demsvmejm

I'm still going through all the preliminary testing. Already attended the 2 hour seminar, had my consultation with the surgeon to discuss the RNY surgery but opted for the lap band cause I don't have over 100 lbs to lose. (he called me a "light-weight"!, NEVER been called that before! my BMI is 40 with co-morbities) Had 1 hour appt with a nutritionist. Had a pulmonary test , chest x-ray and blood work done on Tuesday 12/26. My appt w/ psych Dr. is 1/15/07. When all these test results are returned to my surgeon, his office will call for another appointment to discuss any questions, test results and then schedule a surgery date then. One of the other conditions was that I must be nicotine free and stop smoking at least 2 months before he'll do surgery. (It's been 6 days and 21 hours without a cigarette for me.) So hoping for a surgery date of Feb/March Good Luck to all!

I'm doing good! Every now and then I think about a cigarette, but it's weird, it's not a "craving" thing, I just think, "right now I'd be sneeking a smoke outside" and the thought would instantly be gone. I put on my old winter coat yesterday to go outside to play with the kids. I put my hands in the pocket and pulled out a cigarette, left over from a few weeks ago........didn't give it a second thought, crushed it up and threw it away. So far, so good

Thanks for the compassion. I always get myself worked up over the littlest things and then it's usually not as bad as I thought. What's a few needle pokes? I suppose I need to listen to everyone's circumstances and the good and the bad and remind myself not every situation is the same. I'll take my questions to my Dr. and perhaps some of my concerns might not pertain to me. I need to remind myself why I'm going through with this........ My health, my family and myself.

Okay, now I'm scared. I don't have my band yet, but needles freak me out, especially when they can't find what their looking for! I don't think my Dr. uses the florascope, should I demand it? My DH asked me today who pays to have it fixed/replaced if the Dr. misses and punctures the tubing, cause it will not be us, it's his mistake. There are so many questions that I have to ask my Dr. Couldn't think of any during my consult. After checking out and listening to others, I now have a huge list.

wootsie73 To stop smoking is the hardest thing I've ever tried doing. The only way my husband would take off the condom for us to get pregnant was if I quit smoking, well of course after the babies were born, I started again. Stupidest thing I have ever done, twice! I quit using Nicoderm patches both times. My dad has has two heart attacks, has tried any and all things to quit, he cannot. I had a stroke 1/1/2005 at the age of 36 and my Dr. told me you need to quit smoking or I guarantee you that within 5 years it will happen again and the outcome might not be so good this time. I have a husband and two kids, you'd think this would be motivation enough, thinking about them growing up without their mommy....It's not. It is the most controlling thing, it plays with your mind and has you in a choke hold. I have never been addicted to drugs, but that is exactly what nicotine is, a drug. I quit for around three weeks after my stroke and have been smoking ever since. I was on Cymbalta for mild depression, and decided to use the patch to try quitting again....wrong! These two combonitations of drugs in my system made me psycho! I had to call my mom for an intervention one night, I could not get a handle on my emotions. So, stopped that and Dr. put me on Wellbutrin XL, I haven't quit while using that. So trying Chantix this time, with the possibility of a surgery date in Feb/March. I really want to succeed this time. Dissappointing my husband and kids again would break my heart and theirs. Oh, I'm now 20 hours without that nasty nicotine!!!! ha ha I'm winning!

Congratulations to all the non-smokers!!!!!!! I'm going into my 18th hour without a cigarette. I'm putting off going to lunch because that's when I usually have one. Have gum in the car, should help. I've been on Chantix since last Saturday, it's supposed to be the newest thing in a stop smoking aid. They say 44% of users have stopped smoking after 3 months. They have a web-site and they e-mail you tips and tricks and stuff everyday to help keep you motivated. Wish me luck!

lamamama I cannot believe how much weight you've lost since September! You must be sticking to your new nutrition plan to a "T" I have 70 lbs. to loose to get to my goal weight, but when your 4'11" with a BMI of 40 and have had a stroke at age 36, taking off that weight and keeping it off will save my life. I'm sure I'll lose a lot slower than others that have a lot more to lose. But I'm okay with that. ***just for an update***** it is 11:14 a.m. on Friday December 22nd and I haven't had a cigarette since last night at 5p.m.!!!!! I don't have any on me.....I hope I can get thru this one hour at a time. So far, so good! Mary

Okay, I'm sure I'm not the only one that has "rolls" when they sit down, but can't you feel the port when your abdomen scrunches up when you sit?, it seems it would dig into my insides when I sit. When they sew the port under the skin and connect it to the muscle (yes, it might be under there somewhere!) isn't it 2-3 inches under the skin ?? or is it embedded in the fatty tissue? for fills do they use a needle that long to reach the port? Just wondering, probably a better question for my Dr. I have a list of questions now. I couldn't think of very many questions when I had my consultation. Hoping to get a surgery date around the end of Feb/early March.

