Nikki M.
My revision surgery story
Oct 27, 2010
I had a Lapband placed in 8/07 with a surgeon in Portland OR. My original surgeon left that hospital not long after I had surgery and I ended up with 2 other surgeons over the next 3 years, all at the same hospital. I had 2.5 years of complications with the band, but thats for a different story ;)
My most recent surgeon in Portland would not revise me from band to sleeve, only band to RNY. I didn't want the RNY, so I had to find a surgeon who would agree to do my revision. I ended up finding Dr. Tersigni in Coos Bay, Oregon.
My surgery was on 10/19/10 in Coos Bay, OR, which is about 2.5 hours away from where I lived. I was instructed to spend the night before surgery in Coos Bay. My husband and I drove up there after work and got there at 9:30pm. We stayed at the Motel 6. I did not expect to get much sleep, but actually ended up crashing shortly after we got there and slept all night. I drank some Isopure before midnight and that was my last fluid pre-surgery. My surgeon had prescribed a scopaline patch for nausea and I put that behind my ear before going to bed.
I had to check in at the hospital at 10:30am the next day. I was the 3rd surgery scheduled that day. Two women were having RNY in the early morning. We got to the hospital at 10:30 and checked in at the registration office at the hospital. They had me sign some paperwork that I had done with them previously over the phone. Then they told me to walk downstairs to the Short Stay Unit.
My DH and I walked down to short stay and were lead straight to a bed behind a curtain. I was given a hospital gown to put on and had my hospital bracelet put on. I requested a bigger gown and they gave me one. The nurse that was assigned to me was very nice. She went through a binder of paperwork with me, asked me about my allergies etc. We joked around, she was awesome. My DH brought his ipad and was showing it off to everyone. The nurse realized that I had not taken a pregnancy test yet and arranged for someone from the lab to come to me and draw blood to do the test.
Then the nurse tried to get an IV started. She had a really hard time finding a vein. I was a bit dehydrated and have plush arms with deep veins. She had me run my hands and arms under hot water to try to make the veins come to the surface. Then she packed my arms in hot blankets. She said the IV would be a big needle in case I needed a blood transfusion during surgery. I requested she use the numbing shot before giving the IV. She agreed but said it can make it harder to place the IV. She tried once in my left arm and it didn't work and left a big bruise. She got another nurse who she considered the expert to try again in my right arm. That nurse got it on the first try.
The nurse anesthetist came to see me. I told him about my tendency to be very nauseous after surgery and my request for a urinary catheter due to my frozen bladder problem after surgery. I asked what the difference was between an anesthesiologist and a nurse anesthetist. He said nurses are common in small hospitals. He looked really young! Like late 20's. He promised to take good care of me. I asked if I could keep part of my lap band when they took it out as a souvenir. He said no way, it was considered medical waste.
My surgeon popped his head around my curtain at about noon. I asked him how the 2 surgeries before me went and he said great. He was right on time. I had not spoken to my surgeon for almost an entire year. I asked him my last question, which was "what is the chance that you will have to do a 2 step surgery and just remove my band today?" He said it was a possibility, but didn't sound like he thought it would happen.
Before I knew it some nurses from the OR were there to take me to the OR. They gave me a foil type shower cap to cover my hair. My DH joked that the hat looked like that giant foil balloon hoax that the kid pretended to fly away in last year.
When I rolled into the OR they were playing classic rock songs. It was very comforting to me. One of the male nurses was setting out surgical tools and was kind of dancing around to the music. There were 2 female nursing students who were going to observe my surgery. I chatted with them. I was then requested to slide from my gurney onto the operating table. It was padded nicely and comfortable. It was really cold in the room and they put warm blankets on me. I asked them to warn me before they put me to sleep. Moments later one of the nurses told me that the antsiest had started the sleeping meds. I closed my eyes and requested to hold someones hand. One of the nurses held my hand. I took deep breaths and relaxed for a few seconds. Then I was out!
The next thing I knew I was in recovery. I had some abdominal pain, but nothing too bad. I remember asking the nurse if my surgeon was able to complete the VSG. She said yes. I remember it was hard to open my eyes all the way and everything was a blur. I slept a lot. I was there for about 2 hours, then wheeled to my room.
