Momonanomo

This is a great thread!! I love you guys!!!!!!

So...my insurance requires 6 months medically supervised blah blah blah. And I've been gathering all my medical records from the various doctors I've seen over the past couple of years and getting them sent to the coordinator at my surgeon's office. She just called to say she's found enough info to count for 4 of those 6 months! And I have one other doctor I saw who, when I get that chart, will push that up to 5 of the 6 ....and I have an appt with my NUT in March so that will make 6! Yay! Once I get rolling in that part of the program I'll find out what all I have to do as far as preop, like chest xray, ekg, etc., those kine things. Oh and I'll need to do the psych thing. So all that jazz takes approximately 2 months and that brings me to May, ta DA! That's exactly when I was hoping for, and it seems to be working out! woo HOO I love the team at my surgeons office theyaresoincrediblyCOOL! :tongue2:

I would certainly rather be a Darryl Dixon than an Otis :]

he he he you're funny! I'm a fan of the genre as well. Always gotta have your zombie contingency plan, right?!?! lol But yes, I think that being of a healthy weight and more physically fit is a better state to be in -- in ANY case (not just zombie apocalypse). But if there were zombies.... you'd be able to run faster & jump higher. LOL And if you're in a group of people, remember you don't have to be the fastest person, you just have to be faster than the slowest person. ha

zoinks! that's quite a difference! Great job! How much have you lost?

woo HOOOOOOO that is ah-mazing!!!! Good for you girl!! I am so freekin happy for you! go get em tiger!

lmao! dats spooooky Jo! Cat360, nice to meet ya! I too am scared but determined Reading and discussing on VST has been really valuable in learning what to expect. I'm so glad to have found this board and I'm glad you found your way here too!

I agree with Jo -- give the new doc a chance (he might surprise you). If he isn't on board with the plans you've already set in motion, get your surgeon to refer you to a better PCP. Don't assume yet though that this new doc won't be on board. Go in there with conviction knowing you're on the path you've chosen -- doesn't matter what his agenda is. Either he's on board with your decision or you'll find a new doctor, simple as that. best of luck!

Hey! I can't believe it's been 4 weeks already! Sounds like you're doing really well. Do you think the extreme tiredness is from still recovering from surgery, or from the low cal diet? One of the things that has made me move forward with getting the surgery is that my excess weight has zapped my energy and I'm tired all the time....scary to think it could get worse immediately post op before it gets better. Oh well I guess the important thing is that it will get better, ya? What kinds of protein are you enjoying besides the morning shake & nectar? Are you doing any veggies at this point? How's your hydration ? You're working out like a champ so it must be good! Thanks for being the trailblazer for me! And congrats on your successes! Onward!

LOL I love that you took a picture of your tray table down!!!! Love it! I look forward to doing the same some day! Best of luck on your continued awesomeness!

For me.... Once I picked my surgeon I discovered that the NUT and the psych (and the exercise specialist) are all part of his team. If your pcp wants you to do the 3 months supervised with him first, perhaps you could at least do a consult with a surgeon in the meantime....choose your surgeon & find out if he/she has a whole team of people that includes a NUT, etc. They in fact may require that you see their people. Find out first, and that way you won't risk doing something twice....

woo hooo!!! that's great!

After months of deep discussion trying to explain my weight struggles to my husband, who has always been naturally fit & athletic, we finally agreed that this was the best way for him to think of my surgery. So it's a good explanation for 3 year olds AND 40 year olds! LOL!

LOL yes, on youtube I carefully searched for vsg ANIMATION

lmao

i consulted the oracle (aka wikipedia LOL ) and found that short bowel syndrome "is a malabsorption disorder caused by the surgical removal of the small intestine, or rarely due to the complete dysfunction of a large segment of bowel.It usually does not develop unless more than two thirds of the small intestine have been removed. SBS has been designated a rare disease by the EMA,[1] and is eligible for orphan drug designation according to the USFDA.[2" ....so it doesn't sound like a sleeve thing. They only take the long side of the stomach out. That's part of the reason why I chose sleeve over bypass. You can google "vertical sleeve gastrectomy image" and find all kinds of pictures (drawings if you're squeamish!). I tried to attach one here but it isn't working. . . .

hanging around VST!!!!!

