AGreenEyedWolf

Just had my pre-op surgeon meeting... I've got 7 more days till surgery. I got here so apprehensive that I was almost in tears... I kept thinking things like, will I ever enjoy eating again? Will I ever be able to have lunch out with friends again? Will I be so miserable I regret the surgery? Am I a failure because I have to resort to surgery to lose weight? How will my husband and son (and my pets) handle a couple days without me while I'm hospitalized? Am I going to have complications? Is this all worth it? Do I really want to give up sweets, Snacks, steaks, sodas, etc... FOREVER??
After talking to my surgeon, nurse, and nutritionist... I do feel a little better... but I admit I'm struggling... anyone else having these feelings too?
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Just had my pre-op surgeon meeting... I've got 7 more days till surgery. I got here so apprehensive that I was almost in tears... I kept thinking things like, will I ever enjoy eating again? Will I ever be able to have lunch out with friends again? Will I be so miserable I regret the surgery? Am I a failure because I have to resort to surgery to lose weight? How will my husband and son (and my pets) handle a couple days without me while I'm hospitalized? Am I going to have complications? Is this all worth it? Do I really want to give up sweets, Snacks, steaks, sodas, etc... FOREVER??
After talking to my surgeon, nurse, and nutritionist... I do feel a little better... but I admit I'm struggling... anyone else having these feelings too?
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Lol
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I still have a week to go before my surgery and I'm feeling all of that as well :-P
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I am just tired of always feeling hungry

I'm 5'3" and I weigh 220 lbs. I need to lose 85 pounds just to get to the high end of a healthy BMI... but if I lose at least 70 that would make me ecstatic!
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I was required by my surgeon (not insurance) to lose 50lbs. This Tuesday I weighed and am down 51! That's in three months.

Yes, it's hard... some may look down on me and say oh well your BMI is "relatively" low so they think I shouldn't have WLS and should just eat healthier, work out more, etc... but what they fail to understand is that I have spent 25 years overweight... never able to lose enough to have a "healthy" BMI no matter what I do (including multiple diets, workout plans, medications and more). I have sleep apnea, COPD, bulging disks in my back and arthritis in my back, hips and legs... this surgery may be the ONLY way I can ever be healthy or trust me, I wouldn't even attempt it.
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I haven't told anyone but my husband and 2 of my friends. The one friend would never tell a soul... the other has already told at least one acquaintance, so I had to specifically ask her not to tell anyone else. (This same friend told me I don't need surgery... I just need to walk more and drink soda less... like I haven't already been fighting this battle for 20 years longer than I've known her)
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I have told close family, a few friends, and a couple of co-workers, but that's it. When I told a couple of my co-workers, they immediately started trying to talk me out of it and telling me horror stories about their family/friends that had gastric bypass and almost died. They told me I just need to diet and exercise. I was like "What do you think I have been doing ALL my life??" Those things have put me where I am today... because I failed horribly at dieting and exercising and now I am the biggest I have ever been! I feel keeping it a secret for the most part is going to benefit me and keep me sane because not everyone is going to agree with me and that's okay.
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It's been one year today since I had my sleeve done. My life has changed in every aspect.
My start weight was 333.1lbs
My weight this morning was 137.8lbs
That's a total loss of 195.3lbs!!
I've also lost a total of 95 inches...I'm a size 6 now...used to be a size 30.
I have accomplished this by being very focused and strict with my eating and exercise.
I eat very low carb, and always get in my Protein, Vitamins and Water every day.
For all of you just starting out, just know that anything is possible, and if you put your mind to it, you can achieve anything!! 
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I am in a similar boat. My BMI is also borderline. I completed all pre-op testing yesterday ad started my liver shrinking diet today... but I was warned that whereas normally they want people my height on 1100 calories a day for this diet, I have to do 1300 because otherwise my BMI may go too low for insurance to cover my surgery. I'm getting close... I have my final pre-op doctors visit on the 17th and surgery is scheduled for the 25th.
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I have my first meeting with my surgeon on Monday for this go-round (I looked into surgery last year but backed because I didn't feel ready). I'm just as nervous as the first time I met him! I know I'm going to have to explain why I changed my mind and then changed it back...I have "good" answers to that - I just started nursing school, which is a huge, added stressor, plus my mother got very ill and I had to take care of her during the time I would have been having my operation last year.
Still jittery, though...wish me luck!

