Newbie in Eugene Area

Hi all I have been reading this board for a while now. I have been to see the surgeon (Dr. Umbach), have my dietician and psych eval scheduled for next week, also am going to see the sleep specialist on Monday. I am wanting to have the RNY Gastric Bypass and find it amazing the whole process and everything that you all go through after the surgery....it is definitely not the easy way out!!! I am 34, married, have 2 kids(daughter 3 and son 10) ..my family supports my decision for surgery completely. I hope to be able to talk or meet some of the locals that have had the surgery and know how the process works. Kathy says that my insurance(United Healthcare) is fairly easy to get approved so yay on that!! I hope to hear of your experiences good and bad. Please send me a message if you have had or going to have your surgery through Sacred Heart Oregon Bariatrics. Thank you all. Happy losing :o)

Hi Christina, I am glad to see you here. This is a great resource. I had my surgery with Dr. Umbach December 6th. It was very successful and I completely happy I did it. I have had no complications so far so things have been great. I also had United Healthcare and I had no problems getting mine approved. I think as long as your BMI is over 40 its pretty easy. It took a couple of weeks but thats it. Good luck to you and keep us all posted with any questions you may have. Also come to the support groups that they offer as most of us here that have gone through Oregon Bariatric attend them regularly. We also have a OH support group meeting once a month or so and you are certainly welcome to come to those as well. We do a clothing swap so that we can get good wear out of our clothes and swap them to save us all money. Tara

So I guess the other question is when are the support meetings??? I am sure the ones thru Oregon Bariatrics is in my paperwork somewhere, but what other support meetings are there?? and when?? I would love to start coming. I know support is vital in this whole process. Thanks so much again, Christina

Way to go, I am all new to this myself. I am in the portland area but my daughter works for sacred heart good place.

Hi Christina, Welcome to OH. I, too, had surgery with Oregon Bariatrics. Dr. Gorrin was my primary surgeon but Dr. Umbach was my primary surgeon 6 weeks after my RNY when I needed my gallbladder out. They are both great!! I had surgery 11/22 and have lost 97 pounds so far. I am feeling great! Since my RNY, I've had my gallbladder out and also have had an ulcer. Despite these 2 complications, I would do it again in a heartbeat. It has changed my life so much for the better. My blood sugar is now normal, BP is normal, and I am off all meds. As Tara said, we also get together once a month for a gab session and clothing exchange. I am going to host a BBQ at some point this month or the first week in June at least. I hope to see you there. I will post the date/time when I know for sure when we can meet. I am thinking probably the first weekend in June. Also, my son is going through the process too. He had his consult with Dr. Umbach last week Thursday and had his psych eval and met with Karlyn (dietitian) on Monday. He will be having his RNY surgery in the next couple of months too.

Hi Christina, My name is Christina too! I am up in Lebanon, near Albany and Corvallis. I wanted to let you know how awesome Unitedhealthcare has been for me. I called them on the phone when I started the process to find out exactly what their requirements were. They explained everything in detail. So I knew exactly what the wanted it made the process easier for me. After I finished all of the tests, referrals, and other requirements I was approved with in weeks. I even called to check on my request, and they were always very polite and helpful. Good Luck, and I hope things go as smoothly for you. Christina

Hi all, I am new to the group, I have been wanting GBS for some time now, My PCP referred me to the Peace Health team in Eugene. I went to the orientation, then my ins. denied me. I am a poor single mom with a disabled child on OHP. No financing available. I guess I am hoping that someone might know of possible grants or surgery scholarships for people like me who meet the criteria, but not finacially? Good luck to everyone. Thanks Sincerely Valerie