KristenLe

Thanks Everyone - There is an Update
Went to the store on Monday, and dared to pick up a size 42 pair of jeans and a 2XL shirt. Came home and dared to try them on - THE PANTS FIT!!!!! The shirt was still a little snug (it has horizontal stripes - NOT a good idea yet) so it will wait a few weeks. The pants are a revelation and it is a HUGE step for me. I don't know about my current weight, but I am energized and ecstatic about grabbing a pair of jeans from the Men's Department - WHOOO HOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!

My guess would be that you have 2+lbs of pooping to do. Concentrate on Water intake, Protein and pooping! Good luck!

ok, yall have to forgive my husband's photo skills, but this chick here is wearing a size 6 dress!! woot woot!

I'm all the way up in NY but I love making new friends and I like to help. I'll be 8 months post-op on Sunday, down 149 since surgery and 194 overall.

@@KristenLe could not agree more. After I hand delivered the wrong referral the nice staff woman saw the frustration and took the problem head on. She made some calls. Greased the wheels. Used industry jargon to whomever she was talkong to on the phone. It was nice to see. So as mad as I was, it seems they are going above and beyond to correct this. That was yesterday 5 pm April 13th so not much could be done. I will find out more this morning. They are caling me around 10am with a status update.

I also have Blue Cross Blue Shield PPO and my BMI is 54 and I still had to go through with all six months. Like others have said it's more than just a wait. It's a time to learn everything you can about post op and how to be the most successful with your new tool. I just finished my six months on April 1 and I feel fully prepared and confident but I will be successful after my surgery.
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Your PCP probably needs to request a referral through the insurance. Call Member Services for your plan and get exact details of what's needed. BTW - your Surgeon's office should have been more specific and more helpful!

It's natural to have doubts and cold feet! Think about all of the success stories shared on this site and stay strong! Everything will go great! I have 5 months more to wait.

I was fine. I was in the hospital 1st day, came home the second, alone one the 3rd day. I was able to get the kids off the bus. 4th day got them ready for school and off the bus : ). I took care of myself 100%. Husband took care of the kids. That was all I needed just time to be able to focus on myself.

I just snorted tea out of my nose. So glad it wasn't hot tea. <laugh>

Prayers Kyle! Good luck.

Home from the hospital today. Everything went very well on Monday. Unfortunately I have to be on oxygen for now because my O2 kept going down. Hopefully it will only be for a few weeks. They took me off my insulin pump, and for now they want me to just do a couple shots a day. This may completely change too.
The gas is HORRIBLE! I feel like there is a thunderstorm going on inside my system! I don't dare let go of any of it without being on the commode for fear it isn't just gas coming out ;O
Glad to here you ladies all made it to the otherside okay. I'm doing very good with liquids, and doing very good with walking around. Did any of you have to have an Upper GI test day after surgery? I did to look for leaks. Everything went well!
Looking forward to updates.

Last year, instead of going to the WLS seminar I thought "I don't want anything that drastic..I can do this without surgery"! Well I was as wrong - I'm heavier and heading towards 300lbs. I have hypertension, hypothyroidism, PCOS, Mild sleep apnea, interstitial cystitis, joint pain, degenerative disc disease, aches and pains all the time (back, hip, ankles). I can not do this myself and I don't want to be dead or riding around in a hoveround (?sp) when I'm 50 (48 now!). I figure at the rate I'm going I'll be diabetic before long! In addition to my health issues - I can't stand the sight of myself. My weight is impacting my social life.
WLS isn't for everyone and it certainly isn't an easy decision but it's a decision I wish I made 10 or more years ago! :-)
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I did. And they are in a secure folder named "GROSS"
Ashlie M
Sent from my iPhone

They did provide the names of a couple but said they are booking several months out so I wasn't sure if I could find someone sooner.
On a good note, looks like my PCP's office has done this before. I called and told them I was starting the bariatric surgery process and they were like "OK! We'll need to bring you in for a pre-op physical, EKG..." and kept going. So I feel confident that they will work with me fairly well

I replied to your post because it's in a public forum and I can. If we always only replied to people who spoke directly to us, this wouldn't be much of a DISCUSSION forum would it? There are very few initial posts that are speaking DIRECTLY TO someone yet replies are expected/appreciated but by your logic...
Sounds like you are the one with your panties in a twist and that's on you, not me. Feel free to block me if you care to, but telling me not to reply to anyone I choose to reply to is really not going to get you far.