Later on my DH told me that my surgeon had stopped in and talked to him after I got out of surgery. My surgery was expected to take 1.5 hours and ended up taking 3 hours. I had a lot of scar tissue. My lapband had adhered itself to my liver and he had to cut through it. My surgeon told my husband "there was some blood loss" and that my lapband port was very hard to find. It was in a different location than where he puts it on his patients. I also found out that my band was dilated on the back side.
I was told ahead of time that I was going to have a private room with a sleeper recliner for my DH to stay with me. Unfortunately there were too many patients and I ended up in a shared room with a metal folding chair. My poor hubby stayed in the folding chair until the wee hours of the night, then slept on a couch in the family waiting room!
I slept a lot while in the room. I requested the urinary catheter be pulled out that evening. A student nurse asked if she could do it and I said yes. Another nurse observed and walked her through it. It wasn't too painful. I was eager to get out of bed and walk. They finally let me after that. I was pretty sore and needed help getting in and out of bed. I had mechanical leg wraps on my legs to prevent blood clots. The nurses had to take them off every time I had to get up to walk or use the bathroom. I had a JP drain that the nurses drained a couple times. They had to "pull the tubing" to make sure there were no blood clots clogging it up. That felt a little weird. The nurse safety pinned the drain to my gown so it wouldn't hang when I got out of bed.
I was given ice chips that first night after surgery. They were wonderful! My mouth was so dry, but they totally helped.
I was not on a pain pump. My surgeon prefers the nurses to administer pain meds as needed so that they are observing the patient more. My first nurse was terrible! I started to feel very nauseous and told him I was going to vomit. I requested anti-nausea meds. He said he couldn't give me any because it hadn't been 6 hours yet. He gave me a barf bag and I held it in front of me and tried hard not to throw up. I got mad at the nurse and insisted there must be something he could give me and that it was not in my best interest to vomit right after stomach surgery. He finally came back with some medication to put in my IV. By that point I increased saliva flowing and was moments away from throwing up. Luckily the medication worked quickly and I did not. He also brought me a water bottle and told me to start drinking. I told him I wasn't supposed to until after my leak test. He told me that wasn't true, but I insisted that was what I was told. He said he would find out, but never got back to me. Of course I wasn't supposed to be drinking water that night! Grrrrrr. Good thing I knew better!
At 11pm I got a different nurse who was awesome. She gave me anti-nausea meds every time I requested them. I really was struggling with a lot of nausea. I was getting morphine for the pain and realized that was part of what was making me feel so ill. I asked if there was something else I could take for pain and they said no because it was the middle of the night and my surgeon had not authorized anything else. I let too many hours pass without getting more morphine because I didn't want to feel nausious.
My surgeon came and checked on me at 7am. I don't remember much about it except him saying I was going to spend one more night in the hospital. I was relieved because originally I was told probably only one night. With the nausea, I felt I needed a second one.
By 8am in the morning I was in horrible pain. I requested more morphine. I almost started crying. There was not a comfortable position I could get into. It was awful. I told my husband several times "I am never doing this again!" Luckily the pain subsided fairly quickly after getting the morhpine. My roommate was my age (28) and very nice. She was there for a burst appendix and some other complications. We chatted through the night and checked in with each other about our pain levels.
At 10:30 am I was wheeled down to radiology for a swallow test. I had to drink an iodine liquid. It tasted like extra nasty NyQuil. I was told to take a normal size sip and swallow. I was nervous about taking such a big sip. I did it and a little went down the wrong pipe and I coughed. They had me turn to the side and take another sip. Then they told me I was done. I asked if I could see the xray and they showed me the drink going through my sleeve. It was neat to see. There was definitely a thin line of fluid going through there!
I was wheeled back to my room. Shortly after I got back the nurse was bringing me 2 oz. containers of protein shake. The flavors were strawberry and carmel. She also brought me a water bottle. I had a hard time sipping water. I asked if I could have some crystal light or something to flavor it. She found some and it helped a bit. I sipped slowly on the protein shakes. They were not terrible, but I certainly did not want to do it! I was still struggling with nausea. I ended up only getting about half of the shakes they brought me down.
