OakCliffMom

Drs. Munoz and Heffernan are both first rate. Munoz performed a cutting edge hysterectomy plus heated interpereteneal chemotherapy on my Mom 3.5 years ago and literally saved her life. Heffernan assisted. Couldn't find another surgeon in Dallas at that time who was doing it. Can't possibly say enough good things about them both!

I am finally feeling better. My friend who is a Dr. came by to check my incisions. She says they are healing well. Then I took a real shower. That helped. Even got a few sips of protien drink down.

Not sure how I missed this Aug. group so far, but here goes. . . My surgery was Aug 7 in Dallas. It was performed by Dr. Nicholas at Forrest Park Medical Center. I had a pretty serious nausea reaction to the anesthesia so I had to stay 2 nights in the hospital. Home now on Dr. Nick's 3 week super thin to clear liquid diet. Sippin some iced tea and starting to feel a little stronger.

My surgery was this past Tuesday, 8/7. I found the pain reasonably manageable, but the nausea was another story. It was so bad that they kept me in the hospital an extra day, and by the time I left, an ounce of plain Water every 15 to 20 minutes was the best I could do. I'm still so swollen and puffy that I haven't even dared to get on the scale. I'll bet I have gained weight at this point! But surely things will turn around in a day or two. I am just hoping to fins a way to keep my energy up. My Dr. requires Clear Liquids (that flow easily through a strainer) for the first 3 weeks, and it turns out, I HATE the nectar Protein. Anybody in DFW want a large tub? I only used one scoop!

I am so sorry. This is day 3 post op for me, and I too am not feeling as well as I thought I would. I guess the good news is I am finally keeping down clear liquids, but not anything else. I just keep hoping its like childbirth where the reward will be so great in the end that we will forget how miserable this was.

I'm in the same boat right now. Surgery was Tues. So sick on Wed that they didn't even try to make me drink. I had constant dry heaves despite all of the anti-nausea cocktails. Home now and barely nursing water and tea. Woke up at 4am nauseous and so scared that I have done this to myself. Somewhat calmer in the light of day, and I'm sure I'll be glad in the long run, but if I had it all to do over again. . . I don't know what I'd do.

I had my surgery Aug. 7th (Tuesday) and experienced a prolonged nausea reaction to the anesthesia, so I didn't even try to keep down Water until yesterday (Thursday). Now its Friday and I am super weak having not even had a Protein shake since Monday. My Dr. wants us to use nectar for the first 3 weeks. He's super strict about thin liquids during that time, but I cannot stomach the taste of the Nectar. Suggestions?

I had my surgery Tues. Aug 7th about noon. I had a prolonged reaction to the anesthesia. So nauseous I couldn't do anything on post op day 1. It was much better today, though, so I am finally home!

