1SuperBonBon

Oh Jordan..... you have opened a can of worms I think a majority of surgeons' instructions are to never use a straw. I have read others allow it. It can get to be a very heated topic on here. So I specifically asked my doctor about the STRAW. He told me however I can get my liquids down was fine by him. He feels the straw concerns are a myth. It has something to do with getting more air in your tummy. With that said, I would do what your doctor instructs you to do, but if it were me I would get the straw out

Hi Kay, I have Anthem BC of CA. My OOP is $2000 and deductible $350 for a total cost of $2,350.00. I paid the surgeon upfront and the hospital I made arrangements with to pay over the next 12 months. I hope this helps. And I do have PPO

Today is day 4 for me too gomekast. I am feeling pretty good. My spirits are good. I am also sleeping a lot and it feels great. I don't have much interest in eating or drinking, but I am doing my best to get my liquids in. I think I am only getting in about 40 oz. yesterday and today. And my Protein intake is like 10g... not very good. My strategy is to get liquid in and try to get in what protein I can. But all in all, I think things are going pretty smoothly.

I was sleeved yesterday (10/22). Day of surgery was a little rough. A lot of abdominal pain, but no gas or nausea. About 11 PM last night the pain started subsiding. Did a leak test this morning about 6:30 AM, then sipped Water 1 oz. per hour for three hours. No trouble keeping that down. So I got to eat Breakfast which consisted of a fruit Protein drink 4 oz., water 4 oz., 2 oz. of sugar-free Jello, and some broth. I didn't eat the broth, and it took me 2 hours to get the rest down. It all went down fairly easily and stayed down. As far as mood, I feel pretty good. I am very optimistic this is all going to go smoothly and work out. Bonnie

I don't get to try to drink anything until tomorrow. My mouth is soooo dry. It is gross. I have not had any trouble with nausea, but the pain (and not gas pain) is killing me. It feels like she manhandled my inners. It is starting to easy up now, but was pretty bad until about 11PM tonight. I have taken 3 nice walks. I feel pretty good walking, but getting in and out of bed hurts. I hope everyone is doing well. And good luck to those who have surgery tomorrow (or by my clock, today).

Expand on "cheated". If it was a couple bites of this or that.... probably no big deal. If you order a large combination pizza and sat down and ate the whole thing.....You might want to evaluate why you did this so it doesn't happen again. 28 days is a pretty long pre op diet. One little slip up I am sure won't completely derail your journey, but don't do it again.

From TOM and Tylenol does NOTHING for me

Interesting. My surgery is 9:30 AM and I am nothing by mouth after midnight. I have always heard it is nothing by mouth 8 hours before surgery.

Silly Goose

Oh DEAR! But it smells soooo good. I love coffee, but gave it up for this surgery. I am not sure when I will try it again.

Hello All: My name is Bonnie. I am the 22nd @ 9:30 as well. This is my 10th day of Protein shakes. I have to admit that a couple of french fries fell in my mouth today. BUT I have a really good excuse TOM. I was good the other 9 days, but TOM made me do it. I am in so much FN pain and I can't take Advil before surgery. (Sorry for the RANT). I wish everyone the best of luck. This week will be very exciting for us all.

Hi Jennie, I am Tuesday too. I am on a 10 day liquid Protein shake diet and 1 day Clear liquids. To make matters worse, I have PMS and the total munchies. We only have three more sleeps then it is our turn. Good Luck to you! oh I am in San Jose, CA. Cheers, Bonnie

I just checked out their website. That is crazy! I have never seen such a good deal. Unfortunately the closet Planet Fitness to me is 25 miles away

A few years ago I dressed up in a fried egg costume (bought cheap online), attached a devil's tail to it, wore devil horns, and carried a pitch fork. I was a deviled egg

I have lost 13 pounds since Oct 4th (pre-op appt) and I have basically 3 more days until surgery. I was 271 and now 258. I think you are doing great. Keep on plan and good luck to you with your upcoming surgery.

My experience is like I am punching my way out of a paper bag when I am waking up. I feel like I am fighting to come to. I have had several surgeries. So I know what to expect. Maybe the first time it was a little scary, but now no biggie.

Okay.... I just realized something. This is the Man's Room. <-------leaving quietly.

