terry1118

I didn't need to do a letter but my insurance required a documented failed weight loss. 5 years ago I did Optifast through Miriam Hospital in Providence RI. I was in the program for 10 months and lost 80 pounds. BCBSRI paid my biweekly copays with the doctor so that was my documentation. Within one year I had gained it all back, plus a little more. Over 28 years of being obese I had tried and failed at every weight loss attempt I ever made, proving that I am very good at losing weight - but I am terrible at keeping it off. I think they just want proof that WLS surgery is not your first weight loss option, and that you've tried other ways that didn't work. Ultimately, permanent, successful weight loss saves them a ton of money by limiting or eliminating future long-term weight-related health problems.

I bought a strapless bra! I have not used it but the fact that I CAN just floors me!!!!! :-)

Very true! :-) The end result is the important thing. I was willing to sacrifice a little hair for being healthy. And it's true - we notice it way more than others do! :-)

I've been married for 32 years. I love my original, very simple, gold band.

I had mine resized last winter after almost losing it. I had been stacking firewood on my porch in preparation for a snowstorm and I was wearing leather gloves. At the same time my pants were falling down so I yanked my glove off to pull up my pants and I heard a 'ting' as my wedding band flew off, hit the porch railing, and flew off into the yard, goodness knows where! My hubby and I crawled around on our hand and knees for an hour looking for it with no success. I was devastated. It's just a simple gold band but it was MINE and it meant a lot to me. I had to get groceries but coming home it was getting pretty dark. My headlights caught a flash from something shiny on the side of the road and it gave me an idea. When I got home I took a flashlight and began shining it around the yard. Within two minutes I found my ring when the light flashed on the gold!! Less than a half hour later it began snowing - I never would have found it again! The next day I had it sized to fit better...

I've heard grapes were a no-no because they contain a lot of sugar. Also, it seems to be common for RNYer's to become lactose intolerant - maybe that's why cheese is bothering you? I'm watching my sugar intake much more carefully, now, after my lapse resulted in dumping. :-)

Thank you. :-). I'm 15 months out and still in the 'honeymoon stage' - that first 18 months when the most weight is lost. I'm nervous about after but my team says if you continue to make wise choices and your lifestyle changes are permanent, you can keep from regaining. Everything they told me has worked up till now so I have no reason to doubt what they say. In all the reading I've done there are many who keep the weight off and they do it by doing what my team has said. Weight loss surgery is only a tool to help us lose. That tool, combined with making smart choices for the rest of our lives is what will ensure our continued success. So, I think the hardest work is yet to come. I am ready for it. I love where I am right now. I NEVER want to go back to the miserable, unhappy life I had before....

Thank you. :-). I'm 15 months out and still in the 'honeymoon stage' - that first 18 months when the most weight is lost. I'm nervous about after but my team says if you continue to make wise choices and your lifestyle changes are permanent, you can keep from regaining. Everything they told me has worked up till now so I have no reason to doubt what they say. In all the reading I've done there are many who keep the weight off and they do it by doing what my team has said. Weight loss surgery is only a tool to help us lose. That tool, combined with making smart choices for the rest of our lives is what will ensure our continued success. So, I think the hardest work is yet to come. I am ready for it. I love where I am right now. I NEVER want to go back to the miserable, unhappy life I had before....

As long as you don't have any complications or have underlying health issues, a week should be long enough. Best of luck to you! :-)

That is exactly what they told me at my follow-up. :-)

I felt the same way after being obese for 28 years (since my first pregnancy). I was miserable and desperate. A lifetime of being obese and eating badly was beginning to affect my health (metabolic syndrome, high cholesterol, back and joint pain, borderline diabetic). I went from a 2X/22-24W to a small/6P. I'm only five feet tall so 240 pounds made me look like a weeble (anyone remember those toys?). My weight has stabilized between 115 and 120. My only goal was to be healthy and be able to live my life instead of watch it go by. At best I hoped for a sz14 or 16. I never in my wildest dream thought I'd ever get smaller than that! It DOES work - how well it works depends on how well you do your part. Making real lifestyle changes and developing good eating habits are the key to keeping it off. Follow your doctor's instructions as closely as possible and you will be successful too!

Good advice. I quit caffeine about two months before my surgery. I also had a miserable headache for about a week and a half. Not even nsaids could ease it. If I had a headache for my post op recovery period I would probably have felt quite a bit worse than I did. There ARE reasons for everything your doctor tells you to do. If you trust him/her and want to be successful then follow them as closely as possible.

