March 10, 2006 

Hello folks.  I am sitting here, throughly discouraged and upset.  I had my sleep study done last night and that was the last thing I knew of that I needed to do before it could be sent away for insurance approval. Oh yeah, we can add sleep apnea as one of my comorbidites.  The technician came into my room last night and put a cpap mask on me.  She said my levels got down to 60%.  Great.  I forgot to add above that I had my psych evaluation late Feb. and all went well.  I had 11 pages of testing to complete and fax to the shrink and the consultation consisted of a telephone conversation which last about 50 minutes and we went over everything concerning the surgery, the need for vitamin nutrition, marital changes, etc. anything and everything you can think of that comes along with this surgery.  It went well, and I'm sure Dr. Husted has his report by now. But that's not the big thing in my little pain riddled world right now.  No new surgeries are being scheduled at Dr. Husted's practice.  I knew that Dr. Spaw had resigned, effective in June, and when I saw that, I posted on a bulletin board that I was concerned it would throw Dr. Husted in a bind and immediately got reassurances that it would not effect my surgery or other DS surgeries.  Now, I'm told by Ellen, Dr. Husted's insurance guru that no new surgeries are being scheduled.  Where does that leave me?  Somewhere between hanging on a clothesline and between a rock and a hard place.   If it were not for the chronic back pain, I might be willing to look at this as a little setback but since I have done my homework and did everything I can do to make this a reality, for someone else (even if it is the Dr. himself) to hold me up, makes me very unhappy. *sigh* All things work for the good of those who love the Lord.  I really don't want to change to yet another surgeon.  There are only about 4 surgeons in the US I would trust to do my revision and I've already gone through 2.  Well, not actually giving up on Dr. Husted yet but am not going to be happy to wait forever or to be told, he's changed his mind and won't operate on me. I'm so sad. Doncha just love waiting????? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

March 20,2006 

Not much going on.  Still waiting for the sleep study report so I can fax that to Ellen, and see when she submits to insurance.  Still no word from anyone from Dr. Husted's office what's going on.  Now I hear Dr. Spaw is keeping his practice right where it is, so the gossip speculation is maybe it's Dr. Husted who is moving his practice????  Who knows???? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

April 6, 2006 

I just thought I'd drop in and write a few lines about what's going on and how I'm feeling.  Nothing much going on, although my letter has been submitted to insurance for approval.  I called them yesterday, exactly one week after we submitted and was told there wasn't any answer yet, it's still being reviewed.  Hopefully, I'll get approved first time and not have to appeal.  Being approved isn't going to help me a great deal until Dr. Husted is ready to take new surgeries.  Since Dr. Spaw resigned, they're not scheduling any surgeries, so that's that.  I understand they want to do the best thing for their patients and one man can't be on call 24/7, so approval is just another hurdle to have cleared out of the way, so when Dr. Husted is ready, I'll be ready, too. You can't know how ready I am for this surgery.  With my DH out of town working these past 6 weeks, everything he normally takes care of falls to me to do.  Simple things like putting the trash cans out on trash day.  A major chore for me to accomplish with my back hurting like heck!  I know once I lose 30, 40 or 50 lbs, I will be so much better without all this pain!  I just know it.   So, that's my world right now.  No DH home, no kids (grown and out of state) no family close by, just me and my computer and TV.  I don't have any close friends here, so sometimes I get a little lonely. But for the most part, it is OK.  I just like to keep busy and prior to this weight gain, I was able to quilt and loved that.....now I can barely climb the stairs where my quilting room is. Being obese sucks.  Just putting on my socks is a major deal!   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

May 4,2006  

Well how are you doing?  Drinking all your water????  I am getting in plenty of practice these months waiting and waiting.  Sip, sip, sip.  I messed up last update.  My insurance stuff wasn't submitted to BC/BS because they want a date and of course, we can't give them a date until we know what's happening with Dr. Husted.   So, that's that.  Hubby's still out of town working.  He was home for 2 days and I went to Detroit and spent a week with him.  It's hard to visit with him when he's working because he works 6 days a week, 13 hours a day.  Not much time for even sleeping on that schedule.  Glad he only does this spring and fall. I'm more sure now than I ever was of the DS being right for me.  I never want to have another weight loss surgery.  I'm so tired of waiting and hurting while I'm waiting.  Trust me, it's no fun. But, I do have many blessings so it's not all bad.  It's just the topic we're here for, right?   OK, until next time, sip, sip sip  May 5, 2006 Cinco de Mayo I thank the Dear Lord for giving me the strength to wait for my surgeon to get his affairs settled!  Dr. Husted has announced he is joining the Dr. Rabkins team.  What a monopoly SF has on DS surgeons.  The best in the world, right here in SF.  How groovy! Yes, he's making the move in mid July and I was told he would probably be doing surgeries by the 3rd week in July.  Hope it's me!   I've sent a list of questions to his office concerning the move and the different criteria at the PacLap practice but I don't really expect them to have all the answers right away.  I'll be patient.. it's enough knowing I'm going to see the light at the end of this tunnel soon. Praise God! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

