Inner Surfer Girl

I like "disappointed" better than "ashamed" in this context. I think that is why I was concerned.

I am so sorry you have a delay. They do happen. My delay was primarily because of financing so did have to redo some clearances. The best thing to do is ask. Ask what your next steps should be. Do they want you to do something specific before they will clear you? Your surgeon's office should also be able to tell you how long the clearances are good for. Do they have a patient coordinator? If so, he or she can help you map out a strategy. A delay is not the end of the world. The clearances, including the psych exam, are required so that you will be in the best position to have a successful outcome.

I was allowed ProtiDiet tomato basil and creamy chicken soups during my first week and they really helped me get in my protein.

I am so sorry you are experiencing all of this pain. I don't have any specific advice based on personal experience. But, based on what my surgeon has told me and especially after seeing the My 600 Pound Life episode this week, I highly recommend that you loop your surgeon in on any conversation you have with your PCP about pain meds. Your surgeon (or his office) will know what risks you need to be aware of etc. Especially as you are still healing at three months post-op.

I was the one who brought up high fructose corn syrup. It wasn't mentioned at all in the curriculum.

According to a phone call I made to my State's (Kentucky) Insurance Commissioner a while back, the requirements are based in state law. To have it included would literally take an act of the state legislature.

I doubt it will delay your surgery, but I highly recommend you tell your surgeon everything.

I love tea. My favorite is Harney & Sons Decaf Hot Cinnamon Spice. There are so many good teas and herbal infusions. It's fun to experiment.

My surgeon didn't give a calorie limit for his pre-op diet. It was basically Atkin's Phase One (no starches, carbs). He specifically told us not to limit calories too much because we need to go into surgery as healthy as possible.

@@1Cor2:9, I hope your week is going well. I am currently reading a Brene Brown book and came across her definition of shame. It brought to mind this post so I wanted to share it with you: "Shame is the intensely painful feeling or experience of believing that we are flawed and therefore unworthy of love and belonging." I think it is an important topic to be open and honest about and applaud your honesty. But, I truly hope that we all learn to feel that no matter the numbers on the scale or whether or not we achieved some arbitrary goal we are worthy of love and belonging. Isn't that Jesus' central message?

Great news!

The doctors have an obligation to their patients to take a proactive role in reading the JAMA and other trade journals and going to seminars to keep up with the latest medical information. The part of prescribing a specific medicine, just because a sales rep gave them samples and touted how wonderful it is, without them researching the information, studies and alternatives is laziness on their part. Sorry if I offended anyone. But we are dealing with people's health and lives. This is the profession they chose and they do have an obligation and swear to upholding the Hippocratic Oath. Which is what brings me back to my first point of being able to suggest "specific" journal articles, etc. Because, there is SO MUCH information out there that no one physician, GP or specialist, can know everything about everything. A generalist by nature is going to know a little about a lot of things unless there is a reason to know more. We don't know what we don't know. Plus, some fields change so rapidly that what may have been appropriate at the time for the last patient they treated with a particular issue may be quite different. Case in point: Weight Loss Surgery. Medicine is not adversarial, it is extremely collaborative. Why not help if we can? PS, good pharmaceutical reps do much more than just "hand out samples".

Any MDs or other medical professionals on this site who may have insight into this issue?

Thank you so much for such an educational, enlightening, and useful article. By the way, several years ago, before I started even considering Weight Loss Surgery, my eating disorder therapist at the time recommended your book Eat it Up! I read some of it back then. But, not until I was in the process of having surgery did I read it carefully, cover to cover. Now, it is one of the books I recommend on a regular basis to people who are going through this process. Thank you.

I guess because my sister is a pharmaceutical sales rep and spends her life educating doctors, I know that they don't know everything. They can't possibly keep up with ALL the changes in medicine without help. Plus, I would hazard a guess that one of the reasons they are so reliant on prescribing meds is because the pharmaceutical companies do such a good job of educating doctors. If something doesn't require meds then they MAY be less likely to hear about it unless they have a genuine interest and seek the info out themselves through journals or conferences. I had a friend who is a radiation oncologist and she used to spend hours every night at home reading journals just to TRY and keep up.

