juny

My process to getting this surgery started last May. I'm coming up on my surgery date of feb. 5. I have preop appointment on the 23rd. I'm anxious. I'm bracing myself for a very difficult few months while simultaneously hoping for the best outcome. Getting myself to this point has been a challenge, one I think we all know really well. I haven't gained all my weight back from my 6month supervised diet, but I have gained about 8lbs, out of the 35 that I lost. So I'm stressing a little about that. I'm having increased anxiety about the fact that I'm getting little or no support at home. Today we made the calendar this month and put the dates on for my doctors appointment, my mom did not appreciate this at all. Her only words to me in regard to the surgery now are, 'you're going to be sorry.' I wish it didn't hurt as bad as it does to have someone I'm so close to so vehemently disagree w/ what I'm doing. This is a little off the path but bear with me: When you have friends/family who are going to buy a new house/car, you come over they show it to you or they bring you along on the open house.....They aren't asking for your permission to buy the car or to validate your wisdom on the purchase. You're there to coo over their new stuff and maybe give ideas about what you can do w/ the house upon purchase to make it even better! Even if it's not the nicest house, or in the nicest neighborhood, or if the car is used, it's not your job to tell them they were stupid or could have done better or YOU'RE GOING TO BE SORRY. It's clear she's not going to support me regardless of the outcome. It's just making the difficult stuff even harder and being at home w/ her is just making it worse. I really didn't want to be the person w/ the mommy issues.....I'M TOO OLD FOR MOMMY ISSUES! I just need to get through the next month or so....I really don't know how I'm going to do it, I just am.

Depends on your surgeon, I've heard it going both ways. Some wait a few months and others have them both done at the same time.

http://www.verticalsleevetalk.com/topic/59339-leak-survivors-a-little-help/ Fairy recent, it's a list of some of the worst experiences vsg has to offer. I want to say insurance companies will pay for the complications especially since they're life threatening.

People think it will stretch your sleeve. I really don't believe this since to me larger quantities of food are more likely to stretch your stomach than some lighter than air bubbles in a few ounces of pop. I mostly quit pop in may after the seminar, which said no more pop, no real explanation as to why . However, I was a freaking addict about the stuff and it was all I drank, a lot of people around this forum are. I've had 3 pops in the last 6 weeks or so. It's well Water in my area and during christmas parties some houses have undrinkable water for me (I can't do the taste). It took me well over an hour to finish them and it didn't satisfy the way it used to. The pleasant sizzle that I crave is now a burn that I can't stand and I can feel the gas bubbles in my normal, pre surgery stomach. It's more drinkable than well water though. On a side note, I couldn't help but feel my brain reacting really positively while I drank it. My brain was saying knock it back but my tongue was screaming about the burn and then my stomach was a little upset. I think it left my system a little shocked. I had been drinking 6-8 cans a day since I was around 10 so the pathway in my brain is well established but after roughly 6 months of no pop it's just so different for me.

I know, its so frustrating!

my doctors submitted their letter oct 20th, I got my approval by november 5th. They sent me and my wls center copies. they didn't call me I called them to verify they got it. You know they may take their sweet time getting to you but after the 6 month wait I was done being patient....of course I found out the earliest I could get was feb 5 surgery date anyway but still, if I'd waited til they called me I might not have been scheduled til march!

well the vain person in me is rather worried about the opposite...My fat fills in the lines in my face. If I don't have the fat, i'm probably going to have lines, which will distract from the eventual melted wax effect on my body.....yep just depressed myself there a little.

well that eases my mind. I know how anal some docs are about certain meds but they just about ignore everything else. thanks for the info!

/bump....there's got to be some sick people out there.

I agree, I'm so ready and I'm so SO NOT READY.....I think I was more ready for it before the holiday season. I've got some weight to lose before and I'm nervous. I can't believe I'm actually doing this.

My surgery isn't until 2/5. However over this weekend I've been quite sick with a sinus thing/head cold. I've gotten through with the real sudafed and some liquid mucinex (which is worse tasting than nyquil w/o the benefit of putting my lights out). 2 days were quite bad with sinus pressure and pain and just overall crappy feeling. So naturally I'm wondering what you all take when you get sick post op. Obviously, I will eventually be asking my surgeon during our preop meeting but I wondered what if anything your doctors allowed you to take when you were sick. The binder the doctor's office gave me said liquid tylenol was my go to medication for aches and pains but this isn't that. Additionally, do you have an upset stomach from additional sinus drainage into your smaller stomach?

