Kristy
Well, the time has come. I have decided to have stomach bypass surgery. I decided on June 8, 2005. I emailed Dr. Jossart's office in San Francisco, CA and heard back from there office the next day. She said I do qualify for the surgery with a BMI of 38.4 and that's only the beginning of the obesity problems. Ok, let's start with why I "need the surgery". For health reasons first. I am 38 yrs old, 5'5" and I weigh 231, a mother of a 9 yr old daughter and I just got married in November 2004. I have very high triglycerides (282) and high cholesterol (348) levels. My father passed away at 42 with his third heart attack. I have PCOS(Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) Not a good thing to have. I have lower back pain with muscle spasms, chest pain when I walk even slow, shortness of breath, I get out of breath just doing next to nothing. Just walking to the bathroom or turning over in bed makes me winded. And a sciatica nerve in both my legs. My mom had breast cancer. She survived that until she got cat scratch fever. Yes, that is a real disease. I have mild sleep apnea. I have major heartburn and acid reflux. Well, that's all the medical reasons. Now let's move on to the emotional / personal reasons why I should have the surgery. On June 3, 2005 I decided I didn't want to get fatter as the years go by. I have already gained 30 lbs in a year. So I thought about it........and that is when I decided that WLS was my final answer. I am a newlywed and shouldn't be this fat. I want to be a person that doesn't always have food on the brain. I don't want that attraction for food anymore. I am tired of eating large amounts of food. I am a professional dieter. Been on J.C., W.W, and NutriSystem. All these years and months of such small weight loss is just what I don't need. Only people that have experienced this can understand the emotional drain after time this has on your mind and body. I will write more, so until then.....take the best of care of yourself; there is only one you.
July 16, 2005.....I have a consult date now. July 26, 2005 in S.F. CA. I will be meeting with Dr. Jossart of LAPSF, and the nutritionist, as well. So I get two for one. I will need to make an appt with PCP and Psych. So that will be on Monday. I already know who I want to do my Psych eval. I found him on this website, he had great reviews, and he is in my hometown.
July 22, 2005 I had my Psych eval today. I wasn't even nervous. I have read a lot on this website and other websites, and so I kinda knew what to expect. I didn't have to wait long at all for this appt. Maybe 4 days. One down and a lot more to go. lol
July 26, 2005 Today I met with Dr. Feng at LAPSF. He is wonderful. I felt very comfortable with him. He explained everything in detail. I only had 2 questions for him that wasn't answered in reviewing my options. Now I just need an appt with my PCP. That is scheduled on Aug 11, 2005. Dr. Feng did order a great deal of tests for me though. So far everything is right on track. I did see my nutritionist at Dr. Feng's office so that part is done too! Yippee!!!
August 17, 2005 It has been awhile since my last post. I am still waiting for the results from the Psych evaluation. I have had some testing done in the meantime. I had the Upper GI, Chest X-Ray and the Echocardiogram. Once the Dr. does my letter for the psych eval I can have my information submitted to my insurance company. I am kind of bummed because I am going through all these tests not even knowing if I will be approved. Oh well, it isn't so bad to have the tests done anyway. Happy Health to me. lol
Aug 25, 2005 I finally received a copy of my psych eval. Now we can get the ball rolling. I sent a copy over to my surgeon's office so the billing dept can submit it to insurance. I don't know when that will be but I will post when it happens.
Aug 29, 2005 My letter was submitted today to insurance for approval. I am so nervous, I can't stand the waiting. Part of me says they will approve and the other part of me says the will deny it. It is just a matter of days now. Keeping my fingers crossed.
Sept 2, 2005 I got some discouraging news from the surgery center. My insurance denied my request for surgery due to not having a strong enough case. They want to know why I'm not on high blood pressure if my pressure is high. My PCP thinks it is not high enough for medicine. I also think they want to know if I am type 2 diabetic. I am on medicine for that, but I just don't have enough to go on to win the appeal. I am still going to try. Since my bmi is only 38 they won't approve the surgery. Gee, do I have to weigh 250 before they realize I can't loose the weight very easy or keep it off. Do they want me to develop real high blood pressure before they will approve it? It is almost like they want you to already have issues, instead of trying to prevent them. Makes no sense to me. I will just hope one more time.
