QueenCityGal

I had IH too and everything was accepted until the last minute when my doc was required to supply the proof of the 6 month supervised diet stuff... I freaked out because I personally had no record but he worked his magic and submitted what he needed to (I was seeing him for over a year with weight-related stuff) - so it all worked out. Talk to your doc office if that becomes a requirement. They can figure it out for you. Hopefully! Yes, Dr. Cavaretta is as stone cold as an ice cube. No emotion. So weird and awkward. I only saw him when Dr. Caruana couldn't make my follow up during my hospital stay. Thank goodness My update: I'm coming up on my 3 month mark and down 51 pounds. It's like I turned back the clock 8 years - so freaking cool to wear my old clothes again! My knee pain resolved itself. sleeping a little better. Able to eat anything now (good choices and very small portions though!) with no problem and still losing. It's a darn miracle! I thought for sure I would NEVER lose. No regrets, best decision I ever made. Fingers crossed that the dreaded hair loss phase will pass me by....

You don't need to register, just show up. Someone new is hosting it now so I don't know how it will be run. I'm thinking of going to this one.

Ugh. I bought a case of the stuff. I could stomach the first few times I cooked with it - mostly Asian type noodle dishes to help mask the smell (there are other types of Asian mung bean noodles but made from the starch not the whole bean like these)... I can usually handle disgusting stuff, but I can't do this product anymore. The benefits are great - high Protein and super high Fiber - (and the fiber does it's job, lol) - but I can't get past the taste and texture anymore no matter how I dress the noodles. They are worth a try though. They are very dense when cooked so not a lot can be eaten. I'll let them sit in the cupboard for a while and go back to them when I'm feeling adventurous again!

Dr. C should have given you Bentyl for the spasms... are you taking it? It helped me a lot. I had mild spasms, not that bad and it only lasted a few days. By day four at home I was off the med. Feeling awesome ever since! You'll do great, you had the best surgeon, just give it a few days

Hi all, so there IS a group at Synergy tonight? Is it back on now every month? I agree there should be something on their website!

Hey there! Dr. Caruana did my surgery 6 weeks ago and I was ordered the standard IV Dilaudid (and I told them to DC it because I didn't need it), then they gave me Tramadol (I stopped that too) and never any mention of the IV Tylenol... maybe this is something new that Dr. C is doing? Anyway it's good to hear your time is coming very soon. Let me just tell you that Dr. C is a master of his craft! Don't worry about anything! If you'll be at Sister's they will take great care of you. Best hospital experience ever (and I've had a few, lol)! I had zero problems, no pain (really!) and I really have to look hard now to see where my incisions were because he knows the best places to cut! Each cut except two are only about 1/4 inch, the others just short of an inch. I needed no pain meds after I got home. The only thing to watch is when you have your leak test. The contrast Fluid might make you bloated with more gas and give you the runs for a day or two. That's really the only issue I had, it wasn't pretty but once that cleared up I was totally fine. Second day I was home I was doing normal things, cooking, etc. Best decision of my life and no regrets! Feel free to message me if you want to know anything else!! Good luck my fellow Buffalo Gal PS: Ask for pictures!! It's the coolest thing! Dr. C will gladly oblige and print some for you!

MnWin I was given a medication right off the bat in the hospital called Bentyl which stops stomach and intestinal spasms that can lead to cramping and nausea. Have you been given it also? If not it may be something to bring up with your doc. It helped me immensely. Just a thought

I'd be interested in that as well. I do have an unflavored protein, but it wouldn't mix in with anything hot and I ended up chewing little balls of protein (this was pre-op) that made me sick to my stomach...so I am looking for something that dissolves well, or mixes in well and has no taste! Have you guys tried the Syntrax Nectars? If not you definitely should! They are DELICIOUS. Not thick like shakes, they are JUICY tasting and thin like juice, you cannot tell there is protein in it. Well at least I can't! The only tell-tale sign is that you get a little foam on the top after mixing but you can skim that off. My favorite is the Fuzzy Navel, especially for breakfast. Tastes like a nice juice glass of peachy Tang... anyone remember Tang?? LOL. You can experiment with the flavors, add some Crystal Light or Mio and create your own flavors. Someplace online I forget where sells a sample pack of all flavors. Seriously I swear by the stuff, it's that good. You get your protein and water in, boom.

It's a disability insurance company... boss needs to send a claim in. I don't know if that means the same as the employer providing the benefits?

You're describing what a few of us are feeling! I just made a reply to a post about this a few posts back on the thread... ^^^

Sorry what I forgot to mention is that we are a small company, and my direct boss IS the HR person... that is where the problem lies! If he ended up knowing it really wouldn't be the end of the world (I have a good relationship with him) but he's a co-owner and would most likely inform the other owner, someone who I do NOT want to know anything about my business.

I've got a question related to work disability forms... I told my work about my surgery, but I was not specific, just told them "I had to take care of some things", lol. I told them that I'm taking a month off, which they are fine with since it's not busy right now. I am owed a week of paid vacation and for the balance I was going to collect disability. My doc offers 4 weeks off and I want to take advantage of it. The problem lies in the disability forms. I thought the doc office sent them in, but my employer needs to send in the claim directly. Therefore my "diagnosis" and surgery details need to be written by my doc first, which in turn will reveal my private information to my employer... I don't like that nor do I want that. Is there some sort of HIPAA law that this process breaks? I mean I get the reasoning for it, but a patient's right to privacy also stands. I don't want to give up a few weeks' pay, but I will if it means keeping nosy people out of my business. Hmm. Thoughts?

That sounds about right! I'm 5 days post and my days are something like 2 glasses of Syntrax Nectar (because the thick shakes are starting to get to me), a Light & Fit greek yogurt, a few ounces of cream of mushroom soup (no chunks) or a cup of Unjury chicken, a bunch of water with Mio squirts and tea. I tried a little cream of wheat the other night as well just to have something substantial, it was good. I seriously can't wait to progress to "chew" foods

I also just made a post about this last night. I'm 5 days out, yesterday I was SOOO hungry. It's weird because I have no desire to eat, yet I have that severe empty "I gotta have some food in me" feeling because I AM so empty inside. Leftover grehlin? Who knows... but we have not had any solid food in ourselves for weeks now (well me at least) and after trying to survive on an average of 600 cals a day I'm sure our bodies truly ARE hungry. It's a shock to the system no doubt. Most likely once we progress our food stages it will go away. I hope.

I too today had a pretty raging hunger. It was odd. Just like you describe, hunger pangs in the pit somewhere... I truly believe we ARE hungry. We have been depriving our bodies of food for how many weeks now?? It's a shock to the system. Fundus or no fundus, our bodies are hungry. I don't have an appetite or wish to eat, but I AM HUNGRY. Once we get to move on to more substantial foods I think we will be fine and satiated with whatever little bit we can eat. Right now I am empty. Like completely empty in the guts. It's not mental for me. My body needs to eat something because it's starving. What a complete mindf*ck....