Eureka-C

That's so awesome! Way to go spiderNana.

One of my biggest fears was throwing up and tearing something. I told my surgeon, my anesthesiologist, my nurses, everyone. They gave me plenty of anti- nausea meds. I only had one incidence of nausea while waking up in recovery and they had the med ready and in my IV quicker than I could say I felt sick. Usually morphine and the other narcotic pain meds make me violently I'll and the world spins so bad I can barely sit up, but this time The nausea was only mild and the spinning mild. They have excellent anti- nausea meds now so there is no reason to suffer.

I had my surgery Monday, so I will be having turkey broth and cranberry juice. Yummy.

I love to read blogs. I read a lot of them on here. I know there are more out there on other blog sites. I would love to read yors. Here is mine: Eureka-thicktothin

Chili can usually be made healthy, add some black Beans , lowest fat meat/or turkey if you can take it. Its one of the few healthy dishes that my husband says doesn't taste like diet food. there are also some great kid friendly ramen noodle recipes that are good for picky eaters. When hunting for recipes on the internet, look for healthy kid friendly recipes as they often work for picky eaters. (my mom is the picky eater in my family. I remember many firsts on trying new foods at friends houses as we didn't eat them at my house - pees, broccoli, cauliflower, liver, cesar salad, taco sauce, brussel sprouts, cheese other than american, grilled onions and bell pepper... my mom swears that I could not be her child).

OMG! I am on top of the world. I have been waiting what seems like forever. I first started considering surgery and researching my options back in February after my latest diet failure on Alli and reaching my highest weight ever. :sad0:I went to some seminars in April and May, but was still unsure which surgery I wanted. I finally went to the BSC in Dallas with Dr. Davidson (I had avoided his seminar because it was not free) and had a complete health screening along with a group information session and one-on-one session with the insurance coordinator, as well as a one-on-on consultation with the RN. Of course, I also met the surgeon. I loved the way they did things and completely answered all my questions. I decided on VSG. :001_smile:They applied to my insurance for approval for all three surgeries, and I was approved for RNY and band, but not VSG. (Insurance is BCBS CA even though I am in Dallas) I had a long cry :crying:and decided that if I could not have VSG, then I would wait, because I didn't like the other surgeries. My husband told me to research a loan, and I did, even got a loan approved. I decided with some support on here that I could appeal. If I lost the appeal, then I would do the second appeal (IMR), and only if I lost that would I get a loan. I set myself up for a long wait and soon was depressed, :sad0:quit trying on the diet the RN set up with the nut for me. I appealed, but did not get my hopes up too high. WELL...... Today was the 30 day mark after my appeal, so I called the insurance. The person who was over my appeal was out on vacation. ARGHHHH!! I told myself that I wasn't going to give up. I would keep calling until somebody answered my questions. I called the number she left as a standby on her voicemail. That person was out of town as well. So I called the number she left as a standby on her voicemail. Finally I reached someone. They looked up my file and said I WAS APPROVED. I won the appeal. I cannot believe it. The letter was mailed on the 28th so it should be here today, tomorrow or Monday. I actually screamed when she told me, then I told her. "I love you! Thank you!" I can't believe I said that. It just came out. Thank you to everyone out there that said to keep trying and gave me copies of their appeal letter. A copy of my letter is on my blog at From Thick to Thin

Yeah!!!!!! I am sooooo happy for you.

Alcohol sugars are very very bad for me. Send my bloodsugar plummeting. Good luck finding those bars and let us know.

I have heard about people's tastes changing. I hope it recovers for you.

[/color]I tried to find the medical term in english, but could not. Hernia is a lot of things - what I mean is, when the small instestines are twisted, or go through the incistion holes. A lot of people have problems after surgert with these kind of hernias/twisted intestines - and its lethal/mortal. But as far as I can se, this is more common for bypassers than for sleeve-patiens? One of the reasons that my brother in law had to get wls was that he was getting hernias from his stomach muscle being stretched out too much and leaving weak spots. He was told that the surgery was likely to cause another hernia since he had them already. Sure enough, he got two hernias after the surgery. They kept him in the hospital and patched them all up with this mesh stuff after he lost 50 pounds, and they haven't returned. He did have RNY, but I don't think his hernia was due to the type of surgery, rather his weight and they way he put on weight below the muscle with this large round firm belly, like he had an exercize ball under his shirt.

