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

My older brother had it done almost a year or so before me and said if I can do it so can you. I thought yeah right whatever that would mean giving up my food you must be nuts.

Describe your experience with getting insurance approval for surgery. What advice, if any, do you have for other people in this stage?

I saw my doctor and almosty a few weeks later got the call from the receptionist to schedule my date.

What was your first visit with your surgeon like? How can people get the most out of this meeting?

I was slightly intimidated by him but some of that was he was a new dr. to me and i hate getting new drs. To get the most out of the dr visit, the most important thing is to not be afraid to ask questions and ask alot of them.

What made you finally decide to have the surgery?

the love and support from my family and friends. Also the fact that my favorite granny said she was very proud of me for wanting to do and she then got hurt and I wanted her to see the changes.

How did you decide which proceedure to have?

the doctor told me flat out that if I got my weight down to 350 then I could have it through the scope and that the hospital stay was alot shorter with the scope than open and I dont like hospitals.

What fears did you have about having complications or even dying from from the surgery, and what would you tell other people having the same fears now?

Death and that was about it other than that I was very comfortable with my surgeon and have total faith in him that if something happened to me on the table that he would take care of it.

How did your family and friends react to your decision? Would you have communicated anything differently if you could now? How supportive were they after your surgery?

my family and friends have helped me so much with love and support and i dont think they could be any more helpful if they tried. they have been by my side for this whole ordeal from the start and still are.

How did your employer/supervisor react to your decision? What did you tell him/her? How long were you out of work?

I am unemployed

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

I dont like hospitals period so maybe I am not the one to ask on that one. I was in for 1 1/2 days and that was enough. you just need to bring very lose pjs or pj pants to wear home. other than that you need nothing

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

I had none

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 and actually was way scared the day before when people were telling me that I could die and I was determined that they were wrong.

Describe your first few weeks home from the hospital. What should people expect from this period?

I had to limitations as to what I was allowed to do or not to do. everybody is differant so expectations will be differant.

How far did you travel to have your surgery? (If far, how did this affect your aftercare?)

i only had to go as far as st cloud so maybe 20 minutes and it maade my aftercare very easy.

Please describe in detail what things you could and couldn't eat in the weeks and months following surgery. What foods have been off limits? Please explain how your dietary tolerance changed week-by-week, and then month-by-month since surgery.

white meat chicken ~~ way to dry, veggie dip, tasted like acid on my tongue. eggs were just bad. Beef has to be med well done and barely pink in the middle so it is moist. other than that I can eat pretty much anything.

What was your actvity level in the days and weeks after surgery?

I was raking up my dogs kennel less than a week out of surgery. I had only taken my pain medicine3 times and that was to sleep not get through the day.

What vitamins and/or dietary supplements have you taken since your surgery?

1 flinstones chewable with iron and 1500 mg of calcium. protein shakes

What side effects (nausea, vomiting, sleep disturbace, dumping, hair loss etc.) were worse for you? For how long after surgery did they persist? How did you cope with them?

i really didnt have any of these but very slight hair loss and I figure oh well it will grow back

What was the worst part about the entire bariatric surgery process?

the hospital stay with dumb nurses.

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

the support group set up by the clinic I go to. They give alot of info and are very helpful to pre ops.

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

I have 5 tiny little scars as I had my surgery through the scope

Please describe any plateau experiences you have had since surgery.

none

Do you notice people treating you any differently now?

way differant it is like they arent afraid to be seen with me in public anymore so lets go do stuff now.