jencomenz

This would be nice! I currently attend the support group through my doctor but am one of only a couple of sleeve patients in a room full of bypass patients. This is close to Westside Church...am I thinking of the correct area?

I don't count calories, carbs, Proteins either. I eat what I want, when I want it and it's what works for me. I knew very early on that if I treated this like another diet with counting and restrictions that I would end up on a binge and so I don't deny myself anything and as a result don't desire the bad stuff nearly as often as I used to. At about six months out I confessed to the nurse that I had been "cheating" the whole time and that's when she told me that I'd discovered the secret to success...to stop being obsessed with food. Good food, bad food, it doesn't matter; if it's all you think about it's still controlling your life. Kudos to everyone else that's doing what works for them, listening to what their body tells them it needs, and finally Living Life to it's Fullest!!!

Yes I used my FSA account as well, it was a lifesaver!

So I was pretty much in denial about how obease I'd become. Losing 10, 20, 30, even 40 pounds didn't have much of an impact; I know, every little bit helps, but I was still above 200 and people still weren't noticing any changes. At 50 and 60 pounds gone people were starting to say "have you lost a little weight?" and in my mind I was thinking - a little are you kidding me? But my response was always "yes and I have a long ways to go" after all, I was only half way there. Not until 70 and 80 pounds did it finally hit me that holy moly I've lost a LOT of weight! Now I'm at 90 pounds, and on the inside I'm so proud of myself and my accomplishment, but on the outside I'm almost embarrased to tell people that huge number. Because that means admitting out loud that I had that much to lose in the first place, which has been hard for me to accept from the very beginning.

I had to take my nose ring out for surgery. I even changed it to a clear retainer to try and be able to leave it in but they still made me remove it. I guess it would depend on the hospital though. I was allowed to put it right back in after I woke up. Good luck on your surgery! Jen

Hello ladies! There are several KC-ers on here we are in the Kansas City social group...feel free to join! Welcome and good luck Jen

There is a lot of discussion on the board if you search for Effexor. I take 150mg of XR twice daily and only missed 1 dose the night of surgery. Other than that I have been swallowing them whole since I got home. The only thing I've noticed is that I start to feel like I need my evening dose earlier than I used to (you know, that "feeling". blah) I've been trying to not eat or drink anything after I take my pill for a while to try and keep it in my stomach a little longer and see if that helps.

The best thing is to be honest with your doctor...and yourself. I lost 0 pounds during my supervised diet. If it was that easy we wouldn't need the surgery. This is the time to dig deep and figure out why you aren't able to stick to the plan. The more we figure out about ourselves before the surgery, the better.

My biggest incision looks like this too. I am going to the doctor tomorrow to have it checked out. I do remember having a spot like this on my c section scar too and thinking it wasn't going to heal. What actually happened is that instead of that part healing outside first, it was healing from the inside up. 4 years later it all looks the same. I'm hoping that my incision is doing the same thing and just healing "backwards".

I was JUST sitting in the bathroom thinking this exact same thing! Not to mention it took 5 days for liquids to even come out that end! Thankful I'm not going back to work for a month

I was just sleeved last week on the 12th... Jen

My official last meal was at a japanese steak house. Wonderful food and fun to sit around the grill with my closest friends on my final night. However looking back I spent at least the last month frantically eating out all over town...I think they call this the "last supper" syndrome.

Hello everyone. I just got my date today and it's July 12th!!! I will be sleeved by Dr. Selim @ University of Kansas Hospital. Jen

Congratulations to both of you! Your results are amazing and inspiring for a pre op like myself!

So one of the reasons that I chose the sleeve over the LB is because there will be no need for umpteen follow up visits and fill appointments after the surgery. My question is: for how long after the surgery do I need to worry about keeping this current insurance (that covered the surgery) and/or checking future policies to make sure they cover bariatric procedures? I am currently covered by my husband's insurance AND my own insurance specifically because the insurance through my work covered the surgery but my hubby's did not. I would like to be able to drop the second policy after this year but don't want to do it too soon if I'm not considered "in the clear" yet.

KU Med was the only option for WLS covered by my insurance so that helped make my choice very easy! However, I have always been partial to KU Med and consider it one of the best hospitals. I had both of my babies there and while it wasn't the spa like experience that some ladies had other places, I felt like their state of the art teaching doctors were ideal for my high risk pregnancies, c sections, and NICU preemie. There is something very comforting to me about a doctor with decades of experience brainstorming with a new doctor that just learned the latest technology about my chart. As for Dr Selim I find that he is all business, but again, I'm ok with that. When it comes to my surgery, I am way more concerned with the final product than I am with the experience itself. If I need my hand held, I will bring my husband along Jen

Hi my name is Jen, I live in western Wyandotte County (KCK) and work north of the river. I am 32 years old and have about 100 pounds to lose. I want to be a healthy, active, fun mom for my 4 and 7 year old girls and of course for my husband too. I started my WLS journey in July 2010 and can finally say that my insurance packet has been turned in and is being reviewed as we speak! July through December was mostly research and support groups and waiting for my insurance to switch over. January to present has been full of doctor appointments, meeting the requirements, supervised diet, and more classes and support groups. My surgery will be with Dr Selim at KU Med. I recently learned that he has done very few sleeves so I am very happy to have my sleeve specific KC group on VST! Although waiting this long has been very hard (and it isn't over - crossing my fingers that I get approved) I am thankful for the time to research and learn about the sleeve as I started out last year inquiring about the band. I look forward to getting to know all of you - Jen p.s. I had quite the time getting into this group, ended up upgrading my internet explorer and for some reason that worked!

I also updated my Internet Explorer and was able to join. Thanks Jim!

I am trying to join the Kansas City group. I have tried from both of my home computers, my phone and my work computer.

What am I doing wrong that I cannot join a social group? I am clicking into the group I want to join and it won't let me push the "join this group" button at the top.

without repeating any of the above goals, some of which I also have, I will add: to be able to shop for shoes that aren't wide to wear bangle bracelets to not always look pregnant

I was very addicted to Diet Dr Pepper almost a 12 pack a day and this year I decided to give it up for Lent (with all other pop too). The first 2 or 3 weeks were very hard I missed the bubbles of the carbonation and "cheated" a couple of times with a diet limeaid from sonic, but now Easter is past and I didn't go back! One less thing to have to do before surgery! I am, however, still taking in a significant amount of caffiene because I substituted my DDP with iced tea. I will admit I did buy a coke zero the other day in the checkout line and it didn't even taste good to me - which I consider a victory YOU CAN DO IT!!!!

I asked a similar question a while back and got these answers: http://www.verticalsleevetalk.com/topic/12785-how-long-til-cleared-for-travel/page__p__109669__fromsearch__1#entry109669 Jen

Thanks so much for your support! I white knuckled it all the way home and ran to my computer to tell my sleeve family. One thing I forgot is that she kept saying "you're too young". Well thank GOD I'm only 32! Does she want me to spend another 20 years in misery and then do this? @swizzly I LOVE your angle on this!