Early out, eat what you can. You can put the rest in the refrigerator and come back to it later, @@Dub usually gives excellent advice but I am going to have to disagree with him about the three meals, no snacking. You need to follow your program. Mine is 100 grams of Protein a day. If I didn't eat more than three times a day I would never get in my protein. Also, I don't eat until I'm "full". I eat 1) either my planned portion or 2) part of my planned portion (saving the rest for later) whichever comes first. Eat until you are "satisfied", not full. Track everything so you KNOW that you reached your protein goal, don't guess. Eat slowly. Take small bites and chew slowly. This is really important, especially as you transition to soft and more solid foods so you can learn what it feels like to be satisfied. There is a fine line between just enough and one bite too many. Also, even though it is common to feel fearful about gaining weight when you transition between stages, that is really the last thing to be worried about. As a matter of fact, this is an excellent time to just stay off the scale, If you want to obsess about anything, obsess about reaching your protein and Fluid target every day. That was more than enough to keep me busy in the first few weeks. You will be fine. Just go slow and try one new food at a time. If something doesn't work, then try it at a later date.

I would agree that ideally they should, but that doesn't mean they do. I think a patient referring them to a recognized journal article would have more credibility and be more effective than just disagreeing and telling he or she that they are wrong.

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I agree with previous posters. If the first mask you get doesn't work then keep trying until you find one that does. I use the nose pillows, too. I was diagnosed with severe sleep apnea several years before I had surgery. Other than surgery, getting that diagnoses was one of he best things I had done because I had no idea what a good night's sleep was like. Getting a good night's sleep on a regular basis literally changed my life. My sleep apnea has improved a great deal since surgery. I made an appointment with my sleep Doctor within about 10 days post-surgery because the pressure was too high. He switched me to an automatic machine and I love it.

WLS has changed rapidly, especially over the last few years. I don't know enough about how GPs and PCPs keep up with changes in medicine other than by reading journals. I wonder if there are a couple of good journal articles out there that could help bring some of these folks up to speed. Have any of the research whizzes on BariatricPal run across anything?

I have experienced well-meaning strangers approach me in public and usually in parking lots. It is a trip. This was definitely another sobering episode. My heart ached for her. Talk about a poster-child for poverty, abuse, and neglect. Her son is adorable and I truly hope the surgery will help break the cycle. What I still find unfathomable is how young so many of the recent people on the show have been. Over 700 pounds by her mid-20s is crazy. I weighed a lot when I had surgery, but that weight was gained over decades. It is like we have a whole generation that is being poisoned by our culture's unhealthy relationship with food and all of the fast, cheap, convenient, unhealthy food, that is a staple in our diets. On another note, I am currently taking a nutrition class through our county extension office for kicks. I am sure there are some SNAP and WIC recipients in the class. In addition to some pretty sound nutritional info they are also teaching things like potatoes and rice are great staples for your diet because they are cheap. It wouldn't be that big of a deal except that at least 75% of the class is overweight and it sounds like their families are, too. I have been open about my surgery and the food plan I am following so hopefully some of what I share in class may be helpful for some folks. I even showed a couple of people MyFitnessPal and helped one woman download it to her phone. I am seriously considering contacting the folks who develop the curriculum to see if it would be possible to develop a WLS-friendly or even a generic Bariatric-friendly version. Shaking my head.

It sounds like he may need to brush up on his information about the disease of obesity. GPs can be a great resource for general health but they aren't specialists.

Do your best to get in all of your protein and fluids right now. Don't worry so much about calories and the numbers on the scale. The most important thing is to stay hydrated and get your protein so you can heal.

Welcome! Best of luck with your surgery.

Since I ate everything with a tablespoon pre-op, switching to a teaspoon is using s smaller spoon. I did get some appetizer spoons rather than toddler spoons. I still use one of those to eat things like yogurt. It really does help me to take smaller bites. If you use a teaspoon then try using just the tip rather than a full teaspoon full. It takes practice but I think that taking smaller bites, eating slowly, and chewing thoroughly really makes a difference. The benefit is that I get to really taste my food.