nocturnalgemi

I'm glad I'm his first patient than his last. I was actually his second but there was a cancellation. I want him to be alert!

My surgery is Monday. I made one last appointment with my psychologist and met with him on Friday just to touch base. I think helped a lot, just the reassurance that I'm making the right decision and that I can do this. I'm in a much better head space than when I saw him a couple of weeks ago, when I was anxious and crying. One last meeting certainly couldn't hurt.

My surgery is Monday too! I'm the first one of the day; I have to be at the hospital at 5:00 AM. I'm not quite nervous yet but I know I won't get much sleep tomorrow night due to nervous energy. Good luck! [emoji4]

Thank you for your opinion. Please don't take this the wrong way but respectfully, all of our tastes are going to be different post-op. While you may find baby food to be gross, it may be all that some others may be able to tolerate and, in fact, not taste so bad. From speaking with others who have already had WLS, foods that we previously thought tasted delicious became gross. And there are carbs in foods you wouldn't expect to find them in, particularly in some non-sweet green vegetables.

I would check with your dietician to see if it would work for you. It's on my list of pureed foods. The only ingredients on the labels for the veggies is, for example, green beans and water. The ones that are higher in carbs are the beef/chicken/turkey in "gravy" because they include cornstarch (hence the "gravy"). Again, my dietician's list includes the meat varieties. Since they're allowed, I'm going to try them along with traditional pureed foods on my list. While they ARE higher in carbs, the jars are quite small (2.5 oz, I believe). I'll be surprised if I even finish the jar in one sitting.

To be honest, I'm not sure. You may want to check with your dietician. I'm not on an all liquid diet and I don't want to give you wrong information.

I noticed the carb counts were high too! Which I guess makes sense if you're a baby because the goal is to gain weight, not lose it. They're all pricey, not just Gerber. Beech Nut was a little cheaper but still...I bought a couple of the the two-pack plastic ones too. I figure baby food will be gentle on my stomach during the pureed foods week.

It's so funny you posted this. I've had long hair my whole life. I've been thinking about doing a chop for the first time ever a few months after surgery. Nothing drastic, just a lob (long bob), especially once I start going through the temporary hair loss stage. If you'd asked me before if I'd ever cut it, I'd have said absolutely not! [emoji28] But for some reason, I'm kind of ready for a change. Funny how having this surgery makes you rethink a lot of things!

The caffeine withdrawal has been the hardest part for me. Did they put you on a liquid diet or just restrict your calories and carbs like me? They told me to gradually wean myself off coffee by mixing it with decaf but I didn't listen and went cold turkey. Yesterday the headache wasn't as bad as a couple of days ago but all day I felt lightheaded, like I was going to pass out at any minute. It was really unpleasant.

I'm on Day 4 of my pre-op diet and the withdrawals are real ugh! I'm not upset or anything, just felt like venting a little. At first, I thought it was due to lack of caffeine but it could very well be the drastic reduction in carbs. (I'm limited to

I also have Anthem in a different state. They don't require you to lose a certain amount. I lost 20 lbs. All they want is the proof. Just do the best you can and don't stress it dear! Best of luck! [emoji4]

Like several others have mentioned, my first choice was the sleeve. But during my gallbladder surgery a couple of years ago, my surgeon discovered I have a moderate hiatal hernia. (He's the same surgeon doing this surgery.) He strongly advised against the sleeve due to me having mild GERD and the hernia. The way he explained it is the small intestines will "anchor" the new pouch, preventing it from slipping back up through the diaphragm. The sleeve lacks that support and stands a greater risk of slipping back through it, and it usually happens within five years. Any GERD issues are often worse, and hiatal repair is a much more major surgery than WLS. I'm not gonna lie: I still wanted the sleeve after he initially explained all of this. I changed my mind to bypass the same day insurance notified me of the approval. I don't want my mild GERD to (possibly) get worse, nor risk a recurring hiatal hernia. You'll hear others who have had the sleeve who either claim they haven't had any issues (which is quite possible) or have had revision to bypass later because of those issues. For me, I want this to be one and done. Ultimately, though, you have to do what's best for you, but I hope our experiences have helped! [emoji4]

Yesterday afternoon, I broke down crying after thoroughly going over my body from head to toe in my bathroom mirror. I've had this body my entire adult life. I wasn't overweight as a kid but that was so long ago. I don't remember what my body looked and felt like in high school. I've already lost quite a bit of weight and have loose skin but I don't look drastically different, I don't think. At that moment, though, it hit me: my body is going to look completely different. I'm never going to see this body again. And my new body and skin scare me. I started crying. I didn't realize it, but I needed that cry. I know I'll probably cry again closer to surgery. Has anyone else had that body image "moment"? If you did, how did you get through it?

