I will do myself and no body,will have to ask again. I'm feeling,inadequate still having it!😪

Hi everyone! My surgery is next week and I am about done with all my pre-op shopping. I have purchased: 3 Different brands of Protein Powder: Delicious Dream French Vanilla (24g), Aria Protein in Chocolate, Vanilla (both 20g) and Vanilla Cupcake (10g Lower protein for a not so dense shake), and Isopure (25g) in 4 flavors, including unlfavored. Premier Protein RTD (30g) in chocolate, caramel, vanilla, bananas & cream and strawberry. Protein Waters: Protein20 (20g), Premier Protein Clear (15g), and Trimino (7g) 2x Blender Bottles Multiple small plates (This was strongly recommended by multiple wls vets!) Multiple small bowls Milk of Magnesia Colace Bariatric Fusion Vitamins Calcium Chews Benefiber Cheap slippers for in hospital stay (those socks suck) Toilet seat riser (recommended by a soon-to-be sleeved friend on here) Squatty Potty (I hear it works, so I figured why not!) I didn't have to buy any shake/food equipment since I already had a food scale and the Ninja Inteli-sense system that has a blender/food processor/ spiralizer/ and some other random things (I have yet to use so not sure what they do haha) And because I am neurotic, I've tested out dozens of recipes over the last few months and built up a little repitoire of bariatric-friendly recipes for me to try post-surgery for each different stage. I'll be making some homemade bone broth this week (Dad's a butcher so this comes out really really good!) as well as other quick meals for the first few days post surgery where I probably won't want to cook. Now that I am reading over this I probably over prepared, but that's type of person I am.

