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Me, basically, most days, I feel like I'm hanging on by a thread. I get up and go through my day feeling sad most of the time, I can't wait until I can get back into my bed and try to sleep. I don't know why exactly. My family keeps telling me to go talk to someone. I don't want to talk to anyone. I've talked to counselors before and I don't feel like talking anymore. I just don't. My dad was just diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. That's a huge blow and basically I've been sitting here today crying all day. We don't have many answers for him yet and hopefully next week we will have more answers as he starts meeting with an oncologist and surgeon. The tumor is 3cm. I don't even know if he'll qualify for surgery to have it removed. We don't know what stage of cancer he has yet. He's been diabetic for years and basically his pancreas isn't working right anymore to begin with so who knows what they'll be able to do for him. He will also be having more MRI's to see if the cancer has spread anywhere else. A few years ago my mom found out she had kidney cancer. It was a fluke the way she found out and the tumor was so tiny, they found it right at the beginning. They were able to remove the tiny tumor and a little area of her kidney and that was it. She's been cancer free. She didn't need chemo or anything and has been cancer free for 3 years now. I don't think it will be the same for my dad. I don't know why but I have a feeling this isn't going to turn out well. Honestly, in a lot of ways I wish I wasn't even alive anymore. Don't worry, I'm not suicidal. I won't kill myself bc I don't want my children to live with that for the rest of their lives. I take an antidepressant, I have for years. Some of this may be due to low thyroid. I am getting blood work done in a couple weeks. The dr is also testing my sex hormones bc he feels like I might be starting menopause. That's it for me. Sorry to be such a downer but it is what I'm going through right now. Oh Denise, I wanted to say sorry to hear the struggles you are having too. I forgot to put that in my other post.

Wow already booked up, how many days a week does he do the surgery, I believe dr Peterson does them Monday and Wednesday. I am hesitant to make a date before insurance approval just in case. I was surprised when she told me that all she had to do was give the finished packet to the nurse to look over and then she would call and schedule. I asked her when she submitted for approval to BC and she told me after the nurse gives her the packet, same day that she schedules the surgery... I just hope all goes well with approval!

I find myself adding more to the topic each day lol, -a new one I've discovered now is that I can swallow pills that have been cut in half, a week post-op. My syrup was getting low, so I tried it out of desperation, no issues at all! -the broth from el pollo loco's tortilla Soup will change your life! The family had chicken for dinner and I tried this so I didn't feel completely left out...best decision I've made all week! -that I can tolerate dairy! Tried a tablespoon of cottage cheese, and sprinkles of the cojita cheese in my soup earlier, no issues at all! -that this would be so mentally challenging! I have cried so many times these week, either from pain, weakness, frustration that I had to force myself to eat when I wasn't hungry, discomfort, etc. I see why they require the psych evaluation, this is not for the weak at heart, by any means. -funny finding, that my nipple piercings would close up so fast! I had to take them out at the hospital before surgery, by the time I was released, my piercings were completely closed. I refuse to piece them again, as I just did it for my 30tg bday in April, and that crap hurt like no other! (Hey, this is gonna help somebody lol, don't judge me ???? lol) -I still can't poop! Wtf, never thought I'd be looking forward to pooping so bad...this is BS man! As you can see, I'm also getting a tad crazier by the day lol. This thing is like being baptized! Once I came from that table, I was born again, and my whole lifestyle changed instantly even when I'm still confused about what exactly I signed up for, and learning more and more each day. So by all means, keep adding....add multiple posts as you discover new things....somebody is learning from this, I'm absolutely one of them ????????❤️

I started my preop diet labor day too!! Let me tell you the first day was okay bc I was off work but the second day I was miserable and had to work a 10hr shift. My head was pounding and I felt light headed. I really thought I'd pass out at work but I'm a trooper and was always taught, "you can do it if your set your mind to it, be strong!" And I did it! I had to set up alarms that went off in 3hr intervals to drink the shakes. I'm allowed to have sugar free jello, chicken broth and sugar free popsicles but I haven't been eating them. Now that I'm finally off work I'll give it a try. I'd have to say the first day was the worst then afterwards it was easy, I continued working the 10hr shifts which were hectic but overall not bad in a way it kept me busy lol ah and I stayed off the social media bc everyone keeps posting delicious food stuff and I don't want to be tempted anymore than I have to xD lol in total for this week I've lost 10lbs

