Katie713

Thank you for sharing your story. What a harrowing experience, one that will probably live within you for the rest of your life, and yet, the outcome will hopefully be one that you will appreciate more than most. Good luck as you move forward with your new way of life. Not sure if you are eating yet, but hopefully you will do ok with that. One of my other friends here (iggychick) went through a similar experience and hopefully she will connect with you soon...she is very caring and she had a great sense of humor. If I can be of any help as you move forward, please feel free to contact me here on the boards or by private message.

It's true you don't have to tell your work what type of medical issues you are dealing with, your are protected by HIPPA laws regarding the disclosure of the nature of your surgery. I was lucky, I felt completely comfortable letting my boss know before I ever even started my pre-op program that this is what I was looking into, and he was 100% supportive. I also let my staff and some co-workers that I am very close to as to what I was embarking on. I have had nothing but support and I feel blessed. They see me walking down the hall, and often say, "Lookin good"!! They are amazed at my transformation and many ask thoughtful questions because they are interested.

I would agree with OTR, about 6 weeks and I was exercising and by 10 weeks, I felt better than my old self !!

Iggy - I never seem to get enough sleep. Sometimes I have to take a 30-60 minute nap in the early evening to catch up, then I get a second wind and am able to make dinner, check homework, clean up the house, do dishes, make lunches and watch my regular shows on TV. I do get up early because of work, but have a hard time falling asleep and staying asleep. There are nights I toss and turn. Time for a new bottle of Tylenol PM, that used to work like a charm for me and no hangover.

Buffets are tricky with our little sleeves...I've done a few, but I never get my money's worth!! And no doggy bags At the seafood buffet I usually get a bowl of steamed clams, and take my sweet time when dining with my family...that way the pace works out ok...but you really only eat a few ounces of Protein all the rest is shells...then I might have a bit of stir fry from the teppan grill - 2oz of rib-eye with bean sprouts, mushrooms and a bit of napa cabbage... At the Mexican buffet, 1/2 a bowl of Soup that I just have a few spoon fulls of, then maybe two tacos - and I leave the tortilla behind, a small salad with a nice pepita dressing. I don't go out much to tell you the truth, but vacations are always special and I do intend to enjoy all my future vacations, whatever the table might bring, I will try and enjoy it while still respecting my sleeve.

Deb...have a safe trip home. Take care, go easy on yourself at home. I overdid it a little bit because I felt so good and strained my internal stitches on the largest of the incisions where they pull the excised stomach from. My doctor told me to cut back on activity and REST while I was healing. As good as we may feel, we have fresh incisions that are healing internally and externally. When I would eat, I would also become VERY tired and have to rest for about 1/2 hour. Walking was one of the best ways I gained strength and I walked about a mile every morning while I was recuperating at home. Good luck!!!

I am a patient at Panorama City - Dr. Alskaf is my bariatric doctor. I think my NUT was Stacy...I almost can't remember, I haven't seen her since Options and I completed the program 12/6/11 and had surgery 4/6/12. We had a group of about 25, not sure how many actually had the surgery, alot of people were on the fence.

Just a pencil and a pen. They will give you a big giant notebook and all the handouts and blank forms you can carry

Well, it brings on an accountability factor and it's good training for life after WLS. I'm happy I did the program - I got tons of educational material, made good friends in the group, felt knowledgeable about the procedure and the post-op process. You're in good hands Jimbo!

No they encouraged us to walk and do some resistance training, I think 30 min a day and log it on a form they gave us. Same with food logs. They give you the forms to fill out and turn in weekly, and you weigh in every week and blood pressure check every week, at least we did.

That sounds about right. Later on you can cut down on your carbs if your weight loss slows. I did it around 4 months out. Dr. Zelada was my surgeon. He does good work, and he is very nice isn't he? I don't do follow up meetings, I network here and have a few weight loss friends I bounce things off of. I go for my 6 month post op next Friday 11/3..

At my location, one class per week, one week with the nutrionist the next with the behavioral therapist back and forth. Food and exercise logs required for every week, adherance to a reduced calorie diet and 5-10% weight loss before referral.

I'm planning on having a beautiful lotus blossom done kind of Indian style celebrating my metamorphasis of change. Almost like something you would see with a henna tattoo, lots of scroll work surrounding the central blossom.

Yes, through the Health Education department. In southern California it is called the Options program.

