Considering surgery but don't know where to start

[colebaby216 3]

I'm 39 & a mom of 4 amazing boys (21, 17, 13, & 7) & I've been obese or morbidly ones since I was pregnant with my first son 21 years ago. I've tried Keto, Adkins, WW, etc etc & although I lose weight it never stays gone. As soon as I LOOK at a piece of bread, I gain a pound. I've long since cut out sugars & sodas. I like bread but I don't have to have it. I live in Northeast Louisiana & don't know where to begin. My doctor & I have tried medications, but she's anti- weight loss surgery, so talking to her get me no where. I've researched the different types of surgeries, but I don't know which would be best for me (probably because I'm not a doctor or nurse). I just know I'm tired of being 220+ pounds & I want to get down to 140-150 & there's no amount of dieting, exercise, or medication that gets me past 195. I know my insurance won't pay for it so I'll have to finance, which is fine, I just don't know where to start & I'm beginning to get depressed about the whole ideal. My boyfriend is amazing & tells me I don't need surgery but also understands my mental health & how this affects me. Can anyone help me?

[lizonaplane 1,613]

I'm sorry your doctor is opposed to surgery. It's really the only option with a good success rate once your are morbidly obese.

I would suggest going to https://asmbs.org/ They have good information for patients and lists of surgeons in the US.

You can also watch YouTube videos, but those can be hit or miss. There are support groups like MyLevel10Life (Erin Branscom has a lot of YouTube videos and it's her support group).

There are also some good podcasts, and Facebook groups.

[liveaboard15 1,293]

First stop is getting a consult from a bariatric center near you (or some travel) and they can explain everything and what their self pay fees are. I just had surgery on Monday and i was self pay. I had the gastric sleeve and it cost me a little over $18,000 tho i did not finance. I sold some of my stuff and property. APR was too high on the loans. Also go on youtube and watch tons of videos on bariatric surgery. That is what i first started doing.

[acopas 104]

I delayed doing surgery for forever (originally joined this forum back in 2009 and have surgery scheduled in two months). I would say if you are certain what procedure you want done, start your research there. Gastric Sleeve is probably the most common procedure these days; however, some people still elect for gastric bypass or other procedures depending on their own journey.

There are plenty of places that do the procedures and there is a high rate of Medical Tourism where people travel to Mexico to have it done. I'm personally going to Mexico for mine as I was also self pay. My procedure was 7799 as I paid cash and have someone doing the surgery on the same day as me, but financing was 8500 I believe.

The surgeon I chose has a ton of videos on his website, YouTube, and Instagram. His name is Dr. Alvarez with Endobariatric. You can certainly look at his website and videos for research regardless of what surgeon you end up selecting.

All the best!

[colebaby216 3]

3 minutes ago, acopas said:

I delayed doing surgery for forever (originally joined this forum back in 2009 and have surgery scheduled in two months). I would say if you are certain what procedure you want done, start your research there. Gastric Sleeve is probably the most common procedure these days; however, some people still elect for gastric bypass or other procedures depending on their own journey.

There are plenty of places that do the procedures and there is a high rate of Medical Tourism where people travel to Mexico to have it done. I'm personally going to Mexico for mine as I was also self pay. My procedure was 7799 as I paid cash and have someone doing the surgery on the same day as me, but financing was 8500 I believe.

The surgeon I chose has a ton of videos on his website, YouTube, and Instagram. His name is Dr. Alvarez with Endobariatric. You can certainly look at his website and videos for research regardless of what surgeon you end up selecting.

All the best!

I was wondering about going to Mexico. I think it'd be cheaper for me to get my passport & go that route. $700 extra isn't too bad for financing. Thank you for the info, I'm going to be looking into that when I get home from work. Thank you so much. I can't say thank you enough

[colebaby216 3]

12 minutes ago, liveaboard15 said:

First stop is getting a consult from a bariatric center near you (or some travel) and they can explain everything and what their self pay fees are. I just had surgery on Monday and i was self pay. I had the gastric sleeve and it cost me a little over $18,000 tho i did not finance. I sold some of my stuff and property. APR was too high on the loans. Also go on youtube and watch tons of videos on bariatric surgery. That is what i first started doing.

Thank you! I don't have YouTube & don't use it (I have a laundry list of reasons) I'll see if I can find videos elsewhere. The closest bariatric center is a few hours away & I get a bad feeling about that place. I'll keep looking. Thank you so much!

[lizonaplane 1,613]

Just now, colebaby216 said:

Thank you! I don't have YouTube & don't use it (I have a laundry list of reasons) I'll see if I can find videos elsewhere. The closest bariatric center is a few hours away & I get a bad feeling about that place. I'll keep looking. Thank you so much!

Erin Branscom (MyLevel10Life) also has videos on Amazon, but I'm not sure how to use videos on that. And the support group she has is on Mighty Networks, but there's a fee.

[Flab-U-Less Forever 140]

1 hour ago, colebaby216 said:

Thank you! I don't have YouTube & don't use it (I have a laundry list of reasons) I'll see if I can find videos elsewhere. The closest bariatric center is a few hours away & I get a bad feeling about that place. I'll keep looking. Thank you so much!

