What can you expect before you have Weight Loss Surgery

Hi, Everyone,

What can you expect before you have weight loss surgery?  What can you expect once you arrive at the Hospital?  What can you expect the 1st month after having weight loss surgery?

First before you have weight loss surgery you can expect a basket FULL of feeling and emotions. You will have a bag full of MIXED feelings along with emotions.  This is quite normal for most of us.  I think the biggest fear is the unknown.  We are excited that we made the choice to have weight loss surgery.  Then the closer you get to having WLS you feel all of these feeling and emotions.  You will think I can’t wait to have the surgery; I am scared to have the surgery. You will have all these feeling plus a lot more. Some of the feelings and emotions I had were: happy, sad, scared, excited, fearful, alarmed, anxious, nervous, worried, pleased, blissful, ecstatic, delighted, content, glad, lucky, and fortunate.  And some I probably didn’t mention.  You will second guess yourself, and ask yourself, is this what I really want to do? Yes, it is!!!  You may think I should be able to do lose this weight myself without having WLS.  If we could lose the weight on our own and keep it off, believe me we would have already done it! So I want you to know having all these feeling and emotions are very NORMAL, because most of us have had all these feeling and emotions before we actually had weight loss surgery.

Now when you arrive, I can only speak from my experience, because I was a self- pay patient, and went to Mexicali, Mexico for my surgery.  I know flying there on the plane, and I kept asking myself “am I nuts going to Mexico to have Weight Loss surgery?” Believe me I had done a lot of research before I made my choice and I actually worked with some who had been there before me. Then I arrived in San Diego, and I was waiting for the driver Ernesto to pick me and others up, and I kept think, what if he doesn’t pick me up and here I am sit in San Diego?  Well here he comes walking down where you pick up your luggage with a BIG sign with my name on it—I felt so much better when I saw him.  There were about 4 other people in the van all going to have Weight Loss Surgery too.  We had a great time talking, and the 1.5 hours of driving went by fast, as we all got to know each other. I have remained friends still with these people, and that was 4 1/2 years ago.  We went through a lot together and we were all very successful at our weight loss and have kept it off.  Once I got the hospital and actually saw the hospital, all my fears went away.  I was greeted by the nicest and warmest caring staff I have ever met in ANY hospital.  This was a Sunday, and they were doing all our tests that afternoon so we would be ready for surgery the next morning.  After we all got our test taken care of we were driven to an extremely nice and beautiful hotel.  We were each given a really nice room. They told us that we could eat anything we wanted for dinner that night. We got together as a group and ate dinner that night.  So of course we all ate just want we wanted that night.  We had a small amount of paper work to fill out that night too. One of the Doctors came to the Hotel and spoke with us as a group and answered any and ALL of our questions about the surgery we were going to be having. We were also given some medication to take before we went to bed, so we would sleep well.  I was so excited, I really didn’t sleep that well.  We were picked up the next morning at 7:00 AM—NO food that morning because of the surgery.  The driver took us back to the Hospital, where we were checked in with our own nurse who speaks excellent English. We all had private rooms that big with a TV. Our rooms were all close to each other and that made it nice too.  They didn’t tell us the order we were going to surgery, but that we would have surgery that morning.  The nurse gives you some nice drugs to relax you while you wait.  After surgery they tell you that you can get up and walk when you feel ready once you get back to your room.  I was up and walking around 2 hours after I went back to my room. I felt good.  They manage the pain extremely well.  They only pain I felt was in my shoulders and that is from the gas that they pump into your abdominal area, so that they can do the surgery.  They did 3 tests on my new stomach to make sure I had NO leaks and that everything was working well before they let me go home on Friday morning.  I have never received such excellent care as I did at the hospital I was in.

When you arrive at home please prepare to have the foods that you will need when you get home after the surgery.  The 1st month is the hardest month that you will EVER have to do.  It is retraining your brain, and learning to eat a small amount of food. Your brain was so used to eating large amounts of food, and now you are not able.  This is what my doctor had me do.  Please follow the directions that YOUR doctor wants you to do when it comes to eating.  For me it was 10 days of NOTHING but clear liquids—that is the worst stage, but it does get better after the 1st 10 days.  The next 10 days were creamy foods, and the last 10 days is mushy foods.  You do this to give your new small stomach a chance to heal.  Look at your thumb—the size of your thumb is about all you can hold when it comes to food or liquid in your new stomach. They made your stomach small, and now it is swollen from the surgery.  It will get better as time goes on, and you should be able to hold about 6 to 8 oz. of what you are eating or drinking.  You REALLY need to learn to sip water ALL the time you are up and awake.  You do not want to get dehydrated.  It truly is a job trying to get the amount of water in that you need. Carry the water around with you so that you remember to sip it all the time.  I remember thinking to myself “what in the world have I done to myself?”  That only lasted about 2 hours when I realized that what I did was save my own life. This will be the hardest month you will ever have to do, but it is only for 30 days, and you can do anything for 30 days to get to where you want to go! 

You have done the right thing.  It is pretty normal to mourn the loss of eating all the things you used to eat. In time you will be glad that you can't eat all that food.  I NEVER FEEL HUNGER anymore. I am so glad I do not feel hunger.  I know I need to eat something, so I eat.  As time goes on, you will discover that the lifestyle changes that you are making are pretty easy.  I never feel deprived.  I just eat small amounts of food and now and then YES, I have a treat. Sometimes just having one bite of something satisfies my need for that food.  If I have a desert, I don’t have a large piece of cake, just a small amount is all I need; only 1 cookie, not the whole bag full.  I have learned to bake things that taste yummy and don’t have all the calories and sugar that I used to think I needed to make it taste good. Your taste does change a bit after having Weight Loss Surgery, and that is good, because sometime things just taste too sweet; so your taste does change some.

Just remember I am always out here to help and support you.  You are making the right choice for you.  This is ALL about YOU and NO one else.  If you have any questions please just send me a note and I am more than happy to answer any and all your questions. NEVER look back, you are going to love who you are about to become!

I would like to say thank you so much for writing this post. It came just in time for me today:) I got my surgery date today and all of the feelings are starting.  Thank you!!!!!! For sharing this with everyone:) 

Thanks for this post. I am just in the beginning stages of this journey. I have to go to the weight loss seminar tonight. I'm just taking my time, trying to learn as much as possible so I can make an informed decision.