thanks everyone! I know the majority of my questions are of the just-have-to-wait-n-see variety. I hope to come back in a few months and be able to answer each one with my personal experience. LifetimeLoser! girl! I read today that you've actually achieved your goal of 30lbs! Awesome! You're doing so well and it sounds like physically you're doing really well as far as recovery from the surgery. I'm so glad! I will ask Dr F for a pic. I'm sure it will be lovely. lol. OOh you should post yours on the board though! People would love to see! Juny-- I think you're on to something there! I really think, now that you mention it, that 6 mos psych counseling would be infinitely more beneficial than nutritional counseling for most of us. I know me for sure. I've never been afraid to ask for help, so there's no stigma as far as I'm concerned. I ~know~ all the proper diet guidelines. I was a leader for WW years ago for goodness sake! My problem is that I cannot control myself to follow it. And in a way, it messes with my head even more knowing what to do but not being able to do it! I had a dream the other night where I was going into surgery and this disembodied voice said "you need to deal with your food addiction". Ha ! Not very symbolic for a dream is it? My subconscious was being pretty darn straightforward! Lyra My mom was a military kid, and her philosophy has always been to "walk it off". I've teased that even if I broke my leg she would tell me to "walk it off". BUT...she had a double knee replacement and the reason she has full range of motion now & better than ever is because she was so good about getting up and walking during her recovery!

Lyra you're a sweetheart for having read my whole long-winded post and given me some answers from your personal experience. Thank you! I also REALLY like your attitude about no remorse. I don't think I'd ever regret it, because I want this change so badly, and I WANT food to not be the focus of my life anymore. So I won't regret it if I don't love food anymore. I think perhaps any remorse I might have will be if I'm hurting a great deal in recovery. I'll just have to enjoy pain meds and know it will get better. If being in a lot of pain even happens. ......Ah, I see that I am worrying about something that may not even happen...that's not very productive is it? Oooh kickboxing! I hadn't even thought of that! That sounds awesome and I'm adding it to my list!! I loved reading about your experiences. You've definitely helped. Thank you!

I like the lines of the dress. Beautiful!

I agree! My sneaking suspicion (and I'm not alone) about the obesity epidemic is that it has its roots in the processed foods that most Americans have come to live on. We live our lives on them and our health spirals down while our weight goes up. Unprocessed, regular food "like peas, chicken, tofu, salad, fish" is no doubt the best way to eat. So while protein shakes n bars n bastard cheetos have their place, they too are really just more of this processed food . We need to get away from the "because it's convenient" mentality as much as possible and have a "because it's good for me" mentality!

what a COOL career you have!! I always thought highly of the people behind Sesame Street, but it's nice to hear that my gut-feeling was right. How wonderful for you! And, now you've got that positive momentum in your life, you can just keep getting better n better! Congrats on your surgery and your success and all the wonderful things that have happened. I know you have a happy life ahead of you and continued success! I'm so excited for you

