Laura G.
11/11/2004 ~
I saw my PCP today and he sent for approval for WLS. He said more than likely I would be approved since my BMI was 52. He said he thought I should go to Dr. LaPort in Fountain Valley, CA. I have been doing research for the past few months and have gone to a support class with another group, but am more than willing to meet other Dr's and groups.
11/14/2004 ~
I spoke with Andrea at my PCP's office Friday and she said my IPA required 6 mos. of nutrition classes, but that I may be able to get past that by writing a letter with all my weight loss attempts and such...I have looked at a few that have been posted here for referral and Am sending it over to them on Monday. I am hopeful that this will help me get my referral to the surgeon quicker. I have also spoken with one of the girl at Dr. La Port's office and they tell me this is normal. I am thinking of going to their support group this next week. I will check to see from work tomorrow am. I am very hopeful. I would love to be a healthier me.
11/17/2004 ~
Spoke with Andrea again today. Was approved for Nutritional Classes. Called for soonest available appointment/class today, and was told all they had was Jan 11...I took it, but hey are going to let me know if there are any cancellations sooner... Also faxed Andrea letters from a few friends who had helped me try to lose weight since I don't have any Dr. supervised attempts recorded with them. Also included a copy of medical record from when I was 15 showing that the naval dr's found no reason for my being 155 lbs (having gained 25 lbs over the summer), but they did note that both my parents were also obese and that I was also...WOW - I didn't remember that....glad my mom kept this record...it shows that I've always had the problem! She said she would look it all over and try to submit, see what Insurance said.... Hope it helps!
11/21/2004 ~
Got the results of my blood work back this past week. WOW ~ amazingly NO DIABETES ~ YET.....
HIGH GLUCOSE...HIGH CHOLESTEROL...HIGH TRIGLYCERIDES
My PCP wants me on a Low Fat/ Low Cholesterol Diet....So I am starting it NOW - IMMEDITELY - I figure this could only help me in my quest for surgery....RIGHT? I am also trying to stop drinking Soda's NOW...I am not a big drinker of this anyway, I only like Root Beer & Dr Pepper and to be honest, I prefer water over them USUALLY!
I have a great support team...my Pastor & his wife and the people I work with at church are literally behind me 100% as is my husband. My kids are also, even trying to help me with the low fat reminders...hehe! The only problem so far...my 11 year old had dreams of me dying...weird, he NEVER has bad dreams...will help him through this also....but I think he'll be ok. Well gonna go check out the board for a bit, then go to church....God Bless You All O :)
11/24/2004 ~
OMG!!!! This has been a GREAT WEEK...I got a call from the Class Scheduler and they had a cancellation! "Would You Be Interested In Starting Your Classes Next Wednesday?" WHO ARE THEY KIDDING, WOULD I BE INTERESTED?
I AM EXSTATIC<<<<<<
Also talked to Tracy at PCP's office and they decided to go ahead and submit for approval to the IPA/Insurance...so now we are waiting to find out if i get an approval.....I am BELEIVING GOD for ONLY GOOD THINGS....
My biggest fear is that I will get denied, WAIT, NO, maybe it's that I will actually get the approval...this is crazy!!!!My emotions are so high right now...and now I have to wait till next week probably, cause it's a holiday weekend.....YUCK!
Anyway, wanted to get this into here before I forgot. Gonna go....
HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL....MAY GOD BLESS YOU<<<<
11/30/2004 ~
I decided I was going to create a CHART TODAY for progress...I really HATE the numbers on it! It’s amazing how we try to hide the truth from ourselves and then WHAMO!!! IT'S STARING YO RIGHT IN THE FACE AND THERE IS NO DENYING IT...SO...As soon as I figure out how to post a table from word (HTML) into here I will post....Also...I will try to post a picture soon and thinking of having my journal spruced up by one of the HTML gang....My digi camera is out of batteries...again!
I guess I should update all else. I am getting braver...I met a nice gal from OC on OH this week...her name is TAMI B and we have the strangest things in common...We both have 2 boys and a girl and get this our daughters are both named ABBY and one of each our sons is SAM...we are close in age and weight...so weird....anyway, she is encouraging me to try to get involved in the boards so...I may get brave tonight...I am reading them, just not joining in yet....I will try. I Promise....
