one_elle26

There is an Australian thread called Attention ! Australian Sleevers, here at Vertical Sleeve Talk. Have a look in the 'Forums' tab????? Look forward to seeing you there one_elle26 (Michele)

Wow, so much to catch up on!!!! Dean, I'm a BFB too!!!! Great read, made me laugh!!!!!! Congrats to Dean and Kate on becoming 'obese or overweight' *can't go back to posts to check* sorry great work!!!! Bella I have worked with women for some of my career and they are so b*&^%y!!!! and Dean if you tell them to *mind their own business*, then they start throwing knives in your back while you're not looking!!!!! I am still on the 'search' for a new surgeon and trying to get back on the ' surgery train' . Keep on keeping on everyone!!!!! Have a great day. Michele

Hi everyone, My name is Michele and Dean, I don't have a 'decent' photo to post, so when I do get one I promise to use it. I'm having a bit of a tough time at the moment because my Surgeon cancelled my surgery, because he didn't like being told I wasn't happy with his 'customer service'. So, I am in 'limbo' at the moment, because I have had to go back to the start with a new Surgeon, and I have no idea when or if I will have surgery. Today I am feeling like it is all too hard and that it would be much easier if I didn't have surgery. I was so 'ready' for surgery on the 19/3 , with holidays, family functions and all of the 'everyday' preparations in place that I feel like my whole world has been flipped into 'chaos'. I will keep you posted if there is any news. Congratulations to everyone on your successes. Best Wishes Michele (yes, it is spelled with only " one_elle", that's where my nickname came from .lol)

Welcome, RockTheKazBar, this is a great forum which is full of great advice and support. All the Best with the 'waiting' for your op, it will get here!!! Best Wishes one_elle26

Hi Sue, Welcome to the group. I'm a bit of a 'ring in' but there aren't any good pages for 'Bypassers'; I am having my op on the 19th March. I am about as far away from you in Vic as you can get as I'm in Mornington, but distance is no problem with the Internet. Good Luck with the Opti...fortunately, I only have to do 2 weeks pre op, so I start next Tuesday. I look forward to hearing about your success. Best Wishes One_elle26

Congratulations...well deserved for both achievements. Best Wishes One_elle26

Seth, I hope you have a safe surgery and a speedy recovery. Best Wishes one_elle26

Welcome B1zzyL1zzy, not long now and I will be hot on your tail as my surgery is on March 19th, and the wait has seemed like an eternity. Best Wishes one_elle26

Hi Sconatsam, I had my band removed in December and am waiting to have a Bypass in March, and yes I did have to do the 3 weeks of injections post op. I also had Clexane the night before my op and I have been told that I will be going to Intensive Care after my Bypass because of the past Pulmonary Embolism and because I have very mild sleep apnoea. I try not to 'stress' about these things but as a Nurse I know that my past history does increase my risks during surgery. I have to keep reassuring myself that the 'risks' of staying obese are greater than having surgery to become 'not obese'. The other major reason for me having surgery is that I have had a foot reconstruction which is giving me trouble after 7 years and if I don't lose the weight, I will be confined to a wheelchair / motorised scooter....not what I want to do!!!!! I'm sure your Surgeon will take extra care of you with regards to surgery and if it doesn't happen on Thursday, then it will happen as soon as it is safe for you. As I said, everything is crossed that your surgery gets done on Thursday. one_elle26

Hi, that is a real bummer!!!!! And having to wait over the long weekend for a result will seem like an eternity. I have had pulmonary embolisms too, and had them misdiagnosed and it is very frustrating. And the prospect of going back onto the Warfarin and all the blood tests must be daunting. Fingers crossed that when the Doctors review the X -rays they decide that is the 'old clot' and that your surgery can proceed. All the best for Thursday *doing the positive thinking thing!* and I hope your surgery goes smoothly and that you make a speedy recovery. Best Wishes one_elle26

Hi SwiftKate, I would be concerned about infection. You may need some antibiotics and I agree with Deano, I wouldn't be waiting a week to see my GP, I would be pushing to get seen sooner than this. It may just be 'adjustment' to the sleeve, but at only 8 days post op, I would err on the side of caution, especially since eliminating obvious causes like dairy didn't make any difference to your symptoms. Best of Luck one_elle26

