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I wanted to organize one area of people having surgery in June 2010 so we can keep a sort of thread journal of the process that starts before the surgery! June 28th for me!:thumbup:

Well here is my story: I went to TJ for my surgery as planned on 6/25. The hospital was super nice and I met the doctors and the staff who were all extremely well spoken and explained everything for me. I got settled into my room and they started my IV and took my blood samples for my blood tests. The anesthesiologist came in to explain her portion and we went over my medical history and current and past medications from the year. All I had left to do was my EKG. I asked the anesthsiologist if she could give me something for nerves and she said sure she had her bag with her and I clarified that it would not interfere with the EKG I was going to have she assured me it would not. She shot the medication Midalozam straight into my IV like a gun. My mother who is an RN was right next to me on my right side along with the doctor. It burned a lot I got extremely dizzy and suddenly i felt my chest closing up the last words I squeeked out were I CANT BREATH. My mom caught the words and immediately her hand went to my chest. My body was paralyzed from my head to my toes. I could not make a sound I could not flinch a muscle all I could do was sit there in my own private torment begging for someone to start giving me air but I couldnt move let alone make a sound. I remember the doctor grabbing my chin and pulling my neck up telling me to take a deep breath and believe me I was trying so hard but my chest would not move. My mom is getting louder telling her SHE IS NOT BREATHING, the doctor ran to the other side of the bed and I remember feeling her put the oxygen mask over my face telling me to breath but I could do nothing and finally I passed out from lack of oxygen. I guess the doctor ran from the room and came back with the entire staff and the crash cart. They intubated me and pumped me with oxygen for the next three minutes during which time they threw my mom out of the room. The doctor gave me something to counteract the medication that had been given to me and within another minute I regained consciousness slowly. The first thing I remember is the metal tip of the laryngoscope (thing opening my airway up and protecting me from coming to and biting my tongue off) it was sort of gagging me though the air felt like heaven. They were all saying my name and telling me to breath...the whole room was just trying to coax me. I came too twitching and I remember them pulling the air bag away from my mouth because i was taking tiny breaths but I was thinking oh god put it back I am not getting enough air on my own. I thought crap I come back only to still not be able to breath I would rather be passed back out, but after another thirty seconds I was able to let my head roll to the side and saliva was dripping from my mouth. It felt so damn good to be able to do something that I was meaning to do. After they suctioned my airway and pulled the tube from my throat they threw the regular oxygen mask on me to help me get enough pure air into my lungs and they starting trying to get me to talk...they asked me how I felt and I mumbled out something then I just said MY MOM and they went to go get her. She walked in and then I finally started crying. I continued to be monitored and given oxygen for the next half hour where all my vitals returned to normal but I of course was an emotional wreck. Now before anyone speculates where I had surgery I will say I am not going to be sharing that info but I assure you it was not Dr. Almanza's clinic. The doctors and the clinic I went to are great but I think two things were a fluke..first off I obviously can't tolerate that medicine and nobody could have predicted that and two the doctor administered it way to fast...those things should be titrated (given slowly) over a period of two minutes. I think the doctor learned a valuable lesson regarding that and had no way to know i personally would respond that way. I decided to come home without going further I was in no shape mentally to have surgery and quite honestly I was too scared to have another drug pumped into me at that point. I have been home since late that same day and am dealing with anxiety about it. I wake myself thinking I can't breath and last night it was so bad I had a panic attack that ended me up at my local ER where the doctor assured me that I was not going to suddenly stop breathing again but that the medication has it's own sort of withdrawl symptoms that can cause anxiety on top of the experience I had. I am bummed because I really wanted the surgery but I am happy to be alive at this point and think I am going to give it a go at doing it on my own. My BMI is not that high and I think it is worth another shot at this point. Who knows down the road if I will do it, but I can't imagine right now I would have any support of my family in choosing to go back. I think if I would not have asked for anything for nerves the surgery would have went off without a hitch but I like to think I can read the signs and deduce that now is not the right time. I wish everyone luck but I wanted to report back just to share my experience. That complication percentage is small but it sucks to the statistic and it could have cost my life.

