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

I found out a few years ago from a friend of my daughters mother who had the surgery herself. I checked into it but still didn't want to think about taking that route as surgery scared me to death. But what scared me more was my doctor telling me that the way I was going i'd be lucky to live past 50 and the thought of that scared me more so I did alot of research and decided to go for it!

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

My insurance is Blue Cross and we didn't have any problems getting approval at all. They had talked with my doctors and found that it was cheaper to do the surgery than it was to treat me for Asthma, high blood presure, diebetes, sleep apnea, and joint deteration for the rest of my life! Which by the way all these things went away completely when the weight was gone!

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

Don't be affraid to ask questions and no question is dumb only the ones not asked are dumb! Don't be affraid to tell you surgeon your fears as he will help calm them! I was like a human sponge and wanted to know anything and everything and I talked my surgeon's ear off on our first meeting. I went online and did all sorts of research on this proceedure and even looked up my surgeons medical standings and cridentals! never hurts to know everything!

What made you finally decide to have the surgery?

When I had done all the research and my surgeon put my fears to rest we decided on a date and I just told myself that I have to trust the lord and that he will get me threw this. I even prayed "Lord if this isn't the way I should go then please stop it!"

How did you decide which proceedure to have?

I really liked the doctors and this clinic. The program they run the Tempus program is the most informative and I felt very comfortable with all the doctors and nurses there. Their sucess rate is awesome and I wanted to be added to that list!

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?

of course everyone fears being put under and not waking up and i'm no different there! My doctor who was in charge of putting me under came in and talked with me before hand and I looked him right in the eye and told him I had better see him in a few hours waking up or i'd come back and haunt him! He was right there with me as I came to with a huge smile saying welcome back!

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 did tell my friends who all live around me and of course my church knew of this and they all prayed for me. Some of my friends were very supportive and understood my medical need for this and some pulled away and just made comments like "you need to learnd to be happy with who you are" or "surgery is an easy way out just diet!" But for the most part my friends have been great threw it all. As for my family I didn't tell anyone at all except for my sister in Washington. As far as all my other family was concerned I had my gallbladder out an thats all they knew. I went home 5 months after my surgery and shocked the entire family and the look on their faces was well worth it! They now are very supportive and think I made the right decision!

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

I am my own employer so I was fine with it! Take all the time you need was my attitude! Actually I was up within hours of surgery and walking like crazy and on the mend. within a week of surgery I was feeling great and had no limitations other than no lifting.

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

I was in the hospital for 3 nights 4 days and it was a great experience! This surgery center was like none other that I had ever seen! Was like staying at a 4 star hotel all decorated nice and even let your spouse stay in the room with you with his own couch that folds out to a queen bed complete with his own breakfast area and fridge stocked! As for what to bring all I really needed was basics.....shower stuff, slippers, night gown stuff like that.

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

none at all. I was truly blessed and everything came off without a hitch!

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 doing real well till one day I took my husbands truck shopping. I lifted up the hard tunnel cover to put the bags in the back and when I pulled down on it I felt a burning sensation underneath my incision area. I went to see my doctor and he basically scolled me like a child and told me to knock it off and no more doing that. I had stressed my incesion area. So you see even if your feeling 100% please listing to your doctor and don't do things you shouldn't or you will pay for it!

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

its really exciting time because you are seeing the scale move so quickly and your clothes are becoming loose. On the flip side of that you are limited to what you eat and drink and soft food start to loost their appeal and you now want to eat different things!

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

The doctor and surgery center I choose is 45 minutes from me. Doesn't bother me one bit to travel every month there because I know i'm getting the best care possible!

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.

the first week is liquid only. then its soft foods like toast, jello, mashed patatoes stuff like that. Soaps become a big part of your diet during that time. at 6-8 weeks when you are healing nicely you can start eating other solid foods but in moderation. Red meats are hard to digest so I stay clear from them at this time. I am 6 months post op now and I can basically eat anything but I still eat whats good for me. I know if I start eating all the fast foods and fatty things then i'll defeat my purpose. I limit my read meat intake to maybe twice a month at most and sweets are only on rare occasions. Basically I eat like i'm on a health diet and take all my supplements every day!

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

I noticed that the more the weight came off the more I had energy and wanted to do more. I actually got to a point that I couldn't sleep at night and I had to learn to not take my supplements so late in the day cause they were keeping me up at night!

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

I use the GNC brand of womans dietary multi supplements and I also take the extra iron in the same brand and also the Biotin in the same brand. The biotin is for my hair loss and let me tell you it made a huge difference when I started taking it so I thank my doctor for recomending it to me!

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?

no side affects except for hair loss that started at 3 months post op. At first it was hand fulls each day but since taking the biotin supplements it has dropped off to maybe 10 strands a day. This supplement makes a huge difference!

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

The worst part besides the fear I instealed on myself was not having the support of certain friends who you thought should have supported you. My husband said that this is a time when you find out who your friends really are!

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

I have an "Angel" who was asigned to me online to follow me threw my surgery and process. She has been a god send to me and she also had the surgery a week before me so we have been loosing together! We meet for lunch and talk online when ever possible and this is the best support system I could recomend to anyone!

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

I have 7 tiny little scars that are the size of a pencil eraser head an they make a perfect circle around my belly button. Its nothing bad to look at and they are fading fast and as I said before its genitics as i'm lucky I heal nicely.

Please describe any plateau experiences you have had since surgery.

I haven't hit a plateau as of yet but my weight loss has slowed alot. Thats to be expected at this point and I have to work a little harder to get those last 23 lbs off but its well worth it.

Do you notice people treating you any differently now?

People who never came around me much before are now telling me how good I look and spending time with me........on the other hand friends who were close have pulled away. This can be a very emotional time at this point. Your not real sure who your true friends are! I guess for me I look at it like "If the liked me before and like me now then they are my friends" but if they didn't then I just be polite and think to myself that these people have no clue as to whom I really am!