Nov 1, 2005 I got APPROVED!!!! I am so excited. I won the appeal without any hassels from Blue Shield. I think the reason I got denied in the first place is due to the fact that we submitted the paperwork before we got all the info from my PCP. Once that was in, we submitted again, and voila, approved within 2 to 3 weeks. Now that that stress is over, I need to find out how much out of pocket will cost me. I think my insurance will pay for most of it. But at least I can have the surgery. I had a funny feeling they would approve me. I could just tell. I think about what life would be like skinny, and I just can't wait. But then again there is the issue with cravings. I used to love burritos and now they are not that good to me. I guess my taste buds are preparing for what I need to be eating. I will post again soon. I am hoping to have the surgery on Dec. 15, 2005. But since I don't have a surgery date yet, it is hard to say.
Nov 9, 2005 It is official now. I have a surgery date of Dec 14, 2005. I am very excited, but at the same time I am thinking I really don't want to do this. But I really do. I am just worried about receiving a big fat medical bill when it is all done. I hope my insurance is good. I was also worried about my boss being upset or not let me have the time off. But to my surprise she was very understanding and doesn't have a problem with it at all. She just wants me to get healthy. I will take 2 weeks off from work, all paid. I don't have a heavy duty job. Which is good. Nothing else to post right now until after the surgery or right before any way. Unless something goes astray. Bye for now.
Nov 28, 2005 Now I know I really want to do this. I am getting prepared for all the proteins and water intake. I have a sports bottle to help. I was jumping from things I need in Phase 1 to Phase 2 and just driving myself crazy with it. So I email my RD and she suggested just take it step by step. Focus on getting to and through Phase 1. Which I think about it now, and I was way ahead of the game. My surgery date is Dec 14 which isn't to far away. I just have to remember one phase at a time. I wil post after surgery for sure. If anything happens between now and then I will post that. Be happy
Dec 12, 2005 There has been a change in my surgery date. I had to change it to Jan 3, 2006 due to insurance purposes. I only have to wait 3 more weeks. I was all ready to do this in my mind. I had plans on how everything was going to be. From my protein and liquid intake to how often I was going to drink my fluids. lol
I have really been mentally preparing myself for this. I know things don't always go as planned, but I am head strong, and ready to take charge of my new life. I'll post after surgery to say how it was. Be good to yourself. There is only one you.
Dec 31, 2006 I am just days away from surgery now. I don't want to get to excited now. Not until after it is over, and I know I have really had this done. I have had a few stressfull situations with Dr. wanted some lab tests repeated and wondering if the results will come back in time. I was calling the hospital for the results, emailing the Dr. for when the results came in, calling the surgeon's office too much. etc. But, everything is okay now. (Sigh) Not all of the lab work is in, but the most important ones are in, and we can use some lab work from 2 weeks ago. I have to be in San Francisco at 8 am on Jan 3 2006 to go to the surgeons's office. My surgery is scheduled for 10:30am. I am not nervous about the surgery I am mostly nervous about getting to the city on time. With traffic and weather, I will need to leave at 5:45am. I will be starting my liquid pre op diet on Monday. I know I won't sleep because I'll be to anxious and hungry. I can't sleep on an empty stomach. Who knows I might not even be hungry then. I have lost the desire and taste for a lot of my favorite foods. I have also lost 5 lbs because of it, I think. Food is not on my priority list anymore. Well, I will post after surgery. I have learned one thing during all of this, that is not to talk while you are about to have your picture taken. It makes for a silly face. lol
Jan 2, 2006 One day before my surgery. I have have everything done, overnight bag packed, vitamins ready, water ready, protein ready. Get r done! I have started my pre op thin liquid diet today. At least I only have to do it for one day pre op. Post op I hope I get the hang of it. I received all of the lab work thru email. So I faxed them to the Dr. and he now has everything for surgery. Yippee!!! I'll be back online soon. Bye for now.
Jan 11, 2006 Surgery went great. I spent one night in the hospital. I was able to sip all liquids without any problem. My doctor says that you should never throw up on liquids. And if you do you probably drank to fast or to much at one time. I had a room with a 79 yr old woman that needed the heater up to 85 degrees and made a lot of verbal noises. So needless to say I was ready to come home the next day. My abdomen felt like I did five thousand sit ups. All of the nurses and staff at the CPMC were very nice and very polite and hospitable. I liked that. I feel pretty good. I am drinking 64 ounces of liquids, like sf jello, hot herbal tea, sf hot chocolate, Atkins protein drinks, and water. You really do just sip all day long, sip, sip, sip, every 3-5 minutes. I feel like that is all I do. Oh, that is all I do. LOL I have a post op appt. on Fri the 13, so hopefully he will tell me I can advance to thick liquids. I guess thick liquids and pureed foods are the same thing. So I am patiently waiting for Split Pea soup. I guess that is all for now.
