Surgery Tomorrow 12/10 NERVES

[KiraCat 4]

I have been looking forward to this surgery for months now! It was a huge struggle throughout the year to even get to the point of scheduling, and I was so relieved when I finally had my date. I was psyched up and have been killing it with my pre op diet! All the sudden about 4 days ago it finally hit me, like a punch in the gut, that this was really happeing. I haven't been able to sleep and when I do I have HORRIBLE nightmares. I have been so nervous I am making myself ill. I have been vomiting and now dry heaving for 2 days straight because of nerves. On top of that I feel like I am going insane! Everything has been making me cry or unreasonably irritated. I hope I am not the only one that has felt this NEUROTIC before surgery. My excitement has turned into dark thoughts of everything going severly awry tomorrow! Please help!

[FrankyG 1,450]

Lots of deep breathing, listen to some fun/relaxing music, and distract yourself as best you can.

You'll be fine, it will go well and you'll be so happy once you start seeing real results.

I know it seems scary right now, but try to tell yourself how awesome things will be, and how much better your life will be once you're through all of this.

I never had the extremes you're going through, but I did have a small panic attack in the pre-op area and was on the verge of hopping off the bed and ripping out the IV and going home... but it was a quick crazy few minutes and then I snapped back into being excited and happy I was doing it.

Big hugs and hang in there - it will all work out!!

[Bayougrl 23]

i totally understand. Me too.

[KarenLoh 128]

Sounds horrible. I can feel your pain and I hope it gets better before you actually go in. Are you trying positive self-talk at all? It can help a lot to re-adjust your automatic thinking. Good luck to you. Let us know how it goes.

[BLERDgirl 6,417]

@@KiraCat - What's your experience with hospitals and/or surgery? I have found that for many people it's the lack of knowledge that creates these fears. I almost wish they did presurgical tours for adults. It would go a long way to calming fears.

[jintycb 721]

If your experience is as great as mine has been then you are doing the best thing ever. My surgery was seven weeks ago today and apart from feeling a bit rough the following day (well, come on, a large lump of useless, flabby flesh was annexed and removed so what could I expect!) life has been just so great. I am losing at a sensible rate. My energy levels are nearly back to normal. OK, so if I go like a tornado for the majority of the day I need a late afternoon nap.

I have done exactly what was suggested to me post surgery as regards food, drink and listening to my body. I read loads of posts on this site which gave me so much information and help.

Stop fretting, grab this wonderful chance of a new beginning, a new you and all the positives that this surgery will bring you.

Good luck. You are doing this for YOU and you will reap untold benefits from having the courage to go for it. Keep us all posted as you go through your journey. It really is a journey of discovery x

[karen091866 120]

Deep breath! Any life-altering change causes people to rethink their decisions a bit---DON'T do that with this...because the outcome is going to be spectacular! I burst into tears when I stepped onto the scale @ my 2 week post-op visit...

I had my surgery 11/19/15 and clothes that were VERY ill-fitting prior to surgery, now hang on my like a feed-sack!

I'm not gonna lie...you will have some discomfort post-op...but you will ALSO have an attentive team of nurses, taking care of you. I had 6 lap-incisions...and the sorest of the 6 was the one that my excised stomach was plucked out from....which is totally understandable and reasonable for us all to expect.

Your surgeon will have orders written for pain meds...the aides/ caregivers on the post-surgical floor will be tending to you....So deep breath! You've worked hard to get to this point....we ALL did....and the results are SO worth it---and I'm just seeing the beginning!

I think that a big piece of the fear and nerves comes from the fact that VSG is irreversible...and for years, we have all found some sort of comfort in food....and now, we have our new buddy, our sleeve, making us do the best things for our bodies....and who likes to be told what to do?

You will be fine! I managed largely with liquid Tylenol and liquid Ibuprofen once I came home....never truly having "pain"...just discomfort that warranted medication so I could rest & recover.

Keep us posted! You'll be in my thoughts and prayers that all goes well....and it WILL.

[Redvet2415 8]

I'm so sorry you're feeling this way, my surgery is not until Mar/Apr and I have anxiety even now, but anytime I've had to have surgery it's never as bad as I had imagine. Try and think positive thoughts, listen to encouraging words and affirmations, smile often and know that you are not alone, God is right there with you every step of the way and you have the support of all of us. I'm not going to say "good luck" because it's not about luck, it's about getting healthy and being the fabulous person God intended you to be. Take care and I'm here if you need anything.

[purz59 57]

Best of luck to you. There are days that I question my surgery decision, but most days I believe it's the best decision I've ever made. I too felt panic right before my surgery and almost backed out. I'm so glad I went through with it. I'm 6 weeks out and 27 lbs down.