Melanie

Name: Melanie H.
Username: dimnd_grl1
Location: London, ON, Canada
Member Since: 6/25/2004
BMI: 30.2
Post Op
Surgeon: Jeffery Genaw MD

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Uploaded on 4/19/07 11:44 am	Laurie and hubby.jpg Uploaded on 11/27/06 6:48 am
Melanie Shirley Paul Trudy and Sue.jpg Uploaded on 11/27/06 6:48 am	shirley and mel.jpg Uploaded on 11/27/06 6:48 am
group at pauls.jpg Uploaded on 11/27/06 6:48 am	Shirley Stuart and Carol.jpg Uploaded on 11/27/06 6:48 am

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Friends

Melanie H. has 29 Friends

Shari Medina	JL1957	kyym
Debbie Linfoot	FatmeFaye	Marie R.
Mary Lou B.	Kim C.	Cathy Wilson - OH Staff

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Surgeon Testimonial

Jeffery Genaw MD
My first impression of Dr. Genaw was that he was very direct and maybe even a bit unfeeling. I also thought he was a bit harsh with his comments. Nothing that obese people haven't been through before. My impression of him changed when I thought about his remarks and realized that he wasn't being mean but rather truthful. He had to tell me the truth.

Dr. Genaw's office staff or his program coordinator is the best to be had. Wanda is an amazing woman. She is caring and dedicated to helping as many people as she can. She is the one who keeps the whole process moving smoothly.

I would say the thing I liked the least about Dr. Genaw is his directness and the thing I liked the most about him is his directness. He says the things you need to hear not always the things you want to hear.

Aftercare, my goodness we get a binder called our "blue bari binder" that we must carry with us to every appointment. It contains everything we need to know from the first appointment and for the rest of our lives. The aftercare is the most important part of the program. It is stressed from day one and we are responsible to know everything that is expected of us.

I would rate the entire program because it all goes hand in hand. The dietician the exercise specialist, the program coordinator, the clearance physician, and the surgeons Dr. Genaw and Dr. Carlin they all get a top notch rating in my book. Without any one of these people the program would not be as good.

I have to say Dr. Genaw is a knowledgeable and skillful surgeon. He is kind and caring and takes more time with a person than any doctor I have ever been to. His bedside manner is wonderful and he spent several hours talking with my husband and I while I was in the hospital. He never makes you feel rushed or that he doesn't have time for you. He takes the time. He answers all questions and then has time for teasing and joking with you as well. He makes you feel like a valuable person.

Member Interests

Pets - One dog one cat
Grandchildren - My number one interest
Support Groups - I am a co-moderator of the London WLS support group

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Product Reviews

Champion - Champion Pure Whey Stack - Chocolate Flavor

Latest Surgery Support Comments

Comment by Kim C. on 10/24/06 3:46 am

Hey Mel, I just read your profile and so glad things weren't as bad as you feared. I can't wait to see you! I assume seeing as we are now at october 24th that you are post plastics. I will try to call you today or tomorrow. Hope you are feeling as fabulous as you looked last time i saw you! (Oh I hit the 167 mark today!) miss ya!

Comment by Kim C. on 6/16/06 4:02 pm

Cheers to you! You have done amazing things for yourself and those who's lives you touch! Bless you! Congrats on your great loss! Glad I got to tag along for the ride! Talk to you soon! 12 days and 14 hours til I join you! Luv ya! Kim

Comment by swangirl on 3/11/06 11:13 am

Congratulations on your successful weightloss, and best wishes for the future! Linda/Bactrac/swangi rl Name/CB handle/me post op

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Melanie's Journey
*********************

February 21, 2007
on February 21, 2007 7:37 pm

All my wounds from my TT healed by Christmas. Now mind you that is more than two months of being cleaned and packed twice a day by my loving husband. He asked me what I wanted for Christmas and I said to have my wounds healed finally. God was gracious and they did heal by Christmas.

I had a final check in January with the new Surgeon because mine had moved on. I just asked her a question which was What do we do with the OHIP approval for my breast reduction? Her answer floored me. She said well lets get it put in my name and we will do the reduction/lift this month. I said yeah right I wasn't going to do any more surgery. Oh gosh this was just to tempting. I went for it.

I had my surgery on February 16th. It was quite easy this time for some reason. They also took a cyst from my thumb. It is quite sore. Ok now you know how when you get a really special gift and you want to show it to everyone? Well that is how I feel about my new ummmmm as Kevin calls them TaTa's. Oh my gosh I can't believe what she has done for me. Dr. Fortin you are wonderful in my book.

