kbl

hi bookleen.... as for me..... my situation is somewhat different then most... i am waiting for time to pass. see i have a new baby coming the end of august. i was not able to carry a pregnancy to term due to non weight related infertility issues so i have a gestational carrier who is pregnant with our child. so i am planning on having surgery the first week in august and then the baby is due to be born about the third week in august. we will induce about 39 weeks gestation if the baby does not come sooner. i am hoping that i will have a couple of weeks to re-coop before our addition. i do have a 6 month old right now so when the time comes i will have an 11 month old and a new baby(we are 2 1/2 weeks away from knowing the sex)... i figure i will be so busy then there will me no time for head hunger or "what was i thinking" and i figure i will already be tired. the other... and real reason i am planning on the timing is so that my recovery from surgery and my maternity time off work will happen at the same time. because i had and am having my children with a surrogate i do not get to use sick time off work for the maternity leave. if i have surgery i will be able to use sick time until i have used it all. so then i can use my vacation time later in the year for a family vacation...... see trying to work the system rules to best benefit me and my family. i will be self pay so i will not have to jump through the hoops for insurance approval. i did talk with my mom's sleeve doctor and he would not do surgery on me for the fact that i was a low bmi..... i think that it is totally crazy. i have been obese my whole life. i remember even as a small child the pediatrician telling me to loose weight. over the years i have lost and regained. now i am at my heaviest and they tell me i need to diet. give me a break i need to loose 70-80 lbs. i have a hard time loosing 10 lbs and then gain back 12. i guess their plan is for people to keep on the diet yo-yo for more years to finally hit the magic scale number that says... WOW you are fat now you qualify... or you have such co-morbidities that you qualify. so with that said i am planning on going to mexicalli with dr aceves. i have contacted the office and talked to monica. i need to fill out my full health history for the doctor. also i need to start renewing my expired passport. so i am still around but the timing is the issue with me. how are things going on your end? i am still so excited at even the hope that this tool is the answer for my life long battle with the bulg. my mom recently had the sleeve.... feb 2. she is doing great. down 40 plus pounds. wearing cloths she has not worn in 3 years. she still has alot more to loose but it seems effortless. she eats such a small amount and is totally satisfied. she can eat anything just in small amounts. she is loving the sleeve and is a big cheerleader for me and i am for her. so that also keeps me excited for the things to come. kelly

i know for myself and my mom... we both have Rheumatoid arthritis and take all kinds of medications for this, which includes NSAIDS. the sleeve was the only WLS option for us due to the drugs we take just to be able to function, my mom's sleeve was in feb of 2010 and i will hopefully have surgery in 8/2010. my mom has had no issues taking any of her medications. so i know that a motrin would be fine... just take it with a little bit of food so that it is easier on you stomach. which is suggested even if you have not had the sleeve. kelly

hi... well i have been a RN for the past 21 years working in the ICU. so in my experience. we always have people totally undress and wear only a gown to surgery. so... no panties please. as for your privacy in surgery.... well, you will have a sterile draping that will cover you from head to toe with only an opening where they do the surgical procedure. so you are covered during surgery. the only time you will be exposed is after you have been put to sleep by the anesthesia doctor. you will be draped for surgery and then at the end of the case when they remove the drape and put your gown back on. i would like to add, for those of you who are not in health care or have not experienced surgery before..... after 21 years in nursing, one naked butt looks like the next. i see so many naked people it does not even cross my mind. i am mindful to keep people's privacy but when you are in the health care field and work with acute care you really do not think anything about it. kelly

well girls it really is hard to feel your pain... i still long for the day. you are both so encouraging to me. tiffany even last night while i was at work i was looking at you before and after pictures on the computer. i had the after picture up when one of my co workers said who is that... i said one of my online friends... my co worker said "she is hot." sorry that you are frustrated today... but also looking forward to the day i am trying to eat vs trying not to eat. kelly

new grad.... totally understand. so work for one year. get some experience under your belt and then take the time off you need. kelly