My journey began by yo-yo dieting. If there was a diet, I tried it, Weight-Watchers numerous times, Jenny Craig Twice, Nutri-system Twice, Low-Carb, Keto and at least I kid you not 30 other diet attempts! Oh, I forgot the best one! HMR, weight-loss shakes under medical care, I lost 200 pounds or more on that one! It was great and I kept my weight off for SIX years but old poor eating habits crept back in. Which brought me to 2012 and Dr. Steiner at St. Joe East in Lexington, Ky performed a Bariatric Sleeve. I did everything they told me, Everything! A remember waking up from surgery and it hurting like hell! Of course, they cut half my stomach OUT and threw it away. What did I think it was going to feel like? LOL. Anyway, I remember the great pain and they gave me something obviously that helped, morphine or something. So the next day, Dr. Steiner came in and said are you ready to go home? I was like NO, I am in so much pain, he told me to walk as much as I could around the floor. So, I made myself get out of bed and rolled the pole holding my IV fluid bag around the floor of the hospital wing I was in. I did that ALL day long and of course the amazing Dr. Steiner was right by the next morning I WAS ready to go home! I love Dr. Joshua Steiner, he is a brilliant doctor, I trust him as a surgeon implicitly! Unfortunately, St. Joe East was either overrun with patients or short staffed and I was NOT well tended too! I was in pain a lot as they were always late giving me pain medicine as I had switched from morphine to pills. So, they send me home with a bottle of Percocet which I only needed for I'd say a day or two and the rest I flushed! From the day I got home I continued what Dr. Steiner said to help heal myself faster, I got on my treadmill and walked and walked and walked and I healed so fast! I followed the liquid high protein diet, unjury, etc. by the book I did what he and his staff said to do! I am a great patient in that way, I do what I am told! I think walking so much, every single day really helped as far as loose skin too. Since I was off work for two weeks, when I got up at 4:45 in the morning every day, I started by putting on my shoes and hopping on the treadmill! Within two weeks I was up to an hour a day on the treadmill! I went back to work after two weeks and I was so tired, A four hundred and ten-pound body is tired when it can only consume so many calories as my stomach was so swollen and smaller and couldn't hold much food/liquid at all. But, I made it. So, I continued to follow exactly what Dr. Steiner and the staff said to do and the weight came off! I went to all my check-ups, lab works etc. I got to the weight they said I would and then the weight-loss stopped at 240 pounds! Boom! I maintained that for probably two years, continuing to follow the recommended LOW CARB diet. But then, I started slowly gaining weight! Scary! Check your diet? Are you eating differently? no, I'm not! Are you eating MORE? YES, I am! Hmmmm. But, my stomach is smaller! Right? Have you stretched it? I didn't know you could do that until AFTER surgery! Anyway, I was gaining weight and it was packing back on. While I lose FAST, I gain it FASTER! Oh Joy! So, I ballooned back up to 340 pounds and was too ashamed to go back to the weight-loss clinic and I know they would have helped me any way they could. But, I was so ashamed and felt so bad inside, you know the feeling when you have lost weight and gained it back, it SUCKS! Anyway, I was visiting another doctor locally and she was terrific, but when we came to the topic of food, I told her I followed a low carb diet, thinking I was so healthy! It's kind of funny now that I know better. I didn't know that a low carb diet was so detrimental to my health, but my doctor did and she said and I quote: "You are Killing Yourself eating that way!" Now, wasn't that nice!? LOL. Well, she didn't just criticize she was amazing and so supportive and she helped me change my eating habits to a No OIL, Whole Food Plant Based Diet! First Question, Where do I get my protein!???? I NOW I KNOW, that is not a cause for concern, I get all the protein and then some eating this way. The beauty of this way of eating is I am no longer deprived of delicious foods and I can eat potato's, glorious grains, fruits, vegetables, the recipes, and creations are endless and more importantly, DELICIOUS! I went from 340 pounds to 200 pounds! Not overnight but gradually and this is the first time that I have ever lost weight and not felt deprived in some way! I didn't have to weigh my food! I didn't have to measure my food! I didn't have to count calories? I didn't have to count carbs? I didn't have to count fat grams? I didn't have to count anything! I could now seat down to a meal and enjoy it and eat until I felt satiated! Wow! You know what? That is nice! Of course, I had a diet mentality, so I had to deprogram myself! That is a whole story in itself! I had to make myself NOT limit myself! That's crazy but true! I learned about nutrition! I found out that this whole PROTEIN thing is MOSTLY MARKETING! I found out the Food Pyramid has been marketing for YEARS! It's getting better but it's not there yet! The meat and dairy industries are huge and they OWN the politicians, like many other industries. Like my parents and our ancestors, we are indoctrinated into the foods we eat and I had to deprogram myself from years of indoctrination! I had to find out for myself that we are the ONLY species who DRINKS ANOTHER SPECIES MILK! What the? That's CRAZY! And GROSS! LOL. Anyway, THIS Works for me and "I" feel like I have been given the keys to the Kingdom because I have finally found a way of eating I LOVE and most of all feel NO deprivation! I am proud of myself for being so open-minded! I used to be a "Hey, do want some beef with your steak kind of person!" Or, go to Burger King or McDonald's and just order beef patties with Cheese and that's ALL I ate! Or I would just eat BACON for breakfast! So, being open-minded I no longer eat, any added OIL, No MEAT (Fish, Foul, Beef, Veal, etc) No Dairy (Cheese, Milk, Yogurt, etc.) I am so happy and healthy! No more Cholesterol meds for me! Also, when I had weight-loss surgery they told me my GERD would go away, be cured! Nope, I still had indigestion, acid reflux, GERD whatever you call it and if anything it became WORSE After surgery! I was aspirating when I slept! That is not fun! So, I took Prilosec/Nexium/Omeprazole! Turns out these medicines are linked to kidney DISEASE! I saw a commercial from a law firm saying if you took these meds and have kidney failure call our firm to join a class action law suit! That's not fun to realize you are on this stuff to help control your horrible acid reflux and it may cause your kidneys to fail! It didn't help much as I was still aspirating in my sleep! I had to start sleeping in a recliner! Anyway, NOW I am off that medicine because I don't need it any longer since I don't eat the foods that cause acid!!!! I didn't release eating animal flesh or eating animal milk products like cheese cause acid reflux!? Who knew? Yes, I was ignorant of so many things concerning nutrition! I am still on this journey, but I am so grateful to Dr. Steiner for performing my surgery and to St. Joe East for supporting me during my journey, I need to go back and let them see how well things are now! They would be proud, they are great! I am so grateful to my new doctor for helping me learn about nutrition and about how we were meant to eat and how when you eat the foods you are meant to eat your body rewards you with the body you are meant to have, one that's healthy and trim! Good Luck to everyone on this journey!

