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This post was born out of a few things that are going through mind just 14 months after my DS.

People have gotten pretty chatty and visual...and I sure didn't ask for it.

Let me explain...but before I do, this quote will sum up exactly what I mean:

"People don’t treat me different because I look different – they treat me different because I am different." -a priorfatgirl

I was the sort of fat person who rocked the boat. I was not docile and in a corner. I spoke my mind and I was not the person who shied away from confrontation. Now that I have lost weight, people make a point to say, wow, you're really happy, or you really speak your mind, or you're really assertive, as if to ascertain that somehow preserving the pylorus really preserved parts of my personality too? COME ON!

I am not going to ignore the fact that my appearance changed. But, I am also not going to walk around as a poster child for what has happened. I lost weight. No need to mention it (especially if you've seen me 800 times in the past year) STOP IT. Stop announcing "here comes skinny". Did you do that crap when I was fat? No? Then stop it. You suck.  It's not ok to pick apart people's appearance.  Wow, you looked older when you first started losing weight, and now, you look younger...like 12.  Great. You looked old before and now you look even older, and to boot, you're ugly...lol WHO SAYS THAT? I sure don't.  

I am just a little sick of people and their opinions on my body...wow! You're too thin, or wow, you have a lot of energy now that you've lost weight. Or wow, you really do have a glow about you.  I did not become alive when I lost weight. Sure, many areas of my life have improved, that's a given....but two things have NOT occured....

MY HUSBAND DID NOT START LOVING ME (He loves me no more at 126 than he did at 255) PULEASE
I DID NOT LOSE MY HEARING (I can hear when people talk about other fat people and it pisses me off! HELLO?)


This is a rambled, disjointed, semi-rant that I had to just get down on quickly. Maybe I'll revisit it later, or maybe I'll just continue enjoying my life.


 

Was the first day of the rest of my life...

As I sit here now almost 80 pounds smaller than I was just 3 short months ago, I am in AWE! 

I can cross my legs
No more PCOS symptoms
No more plus sized clothing
Size 12
No more snoring. I think my sleep apnea is gone
Normal blood pressure
 Normal blood sugars


I am so thankful. I could go on, but suffice it to say I am so glad I did it.

...are just not amusing!


Since I have a 2 y/o, the fun of getting on all the roller coasters hasn't happened yet. I guess I should be happy...although I have not gotten to the point that I cannot fit into the seats on the rides. there is one part of the parks that I cannot STAND...

THE WATERPARK!!  *cue dramatic music*

There are people of all shapes and sizes....big old bellies, flat butts, bikinis, tankinis, one-pieces...the whole nine...

So, when I went to the amusement park yesterday with the family. I couldn't help but dream about what I would look like and what options I'll have.  I kept imagining what I'd look like, what clothes I'd wear, how confident I'd feel in my own skin...how proud of myself I would be.

It made me rather sad, and I thought that too much of my life has been wasted on thinking about what other people may or may not be thinking about me.

That is so 2009.

2010 and better health here I come!!!

My psych eval was early in the day today. She asked questions about my family and background and it was pretty uneventful.

Later this evening, I went to the 2nd support group meeting and there was a presenter on sleep apnea. I learned a lot and the speaker had this interesting dry humor. I just kept thinking my C-PAP mask makes me sound like Darth Vader! OOOOH sexy!

Later I went out with the Philly group of the DSers from my clinic. WONDERFUL group of people!  I laughed for hours and had a really great time! It was nice to see what DSers really ate at different post op stages.  And no, no one was running to the bathroom in a poop dash! lol

I am looking forward to my meeting with my surgeon for the first tome.  

 I attended the monthly support group meeting for my clinic and there were easily 85-100 people there.  The room was filled with people intersted in DS, VSG, StomaphX, RnY, and lapband surgeries (which are the options that the clinic offers).

The surgeon that I am interested in is the director of the clinic, and came from another location in PA.

At first, there was an informational session about the importance of exercise, no matter if you are pre, post or no-op.  Then there was info shared on the walk from obesity in Sept. I wish it were more than just walking around an office park 3 times, but at a real park or some kind of trail, but I digress.

We then broke off into groups to peers to talk about the different surgeries.  I was chatting with a woman who was about 1 year post op (DS) and another group of ladies who were DS- pre-ops that I really hit it off with. We all are at different stages of the game, ready to take on this thing called WLS.

I am still deciding between the VSG and DS. I am currently 245 and I wonder if I can have good success with the VSG only???

I guess it all depends on Aetna, huh?

Today, I went to my local outpatient center and had all of my pre-op testing done:

EKG: Had to do it twice because the machine was broken. Someone also burst into the door and made my heart literally jump on the monitor....I mean, come on, do you people knock? I was nude for goodness sake! Waiting for those results.

Abdominal Ultrasound: Checking liver, spleen, kidneys, checking for masses/stones, etc. I got an email from my primary doc before I left the hospital on my phone that came back normal.

ABG: Arterial Blood Gas: Measures the levels of O2, Co2 and other gases in the blood. That also came back normal. 

I also had 9 vials of blood for stuff like cholesterol, A1C, etc and those should be back in a few days.

I sent my sleep study info over yo my doc as well as other info they need before my meeting with the surgeon.

LORD! If anything, I will know EXACTLY what's going on in my body from now until eternity! lol

I am getting excited as I get closer to the surgery and I can't wait for what I'm going to look like and feel like later :)

 I went to Abington Bariatric Surgery Warminster Campus in the Metro Philly area today to meet with a nurse for my intake appt.  My huge list of questions regarding VSG were quickly eliminated when the nurse said that she did not know any VSG of their patients who have become pregnant after surgery.  Pregnancy is one of the goals we hope to achieve after WLS, so RnY looked like it would be the best option for us right now.

