BBdoodle

I totally understand .. this whole process is so crazy... just stay focused, but also keep a good relationship with the surgeon's staff because they will guide you on what you have to do etc. Just hang in there, it will all be worth it in the end !

I love soup my fav. snack is SF/FF icepops they are 10 calories per pop and pretzels.

You have to do what works best for YOU !!! I do a lot of "talkin" to myself too, it keeps me motivated and on track. I also yell at myself too - LOL. When I was 275 lbs. my Mom would always invite me to walk with her in the park, she was very acitve and in total great shape. So I joined her one day then I got hooked... it was great having someone to talk too, we would walk all year long, it was great seeing nature, the sun rises the beautiful fall colors, the beautiful winter snows, etc. etc. She would notivate me.. plus I liked spending that time with my Mom. If you have someone to walk with it helps. I have noticed that a lot of people want instant gratification, at first the weight comes off really quick then it slows, at least for me it did. I had 70 lbs to loose, I am 9 months post op and have lost 50 lbs, I have 20 more to go. I had a 2 month stall with no weight loss in Aug/Sept. it was awful... but I kept the exercise up, watched what I ate and then when I increased my exercise the weight started to come off again. Plus, once you start losing the weight it is such a great feeling it totally motivates you to lose more. Just find a exercise you like and you will stick with it.

Most insurances say that "general" statement. Mine did (Horizon Blue cross blue shield), my surgeon's office/staff knew exactly what my insurance required to get approval. My BMI was 36 which was boarderline for surgery. My surgeon required that my regular physician submit a letter which they drafted stating why he thought I needed surgery. My physician was totally in agreement with me because he has seen me be on a roller coaster with my weight for the past 20 yrs. So he gave me the drafted letter to submit to the ins. co. along with that my blood pressure was steadly increasing and my chloesterol was 210. So I was boarder line on the comobilities (sp) and hand only 70 lbs to lose. I thought that I would not get approved but I did, I did not have to do any pre-op diet or anything. You surgeon should know or do research on exactly what you ins. co requires etc. My surgeon's staff was well educated on what each ins. co. required to get approval.

Yeah... I'm glad they called you. I was/am lucky that my surgeon's staff was fantastic and got back to me in a timely manner whether it be e-mail or a phone call. It makes you wonder that if they did not return the calls in the beginning would the return the calls when you need assistance post op ???? It took about 4 days to get my approval from the day the dr. submitted until I got my approval. Each insurance company is different. Good luck

Just start out slow, you don't want to get burnt out on exercise. Its great that you want to dive right in but please don't because you risk injury and then you will not be able to workout at all. Jogging/running really puts a strain on your joints, hips etc. if you don't do it right. Oh and one other thing and this is my BIG thing.. get proper sneakers for "running" it will truly save on your joints. My sneakers cost anywhere from 50 to $70.00 but they are made specifically for running. They have cushion in them and are made for running. When I first started walking I bought the running sneakers because they felt better on my feet and gave me more protection than just regular sneakers and the took the pounding too !!! My . running sneakers are Saucony... believe me I have tried them all, Saucony has the best cushioning, but that is my opinion and that brand works best for me.

I would talk to your nutritionist and/or doctor... you need to measure your food to know what is a normal portion. I bought a $20 food scale and that really helped me get a good idea of what size portions I should be eating. This habit of overeating and portion control is VERY difficult to break but if you stick to measuring and weighing EVERYTHING you will get a good idea of what you should be eating.

We all go thru that stage and it is totally normal to be scared and nervous but all worth it

I thought gallbladder at first but then you said you had yours removed. I also had my gallbladder removed 10 wks. after my RNY... and I still get really bad pains across my chest kind of under my boobs. I am going for a CT scan next week. My doctors said that there could still be stones left in the ducts, during surgery they try to clean all the ducts out but if there is a tiny, tiny stone it could still grow. I would consult with your doctor ASAP, something does not sound right.

Sometimes it bothers me because I once looked like that...stuffing my face with high fat content foods etc. etc. You have to have it within you to want to eat healthy !!