Question on the haitial hernias and sleeves. I would be traveling for sleeve surgery out of state but within the U.S. (would be cash pay bc insurance excludes WLS). I am praying for hernia to be confirmed so I could have that repaired and just pay a smaller portion out of pocket for the sleeve and have insurance pay for hernia repair. Here's the question-- How do I go about getting hernia confirmed? Since I'm out of state and won't see the sleeve Dr until I know if I am a candidate because I won't be able to afford it without the hernia. I just made an apt with a local Gastrointestinal Dr. Would they look at me like I'm a freak and refuse to do an endo if I tell them the truth that 'I just need hernia confirmed before wls'? Or what do I say?

I got mine August 4th! I lost about 22lbs and I'm also stuck right now /: but I'm eating carbs Bc that's really the only thing I can eat that's "soft" tbh, so yeah I'm just annoyed I've been stuck for two weeks I think I just wanna start loosing again, but I think it's just a stall, soon we will start loosing again!

Of course I know, I'm not that stupid to make a life changing decision without in depth research, info sessions, speaking to doc and actually learning what is involved in this procedure...while part of what you say is also involved...you're forgetting that more than 2/3 of our stomachs are gone...if you drink while Eating, you can't eat as much as you should, bc there is no room for Both! A doctor didn't have to tell me that for me to know that I only have a pouch therefore have wait before I drink!

Hey girl! So happy you did great so far!! I began my diet yesterday and thankfully I was off bc of labor day so it wasn't too bad. Today however was a different story. I woke up with a killer headache so it took everything in me to get out of bed >_< but I managed hehe. I got a call from work stating someone called out for the rest of the month (don't ask how..I myself am beyond the point of Oh My God") so they asked me to come in early so thus began my long 10hr shift. It was brutal!! I'll tell you that and I had to forfeit my break since we're short a person but I explained the situation to my boss and told them I'd be leaving in intervals of 3hrs at a time to drink my shake and she had to no problem with that. I had to put an alarm on otherwise I'd forget. I sat in the break room and mixed my shake lol anyways, so I was kinda dizzy and definitely feeling some hunger pangs but overall it was much better than I expected. And I did not cheat!! just have to get through the next 3 days and I'll be off work and can solely concentrate on the diet. I just keep thinking to myself, "another day closer Brigitte, you can do this! Don't mess it up now, just a couple more days!!"

How soon after surgery were yall driving? My dr said least 7 days. I'm having surgery in October and I'm kinda freaking bc 7 days is a long time. I have 5 kids so we are always on the go.

Hello everyone. I got word from my coordinator at my doctors office that my paperwork will go to submission within 7 days and then it may take 2-3 weeks for the approval. Does anyone else have any experience with BC- BS NC? I am getting RNY gastric bypass.

I'm sure I'm not alone in this but there are a few very negative people in my life. I haven't told many people about my upcoming surgery. Just people who will be needed in helping me out during recovery. My husband, best friend, and ex in laws (we are still very close) have been incredibly supportive and are really rooting for my success. The day told about the surgery My ex mother in law told me she is very nervous for me but she understands, she wants to feel better, and she will be there for anything I may need her for. That was the only concern any of my supporters have mentioned. I told my current mother in law and sister in law bc I will need them to help with my husbands kids mostly during the no driving phase post-op. My two will be with grandma, I thought my husbands kids would be here the week of surgery but it's actually the week they are with their mother. My sister in law lives next door and we help each other out a lot. So my mother in law just flat out told me "it's a stupid idea and I will be miserable." My sister in law has had the same tune. My mother in law joined weight watchers 2 months ago to try to prove to me you can lose weight without surgery. Well in her two months she's lost 6 pounds congrats to her. I did weight watchers years ago and lost 60 pounds then went on to lose another 40 with just smaller portions and exercise. A year ago I started gaining the weight back and have been dieting and exercising like crazy but have only been about to lose a total of 20 pounds. On Saturday at my sons birthday party she decided she was gonna announce it to the room full of guests that I am having weight loss surgery and how she's lost weight just by doing weight watchers. I was furious to say the least. I told her when she got to point of being tired of being overweight, having all these illnesses I have, and regular diet and exercise isn't helping the weight come off then maybe she would understand where I am coming from. But I did expect anyone to understand where I am coming from bc they haven't walked in my shoes. She had the nerve to tell me I was being rude. My husband and ex in laws were pissed off at what she did and my husband pulled her aside told her she wrong and extremely rude. And should she continue to behave like this she would no longer be invited to our family get togethers. The next day my sister in law called me asking about the diet I've been on and the right amounts of protein and such bc she wanted to lose weight with her mom so they could both prove to me I am doing it the wrong way. Only weak people have the surgery. I just hung up on her and have ignored both of their texts and phone calls since Sunday. How do yall deal with these types of people?

