Elizabeth G.

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10/18/12 (Day of Surgery) - 367.5

10/25/12 (Week 1) - 355 (12.5)

11/1/12 (Week 2) - 349.2 (5.8)

A day after I learned I was approved, I was scheduled! Got a date 3 weeks after approval. Awesome!

I called my insurance today and found out I was approved! Oh my gosh. This makes it all so real now. I'm in it to win it and I'm WORTH IT! So many appointments, so many emotions, so many protein powders. Ha-ha. I am worth it. We're all worth it.

Here's what I've been up to over the summer!  Now the waiting begins! ...

I can’t believe it’s been 4 months since I attended the initial weight loss seminar. At first I didn’t really like my doc but after a recent meeting, he cracked himself up and showed his human side which made me feel much more comfortable. Phew! 

So I started the program in earnest on July 2^nd. I’ve attended every single appointment without one rescheduling. Thank goodness I work in such a flexible environment. The surgeon’s office stated that most folks participate in the program and get surgery within 3 months. Woo-hoo! I’m nearly there.

Step 1: Attend seminar - May 9, 2012 Step 2: First of 4 visits with PCP for supervised diet – July 2, 2012
Step 3: First office visit with surgeon - July 3, 2012
Step 4: Nutritional Appt #1 - July 10, 2012
Step 5: Psychological evaluation #1 - July 28, 2012
Step 6: Psychological evaluation #2 - August 4, 2012
Step 7: All Pre-Op labs and tests complete – July 13, 2012
Step 8: Second of 4 visits with PCP for supervised diet – July 27, 2012
Step 9: Second office visit with surgeon’s nurse practitioner – August 6, 2012
Step 10: Pre-op Behavior Workshop – Session #1 (approval requested from ins.) – September 12, 2012
Step 11: Nutritional Appt #2 - August 8, 2012
Step 12: Medical Clearance Appt w/ Pulmonologist – August 9, 2012
Step 13: Third of 4 visits with PCP for supervised diet – August 27, 2012
Step 14: Nutritional Appt #3 – September 5, 2012
Step 15: Two Hour Pre-Op Nurse Education Class with 1 Family Member – September 17, 2012
Step 16: Last Pre-Op Visit with Surgeon – September 18, 2012
Step 17: Pre-op Behavior Workshop – Session #2 – September 18, 2012
Step 18: Pre-op Behavior Workshop – Last One! – September 25, 2012
Step 19: Fourth of 4 visits with PCP for supervised diet – October 1, 2012
Step 20: Surgery – Date TBD  

Got a voicemail from my surgeon's office. I have an ultrasound on Friday and they have decided to schedule the rest of my pre-op tests that day too. How great is that? Just get the pre-op stuff all done and over with. Pretty exciting and a step in the right direction!

.....

2nd out of 3 visits with Surgical Team scheduled for 8/6. 

Consult Weight 375
5' 10" tall
Goal Weight 175lbs

A list of fun goals to celebrate progress!

375: Consultation Weight... it'll all downhill from here! SMO at 53 BMI (BMI >40)
350: My trim/slim high school weight.
325: I'm 1/4 of the way there!
299: Twoterville!
282: No longer SMO - Yay - I'm morbidly obese again! (BMI 35 to 39.9)
275: Halfway there!
270: A weight I once maintained relatively easily for years.
250: Lowest known adult weight in my memory (circa 2004 or so).
246: No longer MO - Yay, I'm obese! (BMI 30 - 34.9) 2XX: ¾ of the way there! 225: Who knew I'd weigh so little?
225: 3/4's of the way there! I've never been this light in all of my memory.
212: I'm no longer obese. Welcome to being overweight. (BMI 25 - 29.9)
199: OMG, I can try indoor skydiving now!
175: My Personal Goal - 213 lbs lost - Normal range BMI (BMI 18.5 - 24.9) - This will be a big day! Last time I remember weighing in the 100's was in 3rd grade at 120. Wooooohoooooooooo! How will I celebrate?

So my insurance changed to cover WLS on July 1, 2012. Woohoo!  Now I'm sooooo nervous.  I see my PCP this morning to start the 3 month supervised diet.  Tomorrow I consult with the WLS surgeon.

Am I excited? YES!  But I'm also a bit nervous about this. It's going to be a big friggin' leap of faith!  Oh boy.