I really don't want to be the person that says you should wait because, having been 120lbs overweight at 15, I'm all too familiar with the he// that is high school. You're body isn't developed though. I wouldn't be comfortable with it as the parent. On the other hand, If I could have avoided the last 15 years of shame for my weight I would do it in a heart beat. I'd work extremely closely with a nutritionist to determine your needs since they're different from adults at the very least. Also keep in mind the whole process can take anywhere between 3 months and a year so even if the go ahead is given you still may have a weight a while. good luck

I'd also ask how long it takes from first consult to surgery. Most insurance companies require 3-6 months of dieting before they approve. I started in May and won't get my sleeve til February. I was under the impression that I'd be able to get in during the November/December time frame. The extra 3 month wait has not done me any favors as I've gained 10 of the 35lbs I've lost. It's so frustrating....the last thing my nutritionist said to me was 'the doctor doesn't like it when patients gain weight.' Ultimately it's my own fault for not staying consistent but this is the whole reason I need the surgery in the first place! The doctor doesn't like it....i'm still chafing....like I give a crap what the doctor likes, I'm not doing this for him! /rant

I think you'll be ok, I know it's hard and I totally agree shutting down certain conversation takes finesse i seriously don't have. Most of the time after a confrontation of sorts I always wonder to myself why didn't I just tell them to stop....I mean we say a million things hoping they get the idea that we don't like what they're saying. But we never tell them to just shut up....you know, nicely I'm working on getting better at it too.

You may need to pull back a bit from her until your surgery. I have a similar mom problem but because of financial constraints while I attempt this wls thing, I'm living at home...and i'm 30.... yay me....If she has questions I answer them. She is not supportive and I know I'm on own for the surgery. It's hard because we're very close in other ways so we've just picked that one thing out, set it aside and continue as if it's not there. This works for us. It might work for you. As an adult you are able to decide what part of your mom you want to have a relationship with and if they can't live w/ it, you see them less until they get the picture that a certain type of conversation will not be entertained. I always make it clear I love her but it's simply not her choice and any conversation to the contrary is not tolerated. It is not easy but until you have boundaries for your mom that she respects you're always going to have this problem. It's not picking a fight and it's not being mean. I think that Cesar Milan says it all the time, you're not being mean when you're setting boundaries, you're just telling them how you want to be treated. You want to have this manipulation for the next 30 years or deal with it when you have kids? Didn't think so. You may have to have uncomfortable moments for the both of you but in the end it will work out and the sooner the better to resolve it. I know exactly how hard it is to not get sucked into that little drama bubble....Good luck.

Thanks! I really always thought it was going to be horrendously difficult but I think it was a mindset issue. I think it's just one choice that changes and it may be why I could do it. It's made me wonder why I can't seem to be as successful w/ better food choices. With food, it's not just one choice it's a choice each time I put something in my mouth or think about what to make for each meal or just when I'm hungry. I have problems mostly with quantity and sometimes with food choices. I think the surgery will help with the quantity but I think i'm on my own for what I actually stick into my mouth.

I was told by my nut: a chewable Multivitamin, b12 1000mcg sublingual, B complex w/ thiamine. 2000iu Vitamin D. Specifically for women, 1200-1500mg daily of a chewable Calcium citrate. And Biotin for hair loss. The B complex is nasty I'm told. I know there's lots of others who have different instructions, but this is this list straight from the binder they gave hand out to everyone that comes through their office.

So I went to a seminar back in May that first introduced me to wls. Of all the things I heard the biggest challenge I felt was going to be the pop thing. You know...the part where you can't really have it anymore. At the time my habit was 4-8 cans a day which I've had for the past 15-20 years (I'm 30). I knew if I couldn't kick that habit I wouldn't ever be able to have the surgery. I mean I knew this was just one of many new rules we have to live by but if I couldn't do this then none of the other stuff mattered. The day of the seminar was the last day for 7 months. Over Thanksgiving I've tried pop again half scared, half curious about my reaction to it since I was so addicted to the stuff. The circumstance came about when there wasn't any water to be had at the party. Well they had water, but it was horrible tasting water and I couldn't drink it. I had half a can of pop. I've since also had a couple tastes of moscato di asti and couple more tastes of pop when there's been no alternative. The result is unexpectedly happy. I don't really like too much of it. The bubbles are too much and it burns going down and then I get all burpy. I can't help but laugh about it since I really thought I'd have something like an alcoholics reaction to their favorite drink, one taste and that would be the end of sobriety for a while. I can't believe I really prefer water but I do. The reverse osmosis machine at our house is wonderfully helpful since it gets a lot of the funny tastes out of our well water. It's been well worth the price. i'm preop but I do believe this is an nsv!