June 17, 2006 

I know it's been a while since I've been on here but nothing has been happening.  I was told that my chart was sent from Nashville to San Francisco on 6/5/2006 and I called the office earlier this week to see if they'd recevied it and if anything is being done with it. I was told it was there but it hadn't been looked at yet.  Then, guess what?  I got a phone call from SF on Friday evening about 20 until 5 from Ernie from Paclab asking me to fill out the patient questionnaire on the Rabkins website.  I printed off all 9 pages and will fill it out tomorrow and fax it back to them so it will be there waiting when they open the office Monday morning.  He told me the Dr, Tatianne and others had been looking at it.  So that really sounds like progress, huh?   If I need any more testing done, they didn't say when they called, so keeping my fingers crossed.   Someone on the paclab yahoo group posted that Safeway had 120 count Calcium Citrate + D on sale for $5.13 each.  No Safeway around here but just happens to be one where my DH is working, so I had him go buy me 6 bottles.   I've started smoking again and know I must quit.  My DH smokes, my son smokes and his girlfriend smokes and I've found when I'm upset or anxious or in pain I turn to those nasty killing things.  I've had a patch on but when I go outside I sweat and it comes right off, so I've been taking standard bandage tape and wrapping it around my arm to keep it on.  By the end of the day I'm not comfortable with it, I think my arm swells or something but I have a long red mark and irritated skin.  It was so easy for me to quit in Nov and stay away from them for 6 months but now is a different story alltogether.  My son is going through a divorce and moved here, can't find a job and is struggling and leaning on me to help him financially.  He's got a new girlfriend who is attached at his hip so I feel like I've got a new roomate most days.  She's got a child, so I feel I've inheirited a new grandchild.   I"ve also had a lot of company, with comings and goings going on every week.  First DIL with 2 grandchildren arrived, then granddaugher arrived from MD.  Then DIL and one grandchild left.  Then DH left for a job in Washington.  The other grandchild wants to come back for another 9 days, until she has to go to her other grandmothers in MD, so next Thursday I'll be driving the 80 miles to the airport and home twice if my DH comes home for the weekend, too.  He's not scheduled to come home for 6 weeks, but a company wants to interview him and the guy lives in Chicago and would fly down to St Louis.  If he gets this job, it would move a relocation back to MD.   I had planned on having my DIL be my support person, fly her in from San Antonio the day I'm due to get realeased from the hospital but if my surgery is scheduled after school starts, she won't be able to get away.  I thought briefly about my sister but she's a nurse who hasn't worked in years and loves to fight with anyone who doesn't take care of the patients in the way she thinks they should be cared for, so that idea was immediately squashed.  I can hear her now in the hall cussing out the Dr. because I'm in pain and the nurses haven't been there at 2 o'clock to give me my 5 o'clock dose.  Ya know what I mean?  She means well but would cause me more havoc and distress than I need. Another granddaughter is due to fly in from NC on July 9.  I'll be flying out on July 6, to take the youngest grandson home.  I'll be back on the 11th, so I can't pick her up. Son has taken a contract job which he will have to go out of town for 8 weeks, so he wouldn't even be here to see her.  And no one would be around to pick her up at the airport, except his new girlfriend, which probably wouldn't set too good with the EX and with the mouthy 13 year old. Oy Vey.  Isn't life grand sometimes?  My back, my right knee and my heels and feet are always acting up and telling me I'm putting way too much weight on them.   I just want to get this surgery done and get on the losing side. BD/BS has just changed their requirements that one has to lose 10% of their excess weight.  I don't think I can.  Last time I was on Atkins for 3 weeks (no cheating, honest) I gained 3 lbs. Why isn't anything easy?   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 
 

