Al--405
Hi to anyone that may be interested in reading this. I started out 5 years ago trying to get the WLS and have done nothing but run into walls every since. Insurance cancilations, new pcp's , waiting for medicare to start once I became disabled then madicare pulling the certifications from all the hospitals in Ohio and making them all get re-certified and not re-certifying the one I was at. I'll tell you its really been a rocky,crazy road for me. Sometimes I just felt like throughing the towel in and saying forget it, its not going to happen for me something is always there to stop it. I am almost getting to old to enjoy the benifets from the surgery. But, then again something just keeps right on pushing me to continue, I have no clue what that is either, I would like to call it determination.
Well 3 months ago medicare called me and told me to stop everything I was doing because I was getting nowhere and to go to the Cleveland Clinic. I did exactly what they recomended and WOW the ball just seem to take off. I mean now things are moving right along really at a fast pace and its mind bogling. I have gotten all the test done except the physc wants to see me back for a 2nd visit and they were talking possibly December maybe for my surgery.
Today Nov 11, 06 they told me that Dr schauer will expect me to go on a all liquid diet for 2 weeks prior surgery. I was hoping I wouldnt get a surgeon that required that, I am so scared that I wont be able to do that and it will cost me the surgery. A lot of questions are starting to go through my mind like, will I really be able to make all these changes, do I really need the rny wouldnt the lap band be good enough, Im on a fixed income will I be able to afford all the new vitamins and stuff? I wonder if others start wondering about these things or am I just letting it get the best of me.
Any way Im 55 in January 56 and 7 months ago I weighed 405 lbs, I came down with celulitus and they put me in the hospital for 5 weeks. At that time they told me that I had diabetes on top of my affib, high blood pressure, High cholesterol, comjestive heart failure, edema, sleep apnea, and a few others. Well the diabetes thing scared me because everyone on my mom's side died from it and had parts removed from their bodies. So today, 7 months later I am now down to 336 lbs and already been taken off the diabetes meds. I was 348 lbs at my 1st weigh in and the Dr requires a 10 to 20 lbs weight loss before the surgery so I am there already, Yayy.
I know even with all the weight I am losing on my own my energy level is still very very low and I wish there were something I could do about it. I am trying so hard to think positive so i dont want to start putting the weight back on. This may sound strange to a lot of you but, I dont wanna die a fat person, its bad enough I'll die alone and lonely I dont want to also be fat. I dont know why I feel like this but I do.
Well I go back on Dec 7th, 2006 to see the Physc again for the follow up, hopefully she gives me the thumbs up. Although this 2 week liquid diet thing has me scared to death right now. So If I can remember how to get in here to update this, I will at that time until then HappyThanks giving to you all and may the lord walk with you.
Well the Physc decided that I needed more visits and she told me the surgery wont happen till March or April. That really hurt I suddenly felt that I was on the road to failure again. But, I went with the flow and seen her for 6 more visits and the surgery is scheduled for March 13 2007. Now I have something to look forward to. The sugeons nurse called me on the 11th and said I would need a few more tests since I was high risks and that will hold my surgery up for little bit longer. Ok ow Im getting pissed (sorry). After the test were done the surgeon called me in and told me that I was such high risk that they would have to do the Gastric sleeve on me instead of the rny. He showed me the weightloss was almost the same as the rny sometimes better and set the date for March 21st.
Well todays is the 26th of March and I am 5 days post op, I must say it feels great to be a member of the losers for a change. I dreamt of this day for over five years and I finally made it. I am still quite sore from the surgery but there were some complications and the 2 hour surgery turned into a 14 hour one. But the Dr said that everything worked out well and within 1 month I will start feeling the weight melt off.
Dr Schauer and his staff are some amazing people and the floor I was on had several wls people working on it including 4 of the nurses. The entire hospital stay they made sure I was pain free and that was a good thing.Right now themain painI feel is when I cough,, it feels like something wants to split open.
Well now that I know how to get back in here to update I will more often,,I think. lol I want to thank OH for all the support you all have given me when it seemed I needed it most. You people here are the best to come together and help guide the scared ( me ).. have a great day..
Its now May 2nd and IM 6 weeks out, I have lost about 37lbs so far and Im feeling so much better. I go back on May 7th for my check up and weigh in, I am hoping I hit the 40 - 45 lb loss area.I know it feels strange but good only being able to eat about 4ozs of food per meal. However I still feel weak and need to walk more, the Dr told me Imay feel like this for a little while because of my age so again I go with the flow. My 1st week home I passed out a few times from low sugar so I had to drink orange juice daily for a while untill my eating was stable. I went through a dry hieve period of about 3 weeks boy am I glad that ended. But everything is stable now and things are looking up.