At noon I was told a private room opened up. I made quite a stink about my poor DH not having a sleeper recliner after being promised and planning for it. They brought one to my new room. I felt like I turned a corner once I got to my new room. I felt more alert and just overall better. At 3pm my parents showed up to visit. We walked down to the family waiting room and talked for about an hour. My mom asked me if I was wearing makeup because my face was so flushed. haha
We got back to my room and spent the night again. I was expected to get up and walk a couple times in the night. I watched TV. I was fairly comfortable and started feeling ready to go home.
The next morning my surgeon came and checked on me at 6:30am. I told him I felt ready to go home today. He agreed that I could be discharged. He told me since I live out of town, I could wait 4 weeks to come back and see him unless there was a problem.
The nurses started getting me ready for discharge around 11am. They got some anti nausea meds ordered for me. I was given a written presciption to take to a pharmacy to fill. I could not fill it at the hospital pharmacy, as it was a non profit hospital. I was given a schedule of when to take what meds. I was also given a prescription for Pepcid to take 2x per day. A nurse pulled out my JP drain and I couldn't feel it at all! I had JP draines a few years ago when I had a breast reduction and I felt those ones being removed, but not this time.
After leaving the hospital, my DH and I decided to drive to my parents' house, as it was only an hour away. I put a pillow between me and the seat belt. I had no trouble in the car. We ended up spending several hours at my parents' house and then driving the rest of the way home that evening. When we arrived home I got settled into my recliner. I felt very nauseous and made sure to take my anti-nausea meds on time.
By the next morning the nausea was gone and I haven't taken any of the meds since! I used liquid lortab to control pain. I learned to drink a shake with it to help prevent nausea.
I am now 8 days post op and have not had any complications! I've been experimenting with various protein shakes etc. to get my recommended 60-100 grams of protein in per day. Truthfully I am lucky to get close to 60. I was told not to worry about it too much the first week. I am also struggling to get in enough fluids. I am monitoring my urine output to make sure I stay hydrated.
The pain has not been too bad overall. I take the lortab 2-3 times per day, and only 15 ml at a time. I am prescribed 15-30ml every 4-6 hours, and I am not taking anywhere near that! I have been shopping several times and have no trouble walking around the stores. I am still sleeping in my recliner because laying down on my bed hurts bad. There is a lot of pulling when I tried that. I took 2 weeks off of work and go back on 11/2. I'm starting to get a little bored staying home during the day. I am not driving yet mostly due to the seat belt hurting.
Well, that's my story so far!
0 comments
My most recent surgeon in Portland would not revise me from band to sleeve, only band to RNY. I didn't want the RNY, so I had to find a surgeon who would agree to do my revision. I ended up finding Dr. Tersigni in Coos Bay, Oregon.
My surgery was on 10/19/10 in Coos Bay, OR, which is about 2.5 hours away from where I lived. I was instructed to spend the night before surgery in Coos Bay. My husband and I drove up there after work and got there at 9:30pm. We stayed at the Motel 6. I did not expect to get much sleep, but actually ended up crashing shortly after we got there and slept all night. I drank some Isopure before midnight and that was my last fluid pre-surgery. My surgeon had prescribed a scopaline patch for nausea and I put that behind my ear before going to bed.
I had to check in at the hospital at 10:30am the next day. I was the 3rd surgery scheduled that day. Two women were having RNY in the early morning. We got to the hospital at 10:30 and checked in at the registration office at the hospital. They had me sign some paperwork that I had done with them previously over the phone. Then they told me to walk downstairs to the Short Stay Unit.
My DH and I walked down to short stay and were lead straight to a bed behind a curtain. I was given a hospital gown to put on and had my hospital bracelet put on. I requested a bigger gown and they gave me one. The nurse that was assigned to me was very nice. She went through a binder of paperwork with me, asked me about my allergies etc. We joked around, she was awesome. My DH brought his ipad and was showing it off to everyone. The nurse realized that I had not taken a pregnancy test yet and arranged for someone from the lab to come to me and draw blood to do the test.
