Self-Paying for VSG

I first learned about the surgery 3 years ago. I worked at a local crisis line and one of the regular callers was talking about all of her doctor visits. She mentioned that her doctor referred her for bariatric surgery but that the nearest doctor who accepts Medicare is 3 hours away. At that time I was working part time and in grad school full time with 3 kids. All of us had Medicaid. I had no idea that something like this was available for people like me. I wanted to learn more. 

After talking to the caller I spent all night, in between calls, researching bariatric surgery. I watched videos of the surgery. I found out that there were more than one kind of surgery and I started looking for a surgeon. 

I found one in Florida that accepted my insurance and agreed to take me as a patient. It took me almost a year to go through all of the pre-op testing. Then life got in the way. I went through a divorce, don't worry, it was a short marriage. Then, the same month I was going to visit my primary doctor for a release to surgery was the same month I was offered a pretty decent job. I went with the job and basically stopped my progress towards surgery dead in its tracks. I found out 90 days later that the small non-profit I work for does not include weight loss surgery in its insurance rider. My surgery dreams were put on the back burner for 2 years....Maybe I could lose the weight all by myself...To date, I've only lost 11 lbs from my heaviest weight.

The limit on my care credit account is only $1,100. An increase to $24,000 to cover the RNY was declined.  I am a working single mom with >$10,000 in savings. It's time to get creative. I joined every forum site I could find: Obesity Help, GastricSleeve.com, ThinnerTimesForum, and Bariatric Pal. I follow countless private blogs and weight loss surgery Facebook pages. After asking around they suggested that I try Mexico. 

Mexico? Tijuana?!? I lived in Orlando, Florida for 10 years. I'm used to a tourist town. I've heard things about Tijuana and nothing about it's reputation sounds like Disney World, something about ladies, ping pong, and donkeys and chickens fighting. Still, this is something I needed to look into more. I was getting quotes anywhere from $3,899 to $10,999 in Mexico with it averaging around $4-5k. That sounded doable. 

So I decided instead of waiting until I find a job with good enough insurance to cover the surgery I'm taking matters into my own hands. I don't have the time or patience to do some of the things I've read online for people to "make extra money" like take surveys, subscribe to trials of service, get a second job, etc. I had two jobs at one point and it killed me.  So I just had to cut corners and not spend my money. I've been saving my money for a year and adding it to a separate pre-paid loadable debit card account. Maybe I should a loadable credit card instead.


Some of the things I've done to save money for my self-pay for surgery:

-Take my lunch to work, everyday...and eat it.  I pack a lunch and snacks like left overs, boiled eggs, sugar free jello, lunch meat and cheese, green salad, celery, an apple, orange, or banana, and lots of water, etc. 

-Take my kids to the dollar movie or rent red box. Do you know that it costs my family of 4 $35-$45 to go to the movies? That's not including popcorn. Now we wait a few months and either go to a dollar movie for the theater experience or rent a red box and watch it at home.

-No more mani-pedi's. I can paint my own toes and fingers or wear more closed in shoes. I even bought myself a foot scrubber. ;-)

-I spend less on groceries. I try to not buy pre-packaged food. The snacks for my kids add up every month. Cookies, chips, juice, fruit snacks, cereal. I have 3 boys so the snacks don't last for more than one sitting at a time and it's bad for them too. I stick to meats, beans, fruits, veggies, milk, and eggs. If they want pancakes, burritos, crackers, or cookies, I make them myself. This has been a BIG help on my monthly expenses. 

-My retired mother watches the kids after school. She's also watching them for their summer vacation. My mother has been sick and fighting for her own life since August of 2014. Luckily my sister has visited twice for 4 months to help take care of our mom and my kids. This saves me so much money, that I don't have to begin with...

- I put half of my income tax return into my weight loss surgery fund. 

It's been tough. I've dialed back my already tight budget. It feels so good to be able to pay the $500 down payment for my surgery and not bat an eye. I've worked hard to put the funds together and I'll be able to pay for my surgery and plane ticket with no problem. Hopefully the fact that I'm paying with my own money, instead of using insurance, will help make it that much more important to me. This will help me work harder towards the weight loss/health goals I have set for myself. I'm getting excited!