Hi Everyone,  I got my approval from my insurance company a week or 2 ago.  My surgery date is July 25th 2007.  I'm having a little problem with the 2 weeks pre-op surgery liquid protein diet.  I don't start it until the 11th of July but I have been trying it here and there to see how it sets with me.  I have also been eating too much so I'm trying to get some weight off before I go see my surgeon on the 10th of July.  I did it for breakfast and lunch on Monday this week and it went fine.  But I want to go a full day which I am starting today.  I know it may seem crazy to start it on the 4th of July but what the heck no time like the present and why does the 4th of July mean eating anyway I also need to get that type of thinking out of my head because eating shouldn't be an event just a way to stay a live.  The living to eat was my old way of thinking, the new me eats to live.  The photo in my profile is of me and my hubby of 25 years.  Any advice I can get from anyone would be greatly appreciated for what to do to make the liquid protein drink taste better I have the one you buy at Walmart.  I heard something about freezing it and sucking on them like a popcicle.  Thanks for listening...Pam 


07/19/2007

Hello again I thought I would tell you a little more about me....I am 48 years old I live in Franklin Wisconsin which is a sub of Milwaukee.  I sell residential real estate for the past 15 years.  I own my own company.  I have 2 grown boys Eric and Marky 26 and 24 respectively.  I have a wonderful supportive husband Mark who I think I love more than life itself and he me (I hope) LOL.  I have a new daughter in-law (really I love her like my own daughter) Jessica but she has been with my younger son for 5 years prior to their getting married.  My oldest son Eric is also obese and I never ever go a day without thinking about him and his health problems and my concerns.  I love me work alot and my family even more.  I can't wait for grandchildren but I guess I will.  I love life and people and would like to be around a little longer if I can help it.  But I realize thats in God's hands.  I believe one must live many lives to be worthly of being with God not reincarnation but kinda shorta, to learn all of lifes lessons.  I respect people and ask for the same back but if I don't get it I realize there must be something in their lives that causes them not to be able to give back so I forgive them.  I'll talk more later I have to go and drink my protein shake LOL... 


  07/24/2007

Well here I go surgery tomorrow. I thought I was going to lose 25 lbs on the liquid protein diet but the first day on all liquids I had a problem without the portein drinks (thats so funny since when I started them I wanted food now I want the protein drinks back) so I drank a ton of liquids so I probably have water weight in me but I've only lost 20 lbs. So I've gone from 320 to 300. I wanted so badly to get under the 300 mark but I'll have to wait until after. Pam 


