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Elective to Mandatory.



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I started my journey January of 2011. Went through the process of a whole year of weight management, went to countless appointments and i was supposed to have surgery january-february of 2012, and it didn't happen why? Because the hospital staff is lazy and unorganized. It was May of 2012 when i decided to give up on the idea because i had gotten a new job, and i just didn't have the luxury of taking 3-4 weeks off for recovery. Soon after calling it quits, i found out i was pregnant and 3 months in i had a miscarriage, was it my weight? Maybe so said the gyn but it could of been plenty of other things. Months passed, and i injured my back, doing chores. After going through months of agony i finally found out what was wrong with me, i had a slipped herniated disc. I was rushed into an emergency spine surgery and right before surgery the surgeon(that saved my life) told me that if i would of waited a little longer i could of been paralyzed. And also told me that i should look into getting the gastric bypass surgery. I quickly told him the nightmare i went through with trying to get it and he said dont worry i know someone. After surgery he told me that he really recommends me doing the gastric bypass sooner rather than later because i need to lose a significant amount of weight to get full function of my leg and to have a fully healed spine. He worked his magic with the gastric bypass surgeon & because of this wonderful man, i am now scheduled for my gastric bypass surgery on February 11th and am on my way to a full recovery! :) below is my before pic, cant wait to post a 6 month post op pic!

post-10231-13813811109647_thumb.jpg

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Wow... what a story !!! Your spine surgeon is truly a dedicated doctor, he really helped you and went beyond his scope of medicine. You are really lucky to have such a wonderful surgeon. Good luck with your RNY .... I know it is the best thing I ever did for myself !!!

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Awesome!!!! Best Wishes :)

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I see that everyone puts their weight on their threads. I've been so use to never discussing my weight because Ive always been ashamed, that i forget to do so on here(the only safe place i have)

I was 250lbs from 2005 til recently, i am now down to 238lbs due to all of the pain and suffering I've been going through with my Spinal Surgery. I am guessing that after i start my pre-op diet i will be losing at least another 10-15lbs. The day before surgery i will post exact pre-op weight.

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Wow... what a story !!! Your spine surgeon is truly a dedicated doctor' date=' he really helped you and went beyond his scope of medicine. You are really lucky to have such a wonderful surgeon. Good luck with your RNY .... I know it is the best thing I ever did for myself !!![/quote']

Thank you! I cant wait! :)

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Awesome!!!! Best Wishes <img src='http://www.bariatricpal.com/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/smile.png' class='bbc_emoticon' alt=':)' />

Thanks!

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Amazing storey... Wish you the best with your wls

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I'm sorry to hear about your struggles but it's seems like you are a strong and determined person. I'm so glad your surgeon helped you!! Good luck! I was the same way I NEVER told anyone my weight. My hubby doesn't even know. But I felt I had to come clean and we are all in this together!

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You are an indpiration to all. I suffer from excruciating back pain and have a ct scan next week to assess the damage. I am blessed to have had this surgery to get the weight off, but my constant pain makes any activity unbearable. Good luck witj surgery. If you are on Facebook friend me. My name is michele caples from missouri

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I'm sorry to hear about your struggles but it's seems like you are a strong and determined person. I'm so glad your surgeon helped you!! Good luck! I was the same way I NEVER told anyone my weight. My hubby doesn't even know. But I felt I had to come clean and we are all in this together!

Its just so funny and weird to me. Lol

Sent from my Verizon iPhone using RNYTalk

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You are an indpiration to all. I suffer from excruciating back pain and have a ct scan next week to assess the damage. I am blessed to have had this surgery to get the weight off' date=' but my constant pain makes any activity unbearable. Good luck witj surgery. If you are on Facebook friend me. My name is michele caples from missouri[/quote']

Wow, good luck with that. Im still in pain from my back surgery, nothing like the pre-op pain but its starting to feel so much better. So the weight loss surgery Didnt help with your back problems?

Sent from my Verizon iPhone using RNYTalk

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I had to have spine surgery 5 years ago when my son was only 9 months old. I know the horrible pain associated ...there were times I couldnt stay standing due to the pain running down my leg. I had a lumbar fusion and have 6 screws put in my lower back and after that surgery I swore i would never have any surgery again unless i was in some sort of accident.... Fastforward 4 years later the back pain and stiffness had started to be a problem again...because i was weighing 265lbs mostly in my mid section...i had mild sleep apnea. I was a crancky miserable person specially in the mornings because of my lack of sleep ...from the apnea and back issues.... After research I decided to have the gastric bypass surgery....i didnt want back surgery or pain and health problems..and thought the gb surgery woul help overall ...Jan 31 2012 i had my gb surgery.... It was one of thest decisions of my life. I am down to 152lbs ...i am doing planks, push ups sit ups all kinds of different things i couldnt do before.... I love going to the gym...yes love he gym...that has helped with the skin ...not much lose skin.. The gb surgery helped me out of the hole, but now it is up to me to stay out of the hole.....sooo i have no more sleep issues no more back pain...feeling great ...needless to say my family is happier with me in the mornings lol....so keep going...I wish you lots of success! Remember ..the gastric bypass is a tool, not the solution.... God bless!