Never forget you can defeat the surgery. If you go back to old eating habits if you eat high calorie food and drink. Before I had surgery I went to a baby shower and one of the Aunts had WLS but she ate a piece of cake and a piece of cheesecake. You can't eat that stuff if you want to be successful. She was over a year out and it was a good lesson to learn before I had my own. As to why you can't lose weigh w/o surgery.. because there is sugar in EVERYTHING you eat. You can lose weight without surgery given enough lifestyle change but less than 5% of people who do it without surgery retain the healthy weight they achieved. I had surgery because I was like a lot of other people who have WLS I've tried. I've tried any other way. But I was up to 431 and I didn't want to die of a heart attack before my nephew graduates high school. I didn't want to be dependant on other people for personal care. I didn't want to live as a fat person anymore. Now I make my own everything. I make sure there is no sugar in my deli meat or cheese. I really enjoyed watching "Fed Up" on Netflix which is a documentary on the obesity rates world wide. It didn't have a positive view of WLS but the information in it on the food industry and the WHO was very interesting.

@@sleevedtbd - do you have regular yearly gynecologists appts? They should have documented your weight. If you are on BC it use to be brought up (weight) years ago when I was going. At the time I was not overweight but my GF was and she was seeing the same doctor. You didn't show your height but if your BMI is under 40 you may want to also see if you may have comorbidities like if your BP was a little higher...are you pre-diabetic...do you have sleep apnea? That was a concern for me as my BMI was just over the minimum. I am a lot older but they also said my HBP and pre-diabetic state would override the BMI. I also thought I was 5'8" and some change...turns out I am now just UNDER 5'8" so if they listed me as 5'7" my BMI was actually higher...

@@losinglily - you will probably have to meet some requirements. I have BCBS Fed employee and 3 required classes, meeting with NUT and head doctor. It was after all of that was completed before the paperwork was submitted for approval to BCBS. That took about 10 days for the results to be back to me.

My unit at work know about my surgery and are very supportive. And if I refuse something, they already know it's bc I can't eat it. Sometimes they even ask me if I'm able to eat a certain food before offering it to me! I'm not ashamed of having WLS, and people's negative opinions don't matter to me anyways, so I don't hide it ????

I had the RNY on 04/27/15 I was taking Metformin. After the surgery I was taken off meds. I haven't had to take them since. My surgeon recommended the RNY bc of my diabetes. Thank the Lord I did it!

I have a simple response that I have used. "I didn't ask for your opinion". I was so fed up with a certain person's comments and then one day I just blurted that out. Kinda surprised myself! Anyone can tell her remark was incredibly inappropriate.

I was fortunate, I hadn't had any serious health problems. I hated not being able to buy clothes anywhere, but I could live with that. I pretty much didn't give a flip about what other people thought about me in general. The final straw was getting absolutely fed up with being a failure in every career endeavor and knowing that it was 90 percent my weight that caused it. I was fed up with seeing people who weren't as capable or accomplished as I move ahead of me time after time. I have to say it worked, I've had more career success in the two years since I had surgery than I ever had before.

I used BS of CA, and in network providers, but I haven't gotten my bills yet. OTOH, I used the online calculator, which specified my out of pocket maximums and let me know what I could expect the total cost would be. Yes, they should be paying a percentage, but there should also be caps for your max out of pocket for the year, etc.

@@Lemon109 - so glad you had a good appointment with your Dietician yesterday! Premier Protein is concentrate.. I haven't tried any of the BS shakes yet. Yeah Benefiber is a must. I was going to check if I can continue my fiber gummies after surgery because I have diverticulosis and don't want to get constipated and trigger a diverticulitis episode, those are painful. Ever since I started on the fiber gummies, I haven't had any problems. How do you prepare your shakes? I wonder if the foam taste is the mixing process? Thanks for sharing the Bariatric fusion. I will have to check those out. I love the calcium citrate chews from Celebrate and BA, they are yummy! , however I might try the cinnamon you mentioned just to have a variety I plan on buying the unjury unflavored and also GENEPRO unflavored protein to mix with food. I hear they are both good.

I'm a stay at home mom of 5 kids. My dr told me and my husband, no driving for 7 days, no housework for 3 weeks bc the bending, stretching and lifting can tear the stitches. He also said if I try to do something and I get pain to wait another week before trying again. Now I know me, I'm gonna be going out of my mind. I had a spinal tap a little over a week ago and I've had complications from it. I've been down since the tap and I'm going insane!

I had my lap band surgery in August 2013. I had the normal up and downs. Received 5cc fill for the first year. Lost 50 lbs. Great. I had an incident where chicken got caught and had the cc's removed and endoscopy done. Afterwards, they took 6 months to give me 3cc fill. That's where I am now. I still have moments that I eat too fast or the wrong thing, but I do upchuck but not very often. My problem has been diarrhea and constipation. I would take pepto for the runs and a bowel softener for the other. That has been going on the whole 2 years. My problem now that concerns me is that I haven't lost anymore weight. Also that whenever I eat or drink I get an upset stomach every time I try to eat a little. I can't seem to get down a Protein drink, Water sometimes gags me, other drinks seem a little strong and gives me an upset stomach. I take about 20 pills (mostly RX) a day. I can feel the heaviness in my throat and stomach. I don't seem to be getting enough protein and liquids. I know what and how much I need, it's getting it down with no queasiness. I also am diabetic and at one point my blood sugar got down to 36. I took glucose pills and a glass of milk. Now my lap band dr. says I don't really need anymore fills. And everything I've said above happens most of the time. At other times I feel great. I can't figure out what I am doing wrong or right. Other big problem which may be due to the weight loss is that my husband said he no longer desires me. We barely touch, talk, or whatever. He works still at 66 and I stay at home. I don't drive. I am 65. We're like roommates. I do see a psych dr and I might start going to a therapist to figure out what I can do to help my husband trust me emotionally bc he shut down along time ago. Just recently after a heart op I decided I was no longer going to be depressed and I've done it since March 6 2015. I didn't want to waste the next 20 years like I lost the many years in the beginning of my disease. I have Bipolar Disorder Rapid cycling and most of those pills are psychiatric drugs. I have made his and my girls life a living hell for over 30+ years. In and out of hospitals. My husbands emotions just shut down. I don't know if this is a subject for BariatricPal but I'm throwing it in. I have a lot of drooping skin and a lot of wrinkles. What can I do to be more lovable without first having body lift. That is $$$$ I haven't got. Can anyone help?

I still have a very close relationship with my ex mother in law. She's been very supportive of me through this journey as well. She will be keeping my kids while I'm in the hospital and she will taking them back and forth to school for me while I can't drive. I told my kids yesterday, grandma and grandpa had picked them up for school for me while I was meeting with my surgeon. After my appointment I went over to pick them and discuss my surgery date and all with my ex in laws. I told the kids they would be staying a couple of days at grandmas house. They were excited. I told them I was gonna be having a surgery to make me feel better. My daughter who is 7 has had 3 surgeries and she's also a type 1 diabetic, she spent a week in ICU when she was diagnosed with diabetes. She was worried me liking the hospital food, lol! I told her not to worry bc I would be having special food. She was ok after that. My son is 9, he didn't have much to say other than how excited he was to stay at grandmas for longer than a night. I do plan on facetiming with them or at least calling them after surgery so they know I'm ok.

Hi, I'm on the depo too, doc switch from the patch, bc of risk of heart attacks, loooved the patch. I had my surgery on 1/29/2013, I lost a total of 105lbs. I was 150lbs when I got pregnant, gained 40lbs, kept going up and down, now at 174lbs. And like you, I noticed not losing weight as before with the depo I can't stop eating sometimes, and others I don't eat enough, but, still doesn't seem like I lose any weight. Planning on having another baby, (33yrs old), I think I will get the Mirena or the Implant.

mine was submitted after my last mandatory NUT class. I have BCBS fed emp and within 10 days or so I had a surgery date!