You don't need YouTube to watch his videos. Just Google Endobariatric and there are a ton of videos on their website.

[SleeveToBypass2023 2,660]

6 hours ago, colebaby216 said:

I'm 39 & a mom of 4 amazing boys (21, 17, 13, & 7) & I've been obese or morbidly ones since I was pregnant with my first son 21 years ago. I've tried Keto, Adkins, WW, etc etc & although I lose weight it never stays gone. As soon as I LOOK at a piece of bread, I gain a pound. I've long since cut out sugars & sodas. I like bread but I don't have to have it. I live in Northeast Louisiana & don't know where to begin. My doctor & I have tried medications, but she's anti- weight loss surgery, so talking to her get me no where. I've researched the different types of surgeries, but I don't know which would be best for me (probably because I'm not a doctor or nurse). I just know I'm tired of being 220+ pounds & I want to get down to 140-150 & there's no amount of dieting, exercise, or medication that gets me past 195. I know my insurance won't pay for it so I'll have to finance, which is fine, I just don't know where to start & I'm beginning to get depressed about the whole ideal. My boyfriend is amazing & tells me I don't need surgery but also understands my mental health & how this affects me. Can anyone help me?

Have you looked into Caremark? If you can get approved, they can help with some/most/all of the cost of the surgery. If they only cover some, getting a smaller loan would be better than a larger loan for all of it. If I were you, I would look into the sleeve. Very, very low risks (less than the other surgeries, which is why I chose it), no malabsorption issues, no issues with taking pills/vitamins, no real "dumping" to speak of. Maybe see if you can find a different doctor (since bariatric surgeons usually require a clearance letter from primary docs and if yours won't give it, the surgery might not happen no matter how you pay for it) and definitely look into a bariatric surgeon for an initial consultation (you may have to travel a bit to find a good one, but I PROMISE it's so so worth it!!)

[Arabesque 7,426]

It annoys me when a doctor puts their personal position, values, etc. above the needs & wants of their patients. You want to do something about your physical & emotional health & well being & your doctor is stopping you. You’re not requesting anything dangerous to yourself or others, addictive or illegal.

A friend had the same problem with her doctor who wouldn’t prescribe HRT. My friend has a degenerative spine problem & was experiencing quite a few menopausal symptoms. She eventually told her doctor she wanted the meds, listed the benefits, possible side effects & then said either you prescribe the best one for me or I’ll go to another doctor. She got a script. Maybe you need to lay it in the line to your doctor too. As your doctor, they should know the struggles you’ve had & everything you’ve tried previously.

Also have a look at Dr Matthew Weiner’s web site: https://www.poundofcureweightloss.com/. You have to join & there is a fee ☹️ though I thought I joined (I get his emails) & I didn’t pay a fee 🤷🏻‍♀️. I’ve found his you tube videos (sorry) & books informative & useful.

All the best.

[acopas 104]

18 hours ago, colebaby216 said:

I was wondering about going to Mexico. I think it'd be cheaper for me to get my passport & go that route. $700 extra isn't too bad for financing. Thank you for the info, I'm going to be looking into that when I get home from work. Thank you so much. I can't say thank you enough

For my surgeon, you don't have to have a passport. I just have to have my birth certificate and driver's license. I'm taking my marriage license just in case. I'll fly to San Antonio, Texas and their staff picks us up and drives us across the border. Since we aren't flying into Mexico, no passport is needed.

[Quesodip251 125]

I was self pay GB in Mexico. Was $5600 plus a $399 flight vs $26k locally. As acopas said, a passport isn’t required in Tijuana as it’s a border town within the 20km limit. Only birth certificate and DL is required. It’s mostly Americans there too.

[ShoppGirl 5,022]

If you go to that pound of cure weight loss.com site arabesque mentioned of Dr. Wieners you can view some of his videos. He has tons elsewhere but the one that would most benefit you right now is where you can view it. It’s “which weight loss surgery is right for me” and to get there just click on the menu at the top right then surgery and which surgery is right for me and the video pops up. I found all of his videos incredibly helpful. There is also information thete on self pay options.

Edited May 2, 2022 by ShoppGirl

[Redlady985 5]

Hi! I am considering weight loss surgery as well. My primary care provider is all for me getting weight loss surgery, along with my orthopedic doctor. Especially me having psuedotumor cerebri. I do not have any BP problems, or diabetes but was told that getting weightloss surgery could help with the psuedotumor cerebri. I first did a online seminar with Tulane University Medical center in New Orleans, Louisiana. Once I did that I got a appointment with the doctor for a consult, and was welcome to their weightloss program. Now I'm schedule for EGD, and nutrition appointment with the dietitian in July 2022. But I had my consult in April, 2022. My insurance didnt require anything of me, as long as the doctor was in network. Which help when determining how quick you can have the procedure done. Some insurance require you to do different things before you can have the surgery. Also help me some was I have sleep apnea, so therefore I dont need a sleep study. I am little nervous, but im always nervous when coming to getting surgery or any procedure done.