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

I HAD HEARD ABOUT IT YRS. AGO, BUT JUST ABOUT A YR.AGO I DECIDED TO TRY TO LOOK IT UP ON THE INTERNET. I FOUND OUT ABOUT IT BY GOING MILTON S. HERSHEY HOSPITAL. I LOOKED UP BARRIATRIC SURGEONS.

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

I HAD NO PROBLEMS WITH MY INSURANCE CO. BUT I WOULD TELL PEOPLE TO KEEP ON TRYING IF THERE INSURANCE CO. REFUSES. I THINK IT IS SOMETHING ALL INSURANCE CO. OUGHT TO COVER WHEN IT IS A HEALTH RELATED ISSUE.

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

MY FIRST MEETING WENT VERY WELL. HE WAS VERY NICE AND ACCOMODATING. HE ANSWERED ALL OF MY QUESTIONS HONESTLY AND COMPLETELY. ASK ALL THE QUESTIONS YOU CAN CONCERNING THE SURGERY. BEFORE AND AFTER.

What made you finally decide to have the surgery?

I JUST KEPT GAINING WEIGHT AND MY JOINT ACHED MY BACK HURT AND IT WAS BEGINNING TO GET TO HARD TO GET AROUND, AND I WAS HAVING A HARD TIME BREATHING. THE LEAST LITTLE THING POOPED ME OUT.

How did you decide which proceedure to have?

I WAS NOT ELLIGIBLE FOR LASER SURGERY SO I HAD TO HAVE THE OPEN RNY DONE.

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?

I DIDN'T HAVE ANY FEARS REALLY ABOUT COMPLICATIONS MY ONLY CONCERN MOSTLY WAS DYING AND THAT WASN'T A BIG CONCERN. I WOULD TELL OTHER TO PUT THEIR TRUST IN OUR LORD AND SAVIOUR JESUS CHRIST AND ACCEPT HIM AS LORD OF YOUR LIFE.

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?

I DIDN'T TELL A LOT OF PEOPLE I WAS HAVING THE SURGERY. NO I WOULD HAVE DONE EVERYTHING THE SAME. AFTER THE SURGERY EVERYONE WAS VERY SUPPORTIVE AND VERY INQUIZITIVE.

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

I WAS NO LONGER WORKING WHEN I HAD MY SURGERY. BUT WHEN I WENT TO VISIT MY WORK FRIENDS THEY WERE VERY SUPPORTIVE.

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

NO I HAD NONE REALLY. THING I HAD WAS I WOULD GET SICK IF I WOULD OVEREAT AND YOU SOONLEARN NOT TO DO THAT.

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

EVERYTHING WENT VERY SMOOTH FOR ME. RIGHT AFTER SURGERY I FELT A LITTLE WEAK BUT THAT'S TO BE EXPECTED.

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

I MYSELF SLEPT A LOT AND DID VERY LITTLE. I THINK FEELING A LITTLE DOWN BECAUSE YOU HAVE GIVEN UP ONE OF THE THINGS YOU REALLY ENJOY DOING AND THAT IS EATING.

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

I TRAVELED ABOUT 80 MILES. IT DIDN'T AFFECT MY AFTERCARE AT ALL. WHEN I HAD TO GO BACK TO SEE THE DOCTOR MY INCISION DIDN'T BOTHER ME THAT MUCH, MY INSIDES WEREN'T REAL SORE UNTIL THEN.

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.

AT FIRST I COULD ONLY TOLERATE LIQUIDS FOR ABOUT 6 WEEKS THEN I WENT ON TO SOFT FOODS LIKE BABY FOODS AND BROTH WITH A COUPLE OF CRACKERS FOR ABOUT 4 WEEKS. FROM THEN ON I WOULD TRY DIFFERENT THINGS LIKE EGGS, POTATOES (MASHED) GRAVY (MADE WITH LO-FAT BROTH),AND OTHER SOFT FOODS. AFTER THAT I WOULD TRY SOME MEAT. BUT MEAT STILL DOESN'T ALWAYS AGREE WITH ME.

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

I HAVE ALWAYS TAKEN IRON PILLS BUT I ALSO TAKE A MULTI VITAMIN AND A CALCIUM PILL.

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?

DUMPING WAS WORSE FOR ME. IT STILL HAPPENS IF I OVER EAT.

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

HAVING ALL THE TUBES ON. I HAD A CATHETER A DRAIN TUBE AND A TUBE UP MY NOSE AND DOWN INTO MY STOMACH. THEY PULLED THEM ALL OUT AT THE SAME TIME. THERE WERE 3 OR 4 PEOPLE THERE AND THEY EACH PULLED ONE. THAT WAS UNCOMFORTABLE.

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

THERE IS ONE AT OUR LOCAL HOSPITAL BUT I HAVEN'T BEEN THERE YET/

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

THEY CUT OVER AN OLD SCAR SO IT LOOKS BETTER THAN IT DID BEFORE.

Please describe any plateau experiences you have had since surgery.

I HAVE LOST 65 LBS. SO FAR AND I THINK I AM EXPERINCING A PLATEAU RIGHT NOW.

Do you notice people treating you any differently now?

NO, ONLY THAT THEY ASK ME HOW MUCH I HAVE LOST SO FAR.