My team said that if you drive to your first post-op appointment and they find out they will not clear you to drive so I chose to follow their instructions. I am a rule follower - what else can I say? :-)

Your welcome! I recently have been able to tolerate Dunkin Donuts Wake-up wrap (eggwhite, ham, and cheese with very little bread). I get one maybe twice a week.

I gained 11 pounds from IV fluids. It didn't freak me out because I had heard about it here. It took a week just to get back to my pre-surgery weight. Don't weigh yourself too often in the first couple of weeks. It'll save you from a feeling of disappointment. Rest assured you are on your way to a happier, healthier you!

Definitely talk to your endocrinologist. My pharmacist knew about it too (I talked to her about it while I was waiting for the new script to be filled). Maybe this is something not known to the surgical staff? They did ask me for a list of medications I was taking. My team is awesome about everything else.

Yes, my team told me :-).

Believe me, you WILL know! And the experience will make you much more careful in the future!!!

I just want to live long enough to play with my as yet unborn grandchildren. :-)

Carbonated beverages forever. Sugar and simple carbs - white rice, white Pasta, white potatoes, white bread, anything made with white flour or rice flour (I don't tolerate products w/rice flour at all - they make me sick). My doc says nothing white is nutritious. Whole grains, brown rice, Beans, quinoa, and sweet potato are all acceptable and more nutritious. After eating Protein and veggies there's not much room for anything else anyway. I have no problem staying away from sugar and simple carbs. Those were my trigger foods and are the main reason I became obese. If I avoid them I find I don't crave them. Also, I have no choice in the matter because I'm a dumper and it is a strong deterrent (dumping is one of the reasons I chose RNY). Rather than try to find a way to make them fit into my post op life, I'm choosing healthier options as part of my permanent lifestyle change. I love quinoa w/dried unsweetened cranberries, brown and wild rice cooked in broth, and a little sweet potato is so delicious it's almost like desert!

In my program it was stressed in pre op appointments, psych appointments, workshops, and nurse education class). Post op, it is discussed frequently in support group meetings. I was just shocked that the statistics showed how easy it is for a non-drinker to become an alcoholic. It seems that all of us have some sort of tendency to addiction (ie food addiction) so we really need to be vigilant to avoid a transfer addiction to drugs and alcohol. And to shopping, exercise, sex, or anything else. Just liking something is not an addiction. Some people like exercise and jokingly call it a new 'addiction', as do some people with shopping. Liking and enjoying something you've never been able to enjoy before is normal and healthy. Doing it to an unhealthy degree - thinking about it all the time, doing it all the time, having it affect your relationships with people, interfere with work, affect your finances, affect your health, and affecting your life in any negative way - these are all signs of an addiction you need to seek help for. It is a very real but avoidable danger. Recognize the signs of an unhealthy addiction and change what you're doing before it becomes a more serious problem. I like wine but with my family history of alcoholism I limit to two glasses on Saturday nite. I love shopping (and coworkers say I have a problem) but I work in a bank and need a professional wardrobe. I budget a certain amount per week for clothes shopping. I'm not spending money that I can't afford to spend. Shopping used to reduce me to tears and send me on a donut binge but now I enjoy trying on clothes even if I don't buy them. It's fun activity for me. :-)

I've noticed the same thing about my knees when I sleep on my side. :-)

Hang in there. It may get worse before it gets better but it WILL get better! I lost lots of hair between 4 and 9 mos, then it began to regrow. My hair is thickening once again (I'm 15 months post op). I kind of like my new shorter length - I started keeping it short because it helped disguise the fact that it was so thin! Short hair never looked good when I was huge but I like it now! :-)

I saw my thyroid doc two days ago and he was pretty upset with me. My thyroid is waaaayyyy out of whack! I knew I couldn't eat for 1-2 hours after taking my Synthroid but NO ONE told me I couldn't take ANY of my Vitamins for FOUR hours after the Synthroid!!!! For a whole year I've been taking them all together in the morning - Synthroid, multi, D, B, and Biotin. My doc says I did everything possible to sabotage my thyroid meds. :-p I never thought to ask and no one thought to inform me. Now I'm on a higher dose for two months and need to be retested after that. And I have to come up with a whole new Vitamin routine that starts four hours later in my day. I don't know how I'm going to manage to take all my vitamins and three doses of Calcium now... :-(