Gettinsmall

I am in the beginning stages of considering the sleeve. I have been referred to Dr. Jeffery Johnsrud in OC, CA St. Josephs. Does anyone have any experience with this surgeon. Any particulars to expect?

I just had my first appt with my NUT. or rather my up-sell specialist. I bought a bag of bariatric advantage protein powder for $75. It only has 30 servings in it. Is there a better priced one out there?

My absolute favorite is unjury. I like their unflavored, chocolate and vanilla. It's about $30 per canister. I use it daily. how many servings per canister?

I today was my first appt with my surgeon. I meet with the NUT in 2 weeks and the psych. There is a three week diet requirement with my insurance so it looks like if everything goes well I'm looking at July/august. I'm very scared/excited.

11 yrs icu nurse here. Hardest part I think may be the daily deluge of patient appreciation goodies in the break room.

So I went to the initial group seminar this is what your getting into thing already. This Thursday is my first appt with my surgeon. I'm pretty excited. I have read through these forums and it all seems like such a huge change in my life and comfort zone. I hope I make it through the process. I'm sure I'm not the first to feel this way. But I keep thinking of the huge up side.

Just a guess but I've heard a lot about vsg removing parts of your stomach that secrete hormones that cause hunger. In just tucking it away you may not get the added benefit of the hormone removal. More of a band approach but I guess probably better than the band

So let me start out by saying that I drink alcohol maybe 2-3 times a year. A six pack will go bad in my fridge before I drink it all if I buy it. With that said I do enjoy an occasional ice cold beer. I was sitting on the side of the bed this morning just thinking and it hit me.... No more beer. I am early in he process so i'm sure plenty of other things will hit me as well. I just tell myself that the advantages of being small far outweigh anything I may feel I miss.

that sucks. I hope it is temporary for you. I have ready through a lot of these posts and have to believe that you have an rare situation. I would follow up with your surgeon. I am in no way an expert on this as I am still really early in the process but that doesn't sound right.

to really split hairs nursing is it's own thing. It is not medicine at its core. Florence nightingale worked very hard to distinguish nursing from medicine. One of my pet peeves is when nursing uses a caduceus as a logo.

I am getting more and more excited about the end results of this journey I am embarking on. I have always been a large guy with a few moments of moderate weight loss. I keep going through the things I want to do with my new life. 1. Skydive 2. Wake up with energy 3. Buy Cloths that don't have X's in the size 4. Play at the park with my daughter 5: Bend over 6. Not have a need to customize a chair I sit in 7. Not size up the strength of the chair before I sit down in it 8. Have enough room in the small stall of a bathroom to wipe easily 9. Be able to have the toilet paper on the wall hanger in my bathroom 10. Shop for cars easier (I'm 6'5" so this still may be tough) 11. Wake up not in pain 12. Be alive for my daughters graduation, marriage, Life! 13.Ride all the rides at an amusement park, not just the fat friendly ones 14. Be comfortable in a coach seat 15, comfortably keep both arm rests down in a movie theater 16. Be able to clip something to my belt (like a phone at work) 17. cross my legs easily 18. Not have the nick name "Big Guy" 19. Hop a fence 20. Be able to comfortably wear sandals for a day. So here are 20 of my can't wait to's. What are yours?

I do love me an occasional black and tan.. Just more black, less tan I guess

It's amazing how the simplest things will make us the happiest. I need to add one. I worked around the house all day, cleaning carpets and hanging pictures. I am in horrible pain. Can't wait to able to work like a normal person and not hurt.

Very new to all of this, I have my first appt with the surgeon on the 24th. I am hoping to get the info I need for the diet so I can go back to my PCP with it. What does insurance want for the 3 month diet? My PCP will do what ever I need him to do. Do they just want documented weights for 3 months with documentation of dietary modification discussion? referral to dietitian? Do they require a certain amount of weight loss during that time?

I can't speak to the specifics of much as I am just getting started in this whole thing. But as far as outpatient or not a 23 hour stay from admission is considered observation usually. As far as staying longer goes typically when your docs feel you can go home and writes the order you have to go or risk paying the bill for that extra day on your own. Only thing you could do is hopefully convince your doc to keep you an extra day. I am an RN So I am speaking only to as things normally go in the hospital. Your situation may be different.

