MsCook

Congratulations! Give yourself time to heal and recover. You'll do great!

Good one! Seafood is naturally low fat and yummy!

Hi all. Sorry I've been away for a couple of days---back to work! So, here are my suggestions for you: Pre-Op: Hang in there! You can do this! It's a long haul during the liquid diet, but it truly is for your benefit. Get all your last minute questions ready for the surgeon. Hospital: Wear something very comfy for surgery day and plan to wear the same thing home from the hospital if you can. (less to keep track of while you're there). The hospital should have most everything you need but you might want small items of your own toiletries (toothbrush, toothpaste, soap, etc) as the hospital ones are, well, medicinal and pretty generic. Remember your phone and charger. You won't need alot else besides possibly a magazine or book to read--more while you're waiting and less after surgery. While recovering, you'll be busy walking, being checked by nurses, and sleeping. You'll NEED the recovery time in the hospital just to rest. Chapstick would be a good thing to bring along and also don't forget any feminine or incontinence products you might need as the hospital's are AWFUL if you have to get one from them. If you get nervous or anxious with medical procedures, ask your surgeon to prescribe something (like Xanax) for you to help with this. Most gladly will. Post-Op: Give yourself at least a week of doing nothing but resting and being at home. Plan to have someone there to help you for at least the first few days. Know that you will leave the hospital at least 5 - 10 pounds HEAVIER than when you went in. Don't worry! It's all Water and Fluid retention and will be gone very quickly. Also, don't be surprised if you have itching across your abdomen as you heal. It can be crazy itchy. Some are helped by Cortaid Anti-Itch spray and others are helped more by Benedryl Anti-Itch spray. The one that helps you most will depend upon the cause of the itching. If it's just healing itch, the Cortaid will help. If there's a bit of an allergy/histimine reaction (to either the sutures, the Steri-strips, or the bandage adhesive) then the Benedryl will work better. Speaking of bandages, when you have bandage residue on your skin (and you will!), use a cotton pad with baby oil or olive oil to remove the last of the stick stuff. Those are the things top of mind for me. I'm sure others will have input to add. To those of you going in for surgery in the next few days, best of luck to you! You'll be fine.

I've heard all of the above about the carbonation causing stretching, as well as the very real part about caffeine in general. My surgeon says you can have diet soda if you must but sip slowly and letting it go flat first would be even better. It seems it's not so much that it would stretch your pouch but the carbonation takes up valuable real-estate in your little pouch and could prevent you from consuming the healthy things you need for nutrition. But since water or one of the many, many sugar-free flavoring options are so readily available and quite tasty, why go back to soda?

Wow! I didn't think there was anything you could do to kale to make it taste good! LOL! Will have to try this one.

Stay with us, Lindsey! You can do this! Just the fact that you have set yourself on this path shows that you have hope for the future and that you are a strong person who is taking charge of her life. Perhaps in addition to all of the other great suggestions here about using this time to ready yourself, you might want to spend some serious self-reflection time around what you want out of life, where you see yourself after you lose the weight, and establish a plan to get there. I know it sounds cliche, but really it is as simple as planning the work and then working the plan to get where you want to be. Lean on all your resources during this difficult time and let everyone--family, friends, and everyone here--help you. It's a big life change and you deserve the wonderful outcome on the other side of this. Stay the course! God bless!

Cheri, I'm happy to offer any suggestions that would help you. In general, I would say continue to be hopeful and patient. Is there any area in particular you are looking for advice on? Hospital? Pre-op? Post-op? Recovery? ...

Aww! So sorry that you are by yourself--at least physically. We're all here for you on RNY Talk. I know it's not the same, though. Wishing you and your husband speedy recoveries in order to be back with your little one soon.

Believe me, it will go by SO fast! Good luck on your journey.

I take four things daily and my doctor had me resume taking the pills by mouth on the day I got home from the hospital. I haven't had any issues at all with it and one of my pills is fairly large--not a horse pill... maybe just a pony pill.

Wow! You'd think that a doctor's office that specializes in this kind of surgery would have the sense to provide large enough gowns for their patients! We're not doing this because we're already a size 4, right?! Hang in there. All the poking, prodding, and obstacles will be so worth it in the end.

Go get 'em, LoveAlways! You can do this! We all can... and we WILL!

You're never too old to do this, KristiKay. In the very first informational meeting that I went to, there was an 80-something woman who was one of my surgeon's patients and she had it done about 10 years prior. So, don't rush into something that you are not sure of. That said, you could enjoy many, many more years of svelt, active life and do a LOT of things you probably can't or don't now because of weight. That's the way I looked at it. Not to mention, it's a good way to head off those sure-to-come health problems that result from the obesity. If you need a recharge of motivation, I suggest 2 things: 1. Go onto YouTube and search for Gastric Bypass Success Stories. There are many there and seeing their stories is motivational. 2. Go to www.obesityhelp.com and look at all of the before/after photos on their home page. They change them regularly and there are LOTS to look at. Every one of them is impressive and many are truly inspiring. Hang in there!

