caycaye

Have you had your surgery yet? If so, when?

Thanks so much for the answer. I agree that I wouldn't trade that big of a weight loss for the loss of hair....I just hope I don't lose it ALL! HA HA....but WHAT-EVAH! Been there before...done that! LOL! Thanks again!

My pre-op RN/seminar speaker said EVERYONE that has the VSG loses their hair at 3 to 6 months post-op. Is this true? What did you do to prevent it besides taking vitamins if you did not lose any hair? Please HELP! I JUST started getting my hair in and back to normal from my chemotherapy for breast cancer two years ago. I really don't want to have to wear the WIG again!

Thanks so much! I will keep in touch. Cay

Thanks so much....your post helps me to have confidence in my decision and force out my worries. Hope you get your surgey scheduled soon. Keep in touch. Cay

Thanks so much! Keep in touch. We need to share our journies together. Cay

Thanks so much for the words of encouragement. I totally agree with everything you are saying. I FINALLY decided to take care of myself and MY needs for a change. I DO feel like I will be "freeing" myself from the fat after 30 years. It is about DAMN time! LOL! Cay o

So glad to hear from you Sara. How much does it cost in Mexico? Why do so many people go there? Is is because you are not super obese like me or is it simply cheaper? A friend on here said the surgery is upwards of $20,000 in California. My insurance wont cover, so I have to pay the $12,000. I am kind of glad though, because I dont have to jump through hoops to qualify with my insurance company. Some of the things people have to go through for MONTHS to schedule their surgery is unbelievable. Definitely, let's keep in touch. I go tomorrow for my psyche and fitness evaluations, and Thursday I go to the nutritionist to learn about the pre-op diet and after-surgery eating, etc. I am getting excited, but sometimes scared too. How about you? Cay

Hey! I go for my psyche evaluation and my physical fitness evaluation tomorrow (probably flunk them both! LOL!) and then Thursday I meet with my nutritionist to discuss the two week pre-op diet and after-surgery meals, etc. I am excited to learn more info. It is getting closer and closer.....I hope I can stay brave. What are you doing in the next couple of weeks?

That is such a great analogy.....and so true!

I TOTALLY can relate! We all have heard the "negative Nellies". My family is super supportive, especially one of my sisters and my daughter, and I am thankful for that! My husband is a fit 215 lbs. and 6'4"....Not ONE of my siblings is fat, but they have to watch everything they eat. Why did I get SUPER obese? Because I took care of everyone else and their needs and put my head in the sand about my own health. I took the "easy way out" all my life by eating fast food all the time and eating whatever I wanted without regard to my health. Once I was diasgnosed with breast cancer.....the journey I went on made me realize how precious life is and that I want to live life at the fullest. I had to stop being an "ostrich" and face up to my faults and CHANGE.....REALLY change.....and I have already. I am ready for the "tool" of this surgery and I vow to do my part and follow my Dr.'s orders implicitly.....skinny or negative people be damned! LOL! Good luck to you on a successful surgery and recovery!

I am scheduled for Aug. 22. Good luck to you,. I will pray for you and all our friends on this site. Keep in touch!

Me too....I joined about a week ago here. I am scheduled Aug. 22. I have my nutri. appt. next week. I know I have to be on a pre-op, two week, no-carb diet....but I will find out just what I can eat and not eat next week. I have been on a low carb diabetic diet for a month when they diagnosed me with Type 2 diabetes. My sugar is normal now, thank the Lord. I hope to lose a few more before surgery. I am really motivated right now, and hope to stay that way....Every once in a while the fear of surgery creeps in, but I am fighting it. I am determined to use this "tool" to become healthy again. Good luck to you. Please let me know how you are doing as soon as you get back to your computer after surgery.