I went No Oil Whole Food Plant Based too and I am so grateful I did. I had surgery in 2012 and lost about 135 pounds but started gaining it back!? It was scary, to say the least. So grateful I switched to a No Oil Whole Food plant-based diet. While I get all the nutrients I need eating this way except I have to supplement B12, I also lost all the weight I gain and then some and now three years later, I am maintaining a 200-pound weight-loss! I love this way of life. What's sad, is I see those before me, where I work, to other bariatric surgery patients who lost weight and they have gained it all back and then some, so scary. It keeps me on my toes. I follow my way of eating strictly, which is easy and I exercise/walk moderately 5 days a week and that's it. I which I had known about this way of eating before surgery, there's no deprivation, I enjoy food as much as I ever did and I don't have to weigh or measure or limit my intake. Now, I don't gorge myself, I eat until I am satiated and if I am hungry again in 20 minutes I eat again. I just feel so free thanks to this lifestyle. Thank you for starting this thread!

That’s a good list.. I got bariatric advantage chewable multi but I’m sending it back. They are awful and taste like sweet and low. I love the vitamins that I take now V2000 by solgar but I’m not sure how soon I can swallow pills. Yo-Yo Girl from New York City

A little poetry for all of us Weight Loss Surgery, it's not the EASY way You have to make a commitment each and every day Your diet,is forever changed but then so is your body All those "Nay-Sayers" they are just being snotty! You wager your body, there will be some pain But better health and fitness you will gain. I'm changing my life and lifestyle, that is true But with the❤and support of my Bariatric Pal friends I know I'll make it through! My weight loss surgery is a tool--- not a toy But each pound I'm losing, that gives me great joy! Will you join me on my journey towards renewed health? To know I can now have a future- that is really wealth. So I walk bravely forward, content with whatever tomorrow will bring And for me. Frust8 lies ahead my happiness in a Bariatric Spring. May 5 2018😝

So, I've officially turned rebel! My surgeon wanted me to stay at the hospital ANOTHER night and have staff discharge me Sunday morning (surgery was Wednesday morning) because I had thrown up twice back on Thursday but I dug in my heels and opted to discharge at 4pm today (had to sign a form stating it was "against surgeons advice"). I had realised both times the vomiting had happened was because I was made to go from a long period of laying down on the bed to sitting/standing upright and immediately swallowing tablets without having 5-10 minutes for any more gas to bubble out of me first. (thankfully the vomiting didn't hurt much because my tummy was pretty much empty). once I started insisting that I be upright for at least 10 minutes before swallowing any tablets I never vomited again... it just meant that for "controlled substances" like endone pain killers they had to take the tablets away with them and come back 10 minutes later for me to swallow them. I also had to take more pain killers yesterday than I would have liked, not because of gas or incision pains, but because overnight Thurs/Fri my IV point slipped out of my vein and started pumping lots of fluid into my arm. I had someone check the IV at 4am as my arm was feeling a bit sore, but they said it looked fine, That reassurance plus an injection of morphine not long beforehand allowed me to sleep through until I woke at 7 with my arm now REALLY swollen and throbbing. I had to keep up endone all day until the pain and swelling subsided 24 hours later. I still got 500ml oral fluids in Friday and didn't need to have a new IV put in my other arm. I was only receiving "bariatric soups" at mealtimes which I was initially told was made with "real stock" because the aspartame in optifast triggers nasty headaches for me, however it turned out that the "soups" were also loaded with other forms of MSG, the other major additive I told them I have to avoid because of headaches. I ate half a small bowl of scotch broth soup at lunch yesterday, and some soup at dinner last night, and today the 24-hour MSG headache roared into gear so I had to alternate codeine and endone to manage the severe headache today, again not pain from the actual surgery. This left me with nothing but water that they could supply that was "safe" for me to eat/drink, only my sugary tasting protein waters and a little chicken broth I brought in (I tried some formulite shake but making it without a blender and crushed ice meant I just couldn't stand the texture/taste). I still got nearly a litre (4 cups) of fluids in orally today before 4pm. I also didn't do too well with the loud call-bell buzzers jerking me out of sleep half the night, it did a number on my nerves every time, especially with those patients who liked to really LEAN on their buzzers for ages. still woke me even with ear plugs. And I walked... I stalked up and down those hallways for days... many laps.. even made a few friends in my travels (including a lovely lady sleeved by my surgeon 18 months prior who was in recovering from skin removal operation, and who pulled me into her room for a good hour long chat). So yeah, I tried first to see if I could get surgeons permission to leave this afternoon/evening rather than spend another interrupted night without decent food, then switched to leaving against instructions when I was told that was going to be my only option allowing me to leave today. I am super happy to be home. Have had a little REAL soup from my freezer (cauliflower and sharp cheese made with genuine home chicken stock), had a decent shower, threw some washing in to wash (hubby will hang it up), and now sipping slowly at a stevia-sweetened decaf mocha before bed. Feeling 10 times better already (even with the two mega loud children in the house), and the remnants of the MSG headache. Good night all, and best wishes to you and your journey! Taoz