Hi – this ridiculously long entry really is for me to organize all the questions I’ve been having as I progress on this journey. I don’t expect answers, because in many cases it’s different for different people. I’ve been on VST for many months now, reading every experience I can. I think this has been instrumental in educating me enough that I feel comfortable proceeding with the pursuit of the sleeve. I feel I’ve learned a lot about what to possibly expect. But I’ve also learned enough to know that people’s experiences can vary greatly or be very similar. So in that spirit, I’m committing to the blogosphere my personal ponderings. I intend to revisit all these sometime post surgery and have some answers. - Will I have to fight much with insurance to get approved? I’m working with my surgeon’s office to do the 6 month thing, and have requested all my files be sent to surgeon’s office to see how many of the 6 months have already been met. I feel like a show pony doing a tap dance – I will do whatever they want! Just approve me already! - Once approved by insurance, when can the surgeon schedule me? Will they bump me up if I say pretty please? - When I have my date, will my sweet husband decide he’s too scared of the risk of me doing this? I have been patiently educating this wonderful, naturally fit & athletic man about what it’s like to have a weight problem, and I believe he does understand, after many long talks , why I can’t “just try harder”…. - When I have my date will *I* get scared of the risk and freak out? I’ve read on VST that it’s common. I am reading VST every day and doing some hard core soul searching. I want to be as mentally and emotionally prepared as possible. Even so, some fear is to be expected…just hope it’s not the high BP kine, or the kine where you jump off the OR table in the gown where your butt’s hanging out and run away lol - When I check in the hospital for surgery, will I be able to let go and not worry about how my family is doing while I’m in surgery? Will I focus on worrying what my husband will have for lunch, or will I be thinking about my stomach being cut out….on second thought, probably better to wonder what hubby is having for lunch. - What will it be like to go under anesthetic? What will it be like to wake up? Will I say anything embarrassing? Will I sing? Will I tell jokes? - Will the surgeon be able to do the single incision at my belly button as planned? How big will the incision be? Will my belly button ever look the same? Or will he need to do additional incisions? Can’t imagine my gi-normous stomach coming out a little bitty puka. Does he cut it up to get it out? Or fold it? Or roll it up like a yoga mat? Do I really wanna know? Glad I won’t be awake to see :] - Will I be in much pain when I wake up? Will I be nauseous? Lord I’d rather be in pain than throw up. VST shows a wide variety of how people feel waking up. I know there are a lot of factors including how I react to the anesthesia and pain meds. - Will I be able to walk and sip water easily? I read and read here that I should “walk walk walk, sip sip sip”. That will be my job, hope I’m good at it. - Will each day get better and better? What will be my worst day? - When I come home, will I be able to sleep in my bed ? Will I be exhausted? I’m exhausted all the time anyway now so maybe it won’t be much different - Will I have difficulty with swallowing water? This has been something I’ve tried really hard to imagine and honestly it is pretty much beyond my realm of imagination. To have a hard time with a teeny sip of water….what about my own spit? Is it hard to swallow that? Will I drool? OK I’m being silly. But seriously…. Will I even have spit if I can’t drink a decent amount of water?! - Will my incision heal nicely or will my weird-@ss skin react to the bandage or whatever doc uses. Will I get itchy? Hivey? Will I be able to take my allergy medicine? - How long will I need pain medicine? Will it help? Will I need an acid blocker right away? Will it help? - Will I be a slow lose or a fast loser? Honestly, doesn’t matter much to me, so long as I’m a BIG loser! - Will my tastes change? OMG I want to lose my sweet tooth! And my Mexican food tooth! - What will I learn about my relationship with food? I know I am already exploring this, and I want to find a counselor sooner than later. I truly believe that I am not an emotional eater. I do believe that I am a hard core food addict though. Explaining that will be another entry some time. - How soon will I feel human again after this major surgery? How soon will I feel like going back to work? So MANY different experiences with other VST folks. This question is truly unpredictable as far as I can tell. He he he …. Oh I’d say I never want to go back to work…..cuz it’s work. But how soon will I be able to go back. Unless of course I suddenly become independently wealthy during my recovery. Even then, I’d want to go back and organize my files…. - Will I experience the “buyer’s remorse” phase like so many do? How long will it last for me? - Will I experience the moodiness and depression some feel? I wonder…but knowing it’s a common occurrence will help me battle it if it does show up. Depression is a sneaky monster, but knowing it’s hormones is a great way to arm myself in that battle. - Will I experience the other thing the ladies on VST sometimes talk about in regards to the hormones after surgery? Will I finally tire out my hubby insteada the other way around? - What will it be like to finally have success in a weight loss endeavor and know I can make it long term. I know it will be work, and I know I will be embarking on a major life change. But how will it feel to know I actually have a great chance of achieving my goals? How exciting! Happy dance! - Will I lose hair? I know many people do….understandably there’s lots of discussion about it. Take biotin, but be prepared for hair growth to increase everywhere on the body Also, Biotin helps with regrowth, not preventing loss. Eat lots of protein. Well hell, this is a motivator for sure! I know with the fresh sleeve it will be difficult to eat. But I will make damn sure what I do eat will be protein! Meh, if it falls out , it will grow back. I would embrace the added body all the little short hair would give to my maine. Snick – I hope to remember to be so flippant if/when my hair is laying in clumps in the shower drain - Will I have loose skin? Hmmm…probably. I aim to strength train to help with this, and I hope I’m being realistic to think it won’t be major for me, but no doubt there will be some. And I hope I’m cool with it. I tell myself that right now I don’t look good dressed OR naked, so at least losing 120# I would look good dressed. But the truth is I just want to FEEL good and I need to lose significant weight to feel good. So I will take the saggy skin in whatever degree it comes. I don’t aspire to work for Victoria Secret. And who knows….maybe, just maybe, if I am able to become super athletic, over the years the saggy skin will tighten itself up a bit. Because of my raging muscles lol - I can’t wait to be an Active Person and lead an Active Lifestyle! So I know all the things I want to do: weight training, spinning and/or cycling, long distance hiking, surfing, stand up paddle boarding, zumba, other dancing, pilates, yoga, maybe jogging??, rock climbing, horseback riding, tennis, racquet ball….I just wonder which one will be my favorite? I sooooo look forward to finding out! - And the elephant in the room of course is – will I have complications? I don’t want to get too much into this particular topic. Suffice to say I have read the stories on VST of the folks who have had complications while healing. This is part of the soul searching I talked about at the beginning of this post. I understand there are serious risks to this very drastic surgery. It makes me a little sad to think that I have gotten to the point where I know that my quality of life and my hopes for the future are worth the risks of this surgery. But I truly believe this is the case. I will be a model patient, and I have faith in my surgeon & his team,........and the rest is in God’s hands. If I have complications, I pray He sees fit to bring me through it so I can stick around and do good things for the world.

ironic isn't it?!

serendipity thanks for clearing up my misunderstanding of the bypass. honestly when i learned they rearrange everything i said "no thank you" ! and the bit about turning your intestine into a stomach...just ewww