Texarkolina

How soon after surgery did you notice an improvement in your energy level? I am 300 lbs and have been exhausted for about 3 years. One of my top motivators for having the surgery done is that I am tired of being tired. Can anyone share about returning energy levels after surgery.....with as many specifics as possible,.....pretty please? (you can spare the "surgery affects everyone differently" speech--I know )

I think we are all concerned about those things to some degree. I have read a lot on this board and done a lot of research and I am a little less worried than I was initially. Keep asking, reading, and praying about it.

Pain in the abdomen that gets worse rather than better....pain the the chest or left shoulder.... dizziness, fever, swelling of the abdomen. If you have enough concern to ask I would strongly suggest you call your doctor!

How exciting! Saying prayers for you!

When I went in for my eval the first thing she told me was that it wasn't her job to decide if I should have the surgery, but rather come up with a plan to address my mental health needs through the process. That made me relax and I was totally honest, also. She said that if she thought there was a need that she would recommend follow-up sessions and/or mandatory support groups before and after surgery. I came away with a recommendation that I be given information before and after surgery about how to contact a therapist and support groups and that this information be on my discharge papers. That was it...just made sure I have it handy if I need it. I will also say that I have a pretty dramatic background, also. You know I think the "stupid" ones are the ones that lie to the psychologist. This isn't a magic fix and I do not want to go through all of this and not succeed because I didn't have the support or resources to handle the mental aspect of it all.

Yes--it is great not to have to choose!

THANK YOU!!!!

I am not calling BS on them wanting to be healthy. We all want to be healthy. I am calling BS on them acting like a big motivator isn't just being smaller and looking better. While having that health threat dissolve away is a great motivator, so is a shrinking bum. Obesity is a major health issue, but you know what, it is also a major social issue. While I have only struggled with my weight from a health issue for a couple of years, I have been impacted socially my entire life. Here is wishing you an avalanche of health, energy to burn, and a cute butt!

Oh Man! I haven't even thought about the boots. No more ankle-high boots.....but tall slim pretty boots. Yes--added to goals and things to celebrate--Thanks!

Praying...... and congrats on your surgery day!

Congratulations!

I have been going to a WLS surgery support group and every meeting someone says something along the lines of, "well it is not like I am trying to be a size 6 or anything, I just want to be healthier." So am I alone in that I DO wanna be a size 6--or 4--or 2? I want to be the one that is expected to sit in the middle of the backseat because I am so small. I want to wear tiny little jeans and have the option of dressing trashy and still looking hot. I have been big my whole life and I want to be the little one. Don't get me wrong, any move towards health and any weight loss is a good thing. I know better than to measure success vs. failure by getting into a size that seems almost unreal to me now. However, is it OK if I WANT it? Like really,really want it? I know me well enough to know that I will celebrate every pound lost and every step I make towards a healthier me. However, if the truth were told, at the top of the list of reasons that I am willing to allow someone to cut one of my internal organs into pieces and yank part of it out of my body through a slit in my stomach, go through the risks of surgery, and have my eating habits forever changed is because I am SICK OF BEING FAT and I REALLY, REALLY, REALLY want to slip into a pair of jeans whose size is one single, solitary number. In this group everyone is like, "oh, I just want to reach a healthier me, looking better is just a little extra." Can I call BS on that? I mean like big heaping, steaming bull $#!%.... I know this post may make me seem shallow, but I have never seen anyone jump up and down over seeing their cholesterol go down 10 points. However, be in the vicinity when a former fatty slips on a size small top and size 6 jeans for the first time and you will see some celebrating going on. They will be taking pictures and calling their friends to share the news. You might see a little dance or hear an "oh HELL YEAH". Ever see anyone act like that over that hospital lab report? I am not trying to minimize the awesome health benefits of losing what is basically another person made up of fat that I am carrying around. I know my friend of fat will eventually kill me if I don't leave her behind. I am looking forward to improved health, mobility, and energy levels--sure...but do I really have to pretend that I wouldn't have the surgery if I knew that my overall health wouldn't really improve and all I had to look forward to is being smaller?

Thank you so much for that. I really needed to hear that.

Yes, the 16-year old can and has babysat for me in the past. She will help,but her priority will be helping her mom. I know I am being a baby about this, but dang it, I am scared and I don't think I can deal with the added stress of her having surgery, too. It is just another huge distraction/stressor and I was already at capacity. Sorry--just scared and venting.

