How did you first find out about bariatric surgery and what were your initial impressions of it?

I first hear of gastric bypasses being done in the early 80's, but heard such horror stories about the having to be near a bathroom whenever you ate, and wasting away from lack of nutrition, I knew my parents wouldn't ever consider helping me with that. I didn't really start looking at it again until after my stomach stapling had physically failed (the staple line failed) and my weight continued to balloon. I was skeptical, of course, but my surgeon took great care to study all about my previous surgery, why it had failed, and even drew pictures for my husband and I of what had changed in the procedure over the past 15 years and how I would benefit from it. I was scared and excited all at the same time.

What was your stay in the hospital like? How long where you there? What things are most important to bring?

My hospital stay was awesome. The nurses were extra careful and attentive to me and made me feel so important. They treated me as if I were their only patient - I never felt as if I had to wait for them to 'get around to me' or anything like that. I was in the hospital for 5 days - surgery on Tuesday morning, checked out on Saturday around noon. Remember to bring a lotion you like, hairbrush, q-tips, magazines (not books because you tend to want to rest them against your belly while you read - ouch!), deodorant, a list of phone numbers to notify people (because your husband may not remember where his list is!), and baby powder.

Did you have any complications from the surgery? If so, how did you deal with them?

Absolutely no complications at all! They could have written a textbook on my procedure and recovery!

In the weeks after you got your surgery date, how did you feel? How did you cope with any anxiety you might have felt?

I was scared taht the rug would be pulled out from under me at any moment - and in fact when the hospital tried to back out of the arrangement - I ended up fighting for what I truly believed was my chance at a better life. I was thrilled that I was going to be doing this with such an awesome, caring surgeon, and with my whole family's support. It was one of the most loving times of my life.

What aftercare support group/program do you have? How helpful/important is this?

There is a support group that meets at our hospital twice a month, but it conflicts with a prior engagement that I feel obligated to keep, so I haven't been as yet.

What is your scar like? Is this what you expected?

My scar is a little wider than I'd like, but it is already fading away and doesn't bother me. I was surprised that it goes down almost all the way into my belly button! I had 42 staples!

Please describe any plateau experiences you have had since surgery.

Since I don't weigh in between my surgeon's follow-ups every eight weeks, I can't tell if I've had any short-term plateaus. I am planning starting this week to up my protein intake from a minimum of 50 grams per day to about 80 grams to see if that will help things come off a bit faster. I do feel I am a bit slow in the weight loss area. The biggest disappointment I've had has been that I didn't take my measurements before the surgery so that I have inches lost to look at as well - not just the scale numbers.

Do you notice people treating you any differently now?

The people around me are just happy for me and they aren't shy about letting me know that - and that is wonderful! I'm still quite large at this point (around 280#) so I'm still large to people who didn't know me before the procedure. I do smile more. I do move a lot faster. And I go to the theatres to see movies again!