kristykreem

endorphins are the only things that have ever successfully controlled my anxiety. when i don't exercise, i'm just emotionally down enough to make life more difficult. but when i exercise, i get everything out of my mind and body, the catharsis is deep, and my brain chemistry is more balanced. i'm talking about daily exercise. my favorite exercise is hiking and walking. this sounds psycho -- and i'm not saying i'm NOT psycho -- but i power walk and hike with my bluetooth earpiece on and talk to myself. it looks and sounds like i'm on the phone, but really i'm just getting it all OUT. i have to work out all my stuff, and doing this gets my stuff worked out of me physically and mentally. this is when i'm in shape, mind you. i know the hardest part of this journey for me will be when i'm thin -- thinness is where the rubber hits the road for me. i have no armor, no excuses, i can't blame anybody else for any number of things, and life is vivid and REAL and mine to mess up. i have a fear of being thin. i know this now. so, this time i'm armed with a clear understanding of how i tick, and i know i have to treat my food and weight issues the same way an alcoholic treats their recovery. i know life isn't going to be ideal just because i'm thin again. life will be awesome, i'm ready for that, but it will still be challenging and i'll have to work through it. my plan is to be in individual and group therapy in perpetuity, and i've already lined up steady exercise activities to keep me balanced (i've already joined an ocean swimming group, stuff like that). i'm ready to LIVE. all a long-winded way of saying TRY EXERCISE once you're recovered enough and have lost enough weight to move around without feeling like you're going to die. the link between endorphins and serotonin levels is well documented. drugs don't always help, so endorphins can be your friends.

congratulations!

off-topic and sorry if this is a horrible violation, but anybody in here have any idea why my profile picture isn't showing on my posts? my pic is well within the size guidelines. thanks!

something like 80% of the adult US population has some form of herpes. don't sweat it!

i had to wait almost three months to start options, then options itself was three months. by the time i go under the knife (or, rather, the laparoscope) my wait time will be around nine months. i'm having surgery at pacific bariatric in san diego because the wait time at kaiser west LA is between five and nine months. no effin' way am i waiting that long. this process is like torture.

mb20mom, you're right -- it didn't occur to kaiser that shortening the options program would double the demand for surgery and they're overwhelmed. kind of retarded, but in general i'm happy with kaiser. it's just this particular situation that's been a little out of control. mr_mason, just get through your options classes and things will start to fall together in terms of how everything will work. be aware, though, that the options staff probably knows the LEAST about how the medical and surgery aspect works, so you might not get accurate info from them. if you need somebody to spell the steps out to you with blocks, as dr. alskaf's office. this is my experience thus far: after completion of the options classes, dr. alskaf's office contacted me to schedule an appointment with dr. alskaf as well as tell me about all the pre-surgery tests and appointments i needed to do. they then gave me a choice of two surgery venues: kaiser west LA and pacific bariatric (scripps in san diego). i was told the wait time for surgery at kaiser west LA is about five months, and the wait at pacific bariatric is about two months. when i called pacific bariatric, they confirmed that info, adding that they heard the wait time at kaiser west LA can be up to nine months. because of the wait time, i never considered kaiser west LA. that wait time, to me, is unacceptable. in terms of pre-surgery preparation, things are definitely easier if you stick to a kaiser facility. pacific bariatric requires everyone to attend a seminar, in which they give a presentation as well as provide everyone with paperwork that must be completed and faxed to them before they proceed with your case -- they need this paperwork plus all the labs from kaiser before they'll schedule a consultation with a surgeon. that consultation includes their own psych evaluation and internal medicine exam and/or review, and they do all three appointments in one day, which means patients have to spend one day at pacific bariatric then, if all goes well, surgery is scheduled. the seminar i attended was in bakersfield. i live in LA. other seminars are given in anaheim, riverside, encinitas and san diego, but none of those locations offered a seminar on a date that wouldn't push my scheduling process back even further, so i hoofed it up to bakersfield as fires were erupting out there and got my seminar overwith. as a result, i'm now done with all my stuff and am now waiting to be called with my consultation appointment date. i've been told it will take a few weeks for my consult to be scheduled, then surgery will be about a month after that. but kaiser is now referring more and more patients to them, so the wait time is starting to lag. this two-month scenario might not be the case by the time your options classes are over, so be prepared for that reality and be pleasantly surprised if your wait time is shorter. in terms of staying motivated during a long wait time, i'd say everyone's different in this regard.