Many years ago, I had a friend whose mom had a reduction. I had never met her mom but we had to go over to her house for something and she met us at the door and raised her blouse and said look what I got. I was shocked to say the least. Now these 30 or so years later I UNDERSTAND. Oh my gosh. What a treat. The expression on Kevin's face when he took his first look was PRICELESS!!! I will never forget it. I have to say the man has worked hard for me to have this new look he deserves it. I love you Kevin!

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November 20, 2006
on November 20, 2006 11:14 am

Well it has indeed been a long time since I have posted. I went in for a panniculectomy and hernia repair on the 2nd of October and it turned out that I got an abdominoplasti and hernia repair and I love it. Now let me say it took me a full 6 weeks to get to that point. I had a rough time and once again I have wounds that have to be packed twice a day every day. I have decided that any more extra skin will just have to stay. I will live with it. My poor body does not like surgery. I had to receive three units of blood after surgery. I had to have the incision opened at the T and it has to heal from the inside out and I got a seroma on my hip. It was not fun but now I can say I LOVE the results.

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Archive

My Story

Hello and Welcome to my little corner of the world. I had my RNY in October of 2004 and I have lost 173 pounds. I had my tummy tuck in October of 2006 and I have to say I love how it turned out. I am the co-moderator of the London Weight Loss Support Group and I feel that support groups are a very important tool to use with our wls tool. If you want any more information feel free to read my story. It’s hard to know where to begin. In 1980 I came home from a Christmas celebration with family. We had a 6 hour drive and I was in horrible pain. When I got up the next morning I called my family doctor and made an appointment. He did a few tests and said he thought my gallbladder was the problem, and sent me to a specialist. I went the next day and he did a few tests and said he needed to remove my gallbladder. Since there was little I could do about it I said OK. Well the next day I was in the hospital and ready for surgery. The surgeon came in and said while I have you open I would like to do a surgery that will help you lose weight. Once again my reply was OK. That is all I knew about the surgery.

Well I lost 60 pounds over the next few months and then like with every diet the pounds came back and brought some friends with them. Then I got pregnant 11 months out and there went any hope of being thin. Well I thought that was my only chance to be thin and decided to live my life obese. I had a beautiful daughter and already had two boys and another daughter so I was a busy lady during the next 17 years.

My kids were grown and had all moved out except for my 17 year old daughter. My marriage was over after 27 years and I wondered what was is store for me. I was 47 years old and beginning a new life. I decided to talk to someone about weight loss again. I went to a surgeon and he told me my odds were not that wonderful because I had already had a wls surgery. He said first timers had 1 in 200 chance of something going wrong but a second timer it was 1 in 75. I decided then that I was just entering a new phase in my life and moving to Canada to be married and didn’t want to take those odds. I put my thoughts of surgery behind me and moved to Canada. In the back of my mind I thought maybe one day I would have surgery in Canada.

I moved to Canada and married a wonderful man who is 9 years younger than I am. I began to notice over the next 5 years, that my health was getting worse. My energy level was going down and in short I was not able to do the things I wanted to do. We also had a two story house and wow it was getting harder and harder to climb the stairs. I decided to pursue wls again. When I talked to my doctor he said plain and simple that surgery is not done in Ontario any longer. WLS is not available anymore. I was devastated and thought I had given up my only chance of losing the weight 5 years ago.

One day I was watching the London news about a remarkable weight loss by a woman here in London. I was interested and listened intently. Oh my goodness there is a way and this woman could help me. I e-mailed the station and asked for the transcript of the report and they sent it to me. I now had a name but no phone number or any way to contact her. I looked for the name in the phone book but could find no number for that person but some other first names with the same last name. I decided it was important enough to phone each one until I found her. Well as luck would have it I found her mother on the first call.

Shirley said she had also had the surgery and that the lady I had seen on the TV report was her daughter. She reassured me that I could have surgery and that OHIP, which is our medical system here, would pay for it. I got my acceptance and approval from OHIP and went to the surgeon. Well the surgeon said Mrs. Hodgert I don’t like to accept revisions, I asked what is a revision? Well he began to explain that when you have already had a wls and it needs to be fixed or redone it is called a revision. I cried right there in his office. He of course apologized but didn’t change his mind. When I talked to his office coordinator she said he has not said NO yet. He ordered some tests for me, which meant I had to go back to Ontario and have them done. I needed a stress test, a UGI, and a scope. Well that first appointment was May 18, 2004. It is now August 18, 2004 and I have completed all the tests. When he reviewed the tests he accepted me for surgery. I don’t have an exact date yet but sometime between the end of September or beginning of October I will have surgery. I am so excited.

M Mesmerizing
E Elitist
L Luxurious
A Arty
N New
I Ideal
E Energetic