Then the nurse tried to get an IV started. She had a really hard time finding a vein. I was a bit dehydrated and have plush arms with deep veins. She had me run my hands and arms under hot water to try to make the veins come to the surface. Then she packed my arms in hot blankets. She said the IV would be a big needle in case I needed a blood transfusion during surgery. I requested she use the numbing shot before giving the IV. She agreed but said it can make it harder to place the IV. She tried once in my left arm and it didn't work and left a big bruise. She got another nurse who she considered the expert to try again in my right arm. That nurse got it on the first try.
The nurse anesthetist came to see me. I told him about my tendency to be very nauseous after surgery and my request for a urinary catheter due to my frozen bladder problem after surgery. I asked what the difference was between an anesthesiologist and a nurse anesthetist. He said nurses are common in small hospitals. He looked really young! Like late 20's. He promised to take good care of me. I asked if I could keep part of my lap band when they took it out as a souvenir. He said no way, it was considered medical waste.
My surgeon popped his head around my curtain at about noon. I asked him how the 2 surgeries before me went and he said great. He was right on time. I had not spoken to my surgeon for almost an entire year. I asked him my last question, which was "what is the chance that you will have to do a 2 step surgery and just remove my band today?" He said it was a possibility, but didn't sound like he thought it would happen.
Before I knew it some nurses from the OR were there to take me to the OR. They gave me a foil type shower cap to cover my hair. My DH joked that the hat looked like that giant foil balloon hoax that the kid pretended to fly away in last year.
When I rolled into the OR they were playing classic rock songs. It was very comforting to me. One of the male nurses was setting out surgical tools and was kind of dancing around to the music. There were 2 female nursing students who were going to observe my surgery. I chatted with them. I was then requested to slide from my gurney onto the operating table. It was padded nicely and comfortable. It was really cold in the room and they put warm blankets on me. I asked them to warn me before they put me to sleep. Moments later one of the nurses told me that the antsiest had started the sleeping meds. I closed my eyes and requested to hold someones hand. One of the nurses held my hand. I took deep breaths and relaxed for a few seconds. Then I was out!
The next thing I knew I was in recovery. I had some abdominal pain, but nothing too bad. I remember asking the nurse if my surgeon was able to complete the VSG. She said yes. I remember it was hard to open my eyes all the way and everything was a blur. I slept a lot. I was there for about 2 hours, then wheeled to my room.
Later on my DH told me that my surgeon had stopped in and talked to him after I got out of surgery. My surgery was expected to take 1.5 hours and ended up taking 3 hours. I had a lot of scar tissue. My lapband had adhered itself to my liver and he had to cut through it. My surgeon told my husband "there was some blood loss" and that my lapband port was very hard to find. It was in a different location than where he puts it on his patients. I also found out that my band was dilated on the back side.
I was told ahead of time that I was going to have a private room with a sleeper recliner for my DH to stay with me. Unfortunately there were too many patients and I ended up in a shared room with a metal folding chair. My poor hubby stayed in the folding chair until the wee hours of the night, then slept on a couch in the family waiting room!
I slept a lot while in the room. I requested the urinary catheter be pulled out that evening. A student nurse asked if she could do it and I said yes. Another nurse observed and walked her through it. It wasn't too painful. I was eager to get out of bed and walk. They finally let me after that. I was pretty sore and needed help getting in and out of bed. I had mechanical leg wraps on my legs to prevent blood clots. The nurses had to take them off every time I had to get up to walk or use the bathroom. I had a JP drain that the nurses drained a couple times. They had to "pull the tubing" to make sure there were no blood clots clogging it up. That felt a little weird. The nurse safety pinned the drain to my gown so it wouldn't hang when I got out of bed.
I was given ice chips that first night after surgery. They were wonderful! My mouth was so dry, but they totally helped.
