Catie

I had no pain meds. Not in the hospital and not at home. I did take an Aleve on the day I went back to work, but just once to make sure I could make it through the day. That was one week post op and I didn't need it. My pain was more like soreness, I walked a lot in the hospital as soon as I could and felt fine by day 4. Your mileage may vary!

Mine was 1 week clear liquids, then 2 weeks purees, then 3 weeks soft foods.

Hi everyone! Sleeved on 12/27 and down 25 lbs as of Thursday 1/5. I'll take it! I have had an AMAZING recovery. I feel great, never took any pain meds either in the hospital or at home, no nausea, could drink normally from day 1, etc. It"s been a piece of cake so far (knock wood). I'm still on the puree phase (1 week clear liquid, 2 weeks pureed, 3 weeks soft food), but I'm slowly adding in some soft food because I am tolerating everything. I'm trying an egg tomorrow morning and am excited. I think for me, the most amazing thing about this journey so far is just how great I feel, how few calories I am having and how utterly unconcerned by food I am. This is such a switch from pre-sleeve days when I would be daydreaming about lunch and where I was going to eat by 8:30 a.m.! By the way, I'm Catherine, age 40, married with a 6 year old son. I am the Director of Compensation and Benefits for a large company. I live in Cincinnati and am thrilled to find support here because I have yet to find a real life support group that isn't lame.

I am the Director of Compensation and Benefits for my company and I can tell you that there is a world of difference from insurance plan to insurance plan as to requirements and if WLS is covered at all. If your new company is "fully insured" than they buy insurance from a carrier (I think you mentioned UHC). Depending on the rider they purchase, WLS may or may not be covered and UHC may have its own, sometimes stringent, hurdles to overcome (6 months of diet, 5 years record of morbid obesity, co-morbidities, etc). You'll just have to see what the plan says. If your company is "self insured" that means that the company itself pays the bills and UHC would simply process claims. The employer decides whether or not to cover WLS and criteria for approval...not UHC although many self insured employers are guided by carriers in establishing approval criteria. I lucked out. My company is self insured with UHC, and I just had VSG on Tuesday. I have only worked there for 6 months, was not required to do a supervised diet and only had to provide 5 years of medical records showing BMI over 40. That was it. I got approval within a week of submitting records. But I know I am the exception rather than the rule. Most insurance approval is a lot tougher. Good luck and one final piece of advice you can do now...ask your HR person for a Summary Plan Description (SPD) of the medical plan you will be starting in January. In that SPD, you will find the plan's inclusion or exclusion of weight loss surgery and if allowed, what criteria for approval exists. You'll know before January where you stand.

I'm heading in tomorrow morning as well, with some of the same anxiousness. I am both scared and excited to begin this journey. Best wishes for you!

My surgery is December 27th in Cincinnati with Dr. Trace Curry. Pre-op testing and nutrition class are on December 5th. I'm excited and nervous at the same time, but looking forward to being thin in 2012!