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tina833

Gastric Sleeve Surgery Stateside Self-pay and 4 days later

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Well I did it! I had my gastric sleeve surgery last Thursday and had it done by a surgeon here in the states and I was self-pay.

I've read so few on here from people who did it state-side and were self-pay that I wanted to share my experience.

My surgeon is Doctor M. Wayne Westmoreland of Murfreesboro, TN and my total out-of-pocket was $12,350. That was 12K for the surgery, $250 for the psyche exam, $75 for the nutritionist and $25 for the Cardiologist to read my EKG. That's not bad considering the lowest I had found before him was 18K stateside.

He was able to perform the surgery so cheap (relatively speaking) because he has a deal with a hospital in a smaller town outside of the main thoroughfare who has agreed to charge less if he brings patients out their way.

I know most self-pay folks on this forum had theirs done in Mexico but I wasn't comfortable with that and neither was my son whose input matters most to me.

I was supposed to show up at 9:30 am to have my pre-op testing done prior to my surgery at noon but I got a phone call saying a surgery had been cancelled so if I wanted to come in early I could get my surgery done sooner.

You know I was all gung-ho for that because I wanted to get it over with and there would be fewer hours I would have to go without something to drink, which to me is the worst part about surgery if you pretend there is no danger.

So I went early, my family showed up before the surgery and we had a big ole' family reunion with all the noise and kids like in the old days before my parents died.

While it was a bit much for me, it did touch me that they cared enough to be there. I even got to see my grandkids and a niece I had not seen in years because of a family quarrel.

The surgery went perfectly well and it was over with in no time. I did my usual joking with the staff prior to surgery (my way of dealing with nerves) and before I knew it, it was over with.

I had absolutely no complications which is what I was most worred about as a self-pay patient and I got to go to my room right away.

I did have problems with the air and gas in my esophagus which I mentioned in a prior post that I identified as chest pains which caused me to have a 2nd EKG unnecessarily but hey, it's all a learning process.

Other than that on the first day of surgery, I just kept walking and walking because of what I had learned on this site as a way to get rid of the air and gas and slept pretty well through the night once I got the old hot stockings off my legs.

The next day as I was getting ready to leave, I took a shower and got dressed which is when I think I overdid it and that was when I had my greatest pain. It felt like a knife was being stuck in my main surgery site but after a couple of hours on some major pain killers, that went away and I was all good for the most part by the time I got home.

Since coming home, I have done better and better each day.

While my son spent the night with me in the hospital to watch over me which I needed, I have been home by myself ever since with no problems.

I was afraid I couldn't take care of my dog but I taught him how to jump up on the ottoman so I could hook him up and unhook him from his leash and that solved my major problem of not being able to bend over too low to take care of him.

I originally slept in my recliner with couch cushions on it to make my descent not be so low but last night I was able to sleep in my own bed and it was wonderful.

Today is my first day without my meds and I'm doing pretty good, so I should be able to go back to work on Wednesday without any problems. I work from home so there is minimal exertion for me to go to work. I'm just going to try and keep from getting too stressed.

As for the blessings that I talked about in my first post-surgery post, I considered it a blessing that I even was able to get this surgery since I was self-pay.

Last year about this time, I was extremely sad because I had been trying to sell my house and buy a new one when the sale of my house fell through. Mind you I could have made it happen but there were some extenuating circumstances that I did not like so I said forget about it.

Plus while I was going through the house buying process there was this one house that I fell in love with that I was unable to purchase. That one really made me sad. I said to God there must be a reason that this did not work out but I do not know what it is right now.

Today I think I know the reason. I would not have had the ability to get the money for this surgery if I had bought either of those houses.

Then there is the way I found a doctor who charged less than normal. I talked about it previously when I found out my first surgeon had been arrested which motivated me to look for a replacement. That's when I found this one.

That extra 6K I saved gave me the money to be able to pay off my major credit card debt which I have had for twenty years. Talk about a big relief and a major blessing. This is also going to help me to more easily pay the higher mortgage I now have to pay for the cost of the surgery.Talk about a win win.

Then there was the blessing of my getting a new position at work and finding out about it on the day of my surgery.