DECEMBER 2004
12/01/2004 ~
I just had my 1st "Nutritional Class" tonight....met a gal named LIZ and turned her on to OH...she is just starting out also, but had no clue about anything...didn't even know her BMI...was interesting. Funny is she lives right down the street from me and we never seen each other before...and the class was in another city too...weird huh?
12/03/2004 ~
I just got off the phone with my PCP's office and then Dr. Laport's office. YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!I got my referral to Dr La Port...they are sending my pack to me today...and they had an opening next week for my consult and what not's....3 hour appointment next THURSDAY.....NOW....I don't know whether to cry...laugh...dance....WHAT...
OH...MY....GOSH.....It's really a good thing that I get to go home in an hour...I am not worth a thang right now....Can't think straight!
12/09/2004 ~
Well...I thank you kindly for the support...I don't kno0w why I was so nervous this morning. I knew it was to be simple...I knew everything they talked about. I have now finished this part of the "program". And now it is wait.....hurry and wait some more. I will find out within a month (they say) if I am approved for surgery....Then I will need to do the psych eval, a post-op nutrition class, the Dr's talk and the pre-ops....that should put me somewhere into February or march IF I am approved....Gosh how this is torture. On a good note...I am pretty healthy other than be super morbidly obese. And I weighed 4 lbs less than my PCP's scale (oh dare I hope that I actually lost weight in 3 1/2 weeks)I so wish/pray that I could get my approval so much more quickly...more later...
12/19/2004 ~
Haven't posted in a while. Not too much to report at this point...STILL WAITING....I talked to Miriam at Smart Dimensions on Wednesday of this week and she said that they had sent in the request for approval that AM. Should hear something within 2-3 weeks. Was so hoping to find out before Christmas (what a wonderful gift that would be!) It can still happen, but is unlikely since there are only 3 work days this week for most. I am still praying for an APPROVAL b4 Christmas.
I will post again when I am able, but it is such a busy time of the year and my kids want EVERYTHING - and my husband & I are trying our best to accommodate by shopping at every possible moment...HAHA!
TO EVERYONE ~ HAPPY HOLIDAY'S!
12/20/2004 ~
Spoke with IPA today - they say that approval is "pending"....WOW...I love that answer...PENDING...what the heck is PENDING.....I mean couldn't they come up with something else to tell you? Every time I call...PENDING....
OH WELL....they said they would have an answer for me this week...Wednesday....I am still praying for APPROVAL....I am going to get brave tonight and take myself to support group over at Orange Coast Memorial...I have no-one to go with me...maybe I'll meet someone over there...I don't have an angel yet...not even sure what they are supposed to do for ya or how to go about getting one...i will figure that out eventually i am sure.
Until later....Laurabee (my mom's nickname for me since i was a teenager)
APPROVED! APPROVED! APPROVED!
12/24/2004 ~
I've been APPROVED! I got the call today! I am APPROVED and waiting for scheduler to call me...within 10 days they say, to schedule one-on-one, surgeon talk and surgery date, etc....Oh my gosh. I am so freakin out!!!!
...HAPPY HAPPY...MERRY MERRY...CHRISTMAS TO ME!!!!
Will write again when i can concentrate............
12/27/2004 ~
OH MY GOSH - WHAT AN EMOTIONAL ROLLERCOASTER???
I was called today at work and I am to have surgery 4 weeks from TODAY....4 WEEKS!!!!4WEEKS - O-H M-Y G-O-O-D-N-E-S-S !!!! THAT'S SO SOON- I was so off...I thought it would be more like middle of February to be honest! There is soooooooo much to do in the 4 weeks...to get ready.....all the appointments...house cleaning....preparing kids & hubby...WOW I can barely concentrate on a thing ...my mind seems to run from one thing to the next......
SO - I will be joining you all on the losing side quicker than I could have ever thought!!!
