SKNYMEBY47

You may have something there, cause it is my cheeks...

Hey Tasha, I sent my boxes today, I hope they enjoy them cause I loved filling the box... I don't know how others send out there boxes but here is a suggestion if you are planning on doing this Pen Pal stuff every month, you might want to look into opening up like a "stamps.com" account (that's what I did) and then use the "flat rate - priority mail" boxes (they have a bunch of different sizes; small, medium, large and they come in square and flat book kind of style) then what you can do is print your own label and postage for the box (which is a little cheaper when you print it online) and it includes free delivery confirmation and also you can request them to come pick up the box so you don't even have to go to the post office and I believe you can have them pick the box up where ever you need them to.... at your home or office or whatever is convenient for you.... Just a suggestion, I find it so much easier (and like I said a tad bit cheaper too). Also, I almost forgot you can order supplies (like the boxes however many you need different size, so you can test out which one will work best for you - and the boxes and those supplies are FREE) and they will send them right to your house. The only supplies they will make you pay for are the labels you buy to print your shipping label/postage on. But boxes can be ordered and delivered to you free.....

I hear that I have 24 or 25 more days depending on whether you count today (the 15th of March or not) but I can't wait either, it feels like it has been forever waiting for the last 6 months to be over, but now that I'm down to the last couple of weeks they seem to be going by what feels like longer than the 6 months did... Just want to get the surgery part over already. I have a neice who just had it done on the 13th and they let her go home on the 14th, that was surprising but we are going to different hospitals too and mine says three days in counting the day of surgery.... I plan on bringing my Iphone (I don't go anywhere without that thing) and I have to bring some ID's for checking into the Hospital but other than that nothing else the hospital told me they will provide the toiletry stuff like tooth paste, tooth brush, etc.

] Tammy, I was waiting for you to post here so I could apologize.... I'm glad you liked your stuff but I was so preoccupied with stuffing everything in there I had totally forgot to add a note that I wanted to add.... Lessons learned I guess.... So my note to future senders of the boxes, don't forget to add your personal notes or letters to the boxes before you seal them shut...LOL Robin

I have recently discovered an issue I started having with my teeth. I am currently still pre-op, but I've had to lose, at the request of my surgeon, 25lbs before surgery. I've noticed that as I've been losing this pre-op weight it seems like my teeth are getting too big for my mouth, I know that sounds kind of weird but the reason I say that is because I have a couple of canker sores in my mouth that won't go away because my teeth keep cutting into my cheeks and this only started as I began losing so much weight. So I was wondering if anyone out there has experienced the same type of thing after they started losing weight after surgery? And what did you do about it? I don't have dental insurance and don't have a ton of money to spend on all kinds of dental work (that stuff is so expensive) so I'm trying to figure out of it is just a "phase" I'm going through or will I continue to have trouble after surgery when I start losing more weight? Thanks.

I feel the same way, My date is Also April 8 and I too had to go through 6 months of Nutrition classes and all kinds of Doctor's apts., etc. I still have one more Nut. Meeting a week from this coming Wednesday and then it's wait again for the Pre-Op apt. on March 27. All the waiting is so frustrating and when I started back in Oct. I thought it would never get here, but here I am so close and now it's all about getting organized and ready for the hospital stay and such, and yet I don't even have insurance approval yet either. I just can't wait for the surgery part to be over so I can get on with my new life.

That is good to know cause I need my F.V. creamer but I know the regular stuff is so bad for me, but finding a sugar free form might at least be a step in the right direction...

If you were able to get a hotel room and stay up there maybe you could take a cab or public transport back and forth the day of the EGD, that way you won't have to worry about driving, just a suggestion. But whichever is safest and best way for you and your family is best. Good luck on which ever way you decide, I hope it all works out right for you.

Thanks for the info, I just ordered a set of the variety pack to try out....