today is the day... will keep you in my thoughts. kelly

just wanted to pipe in.... i struggled with infertility for 13 years. exhausting every medical procedure in hopes of a child. my infertility was not weight related... but no mater the reason the hurt and longing is the same. in the end i was unable to carry a pregnancy. this year at the age of 43 my beautiful daughter was born via the help of a gestational carrier. she is the most wonderful aspect of my life. we have a new baby to be born this coming august. so all i can say for all of you that long for a child is to hold tight to the dream. i will be your biggest cheerleader. kelly

hi brookleen... welcome. i am also in the planning and hoping phase. i have a low bmi of 31.8 and have searched out a doctor that recently did my mom's sleeve. he states i do not qualify and would not do the surgery even with self pay... anyway i am looking at going to mexico in august. we will see if it happens. the more i read on this forum and see the successes of other i am so excited about getting sleeved. the planning and hoping is thrilling see a light in the dark tunnel of obesity. again welcome and keep us posted on your journey. kelly

good luck and keep us updated on your journey. kelly

wonderful update. though i have not had my surgery yet... my mom is about 6 weeks out and i see in her "the down in the dumps" though she is always positive when i ask. the spark is alittle dim. though what i have read is that does get better. congrats on the weight loss. that has to be exciting. i love the thought of lossing 22 lbs. kelly

glad that it worked out for you and caysen to stay with your brother. hopefully in time things will be better. kelly

congratulations!!!!

tiff.. so sorry. i am one of those blessed with a wonderful mother and now am a mother to a beautiful daughter. so sorry that you have hurts from that relationship. cyber hugs. i pray that God will meet you and minister to you and your mom. that some day your relationship will have a testimony of God's grace and healing. in the mean time let those that love you and cherish you hold you up. thanks for all your kind words on this forum. you surely are a ray of sunshine to many of us. we love you!!!

i can only answer about the drain... i have not had the surgery but i have been an rn for the past 21 years. not all doctors will use the drain so it may not apply to you. it is called a JP drain. it is a small tube that they will place in in abdomen to drain any of the fluid they use for irrigation and also so that if you have any post op bleeding it will drain. the staff will monitor the drainage for color and volume. the drain is very small and is attached to a bulb to serve as a collection system. when empty to bulb is squeezed. this give the bulb some suction so the the fluid will drain. as the bulb fills there is less suction. the drain is attached to the out side with a suture and when it is time to pull out the sutures are removed and the drain is pulled. usually an RN will remove but some of the surgeons remove as well. the removal is not really painful but maybe a little uncomfortable but happens very quickly. usually the drain is removed a couple of days post op. hope this helps, good luck. kelly

hi so the answer is NO!!!! my mom just had the sleeve 2/2 /10 she is 62 years old has RA and HTN with a weight higher then 250. even though you do not know her... she still would no want her weight on this board. she is doing great. she did have to stop some of her RA drugs about one week pre op and was able to continue about 3 weeks post op so that her sleeve would heal. i also have RA and hope to do the surgery in august. so hope this helps. kelly

love the picture... i did not know they had magnetic paint... how fun. kelly

So this is the beginning..... I am starting this weight loss journey again. As most of you can relate, I have lost and regained several times in my life. The ending result is that I have reached a new highest weight. I do fall in line with a lower BMI, but I wonder if I do not do something now, will I just continue to reach new heights as the years go by? So I have decided to seriously contemplate the sleeve procedure. Even the prospect of the sleeve excites me. It does feel like for once in my life I can see a light at the end of the tunnel of obesity. That the sleeve is a tool that you never loose may just be the answer I have been searching for. Through the years I have been sucked in to the infomercials for weight loss... now I have a bin in my office of old promises that did not last. So here is to a new journey.... thanks for all the people who have shared their journey on this forum. You are all an inspiration to me. So to introduce my self. My name is Kelly. I am married and the mother of one wonderful little girl with a second child due in august via the help of a gestational carrier. We have three fur babies as well. I have been a nurse for the past 21 years working in the ICU. In so many ways my life is blessed. So why do I struggle with my weight???? Well maybe this is not an answer i can give. But I do hope to find hope for an answer... and that seems to be the sleeve. My mom just recently had the sleeve. She is doing wonderful. So I will have my biggest cheerleader and support person to help me along the way. So wish me luck. And if God ever lays me on your heart please pray for me and my family as we embark on this journey. kelly]

