Sajijoma

I have a short list that I've been working on: 1.fit in swing at the park and swing race with the kids 2. go down the slide at the park and not get stuck in the tunnel like winnie the pooh 3. run 1 mile non stop then 2 miles, etc til I get to 5miles then I give myself a gold star of achievement 4. get some skin taken off and my boobs put back where they used to be maybe implants if they deflate too much 5. ride on a motorcycle(any volunteers? My hubby hates them) 6. plan a trip to Ireland to see where my family came from(we're from Northern Ireland from Tyrone County if anyone else shares the dream) 7. take a full length pic from head to toe-maybe do a full nude pic for my hubby(tastefully of course) 8. ride a bike and not just a big fat tricycle because I can't balance all of this awesome on 2 wheels 9. go to theme park and ride all the rides that won't give me a seizure 10. buy a bikini and wear it like a boss...at least in the comfort of my own backyard. 11. go on airplane ride and buy ONE seat and need only ONE seat 12. go hang gliding off of Lookout Mountain in Colorado 13. climb all the 14ers in Colorado 14. learn to swim 15. buy a single digit size piece of clothing and have it fit-I've been in plus sizes since I was in 3rd grade so this one is a super huge deal to me. and that's what I have so far, but if I think hard enough I can find more but it's a start!

I found some sugar free pudding and gelatin on Amazon called Better Bowls that is sweetened with splenda instead of Aspartame. I haven't tried them yet, so I don't know how the taste factor is, but if you are a crazy planner like I am, and are worried about post op only being able to have broth during recovery, relax knowing there is sugar free pudding and gelatin that does NOT have aspartame. I plan to order some soon to give it a test. I know they say taste buds change after the surgery, but if it tastes like hot vomit now, I think I'll pass and keep looking. So yay! that's my find of the day!

Oh it was so funny! She was embarrassed and said she was praying to God I didn't notice, but we had a good laugh about it. The one thing I always try to tell people is that your nurse is just basically like you. Totally human and totally guilty of embarrassing moments. You burp, you fart, you get talked about on FB LMAO

I haven't told too many people about my decision to have surgery, because I know support isn't going to come from my family period. They are all super morbidly obese and have tons of comorbidities, but they would rather be miserable than to give up their love of super greasy, super fattening foods and soda. My brother already lost his legs to diabetes yet he can't give up full sugar soda. He just keeps going like this and if he doesn't change one day he's going to kill himself, but he says he's rather die then not be able to eat and drink what he wants. It's sad. The whole bunch is like that! They are also the kind who like to sabotage diets to feel better about themselves and rub it in your face that they just ate a triple cheeseburger with onion rings and a chocolate shake and "all you can have is your little itty bitty nothing." My mom used to encourage them all to taunt me as punishment for sneaking food when she was starving me. I'd have to sit there and watch them eat huge heaping plates spilling over with food, while I was sentenced to days without food because I snuck a piece of bread or something. So knowing how they are, I've chosen to NOT tell them that I'm even having a surgery at all, but to assemble my own "family" of people who can and will support me. I've told my best friend since forever who has watched me struggle and seen how cruel people have been to me because of my weight. She knows my struggle and supports my decision. I told my college roommate who also has had the surgery and is 1yr post op and just reached her goal weight. I've told my kids so they won't be scared about what's going to happen and how things will change. And although my hubby wasn't originally behind the decision, I showed him the stats for someone my size who doesn't get the surgery along with writing him a heart filled letter about my struggle, even the parts I hid from him, like all the diet pills, the binging and purging, etc. and how my clock is ticking down. For instance, for my size, the average life expectancy is about 5-7 yrs before heart attack, or stroke leading to death. That would put our youngest baby at maybe 6yrs old when his mom dies. That's horrible! After he understood that we couldn't "just try one more diet" that this was SERIOUS and not just me trying to get a quick fix with no work, he's been behind my decision. Maybe you could try either sitting down and talking to your family and tell them all the details about how you got to this point or pour your heart into a letter if it tends to get heated and argumentative. My hubby shut me down or stormed out every time I tried to bring it up, so I did write him a letter and then we talked after he had read it. Include the Myriad of diets, the medications, the pains and co morbidities you have that are dangerously dragging your life expectancy down, the science behind how the surgery works to correct these problems, the statistics on if you don't have surgery and the statistics on if you do. Then just let the emotional walls down and tell them how it hurts to know that they don't support you. Tell them how it feels and don't hold back. If they still can't support you after that, then do what I've done and built your own "family" out of the people who can support you. If all else fails, you always have us here.