July 15,2006 

Ohmygod, so much has happened, I've got to slow down and think and start from where I left off.  I know it's been a while since I updated so I don't want to leave anything important out. I've been approved!!   Yes, you read that right, approved after the first submission.  I'm stoked and more than a little excited.  I've even got a surgery date, August 25th.  I'll be going to San Francisco to have open revision to DS with Dr. Husted.  He has gone to SF and is starting work this coming monday, July 17th.  I won't be his first patient, as a matter of fact, Tatianna, the insurance coordinator at the Rabkins practice has told me the OR is booked for July.  Since I still need some tests run, that will give me plenty of time to get them done and the results back before my surgery and I won't feel pressured.  It also gives me a chance to get flights cheaper by booking them a month ahead.  My DIL who lives in San Antonio will be flying out to SF to care for me when I'm out of the hospital.  Since she works and has 3 kids and I don't need someone to care for me while I'm in the hospital, she'll be staying a week or 8 days.  We're both expecting to fly home on Sept. 6th, with my post op Dr. appt. on Sept. 5th. Did I tell you how excited I am? I really, truly expected to be denied by BCBS.  They told me back in March that the DS was "investigational" and I could get approved for a revision to RNY easily but not the DS.  I guess they're on board with the DS surgery now.  I'm so glad because fighting and appealing their decision would have taken more precious time.  My back hurts so bad, I can't stand being so fat and hurting my joints so much. I flew back to San Antonio and took my grandson back. I had a great time and stayed for 6 days, saw my other son and I think we tried to eat our way out of Texas.  I miss the little angel like the dickens but my back does feel better now that I'm not caring for a 4 year old.  Also, my son left and went back to try to work his marriage out.  He has 3 daughters whom he missed so very much.  His wife divorced him this past  May but they're both working on straighting their marriage out and I hope they will re-marry. So, this big old house is empty again.  I've gone from DH, son, son's girlfriend and child, 2 grandchildren and DIL and all the neighborhood kids here to play with grandchildren here day and night to only me.  Zero company now.  Which is kind of nice, especially since I have plenty of business to take care of, not to mention preparing for being out of town for 2 weeks for my DS. I've quit smoking again (quit from Nov to May) but started again mid May after son came home.  Since my surgery isn't for 6 weeks, I'm doing everything I can do to stay off a vent.  If I wake up on one, it's not because I didn't do my part, it's because my lungs are damaged from smoking so many years.  I hope and pray not. Well, I hope anyone who is reading and is contemplating a DS does their research and finds out what kind of a life they could have with it.  I talked to an obese nurse yesterday at the hospital while getting some blood work done that my surgeon wants and she was so interested in it and wants to see me as I'm losing but said, "no surgery for her".  She's still very young and I thought, honey, eventually you'll see that surgery is a better option than living your life obese and dying early from the complications obesity will cause. I pray that I'm able to help someone. Thanks for reading.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