Edit: I need to proof read my posts. I spelled suppressant wrong in the title and now in my post. Sorry I am not all there. Ok, I know everyone talks about how nice it is to have no hunger but I am not one of those people. For about the last 5 weeks my hunger has been out of control. I get full really fast but I have these enormous cravings. I think it started when I stopped being so carb conscious so it is my own fault. I just wonder if anyone else has tried any appetite suppressants to help them get through the head cravings. I do fine when I eat my meals because I eat so little but I have been grazing and have only lost 3 pounds in 5-6 weeks. I get really bad PMS and my cravings along with my depression are out of this world. That lasts around 10 days...heck that is almost half the month, it is insane. I was on an antidepressant for almost a year now (after I lost two of my four grandparents within a month last holiday season) but i stopped taking them around 2 weeks ago because I don't want to be on them forever especially because of the sexual side effects. They make me feel like im a dried up old prune instead of a normal 33 year old who adores her husband. I am doing fine without the antidepressants probably because I am exercising and that helps my overall mood. Anyways, I really feel like I want to lose the last 15 pounds I have on my agenda. I was low BMI to start with and though I have lost around 42 pounds I dont want to have paid almost 7k for a surgery that I don't make the most of and get to my goal, especially since I am so close to it already and it is not a really tiny number. If I hit my goal I will be like 5 pounds under the "normal" range according to BMI. I feel like I probably get just around the amount of calories a day to keep me at a steady weight. I don't OVER indulge, I just am not saving any calories toward weight loss right now. I have been looking up appetite suppressants, I don't want to do phentermine or anything prescription just something over the counter to help me not feel as hungry. I sorta feel like an idiot posting this and I should probably just go back to the basics and start a low carb diet to get rid of my cravings but dangit I don't know if I am up to that right now. any advice? Suggestion? am I all alone with my hunger? I know it is not my sleeve because I have recognized that i get full really fast and eat around 8 oz of slider foods and only around 4-5 oz of dense Protein foods.

Hey great job neighbor (I am about 40 minutes north of you in cow country). I can't believe you were up and ready to let people know how it was going. I just wanted to be left the heck alone and get out of the hospital as soon as possible. It took me the full two days to get my strength up enough to make walk down the hall to elevator lol.

Welcome home and get some rest. Happy reunion to you and your baby!

How awesome for you. You look just wonderful and you have wonderful taste. Simple and elegant I think that captures you!

I totally agree with SkinnyB, warm showers just made all the difference. If you can even sit on the floor of the shower and just let the water rain down on you and try to just relax and let it wash over you it could really help you. I had some horrible emotional breakdowns the first few weeks and I had the what did i do to myself talk. I would get in the shower literally 4-5 times a day just to calm the heck down. You will get through these next few weeks and start to feel more like yourself again. You wont feel like your stomach is ruling your life. I PROMISE!

I realized after clicking back on your before picture a second time that my jaw was literally agape! You look so different and amazing. Congrats and make sure to get a picture taken in the dress the night of the event!

Pardon me while I have a fit like a small whiny child! """"I DONT WANNNNNNNNNNNA GAIN"""""""""!!!!!!! CRYYYYY. Sorry, I had to throw that out there and get it off my chest. I worry about it a lot. I saw a picture of myself at a concert the summer before surgery and I thought to myself, please dont screw this up self! sigh

I can't believe people would assume that it was like a magic instant weightloss procedure. Jeesh its not like you put some giant boob implants on your chest that are noticeable. It is a process jeeeeesh. LOL it is comical though that people would not be able to comprehend that.

UHHHH absolutely nothing is the matter with you besides being a caring parent! My boys are no longer small babies but the minute I left 2 weeks ago to go visit a friend overnight I felt guilty and I just wanted to be able to reach out and touch them. WHen I went for surgery it was about 100% worse because I knew there are always risks, but you are going to be fine, she is going to be great and you will be back together soon. Try to stay as relaxed and focused on how you are starting a new chapter and how great you are going to feel when the weight starts to drop off. Your a caring mama and there is nothing to question about that!

I think that it is a crap shoot. I had a bunch of hair fall out after both the births of my children and I just had epidurals and I lost a good amount of hair when I had a tummy tuck and a experienced 3-4 months of hair loss with the sleeve. I think it is a combo of how people react to the anesthesia and the weight loss. I wouldn't fault you for trying any of the prenatal vitamins or hair loss shampoos but I am not convinced they will help. I can say it does come to a stop and I noticed yesterday that I have about 2 1/2 inches of new growth sticking out on each temple and around my ears so it is coming back in ahoy!

WOW! That is so amazing. You look so tiny and such a difference from the before pic. Proud of you.

