Newbie on the Coast,...

Hi Everyone:

I am new to this forum. I am 50 years old and have been contemplating bariatric surgery on and off for probably a few decades. After my final straw (knees have bone-on-bone arthritis, making walking very difficult), I attended my second weight loss surgery (WLS) seminar with the intention of signing up for the Lap Band procedure. The seminar & surgeon changed my mind and after doing more reading and talking with others who have had WLS, I decided the Gastric Sleeve was the right procedure for me.

Currently I am going through the lengthy pre-op phase. I decided on a surgeon and hospital. I met with the nutritionist and completed the psych eval. I will attend the nutrition class next week and meet with my primary doc the following week. I submitted my weight loss history to the surgeon's office. That was a bit of a feat to compile. Luckily I kept some journals over the years of my numerous attempts to lose weight. I consider myself somewhat of an expert in this area. I have lost nearly 100 lbs many times,... only to gain it all back and then some. (I suspect most of you know this story.)

My surgeon requires that I get an EKG, treadmill test, sleep study, ultrasound, labs, etc. I will be out of town for a training toward the end of October/early November and was hoping I could get these tests completed prior to leaving. It doesn't look like that will happen as I can't order most of the tests until I meet up with my PC. Ah well,... I am practicing patience. But it's not easy. After spending years debating the surgery option, now that I have decided what I want to do, I want it to happen NOW! lol. (I need to work on this.)

I am a little concerned about my current food behavior. I have read people refer to it as having "food funerals". I am certainly in the food grieving stage and not doing such a great job of looking like someone who is serious about losing weight. I understand this is somewhat "normal" though. ("I just want to have one last burger or one more pizza,...") Not feeling great about my body right now. On the other hand, I am hopeful. I know it is going to be a difficult journey. This is going to be a lifelong change. It's exciting and scary at the same time.

Reading the stories on this website has been very helpful. I especially appreciate those who have come back to post 5+ years out. The long-term success stories are really inspiring! One worries that this surgery is just the latest trend and will be considered barbaric in 20 years to come. (On the other hand, I don't have 20 years to wait for the next latest, greatest weight loss procedure.) So far, I am pretty pleased at the studies I have read and the success stories shared here. Thank you to this community!

This was a long post. If you got to the end, thank you for reading!