I was not on a pain pump. My surgeon prefers the nurses to administer pain meds as needed so that they are observing the patient more. My first nurse was terrible! I started to feel very nauseous and told him I was going to vomit. I requested anti-nausea meds. He said he couldn't give me any because it hadn't been 6 hours yet. He gave me a barf bag and I held it in front of me and tried hard not to throw up. I got mad at the nurse and insisted there must be something he could give me and that it was not in my best interest to vomit right after stomach surgery. He finally came back with some medication to put in my IV. By that point I increased saliva flowing and was moments away from throwing up. Luckily the medication worked quickly and I did not. He also brought me a water bottle and told me to start drinking. I told him I wasn't supposed to until after my leak test. He told me that wasn't true, but I insisted that was what I was told. He said he would find out, but never got back to me. Of course I wasn't supposed to be drinking water that night! Grrrrrr. Good thing I knew better!
At 11pm I got a different nurse who was awesome. She gave me anti-nausea meds every time I requested them. I really was struggling with a lot of nausea. I was getting morphine for the pain and realized that was part of what was making me feel so ill. I asked if there was something else I could take for pain and they said no because it was the middle of the night and my surgeon had not authorized anything else. I let too many hours pass without getting more morphine because I didn't want to feel nausious.
My surgeon came and checked on me at 7am. I don't remember much about it except him saying I was going to spend one more night in the hospital. I was relieved because originally I was told probably only one night. With the nausea, I felt I needed a second one.
By 8am in the morning I was in horrible pain. I requested more morphine. I almost started crying. There was not a comfortable position I could get into. It was awful. I told my husband several times "I am never doing this again!" Luckily the pain subsided fairly quickly after getting the morhpine. My roommate was my age (28) and very nice. She was there for a burst appendix and some other complications. We chatted through the night and checked in with each other about our pain levels.
At 10:30 am I was wheeled down to radiology for a swallow test. I had to drink an iodine liquid. It tasted like extra nasty NyQuil. I was told to take a normal size sip and swallow. I was nervous about taking such a big sip. I did it and a little went down the wrong pipe and I coughed. They had me turn to the side and take another sip. Then they told me I was done. I asked if I could see the xray and they showed me the drink going through my sleeve. It was neat to see. There was definitely a thin line of fluid going through there!
I was wheeled back to my room. Shortly after I got back the nurse was bringing me 2 oz. containers of protein shake. The flavors were strawberry and carmel. She also brought me a water bottle. I had a hard time sipping water. I asked if I could have some crystal light or something to flavor it. She found some and it helped a bit. I sipped slowly on the protein shakes. They were not terrible, but I certainly did not want to do it! I was still struggling with nausea. I ended up only getting about half of the shakes they brought me down.
At noon I was told a private room opened up. I made quite a stink about my poor DH not having a sleeper recliner after being promised and planning for it. They brought one to my new room. I felt like I turned a corner once I got to my new room. I felt more alert and just overall better. At 3pm my parents showed up to visit. We walked down to the family waiting room and talked for about an hour. My mom asked me if I was wearing makeup because my face was so flushed. haha
We got back to my room and spent the night again. I was expected to get up and walk a couple times in the night. I watched TV. I was fairly comfortable and started feeling ready to go home.
The next morning my surgeon came and checked on me at 6:30am. I told him I felt ready to go home today. He agreed that I could be discharged. He told me since I live out of town, I could wait 4 weeks to come back and see him unless there was a problem.
The nurses started getting me ready for discharge around 11am. They got some anti nausea meds ordered for me. I was given a written presciption to take to a pharmacy to fill. I could not fill it at the hospital pharmacy, as it was a non profit hospital. I was given a schedule of when to take what meds. I was also given a prescription for Pepcid to take 2x per day. A nurse pulled out my JP drain and I couldn't feel it at all! I had JP draines a few years ago when I had a breast reduction and I felt those ones being removed, but not this time.
After leaving the hospital, my DH and I decided to drive to my parents' house, as it was only an hour away. I put a pillow between me and the seat belt. I had no trouble in the car. We ended up spending several hours at my parents' house and then driving the rest of the way home that evening. When we arrived home I got settled into my recliner. I felt very nauseous and made sure to take my anti-nausea meds on time.
By the next morning the nausea was gone and I haven't taken any of the meds since! I used liquid lortab to control pain. I learned to drink a shake with it to help prevent nausea.
I am now 8 days post op and have not had any complications! I've been experimenting with various protein shakes etc. to get my recommended 60-100 grams of protein in per day. Truthfully I am lucky to get close to 60. I was told not to worry about it too much the first week. I am also struggling to get in enough fluids. I am monitoring my urine output to make sure I stay hydrated.