On to the details...

When I walked up to the building, it looked lackluster and really old, but when I got to the lobby of the clinic.  This location is a satellite for the main hospital, so it is an older campus and is no way high tech like where I had my surgery info session. I was a little bummed...

Then I got upstairs to the center. I noticed immediately the HUGE chairs in the waiting room and huge entryway to accommodate WLS patients.  I also noticed the light, airy atmosphere that welcomed people who were considering surgery.

I just was not happy to be there.  I mean. there are some parts of me that felt like (as I was reading the pamphlet about the side effects) that I could really lose the weight on my own and I could really avoid all the potential things to go wrong like umm death and dependance on a doctor and vitamins for the rest of my life.

Then I woke up...I have been overweight for over 20 years.  I have been "dieting" my way into an early grave forever, and grave measures need to be taken to combat this.  I cannot do this alone.

So, I have an appointment with the surgery doc on 8.25.09 as well as the nutritionist and psych consult.  It is up to me to get all the pre op bloodwork and appts out of the way before I see him.

Wish me luck. Honestly, my heart is heavy today. This is such a serious decision.




 

I have started gathering information about the VSG vs RnY.  I hope to get answers to all the questions below and post them here.  I was also considering going to Cali since there is 1 doc who has done over 1500 lap VSGs. My prospective surgeon has not done many.  Not sure about Mexico and traveling there...

Here are the questions:

1. How many VSG’s have you done? According to the Second Annual International Consensus Summit for Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy (Vertical Gastrectomy) in Miami, Florida, complication rates were higher and weight loss was less adequate in locations where the experience was less than 300 patients.
2. What would make me want to choose you as a surgeon when there are several in the area?
3. What long-term risks are there with VSG? Any risks of cancer due to removing portions of the stomach (and cells needed for absorption) Does VSG encourage abnormal cell growth in the long term?
4. What other non-bariatric surgeries are comparative to VSG where a portion stomach has been removed? (ie. Ulcer disease) What are its long term effects on:
   1. Digestion
   2. Nutrient absorption
   3. Pregnancy
   4. PCOS
   5. Anemia

 

5. Since I am anemic, I looked at VSG as one of the best options for me. Do you agree? What concerns do you have with someone who is anemic having RNY vs VSG?
6. What can prevent the increased risk of pancreatitis in WLS patients?
7. What are some ways to get protein in other than lean meats? After surgery, I’d like to maintain a vegetarian diet.
8. I am concerned about the long-term effects that the staples could have on my stomach. I am concerned that because these staples are metal objects they can end up hurting the tissue on my stomach. Is this possible? If it happens, what procedures do you have in place? How long do the staples last in the body?
9. What is the difference between the stomach stapling of the 1970’s and VSG?  What long-term studies are there about the stapling?
10. What are some of the recent studies on maintaining weight loss after VSG?
11. Should I need to go on to the DS in addition to the VSG, would I be a candidate, given my medical history?
12. What statistics are there about the VSG outside of the US?
13. Do you do bariatric surgery routinely as a substantial part of your practice?
14. Are you accustomed to doing bariatric procedures on a routine basis?
15. Do you offer a post op leak test? How long after surgery? Will doing a leak test so close to surgery cause unnecessary bleeding?
16. What size pouch do you create for the VSG?
17.  If I have surgery elsewhere, can I utilize the post op care at your location (psychologist, group therapy, medical attention) provided that I give all medical records?
18. Will I have any future issues of absorption of medications unrelated to WLS?
    
19. Does VSG exacerbate any conditions in the body unrelated to the gastrointestinal and digestive systems? (In other words, does it cause undue stress over time)
20.  What types of long term nutritional testing is in place to be certain that in several years my nutritive levels are normal?
21. How will my bowl movements be? Will I have uncontrolled, embarrassing urges?

 

 

Before June 2009, I researched WLS and even went to a meet and greet of women from BAF OH back in 2003.  I was too scared to go under the knife.  I knew about Lap RNY and that is what I wanted to pursue. I considered myself weak, and felt like I could lose weight on my own.  

Fastforward 6 years later, after Weight Watchers 3 times, LA WeightLoss, Nutrisystem 2x.'s, a medically supervised very low calorie diet and countless "restart Mondays", I ballooned from 213 to 250, then lost 8 lbs since the beginning of 2009.

6.13.09 
Several friends have had WLS, and bumping into 3 of them at one party got me to thinking about considering surgery again. I have been seeing my doctor for a community weight loss/health initiative, and I have been consistently exercising and trying to control what I eat, but I feel like the surgery will help restrict my caloric intake and help me get to my goals.

6.16.09
Sent an email to my primary care doc, letting her know that I was interested in WLS. She said she would do whatever I needed in order to get me approved. She felt like i was a good candidate. 

6.18.09
I attended an information session at a local hospital.  At the last minute, my babysitter fell through, and my husband was not able to attend. I really wished he could to hear all the information out there.  One thing that struck me is that obese people have a 400% chance of getting diabetes. With an A1C myself of 5.9, I am well on my way to being a statistic.  I want to reverse that.  I have an appointment on 6.30 with the RN at the practice to have a pre-op meeting.

6.19.09
I contacted my insurance company about coverage for the procedure. (Aetna) said it was covered provided that I have a BMI over 40, need to lose over 100 lbs or have co-morbidities like high blood pressure or sleep apnea.  I'd like to get approved for the Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy because I am anemic already and I do not want to malabsorption that comes with the RnY.  I also hear that there are so many people who are getting revisions to their surgery due to the band. I don't wanna get on the "band-wagon" AT ALL.

I pray that God opens doors for me and that all is revealed in my pre-op testing and psych testing to help me to be as safe and successful as possible.  I pray for a smooth process from beginning to end with the medical and personal support I need to keep it moving!