I'll skip the "How I Got Here" business for now. If you are interested, you can mosey on over to the "My Story" section of my profile to check it out. . . And I promise you, its a doozey. But today I'm needing to remind myself of "WHY I'm Here." In this case, "Here" being less than 48 hours away from dun dun dun. . . elective surgery. Oh, the horror! (Trust me, if you had my medical anxiety you'd understand. Every time someone compares their surgical countdown to waiting for Christmas, every fiber in my being revolts.) (1) T-Shirts. I love T-Shirts. Nice soft, baggy T-Shirts. At my size, however, there is no guarantee that you can find such a T-Shirt, and if you can, its not likely to be flattering. This is particularly problematic when a T-Shirt is required - say to lead a group of kids at a school function. I really just want to be able to sign up to volunteer without worrying whether they will offer a 2X and, if so, whether it will be a generous 2X or not. (2) Energy. My people are notoriously low energy going back generations on my mom's side. I have several female cousins, and most of us suffer from it in one way or another. Unfortunately, someone forgot to relay this fact to my kids. They are just not the quiet, bookworm types that I was growing up. I've had my thyroid tested (normal), done a sleep study (no apnea) and taken up exercise. And yet, I still seem to be the only person I know who can pass out cold on the couch after 45 minutes of dance fitness. I am hopeful that losing the weight will help me perk up a little and give me the stamina I need to keep up with the many demands on my life. (3) Speaking of Exercise. One of my closest friends has recently made a mid-life career change from Childrens' Minister to Dance Fitness Instructor. So I go along for the ride. As exercise goes, its fun. But is it too terrible to say that I would rather not be the biggest girl in the room? I don't need to be the smallest, mind you. Just not the biggest. (4) Photographs. I'm a photographer. Few things make me happier than capturing a beautiful smile, a sparkle in my subjects' eyes. More often than not, of course, those subjects are my kids. I realized recently that I have never sat for a portrait with either of my two youngest kids, and a stranger flipping through the family snapshots might just think that my husband is a single dad. Somewhere about five years ago, I just stopped being in pictures and that's not fair to my kids. It really bothers my oldest boy. Maybe we will all be in the family Christmas picture this year. (5) Air Travel. I used to be a gung ho traveller. Domestic. International. I could be ready to go in a moment's notice. But after my kids were born, there just didn't seem to be the time or money. I recently took a trip to a photography workshop, and is it just me, or have plane seats gotten smaller. Wait. I think it is just me. Its stressful enough in the post 9/11 world to get on a plan in the first place without having to worry about how big the two people sitting on either side of you are and whether you will survive the cramped posture that you all will be forced into. And don't even get me started on the seat belts. I didn't have to ask for an extender, but I know that I have to do something to keep that humiliation out of my future. (6) Disney World. I LOVE Disney World. Yes, I know it is ridiculously expensive and crowded. But for me, the magic over comes the madness, and it really is the happiest place on earth. At least until I start to stare down those older rides and wonder whether or not I am going to be too big for the seats. I look forward to the day when I can look at my kids and say "Yes, of course I will ride that with you," without a moments hesitation. (7) Pain. Over the past couple of years, I have started to experience random aches and pains, particularly in my back, but occasionally in my knees and hips too. I've got to believe that hauling around less weight, thereby relieving the stress on my body, will help with some of that. I'm not even 40, after all. (8) The Gap. I used to love to shop there. Anne Taylor too. Why are big girl clothes so expensive? (9) Social Anxiety. My husband has to wine and dine for work. I used to, if not LOVE going along, be able to tolerate it. Now I rarely go. Nothing to wear. Too uncomfortable about how i look to try to meet and impress new people. The same is true of joining Moms groups and seeing my old college friends. Don't get me wrong, I have a core group of people that I hang with, but I used to be much more outgoing and fun loving before I became so self conscious about my appearance. (10) My Kids. I love them more than life itself and want to do everything that I can to be a fun and active mom for them throughout their childhoods. This list isn't exhaustive, but its a good start, and hopefully will serve as a good reminder when, over the next 48 hours, that little bit of panic creeps in and I start to rethink my decision.

Praying that all is going well for you. My surgery is tomorrow. Looking forward to getting it over with.

My surgery is two days away too. I am extremely stressed, but that is no surprise as I have a long documented case of medical anxiety. That's how I knew I really wanted to do this. . . for me even to voluntarily go to the doctor is huge. Elective surgery? Now that is crazy talk! But I am surviving with my usual coping mechanisms, minus one, of course. I am sleeping a lot and distracting my brain with movies, audio books and craft projects. I actually made a pencil case out of duct tape yesterday. I know I will be so much better when the surgery part is over. I have found the pre-op diet to be fairly manageable (in other words, I'm not starving), but I must say, at this point I am somewhat sick of my food options. I've had enough rotisserie chicken and filet to last me a while. I'm actually looking forward to all liquids. . . at least that will eliminate the what can I eat tonight dilemma of my days. And frankly, when we are talking mushies, for this non-meat login girl, pureed refried Beans sounds devine! I seriously thought about skipping my meal altogether today, but this myfitnesspal thingy keeps telling me that I am putting my body into starvation mode by consuming way too few calories. Of course, that panicked me (if I've gone to all this trouble, I had better actually lose weight) so grilled chicken salad it is. The good news is, I am about .4 pounds away from having lost 5% of my total body weight, which was my doctors goal for the pre-op diet. If you count the 2 pounds I actually gained eating out the day before starting the pre-op diet, thats just shy of 15 pounds. Hoping that is enough to have shrunk my liver enough to make for a safe surgery.

I've been on the pre-op diet 13 days, and yes, in the beginning I felt a little nausea. I think that I (not a big meat eater) was not used to the concentrated levels of protein. It didn't last more than a few days, though.

My Dr. says not until 21 days out. He is adamant that your sleeve needs this time to heal. Good luck!

I will have my surgery with Dr. Nick on August 7th. I saw a hospital dietician yesterday who had nothing but great things to say about Dr. Nick and his process. Still, I am nervous about the surgery. When you feel up to it, would you post about your experience after surgery?

Congratulations! Very encouraging. I have close to the same start weight (246) and would LOVE to be below 200 by mid-October. Its been 8 years since I've seen the 100s. Looking forward to it.

Very encouraging. Congratulations! And thank you for sharing.

