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Goals

Make it through Surgery without Complications

368 People
 in progress, 
812 People
 achieved this

TO BE HEALTHIER, HAPPIER, AND BE ABLE TO BE MORE PHYSICALLY ACTIVE FOR MYSELF

10 People
 in progress, 
2 People
 achieved this

walk without my legs rubbing together

128 People
 in progress, 
29 People
 achieved this

Weigh 140 pounds

102 People
 in progress, 
15 People
 achieved this

wear shorts, skirts and dresses again confidently

22 People
 in progress, 
8 People
 achieved this
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Surgeon Testimonial

David C. Voellinger, MD, FACS, FASMBS
So in the beginning I wasn't sure what to expect from Dr. Voellinger. Working at the hospital I have heard both positive and negative things about him. My personal opinion is that he is great! His office staff is wonderful, most have had WLS or been overweight before so they really understand the struggle. Dr V himself is very patient and laid back. He never makes me feel rushed or like I'm over reacting due to being a bit controlling. LOL He did a wonderful job on my surgery! The office wait times can be horrible but as long as you come prepared it's well worth it!
Latest Surgery Support Comments

  • Comment by Laurie_09 on 5/17/09 5:15 pm
    Good luck with your surgery, may everything go as planned.
  • Comment by MacMadame on 5/17/09 11:53 am
    Good luck with your surgery, Lydia. I'll swing the chinchillas that it's textbook and your recovery is uneventful.
  • Comment by Dawn H. on 5/17/09 9:02 am
    Good luck this week Lydia, hope all goes well. Dawn
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Every man who got where he is, started where he was.

Be happy for this moment, this moment is your life.

LStiff's Blog
LStiff's Blog


Finally feel good!
on June 9, 2009 2:35 pm
I finally feel normal again! It took 3 weeks but it's here. I didn't have any energy at all and wasn't getting in enough protein during my liquid stages. I just wasn't hungry and I know that's no excuse for lack of nutrition. My body started doing some weird stuff.... I had 2 periods and retained a bunch of water for a while there. The RN told me my body was in starvation mode and was keeping everything I had stored as well as some hormonal craziness. Well I'm on soft foods now and am getting in more protein as well as exercise and I feel WONDERFUL! I finally lost a pound which is great b/c I had a 2 week stall! I went to the gym today and walked 3.33 miles for a total of 65 minutes. I burned 460 calories! YAY ME I am going to try Zumba tomorrow to see what the fuss is about. I did Group Power last week since I was an addict at one time. It feels good to work those muscles but man I was sore for 3 days after! It's so great to be back in the land of living. I haven't lost many pounds but I can tell the inches are coming off b/c of my clothes and mirror. I am going to take a belated "before picture" and post it ....fat rolls and all so I can compare the progress of all my hard work!
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I can't believe it's over!
on May 21, 2009 8:21 am
Well I got home from the hospital yesterday around lunch. I was a bit tired from the LACK of sleep I got while there. I slept during surgery and in recovery but from then until I got home I was exhausted. People waking me every hour to poke and check things. The IV machine makes noise as well as those leg compressions which are also HOT! My poor boyfriend never got a cot and didn't sleep well in the recliner either. Needless to say we were happy to be sleeping in our own bed lastnight! 

So about the surgery- I got there and got some Versed in my IV thanks to my great CRNA Jackie Brown! Once I got into the OR I was so loopy I barely remember being wheeled in, then I woke up in recovery! It was SO BUSY there! There were all of these people and RNs running around. I heard the OR was very heavy for the day and the hospital was full. I woke up on Oxygen b/c my level dropped to 87.... oops I guess I forgot to breathe! 