@Seahawks Fan , wish my doctors would let me be 5ft9in, only hope I'm having of my BMI dropping quickly. Even started 1-2 protein shakes instead of meals to see if this flesh would melt. Tired of being the Fluffiest "ewe" in the Bariatric flock of Lambs.😜

@Ms Gamgee, maybe you should re-activate this and see if there. is renewed interest for your Alberta cohorts? God Bless. 👊

I often see people talking about Optifast, is it sold in Big Box stores, GNC, health foods stores, or only from your Bariatric surgeon? A few seem to love it, most tolerate it, and some loathe it. ,, Just Wondering?😯

@moondoggie1983 I would love,to see the section on What do you need for postsurgery,equipment like bowls, spoons gets. Most of what I've gotten was just gathered.from scattered posting on Bariatric Pal. I Want to know if I've dotted every "i "and crossed every "t" ,Yours Frust8

You are going to be the Top Bariatric Success Story in all of South Australia, I have nominated you! Isn't. that kind of me? All teasing aside, I am very proud of your success, you do make me yearn to experience my own surgery time, I do get impatient to become a patient. But I am planning and working toward that goal, slow as it comes, it still will be a good thing in my life.This change is a good change, and I have every certainity of that.😜

Right at the bottom of the screen when I look at the website on my mobile is a kind of global ticker recording how much weight everyone on bariatric pal have lost. You can change your current recorded weight in that ticker window too.

So far new measuring cups,3 different kinds protein shakes, 4 different flavors, caramel, French vanilla, peaches and cream, blueberry, a mixing. drinking/cup, baby spoons 2-different sizes. small plates, small mug-type,cups, like you would soup in, Rubbermaid small containers, couple teeny cups with lids, donated by relative overflowing with tupperware, she used previously for salt/pepper in picnic basket& measured 2oz. Want to get small scale and blender when Bariatric God's grant me a date. That's all I have so far😝

I find myself doing a lot of research before I buy anything. I feel very happy with my latest haul. What have you bought or plan to get to better prepare yourself for this journey? I also got my new oversized sweats to leave the hospital in. Yo-Yo Girl from New York City

I'm pretty transparent about it...because I think the public desperately needs education about bariatric surgery. I feel like being "in the closet" so to speak....is a disservice to other folks struggling to get help. That said...I understand your need for privacy, too. There are couple people I didn't tell. When I ate with them I just said....Oh hey...I'm on this new diet with my best friend, we're accountability buddies, and she'll know if I'm cheating. Seems to work.