I was scared to death they were going to offer me the job on the day of surgery which they did but I figured it would be after I was all drugged up and out of sorts.

Instead, and this part is hard to believe, I got the phone call from HR exactly as we pulled up to the front door of the hospital. I took the call, took the job offer without any going back and forth and was able to go to surgery with the thought that I would no longer have to continue doing the job I've been doing for the past 11 months which has been more stressful than anyone should have to do if they have a choice.

So not only am I going to be getting healthier and healthier, I'm also hopefully about to start a job (while being a lateral move) with a lot less responsibilities on my shoulders.

Then there is what at first seemed like a negative. Prior to surgery and since surgery, I have had a whole lot of low blood sugar readings. While my regular primary care physician cut back on my insulin, my son who is an EMT told me in no uncertain terms to stop taking all of my medicine that would lower my blood sugar because I live alone and he is scared to death I was going to go in a coma and die if it gets too low without anyone being here to help.

I called my doctor back this morning and told her what had happened and how I had not taken any insulin since Saturday and how my son was so scared of what might happen to me. Much to my surprise she agreed with my son and told me to stop taking all of my insulin and any meds that would lower my blood sugar.

So now I'm off insulin! Woohoo! Don't get me wrong. I will continue to check it but still this is so awesome.

I am still at the beginning of my journey and realize I have a long ways to go including forever. But at this point I am on cloud 9 and looking forward to what is to come.

One more thing, my son and DIL got me a Fitbit and I'm already having fun just trying to reach 25% of my goal for starters.

I think life is about to change in a way I could not imagine when this all first started. I am so grateful to God for helping me to go down this path and clearing all of the obstacles along the way.

In the beginning, I started on this current path because my PCP had sold me a bill of goods about being able to convince my insurance company to pay for the surgery. While that did not happen, just the serious thought of it convinced me to go for it no matter what I had to do to make it happen and here I am.

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Comments

  1. Betterhealth's Avatar
    Tina,

    Congrats on this major decision and I am so glad that you have had great success. I am also a cash pay patient and I am not choosing to go to Mexico. I have a Surgeon in the Houston area who will perform my surgery for $11,700.

    My surgery date is scheduled for March 28th, right now I am tying up some final appointments and meet with my surgeon again on March 21st.

    I opted to stay in the states as I had cancer some years ago and had my spleen removed. I felt that with my cancer history I was worried about going to Mexico. However tons of people have had great success with going there.

    I feel so blessed to be part of a group that helps answer so many questions and keep me feeling empowered that I have made the right decision.
  2. LovingPres's Avatar
    Congrats!!! I had my surgery with Dr. Stowers in Decatur at My Bariatric Solutions and I paid $8200.00 self pay. and $100 for the psych exam over the phone. I had a great experience with him. My surgery was July, 2013. Good luck to you both!!!
  3. Teriona's Avatar
    Regardless of where you had your surgery, congrats and welcome to the losers bench! It's an awesome feeling to wake up without the anxiety of how much weight I may have gained from eating too much last night. Sometimes I cry silently to myself and just give God thanks for leading me to do this surgery. I was off my blood pressure meds a week after surgery, no more cholesterol nor diabetes meds either. I am soooo very happy! Give it a month and you will be buying new clothes!
  4. goestogym's Avatar
    With your positive energy, I know you'll be successful. It is always important to give thanks for the blessings that come your way, and you do.
  5. tina833's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Betterhealth
    Tina,

    Congrats on this major decision and I am so glad that you have had great success. I am also a cash pay patient and I am not choosing to go to Mexico. I have a Surgeon in the Houston area who will perform my surgery for $11,700.

    My surgery date is scheduled for March 28th, right now I am tying up some final appointments and meet with my surgeon again on March 21st.

    I opted to stay in the states as I had cancer some years ago and had my spleen removed. I felt that with my cancer history I was worried about going to Mexico. However tons of people have had great success with going there.

    I feel so blessed to be part of a group that helps answer so many questions and keep me feeling empowered that I have made the right decision.
    Thank you! Congratulations back at you. I can understand your reasoning.

    Yeah, I've read about the Mexico surgeries and might have considered it myself years ago if I had known how successful they were.

