gpmed

I'm having mine done by Peter Hallowell at UVA.

I feel like I can say this about SO MANY topics. That is definitely where my cynical edge comes from.

@@Soon2beslimSamantha I'm not sure it's a conspiracy to control population, but I have no doubt the stigma against the poor and overweight people go hand-in-hand. I think the fact that there's a correlation between poverty and obesity allows people to keep up the idea that weight is a moral issue and slows the impetus to find real solutions instead of simply ridiculing the overweight.

I wonder if some of these comments you guys are hearing about looking sick are pure jealousy? Thinner women seem to battle weight almost as much as I do in their own minds. Almost every time someone brings Cookies or something into my work, one of the women demands to know who is responsible and exclaims, "you are the DEVIL!" Personally I think they're psychos and avoid this chatter as much as possible. When you're really overweight and start losing weight, it seems some catty women will cheer you on at first, but then feel threatened when you start to approach their weight/BMI or even surpass them. In college I took up kickboxing my junior year and started shredding weight. After months of success, a friend cornered me and tried to stage an intervention, insisting I must have an eating disorder that I most certainly did not have. Also agree that many people no longer remember what a healthy BMI looks like. I've actually heard this phenomena is prevalent in pediatrics. People honestly can't tell their pre-school and elementary school-age children are overweight.

@@WL WARRIOR The link between poverty and obesity has been pretty clear to me since the time I began grocery shopping for myself. Ramen, mac and cheese, and other packaged foods are SO much cheaper than fresh, whole foods. I struggled financially in my first job and sometimes went into the grocery store with $15 or $20 to buy food for the week. I left with those less expensive options myself. It makes sense to me that food pantries receive a lot of processed food in donations. They're cheaper and have a longer shelf life. When I donate, I try to go for the lesser of evils and pick out canned veggies, healthy soups or non-sugary cereals like plain Cheerios.

@@limichelle34 Wow! That sounds totally INSANE! My bariatric clinic required a referral from your PCP before you were invited for a seminar. Maybe that helped them weed through the crazies? For me, it took me two months to get into a seminar after seeing my doctor (which I'd waited a month for). I'd taken matters into my own hands and was halfway through my nutrition counseling, had completed my required psych eval and researched the surgeries extensively. My only disappointment was that the seminar presented really basic information and didn't get into the nitty gritty, which I was really eager to do.

Hi guys, I'm pre-op and trying to plan ahead what I can eat during the various phases after surgery. My nutritionist suggests sticking to foods with 10 grams of sugar or less and 5 grams of fat or less. But she also says olive oil is okay. Does that sound right to you guys? I'm hoping I can continue to use olive oil in salad dressings and to roast veggies. What's your experience been? Also, I have questions about meat. When I'm back to solid food, do you know if 93 percent fat free ground turkey or chicken is okay? Or does it need to be 99 percent fat free? I tried making turkey burgers this weekend with the 99 percent and they were, understandably, pretty dry. I'm wondering if 93 and cooking them on a george forman grill might work? Also, if I roast a whole chicken, is it okay to eat some of the dark meat? Or should I stick to white meat only? I'm a little unsure because there's the under 5 grams of fat guideline, but I know baked salmon is supposed to be okay and that has more than 10 grams of fat per 4 oz filet.

Actually Protein and carbohydrates each contain 4 calories per gram. You might be thinking of alcohol, which contains 7 calories per gram.

Even meat has carbs in limited quantities. It's nearly impossible to find a food that contains one macronutrient exclusively. Usually at least a trace amount of one of the others is present.

Hi guys! What tips do you all have to preventing or lessening hair loss after surgery? I know it varies a lot from person to person, but just trying to think of what I can do to increase my chances of not losing too much hair. I've heard Biotin is good, but not sure how much to take? Thanks!

Welcome! It looks like you're getting good advice on this thread. It really is a personal choice. I'm more of a private person than an open book, so I'm keeping things quieter. I talked to my dad, boyfriend and best friend about it from the beginning. I chose them cause I know I could count on them to be positive and supportive and not say anything dumb. I was unsure of how the rest of my immediate family would react, but thought they should know I'm having major surgery. I asked my dad to tell them and if they reacted negatively to make sure they knew my mind was made up and I wouldn't tolerate any judgmental or inappropriate remarks. My sister still made some inappropriate remarks, but I shut that down pretty quickly. Work has been a delicate balance for me. I trust my two managers not to gossip about me or say anything inappropriate. I told them because I figured it would be helpful for them to understand why I would be going to more doctors appointments than usual and to let them know way in advance that I'd be out for the surgery. With others at work, a few people are finding out. One is a bodybuilder type who knows a lot about Protein powders and I wanted to ask him for recommendations. Another of my coworkers recently had surgery and I wanted to ask her what it's like having surgery and being in the hospital. I'm trying to put out a vibe that I don't want to talk about it a whole lot and I'm not being super open about it. I think my boss will be able to explain to my team why I'm out and let them know I'd like my privacy respected. When I come back to work, I'll be okay with people genuinely asking me how I'm doing but probs won't want to discuss things in detail. I guess I'll decide if I ever want to be more open later. It's so true that you can't "untell." I got kind of excited when I got my insurance authorization and I told my hair stylist, who is also a friend. Her negative reaction helped me remember why discretion can be wise. As for your patients, I'd say if they're not struggling with weight you can just say "oh, I made some healthy changes" and keep it vague. For your overweight patients, I agree that you could be an incredible advocate and source of support. Having a doctor like that can make such a huge difference in a person's life because overweight people face a lot of stigma even from healthcare providers. If the person's genuine, you could help them understand what WLS is, how it works and guide them toward deciding if it's for them.