I'd assume giraffes are out of the question. I'm opposed to a balloon shaped like a piggy.

I don't know a whole lot about the balloon. I guess I'd liken it to the band, I'd assume they'd have the same shortcomings as the band ie: no ghrelin reduction, foreign object in your body that needs adjustment, among other things.....what if you pop your balloon?

Hey mine's in February too! I thought I was the only one who's doctor has a 3 month wait after the 6 month supervised diet. I also have no clue what I look like as an adult w/o being fat. I was 120lbs in 6th grade, 270 by my freshman year in high school. It's a completely foreign concept. Unlike you though, self esteem issues have plagued me my whole life. I've also fallen off the wagon in terms of my diet and exercise. It got nice after a sweltering summer and i started walking dogs instead of the gym, now it's cold and I can't get my butt back in the gym. I have 2 months to lose the 8lbs I've gained.....again....This is the whole problem, I can lose but I can't keep on track for more than 6 months at a time. Then I play around w/ 5lbs gaining one month and losing another repeatedly until I just stop trying. I totally relate to the overwhelmed feeling so you're not alone. I'm far out from mine but I won't lie, most of my coping is me acting like it's not something I'm doing. I've only told close friends and my mom. mom=zero support. Makes things harder. Best of luck w/ your surgery. It's going to suck for a bit and then you're probably going to love it like the vast majority of people on this forum. In a year, you'll be amazed how far you've come.

I feel the same way in totally different circumstances. No husband, I'm currently living at my parents home until I get this surgery. Which is just fabulous let me tell you.... When I told my mom in May that this was what I was doing she wasn't a fan but left it alone. Now the closer we get she insists that I'm normal and that it's really all just down to me really, you know....trying....She goes on and on about a distant cousin who's throwing up all the time. It doesn't matter one bit that I tell her that the cousin in question was 500lbs (200lbs on me), had no pre op diet, no counseling, no preparation for a gastric bypass that she didn't really want in the first place. It's so frustrating to have someone living in the same house who is so against what you're trying to do. Every time we bump heads about it i just don't want her to even bother coming to the hospital. But I need someone to drive me there and back. It's so strange to me that her definition of love is to stop me from doing this crazy thing and my definition is accepting and supporting someone's decision. That these two ideas are constantly in conflict and are just going to get worse until the day after my surgery in February. I don't want to have any more conversations w/ her about this because all it does is bring up the fact that we do not agree on what's best for me. God forbid something goes wrong and I really need someone and all I have is that lady telling me,'i told you so.' Sorry for hijacking. I have to vent every freaking time I talk to her about this now.......But I"m still going to do it and so are you. We're going to be fine and everyone else is just going to have to get out of the way. When we finally get to our goals we can look at the people who tried to stop us from becoming the fabulous people we're working on. Then we get to say we told them so. The alternative is unacceptable, I am not waiting another year for my life to begin in earnest. Good luck!

I can imagine how obvious other peoples eating habits become when you're sitting there trying to curb your own. You did great! It'll get easier. At New Year's you'll look fantastic and it'll be the start of a fantastic year for you!

I feel your pain. I finished my required diet in mid october and by 11/5 i had my approval letter. I call for my date....2/5....REALLY!?!?!?!?!?!?!? I'm still upset about it. I'd hoped to have it around christmas so I could take advantage of the extra days off. We should be thrilled that we even got an approval letter or got a date at all....but no. ....not over it.

i felt the same way, if you'd asked me a year ago about any of this stuff I'd look at you funny. yep your tastes can change post op, it's all a process.. You can mix them with milk but for preop diet, it's water only (at least for diet according to my nut). after the clear liquids stage then you can do the milk and whatever else. Also keep in mind some have adverse reactions to protein drinks, like gas and bloating. I had this w/ muscle milk, which was tasty but for the rest of the day my stomach was a symphony.