Hi SwiftKate, I wouldn't be swimming only two weeks post op; the wound glue wont deteriorate in a shower because we are only in a shower for a few minutes but we tend to stay in a pool for much longer and my concern would be that your wounds might begin to break down. We usually tell patients six weeks for complete healing. The other risk is that these 'incision sites' are a direct route into your abdomen and if perchance you got an infection it could get inside and be very uncomfortable. Perhaps call your Surgeon and him for his advice. Re, driving, generally a week after an anaesthetic you should be fine to drive but if you are still on strong pain killers or having any episodes of dizziness it's best not to drive. Like everything about surgery, it's an individual thing, although someone on another site did mention that your Insurance company might have a policy about this. I hope you make a speedy recovery. Best Wishes one_elle26

Kelliv, on the the other site that I belong to, they suggest calculating your protein requirement by multiplying your weight by 0.8 (eg. 90 kg x 0.8 = 72 gm Protein) to get the required amount of protein to burn calories. Congratulations on your loss so far and I am sure you will find a way to 'kick-start' the weightloss again. best Wishes one_elle26

Kelliv, there is evidence that having adequate sleep can help with weight loss. I was sceptical until I was diagnosed with mild sleep apnoea about a year ago, and long before I knew that I could have 'revision surgery' after my 'failed band'. Anyway, I lost between 10 and 15 kg without doing anything except using a CPap machine. I was sleeping better!!!!! So I believe that using your CPap for a bit longer will possibly have a very positive effect on further weight loss. Well Done on your hard work so far. KristiP, If my memory serves me correctly, Stephen has always believed in using only Optifast for his pre op prep. Good Luck with it. Best Wishes One_elle26

Hi, KristiP, please don't be too hard on yourself about 'losing weight' pre op, (I presume you're on Opti) it's not about weight loss it's about 'shrinking ' your Liver so that Stephen can get good access to your stomach to do the surgery. Besides 1.6 kg in a week is a great loss anyway! You're doing a great job just by sticking to the Opti program, it's not easy to make such a drastic change to your diet. Also, you talked about how you may have portrayed Stephen as a bit of a negative person. I didn't think that at all...as you said he is a product of the era when surgeons were taught that they are somehow 'superior' to their patients...as I said I have known Stephen since he was working towards becoming a surgeon and he has always been super confident and a 'wee bit' arrogant, however, as I have said before, his surgical skills are brilliant. I have referred family members to him for other surgery but not for weight loss surgery. I was his patient through 2 Lapband ops and he removed my Gallbladder (which he said was in the top 10% of the worst Gallbladders he had ever removed) and I was very glad it was Stephen doing that surgery. You are correct in saying that you are in good hands for the surgical part of the surgery but you will need to find someone else to give you that 'pat on the back'. This group is very supportive and has lots of knowledge .I don't post much here because I am still waiting for my surgery so I have no insight about the post op phase. I do read the posts on most days. Stay strong, you can do this!!!!! Sending a BIG 'pat on the back' to you for all of your great work. Best wishes one_elle26

Hi again, Puppyphat: I think you look amazing and I'm with Lila, if you feel good then that is all that matters. I try to live by the 'code' "What anyone else thinks of me is none of my business". Sometimes easier said than done, however, in this case I think you could apply it and disregard the negative comments from people who do not understand your great achievement. Sarahjp: I have known Stephen for about 35 years as we 'trained' at the same hospital all those years ago. And yes, he was my 'Band' Surgeon and I found his bedside manner a bit abrupt, although, I would entrust my life to him if I needed any kind of 'lifesaving' surgery because, you don't get to be the 'head' of a Department in a major Hospital without having exceptional skills. The other reason that I have changed Surgeon, and probably the most significant reason, is that I now live in Mornington and I have trouble driving long distances because of a painful foot, so I see a Surgeon located in Frankston. I hope that Stephen surprises us all and gives you a pat on the back because you have done really well. I hope you both continue to achieve your goals. Best Wishes one_elle26