the first thing I noticed was that you are 105 pounds less than your highest weight. 105 pounds! That is amazing. I haven't had the surgery yet, but I sooooo know what you are talking about when you know what you need to do and still can't/won't do it. I plan on following what the doctors tell me, but then I always have good intentions. I wondered if you had been brave enough to track your food intake. Also, I noticed several people joined weight watchers to have the support system and a little more guidance. I also was not sure, but are you still losing, just slowly or have you stopped losing? If you are still losing, even slowly, then maybe you should ease up on yourself a bit. Finally, I find it easier to break one habit at a time. So maybe taper off the coffee to a reasonable level, then work on the grazing or visa versa. Also, maybe a bit of behavioral therapy along with the insight therapy. Like, "When I want to eat, I will wait 5 minutes." then a week later, increase to 6 minutes and so forth until you are down to 5-6 small meals a day. Oh yeah, I just thought of something else. Are you thinking, that if you don't graze, then you only get to eat 3 times a day, maybe if you plan the 6 meals a day and have them ready, then you will have each one to look forward to. Just some thoughts. I hope something works for you. Don't give up the therapy.

I was reading something online, I don't remember where, that very low calorie diets are associated with depression, and it can be a side-effect of post-wls low calorie intake. If it gets too difficult, you may want to consider an Anti-depressant until your body finishes healing and you can eat a bit more.

For some of these so called professionals, I just want to ask them, "what the he$# is wrong with you? Don't you think we have tried and failed enough? It is a slap in the face." I don't have a problem with the liquid diet pre-op or changing habits, but a pound a day until surgery? Some people don't even do that after surgery. I hope you can find some sane answers from the surgeon, if not maybe you should find another one.

Thank you for coming back and sharing with us. I know it can be hard when it seems everyone is talking about how good they are doing. I hope that things are smooth sailing for you from now on.

1. I want to be healthy. Especially no diabetes like everyone else in my family. 2. I want to ride a roller coaster without fear of being asked to get off because the bar won't lock. 3. I want to sit in a booth without my fat belly hanging over the table. 4. I want to buy those adorable outfits on the mannequins. 5. I want to sit on a lawn chair without worrying about the weight limit. 6. I want to be able to ride piggyback without breaking the piggy's back. 7. I want to go scuba diving. 8. I want to be comfortable in a swim suit. 9. I want to play outside with my children without getting out of breath. 10. I hate the words "morbid" and "obese"

I believe every person has to make a personal decision. That being said, I know that decision can be a difficult one, and hearing from others helps. I chose the sleeve over RNY, because of several reasons. 1. I am a person who likes to eat large amounts. I think the restriction will be the most important tool for me. 2. I am concerned about the malabsorption of the RNY. I have a brother in law who has done very well so far on the RNY, but I am still concerned. It is important to me to eat as close to a varied normal diet as possible once I have healed and reach maintenance levels. I know I will still have to take vitamins and B12 due to the limited intake and the need for b12 to be processed by the acids and enzymes of the stomach. As for the sweets issue, people can sabotage their surgery by eating high calorie slider foods. Is this something you are willing to take ownership of and combat? The sleeve is a tool, and you have to work the tool by following the post surgery guidelines. That is true for all weight loss surgeries. You have to decide if you are ready for this.

Tiffykins, I hadn't heard about the microvilli growing back. That I fascinating. Do you remember where you read this?

I have blue shield CA, and I wrote my own letter. I think that was an important part of my appeal. I posted my letter on my blog, if you want to read it. others have posted their appeal letters or will email you a copy if you ask. I would go straight to the IMR appeal, but include a letter from you and from your surgeon. Don't give up. http://eureka-thicktothin.blogspot.com/

HOw exciting! Let us know how the shopping goes.

I find that it helps me to calm the fears if I write down all the reasons that I am doing this. I basically argue with myself.

My Pre-op visit sounds much the same. Its scheduled for Nov 10. I am sooo excited for you!

Thats awesome! You look like you are close to goal too?

If you made this choice change last minute, what are your reasons? I find that it is helpful to me to have to write down why I made this choice over band or RNY. If you cannot do that, maybe you need to postpone the surgery and do the research so you are sure that this is what you want. Most people struggle during those first few weeks after surgery. I can imagine that it would be doubly difficult if you are not absolutely sure this is what you want, and you have those reasons clear in your mind to help you through the difficult times.