thanks for all your support. i so look forward to the journey. i spend so much time on this forum and looking at before and after photos. i have even dreamed of issues related to the sleeve. so my mind is thinking even when i am sleeping. regarding my baby's birth. i have had infertility issues for the past 13 years. not weight related but related to an autoimmune disease. in the end after years of trying every thing and having multiple miscarries we sought our a gestational carrier for our children. my daughter is now 5 1/2 months old and our new baby will be born the end of august. i am totally in love. when i think about my children i just do not want them to witness my struggle with obesity. i know food will always have to be monitored but my relationship with food will be more normal i think with the sleeve. as for timing. i hope to have the sleeve the first week of august. if all works out i will have surgery about two to three weeks before our new baby arrives and hope to be feeling better by that point. i will then continue my recovery from surgery as i am also on maternity leave from my work. with having surgery i will also be able to use up my big bank of sick time and not use my vacation time on my maternity leave. so i think that is a great plan. at this time i am planning on going to dr aceves for my surgery since i have a bmi of 31.8 and will be self pay. i am a nurse and never thought i would consider mexico. i did talk to a doctor in tucson and he said i would not even qualify for his program. point blank. so for surgery in tucson i would need to wait for several years and more weight gain and more comorbidities..... that just seems crazy!!! i have 70-75 lbs to loose. and i have been on some kind of diet it seems my whole life.... well at least planning some sort of diet. the more i read of dr aceves and his program in mexicalli i get more convinced he is the doctor for me. i love that he has so many patients on this board that highly recommend him and from what i can find on my own research a great reputation and wonderful surgical stats. so that is that. thanks again for your support. kelly

i know that is a wonderful feeling

that is true regarding the FMLA requirements. for the new grad of nursing... have you started your job yet? it not, have you considered having your surgery and then starting your position? with acute care, especially adult acute care, you will need to be off at least 5 weeks to 6 weeks depending on your specific area of specialty. the hospital where i work requires that you be able to lift 50 lbs to be eligible to work in any of the acute care units. there may be different requirements at other facilities. good luck. kelly

sorry i do not know why it copied twice.

just so you know surgery does fall under the FMLA guidelines. it is a federal law which allows you to have a leave of absence for up to a 12 week peroid of time per rolling year. you just need to talk with you HR department and fill out the proper paperwork. you will also have to have the doctor fill out a portion. i am sure the coordinators in mexico can work with you on the paper work..... all of this info is void it you are your own boss.... but if you work for someone else, just know that you can legally take off for medical issues and have your job back. at least check into it. there may be a criteria in regards to how big you work force is. i work in a hospital so it does apply to me..... good luck kelly

just so you know surgery does fall under the FMLA guidelines. it is a federal law which allows you to have a leave of absence for up to a 12 week peroid of time per rolling year. you just need to talk with you HR department and fill out the proper paperwork. you will also have to have the doctor fill out a portion. i am sure the coordinators in mexico can work with you on the paper work..... all of this info is void it you are your own boss.... but if you work for someone else, just know that you can legally take off for medical issues and have your job back. at least check into it. there may be a criteria in regards to how big you work force is. i work in a hospital so it does apply to me..... good luck kelly

keys... though i have not had the sleeve yet... i take aleve as part of my RA medications. i was directed to the sleeve because it was the WLS that i cound have and take my required medications. the only issue immediated pre and post op is the increase in bleeding. so since you are 6 weeks out, you should be able to take it. kelly

wonderful....thanks for letting us celebrate with you. kelly