Step 1: Attend seminar - May 9, 2012 - Done
Step 2: First office visit with surgeon - July 3, 2012 - Done
Step 3: Nutritional Appt #1 - July 10, 2012
Step 4: Psychological evaluation #1 (required) - July 28, 2012
Step 5: Psychological evaluation #2 (required) - August 4, 2012
Step 6: All Pre-Op labs and tests complete – July 13, 2012
Step 7:  Second office visit with nurse practitioner – August 6, 2012
Step 8:  Pre-op Behavior Workshop (this is when approval is sent to BCBS) - TBD
Step 9:  Nutritional Appt #2 - August 8, 2012
Step 10: Medical Clearance Pulmonologist Appt – August 9, 2012
Step 11: Two Hour Pre-Op Nurse Education Class with 1 Family Member –
Step 12: Last Pre-Op Visit with Surgeon – TBD ~9/25/12  

Other items to be completed: Mandatory attendance in pre-op support group (1 x week for 4 to 6 weeks)  

Timeline – I had to wait until I had new medical coverage to start this process in earnest so there was significant delay between steps 1 & 2. However, Steps 2 through 12 will take approximately 2 to 3 months to complete so long as I can make all of the appointments.   Once I have finished their pre-op program, I will have a surgery date within 2 weeks. I am tentatively planning to have surgery mid to end October 2012.

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My therapist and I are working hard to change my relationship with food. We both agree that it is definitely something I need to get a better handle on now and not after surgery.  In cruising this site, it's clear that divorcing food as your best friend is pretty tough for some folks. My wonderful BF has been by my side since I started this journey and attended the WLS seminar with me. He'll also be joining me at my surgical consults and whatever else going forward.  He's even agreed to come with me to see my therapist so we can look into how food fits into our relationship to see what we can do to strike a healthier balance.

I'm really determined for us to grow together through this process together since my BF really is one in a million. I'm not too shabby myself either.

Hi there. I have been heavy all of my life. I think the first time my parents spoke to me about it I was 4 or 5. I was told that if I lost weight I would be rewarded with a new Cabbage Patch doll. Being only 4 or 5 years old, I certainly had NO idea what they were even talking about.  Needless to say, that new doll wasn’t had. I think that’s beginning. Being fat never really bothered ALL of me. I realized that I wasn’t the best athlete but I could still participate enough which was fine for me… I didn’t need to win. I always thought I was and am beautiful so if no one ever wanted to ask me out, take me to a dance, or be my boyfriend, it usually didn’t (consciously) register as a bad thing with me. So I went through my youth and adolescence like this. My mom and dad taking me to Weight Watchers, a nutritionist, an MSW for counseling, PhenFen (mild, albeit temporary success). And then one day after I got out of college, I decided I needed to change because I was tired of struggling with EVERYTHING. Moving, breathing, sleeping… real basic items were a serious struggle and I wanted a boyfriend!!! Topping the scales at 400.4 lbs., I enrolled again in WW at 23 years old (2001) and over the course of the next 3 years, lost 150lbs. FREEEEEEDOM! I was the fittest I’d ever been. I was loving it and it showed!!! I was able to maintain this reasonably well until I met my sweetheart in 2008. I was so smitten I lost track of ME and my goals and just partied, had fun and love him to pieces. Four years later (2012), I still love him to pieces and I’ve regained 125 lbs. O… M… G. After what I now can see was a weight-related emotional breakdown in March 2012, I decided to get healthy. When I finally got the courage to work out, I hurt my left knee, hip and ankle and was convinced I needed a better tool than sheer determination to get healthy. So here I am. I asked my employer to consider switching to an insurance carrier that covered WLS and in early May 2012 I got the good news that we were switching. Thank goodness! Less than a week later, my sweetheart and I went to the WLS seminar.

My insurance kicks in July 1, 2012 and with that my first surgical consult is July 3^rd followed by nutritional counseling starting July 10^th. I have a bunch of great supporters in my corner for which I am so darn thankful. People I thought would be against it have been so welcoming.

Am I the only one wondering if this might all be just too good to be true? I want to pinch myself. If all goes as planned, I’ll be a changed woman before Thanksgiving.

My Co-Morbidities as of May 23, 2012:

Hypertension (mild)
Elevated Cholestrol
Elevated Triglycerides
Shortness of breath on exertion
Decreased Exercise Tolerance
Asthma
Joint and back pain
Abnornal Menstrual Cycle
Stress incontinence
Varicose Veins
Leg, Ankle Swellings
Rashes, infections, excess sweating
Lack of self esteem
Social rejection
Loss of job potential
Inappriopriate coping strategies
Depression
Anxiety