Helen of LaCroix

Surgery in 1.5 hours. Currently fighting LA traffic to get to the hospital. This is surreal.

You read all blogs and captions about how everyone is afraid they’ll fail and it’s normal. It’s so common. How everyone worries they won’t be able to adjust to new schedules, new ways of eating, not preparing enough before surgery, not practicing enough, etc. It makes you feel better until the time is here… and you’re in a car panicking that you didn't do enough. I’m just praying that it all falls into place.

I guess this is where I start reminding myself to “TRUST THE PROCESS”

Well kids, here we go!!!

30th January for me !

Hi Helen, glad you’re on the other side of it, should get easier every day from here. I also found that my new stomach does not like cold, room temp Water and warm liquids for now.

Having now had the surgery on January 10, 2024 I can relay what my current experience is. Day 6 post surgery have a huge bruise on my abdoman that is over 16 inchs long and about 9 inches wide. Deep purple in color, and yet they tell me this is "normal" for some. Well that don't make any less alarming to look at! At least I have had relatively no pain and abosulutely no nausea of any kind. I don't care for the Enoxaparin Sodium injections every 12 hours but only have 10 days left to do them. The best thing to see is that in 6-days post surgery I have already dropped 12 lbs.
Has anyone from the January 2024 group also experienced this type of bruising?

I’m the 24th too! SO many emotions.

We made it through the wilderness. Somehow we made it thru oo oo.
Home. But not before ugly crying the entire time while I waited to be wheeled in. Gas pain in my sternum. Threw up at the hospital. It sucks but it’s not the worst thing-there’s nothing in to throw up… so just sorta dry heaved a couple times. They tell you to not panic if there’s blood-completely normal.

now to try to find a rhythm and schedule for all the things to do.

someone said somewhere somewhere on the internet that if you’re sipping Water and it hurts or feels uncomfortable, play with the temp- it really does help. Leaving that lil nuggets of wisdom here for yall.

Surgery in 1.5 hours. Currently fighting LA traffic to get to the hospital. This is surreal.

You read all blogs and captions about how everyone is afraid they’ll fail and it’s normal. It’s so common. How everyone worries they won’t be able to adjust to new schedules, new ways of eating, not preparing enough before surgery, not practicing enough, etc. It makes you feel better until the time is here… and you’re in a car panicking that you didn't do enough. I’m just praying that it all falls into place.

I guess this is where I start reminding myself to “TRUST THE PROCESS”

Well kids, here we go!!!

Surgery in 1.5 hours. Currently fighting LA traffic to get to the hospital. This is surreal.

You read all blogs and captions about how everyone is afraid they’ll fail and it’s normal. It’s so common. How everyone worries they won’t be able to adjust to new schedules, new ways of eating, not preparing enough before surgery, not practicing enough, etc. It makes you feel better until the time is here… and you’re in a car panicking that you didn't do enough. I’m just praying that it all falls into place.

I guess this is where I start reminding myself to “TRUST THE PROCESS”

Well kids, here we go!!!

This has been immensely helpful! I have surgery on Tuesday and just realized today that I’d been spending so much time preparing for how to eat-not how to feel. Thank you for sharing your experience and uplifting words.

This is my daily routine day 3
I will sip 20ml at a time in that lil cup which has the measurements I aim to have 60ml in the hour Protein water
I have my Multivitamin at 9am as well as my anti reflux
You can’t have the calcium/vitamin D 2-3 hours past multi Vitamin and it’s best to take that with food for best absorption .
So 12pm Bone Broth (chicken yesterday was yummy) that one ouch I will split into two containers and I will sip over the course of four hours. The other half I will have at 5ish for two hours again. Whatever I can’t finish I just chuck
4pm another multivitamin
And that’s it :) I stop liquids around 8-9 depending on how I feel and try and sleep

Had my surgery on Monday. My pain only lasted a few days. Gas-X really helped for me. Not even taking Tylenol anymore. The more you move around the better. Small sips of beverages was the key for me to not overload. Not having any problems getting my required amount of liquids. Right now only doing one to one and a half Protein Shakes a day with a coffee cup full of strained cream Soup. Hot Decaf tea really helped me. My doctor told me it would be hard to get 60 plus grams of Protein in the first week just to shoot for 30 to 40. I'll be on liquids and Soups until next Thursday for my post-op appointment.