I had a severe sore throat and of course the gas pains but other than that my stomach doesn't even hurt. I had to do a barium swallow before I could leave to make sure there were no leaks and I could SEE for myself that it is indeed smaller :) He was able to get 15 sutures in and said he could have kept going but they didn't supply him with enough. I no longer have the top round part that stretches the stomach and never feels full. I actually do not feel hungry yet. I guess this is normal. I have had some head hunger due to my emotional connection with food but nothing real yet. I am anxious to get to week 3 so I can see how much I'm able to eat and feel full! The thought of puree still scares me but I guess by that point I will eat whatever they allow me since I should be hungry! I didn't post any "before" pictures so I better get on that today before I lose anymore weight! I lost 8lbs pre-op so I want to capture my journey the entire way! 

Sorry to ramble so much, this is so exciting! 
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Here Goes!
on May 17, 2009 8:47 am
Sorry it's been so long since I've been on, I was out of state 2 wks in a row and the races are in town so I have been at the track all wknd. I had about 8 appointments with various people at my MD office. I had to do a body scan where they show how much of your body is fat and muscle. I have 104 lbs lean muscle and 6 lbs of bones! The rest is fat. I have been walking the stairs on my breaks and have been practicing not drinking with meals and chewing 30 times. This is hard work, but the more I"m into it doesn't seem like rocket science.

I started my liquid diet today, I am so blessed to only have 2 days prior but the kicker is I'm on CLEAR LIQUIDS for a week after then advance to full liquids, puree, softs etc. I have been so excited until today, the nerves kicked in. I know that I will be okay it's just the fear of the unknown and not being able to control anything. I work at the hospital I am having surgery at so I hand picked most of my staff- call me controlling/crazy but I want the people I know are capable of taking care of me since I have that ability. I believe in my hospital staff and know they will do an excellent job it's just these silly nerves.

I am excited to see how my life is going to change right before my (and everyone's) eyes. I have met so many wonderful people in the bariatric world and feel so blessed to have nothing but support. I am a lightweight in the sense I do not have more than 100 lbs to lose to be at goal/healthy weight and am thankful nobody has been rude to me about that fact. Some of my fellow LW friends have told me horror stories and I do not wish to be in their shoes. I have had the comments that we all have but nothing I couldn't handle. If I could "just eat less" don't you think I would LOL

I go into the hospital Tuesday at 8:30 for a 10:30 start time. I will spend 1 night and be out my Wednesday (my birthday) around 12. I will update you as soon as the drugs wear off and I am able to log on. Thank you for your kind words and support. Prayers are always welcome and if I don't post again until then,  I will see you on the losers bench! 
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I'm back!
on April 27, 2009 3:05 pm
I'm back from my trip to GA for my dear friend's wedding! It was fun but here are the updates on me and my POSE procedure!

I FINALLY got to meet my Dr Thursday 4/23/09. He is such a nice guy. He was very patient with me, explained everything and let me ask questions. I was a bit apprehensive going into all of this and not knowing that much about him but my formal opinion is that he is genuinely nice. I did not feel judged, rushed or stupid for asking questions.

I had to give them 10 tubes of blood!!! I had to start fasting at 10am and they didn't get the needle in my arm until 4:30. I was a bit drained and not making much sense at that point!

He drew me a picture of what he's going to do to my stomach. He will be taking the top part that expands when we get fat and overeat, and folding it up with stitches (sutures) I see now why this is a trial b/c the question is will that part of the stomach stretch back out if I over eat? I guess anyone can stretch their pouch out no matter how small but he said he is reducing my stomach by about 20%. I guess the bottom part has more solid walls and is the part that tells us we are full. The top part never tells us and just keeps on stretching as long as we keep eating. By eliminating the top part the trial will tell us if this can be done without any cutting! 


I met today with my NUT and exercise coach who are AWESOME! I have so much paperwork and so many great ideas for food. I can not say enough wonderful things about my NUT Heather. I liked the exercise coach Annie as well, they were both down to earth and I love that they gave me things that I can do. It sounded so easy when they were both talking. I can use my tool (surgery) to help me eat less but the key is making life changes. It's not like I'm on some fast track diet that I have to cut out certain foods or food groups. I'm not on some killer exercise program to sculpt my abs in 6 wks. I am making a lifestyle commitment to changing the bad habits and incorporating new healthy ones.  I am SO excited and ready to have this surgery!