I'm pre op, but I've had my gallbladder taken out, kidney stones, and all of my babies were born in the hospital. The thing I wasn't prepared for is that they NEVER leave you alone even at night! Nurses will come through doing rounds, flipping on lights to check your vitals, take temps, change IV, deal with the input line that keeps beeping because there's a link in the line, etc. and if you have trouble going back to sleep like I do, it can mean you just don't rest at all the entire time. I do recommend taking ear plugs, eye mask and your own pillows for comfort-partly because the hospital ones are like rubber coated, hard, and super flat and also because they never seem to have any extras so if you want more than just one flat pillow, keep that in mind. Also put it in a bright colored case so they know it's yours from home and housekeeping or a nurse doesn't snag it for another patient. When I had my gallbladder taken out and when I had kidney stones, I was too tired from the pain meds to care much about entertainment beyond a little TV, or cuddling one of my kids who was visiting, but when I was in having my babies, after the kids all went home and it was just me and the new baby who was sleeping, I needed the iPad, my phone, some sudoku and crossword puzzles, and told my friends and family on FB too many details of life in the hospital. Seriously, it's embarrassing what you find yourself posting! For example: "status update: I smell bacon, wonder if it's Breakfast time? Guess they'll bring it in after the nurse leaves." And 5 mins later "status update: turns out it wasn't breakfast, nurse just burped in my face. She hoped I hadn't noticed til I mentioned the smell of bacon...LOL" and 4 mins later..."status update: really gotta poop but I can't poop in foreign toilets, I hope to god they discharge me before I end up exploding! LOL" yeah those are all real posts sorry to say. Maybe stay away from Facebook til the craziness of the drugs wear off. All in all it's manageable. I usually check out as soon as humanly possible which was like 12hrs after my gallbladder and depending on the doc and complications, anywhere from 6-12hrs after birth. I just do better in my own home.

@@amyallthetime hi! Welcome to forum! My biggest suggestion is read all you can and ask anyone you know who has had surgery all about it from a personal experience and just really get comfortable with the idea. I looked into bypass surgery in my 20's but it wasn't the time for me yet. I still thought I could do it on my own, but now I'm 38 and I haven't successfully done it on my own and added about another 100lbs to deal with, so it's finally time for me.

I think I get it. I've been overweight my whole life. This chubby cheeked face is all I've ever known. I don't know how I'll feel the first time I look in a mirror and she's gone. That does bother me a bit. I try to focus on the positives, but I do worry that I won't be "me" after surgery. But then maybe that's ok too. Maybe we need to be accepting of a new version of "me" and learn what we like all over again. I've heard some post op people once they reach goal weight refer to their surgery date as their new birthday, because they were taken through a new childhood and into a new life. You even start out eating like a baby if you think about it! First liquids, then soft foods like baby cereal, and then slowly til we get to solids. So maybe we are babies again, so maybe it's ok to cry a little. LOL

@@The Candidate I'm so looking forward to this. I'm afraid to get too used to this "ease" of getting through stuff though because it feels like I have hope right now of being "normal" and usually whenever I have hope, someone comes and busts my bubble. Could be the psych eval. I'm a total lunatic! ????

@@Dub yeah I'm really excited at the smoothness so far. Generally when I'm involved it usually hits anywhere from 10 to 20 snags along the way! Haha I can't wait to be able to steals daughter's clothes. For years I've been buying her the stuff I really want to be wearing but doesn't come in plus size, so maybe when I hit that goal I'll just go shopping in her closet! ????

I use Splenda and monk fruit as my sweeteners. stevia tastes funny to me and aspartame gives me migraines and Xylitol leaves me gittery like I'm going hypoglycemic. Agave nectar is ok, but expensive.

I'm on the 90 day plan, but even still they said that I should plan for an entire month after completion to get approval, so I would think logistically it would probably be Jan/Feb for you, but there's always a chance. I'm wanting Dec myself instead of Oct because my husband's work shuts down for 3 wks before Christmas and that way he won't have to use any vacation time and I won't have to worry about him teachings our home schooled kids while I'm down recuperating since we take mid Dec off as well.

