Final Pre-Surgery Appointments

Nov 08, 2018

Yesterday I had my final WLS appointments, prior to surgery. I was at the WLS center for over 4 hours. Here is summary of each appointment:

Surgeon Visit- Found out that I'm the first surgery of the day. I have to be at the hospital at 5 AM for surgical prep. Good news is that I found out that I most likely will not have any surgical drains and will not need a catheter. I had heard from some patients here on OH that they received them, but he said it was very unlikely that I would. I will be in the hospital for at least one night. The surgeon also told me he will attempt to repair a minor hernia that I have while he is doing the VSG procedure. 2 surgerys for the price of 1. SCORE!!  My surgeon is all-business and formal, so our visit was brief and to the point. However, I have full confidence in him.

Nutrition Class- This was a class of about 20 pre-op patients (some of which where scheduled for surgery on the same day as me). The nutritionist reviewed the pre and post op diets. My pre-op diet is not super restrictive. 3-4 protein drinks daily, but I can have unlimited amounts of non-starchy vegetables and then I can have a daily allotment of 3-4 oz of grilled proteins (chicken, tuna, fish, eggs, lean meats). This will allow me to eat some of our thanksgiving meal. I was shocked at the number of people who were complaining about the dietary restrictions. Compared to the "liquid only" pre-op diets I have seen described on this site, I consider myself very lucky.

Mental Prep Class- This was a class with the same people that were in the nutrition class. I really didn't learn anything new that I hadn't already read on this site (OH) or seen in the Instagram WLS community. It focused on using support groups, setting attainable goals and accomplishments, not comparing yourself to other WLS patients, dealing with non-supportive family, setting exercise regiments, avoiding transfer addictions, and dealing with post-op reactions from family/friends/co-workers. My WLS clinic hosts a monthly support group that is held at the hospital with medical professionals. The biggest thing I took away were the number of patients in the class that hadn't done research and didn't know about post-op changes. Like there were patients that actually thought it was acceptable to start smoking again a few weeks after surgery or didn't know that they would have to take supplemental vitamins for the rest of their lives. I also heard a lot of excuses to why they couldn't do something that was recommended. I hate to judge, but from what I heard I suspect there are many in that group that will not maintain long-term success.

Next up: SURGERY- 11/26

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