hi, i just want to let everyone know my how my experience with "big medicine" has gone. first of all, i'll tell you a little about myself. i am a 25 year old mother of 3 who has lost 100 pounds completely on my own. i made healthy changes in my lifestyle, through diet and exercise and lots of self-motivation. i have inspired tons of friends and family members, and it was by them that i was convinced into sharing my story with the show in hopes of having the skin removal surgery done. so, i wrote to the show, never really expecting to be picked, and exactly one week after i clicked on "apply to be on the show" and told them my life story & sent pictures of myself, i received 2 phone calls and an email from one of the producers (i won't mention his name at this time) telling me that i sound "perfect for the show." of course i got very excited and he asked me to send him some more photos of myself. about a week went by and i hadn't heard anything, so i called him and he set me up with an interview at dr. lomonaco's office (in houston, tx-2 hours from my house). so, i showed up that day & interviewed with a different person, who also told me that my story was "so awesome" & he knew they "needed to do whatever it took to get me on the show." i put together a "before" album of pictures of myself & brought to show him, and he asked me to email them to him asap, which i did, that night, when i returned home. the doctor's office went ahead and set me up with a consult appt., and they are the only ones who had any contact with me at all after that. (they are great, by the way!) then, after not hearing anything from the show for a couple of weeks, a woman calls me one friday night (who i'd never spoken to) & told me that the guy i interviewed with and sent all my pics to wasn't even with the show anymore!! and, she wanted my whole life story and kept me on the phone for 2 hours, trying to "come up with an interesting story" for their show. this was very upsetting to me, because the only reason i wrote the show in the first place was because i wanted to have the loose skin removed, but even more, i would have loved to have had a chance to tell my story to all the people out there, like myself, who either: a) couldn't afford the weight loss surgery, or b) knew that there were other ways to make healthy changes without doing something as dramatic as surgery. but, after i got off the phone with her, i was more upset than i had been-being strung along for almost a month not knowing what was going on. i decided i didn't want to be on this show anyway after the way they'd treated me. also, they don't pay for anything or compensate you in anyway for being "exploited" in front of the nation!! after dr. lomonaco heard how they treated me, he has still decided to perform my surgery, and i am actually having it done in 2 days...i can't wait!!! if it weren't for the show, i wouldn't have known about dr. lomonaco, so that's the best thing i can say about the show. other than that, they are VERY unorganized and will definitely lead you on. good luck to anyone else applying...hope you have a better experience. and, if anyone wants to contact me about my surgery, i'd be happy to let you know the outcome! thanks for reading...

No, they don't compensate you for being on the show, but it is a great show.

I agree with you, lruth, it is a great show. There are lots of people who think that the people on the show get compensation, or get their surgeries done free. It's not that way at all. We share our stories on the show just so we can hopefully help someone out there who is in the same situation we are in now get better. At least that's why I did it.

I'm sorry things didn't work out for you the way you hoped with getting on the show, and that the back and forth was so bad for you. But that doesn't make the show bad...it makes your experience trying to get on it bad.

umm...okay? thanks for your input. i never said anything about the "show" itself. i'm talking about the coordinators of it...producers, etc. and the way that they are going about their casting process isn't at all organized. i don't see a show lasting if they don't treat people better. just my opinion though.

Hi, Angelina,

I think what's confusing people is that your post says you contacted the show "in hopes of getting the skin removal surgery." Since clearly you could get the surgery on your own without being on the show, it sounds like you expect that the show will either give you the surgery free or compensate you so you can afford it.

Anyway, good luck with your surgery! And good on you for losing all that weight! You're one of the few and far between. Here's hoping you're also one of those who can keep it off long-term!!!

I agree with tonksmom! I have been filming with Big Medicine for Season 2 since Aug. And I have NEVER had a problem with any of the producers or crew. Everyone is so nice and very professional!

Sorry you had a bad experience. I wish you the best of luck in your journey!

oh okay, well, i was trying to tell my whole story & guess i didn't realize how it sounded. i wasn't expecting the show to pay for the surgery or anything, i was just hoping to get to tell my story to try & inspire those who couldn't qualify for the weight loss surgery, that it can be done without it, but that, just like the weight loss patients, i am still left with the loose skin. sorry if i made it sound like i was asking for a hand-out or anything. i just didn't feel like i was treated very well by them, but, to each their own. i was just telling my experience. thank you for your support to the two of you who congratulated me on all my hard work. it's been a long road, and i can assure you i will keep it off! i've come too far to go back now...tomorrow's the big day!!!

I too was told I was perfect for the show but then never heard anything. I just wanted people to know that you have to take care of your emotionally problems in the early stages of the process.

I still hope to hear from someone. I would love to work with Maryjo. While I can't rely on anyone but me to make myself better- I just wish I had a therapist who understood gastric.

If you need to understand some of the mental issues you need to think about in the early part of the process you can email me at phishytrey@yahoo.com

quote:

Originally posted by tonksmom:
Hi, Angelina,

I think what's confusing people is that your post says you contacted the show "in hopes of getting the skin removal surgery." Since clearly you could get the surgery on your own without being on the show, it sounds like you expect that the show will either give you the surgery free or compensate you so you can afford it.

I thought that ppl on the show were getting these procedures done for free...thanks for clearing that up