I think it's natural to be a little scared. I mean this is a big deal! There's no going back once it's done and that is exactly why I am doing it. I'd rather not go back to this miserable state I'm in now. I thought about this when I was in my 20's and backed out because mentally I wasn't "there" yet, but God, I wish I could have been "there" and done it, because I would be so much healthier now if I had. No one can tell you when the right time is, but I will tell you that I've lost valuable years I can never get back being stuck in this fat suit unable to do what I want because I was too afraid. I'm not afraid now (yet anyway) although I did have heart palpitations the moment they said 90 day pre operative routine instead of 6 months physician supervised diet.

Went to my first appt today! Talked with the NUT and I LOVE her! She isn't covered under my insurance, but her fees are reasonable so I'm paying to see her for sure instead of using my PCP. The shocker for me was that I AM on the 90 day fast track *gulp* so now I'm all jittery excited. I was expecting 6 months, but this will actually work great because I can drag this out til Dec when my hubby is off work and not have to take any of his vacation days for my recover so that's a bonus! I have to meet with the psych for an evaluation, but other than that, and blood tests and maybe a sleep study it should be very straight forward! I'm so happy to get this started and less afraid of being away from my kiddos after he said he'll let me go as soon as I meet the criteria and that it should be similar in recovery time compared to my gallbladder surgery!

It's not so much that I worry about not being emotionally ready for the surgery itself, but emotionally ready to kiss my kids goodbye and drive to the hospital. I can count the times I've left them on one hand. Even when I've had their siblings, they stayed with me as long as possible in hospital and I'd fall apart when they left to go home at night. I hate being away from them. At least I know they can visit me after the operation, but I'm sure I'll think of everything that could go wrong a thousand times once I know how long it will be. With 6 months I can tell myself "we've got plenty of time to think about that later" at least for the first 4 months, if it's 90 days I'm certain I'll think about it from the moment I hit the elevator to leave forward.

I'm so excited! My first official appt is tomorrow! I have a meeting with the NUT and then my surgeon to discuss our plan of attack. I'm excited and kinda nervous. I keep wondering what if I don't really need the 6 months of supervised diet. What if they put me on the 90 day fast track, will I emotionally be ready by then or will I need to slow the process down to mentally cope. I guess we'll wait and see what tomorrow brings! I also get to find out how much of a lying sack of crap my scale is tomorrow and I'm afraid it'll be worse than I even know. That scares me more than all the other stuff put together!

Sending love and prayers. I think for all of us, this is something we really will struggle with. I've been severely overweight most of my life. I don't know anything else. I'm not sure I'll know how to deal with people and the world as a whole without my fat suit. It'll be like walking around naked! All I can really suggest is that you take it one day at a time, one problem at a time, and use your support. Get involved in a post op support group through your hospital and really just stay with them and use them. Many of them have been where you are and can help you navigate that territory.

I took topamax for severe migraines and stress induced seizures in 2006 and that stuff really helped me lose weight. I mean, I didn't want to eat EVER and the weight just fell right off, but the problem is, at least for me, that when I quit the topamax because I was having a bad interaction with the maxalt my neurologist had also given me(you would of thought he would have known that was a bad combo but whatever), that all that weight came back with a cruel vengeance and some friends. So just be aware of that should you need to wean off of it for whatever reason.

insomnia drugs such as Ambien can actually make you sleep eat or sleep walk. After my late term miscarriage, I couldn't sleep and took ambien every night and I gained a crap ton of weight really fast and I was always complaining about the jerk who ate all the food and left handprints in peanut butter all over the counters the walls etc. My husband swore it wasn't him and the other kids were too small to do most of this stuff. Eventually, one night during a sleep stroll I fell down the stairs and of course that woke me up! LOL I realized I was the jerk eating all the food and slobbing up my house for myself to clean. It can be very dangerous. If you are taking those kind of drugs and have a history of this problem, you might want to talk to your doctor about alternatives. I think the biggest issue would be your safety. I mean, if you are eating in your sleep are you eating safely? Are you chewing it correctly for your procedure? Are you going to eat sugar and wake up in severe pain with dumping syndrome? Could you fall down the stairs and break your neck like I almost did? These are the things I would worry about most. I don't know if you've ever tried it, but maybe before you go to bed, right before, have a little snack, maybe the cucumbers are vinegar or pickles or just a little something to maybe tell your body you don't need to get up. If that doesn't work, maybe keep a protein bar on your nightstand so if you wake up you can just nibble a little and go back to sleep. I ended up quitting all sleep aids except some natural melatonin and it took me about 2wks after that before I could sleep again it was pretty rough.