That's been happening to me semi-often as well. Last week I tried a BBQ hamburger for the first time, not sure if it was the dryness of the burger (my dad sucks at BBQing) or the acidity of the ketchup... today it actually happened very mildly after taking my vitamins. I take Centrum Orange Burst chewables and sometimes I feel they make me a little nauseous, the taste is horrible; havent taken them in a few days and today I took them and 5 minutes later was running to the bathroom. I definitely need new vits, problem is all of the good bariatric recommended ones are expensive.

I figured it was Just a Hi Nice to Meet,You meeting but another OP said she's meeting with her same people at her hospital and it's her presurgical conference. See I've been through all the bariatric prerequirements, consults etc at another program not once but twice. Had all my records which went back to August 2015 sent to them. Dare I hope I'll be just a few weeks behind all you guys? Ooo I hope so, I hope so! So all of you go to sleep and awake to a brand new happy life and I'll go forward excitedly towards my own Sound like a Deal?😝🌈😝

Its 9:37am and I'm in recovery, doing well and should be going home briefly! Just finished talking to the surgeon and the bariatric nurse. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G891A using BariatricPal mobile app

And most surgeon's these,days aren't making more. A general surgeon in my town just rstarted extending her practice to Bariatrics, one half is banding, the other half is sleeves, she doesn't offer RnY bypass, which is what I need. I have bad GERD, on a strong PPI ( proton pump inhibitor) which is calming it and my baby ulcer down, but I also need the faster weight loss and I have a first cousin that died at 68, 4 years younger than I am now, of esophageal cancer. They thought they could help her at the Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland Ohio but she died on the table. Gosh, we were pals as well as cousins, been 2 years and I miss June-Ellen still.😪😭

Zoftig Girl I'm sitting here, I do exactly the same thing! I have a section for things I learned, one for good advice I've heard on here, another for things I've realized and want to remember, another for some of my postings I thought very good, another for postings I've gotten good feedback on, and several others maybe miscellaneous? I've been in Bariatric Pal a little less than 6 months but it's getting rather fat.Either I j