i have to add: the panorama city bariatric surgery department and the options department have really great staff. the overall problem is that there's such a massive demand for bariatric surgery that both of these departments are scrambling to keep up with the expanding demand. also, it seems like communication between panorama city and the various surgical facilities isn't that great.

i did options in panorama city, too. my classes concluded on july 8th. after your classes are over, you'll be contacted by the office of your bariatric doctor (mine's dr. alskaf) to schedule your final appointment (the appointment in which he reviews your test results, psych evaluation, etc., and refers you for surgery). dr. alskaf ordered a bunch of pre-surgery tests for me -- labs, chest x-ray, everybody has to get a gall bladder ultrasound, etc. -- and my final referral appointment is scheduled on august 9th. as long as all my ducks are in a row, alskaf will refer me for surgery on the 9th. the next step is the consultation with the surgeon and the scheduling of my surgery. alskaf's office told me the wait time for surgery at west los Angeles is about five months. the outside partner facility in which i'm having surgery told me they heard the wait is more like nine months. in short, kaiser doesn't know how long the wait time is, which is why i chose the alternative facility they offered me. the wait time at the alternative facility is about a month for the consultation and a month after that for surgery. i'll keep you posted about how this post-options phase shakes out because i guarantee you nobody at kaiser will be able to tell you exactly what the deal is because THEY DON'T KNOW. a piece of advice about options: hand in your food logs even if you miss a class. you have to make up each class you miss, but moving forward is about your food logs and homework being turned in. if you miss a class, they are notorious for telling you to make up that class on a date that will turn out to be a repeat of a class you've already taken, but because it's their mistake, they'll credit you with the make-up. try to make sure your make-up classes fall within your current 12-week classes or else the time will be added to the back-end of your 12 weeks. same with food logs you don't turn in -- they hold off "graduating" you until you make up each week of food logging you haven't turned in. keep track of your materials, because they don't always keep correct track of it for you (aka, they don't always credit you when you've turned in your homework).

here's an example of what i've been dealing with: kaiser told me the sleeve is an outpatient procedure. in reality, the sleeve is a three-day hospital stay. i'm okay with kaiser in general, but this kind of thing, which has been unique to the bariatric surgery department, is extremely frustrating.

i'm also in a kaiser hmo. my understanding is it's blood thinners -- aspirin, advil, anti-inflammatories -- that need to be stopped 30 days prior to surgery, but your surgeon will tell you what you can and can't take prior to surgery. almost everybody in my options class had health risks that were being controlled by medication and that was the #1 reason those people were choosing to have surgery. in the end, though, only your surgeon can give you the complete information you need.

thanks for the info! i'll definitely pursue the OPTIONS program, but i'm disappointed in my interpretation of their guidelines. i'll know soon enough if my interpretation is wrong, though.

i hope you're right! here's what my info packet says under the "are you a candidate?" section: >> 2. You have made several serious attempts with traditional approaches to lose weight (e.g., programs that include dietary counseling, behavior modification, and exercise). We desire that you provide proof that you have participated in an approved weight management plan for at least six months within the last ten years; attending weekly, missing no more than two sessions. Acceptable proof of participation will include weights and dates on program letterhead with appropriate signature. << then in "how to begin": >> Step 1: Gather documentation of your past weight loss attempts and complete your Bariatric Pre-Program Questionnaire. You need a letter or some form of documentation (weights and dates on letterhead with a signature) to show you have participated in a weekly supervised weight loss plan for at least six months. Qualifying plans include those that provide nutritional education, behavioral support, and exercise fitness guidance. Acceptable documentation includes: *Three areas of supervision and education for weight loss to include behavioral support, exercise, and nutritional counseling. *Participation in a supervised program like Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig, NutraSystem, or any hospital-based program plus six months of documented exercise and documented behavioral support conducted at the same time. *Participation in the Weight Management Programs (good attendance required). If you have been in one of our programs for six months or longer within the last ten years, you do not need to provide documentation. << what the hell? this is in my "things to do before i attend the OPTIONS orientation session" literature.

thanks mb20mom! i just got my options packet in the mail. they're asking for documentation that i've been in a weight loss program for at least six months BEFORE i come to my options orientation meeting. are they kidding? does this mean i have to dick around with jenny craig for half a year, then do options for five months, then maybe have surgery?

So, is this how it works: You go to 24 weeks of Options then get scheduled for surgery? So, five months of classes THEN another however many months waiting for surgery?