July 17  

I will try to get a picture of me posted this weekend when my husband is home to take one of me.  I swear this time!  I'm so proud of my little page!  LOL ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ July 19, 2006 I am so excited, I can't believe this is finally becoming a reality and that I'm doing it all by myself.  DH is working contract work in Washington State and can't take any time off.  He may be able to fly down to SF the weekend I'm operated on, though.  He gets a paid trip home every 6 weeks and that will fall within his time to come home to IL. Lots of stuff going on.  I made airline reservations for myself and my DIL, who will be flying in from San Antonio to be with me while I'm recovering in SF.  I booked our hotel and while I wasn't able to use our timeshare, I was able to get a great hotel at very reasonable cost.  We'll be staying at the Cathedreal Hill Hotel, at the recommendation of others from the DS Yahoo group.  I'm totally satisfied with everything so far.  I've had offers to pick me up at the airport and deliver me to my hotel which was so very generous of everyone who offered.  My DIl is looking forward to getting away and it will be her first trip to CA and to SF, so she'll be doing a lot of sight seeing.  I realized I'll be away from home for 16 days, since my surgery stay will include the Labor Day weekend.  I can't believe it's almost Labor Day!  Where I'm from that means the summer is over.  NJ, down at the shore.  Opens Mem. Day weekend and closes up Labor Day weekend.  The only thing I need to do is find someone to take me to the airport, so I don't have to leave my car there for 16 days.  My son and his wife had their car stolen at the Phil. airport while they were on their honeymoon and I always fear that someday I will return from a trip and have to face that.  My cousin lives very close to STL so I'm going to ask her if she or her husband will help.  If not, I've got some sweet neighbors who have offered to take me and pick me up, but that is a 150 mi. round trip for them, so I'd rather not inconvenience them like that if I don't have to.  If I drive to my cousin's house, and have one of them take me to the airport, it wouldn't be too much out of their way to drop me off and pick me up.  *(but my return flight does arrive late, like around 11:30 pm)... but still, I think they would do it for me. Anyhow, I've been busy ticking off things to do.  I'm also dealing with identity fraud which is plenty to keep a person busy.  I'm waiting on two more credit reports, so I can make sure there are no more fraudulent accounts that I need to dispute.  I've made a police report, put a fraud alert on my account, called the gas company to issue me a letter of continous billing (in my name, not my husband's thank goodness) which will prove that I did indeed live where I say I've lived for the past 4 years, not in NJ where these accounts were opened up.  The ironic part is, I'm from NJ, but have never been to the town where these accounts were.  The accounts which are in collections are Direct TV, AT&T wireless, Swiss Colony (what no FingerHut????) and another AT&T account.  I've never had satellite TV, we have Cingular cell phones and I've never ordered from Swiss Colony or FingerHut!  LOL I'm sort of glad I've got this big project to keep me busy.  If you've ever been the victim of identity theft, you know how much you have to do to prove your innocence!  After I've disputed all these collections, I've got to write to all 3 reporting agencies so they will include my side of the story while they're investigating it.   So, I've only got 34 more days until I'm switched and will be losing.  I fully expect to be able to walk without pain in 2 or 3 months, which will be the biggest blessing I've had in a long time.  I'm so tired of this chronic back pain.  I do see a light at the end of the tunnel. Ciao!~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

July 31, 2006 

Well, only 25 days to go until I'm switched.  Hello World!!!!Some other changes.  DH is able to be with me during surgery.  He'll fly into SF late Thursday night, take me to the hospital on Friday, then go back to WA on Sun. evening. DIL is bringing my youngest grandson, who is 4 and the light of my life.  If anything will make me feel better he will.  We were concerned that he would be bored in a hotel room for 10 days, as she's bringing her work with her but between the pool, a game cube and sights around the city, he'll be just fine.   I'm so ready for this.  I added these pictures tonight and am so unhappy looking at them.  I can not believe I'm this big.  I never have pictures taken of me because I'm embarassed of my size, but I asked DH to take them today so I can document my journey.  As I've said before, it's my way of paying it forward. I hope my story and journey will help someone. I had the stress echocardiogram last monday and my PCP's nurse called me Friday and told me she got the report and every thing is fine and she was faxing all the latest docs and tests to PacLab then.  It was 4 our time, but only 2 PT, so I'm sure they received them before they left for the weekend.   It's all in motion and I can't wait.  I'm so sick of being in pain and being the largest person I know. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

Sept. 9, 2006 

TaDA.  I'm switched.  If everyone could have the recovery I'm experiencing I'd be so happy.  I can't say it was pain free, but the pain meds controlled and I was off the pump in 2 days and have been totally off pain pills since the first week after release. I've already lost 23 lbs, in 2 weeks, so am a little concerned that I'm losing too quickly and too much muscle so I'm doing my best to eat more protein and more small meals.  I just finished a string cheese, have fish defrosted to cook for dinner but don't think I'm going to have any room for it, even later.  Maybe I can get a protein drink down. I'm happier than anyone could possibly know.   My nursing care was exceptional.  I didn't wake up on a ventilator, no burpies, no gas, no nausea, nothing bad.  I'm just feeling too good to be believed, even by myself!!!!!! Will update more soon.  I'm getting tired, trying to catch up with everything at once is a little exhausting.  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sept. 15, 2006 

