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I have Kaiser Insurance and I just started last week the Options class I am on week 2 today I already had my labs done and my EKG last week and today I scheduled my appointment for my psych evaluation and my health appraisal I am going to that before my class tonight I feel good about the Psych Evaluation I have no issues really that I know off I am not scared or anything. I think it will go good.

@@kerryberry16 Hi there! I just want to say that it is perfectly normal to have these doubts once you are set to have surgery. After all, it is a big one that will require a lot from you. I am 53, I was 310lbs at 5'10" when I had RNY. I had type 2 diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, severe gerd, sleep apnea, anemia, stage 3 kidney disease. It was the kidney disease that came from years of obesity that was the straw for me. A lot of these illnesses came on fast and when one came the other was right around the corner. My nephrologist (kidney specialist) is the one who suggested I consider WLS. He made sure that i understood that window was very small given my declining kidney function. If I got to a point where I was too sick, they would not operate. It took 9 months to get through the 6 month process from start to finish and by the time I got there I was so ready to have this done that if anything delayed it I became emotional. I just knew that having bypass was going to help me get control of my weight which in turn would Help me become healthier. That was what it was all about for me. Well I had my surgery nearly 2 years ago. Within 3 months ALL of my comorbitities were in remission including my kidney function. I was able to stop taking 8 prescriptions for things I simply did not suffer from. This surgery literally gave me back my life. That being said, it is NOT easy in any way, shape or form. Most bypass patients DO NOT get dumping syndrome. I believe the number is only about 30% and it usually stops after the first year or so. Some suffer with it longer. I tell you this mostly so that you know, you will likely not have it. Those that do get it really wish they didn't. The surgery really helps you control quantity of food at any one given time. You have to make the changes to your diet to put the right things in there the right amount of times per day. Now is the time to begin to make lots of changes. Many of us had food funerals, it is only natural to want to try the things that you think you will never have again. The reality is, you will be able to enjoy most foods just in smaller quantities. Don't let that fear change where you are headed. I am one of those people that waited way too long to have this surgery and nearly killed myself in the process. It caused me to develop severe osteoarthritis of the spine, shoulders and knees. Over the last 14 years I have had 6 back surgeries with 2 of them being after bypass. I also had to have my left shoulder rebuilt because of bone on bone arthritis. I am literally disabled because I allowed myself to continue down a deadly path with obesity. RNY is the best thing that ever happened to me and if I had to do it over again, I would do it 10 to 15 years sooner before all the damage to my body. Even with such severe osteoarthritis, I feel fantastic!!! Every single day is like a new birthday for me because I am not sick. I LOVE food. Its just a different food that I now crave. I was a sugarholic! After RNY your tastes really do change and you learn to love good quality Protein, good carbs like fruits and veggies. Yes, I do eat sweets now and then but I have learned to control myself. My nut taught me to believe everything in moderation and to eat a balance meal. After losing the first 50lbs, my activity level increased. My feet no longer hurt, my ankles and knees both improved dramatically. I was able to get up and down stairs without keeling over from lack of oxygen. LOL. Don't let your fears stop you from doing what you need to do to get healthy. You started this process for a reason, stay focused on that reason. Less than 5% of people are successful losing this kind of weight on their own and keeping it off long term. That is the key, keeping it off. Maintenance is hard work and you always worry about regain. The good news is, once you have RNY the tool is always there for you. You just need to build good eating habits. 90% of your weight loss will come from diet. I wish you the best of luck with this and I hope that you are able to get to a place where you are content with your decision.

Hi Papillon, I am new to all of this. I have just started the process my first appointment is on the 29th of September. Good luck with your surgery! I too am having Dr. Podakemeni. Do you have BCBS of AZ? That is what I have. My regular doctor stated it wasn't that hard to have them okay things. After your first appointment did it take long to get a surgery date? I have heard a lot of good things about this Doctor. Are you having to do a special diet before going in for surgery? Congratulations as the 13th is fast approaching. Thank you! Thanks, Rxsunset

Man, I get those hiccups, too. It sucks, but it happens to me a lot. Fortunately they only last a few minutes for me. I don't see anything wrong with what you ate. Maybe you just ate a little too fast. Or did you drink any while eating? