Surgery 11/29....and I am nervous as hell....

[HetKF 33]

My VSG is scheduled for 11/29 with Dr. Tallal Zeni/Mi Bariatric Institute, and I am soooooo nervous. Went to my pre-surgical class almost 2 wks ago and it scared the shit out of me....I started to panic...."WHAT?! No more Diet Pepsi?....No caffeine?....No more comfort food when I need it?!" Yup, I literally freaked out and went and ordered a burger and a diet coke. I have since come off of my freak out anxiety roller coaster by going over the book they gave me. It is all starting to sink in now. I am in the process of completing my testing. My last one is the Endoscopy. It's scheduled for this coming Tuesday and I am even anxious about it as well. I work in healthcare and have seen a lot..... which doesn't help me any. I just hope everything turns out ok....I can do this because nothing else has worked and I am not letting my fear and anxiety get the best of me.

[twoboysandagirl 109]

I know exactly how you feel. My surgery is scheduled for December 6. Some days I am so excited and know it is the right thing to do and other days I just think of the what ifs... I think what we feel is normal and it is kind of part of the process. I have been jumping through hoops to get wls surgery since May. And toying with the idea since 2006. I have just completed all my requirments and hit my pre-surgery weight goal (set by doc) two weeks ago and now I just have to keep that weight off and wait. I have been reading over every single word of every single paper they gave me so that I will have a good idea of what to expect but since I found this site, I think there is much more useful infor here. I love that you can ask a question and get several different opinions or experiences to answer. Everyone is so helpful. I hope everything goes well for you..keep me posted...I'll be right behind you.

My VSG is scheduled for 11/29 with Dr. Tallal Zeni/Mi Bariatric Institute, and I am soooooo nervous. Went to my pre-surgical class almost 2 wks ago and it scared the shit out of me....I started to panic...."WHAT?! No more Diet Pepsi?....No caffeine?....No more comfort food when I need it?!" Yup, I literally freaked out and went and ordered a burger and a diet coke. I have since come off of my freak out anxiety roller coaster by going over the book they gave me. It is all starting to sink in now. I am in the process of completing my testing. My last one is the Endoscopy. It's scheduled for this coming Tuesday and I am even anxious about it as well. I work in healthcare and have seen a lot..... which doesn't help me any. I just hope everything turns out ok....I can do this because nothing else has worked and I am not letting my fear and anxiety get the best of me.

[cbchebert 3]

I also feel the same. My surgery date is 11/15 and my husbands is 11/29. I should not be nervous as I have had several surgeries before but I think my last surgery (hysterectomy) scarred me for life. I am literally terrified of having this surgery just because of all the pain I went through with the hysterectomy. I know I am only supposed to have 3 small incisions but what if something goes wrong and he has to open me up? And on top of that, I had a gastric band back in 1983 (which had to be removed in 1993) so I have been through this before. Why am I so scared? I know once the surgery day gets here I will be okay but all his waiting is killing me. We need to stop thinkng about the "what if's" and think about how healthy we want to be. If we can just get through the 3 weeks prior to surgery and the 4 weeks after, I think we will be fine. Let's all hang in there, support each other and we WILL get through this fear. I will be happy to be an ear or a shoulder if you need one. You can either contact me here or a tmy personal e-mail. I need others support too. Good luck to you and please keep in touch.

My VSG is scheduled for 11/29 with Dr. Tallal Zeni/Mi Bariatric Institute, and I am soooooo nervous. Went to my pre-surgical class almost 2 wks ago and it scared the shit out of me....I started to panic...."WHAT?! No more Diet Pepsi?....No caffeine?....No more comfort food when I need it?!" Yup, I literally freaked out and went and ordered a burger and a diet coke. I have since come off of my freak out anxiety roller coaster by going over the book they gave me. It is all starting to sink in now. I am in the process of completing my testing. My last one is the Endoscopy. It's scheduled for this coming Tuesday and I am even anxious about it as well. I work in healthcare and have seen a lot..... which doesn't help me any. I just hope everything turns out ok....I can do this because nothing else has worked and I am not letting my fear and anxiety get the best of me.

[HetKF 33]

Thanks so much you guys I have been so stressed/overwhelmed with everything that I feel like I am about to burst. I saw my Therapist yesterday and she said "It's not that your so much afraid of the surgery...your afraid of how your going to cope now after the surgery. You are changing your body permanently and you have to follow the rules.,..you have no choice/excuses now. You will be forced to cope with things in your life another way and I will help you and support you along the way.." She hit the total nail on the head. I am afraid how to cope without food...caffeine etc..... I am just tired of being a slave to it all when I know I can look and feel so much better. After my C-section, I don't like surgery either (had twins 2002). If I can live through that.....I can certainly do this. I am 270 lbs on a 5"1' frame. I very much look forward to going into a store not called Lane Bryant to buy clothes. Although, I will still buy bras from there...lol....they are better than the department store kind. My Endoscopy went fine......all that anxiety for nothing!!! I am just now trying to get all of the logistics of time off from work and what not done. I will be so glad when this is done. There is only so much one person can take

[sleeve 4 me 910]

Why can't you have any caffeine? Did I miss something in my classes lol

[vicki s 146]

Why can't you have any caffeine? Did I miss something in my classes lol

I wondered that too, because this is not the first post i seen about no caffiene, but my doc said nothing about caffiene to me.

[Tiffykins 672]

You're concerns are truly valid, but I can tell you firsthand that the sleeve makes the decision/choice making process much easier. When you wrapped your head around eating to live instead of living to eat, things become much manageable. As for the caffeine, it's not a forever kind of thing, just immediately post-op, we have to focus on hydration, and caffeine as you know is a natural diuretic. You'll do great, and it sounds like your therapist is going to be great to work with during this process ! ! !

[HetKF 33]

You're concerns are truly valid, but I can tell you firsthand that the sleeve makes the decision/choice making process much easier. When you wrapped your head around eating to live instead of living to eat, things become much manageable. As for the caffeine, it's not a forever kind of thing, just immediately post-op, we have to focus on hydration, and caffeine as you know is a natural diuretic. You'll do great, and it sounds like your therapist is going to be great to work with during this process ! ! !

I TRULY APPRECIATE the kind words and support. I almost bailed after the class but thankfully my Therapist calmed me down and made me realize this is all part of the process. She is AWESOME!!!! She specializes in eating disorders (emotional eating being one of them). It has put things into perspective for me. Especially, after my knees hurt walking up/down stairs ...it reminds me every single time. I may not know any of you but I am glad to be sharing my Journey with you as well!!!

[HetKF 33]

As far as the caffeine......that was my understanding was dehydration. My Doctor's group has in their "handbook" that they never want you to consume caffeine.......everything should be Decaf for life to ensure that you keep hydrated. It also says no carbonation and using a straw is a no-no. How do you guys do those ticker things at the bottom?

[Tiffykins 672]

As far as the caffeine......that was my understanding was dehydration. My Doctor's group has in their "handbook" that they never want you to consume caffeine.......everything should be Decaf for life to ensure that you keep hydrated. It also says no carbonation and using a straw is a no-no. How do you guys do those ticker things at the bottom?

Hydration really isn't an issue after the initial swelling goes down. Taking big drinks is usually difficult immediately post-op, but after the first couple of months, drinking isn't an issue. I'm not arguing with your doctors, but really I see no difference in my hydration levels and I drink on average 20-24oz of coffee every morning. Drinking from a straw was difficult early out for me, but again, once the swelling went down, drinking with a straw actually made getting in fluids much easier some patients are even given a straw while they are still in the hospital recovering. A lot of those instructions are old RNY/Band pouch rules for the straw and carbonation, but I know plenty of RNY'ers and bandsters have zero issue drinking caffeine, carbonation and out of straws. Just given you a little different perspective, I'm all for following doctor's orders, but some of the information out there is not always the same for every procedure.

As for your weight loss ticker, go to your name at the top of the forum, click it, then in the top right hand corner of your profile, there is a BUTTON that says EDIT MY PROFILE. Click that, then go to Edit Signature.

Open a new tab or window, go to tickerfactory.com , make your ticker to your liking, make sure you set it up with a PIN so you can edit your weight as you lose. Once you get to the last page, you'll see a bunch of codes. Highlight, and then right click the bBcode for message boards, come back here to your Signature box, and PASTE that code in the box, hit PREVIEW SIGNATURE to make sure it's how you want it. If it looks good, hit "SAVE SIGNATURE" and it will show up on all of your posts, you can include other information as well. To edit your weight, you'll click on your ticker in any of your posts, and it'll pop open a NEW window, input your PIN, and it'll let you update your weight.

[CandyGirl 2]

My surgery is on 11/24 and I'm, skeeeeerd too. Most of my fears come from the surgery itself and coming out of the anesthesia, etc. I've had a few prior surgeries and did just fine, but the fact that this surgery is elective makes it all different.

I also thought about no more comfort food and it made me a little sad, but the thought of being fat for the rest of my life makes me even sadder.

Good luck on your journey! We'll be hitting the loser bench right about the same time.

[KSUCats 0]

I am feeling the same way! I am so nervous it's not even funny.. But honestly it hasn't really hit me yet.... I kept saying, "Oh when I get approved by my ins., it'll hit me then.." nope, then I said, "Well when I start my 2 week diet.." lol Nope! I am now thinking it'll hit me when they are wheeling me into surgery.. but I just talked to a co-worker who is almost a yr out of gastric-by pass and she says it still hasn't hit her yet.. lol!! Good luck to you!!

[HetKF 33]

Hydration really isn't an issue after the initial swelling goes down. Taking big drinks is usually difficult immediately post-op, but after the first couple of months, drinking isn't an issue. I'm not arguing with your doctors, but really I see no difference in my hydration levels and I drink on average 20-24oz of coffee every morning. Drinking from a straw was difficult early out for me, but again, once the swelling went down, drinking with a straw actually made getting in fluids much easier some patients are even given a straw while they are still in the hospital recovering. A lot of those instructions are old RNY/Band pouch rules for the straw and carbonation, but I know plenty of RNY'ers and bandsters have zero issue drinking caffeine, carbonation and out of straws. Just given you a little different perspective, I'm all for following doctor's orders, but some of the information out there is not always the same for every procedure.

As for your weight loss ticker, go to your name at the top of the forum, click it, then in the top right hand corner of your profile, there is a BUTTON that says EDIT MY PROFILE. Click that, then go to Edit Signature.

Open a new tab or window, go to tickerfactory.com , make your ticker to your liking, make sure you set it up with a PIN so you can edit your weight as you lose. Once you get to the last page, you'll see a bunch of codes. Highlight, and then right click the bBcode for message boards, come back here to your Signature box, and PASTE that code in the box, hit PREVIEW SIGNATURE to make sure it's how you want it. If it looks good, hit "SAVE SIGNATURE" and it will show up on all of your posts, you can include other information as well. To edit your weight, you'll click on your ticker in any of your posts, and it'll pop open a NEW window, input your PIN, and it'll let you update your weight.

Thank You for all of your help!! I am going to try it now

[HetKF 33]

My surgery is on 11/24 and I'm, skeeeeerd too. Most of my fears come from the surgery itself and coming out of the anesthesia, etc. I've had a few prior surgeries and did just fine, but the fact that this surgery is elective makes it all different.

I also thought about no more comfort food and it made me a little sad, but the thought of being fat for the rest of my life makes me even sadder.

Good luck on your journey! We'll be hitting the loser bench right about the same time.

Good Luck to you too!!! I will miss my comfort food.....just have to cope another way. I just wish I would've been smarter a long time ago and not had to get to this point. That's life...I'm ready to be in the non-morbidly obese club

[HetKF 33]

I am feeling the same way! I am so nervous it's not even funny.. But honestly it hasn't really hit me yet.... I kept saying, "Oh when I get approved by my ins., it'll hit me then.." nope, then I said, "Well when I start my 2 week diet.." lol Nope! I am now thinking it'll hit me when they are wheeling me into surgery.. but I just talked to a co-worker who is almost a yr out of gastric-by pass and she says it still hasn't hit her yet.. lol!! Good luck to you!!

I havea countdown on my laptop....as it gets closer I keep trying to absorb what is going to happen in 10 days. I don't think I will know what to do with myself when I am thinner because I don't know how it feels to be thin. It freaks me out to be honest. My security blanket will be gone and I will be "naked" so to speak. Lots of Luck to you too