Hi Carla,

I have just had my orientation recently after waiting just over 2 years so am just in the beginning stages but one of the things I have found is that our GPs and other doctors really don't know much about this program so you basically end up doing the research yourself.

Read everything you can on the process and the surgeries so you have a really good idea of what you are heading into as this is going to turn your life upside down. One of the women in our orientation had already been participating in a weight loss program so she was ahead of us in that one area as far as prospective actual surgery dates, but then it would still depend on everything else. Calling to ask where you are on the waitlist won't do you much good I'm afraid, but calling to ask if there is weight management program that they will recognize in your area that you could participate in would give you something to work at and focus on while you wait.

Someone mentioned the Weightloss Surgery for Dummies book..I think this will answer most of your questions so it's definately a book to get your hands on.

I don't think registering for both programs is going to slow anyone else up as they will simply move on to the next person if you were accepted into the other. The only issue I would see with this is that there are a number of appointments and sessions after the orientation so convenience of getting to those would be an issue for me if I tried to go from the mainland to Victoria or vise versa.

So had I realized what was coming after the orientation, I would have done a lot more reading, found a weight management program to get into ahead of the orientation so that I was more prepared going in..though now that I am in and starting the process, I need to time to process the changes that will be coming.

Best!

Hi M,

I haven't had the surgery yet so not speaking from experience at this point but we were told to expect skin.

I would think that some people are lucky but I am over 50 so not really expecting to get off lightly on the skin issue.

We are covered under MSP for the surgery etc, but not removal of excess skin, that would be out of pocket so be prepared.

Also, if you haven't been referred yet for the program, expect at least a 2 year wait before even beginning the process.

Cheers,

:)

I was on the waitlist since March of 2016 as well and got the call for the orientation meeting sometime at the beginning of May. So just over 2 years. Then the first available orientation was early June.

I don't know how different the wait time between Victoria and Richmond would be but hopefully you will hear soon and honestly, it feels like it's starting to move now.

They told us at the orientation that they only have about 200 surgeries times available per year but the demand is considerably higher than that..thus the long waitlist.

Good luck though and I think you will hear soon!

Hello,

I'm new here. Found this site from a document over at the Richmond Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery site.

Long story, but it's relevant hope I don't bore you. :-)

I'm 50-years old, and have been overweight most of my life.

Last year I was laid off, I was a senior manager. It has been difficult finding new work - not because there isn't work out there, there is a lot however as soon as the interviewers meet with me the meetings are very short and a few days later I find out they went with other candidates. I am POSITIVE that this is due to my weight and because of that my appearance - doesn't help that I sweat like crazy carrying around all that extra weight.

I DO NOT have any hang-ups on my appearance, however I am overweight by at least 100lbs and know I need to lose the weight.

I am seriously considering bariatric surgery and in fact will visit my family doctor next week (I live in British Columbia, Canada) to discuss this, he may tell me to see my endocrinologist (I have Type 2 Diabetes, High Blood Pressure and Cholesterol). I am excited about this, but also scared.

What worries me most about rapid weight loss is loose sagging skin. Does this happen to EVERYONE that goes through this procedure? I've seen others that have lost a lot of weight in a short period of time however they have not had loose/saggy skin. What can be done to prevent loose/saggy skin if you go through bariatric surgery?

I'd appreciate any feedback that you could provide regarding bariatric surgery (I will ask to be referred to the Richmond Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery program at the Richmond Hospital).

Thanks,

M

I think I originally posted this in the wrong forum (Ontario) instead of BC - didn't realize there are forums for each province.

Hi Dyani, thank you for replying. I am scheduled for June 14 orientation, so looks like day after you. However, I too am from the Okanagan :). Yes, many questions about the process following orientation & cost of going to & from the island multiple times. Wondering if we can use local health professionals for some of it, ie: dietician. Anyways, let's stay in touch through the journey, we can compare notes.