JANUARY 2005
01/18/2005~
WOW - I swore I wouldn't be one of those people who don't update my journal... I mean this is supposed to be where we write our feelings, emotions, troubles and good things...I guess I got too caught up in "LIFE". It has been so long since I posted here, although I have been on the boards off-n-on the past few weeks!
I have to day that I am very excited to be this close to my surgery...EXCITED and ANXIOUS....not scared...not nervous (per se)..not worried! Just anxious for it to happen, for it to be over...for the beginning of my new "healthier" life...
I have been so busy this week, trying to make sure my kids are going to be ok while I'm in the hospital, making sure hubby is ok, making sure house is clean (I even went and bought new stuff for the kids bathroom - that I've put off since we moved in almost 2 years ago - and it looks sooo good!), making sure the laundry in caught up (this is a never ending thing at my house, therefore it will never get caught up I fear...UGH!)
My 15 yr old weigh the dog today and found out he weighs 6 #s. We were laughing, because my Dr says no lifting over 5 #s for 4 weeks after surgery....he is so small, I can't even imagine this...it's so funny, but I know it's for my health, that I don't pull stitches or get an incisional hernia, but it's still so funny!
I guess I am rambling on now...and I need to go switch the laundry loads....UGH again!
I forgot - OH html team contacted me FINALLY - they are in the process of sprucing up my page, I can't wait to see how it turns out. Maybe that will inspire me to write more. HAH!
Well, I gots to go now, will try and post again b4 surgery day! laurabee
01/23/2005~ Isn't it funny. All the thing that we worry about, that we go thru to get to this point. As my surgery draws closer, I am feeling a bit more "nervous", but not scared! I am worried for my kids and DH, not me.
I don't think I've posted since doing my One-on-One this week. I met Dr Ali and am very pleased with him. He is a bit quiet, but that is not a bad thing! I lied him and was comfprtable with him immediatley. I think that is all that matters...that we are comfortable and confident in our surgeon!
I was weighed on thursday and found it so funny that I actually lost weight - 2 1/2 whole #'s...HAH! I have been eating the past 2 weeks like every meal is my last...I tell myself this may be last time I have this, better enjoy it now. I just can't believe that I actually lost 2 1/2 #'s...not much, but still a loss.
While in the Dr's office, I met a few very nice people..again. One lady in particular is having surgery this week...and lives around the corner from me, but the sad thing is I didn't get her name...i may have to go to her house...hehe...i know where she lives cause she told me and I pass by it when i go to my 12 yr olds school..all the time.
I can't sleep, funny, i'd have thought that would be a problem the night b4 surgery, not the night b4 my bowel prep. oh well...i'm gonna go now and clean my daughters room...she will be gone for the entire week and i won't see her until after i come home from surgery! gonna go kiss her little sleeping face! See you all on the losing side!
February ~02/14/2005~
HAPPY VALENTINE's DAY TO EVERYONE!
I guess I should start off telling everyone the great news I AM DOWN 32 #'s!!!! WOW - only 3 weeks after surgery! I am down at least 2 sizes on top...my clothes are hanging on me - it's weird. I refuse to go out shopping yet tho'! I haven't hit my first goal yet - then maybe I will splurge on 1 or 2 things...hmmm will have to think about that!
...I have been on the MIA list probably...keeping a "Low Profile for the past few weeks. I have been trying to learn how to live with this new stomach/pouch. I have to admit it was very difficult the first week or so...but it is definatley getting easier! I love my protein shakes for breakfast...I am learninf how to mix them for more flavor and such! My favorite so far is to mix vanilla flavored shake nix, nin-fat milk and Yoplait Carb Monitor yogurt - Raspberry flavor! Smooth and tasty! And the protein is 32 grm...only like 5 sugars...it takes me 1/2 hour to drink, but i love it! Refried BEans - I live on em....low fat Rosarita brand are the best for me so far! I am starting to get more energy...but still takes a lot out of me to do very much...I hope this gets better soon. I go back to work P/T next week! My next Dr' appt is 3/1 I hope to be below 300 by then..it's only 10 more #'s in 2 weeks I should be able to get there. That's my 1st mini-goal....