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Wishing you the best. You have been through the mill. A long way to get here, but so glad someone took the initiative to really get it done. It gets so tiring jumping through so many hoops. And you know what, it is mandatory in your case, and should be treated as an emergency. I am so glad your surgeon realized this and got you in touch with the right doc. There are good things waiting for you. It won't be easy, but I think you already know that nothing is easy. But it will be worth it. Prayers for you and a gentle hug. So glad you are sharing your journey with us.

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    • Doughgurl

      Hey everyone. I'm new here so I thought I should introduce myself. I am 53y/o and am scheduled for Gastric Bypass on June 25th, 2025. I'm located in San Antonio, Texas. I will be having my surgery in Tiajuana Mexico. I've wanted this for years, but I always had insurance where bariatric procedures were excluded. Finally I am able to afford to pay out of pocket.  I can't wait to get started, and I hope I'm prepared for the initial period of "hell". I know what I have signed up for, but I'm sure the good to come will out way the temporary period of discomfort and feelings of regret. I'd love to find people to talk to who have been through the same procedure or experience before. So I look forward to meeting you all. Hope you have a great week!
      · 2 replies
      1. Selina333

        I'm so happy for you! You are about to change your life. I was so glad to get the sleeve done in Dec. I didn't have feelings of regret overall. And I'm down almost 60 lbs. I do feel a little sad at restaurants. I can barely eat half a kid's meal. I get adults meals often because kid ones don't have the same offerings at times. Then I feel obligated to eat on that until it's gone and that can be days. So the restaurant thing isn't great for me. All the rest is fine by me! I love feeling full with very little. I do wish I could drink when eating. And will sip at the end. Just a strong habit to stop. But I'm working on it! You will do fine! Just keep focused on your desire to be different. Not better or worse. But different. I am happy both ways but my low back doesn't like me that heavy. So I listened (also my feet!). LOL! Update us on your journey! I'm not far from you. I'm in Houston. Good luck and I hope it all goes smoothly! Would love to see pics of the town you go to for this. I've never been there. Neat you will be traveling for this! Enjoy the journey. Take it one day at a time. Sometimes a few hours at a time. Follow all recommendations as best you can. 💗

      2. Doughgurl

        Thank you so much for your well wishes. I am hoping that everything goes easy for me as well. We don't eat out much as it is, so it wont be too bad in that department. Thankfully. Also, I hear you regarding your back and feet!! I'd like to add knees to the list. Killing me as we speak! I'm only 5' so the weight has to go. Too short to carry all this weight. Menopause really did a doosey on me. (😶lol) My daughter also lives in Houston. with her Husband and my 5 grand-littles. I grew up in Beaumont, so I know Houston well, I will be sure to keep in touch and update you on my journey. I may need some advice in the future, or just motivation. Thank You so much for reaching out, I was hoping to connect with someone in the community. I really appreciate it. 💜

    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
      · 1 reply
      1. LeighaTR

        I hope your surgery on Wednesday goes well. You will be able to do all sorts of new things as you find your new normal after surgery. I don't know this from experience yet, but I am seeing a lot of positive things from people who have had it done. Best of luck!

    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
      · 1 reply
      1. summerseeker

        Life as a big person had limited my life to what I knew I could manage to do each day. That was eat. I hadn't anything else to look forward to. So my eating choices were the best I could dream up. I planned the cooking in managable lots in my head and filled my day with and around it.

        Now I have a whole new big, bigger, biggest, best days ever. I am out there with those skinny people doing stuff i could never have dreamt of. Food is now an after thought. It doesn't consume my day. I still enjoy the good home cooked food but I eat smaller portions. I leave food on my plate when I am full. I can no longer hear my mother's voice saying eat it all up, ther are starving children in Africa who would want that!

        I still cook for family feasts, I love cooking. I still do holidays but I have changed from the All inclusive drinking and eating everything everyday kind to Self catering accommodation. This gives me the choice of cooking or eating out as I choose. I rarely drink anymore as I usually travel alone now and I feel I need to keep aware of my surroundings.

        I don't know at what point my life expanded, was it when I lost 100 pounds? Was it when I left my walking stick at home ? Was it when I said yes to an outing instead of finding an excuse to stay home ? i look back at my last five years and wonder how loosing weight has made such a difference. Be ready to amaze yourself.

        BTW, the liquid diet sucks, one more day and you are over the worst. You can do it.

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