Yes there is a blood test that can detect inflammation. It is called Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate. Here is some reading for you. What Is It? The Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate (ESR) is a blood test that measures inflammation or abnormal Proteins in the body. While the ESR is not an indication of any one disease, it commonly increases with any condition that causes inflammation, such as infection, arthritis, or cancer. However, up to 10% of normal, healthy people have a mildly elevated ESR and it tends to increase with age. The higher the level of ESR, the more likely the person is to have a condition known to be associated with it (see below). Diseases Associated with Elevated ESR Of the arthritic diseases, an elevated ESR is most closely associated with polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) and giant cell arteritis (GCA). If disease is active, rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, vasculitic disease and almost any other inflammatory condition may be associated with an elevated ESR. Other well-established causes included subacute bacterial endocarditis (SBE), myeloma, abscess, pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and osteomyelitis. However, almost any condition that causes sudden or significant inflammation in the body can be associated with an elevated ESR. An elevated ESR cannot establish any diagnosis by itself. Similarly, a normal ESR does not rule out an arthritic condition since many people with arthritis have a normal or only mildly elevated ESR. A normal ESR does reduce the likelihood of GCA, PMR and SBE. Thus, the ability of this test to predict presence or absence of disease is far from perfect. To rule in or rule out a condition associated with an elevated ESR, your health care provider will review your symptoms, physical examination (with special attention to the joints) and other test results. Why Is It Ordered? Health care providers order the ESR as a diagnostic test to help determine the cause of symptoms. For example, if you were over the age of 55 and had a new headache with shoulder and hip stiffness in the morning your symptoms and examination might suggest GCA to your doctor—checking your ESR would be appropriate. The test can also be helpful to follow the progress of disease, as a monitoring test, though the usefulness of using this test alone has not been established. What Does the Result Mean? How ESR is Reported The ESR is reported as normal or high; if it is high, the amount of elevation (a great deal, only a little or something in between) is also reported. Interpreting the Result The meaning of an elevated ESR relies on the rest of the “big picture”—if markedly elevated in the setting of symptoms and an examination suggestive of GCA or PMR, it probably indicates one of these diagnoses. On the other hand, even a moderately elevated result in someone who lacks symptoms or examination findings may have no detectable illness. In fact, the ESR may be misleading – it may suggest disease when none is present. What Are the Next Steps? The next step depends in large part on why the test was ordered. If normal, it may provide some measure of reassurance. If elevated, your doctors must integrate this information with your overall health, symptoms and examination results to tell whether it has any meaning. If it is only slightly elevated, there is a good chance that it is meaningless—as above, false-positive results are common, especially among older patients. It will be important over time to keep track of your symptoms over time and report any change to your doctors. So, if you have an elevated ESR, don’t panic—keep in mind that even diseases associated with an elevated ESR cannot be diagnosed by the ESR alone. How you are feeling and what your doctors find when they examine you are much more important.

Might I add, I am feeling a little sadistic having this surgery. I have given up drinking alcohol, coffee, food, smoking. Where is my will to live? About the only thing left is SEX and that might be difficult because I am such a moody B from quitting everything and being on a liquid diet, who can stand to be around me long enough to ... well you know....

My doctor required to quit smoking 6 weeks prior to surgery, but doesn't nicotine test (go figure). I didn't want to take any chances of risking not having my surgery. So I quit. It was really really hard. I did it cold turkey. My surgery is in 4 days and I am glad I quit. I am feeling a ton better. But it is true; it is hard to do the pre-op diet and not smoke too. My experience with quitting went like this: Day 1 - I did a lot of sleeping and mind over matter Day 2 - The physical withdrawals along with the ritual withdrawals were really kicking in Day 3 - I thought day 2 was bad, but everything was in full force. This was the worst day. Anxiety, hot flashes, food cravings, sleep issues, physical discomfort, difficulty concentrating Day 4 - More of the same as Day 3 but not quite as bad Day 5 - Things started to improve and I finally started to feel there was some hope. Day 6 - I felt like I can beat this. By Day 10 ish - I started to feel like a non-smoker. I have smoked for 23 years about 2 packs a day. I never want to go through quitting again. So I am really motivated to stay a non-smoker. Good Luck, Bonnie

Count me in! I have been on the no carb ride for 11 months now. Not because of the sleeve, but because I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease. NO GLUTEN I mourned for about 3 months. It definitely felt like one of my best friends died. I love baked goods, Pasta, bread, you name it. I was a carb junky No more. It all makes me incredibly sick.

OMG! I am speechless!

Kjparker, woo hoo yup we have the same Dr. and yes you are right after me.That is sooo cool! I started my liquid diet on Saturday and by Sunday it was not pretty. I was violently vomiting. The shakes are not agreeing with me at all. I then had to do a day of Clear liquids to reset my body. After that Dr. Zare wanted me to try to re-introduce the shakes. So far I am keeping them down, but they do not make me feel well at all. On the plus side of this little pre-op fun, I have lost 11 pounds since Friday. I will email you my contact information in case you want to text and check up on each other in the hospital. Bonnie

Good Morning Kjparker I am getting sleeved on the 22nd too, and I am also on the Optifast pre-op diet. I am wondering if we have the same surgeon. That would be interesting. My surgery is at Good Sam at 9:30AM. Bonnie

10 FULL long business days.