kyle.odom

Going a lot better than expected. The Water is the hard part. Not getting enough water in and still having to pee all the time. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App I'm glad that its going well for you, for the most part. I am a little worried about it because I cannot lose very much weight during my 10 day liquid diet or I will not qualify. If I lose more than 10 lbs I'm screwed basically. How much weight have you lost so far?

Congratulations!! My pre-op appointment is March 31, liquid diet starts April 4, and surgery is April 14. Good luck! How is your diet going so far?

Thanks guys! I'm getting excited! I qualify for the surgery, but barely. At my last weigh-in I was told to be absolutely sure no to lose anymore weight. If I lose 8 lbs between now and surgery day I will not qualify. The problem is that I still have a 10 day liquid diet to tackle! It scares me because I have always had problems with my weight and been up and down. The sleeve is a tool to help me be healthy and happy and satisfied with myself. @@kitcamper78 I have been using an electronic cigarette for about 2 years now. When I was told that I had to be 30 days nicotine free before I could be considered for surgery, I immediately dropped the nicotine. I still use the cigarette but it is 0mg of nicotine. I mostly use it because I am addicted to menthol, lol.

Hey everyone....I have been a member of bariatric pal for a little while now but I haven't seen the homo section. Glad I found it though! I am about 3 1/2 weeks from my surgery day. Excited but it just got real this past week when I scheduled it. I have been, like I'm sure most of you have been, a lot bigger than I am now and also a lot smaller. It seems like, no matter how hard I've worked, the weight never stays off. That was what made me decide on the gastric sleeve.

Today I found out that I have been approved to have the gastric sleeve surgery. My insurance gave me a 3 month waiting period and a list of requirements. I started the process at the end of November and am finally nearing the finish line, sort of. I know there is a lot of things left to do, and the hard work after the surgery is ahead of me, but I am feeling a little sigh of relief that I finally have a pre-op appointment with my surgeon and a surgery day. Is anyone else having their surgery on or around 4/14. It would be nice to have someone to share the journey with!

I hope things are going well you guys and good luck with the surgery. I'm scheduled for 4/14 so my liquid diet starts 4/4. I think I am more concerned about the liquid diet than I am the actual surgery just because I turn into the spawn of Satan when I haven't eaten and get hungry. (I'm not proud of that.) I will definitely try Pho broth though! Thanks you guys and good luck!

@bohmian and @@PaulDaniel let me know how things go. I'm starting my ten day liquid diet on 4/4 and I think that's what's going to be the hardest for me.

I was offered several dates but due to some sleep apnea issues I had to back it up. Keep me up to date with your date!

I am going for my third sleep study on Tuesday. Apparently my sleep apnea is so bad that the c pap mask did not work for my. I'll be using a bipap mask this time. That is the only thing left. I have BCBS and I was on a 3 month waiting period. My surgery date (just scheduled today!!) is April 14. That gives me about 3 weeks to have my sleep study and get everything taken care of.

As of last week, my insurance approved me for surgery and now I am awaiting a pre-op appointment with my surgeon. It has not been scheduled yet. However, I am starting to get cold feet about the surgery. I am so looking forward to being able to successfully lose the weight that I have struggled to lose for my entire life, but its just a "heavy" situation. Since I have started the process, I have lost 15 lbs. I have worked very hard and exercised regularly while eliminating most of the carbs from my diet and eating mostly Proteins and vegetables. Unfortunately, I feel like I have hit a plateau with my weight loss. Any who, I'm just getting nervous about the surgery because it is such a lifestyle change. I love eating healthy and exercising, but that isn't really my concern. I guess its because I have used food as a form of comfort and I know that it can no longer be there for me. I spoke with my general physician today about the thoughts and questions that I had and her advise was to make a pre, pre-op appointment with my surgeon to put my mind at ease. I think that it would be the best option for me so that I can get over the nervousness. Has anyone else experienced any of the same feelings or issues regarding pre surgery jitters? If so, how did you handle them and what advice can you offer me? I would greatly appreciate any input. When I remember that I'm not the only person going through this, and that there are many, many people who have already been where I am, it definitely helps to calm my nerves. Thanks guys!

