LibrarianErin

On 6/20/2023 at 9:05 PM, DeeLCee said:

I am scheduled for the sleeve on July 19. I'm having trouble deciding how much of my current wardrobe I should start giving away. I feel "buyer's remorse" because of all the money I've spent on clothes. Does anyone else feel this way?

Hi @DeeLCee! Congrats on a July surgery! I understand the buyer's remorse and think it's ok to be sad about it. I agree with what some others have said that you can take time and decide what to keep or give away as you lose weight. I sometimes shop at secondhand stores like Goodwill and St. Vincent de Paul, and the plus size sections are often small. So whenever I donate something, I think of a woman like me who will be grateful to find something both affordable and comfortable to add to her work or going out wardrobe.

Hi, @FifiLux! Thanks for sharing with us!

I was going to say something about July 4th being an easy date to remember, but then I saw your location is Europe, so you don't have the Independence Day association we Americans do. 🙂

Kudos on taking the initiative to give up alcohol before surgery! I know that can be such a big change because it's not just to your diet but to how you spend your down time or hang out with friends. But you got this! You'll be thankful you made that change now when there are so many other changes to make after surgery.

Knee surgery is a huge why to keep at the forefront on this journey. Losing weight can unlock so many other health improvements.

I'm surprised you have no pre-op guidelines from your provider. As some others have mentioned here, a big reason for a liquid diet is to shrink your liver to make it easier for the surgeon to access your stomach. I just heard a story from one of the co-hosts of the Our Sleeved Life podcast who said her surgeon took her liver out temporarily and that caused her more pain during recovery than her friend whose surgeon worked around her liver. So you might want to ask your surgeon if s/he will take your liver out and if it's possible to prevent that

Hi, @Mpumi! Yes, I feel you on thinking about surgery for years before finally acting on it. You got this!

Hi, @WanderingLass! Thanks for sharing the ups and downs with us. I'm glad you have the support of someone close to you; that can be such a game changer. I bet hat the long, winding journey it took for you to schedule the surgery has made you stronger and better prepared to really use this tool well for your health!

Hi, @NanaNette! I know how you feel on wishing you'd started this journey sooner. I think a lot of us do. But I hope you know you're awesome for making this big choice for your health! Praying for your preparations and surgery to go well!

5 hours ago, NYCxCoco said:

Day 4 of my liquid diet is going a lot better than i thought it would. i don’t feel hungry like i thought i would. maybe bc work keeps me distracted and i barely get a break to notice i’m hungry lol. good luck to everyone starting theirs soon !

Thanks for the encouragement, @NYCxCoco! I know so many struggle with that liquid diet, so it's good to know it's possible for it not to be totally grueling!

On 6/8/2023 at 7:28 AM, NYCxCoco said:

New to posting (my first post actually) but i’ve been following everyones journeys and i’m so excited to finally start my own! My original date was June 26 then changed to July 3rd 🎆

@LibrarianErin congrats to you on the start of your journey thanks for starting this post 😊 we’re all in this together

I’ve been very stressed through all the hiccups i’ve had during the process especially the insurance process since mine was delayed for no reason but now that i have my approval and surgery date i feel a lot more calm and ready !

My process started in March when i met with my surgeon and dietician and it flew by. had my pre op appointment a week ago and my pre testing is monday 😱

I’m so excited to gain energy and confidence in myself. i’ve tried every diet possible and it’s always been a struggle in my life and only got worse as i got older with my PCOS.

i am keeping who i tell in a small bubble. my parents, siblings and best friend (who got the surgery about 18 months ago ) for now. i want to keep away as much negative energy as i can with everyone being a critic i just don’t want to hear it lol. once it’s done im sure i’ll change my mind.

what’s everyone doing about their job? what did you tell them, what did you say? how much time off do you get?

Hi, @NYCxCoco!

I understand the stress of insurance and rescheduling and testing. You're strong for sticking with it through all that! I also had my first meeting with my surgeon and dietician in March and feel like it's been a looooong time.

Yes, I'm with you on being excited to have more energy! That's a great "why" to keep at the forefront of my mind.

I'm grateful to have a very supportive manager at the library where I work and to work for a company that honors FMLA. I just told my manager I was having surgery and would need 4 weeks off for recovery. She didn't ask what kind; she's very respectful of privacy. She told me which person in human resources to contact about FMLA leave. I emailed the HR person and she sent me the paperwork, some of which I filled out and some of which my surgery provider filled out. I went with 4 weeks because that's the higher end of the recovery period, and I have plenty of sick and PTO time to cover it. I figure if everything goes super well and I feel good to return to work after 2 or 3 weeks, then I'll give my manager the good news of an early return; which is better than saying I'll need 3 weeks then having to push it back to 4. Hope this helps!

How did yesterday's testing go?

On 6/4/2023 at 7:49 PM, Vlynn57 said:

Hi I’m new and having gs in July or August. Does anyone know what Vitamins are best and if they offer a bundle deal ? I’m worried about nausea when taking them. I have to have an endoscopy and two more doctors appointments before he can schedule my appointment but we’re looking towards July or beginning of August. Good luck to everyone and nice to meet you. Any information that you think is helpful. Please message me.

Hi, @Vlynn57! (I'm sorry it took me so long to respond.) I've listened to a few episodes of the podcast "Our Sleeved Life" which is hosted by two women who are several years out from vsg surgery. They recommend a Vitamin company called procare: https://procarenow.com/. I got a free sample of several items but haven't tried them yet.