I know how you feel, I live in the Northeast and I originally planned this whole thing so that by spring I would have my surgery so by summer I will hopefully be losing all the weight and looking good in the better weather where you can show it off more. I had to start back in October, as my insurance requires 6 moths of the Nutrition classes and all those other doctors appts.... Meeting with the surgeon, group dietitian, one on one dietitian, the monthly nutrit. meetings, psychological meetings, PCP meetings... so many to get through before my insurance will even okay the surgery. I never thought about the weather factor when I started cause the last year or so here in the Northeast we had it easy hardly any snow at all..... NOT THIS YEAR THOUGH... It has been snow storm after snow storm this year... and although I do have to admit so far I have been lucky that it hasn't yet stopped me but I still have a few more appt. before surgery day to get through and I pray that snow does not get in the way. I have one more monthly meeting to go through and Please, Please powers that be don't screw that one up for me, cause if I miss that last one, I have to start all over again with the six months and that would be the end for me.... there is no way I could go through all this for another six months that would kill me.... so I will cross my fingers as tight as I can a pray all goes well for me and hope and pray for you as well that things work out for you cause I know how frustrating it can all be when you work so hard for something and then something beyond your control takes it all away and people .... like your insurance company just doesn't understand..... Good Luck.....

Tasha, are you going to start a separate group for posting once the boxes start arriving cause this stream is already so long?

I know what you mean.... I can't wait either and mine isn't until April 8th......

I posted earlier too but thought of more as well.... Can't wait to be able to stand and cook without collapsing from the pain in my back and knees. Both the bathroom stall issue like everyone else and also (pardon my vulgarness) wipe my butt without it being a major struggle.... To also be the lightest one of my sisters instead of the heaviest. To be able to borrow close from anyone and pretty much know they'll fit. To go to the Doctors and not have to be embarrassed when they hand you a Johnny you both know won't even come close to fitting but the "little ones" are all they have. Like everyone else, to not feel like everyone is staring at you when you walk in a room and thinking... Dam she's so fat.... To not need the extension on the seatbelt in my car because apparently the foreign car makers don't understand that we Americans aren't all tiny, skinny people. To not dread actually stepping on the scale at the doctors office anymore. To actually know what "Victory's Secret" really is.... LOL To not be do afraid to stand up for myself and get what I deserve at my job, instead of always feeling ashamed and worthless because of being so fat. (And the first thing I plan to do when I get back to work after my surgery)..... Ask for the raise that they know I deserve. I'm sure I'll think of more as time goes on and I'll be back to post again.... LOL

I'm pre-op as well but not within the two week plan yet (mine surgery is in April) but I know how you feel, I got sick recently for a couple of weeks and I was too sick to care about tracking anything or watching what I ate and I thought I messed up big time. I thought I had gained all the weight (as you put it) that I had worked so hard to lose, back on and then some... but believe it or not I went to the Drs. the other day and I actually still lost weight, I was so shocked you could have knocked me over with a feather. I was so worried cause I hadn't been able to go to the gym and wasn't watching or even caring about what I was eating or watching my calories...nothing and I still lost.... now don't get me wrong I'm back on track now that I'm feeling better and I highly recommend tracking the calories and Protein and stuff (of course more so after surgery) and I'm back to the gym and stuff to help me keep going in the right direction but I guess sometimes hard work pays off even when you miss behave a little.... so don't sweat it too much... my surgeon told me the same thing that the others stated here... as long as your going in the right direction (losing weight or trying to lose it before surgery) he said don't worry so much about how much you have to lose (I was told I had to lose 25lbs before April).... I'm down 16lbs so far so I figure as long as I keep trying and heading in the right direction the Doctor will still do the surgery even if I don't quite reach that 25lbs... Thank Goodness, that takes some pressure off....LOL

