How did you first find out about bariatric surgery and what were your initial impressions of it?

I learned a friend of mine had had it in 1985, and had done very well. Great for her, but I was against it. I thought it was a cop out. Then my 2 brothers had it about 8 yrs ago, and my 2 best friends about 6 yrs ago. I was still against it & considered it a cop-out. Felt (and still feel) I should have been able to lose the weight on my own.

Describe your experience with getting insurance approval for surgery. What advice, if any, do you have for other people in this stage?

No problem to speak of. I have federal BCBS and there was no pre-auth, no pre-cert, no 6 month diet. I met the requirements (Morbidly obese for 5 yrs, over 18 years of age). However they did deny my claims twice post-op, and the hospital was calling me about collections when BCBS finally paid it all 3 months later.

What was your first visit with your surgeon like? How can people get the most out of this meeting?

My first visit was rushed, because I had waited too long, and I had to get out of there to be somewhere else. I'm talking waiting over three hours before my appointment. It may have been four. I didn't ask hardly any of my questions that session. Did it the next time. I'd say be prepared to wait, and have all your questions ready to ask the surgeon.

What made you finally decide to have the surgery?

My weight was affecting my health badly, and I felt I had no other option. It was a last resort.

How did you decide which proceedure to have?

I allowed myself to be limited by what my insurance would cover, which was RNY. If I had it to do over, I think I might have pursued the DS instead, esp. knowing now that BCBS is being ordered to pay for it in some areas.

What fears did you have about having complications or even dying from from the surgery, and what would you tell other people having the same fears now?

I had all the fears, especially of dying. I was afraid I'd never wake up from anesthesia. I'd never had any surgery before my WLS.

How did your family and friends react to your decision? Would you have communicated anything differently if you could now? How supportive were they after your surgery?

All were supportive, except my minister, who gave me a lecture about the dangers of WLS and the horrible mortality rate from this surgery. I set him straight (and never sought his counsel again!). Family, friends, work were all supportive before and after.

How did your employer/supervisor react to your decision? What did you tell him/her? How long were you out of work?

They were supportive. No problems at all. I was out of work for two weeks, tho I worked from home part of the second week.

What was your stay in the hospital like? How long where you there? What things are most important to bring?

I was in the hospital 2 nites. Staff were excellent. No problems at all.

Did you have any complications from the surgery? If so, how did you deal with them?

No complications.

In the weeks after you got your surgery date, how did you feel? How did you cope with any anxiety you might have felt?

Scared to death. I talked to friends & posted messages on the OH.com messageboards for support in my anxiety.

Describe your first few weeks home from the hospital. What should people expect from this period?

Very difficult emotionally, felt like a freak eating mushy stuff while everybody ate real food around me. I felt like everybody I knew was watching me while I ate (they were, they were curious). Lots asked questions. I got tired of it, and hiberated, eating my meals at home alone. Had a hard time eating too fast in social situations. Had to really adjust that.

How far did you travel to have your surgery? (If far, how did this affect your aftercare?)

1 hour, didn't affect aftercare at all.

Please describe in detail what things you could and couldn't eat in the weeks and months following surgery. What foods have been off limits? Please explain how your dietary tolerance changed week-by-week, and then month-by-month since surgery.

I had no trouble incorporating new foods at all. No vomiting. Some things settled better than others. I had a hard time with white chicken meat for several months - the trick for me is to have it very moist, whether with broth, gravy, sauce. This got better over time. I cannot eat dry meats at all, even to this day.

What was your actvity level in the days and weeks after surgery?

I walked 1 mile a day for the first month or so, broken into ten 1/10 mile walks. That's all I could do. I bought a treadmill pre-op and I had that here for bad weather days - started being able to go 1/4 mile then 1/2 at a time, then 1-2 miles by 6 mos out.

What vitamins and/or dietary supplements have you taken since your surgery?

Centrum chewable multivitamin, calcium citrate 500mg/day (citracal creamy bites), B12 1500 1x/week (I now use 3 500mg doses of B12 chewing gum per week)

What side effects (nausea, vomiting, sleep disturbace, dumping, hair loss etc.) were worse for you? For how long after surgery did they persist? How did you cope with them?

Hair loss kicked in around 3 months, leveled off at 9, started up again at about 14 months out. No other adverse side effects to report. First dumping incident at 20 months out - on sugar-free caramel corn!

What was the worst part about the entire bariatric surgery process?

The first 4 weeks post-op and the big adjustments to the new lifestyle.

What aftercare support group/program do you have? How helpful/important is this?

I attend 2 support groups: my surgeon's group is STARS of WLS in Birmingham. I also attend Dr. Bilton's GENESIS group in Tuscaloosa. Each group meets once per month so I get 2 meetings per month when I can hit them both.

What is your scar like? Is this what you expected?

5-6 tiny marks, hardly noticeable at all.

Please describe any plateau experiences you have had since surgery.

Many plateaus, the first at about 2 months out lasted a couple of weeks. Then at about 16 mos out, I plateaued for over 2 months. That was the same time I started a challenging gym workout program, so I assume my body was adjusting to that. The losing started up again & continues.

Do you notice people treating you any differently now?

Yes. I am not as "invisible" as I was as a morbidly obese person. Especially to men. One man I work with occasionally did not recognize me a few weeks ago (had not seen me since surgery) and he treated me SO very differently it was very strange. Flirted, and was totally different than he'd ever been before.