I am a runner and absolutely LOVE it. At my heaviest weight years ago I was 275, I went on a diet and started exercising and lost 100 lbs all on my own. I started walking in the park and about a year after walking I was not getting my heart rate up anymore so I started to jog, I would jog like 20 steps then walk then jog 30 steps then walk. I finally got up to jogging 1/4 then walk a 1/4 mile. It took me almost a whole year to run a mile without stopping. I ran in my local park 7 days a week 4-5 miles a day all year long. I love running in the cold weather. Of course my weight started going back up again becuse I fell off my diet but I still continued to jog because I loved it so much. My weight got back up to 214 and at that point is when I had RNY sugery. It took me about 5 months after surgery to start jogging again but once I did I feel soooo much better. My advise to you is start walking first, lose the weight or get to about 50 lbs. within your goal weight. You don't want to put stress on your joints and cause injury then you will not be able to exercise at all...so take it slow and set small goals first.

I heard that it was not reversible.

It may just be for a while... revisit your pepper in a month or so. I found that certain things bothered me right after surgery, I tried them again like 2-3 months down the road and I was OK with it. Some thinkgs I just can't handle anymore too.

Congrats !! I fell down cement stairs once and landed on my tail bone - OMG it hurt for weeks so I know where you are coming from. You need to give it time to heal so take it easy. I feel like 10 years ago and my tail bone still hurts at times when I sit in uncomfortable chairs. You are doing fantastic on the weight loss too !!! I stalled for like 2 months in the summer it was awful but it passed.

Hey Ol Hippie - I'm glad you are doing fine... please get some walking in too, that will help with the gas plus get everything moving again.

I had bypass, I was in the hospital for 2 1/2 days, I had no complications what so ever, the pain was minimal and I was back to work in a week !!! I am now 9 months post op and feel fantastic... it was the best thing I ever did. BTW.. you lose more weight with the RNY than the sleeve or band, that is why I chose the RNY, if I was going to do it I wanted the best bang for my buck.

I had my first class at the beginning of Feb. and had surgery April 9th so a little over two months. The tests that your surgeon wants depends on the individual, age, overall health, etc. I am 54, so I had to have a colonoscopy, the endoscopy is required for any age, I had to have a sleep study, I just wore a contraption on my head at home so that was good. I did not have to do any diet before surgery either and I am in excellet health so it all went pretty fast for me, other may be different.

It will pass and you heal from surgery... I am 9 months post op and there are days where I really have to force myself to eat but then there are days where I am hungry too. I am a slow loser too but I make sure I get my protein, water and vitimans in. I really don't count the calories but I get a general idea of what I am eating as its about 1000 calories a day.

I had a common cold a couple of weeks ago, I had alka seltzer night time cold meds. I took it and it helped a lot. It did make it bubbly but I only put the tablets in about a inch of water so I did not have to drink tons of liquid. It did not do anything to my stomach but that is me. But other things have torn up my stomach though... I hope you feel better.

It should not be a deterent if you have a clear expectation of what this sugery is, what you need do to make it a success and that it is YOU who wants it and not a spouce, BF, etc. etc. You need to let them know that it takes control, diet, exercise, portion control, and that you have to work WITH the surgery for it to be a success. As long as you have a good handle on what this is all about, how you got to be overweight etc. etc and what is required from you there should not be a problem. I had to complete a form with a ton of questions then we discussed my answers and yes it does take a while.

You should be OK... just take iron supplement and your levels should incrase. When your surgeon gets your results he is the only one that will make that decision if it is OK for surgery or not. they just want everything to be OK before surgery...

Vicki is 110% correct... if you stay ahead of the pain you will not have it too bad. If you let the pain get too high it is difficult to control, if you take your pain meds as directed it will not get past the point where you cant control it. So take as directed.

Take your pain meds, my surgeon also told me I could take 2 pills at once if the pain got that bad !!! I walked alot, rested and took my pain meds every 4 hours for the first few days after I was home. Each day gets better but walking helps soooooo much with gas.

Jello was one of the items that was on my list of foods to eat first after surgery. Every surgeon is different, I would follow what your doctor wants you to do.

Try to sip, sip, sip, sip all day long. My surgeon requires me to get minimum 64 oz. of water daily... its hard at first I know but you can work up to it. When you are dehydrated you feel awful I know !!! My main goal right after surgery was getting my water and protein in.