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How tall and what medical conditions. Did insurance pay for it in the USA?
Real life begins where your comfort zone ends
Hi there,
7 years out. First on cost, While I do citrical max (6 pills a day) when I need to get more calcium and there haven't been any BOGO at the local CVS or Walgreens they always have their house brands on sale and those worked OK for me too. The dose is slightly higher for the citrical but around 1500 mg split into 3 doses works for me.
I get my A, D, E, and K from amazon, dry versions (no gel caps) from biotech. The D will be the most expensive (I do 50k once a day and another 50k every other day).
I only started the E after 6 years out and I sometimes wonder about needing the K but better safe than to let it get out of hand.
I started a low dose of Zinc / copper about 2 years in.
"One a day" ( 2 per day) multi vitamin (sales, sales, sales). I switched from Centrum and Kirkland multi's (best price per tablet for me is kirkland from Amazon) but I switched because I needed one without potassium (go too high).
I take Vit C and K2 but I consider those expendable if finances are really tight.
I think for A, E, and K you might find veggie caps and some lower doses cheaper than biotech. Just keep an eye on the labs. (palmitate as the source for the vitamin A)
I hope that helps. Reach out with any other questions. No experience with Medicaid but while I haven't found a way to get insurance to pay for my vits if you can get a doc to write a prescription they migh cover the costs. ??
{ete
HW 552 CW 198 SW 464 4/15/13 - Lap DS by Dr. Philip Schauer - Cleveland Clinic.
I only paid $25.00 out of pocket. SMO was also part of my disability and made it worse, so my DS was pretty much paid for, as was thigh skin removal - not a lift- A lift is considered cosmetic, and most insurances will not pay for it for any reason.
HW 405/SW 397/CW 138/GW 160 Do the research! Check the stats!
The DS is *THE* solution to Severe Morbid Obesity!
So, nobody but your surgeon can really say. You should also look at the other options and compare like VSG unless there are some other things like diabetes going on too.
For myself, it was my up and down weight loss history that helped form my decision.
I had lost weight plenty of times, exercise, hi protein, etc but I always gained back more than I lost so I knew that I needed something that would continue to help me after I lost the weight. And it has, going on 7 years now. 217 this past weigh in down from 464.
It might be that you just need that first impetus to lose your weight and then you will be able to keep it off.
I'm not sure what you know about the DS but it consists of 2 parts, A VSG for initial restriction and the switch part that provides a level of malabsorption. The VSG can stretch a little over time, and of course you can eat around it of you really want to. The switch is more of a constant, hence the life long vitamins. Still possible to overcome it or not have a good outcome but percentages are very small.
What I might suggest is to talk to a Doc that does the DS and consider doing the first step ( the VSG ) and then doing the 2nd step (the switch) separately. Some of us that were very obese faced the possibility of our surgeons doing the procedure in 2 different surgeries because they thought it might be too dangerous. In those cases the VSG is used for initial weight loss and health improvement making it possible to do the 2nd step.
There are also people for whom the VSG just didn't work that go the DS route even though that wasn't their original intent.
I don't think you are too small for the DS ( or maybe the SADI version ) but it is a big commitment and you should game out the alternatives, pros and cons.
Good luck, let us know what you are thinking after all this.
Pete
HW 552 CW 198 SW 464 4/15/13 - Lap DS by Dr. Philip Schauer - Cleveland Clinic.
Visbiome 900
If you have a specific question for me, PM me or I will not see it, as I don't check responses on the forums and don't have anything forwarded to my email.
I TRIED A BATCH AFTER MY SLEEVE AND IT GAVE ME RASHES IN THE AREA I APPLIED THEM TOO..
No Bueno!
You're right. I should have said biliopancreatic diversion without duodenal switch to revise my mini-incision RNY that was done 2/28/2012. I don't know if this is done often. Dr. Elariny is highly regarded and I feel comfortable with his recommendation. I had my pre-surgery endoscopy today and talked at length to the doctor. I had him explain to me in greater detail why I would not be getting a DS. I think he said I didn't need to have the duodenal switch because of the way my gastric tract is arranged now (after the RNY). Although I'm still a bit foggy about it and need to read more so I fully understand, the upshot is that he is going to redo my pouch to "tighten it up" (my term, forgive my lack of the correct medical jargon). I also have a Spigelian hernia which predates my RNY. He will probably repair that after he does my revision in a subsequent surgery. Today during the endoscopy he found I had Schatzki ring at the end of my esophagus near my stomach/pouch. Sorry I couldn't be more helpful. When I know more I'll write more! Best wishes. P.S. My son is in Austin TX.
The patches work for me. I am a DSer. My doctor even recommends them to other weight loss patients who are anemic.
Kim
I don't think anyone can tell you what surgery is right for you. I weighed 204 and had the DS. It was the best thing I had ever done for myself. My doctor did tell me that if I had not had a cholesterol of 350, he would't have done it. I hope it helps.
Kim