You bet, KristiKay. I will continue to share my experiences for that very reason. I was in your shoes not so very long ago and this site was very helpful to me in letting me know what to expect. And now, it helps me to see what others are experiencing. Sharing what I am doing, feeling, and accomplishing is the way that cycle continues. Best to you on your journey and in your decision-making process. I'm only a week post-op but I truly believe this will have been the best thing I've ever done for MYSELF. Feels great!

It seems almost surreal to say that I am on my 5th day post-op. I had surgery on Friday 8/10 evening and came home from the hospital on Sunday afternoon. What a whirlwind this last week has been! It somewhat surprised me how much I needed to take care of in the 24 hours or so before surgery: pre-meds, and gathering items to take to hospital, as well as preparing to be away from home for a few days. Then it was off to Palms of Pasadena Hospital in St. Petersburg, FL, where I was so well cared for by the wonderful staff. My surgery time ended up being a bit later in the day than anticipated; however, the hospital staff was wonderful about keeping me posted and comfortable. The next thing I knew I was waking up in ICU and it was all over. My surgeon/hospital always require ICU for the first 18 hours or so after surgery. My NG tube and catheter were removed the next day when I was moved to a regular room in the Bariatric Center. My pain was not horrible because they had a morphine drip going that I could activate with a button as needed. I found that I really didn't have to use it very often. For the first little while after surgery I felt "teathered" in so many different spots by medical equipment. One by one, they came out and I was so happy to be free of all of them just before I left the hospital. Since coming home, things have been good. My pain has been quite manageable with some discomfort at night and a very "full" feeling all the time. I really have not had hunger at all and am eating very little but making absolutely sure to get my vitamins and calcium in as instructed. I think the water requirement is really helping me to stay full feeling also. One thing I wasn't prepared for was coming home from the hospital about 7 pounds heavier than I went in. It may have been all of the IV fluids and swelling due to surgery, but by the second/third day home it was gone and the losing has started again. Thanks goodness! I mean, that was the goal of this thing, right?! I actually have six small incisions (three across the bottom of my tummy above the bellybutton, two up my left side, and one at the top a little left of center). So mine looks more like a "C" than a "Y". I have to say that my surgeon, Dr. Ernest Rehnke, is EXCELLENT! He's well known and highly respected in this field and he's been doing these surgeries for decades. My incisions are not painful and only one of them has any substantive bruising. Everything seems to be healing up well and the incision areas are now itching--which is a good sign of healing. For a busy person who never stays still for very long, it has been hard for me to take it easy and rest and not really DO anything. But I am trying because I know it's important to my recovery. I am also taking short walks as I can. It's August in Florida so I have to admit it's tough to make myself go out into the heat. Each day does get a little better and I hope by the end of the week I'll feel pretty normal... or at least my new normal. The doctor has me on full liquids until my 2-week post-op visit and if all is good he will move me to solid foods then. Maybe all of this is more than you wanted to know, but maybe it will help someone who is a few steps behind me on this journey. We will get there! It takes time, patience, perseverence, and the ability to change. Well, I'm off now to read or write some thank you notes. Until Next Time...! Starting: 317# Pre-Op: 296# Today: 294.5# Total Down: 22.5#

Good luck to you! It will be so worth it. Try not to get your hopes overly extended until you know exactly what is required to get insurance to cover it. Then, once you know, just power through each of the requirements one by one and it WILL happen. You'll find yourself where I was last week, saying "Wow! The last 6 months have gone by so FAST and I can't believe surgery is really this week!"

She's right... it does get better day by day at home. I am a week post-op and it gets a little better every day. For so many of us this seems to slow down our busy lifestyles and makes us feel like things have come to a screeching halt. Really, it will get better with each day. Just rest, walk, sip, and rest some more. At a week post-op, I feel good but still tire easily and need to rest occasionally. Hang in there! And don't be surprised at your weight being UP when you get home. I was up 7# when I got home (as I've also heard others say) due to all the IV fluids. But it only takes a couple of days to go away and then you're losing again! Woohoo!

Yes, Jade, it's definitely the fluids. I had RNY on Friday 8/10 and was up 7 pounds when I got home on Sunday. I know it's startling, but it goes away very quickly. By Tuesday I had lost back to the pre-surgery weight plus 1.5#. So, don't worry! BerlyAnn, you could try "Little Tummies" simethecone drops. It's basically anti-gas for babies and about 2 dropperfuls helps a lot.

Sorry to hear you are having this obstacle occur during the pre-op phase. Just keep remembering that you are doing this to get healthy in the first place and if there's anything going on that could impact your health during surgery or otherwise, you want to get that addressed first. It's not easy to wait, but you'll get there. One step at a time.

Big congratulations on the littler you!

Roxyraquel, your surgeon's office should be of more help to you in getting this psych evaluation done. My surgeon's office provided a list of 3 different providers, all of whom were familiar with the process and required documentation. I chose one of those, went for the appointment, and they faxed the results over to the surgeon. Done deal. Sorry to hear you are having so much trouble.

Such a great call to get, right?! The time will go by so fast and most of us have been waiting for so long! Congratulations!

We've got this, ladies! I'm in the liquid diet phase also, with surgery scheduled for Friday. The time has flown by! I've lost 17 pounds so far on the liquid diet and am sooooo ready for Friday and to be on the other side of this surgery. Still hard work beyond that, but with this tool I look forward to success! And you will be successful too!