mousecat88

Like Matt said re: the sleep apnea, it's really an insurance case-by-case basis. I have very mild sleep apnea that does not require a CPAP, but it's still a diagnosis of sleep apnea, so that counts as a comorbidity since it would be relieved with weight loss. Your surgeon should be able to tell you if that works for Aetna. And Aetna should also be able to tell you.

I start my pre-op tomorrow. I recently broke up with my bf (like 3 weeks ago recently) of nearly 5 years for, well, many reasons, but one being that he started being an a-s and finally told me it was because he thought I'd leave him after I lost weight. My only other "support" is my mom, who is going to be there for the surgery, but she is completely against me having it. She considers it elective and tells me I am mutilating myself. SO, I am relying on basically just this forum as my real support system. We can do it all by ourselves! It's for us, ultimately, and no one else has any say.

I just watched a required video course for my surgery and it said if I have any food intolerance (upset stomach, something sticking, etc) to go back to full liquid for 24 hours to allow everything to settle down. My post-op manual also says I should be on soft foods by week 3. 1 week liquid, 1 week puree, then soft foods, introducing one new food per day. Should be eating anything by 6 months.

Yup. I've tried Differin. The only medicine I haven't tried is oral Accutane, which has extremely crazy side effects. I was even on antibiotics for 8 months to try to clear it up! Sometimes Retin A has helped, but as soon as it clears up, more just pop up, so it isn't preventative in any way. The cystic acne on my forehead is very painful!

I am 2 years away from these surgeries, but already saving now because I don't expect insurance to cover it. How long were you out of work for??

Can you post the URL to it? It doesn't come up when I do a search.

Aw, that's going to be so awesome for you! My 30th birthday (what I consider my "becoming a real adult" birthday) is November 24th. I'll be spending it eating pureed cottage cheese, while my family is out at a Thanksgiving banquet. lmao! BUT, this is a good early birthday present to myself.

All of this. I have a HUGE tote of heels I wore just 8-9 years ago when I was 140lbs. Soon...soon... I hate my body much less now than I did back then; something that started all the weight gain. I look back at those pics and I'm like WTF WAS WRONG WITH YOU. Fat at 140lbs?! Way to go, me. lol. I can't wait for my appearance to match my give no effs attitude that I've developed. First thing I do when I hit a size 12 is drop serious $$$ at Express and White House Black Market. And everywhere. Everywherreeeeee. hahaha.

I can't wait to fit on a friggin' roller coaster seat again. And horseback ride (I stopped at 220lbs, poor horsey). And snowboard. And fly on a plane comfortably. And TIE MY SHOES without it being a huge effort. Just the simple things I took for granted a decade ago!

I didn't have a supervised diet, but I DO have Highmark BCBS and my insurance was processed through Anthem BCBS, since I am having the surgery in VA. I gained 15lbs from my 1st appointment to my last (in a 2 month timespan!) and I still got approved. *shrug* Just keep doing what you're doing.

I know having seasonings and spices are fine after surgery, but what about serious hot sauces? I asked my nutritionist about it, and she was like "oh, curry powder and red pepper flakes are fine!" No, no. I meant like Trinidad Scorpion/Carolina Reaper Death Sauce kind of hot sauce. Start-crying-when-you-smell-it hot sauce. Currently, I don't get any upset stomach from any level of the Scoville. I douse crazy hot sauce on pretty much everything. Anyone a hot sauce junkie? Can you tolerate it post-op?

Official start of pre-op diet is tomorrow for my November 1st date! unf. Barely ate anything today, though, either just because of work. Trying to think of what I should have for dinner.

Go to where your username is and click the little arrow and then click "My Surgery". All the tabs on the left change what's in your little sidebar thingy.

11/1/18 Rodolfo Oviedo, MD, FACS - Winchester Medical Center, Winchester, VA.

I have a cat named Mouse. Plus my birth year. So creative, I know. lmao.

I'm having surgery in 2.5 weeks and I don't plan on stepping on the scale for at least 8 weeks. You'll just mess with your head.

I had the original plan of not "worrying" about getting into the dating scene until I had gone through my weight loss, plastic surgery, etc. I wanted to spend the next 2 years focusing on just me and my health. I was talking about this with my mother and she thinks it would be better to start dating someone before I lost the weight, so I know they care about me no matter my size. Personally, I feel more comfortable waiting so I am comfortable with myself and not adding to stress. That being said, did you tell your new partner after you lost weight that you had weight loss surgery? Did you mention it in your dating profile? I feel like I want to be upfront that, hey, I was almost 300lbs once and I do not want to be with anyone who has an issue with that. I would hate to get to know someone, and then have them make some snide comment about obese people, etc. I want to screen out those people. How did you approach the subject?

I have Highmark BCBS and it took them 3 business days to approve it. It was the scariest point in the process, but actually turned out to be the easiest.

I have Highmark BCBS. They did not require any documentation of weight loss OR a monitored diet. All I had to do was make a list of all diets I have previously tried. They approved me no questions asked on the first run. Are you sure it's an insurance requirement and not your doctor's? Are you in West Virginia?

Well this did NOT taste good before surgery.... so I anticipate it would make me hurl after surgery too. My cats like it, though.

I start my pre-op diet tomorrow morning. I did "sort of" start it last week, but then had a severe craving for pizza Friday and caved. Tomorrow is the "serious" doctor-ordered start date, though. I felt really ill after eating the pizza. My mom suggested I make a video in that moment, describing to myself just how terrible I felt mentally and physically after eating that junk. I had a huge Taco Bell craving yesterday and watched that video, and it reminded me how terrible I will feel giving in to my cravings. You never really remember how awful some of that stuff makes you feel the next time the next craving comes along. I'm hoping that video will help me through the next two weeks.

I think the painful surgeries are the ones where they remove a large area of skin, like the arm lifts and the lower body lifts (both of which I am saving up for already in anticipation... they are not cheap...)

I had a breast reduction last year (prior to bypass). I went from an H cup to a D cup. There was NO pain post-surgery. They even had to do a full nipple graft because of the sheer volume of fat and skin they removed and the distance they had to list. Full nipple grafts are rare; they remove the entire nipple and sew it back on, instead of leaving it attached via a flap. I had 8lbs of boob removed and did not experience any pain post-op. I was not even prescribed pain medication, just Ibuprofen. There are no drains. There was a LOT of post-op care, though, as far as lotioning the stitched areas and nipples. Mostly because I had the full nipple graft. They do NOT look pretty for quite some time. lol. There are dozens of ugly stitches, and I had stitches around my nipples. They dissolve over time. It's been almost two years now and the best decision ever, although I am scared after my surgery they will get saggy again. Oh well, I guess...

How are you doing? Only 2 days left!!

So I thought I was an epic genius for buying baby food for the puree stage. (My nutritionist said the meat-only ones were fine). Exact portion, no sugar, no salt, no carbs, already blended, 7g protein... I've had the veggie baby food before and it's, dare I say, delicious. The meat, however.... NOPENOPENOPE. I made my ex try some of the ham one and he gagged. I licked some of the beef one and it is cat food. Literally... I am giving it to my cats. I am pre-op, by the way. Hahaha... glad I taste-tested beforehand!