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

Like I said before, I found out about bariatric surgery on TV and then found the doctor.

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

Insurance approval 4 years ago was hell. I knew I had to get my life together so I just did the surgery and waited for the rest to follow. I do not expect people to do what I did and just have the procedure anyway, but I knew I had to if I wanted to live.

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

My surgeon was wonderful. Soft spoken and non judgemental. He did not act like he was G-D and he listened to me. Remember he went through my diet and weight loss history way before he met me so he knew what I had been through. My husband kept telling him what a wonderful thing he does. That he saves so many peoples lives. Just tell your surgeon your fears and trust his judgement.

What made you finally decide to have the surgery?

I finally decided to have the surgery when I found out my medical condition was terrible and I was just going down hill.

How did you decide which proceedure to have?

I knew I did not want the procedure called the band and his was different. He drew me a picture of what I was going to have and told me I still could eat and get nutrients. So that was the one I chose.

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 trusted my surgeon so completely that I had no fears. I had more fears when I had my gallbladder operation because they gave me too much anethesia that I almost died, that was due to my weight.

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, except for my husband and children, did not want me to do this. I did what I wanted to do for me and my health and now they tell everyone to go for this surgery.

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

My employer is my husband so there was no problems there. I came back to work 2 days after being out of the hospital. I got out on a Saturday and was back on Monday. The only problem I had was that I was a little weak.

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

I stayed at St. Anthony's Hospital in St. Petersburg, Fl. The nurses, doctors, staff everyone was wonderful. I was there a total of 5 days only because my doctor went away and his partner would not release me. The most important thing to bring with you besides a positive attitude, is toiletries. Other than that, most things are supplied. ( At least they were supplied to me).

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

My surgery went like a dream. I had not complications and no problems.

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

The only thing I felt for the first couple of weeks after the surgery was that my energy level was way down. I took vitamin supplements. I had no anxiety at all.

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

I am the exception and not the rule. After surgery, I went right back to work. I had no pain or discomfort. As a matter of fact, I thought that maybe I did not have the surgery because I felt so good. I was suppose to rest for 6 weeks but I felt so good that I went back to my everyday activities except my eating habits changed.

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

My surgeon is not far from me. I traveled maybe 15 miles so aftercare was no problem.

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.

Following the surgery and now even 4 years later, I cannot eat: 1. Ice cream 2. Chocolate, anything with too much sugar, soda, alchol, meat, chicken, turkey, heavy gravys. Too much dairy products. Most of the foods that I could not tolerate were off limits anyway so that was great. Week by week my diet changed because I of all the foods that I mentioned earlier that I could not digest. I began eating a lot of fruit and veg. I eat fish once a month and I do eat a lot of carbs because I exercise between 1-2 1/2 hours a day and need the carbs in my diet.

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

In the first couple of weeks my activity level was pretty low. I told my doctor that I had to eat at least 6 small meals a day to get through the day because after the surgery I was still way over 260 lbs. As the days and weeks past, with help from my great supplements, my energy level is better than my son's who is 24 years old.

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

I have tried different supplements. I cannot swollow pills so I was serching for liquid vitamins. I found some but they tasted so terrible I could not take them. Today I am on the greatest supplements called Isotonix. They taste great and are mixed into a small amount of water. They get absorbed into my body within 5 min and do not take up any space. I take OPC-3, Vit E, Calcium with added D, Aloe, minerals, and B complex and B12.

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?

Nausea was bad in the begining, I did loose hair but I did not experience any other problems. After 4 years, my hair is finally coming back but I still get nauseous every now and them. I just learned to live with it.

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

The worse part of the bariatiric surgery was the wait.

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

When I got the surgery, I asked my doctor about support groups and there were none. He started one about a year ago and now I go to a group once a month. We have between 15 and 50 people show up at someone's home each month. It is improtant to go to these groups so you can learn how to cope with certain problems that may arise. Also these groups have people who have not yet had their surgeries and they are courious to find out about it. My doctor has now expanded his support group to include many other doctors. Each month a different doctor attends and you can ask him any questions and many of the post-op's answer many of these questions too.

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

My scar is pretty big but it is fading somewhat. I did not care about the scar. My stomach is so scarred up anywhy from my gallbladder operation, it just did not matter to me.

Please describe any plateau experiences you have had since surgery.

I did plateau but not until I had lost most of my weight. I did go down too much and I stopped exercises so much and gained a couple of pounds and I am now at the weight I want to be and the size I want to be I have been holding this weight and size for 2 1/2 years now.

Do you notice people treating you any differently now?

Not really. Maybe they do, but I was always outgoing and had so many people around me that I do not see any difference.