Post Surgery Costs - Living with a DS

I have been trying to do some research on what the post-op costs will be for a DS type procedure (I will be getting a similar SADI-S) and I was surprised to find an estimated Vitamin/Mineral cost of $125.00 a month! Is this accurate?

This prompts me to ask the question of what I will need to budget monthly for things like supplements, vitamins, tests, Dr. visits, etc. related to the procedure.

Has anyone figured this out? I understand that individual mileage varies due to insurance etc, but I am looking for a realistic estimate.

Any help is much appreciated!

that is high for me, but I buy in bulk and shop around for the best product, I spend about $50./month for vit/mins

Thank you! That is encouraging.  Have you had any issues with malnutrition? Are there restrictions on what kind / type / brand you can buy?

How many blood test, follow ups, other tests do you have per year?

Sorry for the question storm lol. The cost is not a deal breaker for me, I just want to go in with eyes wide open!

you are very welcome, no issues with malnutrition at all, vit/min amounts are individualized and you wil have to tweek as time goes on as your body will absorb differently.   you have to buy the correct vit/min for proper absorption.  Our cchannel we cant absorb oil based products so taking them is throwing money down the toilet and a great way to become deficient, so make sure for your ADEKs you purchase the correct ones for example most need at least 50K vit d/day, a correct one to purchase is:  http://www.biotechpharmacal.com/catalog/d3-50-50000-iu/

For calcium take citrate, we have an issue with ca absorption

I had the DS a few years ago, so bloodwork is once a year, pretty much after the 2nd year, once a year is sufficient if you are stable and have no issues.  make sure you have a 24 hr urine stone risk profile, since we have fat malabsorption, that is another DS issue, enteric hyperoxaluria, you will probably have to see a nephrologist.  Make sure you are tested for bone health including metabolic bone disease at a minimum PTH, ionized ca etc. and you will probably have to see an endocrinologist for the ca/vit d malabsorption high potential for metabolic bone disease.  start doing some reseach now, it is not as bad as it sounds.  in about 18 months post op your body goes through intestinal adaptation, it had adjusted to the trauma we have caused it through the DS, and will become more efficient at absorbing nutrients, but the bypass is too great and it will never absorb like it did before surgery. 

I know at the begining you think how am i gonna remember all this...you will, just pay attention to your body, have your blood work and tweek acording to how your body handles the surgery, you will be fine

Just curious what is the difference between liquid and oil based capsules for DS people? I am currently taking liquid vitamin A hope it's OK

Thank you for the last sentence lol. My eyes were getting wider and wider as I read through all of that!

I appreciate all of the great insight and will make sure to add those tests to my list.

My cost is only that high if I include my protein powder and even that would be an every other month cost.
When I first stocked up on vitamins it was high for the first month or two, probably as high as 
$125 to $150 but after that I would say more in the 60-75 dollar range. Always hard to do an initial starting point. My tests are covered by insurance so
I have no costs for you there. I did 3 months, then 6, 12, and lately 18 months. Another set at 2 years and then annual after that.

I've started to be more comfortable moving to things like Kirkland multis and calcium citrate since they are lower price.

I haven't had to do any WLS related Doc visits except for the checkups at the same time I do the blood tests.

The way I understand the SADI in general is that your requirements may not be as high as a standard DS but I'm a little
fuzzy on that and we don't get a lot of comparisons with SADI patients so I hope you'll stay in touch to figure out
what's the same and what is different. I think more the same than different but who knows.

Pete

Thank you for the reply!

Larger upfront costs that taper down over time is heartening. 

I will have a 300cm CC, so I should have less malabsorbtion, but I will keep everyone updated for sure!

Much of the vitamins you can get locally, so keep your eyes out for good BOGO deals and really stock up.  I find grocery stores have the best ones.  The only items I buy online are the A, D, K.  I eat strategically so I get my protein from food and don't need daily supplements for that.  Overall, I pay about $40/month on average for it all.

For doc visits, you'll do a couple the first year, checking bloodwork  to make sure you're in control nutritionally, tweeking along the way.  After that, get a list of the labs to be run and bundle them in your annual physical with the PCP.  I manage to get it all covered by insurance that way without a problem.

Great advice and it is good to hear that I should eventually get everything from "normal" places! There are some great resources online specific to WLS, but they are all $$$$.

I will look into the labs. I imagine the first year will be crazy with expensive tests, but it sounds like it tapers off after that. 

Ultimately, it has to beat the cost of being "super obese".