Well, I'm 3 weeks out and have lost 25 lbs so far.  I'm feeling good but still have not started exercising by walking.  I hope to have the enrgy to start that soon. My neighbor told me last night that she would walk with me, so that's a great incentive.  I wore a pedometer yesterday and I walked 1/2 mi. just by walking around in my home.  I'm eating well, sometimes think I'm eating too much but sticking to protein and water and it seems to be working.  I ate two scrambled eggs this morning with a tbls. cream cheese melted in them.  YUM. I've been drinking hot tea as the weather is turning cooler and still do not have a taste for coffee.  Oh well, I used to love my coffee but I know tea is better for you.    I've been doing a little bit of cleaning, organization and taking care of some business I've been putting off.  I had my identity stolen and have 5 items on my credit reports that do not belong to me. What a pain in the arse, if you know what I mean!!!  But it has to be taken care of and taken care of quickly. So, I better get off here and get cracking on it.   Thanks for reading!  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Sept. 29 2006 I do believe I feel better now at 5 weeks out than I ever did with the RNY.  Even though I'm no where near goa or as thin as I was then at goal, I can eat well and don't have anything stuck or coming back up. No dumping either. And I can eat. And I get full. For someone who is used to being hungry and ignoring it, that's HUGE. It's difficult to wrap your head around the differences between the 2 surgeries and being a dieter.  I used to feel as if I would just wait another hour or two until I had a meal, I might not gain too much weight. Now if I'm hungry, I go eat.  Nothing hurts, my stomach must be 100% healed (and has been for well over a week) because nothing I put in it hurts or feels tender.  I had many foods I couldn't eat pre-DS, even at 12 years out.  Bread hurt.  Steak, chicken and greasy food hurt.  I would still occasionally vomit.  I'm so glad to be rid of that crummy pouch.  I know many of you who are RNY patients will take offense at that, but hey, this is my story, right??? Now I can look forward to eating an orange again.  And Popcorn.  No worries about it getting caught on a staple and causing problems. My surgeons were the best in the world, IMO and they really are 2 of the top experts in the world on the DS and on revisions, in particular.  I couldn't have asked for a better team.  Thank you Dr. Husted and Dr. R. Rabkins.  You have given me my life back. I've lost 33 lbs in 5 weeks.  Now wearing size 20 jeans and all of my former clothes are way too big for me.  I'm down at least 1 if not 2 sizes.  I was wearing clothing that was too big for me pre-surgery, as I didn't have anything that fit me this summer and when I had to buy clothes, I just knew my 22/24's from the winter were getting too tight and of course, I didn't try on clothing in the stores..too hot and sweaty for that, plus the back pain made me want to get out of the store as fast as I could, so I wound up grabbing something off the racks that was a 26 or a 28 and figured this will surely fit me.  And they did, with room to spare, so I figured if I gained anymore weight this summer, I wouldn't have to go buy more clothes.  LOL, that's my take on shopping.  Now when I'm under a size 10 it will be another story!   My back doesn't hurt me nearly as much now as it used to.  I'd say, it's at least 3/4 better some of the time and 100% better most of the time.  My stress incontinence is much, much better.  I can see the loss myself when I study myself in the mirror (which I tried my hardest not to do pre-op).  My face definitely looks thinner and I guess my trunk looks smaller too. I hope to get some pictures taken today and I'll update later. I've starting walking.  I took it easy the first day, just testing and only walked 4 blocks.  Now I know that doesn't seem like much to you but pre-surgery, I couldn't walk 1 block without needed to sit down or bend over from my back pain.  Then the next time I did 6 blocks.  Today I will go 8 blocks.  I'm wearing a pedometer and most days I get in around one mile just walking around the house, doing chores, grocery shopping, etc.  So every little bit helps, right? I'm not having any problem getting my protein (with shakes), liquid and supplements in.  If truth be told, I find it harder to remember to get in all my supplements in at the correct times than anything else.  I've devised a schedule which should help me. A note to pre-ops.  Don't combine your calcium citrate at the same time as you take your multi-vitamin.  The iron and minerals in the daily will interfere with your calcium absorbation. My incision is healed and I'm rubbing it daily with a scar reducing lotion.  Mederma. I hope it helps. They say revision patients loser slower and maybe not quite as much as first time DS'rs.  I think I'm doing very well, even for a revision.  Perhaps because my RNY was so long ago and I've been gaining  back the weight after SLD since 96, it's more like my intestines were like no surgery was ever done. Whatever the reason, I'm grateful ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