I am so excited for you that your date is coming up. Are you on a two week no carb diet? Is it liquid only? I have the meeting with my nutritionist Thursday, but I know that my diet is not liquid only, but I can have NO carbs and in the second week, I can not even have fruit. It seems that everyone has somewhat different requirements. I ordered two types of Protein shake powder from the "excellent" list here. I hope to like one or both of them.....cause I know at least for two weeks after surgery we have to be on a liquid diet. You are right about this not being the "easy way out", because we DO have to realize that we have to eat a certain way for the rest of our lives to stay thinner and healthy. That is a really hard concept for me. I pretty much got this way probably by eating my meals with 3/4 of m ymeal sugars and carbs and 1/4 protein and vegetables (just the exact opposite of the diabetic diet I have been on for a month) When I was diagnosed with diabetes, I was scared to death. I do NOT want to have another illness, especially one so serious as diabetes. I have not cheated ONCE in 4 weeks. My sugar is now normal, and I have lost 15 lbs since that day. It is hard, because it seems like all I do is think about what foods I can and cannot eat. I don't want to seem like I am becoming obsessed and talk about my weight all the time with my skinny family.....so I guess I will come to this site to talk to people who understand. Thanks for your reply....Please keep me updated as soon as you get back to your computer after your surgery!

Good luck to you...and God Bless! I am scheduled for Auguat 22. I am still a little scared, but I am ready! Keep in touch! Cay

My surgery is scheduled for August 22. I am sometimes letting fear of the surgery creep in.....No one in my family is obese or had this surgery, and I feel all alone sometimes. No one seems to understand or want to listen when I am scared. I tried to tell my husband that a co-worker (who really does care about me) gave her unasked-for opinion today and it upset me. He just listened and made no real comment. He doesn't understand that I need reassurance and support, emotionally, now. Her comments really got me worrying and then angry with her. I took a blood test today to check for any stomach bacteria, and then I went to work. She brought the subject up of my surgery and suggested that I was rushing my decision. When I told her I had thought it out completely, she then said I needed to PRAY, PRAY, PRAY! Of course I am praying. I am scared to death sometimes and worried if I am making the right decision, but I am scared to death MOST times of staying this obese. She kind of creeped me out by insinuating that I was taking my life into my own hands unecessarily. Why can't people be "positive" or just keep their mouths shut? This is a big deal to me. Of COURSE I have thought it out.

Thanks so much. I am sometimes letting fear of the surgery creep in.....No one in my family is obese or had this surgery, and I feel all alone sometimes. No one seems to understand or want to listen when I am scared. I tried to tell my husband that a co-worke r(who really does care about me) gave her unasked-for opinion today. I took a blood test today to check for any stomach bacteria, and then I went to work. She brought the subject up of my surgery which is already scheduled and suggested that I was rushing my decision. When I told her I had thought it out completely, she then said I needed to PRAY, PRAY, PRAY! Of course I am praying. I am scared to death sometimes, but I am scared to death MOST times of staying this obese. She kind of creeped me out by insinuating that I was taking my life into my own hands unecessarily. Why can't people be "positive" or just keep their mouths shut? This is a big deal to me. Of COURSE I have thought it out.

WOW Linda.....$20,000. But you have a famous surgeon and live in California.....Your cost of living is way higher than ours. The prices vary from surgeon to surgeon here. I called one physician's office that was highly recommended to me, and the total cost was $15,000. But Lafayette is a much bigger "oilfield business" city than the other doctor's city, so I guess Dr. Gachassin has a lot of competition, so his price is lower. South Louisiana has a lot more obese people than most of the rest of the country. The Cajun cooking around here is so awesome....I can't tell you! I am so lucky to be able to afford this surgery right now. All the stars aligned....LOL! I am the ONLY one of five siblings that is fat in my family. My father is an ex-college Hall of Famer in football and a successful football coach, my brother was a 4 yr. letterman in college football, my little brother is a P.E. teacher and my two sisters are tiny. My husband of 36 years is 6'4" and 200lbs. They all are active and athletic to this day. Even though they are all very supportive, they have NO idea what I go through being obese or how scared I am to do this, and I have no one who really understands, to talk to. I hope and pray that I am making the right decision, but I feel so unhealthy that I feel like I have no choice now. Please stay in touch. I will keep you informed of the things my Dr. puts me through before the surgery. I'll write again soon. Cay

You are so funny....This post gave me a chuckle!!