Well gonna go...will try to fill in information from surgery day and after in the next few days!
MAY 2005
WOW - IT'S BEEN FOREVER SINCE I UPDATED HERE _ ALL I CAN SAY IS IT'S BEEN A BUMPY ROAD AND RATHER HECTIC....LIFE IS BUSY AND I AM GREAT!
I HAVE LOST 88 POUNDS SO FAR IN ONLY 4 MONTHS
The weight loss has started to slow down now and I know that some of the FAST weight loss was due to my being readmitted to the hospital back in February for C-Dif Infection. A complication of surgery. It was very painful and scary...I will write more about that so you can understand it.
C-Dif is an infection in the colon. Mine was caused by the antibiotics they gave me during surgery...they can be good and bad! They ate some of the good bacteria in my colon causing the bad bacteria to grow too much, thereby causing an infection. It started out with diarrhea that i thought was a flu bug because my kids had just got over the flu...4 days into it I called the surgeon becaus I started having excrutiating lower abdominal pains (worse than labor pains)...he said it sounded like the flu and I should go to my PCP, so I called and they told me to come in immediately. I sat in the waiting room for 3 hours and never was seen, when they realized how much pain I was in, they sent me over to the Emergency Dept @ St Josephs Hospital. I waited there for another hour before calling my surgeons office again and explaining what was going on. He told me to leave that ER and go to the ER where I had my surgery - on the othere side of Orange County - so I did. Well they gave me pain meds and imodium and took a bunch of tests but also thought it was the flu and sent me homw with instructions to keep hydrated and take imodium...I did, but 2 more days and I was still getting worse, so I called surgeons office again and they said to me "Did they do an MRI to see if you had a leak?" I told them no, they said get back to the ER and tell them they need to check for leaks..So off I went again. Well they were able to do the MRI even with me throwing up the stuff they make you drink, and there were no leaks. SO they looked for the results from the tests I took 2 days [reviously - "You have an infection in your colon called C-Dif, we will have to admit you until it is gone because it is HIGHLY CONTAGIOUS". WOW! I spent the next 6 DAYS in the hospital. My kidneys stopped functioning properly due to being so dehydrated, then my pottasium levels were so low, they were getting concerned about my heart, but finally I started to get better...I went home still on meds for the infection, but it quickly got better. I originally gained like 30 pounds from the fluid I was retaing, due to kidney's not working, but I lost that and more within the first 2 weeks back home. Needless to say io am much beeter now and you wouldn't even kjnow that I was ever so sick. I thank God that I am alive!
As for the time since then to now. It has been a bumpy road...Good days, Bad days, nut I am learning to adjust to the new me...the new emotional issues I haven't dealt with for so long....I think eventually there will be some major changes in my life, but I am not ready to deal with all of them yet...EVENTUALLY...
Going to go for now...Life is so busy now and I have a birthday party to get ready for - My cousins liitle boys is turning 2!
***NOTE*** I, along with 3 others were on the "Larry Elders Show" for a tapping about Gastric Bypass...they did before show in January and after show (too soon, personally) in April. At the time I had lost 65 pounds. The show is to air WEDNESDAY, JULY 6, 2005 on CBS check out his web site for your area... http://larryelder.warnerbros.com/
JUNE 2005
06/11/2005 - Down a few more pounds this week. Overall feeling pretty good. Been very busy with the kids and all the end of the school year stuff they gotta do....Not much else going on, but I think...I'm gonna try to update more often - keep this journal for myself mainly. I don't use the boards anymore - too much drama for me! But I welcome any and all questions and support...thanks for taking the time tor ead about me. Off to spend more time with my kids....TTFN :)
JULY 2005
07/01/2005 ~ Just wanted to remind everyone that the Larry Elder's Show is airing this week - WEDNESDAY, JULY 6th - I have copied some information from the web site so that you could find when it airs in your area. Just a note - At the tapping I had lost 65 pounds (nothing to sneeze at mind you), but as of last week - I have lost 102+ pounds so you can imagine me with another 40 pound off what you see. It is
WEDNESDAY, July 6th “Gastric Bypass: Before and After”
Larry talks to people desperate to lose weight and checks up on their progress after gastric bypass surgery, including a drummer who blames her weight gain on late-night eating binges with her band, a young woman who is tired of being the heaviest person in her family, a man who can’t seem to lose weight despite a 2-hour gym routine, and a mother of three who wants to have the energy to play with her five-year-old daughter.