I went through something similar, when I did my stress test, during the test I had a bit of a "chest pain" issue and we had to stop the test right away and I had to lay down and wait like 10 mins for the pain to go away (it was a weird, tightning of the chest that started just below my breasts then moved it's way up between them to the top of my chest) so the person doing the tests made everything sound okay and normal and she said the Doc would contact me to go over the results in detail. Next day the Doctor called and put me on a Baby aspirin reginmin and put me on a Betablocker (I already take a blood pressure pill mind you).... and I was taking motrin and/or alternating with Naproxen sodium for pain in my back and knees from minor surgery years ago that just didn't heal correctly, so he tells me I can't take either of them anymore... so I'm thinking great so I have to go back to suffering and not being able to sleep at night because of the pain. But he said he will keep me on the aspirin and betablocker at least until after the surgery and then see if once I start loosing the weight if my chest pain thing goes away on it's own then he will take me off them... Thank goodness for my primary, I had to beg her to give me something to help the pain just until my surgery which is April 8, 2013... Man I can't wait for that day... and I so hope I'm able to get rid of all these pills I have to take... sorry, I just realized I got carried away with my story there.... writing is a hobby of mine, sometimes you give a topic and I can go on and on for hours.... I tend to forget where I am so to speak.... Sorry about my ramble ladies, but Celebrate*Me, I just wanted you to know you're not alone a lot of us have to go through those crazy tests to be approved for this surgery stuff... And some people think this is the easy way out... NOT!

Thanks for the info, never even thought about the fact that after surgery you really need to add the surgery to your medical alert bracelet.... Thanks again, I will def. check it out.

Kellbell5, I know exactly how you feel... I get asked that question all the time. My lowest moment was one day at the drive thru at Wendy's, the young kid working the window was handing me my order and said "oh someone's eating for two....", I felt so low cause he was getting me for a two fold, apparently in his mind I must have ordered too much food for one person and the other part was I apparently looked pregnant to him.... I have never forgotten that and that one happened many years ago. Another time I was checking out at BJ's Wholesale Club and the cashier asked and such a joyful tone... when I was due, I turned to her and said in a very low and angered voice.... "I'm not"... at least she said "oh I'm sorry" but the damage was already done.... As you sort of aluded to, for several reasons not just medical, I can never have children so a statement like that hurts in more ways than just one. I sometimes wish people would think before they speak sometimes, that's all....

I'm glad someone thought to ask this question, I'm also pre-op but have been thinking about that. My husband and I don't have much sex now, we have all the excuses of I'm too tired, too busy, too whatever and in the beginning I wanted it all the time but because he is 13 years older than I am I thought for him he was just loosing his drive but I later discovered we are usually on totally different schedules... he is more frisky in the morning and I'm more frisky at night.... so he is usually too tired and exhausted at night and I'm so busy trying to get up and get ready for work mornings are no good for me.... but I recently went through this whole medical issue with my periods (they were really bad, heavy and unstoppable.... I have PCOS also and it took about 20 years between being diagnosed with it and the first cysts to develop) so after several constant trips to the ER and my Doctors, my Doctor finally did an Endometrial ablation, so for several weeks after that procedure we could have sex anyway, but now I don't know if it has something to do with that procedure or something else but I too have lost my drive. I just don't care about sex the way I use to. I am hoping that will change after surgery and hoping that maybe I will gain the energy and "drive" back... but I am worried that I might have gone through the "change" and didn't even notice. Which would totally bite, cause once I loose the weight I'll probably be able to do all kinds of "things" and it would kind of bite if I had gone through the change and never cared about sex again....

Talk about revenge, I have a friend who when her husband told her he wanted a divorce she got so mad, she started feeding him Alpo.... No lie, she started making his meals with freaking dog food and he gobbled it up, and loved it... which should have been is first clue cause she even admits she is not a good cook generally.... but then he would take the left overs to work for lunch the next day as well.... and when they finally split up she had left him with several dishes in the freezer all made with the dog food... which I'm guessing not only did he eat and love, but I'm sure he shared it with his new girlfriend that he started seeing before they got divorced..... Now that is revenge to the extreme....