The pain has not been too bad overall. I take the lortab 2-3 times per day, and only 15 ml at a time. I am prescribed 15-30ml every 4-6 hours, and I am not taking anywhere near that! I have been shopping several times and have no trouble walking around the stores. I am still sleeping in my recliner because laying down on my bed hurts bad. There is a lot of pulling when I tried that. I took 2 weeks off of work and go back on 11/2. I'm starting to get a little bored staying home during the day. I am not driving yet mostly due to the seat belt hurting.
Well, that's my story so far!
Pre-op appointments!
Oct 13, 2010
I had my pre-op appointments today! I had to do a fasting blood draw, meet with the surgeon, and participate in a pre-op class. I am having surgery 2.5 hours away from where I live. My appt with my surgeon was scheduled for 2pm.
My hubby and I took the day off for these appts. We are having furnace trouble, so the repair guys came at 8am and didn't leave until 11:30! We left immediately after that to make it to my appts on time. We made it to the hospital at 2:00. I was super hungry, headachy, and cranky from fasting that long! Luckily I went straight to the lab for the blood draw and then frantically downed a protein shake!
Next was my appt with my surgeon at 2:30. I sat in the waiting room until almost 3:00 before being called back. They weighed me... and I lost a couple more pounds! Yay! And I went back to a room to meet with the surgeon. Or so I thought. Instead I met the assistant surgeon. I wasn't impressed with the appointment at all. He just started talking about random things to do with the sleeve. He said I would have A LOT more pain than my band surgery. Then he asked me some strange questions about food and dieting and then told me I was wrong about it. He said I should only eat meat and veggies and he poopooed tofu and beans. He said he himself follows that diet, even though he is thin. he said he "doesn't believe in dairy" and doesn't eat it except for an occasional treat of full-fat vanilla ice cream. LOLOL. After about 10 minutes of listening to him I said "can I ask a question?" and startedto ask a couple questions I had. Then the nurse who leads the pre-op class was knocking on my door because I was late to get that started. I asked if I would get to see my actual surgeon and was told yes, at the class.
The nurse who teaches the class is very cool. I have heard nothing but great things about her. The class cost $300 out of pocket and I didn't learn anything new, but it was still interesting and helpful. The nurse went over a bunch of protein supplements available and vitamin choices and gave us a big goodie bag of samples, which I thought was awesome! I am looking forward to trying everything.
There were 3 other women in the class with me. Two were middle age, one was a senior, then me (age 28). The senior lady was having a lapband tomorrow. The other 2 women are having RNY on my same surgery date, 10/19. I will be the third surgery of the day.
One of the RNY ladies had to lose 150 pounds pre-op. We were all blown away by the fact that she did it! Now on to the part that bothered me greatly...
We were talking about all of the surgeries, since collectively three surgeries were represented. The lapband lady quickly asked the nurse "should I be having the lapband?" It turns out she is leaving town in 4 weeks to spend part of the year in another state! She didn't seem to understand the fill schedule at all! The nurse told the lady that she wouldn't have her first fill until 6 weeks post op and suggested she find a Fill Center USA in the other state. The lady seemed confused. She asked me "what do you think of the band?" I told her I had a bad experience with it and probably wasn't the right person to talk to about it considering she was having surgery TOMORROW and we were in the middle of a class. My brain was screaming "SLEEVE!!!!!!! DO THE SLEEVE INSTEAD!!!!!!!!
When we got to the part in the class where the nurse said the RNY'ers could never take advil or asprin again, the RNY lady sitting next to me said "What?" She said she had several back surgeries and has to take advil regularly. The nurse told her she could take celebrex instead. The lady said she didn't feel comfortable taking it because her brother almost died from it. I was literally cringing for her :( I can't believe these people didn't know that much about the RNY and band. I was blown away.
Throughout the entire class, the nurse kept saying to me "this doesn't apply to you" because I was having the sleeve. (talking about stoma's, drinking when eating, pouches, advil) I felt SOOOOOOOOOOO lucky to be in my position!