Feb 1, 2006 I am now 4 weeks post op. I feel pretty good. I haven't had any problems with food. I forget to eat slow sometimes and get a lump in my chest, but I just slow down and it goes away. I have lost 25 lbs in 4 weeks, and 17 inches overall. I didn't start taking my measurements until 2 weeks after surgery. If the scale isn't moving then the inches are. I have averaged about 6.25 lbs per week. I can't believe this is really happening. I went to Jenny Craig for 4 months and only lost 15 lbs. and Weight Watchers for 1 year and only lost 27 lbs. Yes, that is correct 27 lbs and I was working out 3 days a week. I was committed because I was going on a cruise. Well, now there will be another cruise when I get to my goal weight. I am not hungry at all. If I cook and I am able to smell food, that is really all I need to satisfy my head hunger. Bye for now
3-24-06 My how time flies when your not eating all the time and able to do constructive things. I am 11 weeks post op now, and I have lost 54 lbs. I have gone from a size 22 pant to maybe a size 16. I weigh 176 I feel pretty good although I was expecting to have so much energy. I do have more than I used to of course but I was thinking I'd be bouncing off the walls. I thought I had a stricture as I was throwing up a lot of the time for about 3 weeks. It turned out that I was eating too fast or not chewing good enough or eating too much. I now know the difference between full and food stuck. I am holding down my food much better now. I will post again soon.
6-21-06 Oh my gosh, I feel pretty good. My hair is falling out though. So, I just got a short hair style and I try not to pay much attention to it. I am 5 months post op. RNY and I have lost 75 lbs. I now weigh 155 lbs. I can fit into a size 14 pant and it is almost too big. Wow, I never thought I would be able to say that. I guess that is all for now.
8-29-07 It has been a very long time since I have posted. But.....I have a life now. I am out hiking and having fun. I have lost a total of 95 lbs. It has been a year and a half and I haven't had any problems with my surgery at all. I have to give the credit to my doctor. So if you get a good doctor and follow instructions and be a good patient; you should recover well. I now weigh 140lbs. I bounce between 135-140 lbs. So I have lost between 95-100 lbs. This is the best decision I have ever made. If you are thinking about having surgery, by all means stop thinking and have it done. It is so worth having my health back and my youth and my life back. :-)
6-23-09 I have been on the website asking questions and answering questions. But since my last post a great deal has changed in my life. Let's go back to 2008, I'll make it short.............My mother in law died Oct, and my step dad (I always referred to him as dad) died 2 months later. Then I started to have super heavy periods like I was bleeding to death. So I saw my GYN, and he found tumors in my uterus. There was one the size of an egg and the other was the size of golf ball and a ton of grape size tumors. That is why I was having heavy periods and because of that I became severly anemic. I had literally lost 2 pints of blood. So I got put on liquid iron for awhile and Feb 15, I had to have a partial hysterectomy. I was out of the hospital the next day. So while my mother in law was in the hospital I was sick myself, but still spent 12-20 hrs in there, but I was so tired and cold all the time, this was before I knew what was wrong with me. I just hung in there and then finally my mother in law lost her battle. When my dad died, I was having troubles sleeping, so the dr gave me Ambien, I stopped taking that cuz my daughter now almost 13, found me sleepwalking. Then I noticed my arms started getting sore. I just thought I had arthritis in them because I have arthritis in my neck and lower back and thought it was in my arms and hips. But then I started to feel like I had the flu aches and weakness. My muscles started to feel like they were deteriorating and weak. I couldn't figure out what was wrong with me. I kept telling my doctor of the symptoms I was having so he changed my Darvocet (for arthritis) to Vicodin, long story short, he kept bumping my meds around lowering the dose, now he has made me feel worse. So he said I have Fibromyalgia. I said I have Fibro what? I looked it up on the web and low and behold, I had every single one of the symptoms. I got referred to a pain management clinic, to give me the meds and skills I need to cope with the terrible condition. But during all of this my husband and I still bought a boat and a motorcycle and I can get around pretty good. I just need to not over do it, or I pay for it later.