I am scheduled for July 23...and I am really scared. My best friend lives close to me and was going to take care of my 2 year old while I was in the hospital and during my recovery period if I needed help.....BUT,she just found out today that her hysterectomy is scheduled for July 26. I can't move my surgery, and I don't have any family that can step in. My little one is still in a crib, and doesn't always sleep through the night. I don't know what I am going to do if everything goes right, much less if I have complications. I feel so ill-prepared for this surgery. I have just changed jobs and things are so chaotic for me right now. I read posts where people are sampling protein powders and stocking up on multi-vitamins and such. I haven't even thought about that stuff. I know deep down that this is going to be much harder because I have not had time to really focus and plan out the details. Part of me says to move the surgery date so that my friend will be available to help me, but I really can't because of insurance stuff. AND if I were really really really honest with myself, I would admit that the reason I am sitting here bawling as I type this is because I am pissed off and hurt that my friend would schedule her surgery so close to mine. I have made some heroic efforts to be there for her when she was sick in the past, and I expected her to be there for me. She has a husband, a grown son, a 16 year old daughter, and an 8 year old who could help her if she needs it, but I am a single mom with a toddler. She even commented to me that she was going to have her husband take off work "in case" I couldn't be at the hospital with her. REALLY? Part of this is my fault because I joked with her that we should just schedule these on the same day and lay around and watch movies for 2 weeks. I probably gave her the impression that this would be easier than I imagine it will be.

Congrats..... BTW....I knew from very early on that I was prego with my daughter because I was trying and counting the days. In the pregnancy book I had it described the size of the baby as the size of a pinto bean, lima bean, etc. Since I didn't know the gender, "Bean" became my baby's "pregnancy name". It stuck. My little girl is nearly 3 and EVERYONE and I do mean EVERYONE still calls her Bean. I hope you get and much happiness from your Bean as I do from mine. Just a tip--if you continue to use "Bean" as a pregnancy name, you could use that as an excuse to purchase--or have purchased for you--the Bean necklace from Tiffany's.....love me a little blue box!

Ok..so you will discover what those are for you after surgery I suppose. Thanks for the 411!

That is encouraging. I know it would have to be a small amount and infrequently, but I really love a diet coke in the evening at times. I understand trigger, but what is a slider food?

Use your STD! Most employers will even allow you to supplement it with vacation time to make a full paycheck if you need to.

I lost 100 pounds through diet and exercise before and people did treat me differently when I was smaller. I think, however, that it was only partly because I looked better and the other part was that I acted different. I walked with confidence and looked people in the eye and smiled more than I do when I am large. People respond to confidence.

So does this include soda pop? I am actually not doing any "food funerals" but I am hitting the diet coke by the case. I really love a cold fizzy and would like to think that I might be able to have a small cup sometime in my future. I have gotten the impression that soda pop is one of those never again items????

Love this thread. I once lost 100 pounds in 7 months with very strict dieting and exercise (I have since found them and their nasty little friends....but I digress) and had severe FLS. I actually worked with a counselor for a few sessions over the issue. I would go to the mall to buy clothes that fit and would wind up overwhelmed and sobbing on a bench. It took me forever to learn to accept a compliment and not have that moment of "am I going to fit" every time I walked towards a booth. I can't wait to have it again!!

I am not sure that the moderators will allow this, but I would like to give a shout out to Delta. Although the flight attendant did forget to bring me an extender, they were all very nice about the whole thing. Their policy is that they will work with all passengers to transport them comfortably. You will not be asked to purchase an extra seat. If you require more room than one seat, they will re-seat you if possible, or move you to another flight where your needs can be accommodated. The lady I talked to on the phone before my flight was able to tell me that there were a lot of empty seats on the plane, so there should be no problem with my needing extra space. At least I knew that I would not be stranded or have to cough up money for another seat--just deal with the embarrassment. I also checked about seat belt extenders online and found out that you can buy them on ebay and several other sites for anywhere from $30 and up. Boy o boy do I wish I would have though about that before the flight. Having my own seat belt extender would have made this so much easier.

Thank you all so much for understanding. I know it could have been much worse, but it was upsetting enough as it was. I can't wait to be on the other side of this.

Thanks. I hope you have several inches of belt flopping free the whole flight!