Hello Gjdf52 and Lamamama!! I'm working with Dr. Featherstone too! At my initial consultation I was a bit worried that he had only done 15 LB procedures and the patients were only 3-4 months out so he couldn't answer any questions regarding erosion, band slippage etc.... I'd love to hear more about your experiences. I have scheduled my psycho exam, had my appt w/nutirtionist and will be getting a stress test the day after christmas. My problem right now is smoking.....He will not operate until I'm smoke free for 2 months. I'll probably get a Surgery date around Feb/March but not sure yet. It's nice to know someone on this board is from T.C. (actually I live in Kalkaska) Mary

I've been overweight ever since elementary school, not fat, but probably 10-15 lbs. heavier than everyone else. I suppose I would need a few years of counciling to determine the exact reason I over-eat. I love food. I can remember when I was little and after school at the babysitters, sneeking into the pantry and eating chocolate chips out of the bag. I don't remember eating bkft before school, school lunch was normal portions and then when we got home dad would have a huge meal, I would eat seconds and thirds. My g'ma always sent over homemade sweets. I didn't discover fast food until High school. It's as if I never get full. I can eat a normal size meal, while cleaning up I finish the leftovers (why let them go to waste?) 30 minutes later I can eat again and continue to eat on and off all night if I let myself. 99% of the time I'm not even conscience of what I'm doing or what I'm eating. My mom had the stomach stapling around 22 yrs ago, she still has weight issues. Obesity runs in the family on my dads side. I eat when I'm happy, sad, frustrated. I also smoke and this is another bad habit I have to quit....quit date is 12/22/06 then Dr. will give me a surgery date after not smoking for 2 months So I'm hoping for March!

Hello everyone! I've been reading and learning from this forum for a few days and decided to join. Here it goes, short and sweet (like me) I'm 38 yrs old, female, 4'11" 200 lbs. have been overweight all my life, been up to 245, tried all the diets, joined the womens gym...etc (during my 2 hr consultation, the Dr. called me a "lightweight patient"..HA, :success1: never been called that my whole life! My rolls and folded over belly couldn't help but laugh. My BMI is 39, and I'm not 100 lbs overweight, my insurance preapproved me because of my BP and stroke Married with 2 children 9 & 5yrs. I have had high BP for over 10 years, January 2005 I had a small stroke. (killed a 5mm section of my brain) At that time the Dr's told me to lose weight and of course STOP smoking. I have tried both many times, have not succeded as of yet. My #1 goal right now is stop smoking. Is there anyone else out there that can give me some encouragement? My Lap Dr. says I have to be smoke free for 2 months before he'll schedule surgery. I'm going through the psych testing, lab work and some test that I walk on a treadmill with some sort of IV solution running through my veins (?) I've already had a 2 hr appt with a nutritionist and am fully aware what I need to do to make this LB work for me. Still have doubts in the back of my mind that this is just another ill fated attempt to change my health and my lifestyle and I'm gonna fail and dissappoint my husband and myself again. Anyway, This site has opened my eyes to a lot of questions I've had. I;m confident with my Dr. He has performed over 500 RNY operations with no major complications. (and no death) He's done 18 Lap's with the first being 4 months ago. Thanks for listening to me ramble. :welldone2:

I have a quick question....did your Dr. give any reason to drop some lbs. before the surgery? My Dr. hasn't said anything about a special diet before surgery or to lose some weight. (except the few days before to prep) Just wondering. I'm waiting to get my surgery date too, probably will be Feb or into March, I hope not too much longer than that. Good luck to you! we can do this!

Thank you so much for the encouragement! Kathy, you are in inspiration to me. I'll keep in contact and we can get thru this together! I have set my stop smoking date for Dec 22nd. The Dr. prescribed me Chantix. It is the latest drug on the market to help with this terrible habit. It doesn't have nicotine. It is supposed to "block" the nicotine from hitting that place in your brain that produces the feeling of "euphoria" and makes you feel so good about smoking. The statistics say that 44% of people are smoke free after 4 months. I'm gonna be one of those 44%! I did quit smoking before both of my pregnancies with the nicorette patch with a lot of success. (why I ever picked up another cig after quitting twice, I don't know) I am on Wellbutrin XL for depression. My Dr. said not to use the patch while taking this, it would probably make me psycho! This new drug has a website and they e-mail you each day with tips and encouragement for quitting and sticking with it. They suggest different ideas and exercises to help make it thru. I don't get much support from my DH. His concern extends to "so, have you quit smoking yet?" I need something to replace smoking while I'm driving. I have never smoked in my house, and I don't smoke in the car when the kids are with me. My car is funny, it doesn't seem to start until I have lit a cig! Wish me luck!............Hey, I'm trying to download one of those cute weight tickers, but when I copy and paste it says Invalid file....anyone know what I'm doing wrong?

I have a co-worker that is totally against lap, RNY, any surgical procedure regarding weight for that matter. Her daughter and son lost tremendous amounts of weight by diet and exercise so she feels everyone else can and should do the same. So, I'm thinking about telling a "lie" to my co-workers (there are only 5 of us) to avoid all the tension and negative comments...perhaps a small ovarian cyst needs removed, can't use gall bladder, already had it removed. Or should I just hold my head up high and deal with everyone's response?

I'm a newbie here, right now going through the preliminaries before they set a surgery date. I'm just really amazed about the questions posted here. Right now I'm awaiting a phych exam appointment, lab work, and some test that I have an IV and they put you on a treadmill. I've already had my appt with nutritionist that lasted 2 hours. Didn't your nutritionist and Dr. cover any of this nutrition and menu planing stuff? Is my Dr. that picky or just that good? I'm thinking I have a really good surgeon. Everything that must be changed about my eating habits and exercise has been drilled into my head by these professionals. I'm looking forward to this chance to take this weight off, and keep it off. I guess my comment was, wasn't any of this covered before they wheeled you into the operating room? :omg: I'm not looking forward to the bloating either. when i had my gall bladder out it took days for all the "air" to escape my abdomen. It sounds like this board is very helpful and encouraging. Thanks for all the great advice as I've been reading posts for the past couple of days. It's nice to have someone on your side and know what to expect before it happens. Good Luck!