makemyownluck

My surgery date is May 2nd, I start liquids on the 18th. I'm dreading this more than the actual surgery! (kinda) I plan to exercise. The weather has improved so much in Chicagoland in the last week that I plan to go walking the trails at a local park. I go to the gym early in the morning because I hate going after work when it's super crowded. I can hit up the trails in the afternoon. And I can resume learning guitar at night! I also plan to get a good puzzle to work on.

I'm an ex-smoker of cigarettes, and I encourage you to quit. I'm sure you've heard plenty of lectures, so I'll spare you. As Mickey said, lots of surgeons will test you for nicotine to make sure you've quit. It will slow down your recovery and make you way more susceptible to post-op complications, like blood clots - which could easily kill you, even MONTHS after surgery. Try to embrace this change for a new, healthy lifestyle by giving it up completely. But if you can't do that long-term, you simply HAVE to give it up in the short term for this surgery. Try the e-cigs if you reallllly have to have a cigar a month (or much longer, if you can) post-op. You'll really do yourself a favor if you quit, tho. (maybe this did turn into a QUIT SMOKING lecture, after all. sorry bout that! lol) They do make nicotine-free e-cigs. The testing they do to make sure you've quit is looking for nicotine, so that might work if you absolutely have to have something to puff on. Good luck!

It's actually normal to gain/lose that much from day to day. You can be more or less hydrated, have gas, maybe ate more salt the day before... this is why it's better NOT to weigh yourself every single day. I know it's tempting, but don't go there. Use it for informational purposes only - not daily validation that your diet is working. Do what you're supposed to with diet and exercise all week, then see what you've accomplished at the end of the week. If you do it weekly, you'll see your progress more clearly and you won't frustrate yourself seeing the day to day or even hour to hour changes your body goes through. Using it every day creates an emotional attachment to that number, to feeling the success every day or disappointment when it doesn't change or goes up a little, and that's not what the scale should be used for. Good luck!

You look SO FANTASTIC!! great, great job with the weight loss! If you don't mind me asking, how old are you? Your before pic looks a LOT like I do right now, and I'm so concerned with loose skin. You look really good, tho - just curious how you're doing with that. I think age plays a huge factor and I just can't decide if 32 is "old" when it comes to this.

I've read numerous times that the Protein "shots" are no good. They have protein from Gelatin or collagen which are not absorbed the same way as whey protein. Protein powders are NOT regulated by the FDA, so these companies can use a very small amount of whey protein, then call it 42g of whey protein w/o penalties. So you have to be very careful with what you're using. Atkins shakes are lower in protein than a lot of other good options. My NUT specifically told me not to use those, or Ensure or Special K shakes, they have too much sugar and not enough protein. Body Fortress powder comes in a variety of flavors and can be found at Walmart for $16. unjury can be purchased online and has unflavored and chicken Soup flavored powders so you can have more variety, those sell for $20-23 per container. Premier shakes are sold ready-to-drink at costco and Sams and have 30g protein per container. Any of these would be a better source of protein than the Atkins shakes. Good luck to you, I hope you find something that meets your needs!

Take some Vitamin C, Zinc, Echinacea and drink some tea... REST UP!! Don't let the sickness get you!! Hope you're feeling better soon and can still have surgery as planned!

Hey guys! I'm making my list and checking it twice for my post-op Vitamins. I've been using a complete Multivitamin for years, but it's a huge pill, so I need to switch to something chewable. I've looked at gummy vitamins at the store, but they are expensive for what you get. Considering my normal vitamins are $8 for a 3 month supply, paying $10 for a one month supply is outrageous to me, and what I've looked they have less vitamins per serving that my current generic vitamins. But looking around, I'm just getting confused about what I need to be taking, and where to get the most for my money... So, please, tell me what you're taking, where you get it and how much it costs. I'm a 32 year old female, what do I need to take? Here's what I was planning for: A multivitamin Biotin B-12 sublingual Calcium with Vitamin D I'd also like suggestions for the calcium/vit D, because I'm not taking that currently, so I don't know what to look for or how much to take. Do I have to take chewables forever? Or can I go back to my pills when I'm fully healed from surgery? Thanks all for the input!

Congrats! I had about the same recovery time you said when I had my gall bladder removed a few years ago, so I'm glad to hear that this will be very similar recovery. I remember it took me about 2 wks to actually lay in my bed again, I had to sleep on a chair nearly upright for a while. There's really no comparison to a good nights sleep in your own bed! I'm glad you're back to being comfortable again!

Welcome!! I'm getting sleeved May 2nd! It's been a long road for me, lots of issues with insurance at first, but then I switched insurance and it's been smooth sailing. I've had surgery before (gall bladder removed 2006, laparoscopic) so I'm not too concerned with the surgery itself. Like you, I'm nervous about all the permanent changes to come, but so excited to see the weight finally come off!! I've never been skinny, so I have no idea what that even looks like on me. I can't wait to be able to shop for clothing because I LIKE IT and not just buy things because they actually FIT. Good luck to you! We're on our way!!!

nice! LOVE your hair color, btw.

