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With all my nervous energy I decided to keep a list of things I’d like be able to do after I have my surgery (These are in no particular order):

1. Use Running/Jogging as a form of exercise
2. Have someone be able to pick me up (that hasn’t happened since I was a baby)
3. Wear tank tops/or be less fearful overall of showing my arms in public
4. Being able to cross my legs under a chair or desk
5. Go to Cedar Point and ride every ride in the place
6. Being able to shop at any store at the mall (My dream is to able to buy clothes from Victoria ’s Secret (Don’t ask why I just do)
7. Being able to sit next to friends in movie theatres without fear of “spilling over” into their space
8. Being able to do Yoga/Pilates without my stomach getting in the way
9. Wear shirts without worrying if they are long enough to cover my belly
10. Be at my goal weight of 150lbs within a year and a half

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Well I have been Approved. My Surgery date is 12/18/2006. I could have gotten it as soon as next week but I needed to give my mom more time to get here (She lives in Ohio) I thought I would be super excited about approval...but my mother was very negative when I gave her the news and I am starting to feel a bit down. She was hoping I would have the surgery in January, but I really don't want to wait any longer. I just want to get this over with so I don't have to have anxiety about it all anymore. Her main concern is me being sick during Christmas, but I feel like since it's a week later I won't be 100% but I'll be fine. Also this is a busy time at work for me but I plan on working my butt off for the next two weeks and getting all my major job responsibilities out of the way so I won't have to worry about them after surgery. Well wish me luck, I'm ready to start my journey on the losing side. I will update more on my feelings later.

Well, after stalking my Customer Service Rep at CORI I found out they had my letter from my Dr and all they needed was for me to have a Psych Eval performed by Dr. Altier. Is there a reason why I can never get anyone from the CORI center to call me back? Are they THAT busy….it worries me.  I was a little heated because I could have done that like a week ago when I was just chilling at the CORI center last week for 6 hours. The CORI center is like a 1 hour drive away from where I live, so I spent 2 hrs getting back and forth and only like 15 minutes with the Dr. Altier. I was nervous about meeting him because during my consult, everyone was complaining that they didn’t like him and that he was very rude. When I met with him, I felt our meeting went well, he just tried to figure out how knowledgeable I was about the surgery, and whether or not I could deal with the lifestyle change. Overall he seemed nice, but I wouldn’t want to go to him for regular therapy. He said it would take 2 weeks for him to type up his report. He said I passed and he thinks I would be a good candidate and since I am already on antidepressants and seeing a therapist regularly he decided I didn't need to do anything further in order to get his approval. So I am now in a weird limbo….waiting to see if I am approved. I have a feeling it’s going to take a long time. Also I realized I have gained alot of weight….I have gained like 25lbs since I started keeping this online blog. I decided I need to get back in control with my eating. Because if this surgery is not approved I can’t use that as an excuse to get back up to my old weight. I would ideally like to be 250 at the time of surgery. So I am going to go back to watching my sugar intake and eating more whole grains and get back into my exercise routine….I have really be slacking off lately. If I can’t stick to some type of plan now, how am I going to do it if I get this surgery done?

Well I finally had my consult at the CORI center in Warren today. It was very interesting…for one thing they are NOT joking when they tell you to prepare to be there for 5-6 hours. I got there at 2:00 and didn’t leave to almost 7:00. I was exhausted and hungry by the time we were finished. The whole session starts off with lab work (blood was drawn); a session with a nutritionist, a session with a nurse and then the surgeon does a group session then one to one. Dr. Taylor is nice, he looks very young though, at first I was thinking man is he old enough to be out of medical school performing operations?? The 1-1 consult seemed rushed. He didn’t seem to really look through my paperwork; however he was good at answering all the questions I had. After he left the room an assistant came in and gave me some paperwork to sign and materials that will help me before and after the surgery. She then said they would contact me hopefully soon to schedule a surgery date once the insurance stuff clears. However I am pretty sure I still need to do a Psych eval and have my Dr. write me another letter of approval which shouldn’t take too long.  Overall, I would say my experience at the CORI center was okay. The staff was very nice, but the waiting for sessions and waiting for the surgeon to show up is a LOOOONNNNG process. My goal is to have the operation sometime in January. Wish me Luck.