07/29/2007

Post Date: 7/29/07 5:00 am

Hi Everyone,   I don't know how some of you went through everything you did but heres my story.  I went in on Wednesday morning excited but scared at the same time, but mostly excited for my surgery.  I had all my pre-op testing EVERYTHING.  Now go back 6 months; I had a scare In Jan 07 regarding cancer.  I had some lymph nodes in  my chest and stomach that were picked up on a CAT scan after having severe problems breathing and everything pointed to lymphoma cancer After the CAT scan I was devastated to say the least.  I just thought it was because I hadn't taken my water pill for a day or two.  So then they sent me to an Oncologist and surgery for a biopsy and found out I had a huge hernia and something called Sarcoidosis.  I'd had never heard of it before but after they explained it to me I was less devastated because it was way way better than the cancer.  So when I went into this surgery for the 3rd time I did so with more of an education.  Oh and by the way I had approval with Froedtert and Dr Wallace in 2004, let the approval run out because I didn't have the dedication at the time.  Then after wanting to get back into it sometime later say the middle of 2006 I went to Dr Wallace's office hoping to start over.  But when I got there what I got I didn't expect.  They did everything humanly possible to keep me from having the surgery.  I think they didn't like that I got approval and that maybe they did not realize that I was not committed, instead of looking at it positively that I made my decision not to when I felt I could not make the commitment.  But I thought I would continue regardless I thought eventually they would give in when I proved I was ready this time.  Well that never happened they just keep putting one demand on me after the other and I finally said forget it and good by.  So I found myself at Elmbrook which was another program I look at when I first looked into Froedtert but at that time I didn't like their support groups which is ironic since that is what I like the most about them now and grew to hate Froedterts.  But I thought that Froedtert was the hospital for the job and Dr Wallace was the surgery because of how big and well equipped the hospital and regardless of Dr Wallace lack of bedside manner or any manner for that matter he had tons of experience.  So back to where I was a couple of month ago.  I did whatever tests I hadn't already done that I could no longer use and with pushing the gal at Burhop's office got approval in a record 6 days once the paperwork was sent to the insurance company and mere weeks to get everything else done.  I had already had the 6 months within the last 24 months with my regular doctor and a lot of other requirements that thanks to Froedtert I got my surgery date.  So I know it took a long time but here I am again.  Remember I said I had the huge hernia and other past surgeries that doctor Burhop knew about he comes out of surgery telling my husband that my surgery was one of his most challenging because of the large hernia and the scaring from previous surgeries it was rough instead of 2 1/2 to 3 hours I was in there for over 4 1/2 hours WOW!  When I got out of surgery I was in the most pain I'd ever been in my life and I've had 2 children and labor pains for hours and even days and then c-sections and a few other surgeries down there too.  I was told that the extra pain could have been caused by the hernia surgery because they have to pull your stomach muscles together to close up the hernia.  Well first of all I provided Dr Burhop's office with a copy of a PET and CAT scans showing all of it which I now suspect no one even bothered to look at.  I have been on one after the other strong pain pills narcotics since I was released from the horrible place they call Elmbrook hospital!  How horrible!  I never felt like I was in such unprofessional hands in my life.  Not one person knew what the other was doing at all!  The kept contradicting everything they would tell me like no one had a clue.  I want you to know I am a very nice considerate patient person and I gave it my every shot to no avail.  Every time they would tell me something I would be confident and then someone else would come along and ruin it.  The one nurse that was on each floor each shift was so busy dispensing meds she didn't have time to do anything else and the nursing assistances all though well meaning did not know their butts from page 2.  All I did was cry and talk to others affiliated with Dr Burhop's office like a gal named Sarah that I never ever heard of until the day of my surgery but just after and then all she did was try and schmooze me.  I was in pain, frustrated and tired as heck.  Oh and by the way I didn't tell you about my first day after my surgery the nurse put me on a pulse monitor that clips to your finger but I was on a c-pap machine so when I would wear my mask and I always did the beeping from the machine was constant.  I was completely at the machine and the nurses mercy I could not even move to help myself so I would call the nurse in and cry telling her I had to get some sleep while the pain meds were working and if I didn't I was going to expire (and I really thought that could happen) she just kept it on me and kept letting it beep and I just kept crying my eyes out.  I honestly think after a while the nurses were taking revenge on me by not answering my calls and pleas  to them then they would go for blood and vitals during that 2 hours I would be able to sleep so I started to send them away without there vitals etc.  I even talked to any and all that would listen including Dr Burhop how awful it was there at Elmbrook and what I thought of everything in general..  Anyway if I had to decide it all over again I would have stayed on a damn diet no matter how hard it was it was better than this.  Now in order for this to level it's self off I will have to lose tons of weight and keep it off for the rest of my life every pound!  I would never even consider taking the excess skin off I will thankfully keep it forever.  I will keep coming to the support groups because I think I've earned them (if I'm ever better enough to go to another one) but again and I'm being extremely honest I would never do it again EVER!  I wondered why I'd never heard anything like this before on this site...Interesting...Thanks for listening Pam B           


  

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About Me
Franklin, WI
Location
39.0
BMI
RNY
Surgery
07/25/2007
Surgery Date
Sep 04, 2003
Member Since

Friends 33

Latest Blog 14
Finally I lost more than 1 lb!!!!!!!!!!!!
My update a long time coming...
I'm back on top, I think...
I can't believe how badly I'm doing........
15 weeks out, when call I start counting the months instead LOL
Finally I see a light at the end of the tunnel LOL.....
September 24th 2007 update....
9/17/2007 This is what I wrote to another member when ask-
I went to a wedding and I think did well....Update 8/27/07
8/13/07 Monday Update...

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