I then met with my Cardio coach Justin. I had my entire body scanned and found out that I have a good amount of lean muscle (105lbs worth) but I do have 51% fat. I have a higher than normal metabolism and he said it should take me 34 weeks to meet my goal of 140lbs without having surgery. I am very excited about this. I am not concerned if I weigh more than that stupid chart says if I have a high % of lean muscle mass. He said I have a lot "for a female" so I wasn't sure if that is a good thing or not. I learned about my waist/hip ratio and why it's bad to carry my fat where I do. I knew this though and is part of the reason for having WLS. I don't want to increase my risk of death just by where the fat is located on my body!  I have been instructed to start making changes now so that I can be healthier before surgery and get in the routine of exercising and eating better! 

I bought some protein samples and have some yummy sounding recipes to try. I am on a CLEAR LIQUID diet for an entire week after surgery so I have to find out what tastes good so I don't shrivel up that week after! I have been instructed that I can mix protein into any of the clear liquids on the list or drink Isopure (which I bought a bottle of) Wish me luck! 


YAY I only have 22 days until my surgery!!!
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Finally some updates!
on April 20, 2009 12:34 pm
Okay so the CT Coordinator finally called me today to give me my laundry list of appts. I go 4.23 this Thursday for my initial appointment to meet with the surgeon, get all of the details of the procedure and do a ton of lab work. I then go OOT for a wedding F-S. I go on Monday 4.27 for an entire days worth of appts. I meet with the Nut, Exercise Coach and Cardio guy from 10-2. I then go on 4.28 for a quick 15 minute test, I think this may be the metabolism breath test. I go on 4.30 to take a psych test then meet with the psych who tells me how I did. My pre op appt with the surgeon is on 5.12 and surgery is 5.19 hopefully 2nd case of the day. She told me this but I work in pre-surgery and saw that my case was posted 3rd. She said due to ppl being off in the office someone else posted it, so I hope they do get it changed and I'm 2nd case of the day behind my friend who is having this same procedure. They told her she is 1st case but they have her posted last(4th) we would love if they did get it fixed. I guess the CT Coordinator is in the OR since they have to record how long it takes, the various steps and what was done in detail. I have not done much research on clinical trials so I don't know what all is involved. She has the most hectic schedule of anyone I know so it must be very crazy.

I have to do a chest xray and EKG before the surgery as well. UGH fun times. Since my surgeon is requiring most of these appts and not the Clinical Trial, I have to pay $950ish total out of pocket. I guess that isn't too bad considering my deductible with ins and all of the co-pays for the visits would be more than that over the course of the next year. I am glad to finally know what is going on and have some stuff scheduled. I am nervous that I might fail some of these test for whatever reason. I have always been a firm believer that "ignorance is bliss" and would rather not know if something bad is going on. I guess that is something I need to work on and deal with!
 
I am still researching protein recipes and brands. I am glad to report I do not have to buy a magic bullet that my regular blender will do! YAY I can spend the money on all the protein experiments or save for new clothes! :)
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My Story

I have struggled with my weight my entire life. Even when I was younger I would yo-yo btwn chubby and chubbier. I was in a normal range there for a while as a kid but once I hit 17 it started again. I have been obese for 7 straight years and spent 2 of them morbidly obese. I weighed 268 at my highest. I was able to loose some weight to be down to 230 and have been bouncing btwn 220-230 for a few years. I know what a toll it is taking on my body. I feel it in my knees and back. I do not want to have a heart attack, get diabetes or more knee problems. I know these things can be prevented if I can be healthy and lose weight. I am lucky enough to be part of a clinical trial that will allow me to have WLS with a BMI below 40 and no co-morbidity illnesses. I consider it a blessing and know that everything happens for a reason. I am looking forward to this journey and can't wait to be healthy and Lord willing live a long life!