VSKitty

being over weight sounds wonderful! congrats

You go girl! way to be in control

very exciting! best wishes for a great experience mine is this coming tuesday and I am super excited!

Shadi-Dadi... I am right there with you! My surgery date is Tuesday and I did start the "what ifs" but then I pushed them away with the what if I DIDN'T get the surgery, where would I end up? So, I am focused on the after. I anticipate some discomfort and know that the first few days (even weeks) may be rough, but "This too shall pass" has been my mantra these days. I am looking forward to all of the health benefits to come. It may be a bit rocky at first, but I expect smooth sailing down the road. I am ready to do this! Best wishes to you on a successful journey!

You look wonderful and your attitude is inspiring! Congratulations on your success! It's nice to see such a positive transformation

I've told my family and a few friends. Everyone has been incredibly supportive of my decision so far. I've not yet had the surgery, but so far, so good. Truth be told, if they did have a problem with it, then that is their problem and not mine. Until someone walks your same path and wears your same shoes then they really aren't in a position to say anything! Some may mean well and say something out of concern, but they can't know how we feel, or think or know of our pain. Tell if it will help you. If there is support out there in your circle, great! But if it will hurt you, by negativity then don't bother. This journey is yours alone and only you can judge yourself. Only you can tell yourself if you are making the right decision. Put yourself first and embrace your decision because YOU are so WORTH it! The naysayers can all go look in the mirror and remind themselves of how perfect they are Best wishes to you on your incredible journey!

Sending well wishes for the start of your new life! Keep smiling!

How exciting! Sending positive energy your way for a smooth journey

Mine will most likely be in mid-January 2014. I go back and forth from being very excited, to stressing about stuff. The holidays always go by so quickly, so I know that it's practically right around the corner! Yikes! good luck to you

You don't need to feel mentally horrible too! Just take it as a learning experience. Now you know! Make tomorrow a brand new day. You can do this!

You are so inspirational! and you are gorgeous! thanks for sharing

Hey there HMPrincess, I am in the pre-stages too. I had my psych eval, dietician and PA visit..just waiting for the review committee to do their thing! I am looking for a late December/early January date if possible. I keep thinking about the word, "change" from your blog. Why is that so hard? Obviously what I've been doing isn't getting me anywhere near my goal, so why not embrace it? Maybe I should not just change eating habits, but other things too? Get out of my comfort zone and shake things up a bit! Well, good luck on your journey Kitty

So, my journey begins! I've struggled with the decision, weighed all of my options and am moving forward with the vertical sleeve. Only one of my closest friends is uncomfortable with my decision, although supports my choice in the end. I understand where she is coming from, love and accept yourself no matter your size. The trouble is, that I can't love my LIFE at my size. I can love myself enough if I am content to sit around and watch life go by, but for me personally, I want to love myself in the form that I was meant to be. I want to love myself enough to want to be healthy and whole and loving life. Most importantly, I want to be a participant in life and not just a spectator. So, my journey begins! I've attended the information session and am scheduled for the physician's assistant exam, meeting with the dietician and for my psych eval. I am wildly excited and moderately scared. Of course I think of the complications, I'd be a fool not to, but I don't dwell on them. I can only do exactly as I'm instructed, to the letter and then it's in the surgeon and God's hands. So...the countdown begins and I am ready to jump in!

My son has also only known a "bigger" Mom. I asked him how he'll feel about me looking so different and he said that he'd have to think about that! lol It's something that I'd not considered. It won't change my mind, of course, but something to talk about with him and get him comfortable with the idea. Your daughter sounds very bright and intuative. She loves you unconditionally and so is going to naturally be worried until you are on the other side of this. I think that you are doing all you can to reassure her that you are looking for a healthier you so that you can be around for a long, long time. Best of luck to you!

So much of what you've written, I could have written about myself. I too have PCOS and have steadily gained weight over the years to the point that I will hit 300lbs if I don't stop the madness. I also hate, hate, hate photos of myself! I also lost a son, although not as a newborn but any loss of a child is devastating (my condolences) I attended the information meeting this week and am scheduled for the RD and PA assessments for next week, psych eval the week after that. It's all moving pretty fast now! I look forward to an improved version of myself. Good luck to you on your journey!

Thanks for sharing! You look amazing

I was waking up 3 or 4 times a night to use the bathroom, or so I thought! Turns out that I was waking myself up because I'd stopped breathing (for over a minute in some cases) I'd also never feel refreshed in the morning, snored like a grizzly bear and had a constant dry throat. I went for sleep study, DX severe sleep apnea and am doing fine on the CPAP machine. I am pre-surgery and hope that in time, that I can lose the machine and sleep normally on my own. I'd LOVE that. Good luck to you!