This has been immensely helpful! I have surgery on Tuesday and just realized today that I’d been spending so much time preparing for how to eat-not how to feel. Thank you for sharing your experience and uplifting words.

I was all done and sleeved yesterday. Ready for home soon to start my new life x

Hi.
I have the flu.
I was expecting to get a call some time in February for a surgery date in “April/May”.
Woke up to a call from Kaiser, saying they had a cancellation and asked if I wanted to have surgery IN 6 DAYS! After 20 minutes of freaking out and asking myself if I was ready, I called back and said yes.

1/16/24 is my official date! Let’s hope this bug goes away by then.

Freaking out because I don’t have ANYTHING ready. I’m combing through emails from Kaiser with lists of all the things I need. Thank god today is also payday.

Would love to find a buddy going thru VSG in Southern CA with Kaiser.

Hi Friend,
I finished my Options classes last Thursday. They called me to schedule my consultation today (5 days later). HOWEVER.... when I signed up for the Options classes no one told me the wait time from end of classes to Surgical consultation/final clearance (only the amount of time from consultation to surgery, which was relatively short). I learned today that the next available in-person consultation appointment is 10/13..... then who knows (looks like I dont belong to this August cohort anymore. Sigh). The woman I spoke with told me I could contact the nurses office daily to see if there were any last minute cancellations. This is all specific to Kaiser Panorama City.
Hope that helped. 😕

Hi Friend,
I finished my Options classes last Thursday. They called me to schedule my consultation today (5 days later). HOWEVER.... when I signed up for the Options classes no one told me the wait time from end of classes to Surgical consultation/final clearance (only the amount of time from consultation to surgery, which was relatively short). I learned today that the next available in-person consultation appointment is 10/13..... then who knows (looks like I dont belong to this August cohort anymore. Sigh). The woman I spoke with told me I could contact the nurses office daily to see if there were any last minute cancellations. This is all specific to Kaiser Panorama City.
Hope that helped. 😕

Hi!
Sometime during the 10 weeks of options classes you’ll get a consultation appointment with a surgeon. I’ve heard that SoCal Kaiser is 2-3 months out with scheduling surgeries (if your surgeon doesn’t have any other requirements for you). I’ve also heard that Kaiser will give you up to one year to schedule your procedure before they’ll make you go thru the 10 weeks of Options classes again.

Congrats!!! Good luck! 🖤🖤

Good luck on your surgery date. Met my surgeon yesterday. He put me on a pre-op diet . 2 Protein Drinks and one 400-500 cal dinner and only liquids 2 days prior to surgery. June 19 surgery . I am so nervous but excited now . It’s getting real .

Just got my surgery date! July 31st, I'm so excited and nervous too. Good luck girls we got this!

How long does it take to get an appt. with surgeon after options workshops I am on my 4th workshop ?I am in the Riverside county area

Hi and congrats to you both! I’m so proud of you! I just started Kaiser’s 10 week Options classes. My fingers crossed for an August date! 🤞🤞 🫶🫶

I wrapped up my Options Classes on April 10. I'm scheduled for surgery on July 20. I can't wait. Good luck to you!

It took me awhile to reach by weight goal to get a surgeon referral after my options classes which I finished in February but finally I have my appointment tomorrow and hoping to get a surgery date! "fingers crossed"

I also did it through Kaiser SoCal! I absolutely loved the Options classes. They were so incredibly educational & I felt fully prepared for the surgery. I adored their program