So I'm going to just address the naked king in his new clothes standing in the middle of the room. IMHO, you are both maintaining. You are NOT stalled for 4 months. You are eating the amount of calories along with your surgery that allows you to maintain. But beware. You are both approaching the end of the honeymoon period within the next year or 14 months ish. Then those same calories you're taking in right now, will quite likely cause you to start creeping up on the scale. It's impossible to help you. You're not giving us enough information. I could come to you and ask the same question. But because I track every bite of food, good and bad, I can present samples of my day, I can present an excel spreadsheet showing the relationship of macros in a month to average weight loss. I have a LOT of data to look at and tweak. You don't have any of that, even a food log. How can you possibly know what it takes to lose weight? You've no earthly idea. This is not magic bean surgery. It's WL surgery. It's SCIENCE!!!!! You HAVE to count sh*t. The End. And any RD who says you don't has a butt-load of peeps keeping her in job security who never forking make goal!!!! I read yesterday that this surgery is 40% surgery and 60% you. I don't know if that's the exact ratio, but the reality is, weekly cheat days are just that...weekly events that derail your progress. They can do nothing but create a GHDWL situation (Ground Hog Day Weight Loss=where you gain and lose the same 2lbs over and over and over again until you want to chew your own leg off to see a drop on the scale). Go back to basics. For me, and from a lot of vets, the ideal losing phase is a caloric intake average of about 600-900 cals per day. Maintenance is personal--anywhere from 1000+ depending on so many variables. Go back to no eating or drinking 30-30 Water >64oz per day Vitamins every damn day Exercise (walk) every damn day--don't go cray with working out right now Weigh and measure everything (60-80g protein for the day; <30g of carbs daily; around 30g fat for the day; <10g naturally occurring sugars for the day) Log EVERY bite that goes down your piehole If you're drinking alcohol--stop that sh*t right now!!!! Eat 3 meals a day + 1 snack (no grazing, no crap foods, no slider foods) Eat your meals in a window of 15-30 minutes Protein (dense) first 3oz per meal Veggies next Healthy Fats next If any room leftover then low glycemic fruit/berries (but if you have more room, fill up on fibrous veggies) Accept that you are gonna feel like jack sh*t for about 2 weeks. You're eating carby crap and sugar. What do you really expect. Sadly it WILL be fuc*ing hard! You don't have the excitement of the looming surgery, you've got diet boredom, you've lost faith in your tool, and you're being self-indulgent and going back to bad habits. It's gonna hurt and you WILL have to force yourself to get over that hump. Get mad! Do it! Suffer. And do it. In 4 days it will get easier and each day after. If you do those things, I can ALMOST guarantee you will both start losing again. And remember, you can NEVER out-exercise a bad diet. Oh and get your butts to the counselor (someone who specializes in bariatrics). P.S. And I "get" that you want to have a normal relationship with food. I "get" that you want to eat intuitively like all the other skinny girls in the world. But what you don't realize is that many (maybe most) of those skinny girls are secretely limiting calories, fats, sugars, foods or worse, purging, or anna stuff to "effortlessly" look like they are naturally skinny girls. If we were capable of having normal relationships with food, we would have never made it to the obesity ball in the first place. If we didn't have seriously, and I mean SERIOUSLY broken metabolisms, we would never have become MO. Once you are MO, the "normal" rules of skinnydom no longer apply. You can not take the set of rules for naturally skinny people and apply them to the subset of MO and formerly MO people. You just can't. It's like trying to feed a lion a peanut, or trying to feed an elephant a dead gazelle. It's apples and oranges. DUE to our disease, we will ALWAYS have to be more vigilant, try harder, do more, and live differently if we EVER want to maintain our weight loss.)

I had to laugh, I have a binder with tabs to organize all of my bariatric stuff!

It may not be a lie. It maybe that one just does not tell "negative" people or naysayers. Seven months ago, 45 kilograms (100 pounds) ago, I just did not want to hear from people who wanted me to try the diet and exercise pathway again. To reiterate what I said (about me) a week before my operation: In my case, I can tell one sibling anything and she's always supportive. Among my social friends, I've told four or five close people and asked them to keep it to themselves as there are almost as many negative opinions about obese people (per se), WLS and dieting. As for work, I have told my boss that I am having time off for surgery with a 2-3 week recuperation period. I have not shared the exact reason but told her that it's related to my hernia, my weight and joint problems. That is truthful enough ... but frees me of the other staff knowing any more. - - - Now, nearly seven months on, when people ask how I achieved my loss (so far), I tell them: "I got a surgical kick start and now I use dieting and exercise." I have the support of an exercise physiologist and the bariatric clinic's senior dietitian, the latter included as part of the sleeve procedure's cost. I see the exercise physiologist every three weeks and the dietitian (monthly now, but originally fortnightly). When (almost all of them) praise my loss or give me a proverbial 'pat on the back', I tell those who are still curious that, in late 2019, my surgeon and I will pursue an 'apronectomy' to remove my excess abdominal and flank skin and stubborn 'hard' fat. - - - Very nice that @Brandeis has had a great experience in telling all and sundry. It's nice that she can be at ease in her family and community. But I also know well the value of the sentiments expressed by @Sosewsue61 in saying that INFORMATION OF A PERSONAL NATURE DOES NOT HAVE TO BE SHARED with anyone.

Thankfully, my insurance company had the requirements listed in their benefits handbook. But the surgeon's office had a list of the difference insurance companies and their requirements, so the scheduler knew exactly what my insurance required and she said they usually added extra items the insurance didn't ask for. Also, because the hospital I'm using is a Bariatric Center of Excellence also helped as far as insurance approval went. I'm pretty sure that the surgeon's office knows what they're doing since they should specifically have someone that does nothing but deal with insurance companies. Hopefully everything goes smoothly for you!