for_my_kids
Name: Nicole
Age: 30
Married: Yes, happily
Kids: (2) - Girl & Boy, born 11 months apart
Career: Yes, Business/Marketing/Customer Service
Overweight since: 1988
Reason: Poor life circumstances during childhood, Poor personal choices as an adult
Decision to have WLS: Investigated January to April 2010, pursued April to August 2010, chose RNY
And so my WLS journey began...all these entries were requirements from my Insurance Company and my Bariatric Surgeon.
UPDATE MAY 2013: As I re-read this entry, I re-live every moment on this timeline, and realize THIS period of time (the "clearance" phase) is the MOST stressful. If you can survive the stress of ALL THIS, and loose a few pounds, you are going to do GREAT post-op!!
APRIL:
*04/12/10 - attended Bariatric surgery info session in Asheboro-NC with Dr. Washington (once you document this attendance with the surgeon, you can NOT gain any weight)
*04/20/10 - appt. with primary care physician for obesity assessment, labs to get baseline bloodwork panel established, check thyroid, and obtain letter of medical necessity (if your PCP is not on board, in NC, you are dead in the water for WLS)
MAY:
*05/04/10 - appt. with bariatric surgeon for initial consultation, identify pre-operative clearances that are needed and set forth a plan of action, check weight against seminar reportings
*05/04/10 - patient education class, held at bariatric surgeon's office by bariatric nutritionist, 4-hour class explaining everything you ever wanted (or didn't want) to know about the various WLS procedures as well as your life changes before-during-after surgery
JUNE:
*06/07/10 - appt. with bariatric psychologist for initial assessment, verbal face-to-face session
*06/14/10 - appt. with bariatric psychologist for 2nd assessment, written personality exam
*06/28/10 - appt. with bariatric surgeon for 2nd consultation, verify current progress, verify psyc clearance, set additional goals, identify any remaining clearances required, check weight against last visit
*06/28/10 - appt. with bariatric nutritionist for initial assessment, pre-surgery eating plan as well as post-op discussions
JULY:
*07/14/10 - appt. with cardiologist (heart dr) for initial consultation and to identify what procedure will be done, obtain a baseline EKG
*07/20/10 - appt. with cardiologist for echocardiogram, heart ultrasound, to obtain cardiac clearance for surgery
*07/22/10 - outpatient surgical process, EGD, scope down the throat into stomach to look for ulcers and take a biopsy to test for the presence of H-pylori bacteria which is the bacteria that causes ulcers
*07/22/10 - appt. with cardiologist for follow-up, obtain results from ECHO, (this is a biggie - clearance or no clearance? a pivotal moment)
*07/22/10 - appt. with pulmonary (lung) dr for initial consultation and to identify what procedures are needed, I ended up wearing a sleep apnea machine home "ApneaLink" as an initial assessment for possible sleep/breathing disorders
*07/26/10 - appt. with pulmonary dr for 2nd consultation, obtain results from ApneaLink, schedule further tests
*07/29/10 - appt. with bariatric surgeon for 3rd consultation, petition insurance company for surgery approval, verify if lung clearance is truly needed (answer was yes because this is an elective surgery, and everyone needs to know if a patient is a risk during the recovery phase of the surgery, with regards to breathing or need to be resuscitated), check weight against last visit, obtain information about how/when to begin liquid pre-op diet
AUGUST:
*08/03/10 - begin liquid protein pre-op diet, to shrink liver prior to surgery, also to demonstrate ability to follow post-op eating plan
*08/04/10 - sleep study, ordered by pulmonary dr & required by bariatric surgeon
*08/09/10 - appt. with pulmonary dr for follow-up, obtain results from sleep study, (this is also pivotal - if results show sleep apnea then patient has to be on a c-pap/bi-pap machine for 2 to 4 weeks prior to surgery, if results show no disorder then patient is cleared)
*08/16/10 - appt. with bariatric surgeon for 4th and final consultation, verify all clearances are received, verify insurance approval received, obtain all prescriptions needed before & after surgery, tie up any remaining loose ends, check weight against last visit - this verifies if you are following the pre-op liquid diet, complete remaining pre-op tasks: chest x-ray, bloodwork, hospital registration, payment due in full to all parties involved
*08/19/10 - drink solution to flush your body prior to surgery. Yesterday was the last day of solid foods for a long time. Only clear liquids today until noon or so. Then the flush. If you ever want to back track and live the "old" way again, try to remember what this stuff tastes like, then re-think self-sabotage!
*08/20/10 - SURGERY DATE, RNY
**Post-Surgery has brought on a few gliches. I was re-admitted to hospital for pneumonia on 08/24 and now have gallbladder removal scheduled for 10/20. Both conditions are very common for post-op bariatric patients. I was not surprised either time, learned all about it in the patient education class!!
**Life on the other side is as challenging as life on the pre-surgery side. Getting in enough liquid, protein, frutis/veggies, and vitamins proves to be very hard work and takes some planning/fine tuning. Good luck to you all! Pray for my success.
About Me
Before & After
rollover to see after photo