It's normal after surgery. The way the nurse explained it to me after my gallbladder removal is that it takes awhile for the anesthesia to wear off, so it's like your intestines are still "asleep" and haven't caught up with the rest of your body.

I've been thinking about that but didn't want to add any new medications so close to my surgery date. Now that you've mentioned it, I think I will look into it. Certainly can't hurt. [emoji4]

I think I might do that: take monthly progress pics. I've started journaling again, so hopefully I'll be more consistent with it. I don't expect my shape to change much. I've always joked I'm shaped like a Cabbage Patch Kid doll so now I'll be a smaller version. Thanks everyone for the reassurance. I know it'll get better.

Congratulations! That's awesome! It sounds like you're recovering well. It's comforting to hear it's normal. It felt good to get it out and I'm sure it will happen again. Like you said, I'll continue to embrace it. I've started journaling and I'm trying to practice mindful meditation to help get me through this. One of the few good things about my anxiety is that I sometimes lose my appetite for a few days. I'm hoping it works to my advantage these next couple of weeks, especially the first few days of my pre-op diet (I start tomorrow). I'm excited to see how much weight I'll lose the first month.

Thank you for your great advice! And you look great! [emoji3] I plan to take a before pic either today or tomorrow. I was thinking about posting it on my bathroom mirror as motivation. I need all I can to stay on track. Walking for 30 minutes is a good idea. I'm thinking about getting a Fitbit. I already try to park farther away at stores and at work. The coffee admittedly will be the hard part. I easily drink 2 cups a day to keep up with work and school. But decaf it is. It'll be worth it in the end.

I've heard about this. I'm already a moody person so I'm not looking forward to it. Like you said, though, it's temporary and it gets better.

Thank you! Hopefully I'll get to that point. I suffer from anxiety and depression. although I'm not having a depression episode right now. It's more so anxiety than anything. I was pretty optimistic up until that moment. It eventually passed. I was just curious if anyone else had experienced it and if it's normal. I'm glad you didn't! I agree, the positives outweigh the few negatives. Despite my anxiety, I'm also a little bit curious to meet the new me.

My surgery is in a couple of weeks and while I'm mostly ready, it's starting to hit me. I still go back and forth to this day. I just keep thinking about the benefits: I'm delaying (hopefully completely preventing) diabetes that my mom and grandmother have. I'll be 36 in a few months but my body is starting to ache and feel much older. I want to eventually travel so I need my body to feel better. I want to enjoy life! Keep reminding yourself of all of the positives every time you feel scared. It helps to calm me down! Like achappex3 said, I haven't had a big yes moment either. It's been a little series of yes moments, especially as I get closer to the date.

I forgot one more reason why I changed my mind: my surgeon says hiatal hernia can recur after VSG. I asked about just doing a surgery after VSG to fix the hernia. He says hiatal hernia is a much more serious (I guess as in higher risk) surgery than bariatric. So there was that.

I'm pre-op with a similar issue: hiatal hernia and initially wanted the sleeve. I say initially because I've changed my mind and have decided to have the bypass. At first, I didn't want to reduce my stomach by that much. But then I read a lot of post-op sleeves have had revision surgery to bypass because their GERD became worse after a few years. My surgeon strongly recommended bypass and explained why it's better for patients with hiatal hernia. I changed my mind at the last minute....right after I was approved. Ultimately, I changed it for two reasons: 1) I don't want to have another surgery to revise anything. This is one and done for me. I don't want to risk my mild GERD getting worse. I can't imagine living life that way; and 2) even though I want this to be one and done, if for some medically necessary reason it needs to be reversed, it can be. I didn't realize that but it's true. With the sleeve, most of your stomach is permanently gone. So that's my decision about why I changed my mind from sleeve to bypass. I hope that helps but do what's best for you!

Hi surgery twin! It's nice to meet someone who shares the same date! It will be here before we know it.

I'm so glad I decided to join this forum! Just found out today my date is March 27. It took 2 years to get approved. During the whole process, I felt the same way that someone else mentioned: if I was denied, I could blame the insurance company. At least I could say I tried. Now that it's official, it seems surreal. I'm a wide awake ball of nervous energy and can't sleep. I'm excited but really scared. Not so much of the surgery, but the whole process of becoming a new person. I'm overwhelmed. Plus, I've only only told a handful of people. I haven't even told my mother yet! Almost none of my friends and family know I'm having bypass surgery. I'm really private and emotionally locked up. I didn't want to have to explain anything just in case insurance denied it. So that's where I am right now. Posting here in hope of getting some much needed support from others who are going on this journey too.