Hi everyone, I don't post often, however, I want to congratulate all of you who have reached a goal. Deano: soooooooo close to halfway, what an inspiration. I hope I can do as well after my surgery in March. Lila: 50 kg down...WOW!!!!!! what a remarkable achievemnet in spite of having such a rocky post op experience. AussieGirl: Sorry to hear about your ankle, I hope you make a speedy recovery. Sarahjp: Please don't get your hopes up that Stephen will give you a pat on the back, it's not his style. That is an amazing result and you should be very proud of yourself. Apologies if I have left anyone out, I read all of the posts here but I don't post very often. Great work All. best Wishes one_elle26

Hi Lila, that's not good. You were having a pretty good run, finally. With the heat, are you able to drink? Can you make yourself some Protein shakes using Protein powder with some sort of liquid like skim milk or fruit juice? I hope that you are feeling much better today. One_elle26

Deano, you mentioned that you wanted to buy a Vitamix , I did a bit of research and there is a website at : www.kitchenwaredirect.com.au and they have the Vitamix for $899.00. They also have the Thermochef, which seems to do everything that the Vitamix does and more including the added advantage of having a heating element as well and it is only $699.00. I also looked at the TVSN.com.au site, mentioned by another member here, and they have the Thermochef with two different additional 'bundle'offers (valued at approx. $100.00) also for $699. I also checked 'Choice' and the Thermochef got a reasonable write up, except that since it is a copy of the much more expensive Thermomix, it does take a little while to get used to using it but the significant difference in price might make up for the extra time required to work out how to use it. There are videos of how the Thermomix works on their Website. I am also interested in buying one of these products so I thought I would pass on what I discovered. With the Thermomix and the Thermochef, you put the whole fruit into the machine and it makes the juice for you. So, you get all of the fibre from the fruit, which is what you are looking for I believe? I hope this helps. one_elle26

Hi Aussiegirl, your video is amazing!!!!!! Congratulations on a job 'well done'!!!!!!! Changing the way that you live your life is a BIG challenge and often this change involves identifying people that no longer provide a positive influence in our lives and deciding whether we can live with them or that we need to move on. It's not easy, but it is really liberating and you will know when the time is right to make these decisions. Again, congratulations on your success and thanks for sharing your story. one_elle26

Welcome Novo, re the Dr referrals: a specialist referral lasts for 3 months and a GP lasts 12 months. Also,if you could afford private health ins, you need to join you get any referrals because the health may change terms Conditons. Also,this becomes 'pre existing condition. I am having Bypass, so pls ask any questions.

Thanks for your warm wishes Kate. one_elle26

Hi aussie kelloff, you are an inspiration!!!!! In a perfect world I probably need to lose as much as you, but with my history of two failed Bands I have set my goal a lot lower and would be happy with losing 50 kg and anything more will be a bonus! But I am open to changing the goalposts if I can be as successful as you have been. Well Done!!!!!!!!!!!!! keep up the good work.!!!!! one_elle26

Kate, I am amazed that the anaesthetist's staff didn't insist on you paying the 'out of pocket' costs today, you're very lucky. I would prefer to be having only one procedure but my Surgeon won't do the Bypass that way, so it's two surgeries for me. I am getting excited now because it's only 2 x sleeps until my Band is gone forever. one_elle26

Hi kelliv, I am having a Bypass for a couple of reasons: I have had 2 x Lapbands which have slipped and I am having the second one removed in 2 days time. I have also had my Gallbladder removed during that time. I injured my back and both shoulders at work and I have had reconstructive surgery to my foot and today I was told that I have acute arthritis in that foot which I can hardly stand on at the moment, so exercise is going to be difficult post op. My Surgeon and I discussed my options and he feels that when he does the WLS it will be the 4th stomach operation that I have had, this means that I have a much higher risk of developing Scar tissue around my stomach, I need to lose at least 50kg and his statistics show that a Bypass should be more successful than a sleeve, he believes that if I have a 'sleeve' he will have to revise it in 2 years so he recommended doing a Bypass as the first option, I have a complicated medical history which includes lung clots last year and I am 57. So, after weighing up all the pro's and con's we decided that I would have a Bypass. I really like this forum and there doesn't seem to be a similar one for 'Bypassers' so I hang out in here. Hope you don't mind???? You all have amazing stories and insight into WLS and I have learnt a lot from this forum.