Choosing Sleeve

[kevin86]

Thank you everyone. I will be taking all of your info plus any other info I get in the next three months to make the best decision. I'm going to be as educated as I can possibly be before I ever decide on anything. Thank you all for being available to help people like me who walk into this not knowing much at all.

 

[kevin86]

It's the travel??? Really? I went to Spain with my H and sister. Spain. There are quite a few people around here who went to other countries for surgery. Talk to the docs. Most have something in place for their patients from out of town. A hotel that gives discounts, etc. You are probably looking at 10 nights in a hotel. I think it was @DianaCox who said you do have insurance and I bet they will pay at least part of the expenses. You need to read your actual policy up close and personal.

I get it that you want it now. Quick and dirty, no hoops. Cash out your 401K and fly to MX. You can probably get it done next week. Cost? Around 16K. What's it worth? Priceless. I think one of our members is in MX right now and you can probably talk to them about their experience.

@Munchkin and @DianaCox thank you for the info. I had no idea that insurance paid for travel expense. I'll have to research and find out what if anything my insurance reimburses for.

 

[DSRIGGS]

@Munchkin and @DianaCox thank you for the info. I had no idea that insurance paid for travel expense. I'll have to research and find out what if anything my insurance reimburses for.

I will be honest in that I did not look into getting travel reimbursed but my original DS surgeon is 20 minutes from my house so I am certain that I would have been denied. You not having a DS surgeon near you would likely be a different story. Good luck and Airbnb can get you a nice place for cheap with hopefully a recliner for your sleep in.

 

[southernlady]

@Munchkin and @DianaCox thank you for the info. I had no idea that insurance paid for travel expense. I'll have to research and find out what if anything my insurance reimburses for.

I know we traveled from Knoxville to NYC for my husband's DS. His insurance company paid a good portion of the expense but it was after not before. They require receipts to reimburse.

 

[newanatomy]

My insurance covered a lifetime amount of $500.00 towards travel expenses and required receipt before reimbursement.

 

[johndean]

Heelloo, how was your sleeve? Can you tell us what the results so far? One of my friends is interested in having it abroad through Placidway and she's still confused.. maybe it will help if you can tell us more about your experience with sleeve. Ps: did your insurance cover the costs/? Thanks!

 

[DSRIGGS]

Heelloo, how was your sleeve? Can you tell us what the results so far? One of my friends is interested in having it abroad through Placidway and she's still confused.. maybe it will help if you can tell us more about your experience with sleeve. Ps: did your insurance cover the costs/? Thanks!

What is your friends situation, that is does she have any comorbidities and what is her BMI? For a relative lightweight without a metabolic disorder like most of us had the sleeve can be a good choice, but for somebody with a high bmi and comorbidities the sleeve will not deliver the results they are looking for. You aren't going to lose 100 or more pounds and keep it off with a VSG. That individual needs the malabsorption of the DS. That is why we tried so hard to convince Kevin that he really needs the sleeve.

I don't think he has had the surgery yet ad he had a diet period before insurance would approve. Our hopes are that during that period when Kevin was going to be doing more research that he would determine that the DS is best for him.

 

[southernlady]

I will be honest in that I did not look into getting travel reimbursed but my original DS surgeon is 20 minutes from my house so I am certain that I would have been denied. You not having a DS surgeon near you would likely be a different story. Good luck and Airbnb can get you a nice place for cheap with hopefully a recliner for your sleep in.

We did have a DS surgeon in town...and dh's insurance still paid for his travel to NYC.

 

[Larra]

@johndean I don't know anything about your friend and what operation would be her best choice, but I do know that there is absolutely no need for her to pay extra to go through any medical tourism agency. She can easily arrange everything herself with the assistance of the office staff of her surgeon. The bariatric surgeons in Mexico work with patients from the USA and Canada every day. They have the system down pat and make it as easy as possible for their patients. There are patients on this website who went to Dr. Esquerra, and previously Dr. Ungson, for DS without any use of these companies, which, IMHO, are a total rip-off. Since the sleeve is part of the DS, I'm sure Dr. Esquerra also does sleeves.

Also, while it's great that you are trying to help a friend, she really, really needs to come here herself to learn more about her different surgical options. I've seen other well meaning friends and family members try to do the legwork and study to help loved ones, and it just doesn't work. If she isn't concerned enough to do her own research, she isn't ready for surgery. It's a huge decision, there is a lot of detail about different choices and different outcomes that she needs to understand, and no one can spoon feed it to her. We would welcome her here, just as we welcome you, and she could learn so much and then make a well informed decision.