Please, please, please try to have a positive attitude......You have accomplished so much already. If you find yourself depressed or too negative, maybe you now have a chemical imbalance and could use the help of some anti-depressants just for a little while. After all....you have been through a big, traumatic change to your body and emotions and it wouldn't be surprising if your chemicals are all out of balance. Please keep your chin up till you get off this "plateau" (which is expected)...and if you can't seem to feel better, please see your doctor about meds for a while to help you feel more like yourself. God bless....I will pray for you complete recovery and happiness. Cay

Can you tell me what setting you go into to post the weight loss ticker??? NEVER MIND! LOL! I figured it out!

Hi...My name is Cay and my Dr. scheduled my sleeve gastrectomy today for August 22. I am doing OK, but I am here to gain as much "first hand" knowledge I can about the before, during and after surgery stuff. I live in Morgan City, LA (About an hour outside of New Orleans......yes, Swamp People is taped right in my back yard! LOL!) My insurance will not pay a penny for bariatric surgery, so I must pay $12,000.00 for this procedure and I have decided to forget about the money and concentrate on how much I will be able to enjoy life when I am done. I am a recent breast cancer survivor, being diagnosed in January 2009. I received a lumpectomy, port surgery, chemotherapy and radiation and now am gratefully cancer-free so far. It will be two years cancer-free in December. I learned through that journey that whatever time we all have left, we should live it to the fullest! I will pray for all of you to have successful experiences with your surgery. Please pray for me also!

Absolutely we should stay in touch. I really got to the point where a month ago I was diagnosed with type 2 Dabetes and so I said...."That's IT! I am waiting no longer". So I made the arrangements and saw my Dr. today and he set the surgery date and the appointments for my preparatory tests etc. My insurance does not cover ANYTHING.....so my husband said he would find the money and we did. I am getting sleeve gastrectomy surgery done at Lafayette General Medical Center in Lafayette, Louisiana, by Dr. Phillip Gachassin. He is chief of surgery at Lafayette General....and I really like him. My surgery will cost me $11,500.00 plus $500.00 for "complication insurance". What type of bariatric surgery have you had before? I am a recent breast cancer survivor. I had Stage II breast cancer on my right breast in early 2009. After my lumpectomy, I received "port" surgery and chemotherapy at Lafayette General and radiation treatments here in my home town of Morgan City, La. It will be two years, so far, cancer-free on December 16, 2011. I decided during my cancer treatment, that I was tired of wasting my life waiting and hoping I could lose enough weight to become active and enjoy my life again. So when I was diagnosed with diabetes...I said...."NO WAY am I going to be a diabetic too". I am SICK of myself this way and I cannot wait any longer to lose. Since my diabetes diagnosis, I have been on a diabetic diet for 4 weeks and lost 12 lbs. and my sugar is now normal. So, my pre-op diet will just be a little stricter and more of the same. Where are you? Who is doing your surgery? Even though I am READY for the change and have a positive attitude...I still (in the back of my mind) feel like a "loser" because I couldn't lose it on my own. And every once in a while the doubt and fear creeps into my head, and I really have to fight the anxiety. After I get two weeks after surgery, I will feel a lot better. I am afraid of the surgery, and also afraid of the healing. Afraid something will leak from my stomach and I will get septic or something. My doctor has a very good record, but every once in a while I get scared. But I will go through it, because I truly feel that this is the path God has led me too. I have a question....Do you know why so many people go to Mexico for this surgery? Is it that much cheaper? Wouldn't it scare you? I have TONS of follow-up group therapy and counseling, etc. that is part of my surgery deal with Dr. Gachassin....The people that go to Mexico....even if their Dr. is great...usually will have no follow-up....What do you think? Cay

OMG! I just got my sleeve surgery scheduled for the EXACT SAME DAY as you....August 22, 2011!! I m trying to get my house all cleaned up and make preparations. I just ordered two of the recommended Protein shake brands listed in the Excellent/Good column. I still have some tests to complete....I am getting a little scared when I overthink things....you?