Can you guess who this is???he he
07/15/2005 ~ CENTRUY CLUB MEMBER Went to my surgeon on friday for 6 month post-op. I am officially down 101.5 pounds. I was soooo exstatic. I called everyone! My surgeon gave me this pin to wear...ha ha - I put it on my purse!
I then went to get some shorts & a swim suit to wear for my weekend and was able to buy size 18 - I have not seen that size since before my 17 year old was born...Heck 6 months ago I was in 28/30's....WOW!
I am sorry I didn't get to post here sooner, but I headed to Palm Springs for a weekend get away with my mom & aunt and kids. The temperatures ranges from 118-125 all weekened...maybe even hotter. It sucked - it was 125 degrees in the shade at 4 pm yesterday - we couldn't even get into the pool to cool off cuzx it was soooo freakin HOT. We had a great time, but I knew I had to post to all as soon as I got up this am.
wonderful - the energy that I feel. This past weekend Bob & I took the kids to the San Diego County Fair and had a blast - I was amazed - My legs/hips/ankles/feet/back didn't hurt. I didn't have to stop and sit all the time because I was out of breath...I had energy to keep up with my kids...The only thing I didn't brave YET was the rides...maybe next time! I hope you are able to watch, if not I will understand. I have a few friends tapping the show for me...I hope they remember.
I will write more another time...but I look forward to hearing from you all!
Local Listings: http://larryelder.warnerbros.com/local_listings.html
AUGUST 2005
I am soooooo bad about updating - never thought I'd be this bad but life has just got me by the broitches...I seem to always be running to & fro with something else to do...
It's actually September and just thought I should add that ZI have been on a plateau this month up & down the same freakin 5 punds ALL month...I will get through this I know....
I will update more in September....I hope!
SEPTEMBER 2005
I read this in someone else's journal today and thought it so appropriate.... I wanted to share it with you...
"Sometimes I get so caught up in every day life,
I tend to forget life is not a race to "GET ‘ER DONE".
I want this weight off NOW and that is WHAT seems to be my mentality.
We forget we didn’t gain it in 2 weeks so we can’t lose it in 2 weeks.
As we get older (speaking from experience here) the days slip more quickly away.
The years fly by. Every day of life on earth is a gift. If you’re like me,
this is a reminder to you and myself also to slow down and take it one day at a time. "
Don't Quit
When things go wrong as they sometimes will,
When the road you're trudging seems all uphill,
When you're feeling low and the stress is high,
And you want to smile but you have to sigh,
When worries are getting you down a bit... by all means pray,
and DON'T YOU QUIT.
Sucess is failure turned inside out.
God's hidden gift in the clouds of doubt.
You never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far.
So trust in the Lord when you're hardest hit --
It's when things go wrong that YOU MUST NOT QUIT!
Below are some goals I want to achieve. I will note when they are accomplished as they happen. (I may add more as I think of them also)
* Get below 300 DONE!
* Get below 275 DONE!
* Get below 250 DONE!
* get below 200 (I haven't been here since b4 I was married in 1988) ~
* Be able to walk up any stairs without getting out of breath! DONE!
* Be able to walk around the block DONE!
* Be able to walk to the park DONE!
* Be able to go down a slide with my daughter!!! (I have never done this) DONE!
* Be able to have my husband get his arms around me again. DONE!
* Be able to play basketball with my boys (they love the game)
Be able to go to Disney and go on rides with my kids! (I have never done this in any of their lives!) DONE!
* Be able to fit in a theatre seat (actually any seat!) and not have it hurt my hips! DONE!
* Be able to get in & out of the car without effort. DONE!
* Be able to shop in ANY store for clothes! DONE!