I'm sorry to break it to you, but Nioxin sucks now. My sister worked there for many years while they produced incredible products that everyone in my family swore by. But then the owners decided to sell the company. Proctor & Gamble bought it, liquidated the Atlanta-based plant and outsourced production to Mexico. Since then, the quality of the products has plummeted. My sister rounded up every bit of product she could find before the plant closed and has been hoarding it in her basement. I'm begging her to send me some of the old stuff so I can use it post-surgery!

@@Dub I was really hoping you'd reply and tell me where you're coming from, so I'm glad you did. I had noticed your post here and the rant you posted on my thread the other day and was wondering what's going on. I misunderstood your first post here. When you said "most" I thought you were saying most who have had or are awaiting WLS were lazy and looking for miracles. I appreciate that we're probably coming at things from different angles. I've only been on the site for a couple weeks and probably haven't seen as much as you have. It's also just my style to give people the benefit of the doubt, even if they're saying something that sounds kind of absurd (there are limits to this of course). I figure you never know what a person might be going through and how that motivates their behavior. That's cause I generally respond better to gentle encouragement (like someone saying "you can do this!") than "tough love." I say this to clarify where I'm coming from, not to say my way is better. We're all individuals and respond to things different ways. Also, I saw your status update about your insurance requiring a six-month waiting period. I'm super impressed by your positive attitude about it!! I know I would have struggled to find the same enthusiasm after that news. I'm so ready to have my surgery and start using that tool to get healthier!

Thank you everyone for the tips and for telling me the truth!

As a hair dresser and huge advocate for nioxin, using the conditioner by itself won't help. U have to use at least step 1&2 together (shampoo and cond.) And I always support the #3 step of a spray for the roots. Are you still pleased with Nioxin? I used to swear by their products. My sister introduced me to them. She worked for them for about seven years before the owners sold the company to Proctor & Gamble and they liquidated their Atlanta-based plant. She says there was a huge drop in the quality of the products after P&G took over. She actually has a huge stash of old product in her basement that she's using. I've switched to Aquage Sea Extend strengthening shampoo and conditioner. It's the next best thing I've found, but is definitely not as good as the old Nioxin product! I'm hoping my sister will give me a little of her stock for post-surgery. So just curious, are you still using Nioxin or have you moved on to another brand you like?

I really wish I could understand this judgement of your peers. We're all in the same boat. We're either awaiting surgery or have had surgery as tool to aid us in making life-long changes. We've all been called lazy or worse by someone at some point because we chose to use this tool. I thought we were here to support each other, not shame each other.

Not worried! I was just surprised by what this nurse said and wondering if it could really be true? It just sounded unbelievable.

Hi everyone! I'm pre-surgery and I have a major sugar problem that I'm trying to get under control. I see it as probably my biggest hurdle in conquering my obesity. Would any of you post-surgery people please share your stories about slaying the sugar dragon? How did surgery help you? Did the cravings come back? If so, when and were they as strong as before surgery? Do you eat sugar in moderation now or have you just never picked it back up again? Thank you for any insight you can share!

@@Indieflickers Congrats on your weight loss! That is amazing! I suppose what your doc says is good news and bad news. Good news that there's nothing majorly wrong that she can see. Bad news that you don't have a definitive answer. That can be frustrating, but hopefully if you ride it out for a while longer you'll feel better. Keep letting us know how you're doing!

@@Indieflickers Good luck! Hope you feel better soon!

@@Indieflickers That's definitely puzzling and no doubt frustrating. I'm sorry you're going through this. Getting your thyroid checked might really be a good idea. It's a pretty simple, basic blood test so I'm surprised this doc won't just order the test himself or herself? Maybe if you explained that it's a real hassle to wait to get into your PCP, he or she would just do it? Have you increased your activity in the last month? Either started exercising more or increased the intensity? I just wonder if it could take time for your body to catch up?

Are you looking for exercises or fun things to do? Or both?

Hi everyone! My insurance company just authorized my surgery and I will be meeting with my surgeon soon to set a date. One of the things I'm really wondering about is what it's like to be in the hospital. I've never had surgery before and I've never stayed in the hospital overnight. My surgeon says I will likely be in the hospital for two nights. I'm hoping you veterans can share some info and tips! What do you wish you'd known before you went in? What did you bring with you? Did it get boring? Did you want visitors and to watch Netflix and stuff or were you more in pain and sleeping a lot? If you were at an academic medical center, were there things you wanted the attending to do vs. a resident? Anything you can tell me will be helpful! Thanks so much in advance! ~megan

I'm pre-surgery, but I can tell there are so many factors that determine one's tolerance for exercise that I find it meaningless to compare one person to another. Age, comorbidities, starting weight, etc. Also, it seems that those factors affect people in different ways (e.g., though one person is heavier than another, that person might have an easier time with exercise and who knows why?). I agree with everyone saying not to compare yourself to others! Some people can walk four miles easily before surgery. Others avoid walking to the printer at work cause their bodies ache so much. I know I won't be walking 3.5 miles two days after surgery. The last time I could walk that far it took months to build up to it and I was 40 pounds lighter. And I'm 32 with no comorbidities (unless you count plantar fasciitis). Do what YOU can do. In my experience, some days are easier than others. When I've walked for exercise, I could have one day when walking 3 miles felt easy and a few days later struggle to finish 2 miles. It helps me if I don't expect myself to be at peak performance each time I exercise. I give myself a little break on hard days and challenge myself on better days. Doing that, my average still improves over time, such that eventually what I did on those peak days becomes that I do on sluggish days. Also, do what you LIKE. There are so many different ways to exercise. If you like walking, great. If it sucks and you love Water aerobics, do that. I've been most successful when I do things I don't dread so much. Good luck!

That sucks cause it sounds like she's making digs in such a way that later she can say "I wasn't talk about him" or "I didn't mean anything by it." Uncool.