My Husband sometimes does the same thing to me, If I bring something into the house that I know I probably shouldn't really have anyway, but once in a great while I might pick something up..... like the other day I picked up some muffins for "breakfast" I picked up a few different kinds because I prefer blueberry and cranberry, and he likes ones like corn and bran.... so I brought them home at night and within a few minutes he was already eating one and it wasn't the ones I bought him.... Now he is not skinny or anything but it just makes me so mad that I have to (like some of you mentioned) hide food if I ever want to get any of it. It makes me feel guilty as if I'm doing something wrong. And he always says to me, you know I hate that stuff being in the house, so I say then why do you eat it on me... he says well I eat it cause I don't want it in the house.... Are you freaking serious....LOL

Wow, i was getting a bit scared reading this thread I'm still in the pre-op stage but i take a ton of pills for all kinds of stuff but my surgeon said he believed for the most part I would probably be eliminating most of them right after surgery, but then as I was reading this thread and seeing how many of you still have to take them I started thinking holy cow there is no way I'd be able to crush all those pills and no way I'll be able to swallow them whole. Thank goodness you guys mentioned they make this stuff in liquid form, that is great to know just in case i still will have to take some of my pills. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS INFO... It's a life saver.

Is it too late to get in on this one, it sounds like a really great idea. Jensbuddy9716@verizon.net Thanks

I know how you feel, I have to do 6 Nut sessions myself (I'm on month 4 in Jan), I go back to see the surgeon on Jan 17 and that's when we will actually schedule my surgery. I kind of know how you feel about not wanting to tell people, I felt the same way in the beginning. I am the youngest of 7 and I also have 20+ nieces and nephews so I know what it feels like to come from all that pressure. But early on, and once I started visiting sites like this and seeing everyone's video posts on YouTube and stuff, I suddenly realized this surgery is far more common place these days to the point that I don't think it carries the same stigma that it once did. There are still people out there that will give you a hard time about it, or try to accuse you of taking the easy way. That is all hog wash, as you know this is no easy road, there is so much you have to do to just to prepare for surgery and then all that you have to go through after surgery, there just is no way that this is the easy way out. But for some of us it is the difference between living and dying, plain and simple. You shouldn't feel awkward or ashamed to tell anyone that you're going to have this surgery, your deciding to live a better and healthier life, what is so wrong about that. You should feel proud that you're taking control of things and in the end you'll probably live a much happier and of course healthier life. I also think that it is a great idea about the journal, I've heard so many people who have already gone through surgery suggest doing that, they say it can help you through the rough spots and also help to point out issues or weak spots in your habits, etc. Good luck on your journey!

@ MamaJenHen, first off Congrats on your decision. I too have the PCOS, Diabetes, High blood pressure, Fibromyalgia, etc. so I know how you feel with have so many issues that Gastric Bypass Surgery is the only hope left. The only differences are I'm 46 so as I say the "Kids" ship has sailed for me (I'm just too old to start having them now) and I'm 5'6" and at my highest weight I've been 375 which is where I actually started this whole journey at. My surgeon also is making me loose weight in the hopes of shrinking the liver to make the surgery easier so I know how that goes too. The only thing I'm really hating is the wait, I've had to do 6 months of nutrition classes and this month will be month number 4 so I won't be done until March and even though it's only technically two months away it feels like forever away. I just want to get the surgery part over with but the closer I get to that point the more nervous I get. I'm pretty confident about the whole thing as I'm having mine done at one of the best hospitals in the country, specially for this type of surgery (Brigham & Women's Hospital in Boston) so I know the doctors are among the best, but I still feel a bit nervous cause there is still an element of risk to all this. But the more I see all the people on this site and others, I can't help but think there are so many people who get through this surgery just fine, so that eases my worries. But anyway, welcome aboard and good luck as you head into your surgery and new life.