My insurance required a nutrition class, surgery class, one support group meeting, psych eval, sleep study, h-pylori test, and occupational therapy evaluation. I also had to have a medical clearance form signed by my PCP and documentation from my PCP or pharmacist stating that my medications could be crushed or taken in liquid form. All that is left is a pre op appointment. My insurance approved me within the last two weeks.

Thank you both for your comments. @@rking I have gone through all of the appointments in basically just waiting for a surgery date. I completely understand you though. Sh*t gets real very quickly. It's not that I don't want the surgery, but it's "heavy" because it's a serious and permanent change. I think when I actually have a date I will calm down a little bit. Because then it's just preparation.

I have just joined the site and am looking for some guidance, advice, and support from others who have recently began their journey's and from those who have had success, failures, and so forth from their surgeries. To start, I am 27 years old and currently weigh 291 lbs. At 6'3" I have received lots of criticism from people who I have told about my decision to have the surgery. For the most part, I have only talked to my close family and friends about the surgery. They all say that I am tall and can carry it well, or that I've lost the weight before, I can just do it again. Their responses tend to frustrate me. I think it is because a lot of people see the surgery as a way of giving up and forcing yourself to lose and I know that is not the case. I was a very small and skinny kid up until the age of 9 or 10. Because I had problems with ear infections, I stayed on antibiotics which kept my stomach upset and kept me from eating as much as the normal child. Then I had my tonsils removed and that seemed to cure the problems with my constant ear infections. It also cured my inability to eat. I got fat, very quickly. Around the age of 15 my weight peaked at about 297 and my mother and I began a physician assisted weight loss program. We weighed in every 5 weeks and were prescribed bontril as an appetite suppressant. Along with dieting, I lost 40 lbs in the first ten weeks and consistently kept losing. Eventually I plateaued at about 240. I felt great! After graduating high school I gained a little of the weight back but quickly began taking OTC diet pills (which are now off the market) and was full of energy, exercising 7 days per week, and eating just enough to stay alive. My food intake wasn't intentional, but I just didn't need to eat - I was not hungry. On the pill bottle, it said to take the pills for 45 days with a 30 day break in between. I ended up taking them for about 6 months, without a break. I lost down to about 220. When I stopped taking them I, very slowly, gained back to 245 and stayed there for several years. Although my exercise habits weren't great, I was very active due to my job. Then, within the past few years I started working in an administrative type job and thats when I gained everything back. It was like waking up one day and suddenly being back at 300 lbs. I hated myself and how I had allowed myself to get back there. I made an appointment to begin the process of having the gastric sleeve surgery. My insurance requires a 3 month waiting period and my surgeon requires me to have a psych eval, occupational therapy eval, and 2 night sleep study. Most of the appointments I have already completed, the others are scheduled. My 3 month waiting period will end on February 23 and I can have a preop appointment with the surgeon where he will schedule the surgery. I have started eating low carb/high protein/sugar free in preparation for the surgery and for what is to follow. I am impressed at how satisfied I am with the diet. I have never disliked "diet" food but it requires a lot of work to make sure healthy options are available for me. I have also started to add Meal Replacement shakes in to prepare myself for the liquid diet. That has been my main concern is the liquid diet. It will be the largest obstacle for me, I feel, throughout this process. Any input from you guys would be greatly appreciated! Thanks for the support!

Thanks to the both of you for your comments and advice. Currently I am in the "liver shrinking" stage of my diet. I have had to be careful because my BMI is not over 40 and for insurance purposes cannot fall below 35. Because I have high BP it qualifies me for surgery. I have thrown shakes in to my diet though because I know I was eventually be on liquids only for some time. Carbonated beverages has been a big part of my life for some time now, Diet Coke is definitely my friend. Although, I haven't had much of an issue coming off of them because I drink crystal light when I feel the urge for a soda. However, I still get the caffeine from coffee every morning. Has that been an issue for anyone?