Kinda bummed!

No worries! :) Get a good sleep and hopefully you'll get to spend some time in some a/c tomorrow!! 

Hey Katie, finally getting to replying (long weekend - woohoo!). Your response was so great to hear because I really had no idea how dates are figured out. Obviously since this thread you got the awesome news that you moved up one of your appointments! You must be really excited for the 3rd :)

I think the summer is brutal because doctor's are wealthy and professionals, thus - vacation! Even the nurses and social workers and other health care workers are bound to take summer holidays. I can't blame them! But it does make it less likely to get spots. I suppose the curse of summer is how short it is, but then it will have the bonus of easier scheduled appts (we hope!).

Since I went to my doctor to discuss surgery it all became more real, and I had a silly reaction of thinking "OMG, all the foods I will have to say goodbye to" and started going overboard on the crappy stuff I will eventually say au revoir to. This was a terrible idea because I think I've gained 5+ lbs in four weeks! Very stupid. The only good thing is I don't think I want to eat chinese food ever again. Out of my system! Now that all the tasty local produce is becoming available (including from my garden) I will power up my efforts to eat healthy. I am thinking I might start having a meal replacement shake for breakfast to get used the idea, for when Opti comes.

Walking is such a good idea, especially when the sun has just risen or dipped. I can't handle the hot sun! 

Anyway, good luck at your first appointment. Maybe I will see you at TWH before too long!

Glad to hear things are moving forward!   I'd recommend reading The Complete Weight-Loss Surgery Guide & Diet Program written by one of the registered dietitians - Sue Ekserci - and surgeons - Dr. Laz Klein (who will be doing my surgery next week) at Humber - this book is a great guide for what to do pre and post op and includes lots of recipes!   Also another great book I recommend is The Cognitive Behavioral Workbook for Weight Management by Michele Laliberte - this is an amazing workbook that teaches you how to manage situational and emotional eating triggers and how to change your way of thinking about food and yourself too!    I'm finding I'm learning A LOT about myself and why I got to this weight  and that I need to constantly work at reprogramming the way I think about food and how/why I use it.  I bought both books through Amazon (much cheaper than Chapters/Indigo) 

Thanks :) On one of the orientation sheets they actually list both those books you recommended so I will definitely order them from Amazon today. I've done a ton of CBT work for anxiety (both learning it for myself and teaching it) but it will be interesting to see if I can apply it to food, as I've only been about 50% successful using for anxiety. Now would be a good time to start practicing and getting better! Glad you are finding it useful and are working on changing the way you think! That seems to be a critical step in this process :) 

Definitely call for cancellations. I am going through TWH as well and from my April 17 orientation I was given a nurse practitioner appointment in September and managed to move it to May1st. I am now done all my appointments and meet the surgeon on July 5th. If I hadn't asked for cancellations I would still be waiting for that first appointment.

The appointments are kind of 'you get what you get' so being flexible helps.

As for getting ready, I have been using this waiting time to try yoga, Zumba, waterfit, etc so I have a better idea of what I like and will commit to after surgery. I have also found value in learning to plan my meals/snacks. This is so much work (in my opinion) but absolutely necessary post surgery.

Good luck! TWH has been great, and super fast in my opinion

Good advice! Looks like Fabulous-by-fifty is meeting the surgeon July 5th as well - you'll be there together! :) Moving it all up by 4 months is what I am looking to do. My Mom told me the whole drive home to be patient, and they make the appointments so far away for a reason (so you have time to think etc) but I don't think that's true, I think if you can get in sooner then you definitely should! I am lucky I have a flexible schedule so I can run down to the city on only a day's notice if need be.

Trying out different exercises beforehand is a good idea. I have a gym membership now but haven't done any classes because I've been intimidated, but maybe I'll see if I can drag someone to Zumba with me since I've always wanted to try it. Doing it now would be a good idea. And learning to plan my meals is something I for sure need to work on, so that would be good to start today as well. Good advice, thanks!!

GETTING IN ON CANCELATIONS...

I live in Oshawa but was assigned to St Joes in Hamilton. I haven't received a letter yet but found out my centre through my family doctor. I called St Joes to ask about getting in on an Orientation cancelation. The lady I spoke to was really nice but extremely firm in saying that they don't have a cancelation list and will not back-fill cancelations. Has anyone else had this experience with St Joes Hamilton?
 

katie043: Hang in there! 3 months will pass really quickly. I registered in April and was told I wouldn't be getting into an Orientation Session until at least Feb 2014! So it sounds like you got into the system at the right time. Good luck with the surgery!  
 

Thanks! Feb 2014 seems like a lifetime away, I'm sorry you have to wait that long. Hopefully someone else can give you some advice about whether or not they will back-fill cancelations. Maybe it's possible to transfer to another centre like Guelph? I have heard they aren't as fast either, I live closer to Guelph than Toronto so I thought for sure I'd be going there and did lots of research on their program (before I realized you could look up by post code on the website!) but I've read a few people who were getting in on cancelations there? Good luck!!

shoshanaApr2013: You should look into having your file transferred to another hospital if you don't want to be kept waiting - I am also in Oshawa and was referred to HRRH - you can see below how swiftly some of my appointments are going - but I called for cancelations for the orientation and meet the surgeon.