This is actually what I hopefully will get mine covered with post weight loss. I have a pretty huge fat overhang as is, after having 7 kids, so if I lose weight, that skin isn't going back, it's going down further and at some point that baby could be rubbing the knees or lower(scary thought) but my insurance does have a surgery they will do to correct that because of the skin infection risks and "loss of quality of life" so I'm hoping to pay for my breast lift/augmentation and arm and thigh lifts at the same time. I wish they offered the same for a saggy bottom, but who knows! LOL I have noticed that most plastic surgeons I've been looking into do offer financing so as long as you've got decent credit it wouldn't be too hard to get one of those finance plans.

I take Garden of Life for women vitamins. Right now since I'm finishing up nursing I'm still on the prenatals, but they come in capsules and if you can't tolerate the capsules, you can open them up and take it in juice or mix it in a smoothie as well. I had esophagilitis from some antibiotics I was on and for awhile I couldn't swallow anything with any kind of size or texture without severe pain so I'd open them and blend them in a protein smoothie. They don't taste super great, but they blend in well enough that it wasn't too bothersome.

I haven't done the preop diet, but I did do Joe's juice diet from Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead and the first few days were very painful. Headaches, body aches, feel like you have the flu and that's from your body detoxing. If you can fight through it, in a couple of days you should feel pretty good. If you can't, you can slow it down by taking a piece of bread, crackers, or eating something with some sugar although it being your preop diet, you really shouldn't be taking in sugar or carbs since it's to help shrink your liver. More water will help to flush it faster too.

I'd like to know as well. I use ibuprofen-5 caps at a time- to deal with migraines in between my other meds since I can only use them 2x a week because of toxicity. Especially now, while I'm weaning and my hormones are all over the place-I use it almost daily for migraine pain. I can't imagine living life without my giant bottle of ibuprofen. What do people use?!

You nailed it with that post. Summed up many of the things I'm experiencing as well. Hoping to see if the medical issues melt away along with the fat. Oh God I hope they do! I'm lucky in that at my weight and size I don't have diabetes or high blood pressure yet, but it's just a matter of time. I had gestational diabetes in my last pregnancy and they usually say that if you don't change your diet and life around that within 5yrs of that you will have diabetes, so I've got less than 4 years now(baby just turned 1) to figure this out. I know I don't want to spend the rest of my life poking fingers and feeling miserable.

thank you Chrystee! There are some days it really gets to me and then there are days that I say "hey! That was then and this is now. I can't wear it as an excuse my whole life!" I've got 7 beautiful kids and a husband and if I want to eat a whole box of brownies, (and I certainly could)...no one is here to stop me, but I don't because I know I shouldn't and I try....TRY real hard not to be a bad example for my kids. I don't want them to ever feel like I did. In a way, though, I got to redo my childhood through them and the second time around it has been absolutely amazing (except that I can't fit on the slide or the swings anymore. ) I'm hoping by the time our littlest is 3, I'll be fitting on that swing and racing him to see who can get the highest. That's my goal. Not a pant size or number in particular, but fitting on the swing.

Have you been to a seminar yet? At our seminar, the surgeon went through each one and which one was best suited for which situation. The lap band or realize bands he said were good for about 60-70lbs but more than that it wasn't going to cut a significant amount of weight and did have issues with long term loss. Like people learned how to eat around it I guess. then he showed us the sleeve and said it's good for 100+lbs weightloss, but a lot of times again, people find ways around it's usefulness and end up with a weight gain and eventually if they have a significant weight to lose will have it switched over to a bypass. It also tends to come with GERD/acid reflux and it can be very painful to deal with that. The bypass he referred to as his "gold standard" in weightloss because it has shown to work long term, the weight loss experienced is quite dramatic and fast and for the most part, a person with bypass can expect to lose 70% for their excess weight in the first year and maintain that loss or improve over the next 5 yrs without slipping backwards. He also cover plication and some new battery operated thing that shocks the vagus nerves causing them to not send the message of being hungry. I forget what it was called, but it was neat. It's not really good for someone in my situation though, I think it was comparable to the lap band in weightloss. I went into the seminar thinking sleeve seemed the way to go because I didn't want anyone fiddling with my intestines and dumping sounds REALLY painful, but by the time we left, I had really committed in my heart to the roux en y because I really don't want to do this again. I want to do 1 surgery and be good for life. I find out for certain what the surgeon thinks is our best plan of attack Fri. I'm pretty sure he's going to suggest the bypass though. At my weight and with my history, I'd be shocked if he didn't.