What exactly is a "Scope"?

LOL! How on earth did I miss that? Okay, fellow newbie, I stand corrected now! Wow, not long for you until you meet your surgeon! Good luck! I think I'd better get some sleep - my brain is drained.....

Deb

hehe it's ok - night :-)

Deb, I'm afraid you may have read my post differently than I intended it to be.  I was trying to bring to light some of the things you inferred that you may not have known about.  

I have not read all your posts, and did not know that you have already been thru the CPAP situation.  The way you worded it in the original post above seemed to say that you've only done it once and that was enough for you, and that it wasn't being treated by your doctor.  I was responding to that and that alone.  I did not say you were concealing anything from your doctor, but the way you worded (or I read) your post indicated to me that your doctor wasn't doing anything about it.  Hence, my reply to be pro-active with your own health care.  I was concerned for you going into this journey unaware of the consequences of not being treated for sleep apnea, not taking you to task for not being proactive.  That's all.

Did you know that there was a mouth piece that you can wear in lieu of the CPAP machine?  Some can use that and it works just as well.  The sleep clinic should know about this if you want to check it out.

I deal with a constant worrier daily.  My DH is one, and he gets it from his mother.  I often say that I don't have to worry about anything because he does enough for both of us.

I am not a mean person and would never go out of my way to say something hurtful or unkind.  There is no need for you to stop posting.  But please, as I said before, don't go overboard on research.  If you're a predisposed worrier, then all the stuff you will hear (and it will all be different) will only add to your stress level.  Listen to your surgical team.  They will have the answers you seek.

Here's a link to the book that St. Joe's Hamilton distributes just prior to surgery.  Perhaps you can kind some of your answers here.

http://www.stjoes.ca/media/PatientED/F-J/PD%206000%20Bariatr ic%20Surgery%20-%20Gastric%20Bypass%20April%202010.pdf

Beth
P.S.  I haven't had my surgery yet, either, but I have been thru all the tests.

Beth, we obviously did read your words differently - just shows how easy it is to interpret something in different ways, when you can't actually hear the other person's tone of voice. It's very common to make assumptions that are incorrect when you don't know someone's personal history, especially when you're using an online forum.  Let's just put it aside and move on. By the way, I was able recently to try the mouth piece you referred to but my doctor advised me that it was more suited for someone who used a lower pressure setting than what I require and it just didn't work out for me. 

I understand your point about worrying as a result of doing my research but, as I said, that's simply part of my nature and I could not imagine going into something like this and not asking questions and doing a lot of research.  Thank you for the link to the book from St. Joe's - I just recently put it in my favourites after someone else posted the link. I find it to be a handy reference guide to give a basic idea of the procedure and aftercare.  I'll likely refer to it a few times, along with any further research that I'll be doing on the many facets of WLS.  I'm sure we'll all do just fine.

Deb

I have had all 3 done over the years.
Upper GI is the Barium
A "Scope" is a Gastroscopy: it is used to visual the esophagus or tube that the food goes in. They can also visualize the stomach, I had mine done when I had an ulcer years ago. They give you sedation that makes you really drowsy and it is not bad at all. I would not stress out about it. I am a nurse as well and had assisted during the scopes at times and the majority of people have no problems, Just think of it being one step closer.

Can I ask why you don't treat your sleep apnea? I have been using CPAP for almost a year and feel much better for it. Blood pressure down, more energy, better mood etc...

Hi there. Thanks for your info on the Upper Gi vs the Scope. I am feeling much better about it with all that I have learned.

As far as the sleep apnea, I have had four sleep studies done and had a CPAP machine at home for approximately one month but the problem was that we were unable to find a mask that I was able to wear without leaks in many places. My pressure settings were quite high and I would wake up & be unable to tolerate the force. They even tried various masks during my sleep study and the doctor in charge of the sleep clinic said that I was one of the few people who simply could not find a mask that would work for me and we tried everything from nasal pillows to full face masks. He is the one who originally told me to pursue WLS as he felt that there was a good chance that it would relieve my sleep apnea. Believe me, I know exactly how serious sleep apnea is and I do not treat it lightly, in spite of what some people might think. I tried many, many masks before we finally threw in the towel. I'm very glad that you have been able to see such great results with your CPAP. Thanks so much for your response.

Deb

Hi Deb
Just wanted to say that your questions show you're paying attention - that's awesome. Go into this knowing everything you need to. I read on another board that they are now scoping the RNY blind stomach using a laproscopic incision so that's an advancement.

Thanks Jennifer! As I said previously, I was so excited to find this forum because I knew that I would learn a lot here. I think that most of us will have a lot of questions when it comes to preparing for surgery. It's pretty encouraging to hear that they're starting to use less invasive methods for scoping the stomach - gotta love anything that's easier on the patient!

Deb

 Keep asking questions, everyone benefits from them.  If someone isn't happy, with your (or anyone's questions) just use the block function!

By the way, I'm sure Beth meant no harm, just didn't want you to worry more than necessary, I've only seen her posting kind and thoughtful responses.  I am a worrier too, and like you, want to know everything I can in advance.  We're all different!

Good luck on your journey!

Hi Sandy - thanks for your input. I think that a lot of us are worriers to some extent, especially when it comes to having surgery.

I'm sure that you're probably right and Beth had good intentions. We all know how hard it can be to "read" someone's words online when you can't see them or hear their tone of voice. Whatever - it's past & I'm ready to just keep moving forward. It's quite a journey - best of luck to you as well!

Deb