Never a big cyclist however last time I tried to ride a bike was 6 years ago and it was more pain than it was worth. I very much want to be able to cycle with my children. Good call on the cycling.. I need to add it to my 20

Sophie'sChoice... What does this mean? I am so confused by this sentence. With out her feet hurting. Lol

I am an ICU nurse and really do not want to take anymore time off than I absolutely have to. I have very supportive co-workers that will help with turns etc. and will honestly spend 40% bedside probably, and the rest as house supervisor, and charge. What is the absolute shortest recovery time I should expect for VSG surgery?

That's great. I am in the beginning stages but for me those are the goals I have.. Not so much how much weight have I lost, but when can my new weight allow me to do the things I want to. Good luck with your surgery

I have been an ICU RN for 11 years. My opinions on this matter have run from its a super big deal, to who cares. My level of give a crap is inversely related to my experience. When I was a new nurse I cared because of all the work I had to do to get there. Now that time has passed and I have allowed my ego to deflate a bit I am closer to who cares. The only time it really bothers be is while I am at work. There are times that "nurses" (could be LPN, CNA, MA) try to direct care with the i'm a nurse authority. ICU is a very specific specialty that is changing all the time. Most RN's that are med/surg or tele nurses do not have the experience to completely understand what is going on. The stuff that you learned in nursing school is dated and not current, not to mention methodology changes from hospital to hospital. I have CNA's on my unit that are far more qualified to speak to things that happen in the ICU than most floor nurses. But outside of that arena, call yourself anything you want. and I would imagine the people that are saying "I'm a nurse" on these forums have more than enough authority to speak anecdotally about patients and experiences that have had with them.

I know this question is probably very specific to each individual, however I am wondering. A big motivator for me starting this journey is to feel better. I am a 6'5" and 387 right now, and I hurt all the time, my feet, hips, knees, back, you name it. My daughter is 3 months and feel like I am in a race to meet her when she needs me to be really active. Tell me your stories about when you started to feel better after surgery. What there a period when you woke up and realized that you are now able to do what you want with out the pain in doing ADL's? I know it's a journey, but I just want to meet my daughter at the starting line and I don't feel I can do that for her right now in my current condition.

I am a 37 year old male that has always struggles with my weight. Multiple diets that did nothing more than induce degrees of yo-yo weight gain/loss. I have been a type 1 diabetic since age 7, and now deal with type 2 as well. I have finally made the decision to consider VSG. I am in the baby stages. I have gone to the first seminar and have scheduled my first appointment. I am a bit nervous of the road ahead, but with a brand new baby at home, and my co-morbidities, I fear not seeing her graduate high school even more. I am seeing Dr. Jeffrey Johnsrud at St. Josephs in OC. The whole process is intimidating to me down to and including complications. I am an ICU Nurse and see a lot of normal procedure go wrong, but I keep telling myself I only see a small fraction of bad when overwhelmingly results are great.

So I am considering an VSG and am worried about NSAIDS. I have an herniated disc that I am fairly dependent on Motrin to sleep. If I don't take 800mg at bedtime my back pretty much keeps me up. I do my best not to use narcotics unless I just can't deal and certainly do not want to replace motrin with percocet if I don't have to. I know I am going to have to discuss this with my surgeon but I am still waiting to see him. My ultimate hope is that when I get a bunch of this weight off, my back pain will improve and I won't need the med's. Has anyone out there gone through something similar?

That is probably my single biggest motivator. I want to b able to play and have fun with my daughter and be here for her. I wish you a bunch of luck with your journey.

I am a 37 year old male that has always struggles with my weight. Multiple diets that did nothing more than induce degrees of yo-yo weight gain/loss. I have been a type 1 diabetic since age 7, and now deal with type 2 as well. I have finally made the decision to consider VSG. I am in the baby stages. I have gone to the first seminar and have scheduled my first appointment. I am a bit nervous of the road ahead, but with a brand new baby at home, and my co-morbidities, I fear not seeing her graduate high school even more. I am seeing Dr. Jeffrey Johnsrud at St. Josephs in OC. The whole process is intimidating to me down to and including complications. I am an ICU Nurse and see a lot of normal procedure go wrong, but I keep telling myself I only see a small fraction of bad when overwhelmingly results are great.