I was just telling my friend that I mentioned in the earlier post that I was approved for surgery. She was telling me she's excited and can't wait to see me skinny. I told her, "Well, yeah, I'll be skinny, but it's not gonna be pretty. Picture a skinny person who is melting into a puddle." I literally wanted to grab the words out of my mouth as I was saying them. Where is all this negativity coming from inside of me? I feel like I'm trying to prepare people for the WORST instead of embracing this as THE BEST thing I could be doing for myself. Gonna try to work on that. Attitude is everything and mine could use an adjustment!

I feel that way. All the time. I even asked my friend, who's also obese, "Will you still be my friend when I'm skinny?" She looked at me like I was nuts. Honestly, I'm really not looking forward to the attention. I wish there was the magic wand that we could just wake up tomorrow skinny, and that we were ALWAYS skinny, so no one even notices a difference. Very curious to see how this will play out, for sure!

Walking supposedly helps with gas pain. Or you can try Gas-X strips. I'm pre-op myself, so I'm really just sharing what I've read around these boards. Hope it helps!

don't get a wrist monitor, they don't work! If you're close to your PCP, you can probably swing by and ask them to check it for you, too. My PCP does that, no appointment needed. Don't take it tomorrow and see if you can get a reading and if you're normal, check with your surgeon or PCP about stopping them completely. I'm REALLY hoping to come of my bp meds asap!! Also - your bp med - does it have hctz in it? If you're not getting your fluids in, you might also be getting dehydrated if you're using a diuretic. Good luck!!

These are things I wanted to know when I went: How long will I be in the hospital? What is discharge time? Do I need someone at the hospital in order to be discharged? When do I stop taking my meds prior to surgery? (I'm on bp meds) How long before I can go back to work? Where will my incisions be? What are my physical limitations after surgery? When can I resume exercise? What kind of exercise can I do? What tests do I need to have done? I can't think of anything else at the moment. Basically, ask every dang question you can think of - and write the questions you want answered down, cuz you WILL forget them, otherwise. Good luck to you!!

IF ONLY my lack of patience was related only to this... I'm impatient with everything!! I actually plan to learn transcendental meditation this year. It's on my resolution list, right behind "Get this dang surgery done already!!"

She obviously doesn't get where you coming from, but I can kinda see her as trying to be your ally... I mean, you were having a conversation about something she had also done, but for different reasons. Keep in mind that people rarely see themselves the way others see them. Like you said, you look at yourself in the mirror and think "not bad", then look at those pictures of yourself and say OOF. Well, she may not see a beautiful person when she looks in the mirror. She sees herself gain 4 pant sizes and she feels fat/unattractive/sad, whatever. I mean, we'd be sad if we gained 4 pant sizes, so the fact that she went from size 2 to 6 shouldn't mean she's not entitled to feel like she needs to do something about it. But I get it. We, as big people, know that she's not being looked at as or treated like a fat person is treated. She doesn't understand where you're coming from completely because the world doesn't treat her the way big people are treated. But that doesn't mean she doesn't struggle with it internally or that you both couldn't learn something from each other. I can totally understand where you're coming from feeling hurt by it. But I think you should try just a little not to let your emotions get the better of you. I think from her perspective, you come off looking selfish. I'm not saying you ARE, I'm just saying that might be how she's feeling. Like she shared something with you and you snapped at her. After all, she's not trying to get in shape to make you mad - she's trying to improve herself just like you are. I think if you can get this little bump straightened out, she might actually be a good friend to have as she can help you with exercising more... Anyway, you definitely need to be careful when you share the news of surgery. I'd rather keep it a secret that risk someone saying something that would piss me off - cuz I'd probably react just as you did. I'm only good at seeing both sides when I'm not on one!!

Congrats to you, too!! I hope you can get a surgery date soon!

My surgeon's request was received by my insurance on Tuesday. Because patience is something I have very little of, I called them yesterday to check status. Still in review, they said. I called again today and I've been approved!! Two day turn around time is WAYYY better than I expected to get! So, I'm scheduled for surgery May 2nd. I'm going to call the surgeon's office tomorrow and see if there's ANY possibility we can go sooner (doubt it, but I'll never know til I ask!). I started this whole process in July 2012. I'm so thankful that after all the struggles I went through, I'm finally getting the results I want. I'm just so eager to start this new chapter in my life. I'm so excited, I could cry!

BCBS got my surgeon's request on Tuesday. I called them yesterday to check status - it was still being reviewed. I called them today - AND IT'S APPROVED!! They said the letter would probably be sent out tomorrow because the note was just added today saying it was "medically necessary". When I went to my final surgeon consult, I was scheduled that day. I'm going to call them tomorrow and see if there's ANY chance it could be done sooner (doubt it), but I'm definitely a GO for surgery on May 2nd. I'm so happy I could cry!! Good luck to all of you to get a quick and POSITIVE response from them!

Great progress!!! You look fantastic, I bet you feel pretty fantastic, too!! Keep up the hard work, it's paying off!

Yeah, I'd be pretty mad if my MD sent over private health info to my employer. There's laws against that kind of stuff!! Good luck getting your schedule worked out! Congrats on getting the date set!

Keep up the good work!!

The surgeon said I HAD to have someone to take me home. He said they absolutely will not release me to take a cab.