I agree, this doesn't sound normal. You should make contact with your surgeons office ASAP.

buplee...somehow I missed this thread...glad to hear you are on the road to recovery and I am also glad that you came to the conclusion that having the sleeve surgery is the way to go for you. When I first considered WLS I did want the band (not gastric bypass) but had never heard of the sleeve. When I was approved into the bariatric program for WLS, we were introduced to the 3 options (band, sleeve, or gastric bypass) and the benefits and difficulties associated with each (BTW, Kaiser no longer does the band due to difficulties and success rates) and it was suddenly and absolutely clear that the sleeve was the way to go. By now you know that one of the best reasons, is that your food is digested normally - in through an intact espophagus, and out through the pyloric valve which is untouched. You still absorb nutrients the same way you always did. There are no foreign bodies in your abdomen - no rejection - no adjustments required. A huge plus is the tissue removed is that which produces the hormone ghrelin, responsible for our feelings of hunger. This is an all star procedure with great results! I hope that your rehab goes well, and that you are soon able to move forward with your sleeve surgery as you want to. We will be here cheering you on!!

YAY Deb!! Congratulations, you've made it through and it is good to hear that you are feeling ok. Sounds like everything went like clockwork. Now go enjoy the sun and sending nothing but positive thoughts your way!!

DidZ - is that prounounced Ditzy? I love it We all have our "days" and come to think of it, it's not that different than our lives before surgery...but sometimes not having our food crutch there to soothe ourselves can be hard to get used to. Over time it does change, but you do have to find other coping strategies! As others have mentioned, humor helps! I remember not long after surgery, I started crying at a red light for no reason. When the light turned green, I stopped just like that. I think our hormone levels being all over the place does affect our moods, especially for us menopausal women. Menopausal women coming at ya....watch out!! Be kind to yourself. The sun will rise again tomorrow, and as a new day begins, the possibilities are endless!!

I had my surgery in a regular Kaiser hospital, and my surgeon had indicated that if no complications I would just stay over one night under observation and could go home once I was able to take fluid in by mouth the next morning. The day of surgery and through the night, it felt very conforting to have the staff constantly making sure I was comfortable, checking my vitals, giving me meds for nausea and meds to prevent blood clots, and having the morphine pump for pain if I needed it, and I did need it the first night, although not the next morning. You will more than likely be uncomfortable the day of surgery, it is MAJOR surgery even though it is done laparascopically (for most). If you have the choice, I would advise you to take the one night stay, just to be on the safe side. I took 4 weeks off work, but I probably could have gone back to work the next week, because I was feeling pretty good, and I was able to get my nutrition in. Alot of what you will experience will depend on how your body tolerates the surgical procedure, and how well you can stay hydrated and being able to begin eating again. My whole experience was pretty darn good, hopefully yours will be too!! Good luck!!

Is there any freaking popcorn left??? Not the nameless, faceless brand...make it Orville Redenbacher!

VitaleEM....yup, that's it exactly. You won't even feel real restriction until you are on firm solids....then believe me, you WILL stop eating because you cannot eat another bite, and the feeling of fullness can be very uncomfortable. I do still get hunger, so i eat a snack between meals - like a cheese stick or olives or nuts.

I'm a total Walking Dead Head. Literally

You know, I think each NUT has their own recommendations, but for the longest time I was at about 800 calories, and 60-90 grams of protein and maybe 90 carbs, but I had to tweak it to keep losing...after 4 months increased calories to 1000 but lowered my carbs to under 50 grams. The sage advice I got here on this forum helped me see that the most effective weight loss strategy is low carbing. I will increase my carbs once I make goal. Of course I go off plan at times and allow a splurge, but I go back to plan right away. By tracking your food, calories, protein, liquid, carbs you can see what works for YOU. Right now six months out I am eating around 1000-1200 calories and under 40 grams of carbs.

I also have southern California Kaiser...had surgery 4/6/12 at West L.A. The entire program was top notch! So much education, glad I did the 12 week Options program and got used to doing food journals and exercise, by the time I had surgery, I had already lost 26 pounds just doing the program. The surgical team was great and I feel I had excellent care, with no complications whatsoever. Good luck...I am sure you will be pleased with your Kaiser team of doctors and educators!!! I had my referral for surgery two weeks after finishing Options!!

I know it took guts to disclose your story, but as you said, it is your story and people need to hear the good, the bad and the ugly. I am glad that you made it through and are now starting to normalize. I hope that you continue to gain strength so that you can enjoy life with your loved ones!! Take care!!