On 6/1/2023 at 10:26 PM, Turch said:

Hi! Mine is in June and accidentally read the topic wrong. LOL! I'm from Ohio too!

Hi, fellow Ohioan @Turch! How did your surgery go? How are you doing now? Us July folks could benefit from your story

On 6/1/2023 at 5:03 PM, adelie21 said:

Thanks for the encouragement. I have been reading a lot on here. Yes I have to do a 2 week liquid diet. So it wills tart July 3rd. That has me worried the most since I have a physically demanding job. I am not sure how I am going to make it through the day with so few calories. I am going to talk to my nutritionist about it next time we meet.

Did the nutritionist give you any more guidance, @adelie21? How is the liquid diet going 10 days in?

On 5/26/2023 at 8:29 AM, Aliakathleen said:

Hi! Totally new here today. I am both excited and nervous.
I found out yesterday that my surgery was approved! I have a July 20th surgery date.

Hi @Aliakathleen

Congrats on the approval!

On 5/23/2023 at 6:02 PM, Jamie72 said:

Hi,

I got my date for vsg last week, July 31st.

Completed all my pre-op requirements and got insurance approval, just waiting for my appointment in mid-July to see what my pre-surgery diet will be.

I'm excited but also nervous. I've gone back and forth on the surgery vs. trying those new weight loss drugs but i really feel that the vsg is the best long term solution for hopefully getting the weight off and keeping it off. Looking forward to stopping the dieting merry-go-round I've been on for 30 years.

I've told my Mom and one friend at work and both have been supportive. Don't think I'll really be sharing it with anyone else.

I've been getting support and some really good information on the /gastricsleeve reddit (i'm a Reddit junkie) and watching youtube videos of other people's journey's.

Hi @Jamie72!

Thanks for sharing! I understand about going back and forth about surgery. I opted against the new drugs because they're in such short supply and I don't want to be dependent on the drug supply chain to keep my weight off. Surgery seems like the option that gives me the most control of my success. I didn't think about Reddit, but I agree youtube has videos that help.

On 5/27/2023 at 4:16 PM, adelie21 said:

Hi All.

Found out yesterday that my surgery date is going to be July 17th. I am super excited, however I find myself feeling totally unprepared and almost panicked that I won't have everything ready. I think the liquid diet scares me the most because I have a physically demanding job and living on liquids is going to be hard to have enough energy to get through it.

Hi, Adelie! Congrats on getting a date! Please don't panic - you can get ready! There's a lot of really good information on this site. I've been setting aside an hour or two each week, so just 15 minutes here and there, to read discussions here and the info my provider gave me. Do you have to do a liquid diet before the operation? That does sound difficult, but not impossible!

11 hours ago, Jnpxo2 said:

Hey !!! I’ll be having surgery I believe in July. Just got approved today waiting to be scheduled. Definitely looking for a friend or buddy

Hi! That's exciting you got approval! I'm so happy it's June so I can say, "My surgery is next month."

Hi @Islandgirl29!

Thanks for sharing about your journey. I'm totally with you on the excitement to stop yo-yo dieting! I wish I had made this decision 10 years ago, but back then I really thought the next diet plan would be enough (sigh). Sounds like you have an extensive support network in family and a therapist, that's great! Let us know how the pre-op goes. I have mine on June 9th.

On 5/18/2023 at 11:16 AM, Chewchew46 said:

Yes I am excited and nervous. I finished my last in march. Then I I had went in to meet the surgeon and then from there they gave me my surgery date. I had a class as well for after surgery. Good luck with your surgery

Thanks, ChewChew! I wish you the best with prep and surgery!

On 5/18/2023 at 11:00 AM, NettyD said:

I so wish 😩 my surgery is scheduled for July but my coordinator said most likely the end of August! My last pre op appointment is 6/21/23…. Good luck to all the July surgery peeps 🥰🥰🥰

Sorry to hear that frustration, NettyD. I hope on the pre-op you get good news of a July surgery!

Hi! My surgery will be July 12th (2023). Anyone else scheduled to change your life in July?

Thanks so much for sharing! I'm two months pre-op and NEED to read others' success stories to calm the worry train. I love the measurements chart idea - definitely copying that!

I’ll answer my own questions to try to get the conversation going.

I’m doing ok - some bad, some good.

Today is 2 months until my surgery date (which is July 12th, 2023). I have two big steps before that day - a virtual group class with the surgeon and dietician and an in-person visit for blood work and an EKG in which I’ll also pick up my pre-op diet food.

I’m actually excited about having a regimented diet. I love following a food plan; it’s creating the food plan that is hard for me. I’m terrible at making time to plan meals and shop for the food and prepare the food. I’m excited to have a smaller stomach so I can cook something like a crockpot of shredded chicken, portion it out, and warm it up for lunch every week day. (And not binge eat it all in 2 meals.)

Now I’m enjoying reading and viewing content from other women who have gone through the surgery part of the journey and are joyfully sharing the good, the bad, and the ugly with others.

Ugh, the talking about it. I’d rather not. I’ve spent hours and hours researching the surgery before I made this decision. So it’s hard to know what to say in a few minutes to help the decision make sense to someone else.

Two supports I’ve found useful are youtube videos from women who are post-op (like Simply Megan and Erin Branscom) and the podcast Our Sleeved Life.

Hi! Anyone else scheduled for surgery in July of 2023? Let's talk!

How are you? How's your process going? What are you excited about for the future? What are you enjoying now? How are you talking about the upcoming surgery with family and friends? What supports have been helpful to you?