So yes, somewhat famous (Who's Who, Wikipedia). My definition of a close friend is someone who has stayed with us in our home and/or gone on vacation with -- yes, hundreds.
The problem that I don't think you're following has multiple layers:
1. My wife is my partner in this journey. If I had wanted to be open from day one, she would have gone along, but once we started omitting, she took a strong position about secrecy. I have told her that I would not lie directly to a close friend who asked me outright "did you have WLS?". Short of that, I will now follow her wishes no matter how much it pains me to be less than honest.
2. With so many close friends who know many of the same people, there is no "casual mention" of WLS without running the risk of offending someone who heard about it later from one of the first people I casually mentioned it to. Suppose I tell people as you say and tell them that I consider it private and ask them to keep it so. What happens if they don't honor my wishes? 80% of my friends would love to lose weight and half of them are probably envious of my rapid loss. I love them all, but I doubt they'd keep my secret.
3. To tell all my close friends simultaneously, I would literally need to do a mass email blast and of course get my wife to go along,
4. Finally, the reason I wrote this post was not to get some half baked advice. My point was to reach out to others who are just starting their journey and spur them to think through the open/secret question more thoroughly. There is no simple or right/wrong answer.
I wish I had known then what I know now. I wish I'd been open -- but I didn't, and now I'm uncomfortable with the lying (half truths). Sorry you can't follow this...

I understand what you are saying, and we are all different. Some of us are private and others not so much. Either way we will be bombarded with questions whether people know or not. As soon as people see weight loss the questions start. I personally would rather just say, I had a weight loss procedure than try to come up with a way to avoid sharing. This is certainly a personal decision and there is no right or wrong.

I had a thin coworker today tell me that people who don't lose weight and stay thin are just lazy. Meanwhile, she eats crap- donuts for Breakfast, tasty cakes for Snacks. I never see her eat a vegetable or piece of fruit, EVER. and she told me she does not exercise, I do 3-4 times a week. She is thin but definitely out of shape looking. She has seriously high blood pressure. We are about the same age. I have always eaten fairly healthy, just eat too darn much. I exercise, have excellent BP and normal cholesterol. You can't tell me there isn't something in my genetics or just plain biological that doesn't cause me to regain weight.
I have been on the fence for a long time. I have not been 100% sure all along. But tomorrow is my final weigh in for my 3 month diet. I am all cleared and ready for insurance submission. And I am ready. I can not do this alone. It's time.

My appointment went great. My surgeon wasn't there of course (I figured I wouldn't see him again unless I had complications) but I did see him a few weeks ago at a book signing and he seemed happy with my progress.
The good news: of my labs come back ok I can drop most of my supplements except for the Multivitamin.
The other cool thing is that I have lost enough for my BMI to actually be on the chart on the wall.
I want to thank each of you for the kind words and encouragement. It means a lot to me. I couldn't do it without you.

In my State and with my employer...FMLA is the leave of absence (protecting your job while you are out). Short Term Disability is a way to get paid for time off (as long as you pay into it or have short term disability policy). You can take sick or vacation as well (actually you have to use any accrued time where I work).

oh no, Pirate. don't make me laugh out loud at work!

I have no desire to go back to soda, but I did have a beer after my last 5K (hey it was a free craft beer). I sipped it like it might be radioactive, but my stomach didn't explode. But it wasn't as good as I remembered.

Went to the appointment. Got the referral. Brought it to the Bariatrics place...not the right referral. WTF!?? Need an insurance referral...NOT a doctor referral.
Ummm...how about somebody in office just tell me what they need and I will get it.
It is going to be a looong journey.

Hello everyone. Can't believe it has been 5 months. ..I have lost 77 pounds so far and doing well. Even going on my first date in years on Friday...feeling great so why not. My inner fat girl still creeps in every once and a while but I am getting very good at putting her back in her corner..so to speak!!! Still a long way to go but so far so good. Congrats to everyone for taking this step!!!