I am just about a year out (on the 12th of August I think). I had posted on a couple of threads that lately I had gained 5 pounds and that I felt like I was able to eat WAYYY too much. I was planning a trip down to TJ to visit my doctor and get a contrast xray of my sleeve in a week or two. About 3 months ago I started experiencing some really bad nerve pains in my left arm, one day I woke up with my arm spasming from shoulder to wrist and it turns out I had a herniated disc in my c-spine. The doctor prescribed vicodin for the pain and ibuprofen for the inflamation. It took about 2 months for the arm to feel well enough that tylenol and the ibuprofen alone handled the pain. So I stopped taking the vicodin and HOLY HELL if my body didn't flip out on me. I realized that while I didn't abuse the vicodin and I didn't get a high from the vicodin that my body was in fact experiencing withdraws from not having it. It was the middle of the night and I was having a horrible panic attack and I woke up with my arms flailing and my mind racing and sweating like a pig. I realized immediately that I was having DT's. I had an appt the next day so I popped a half a vicodin and went to sleep about a half hour later and felt fine. I decided because it was going to be physically difficult and emotionally draining to come off them that I was going to wait until after a couple of family trips we had planned. So I continued to use them (not in excess) for the following 3 weeks. Last week I had a huge panic attack, so bad that I called my mother-in-law who lives next door (we live on a farm) to come over because my hubby was not home. I was freaked out because I thought I was having a reaction to the vicodin. Anyways long story made a bit shorter, I stopped taking them that night. I took some anti anxiety drugs to counteract the anxiety I was having and the withdraws at night and the first 5 nights were HELL. I really have a newfound respect for anyone who has kicked an addiction habit. My mother, mother-in-law and hubby were rocks and kept me feeling safe, secure and loved. It has been 11 days and I don't feel the withdraws anymore. My head is clearer then it has been in 3 months. I have a little bit of depression going on which I read is normal after coming off opiates but I am getting out and staying busy and getting plenty of sunshine. Here is the kicker after the 2nd day I realized my hunger had gone back to sleeve norm and I lost 6 pounds over the course of the first 7 days. After reading up more on side effects of Vicodin weight gain is one of the most prevalant. I guess it sort of dulls your sense you dont recognize you are full and it causes you to crave a lot of foods and retain a lot of Water. All-in-all it just is hell for losing weight. So I don't know if anyone suffers from some sort of chronic pain that they have to take a painkiller like vicodin but keep in mind if you are having a stall or changes in weight if you start taking the meds that it could be because of them that things are not moving along. Thanks for letting me ramble

Well as someone that had it done at BMI of 34 I can relate. Only I had absolutely no comorbities so I guess mine was vanity alone. I am not ashamed of that fact. Women go under the knife to get new boobs, get their tummies flattened (i did that too) and a multiple list of reasons. I can say that it is no easier for me to lose and keep off 50 pounds then it was the rest of you to keep off a 100+ pounds. Food is an addiction and I wanted to nip it right in the bud. I grew up thin, was thin after both of the births of my children then gained it on some prescription meds and was totally miserable. Over the next 6 years I lost and gained at least 160+ pounds. 20 pounds here 20 pounds there blah blah blah. I feel like myself for the first time in 7 years and wished i had done it sooner but I didn't want to be a quiter and thought I was strong enough to do it on my own. I finally said forget it and went for it and I am so glad I did. I still want to lose another 15-20 pounds. Dallas has some health issues that would certainly benefit from the loss of this weight and I hope her the best. If you carry most of the weight in your tummy you may end up with some loose skin especially due to your age. You can combat some of the sagginess by walking and working out to tone it up as much as possible while losing. You may get lucky and it may be minimal. I wish you the best. I have also heard good things about your doc so kudos there too.

You are all a bunch of pedophiles. I am gonna pray for you... jk believe what ya wana believe.

I did not use Dr. Ponce De Leon but I did visit the INT hospital and know a certain member on this site that used the facility. It is a super clean totally full service hospital that does it's blood work etc right there in building. It was super clean and nice big private rooms.

Congrats that is amazing. The results are so visible and I bet that feels wonderful. Keep on with the good work all these posts keep a smile on my face P.S I am a DIsneymama toooooo

I had two nasty drains in for a week after my tummy tuck and the removal of those things is best if it is swift. I will warn you though it made me gasp. It felt so freaking weird. It was a sharp little pain but the feeling was just freaky of it sliding out from under your skin. Yes, I probably did nothing right now to help you with that visual but hell after all these surgeries the drain removal is nothing but it is something you will probably remember. HUGS.

Chilo you and I seem to follow the same patterns and we were sleeved only weeks apart. I too was snacking a lot, eating ice cream and other crap food. I did get relief when i stopped taking some meds that were making me wana chow but sometimes I am so scared that I am going to sabotage myself and end up wasting my $ and the trauma I went through getting sleeved. I do get a ton of mental/emotional support by stopping in here and reading. Thank you for sharing that you feel the same. I think you are doing great by just being mindful of it and I need to keep telling myself the same thing. TIffy I am sorry that you have struggled with the hunger games now that you are expecting. I had always felt like you were living the sleeve dream and something was the matter with my sleeve or with me. I guess everyones experience will be different and all we can do is share and encourage each other. Thank you for sharing that it means a lot.

You look younger and happier! Such great results you look gorgeous. Great work.

Ohhh how fun I don't think I have ever won anything like that and I would be so excited. Congrats.

I too had some beans early on. I was sick of the creamed soups and it was a good amount of protein in them. It also made my tummy feel full and happy. They have a good amount of carbs though so you wana watch it and stick to your doctors plan. I don't think you sabotaged anything though. I was glad it didn't cause any gas pains though because that could have been an uncomfortable side effect.

Like everyone said please express these things to a physician but as for the water drinking. I was worried at first that when I worked out I would not ever be able to drink enough to quench my thirst because I couldn't hold enough and amazingly when extremely thirsty I can get a great amount down. You will just have to do it often but I am sure you are constantly drinking in that sort of heat.