My surgery is schedule for Aug. 7th, and I too have conflicting feelings about it. I have a long and very well documented history of anxiety over medical issues, so I even though I was excited at first, I expected the trepidation to crop up as my surgery date neared. Now that I am on the pre-op diet, and therefor, forced to think about it quite a bit, I am starting to panic. I know this road to a healthier lifestyle is the way to go, but the thought of having some horrible complication, or worse dying, as a result of elective surgery is starting to keep me up at night. How on earth would my children ever deal with that? I'm just going to try and keep my head down and push through it.

I too am on day two of the pre-op diet and scheduled for Aug. 7th. Feeling really low on energy today. Hoping that turns around soon. Best of lucy to you.

My Story. Well, if that isn't a loaded title I don't know what is. I have so many stories. I guess since this is a weight loss forum, I should start with the story of my weight. That tale shakes out more like a timeline, really. Childhood: Chubby kid. Recall dieting with my mom as early as the third grade. High School: Got down to about a size 8-10. Used Jenny Craig or Nutri Systems. . . Can't even remember which one. Most of College: Gained it all back and then some. Darn those Provolone grilled bagels at the Coates Center and Queso and Tortillas from TC's. Senior Year: Jenny Craig again. Modest weight loss, but this time it seemed to stick. And then there was Law School (i.e. the best diet ever for a Type A student who suddenly found herself in over her head academically for the first time): Nothing will send a metabolism into overdrive like pure fear of failure. Combine that with living in a remote town with only 1 fast food restaurant and no more student dining and waaalaa (really not sure how you spell that) the weight just sort of started falling off. I was a solid size 8, sometimes even a 6, by the time I graduated. The Wedding: You'll no doubt have noticed that I never really mentioned exercise up to this point. I never really did any, either, until the year of my judicial clerkship, which actually coincided with my engagement. That year I spent in an even more remote town where the only local that I had anything at all in common with happened to be a former CPA who decided to open a gym after her own weight loss journey. So I started working out. . . a lot. I had a 9-5 job and a long distance relationship. What else was there to do? I used a food and exercise journal (maybe a little too religiously) and by the wedding, I was 124 pound, hiking up my size 4 Vera Wang, which I really should have had altered one more time, and loving it. Its a good typing I got pictures, but my kids barely recognize me in them. My 30s: Big city private law practice with its 12 hour days spent mostly behind my desk and its ready access to a constant stream of icy cold diet dr. peppers, we not kind to me on a number of fronts, one of which was my figure. After 10 years of relatively steady weightless or maintenance, 30 found me up a few pounds and pregnant with my first child. Every pound made me want to cry, and believe me there were many to cry over. Its like my body craves weight during pregnancy. I can gain 10 pound before that second line will even think about appearing on that stick. My boy was born, and I went back to Jenny Craig. Third times the charm? Well, not so much in my case. I think I got back down to 180 or so, but then there was the next pregnancy, and the next. I miscarried those babies at about 13 weeks, but I still found, and kept, a few pounds with each. Then there was the adoption weight. . . . who knew the stress of adopting would pack on the pounds like that. Then, when my beautiful daughter was only 6 weeks old, I discovered I was carrying her baby brother. At that point I was 208 which, miraculously, I managed to get back down to by the time I left the hospital with him. They call my OB the Weight Nazi for good reason. Then, just as I had hired a trainer and was headed for a healthier lifestyle, my mom was diagnosed with ovarian cancer, my dad with MS. As an only chid and a mother of a then 5 year old, one year old and a 6 month old baby, I switched into crisis mode, quit my job and became the worlds most over-educated chauffeur. My babies spent their first couple of years strapped into car seats as we drove NaNa and Pops from one doctors appointment to another. Her chemo therapy sessions were long 12 hour days and she was hospitalized more than once. He spent 6 weeks in a rehab hospital and ultimately lost the use of his legs. You can't believe how many prescriptions they had between them. And I managed it all. I also gained about 40 more pounds in the process. Please do not get me wrong. It was worth it. My mom is enjoying full remission from a disease that everyone said would kill her, and my dad is stable in an assisted living facility if not enjoying the retirement we had hoped for him. My kids are smart and beautiful at 3, 4 and 8, and it is time that I turn this weight issue around once and for all. So, I have decided to get the gastric sleeve procedure. A colleague of my husband had it a few years back and has enjoyed amazing results. I know it is not a quick fix, merely a tool, but I have decided that I owe myself that jump start after all I have been through over the past 3 years. I know that I can stick to a program once I get good and into it. I just need to make sure that, this time, I am not derailed by life's unexpected tragedies. I have enlisted the help and support of my dear friend who has found her second career as a dance fitness instructor, and I am looking towards a brighter future where I can keep up with my kids, at least a little better, and shop for clothes in regular stores. My surgery date is August 7.

I'm scheduled for August 7th in Dallas.