January 25th for me
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January 25th for me
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January 25th for me
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I am 17 days post op. I can sleep on my stomach comfortably now. It took about 5-6 days before I could sleep on my side with a pillow and lean into my stomach a bit. The more I walked, the quicker I seemed to heal.
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My insurance required 3 months also... BUT... all they really wanted was proof from my family physicians or other doctors that I had discussed my weight issues with them at least 3 times in the past and that past had to go back at least 90 days or more.
My surgeons office gave me forms for my other doctors to fill out... I took one to my family doctor... sent one to my doctor from before this one (5 years ago) and one to my psychiatrist. All verified I had discussed my weight issues with them on more than one occassion, 2 also verified they had discussed options with me (for instance, one sent me to a weight clinic and one put me on Topamax and wellbutrin to mimic a new weight loss medication my insurance didn't cover at the time).
Those and "letters of support" from my family doctor and my psychiatrist were acceptable in my case.
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Sometime before surgery I made two lists on my phone. List 1 was all the reasons I was having the surgery. List 2 is a list of all the things i'm looking forward to being able to do as I get healthier. In the tough times/weak moments (even still) I pull out those lists and remind myself why I'm doing this. Helps get my head back in the right place.
At parties and so forth - since you're on liquids make sure you always have a Protein shake or Water in your hand and whenever you feel tempted to snack, drink. Also focus on being the social butterfly in the room and talking to people, mill about so you aren't standing next to the same cookie tray/yummy appetizer tray etc letting it tempt you for any extended period of time.
And to encourage quality time with family rather than being a hermit, suggest going out and doing an activity - even just taking a walk through the neighborhood, going to see christmas lights etc - anything that isn't focused on food.

@@AGreenEyedWolf Definitely ask those questions about meds! My practice uses a PharmD appointment as part of the pre-op pathway, so he went through all my meds with me, wrote a plan for which ones I needed to stop for surgery, which were ok and which would work post-op and made the necessary changes in my medical notes/record. It was extremely helpful!

I'm having gastric sleeve surgery on January 25th
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Great questions! Having seen these, I plan to ask them myself... I also plan to ask when after surgery I'll be able to resume my normal meds for other medical issues I have, and what meds if any ill be sent gome with (and gow they will react with my refular meds) since that is something very important to me. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using the BariatricPal App

I am looking forward to being able to go shopping and not having anxiety about what fits and what wont. or not wanting people to see me walk in to the notoriously plus size store and STILL being the largest person shopping there.
I am also looking forward to having more confidence and not having anxiety about meeting new people. Also, eating in public and not having people judge me for what I eat.
There is just so much I can think of..
Surgery 10/31
HW- 404.8
SW-369.2
CW-346.1

To those of you like me who are pre-op or just recently post-op, what are you most looking forward to about losing weight?
I have battled my weight since a small child so it's hard for me to even imagine what it will be like to be thin (or at least: not obese). I'm looking at pics and trying to remember the brief windows of normal weight when I was a teen or early 20s (I'm 42 now).
* I want to have a WAIST again. I used to wear BELTS when I was 14. I can't wrap my head around this but I'm trying to believe its possible for me....
* I want to wear heels again (sometimes, when I feel like it)
* I'm looking forward to not walking into a room on defensive, feeling at a disadvantage because I am a "fat woman" -- I want to walk into a room and meet new people and just be me
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Here are some of the things I wanted to know:
1) what kind of meds pre-op? (this was a good time for me to drive home about my severe nausea from inhaled anesthetics...led to me getting a scopolamine patch in pre-op area plus anesthesia was able to use primarily IV agents for surgery to reduce the nausea)
2) would I have a urinary catheter placed during surgery, and if yes, would it be removed before I went to recovery?
3) how do most patients feel immediately post-op? (this ended up being a very important question for me...I woke up in the PACU in very severe pain, right at my sternum. But I knew it wasn't abnormal and was able to stay calm until I got some dilaudid on board)
4) would I have stitches or staples or skin glue on my incisions?
5) what kind of pain relief once I got to the room where I'd stay overnight?
6) expectations for mobility/showering while I was in the hospital?
7) would I have to meet any benchmarks in order to be discharged? (ie, have to be able to urinate, have to be able to drink 'x' ounces without vomiting, etc)
8) what meds should I expect to go home on? what should I do if the meds aren't doing the job?
and then I made sure I had a VERY concrete understanding of the first month's post-op instructions were...what EXACTLY I was expected to eat/drink during that period of time.
Good luck!