WHY I HAD A REVISION FROM RNY TO DS 

October 9, 2006 

I am a revision patient from RNY to DS.  While the RNY did allow me to loose 130 lbs, it was short lived and not without miserable consequences.  I vomited, I dumped, food got stuck, and for the past 4 years, I had uncontrollable hunger. I had my RNY in 94 and had staple line disruption in 96. Not fun and hurt like hell. I’d only had coffee that morning.  My guess is it disrupted because of the frequent vomiting from foods that didn’t agree with me. I had to diet constantly to keep from gaining enormous amounts of weight.  I was hungry and still the scale was climbing upwards. At 170 lbs, I broke my ankle and the weight piled on quicker, got up to 209 and my lower back hurt so badly I could barely do whatever it is a middle-aged housewife normally does without pain.  I couldn’t walk across the street without needing to bend over and give my back some relief.  Washing dishes, sweeping, vacuuming and mopping were the worst offenders. I started looking into revision surgery in 2003 but life circumstances made me put that on the back burner.  Around Oct 2005, I decided to make myself the top priority and began looking into revision surgery seriously.  I attended a seminar in Columbia MO (around 175 miles from me) and they offered repair to my exisiting RNY.  I was already a member here, so did more research because at 54, with adhesions and one weight loss surgery that had failed me, I wanted to make sure I chose the very best surgery with better percentages of keeping the weight off, forever!!!!.  My back hurt so badly I was on 4 hydracodone daily.  And they didn’t help much until I figured out to take 2 first thing in the AM to get ahead of the pain that surely would be along shortly from doing just the simplest things. So, I found out about the DS, did a bunch of research, asked some questions and knew that it was the right surgery for me.  I didn’t want another failure.  I researched surgeons, made a few phone calls and emails.   Since a revison was a much more complex surgery than the RNY or even a DS, I knew I had to find the most experienced surgeon and one of the best of the best.  I called Dr. Husted in Nashville, around 5 hours from me. I had my consultation and attended a seminar in Feb and was very excited to find out he could help me.  From reading here and at www.duodenalswitch.com I knew I’d have to have an endoscopy and upper GI, so I had them done prior to my consultation with Dr. Husted and took the reports and pictures with me.   I had staple line disruption and stoma enlargement and it was no wonder I was hungry every 2 hours.  Food was emptying out as quickly as I put it in. I had my DS in Aug with Dr. Husted and Dr. R. Rabkins in San Francisco and have lost 37 lbs in 6 weeks, absolutely no complications whatsoever and best of all, NO BACK PAIN or very little when I do dishes at the sink or vacuum.  But it’s bearable and no pain pills. No vomiting, no diarrhea, (all intestinal issues can be controlled by your diet) very little gas , no bloating, no stinky BM’s to blister the pain off the bathroom/house. I have no doubt I’ll lose the excess weight and continue to thrive with this surgery.  I am 100% committed to taking my supplements, getting my protein and fluids in daily and living life to the fullest! Kudos to you for doing your research.  If you go to the RNY board or the revison board you will read many sad stories of people who are experiencing all of the things I’ve said. Good luck. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

October 17, 2006 

Hello all from San Antonio.  I've been here visiting my family for a week now and looking at houses because we intend to move here next year.  I flew and it was great getting on the plane and knowing I would fit and the seatbelt would be even looser than it was coming home from SF.  Going out to SF I didn't need a seat belt extender but it was at it's max.  Now I've got a good 4 inches extra belt to spare!   I've been very bad about eating but still doing at least one protein shake a day and getting my water in.  According to DIL's scale I've lost a couple of pounds but won't know for sure until I get home, strip down and weigh on my scale.  I've had cake, ice cream, taco's, breakfast tortillas and other stuff.  Nothing and I do mean nothing bothers my digestive track that I've tried so far.  I even had some pasta alfredo when we went to Sam's club the other day.  Of course, maybe it's because I only had a couple of bites but no reprecussions from it. I can't wait until we move to SA and I'm close to 3 of my grandchildren (I've got 4 in NC and 2 in MD)  Some are adopted and acquired but I love them all the same.  It's just we have to retire somewhere and we both love SA and it's weather and since we have family here and none in IL where we live now, it only makes sense to be close to them so we can help out, baby sit, pick up from school, etc. All that will happen after my DH has his "switch" for his diabetes. He won't get the stomach reduction part and the 25-30 lbs he needs to loose will come off from the malabsorption part.  We plan on going to Spain for this surgery with Dr. Balsatar but don't have a date yet, as DH does not know if they're going to extend his contract in WA state yet or not.  If not, we're hoping for sometime in January and since it will be lap, he'll be able to work this spring, then we'll move.