I also learned today that my surgeon does mostly outpatient VSG's because so many patients are self-pay and the price does not include an overnight hospital stay! I was told I was "one of a select few" who will get to spend the night. I think its great that my surgeon offers a reasonable self-pay package, but I feel sorry for people who don't get the standard of care that I will get in the hospital.
By the end of the class I mentioned that I had not seen my actual surgeon yet. The nurse was surprised. He had already gone home. I have not seen him since last Decemeber. Bummer.
0 comments
My hubby and I took the day off for these appts. We are having furnace trouble, so the repair guys came at 8am and didn't leave until 11:30! We left immediately after that to make it to my appts on time. We made it to the hospital at 2:00. I was super hungry, headachy, and cranky from fasting that long! Luckily I went straight to the lab for the blood draw and then frantically downed a protein shake!
Next was my appt with my surgeon at 2:30. I sat in the waiting room until almost 3:00 before being called back. They weighed me... and I lost a couple more pounds! Yay! And I went back to a room to meet with the surgeon. Or so I thought. Instead I met the assistant surgeon. I wasn't impressed with the appointment at all. He just started talking about random things to do with the sleeve. He said I would have A LOT more pain than my band surgery. Then he asked me some strange questions about food and dieting and then told me I was wrong about it. He said I should only eat meat and veggies and he poopooed tofu and beans. He said he himself follows that diet, even though he is thin. he said he "doesn't believe in dairy" and doesn't eat it except for an occasional treat of full-fat vanilla ice cream. LOLOL. After about 10 minutes of listening to him I said "can I ask a question?" and startedto ask a couple questions I had. Then the nurse who leads the pre-op class was knocking on my door because I was late to get that started. I asked if I would get to see my actual surgeon and was told yes, at the class.
The nurse who teaches the class is very cool. I have heard nothing but great things about her. The class cost $300 out of pocket and I didn't learn anything new, but it was still interesting and helpful. The nurse went over a bunch of protein supplements available and vitamin choices and gave us a big goodie bag of samples, which I thought was awesome! I am looking forward to trying everything.
There were 3 other women in the class with me. Two were middle age, one was a senior, then me (age 28). The senior lady was having a lapband tomorrow. The other 2 women are having RNY on my same surgery date, 10/19. I will be the third surgery of the day.
One of the RNY ladies had to lose 150 pounds pre-op. We were all blown away by the fact that she did it! Now on to the part that bothered me greatly...
We were talking about all of the surgeries, since collectively three surgeries were represented. The lapband lady quickly asked the nurse "should I be having the lapband?" It turns out she is leaving town in 4 weeks to spend part of the year in another state! She didn't seem to understand the fill schedule at all! The nurse told the lady that she wouldn't have her first fill until 6 weeks post op and suggested she find a Fill Center USA in the other state. The lady seemed confused. She asked me "what do you think of the band?" I told her I had a bad experience with it and probably wasn't the right person to talk to about it considering she was having surgery TOMORROW and we were in the middle of a class. My brain was screaming "SLEEVE!!!!!!! DO THE SLEEVE INSTEAD!!!!!!!!
When we got to the part in the class where the nurse said the RNY'ers could never take advil or asprin again, the RNY lady sitting next to me said "What?" She said she had several back surgeries and has to take advil regularly. The nurse told her she could take celebrex instead. The lady said she didn't feel comfortable taking it because her brother almost died from it. I was literally cringing for her :( I can't believe these people didn't know that much about the RNY and band. I was blown away.
Throughout the entire class, the nurse kept saying to me "this doesn't apply to you" because I was having the sleeve. (talking about stoma's, drinking when eating, pouches, advil) I felt SOOOOOOOOOOO lucky to be in my position!
I also learned today that my surgeon does mostly outpatient VSG's because so many patients are self-pay and the price does not include an overnight hospital stay! I was told I was "one of a select few" who will get to spend the night. I think its great that my surgeon offers a reasonable self-pay package, but I feel sorry for people who don't get the standard of care that I will get in the hospital.
By the end of the class I mentioned that I had not seen my actual surgeon yet. The nurse was surprised. He had already gone home. I have not seen him since last Decemeber. Bummer.
