Surgery

Sorry everyone bug I'm on a count down 3 more days till my surgery!! I'm very excited!! 

congrats heheheheh mine is a bit longer . 

Please don't apologize ---this is an exciting life change that YOU are in charge of leading. It's so neat to hear your enthusiasm and excitement.

Hi All, I found out today I am scheduled for surgery on April 9th.  I am excited but feel really nervous.  Is this normal?

You are sooooooooooo normal you wouldn't believe it!! I almost threw up daily about a week or so before my surgery. On the day of my surgery I almost walked out. It was a year ago 2 days ago (3/26/2013) and not a day goes by that I regret doing it. I have had some stumbling blocks along the way and so do most people. I got things stuck, I threw up in restaurant bathrooms, friend's bathrooms, my own bathroom, I ate stuff I wasn't suppose too, still do, I screw up, I'm learning and I forgive myself for doing so. I thought my weight loss would help my hip pain enough that I wouldn't need surgery but on 2/11/2014 I total hip replacement. I don't regret that either because I feel 98% right now. The other 2% is just down the road a piece! Just take it one day at a time, do the best you can and forgive yourself when you mess up. One thing you gotta do for sure is work through WHY you got where you are now. Some people had emotional tragedies, some people just love food (that's me), some people who knows but whatever it is, you better get to the bottom of it before you are 12-18 months post-op. The first 12-18 months are your honeymoon period and the surgery just works pretty much itself but don't think you don't have to do any work during this time. It just means that the level of work you do isn't quite as critical as the work you will have to do for the rest of your life. That's when it starts to get complicated. So if I'm not 18 months out, how do I know? Because I know several people who have done this. Those that I know that figured out what it was that got them there and are working on it are doing well, those that have or have not figured it out and just don't care are doing poorly and have since gone back to nearly the same sizes they were when they started. I don't say any of this to make you more nervous. Just really make sure you are prepared and talk with a therapist if you need to get to the bottom of things. Don't be scared to do that!!

Congrats on getting scheduled! 

Thank you so much for your kind words.  I really needed to hear that.  I take all the advice and soak it up.    I am enjoying this web site and love the support it brings to me.  How many days were you out of work?  I really can not see taking 4 weeks off.  I had a friend that went back 4 days later.  I have a sit down job so I am hoping I will need just 1 week. 

I took 3 weeks I think. I think 1 week will be a challenge for you. My first week went VERY fast but I spent 3 days of it in the hospital. I had a complication which caused me to bleed a little more than normal so I needed a transfusion. I had my gallbladder taken out at the same time and that was where the complication was if I remember right. At any rate, they were going to discharge me after 2 days anyway, but I asked to stay 1 more day since I had never had a transfusion and I was pretty nervous. I have a sit down job for the most part and I still think 1 week is a challenge. You may be okay but if you can manage 2 weeks I would go ahead and plan for it and go back earlier if you feel like it. I really don't think you would need 4 and I know I could have gone back after 2 if really necessary.

This site can be great for advice but just keep in mind that what works for some may not work for you and (don't tell anyone) but your NUT and sometimes even your surgeon are not always giving you the best advice for YOU. They are giving you what has "generally" worked for most. I trust my surgeon but I fired my NUT and will never be back to see her. Money hungry beeeatch. My first meeting with the NUT before surgery was okay, but the meeting I had after surgery told me all I needed to know. Her paperwork and literature were littered with contradictions of her own guidance along with my surgeon's guidance. When I asked my surgeon if his word and her word were gospel or if what they say were general advice he admitted it was general and that no one word of advice was "golden" for every patient. It was and is a work in progress. If told me that if something isn't working for me, change it up a little and see if that works. I pretty much ran everything through his office, but he was happy that I made suggestions and changes and noticed what did and didn't work for me. On my 7th day I told him that I was HUNGRY and I needed to eat more than 4 tablespoons/ounces of food. He said, okay, try 5 and see if that's better. Just don't overdo it. I am still learning those "cues" from my body and being able to read them has been an extraordinary help for me. I don't recommend what I do to anyone, I just tell people what I do and if they want to try it, great, if not, great. I don't weigh anything. I use visual cues and then listen to what my stomach and body are telling me. Sometimes I still get stupid and find myself grabbing too much food, but I know when to stop because I can hear my body telling me to stop. That works for me, may not work for others. There's a whole mess of things I've done outside the "general advice" box and I'd bet a lot of others do to just a lot of them won't admit it if you ask because they want to give the official "general" answer or tell you to ask your surgeon or your NUT. Anyway, I better stop before I get slammed for answering like this. :-)

Thank you so much.  I love your honesty.  I need honesty and no sugar coating.  I am going to take my own advice but will listen to others as well. 

What MaryMo362 says!! Congrats!

Thanks everyone!!