    Wow, March 28th is no time. It will be here before you know it.

    Yes, I'm so glad I found this place. It's big enough to have a lot of answers but small enough to feel more homey AND not freeze up from too many ads.

    Let me know how your's goes. We can be fellow travelers on this path since we are doing it at such close proximity.
  6. tina833's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by LovingPres
    Congrats!!! I had my surgery with Dr. Stowers in Decatur at My Bariatric Solutions and I paid $8200.00 self pay. and $100 for the psych exam over the phone. I had a great experience with him. My surgery was July, 2013. Good luck to you both!!!
    That's a great price. I went to your profile and you are doing fabulous! Thanks and thanks for being an inspiration.
  7. tina833's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Teriona
    Regardless of where you had your surgery, congrats and welcome to the losers bench! It's an awesome feeling to wake up without the anxiety of how much weight I may have gained from eating too much last night. Sometimes I cry silently to myself and just give God thanks for leading me to do this surgery. I was off my blood pressure meds a week after surgery, no more cholesterol nor diabetes meds either. I am soooo very happy! Give it a month and you will be buying new clothes!
    Thank you. I love joining the losers bench. I can't wait to weigh in. I'm so glad you are so happy and got off of all those meds. You look wonderful too. I've seen pictures of you before and admired you.

    Yeah, it's funny how I feel like this is a gift from God when others outside of our community sometimes act like we cheated. I tell you what, I still am having to stop myself from eating too much even after the surgery.

    I am actually using this really cool food scale that I got from Kroger's that allows you to enter tare, well it actually just has you put your bowl or whatever you are using on the scale before turning it on and it starts at zero. Then I add my food to the bowl until I know how many ounces I am getting.

    I can't wait to get to where you are at. I will love not being so embarrassed by myself when I go places or when I run into an old friend. It will be nice not trying to hide and hoping no one recognizes me.

    Again thanks for the encouragement.
  8. tina833's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by goestogym
    With your positive energy, I know you'll be successful. It is always important to give thanks for the blessings that come your way, and you do.
    Oh I'm not always positive but who can't be with something like this. While I know it's just a tool and I still have to do my part, because of the cost and me being all on my own, it's still a miracle that I was able to come up with the money and get past all the other hurdles. I never thought I would lose weight on the pre-op diet and somehow I did. It's a wonderful day!
  9. sraebaer's Avatar
    I was self-pay too, $14,000 for everything. Totally worth it. I have a brand new wonderful regular-sized person life.

    Rest and walk, but take it slow. Remember, "baby steps!" Work up as you can. Before you know it you'll be non-stop. Get in our required liquid and protein, keep a journal and write it down. (Self pay, you don't want to end up in the hospital with dehydration.) Take you're measurements and put those in your journal too.

    Looking forward to reading your one year post. You will be amazed!

    My secrets to success were my positive attitude and my activity. The support from my husband didn't hurt either!
  10. tina833's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by sraebaer
    I was self-pay too, $14,000 for everything. Totally worth it. I have a brand new wonderful regular-sized person life.

    Rest and walk, but take it slow. Remember, "baby steps!" Work up as you can. Before you know it you'll be non-stop. Get in our required liquid and protein, keep a journal and write it down. (Self pay, you don't want to end up in the hospital with dehydration.) Take you're measurements and put those in your journal too.

    Looking forward to reading your one year post. You will be amazed!

    My secrets to success were my positive attitude and my activity. The support from my husband didn't hurt either!
    Thank you for the great pointers. Yeah, I just started writing stuff down but I'm not constant enough yet. I used to use My Fitness Pal but I'm currently trying out the Fitbit site. Too bad there isn't a EatBit that would keep up with everything we eat automatically like the FitBit does for our walking. Steve Jobs of the fitness world, where are you?

    Yeah, I need to take my measurements for those times I lose no weight to keep me motivated.

    I'm so glad you shared about your "wonderful regular-sized person life." I would be so happy just to be normal.

    I used to be normal size when I was young so I know what a difference it is to your life. I remember how I was treated by people and it was so different. I just want to move first of all without all of these aches and pains.

    Woohoo! Here I came. One week post-op and I'm already losing. So different.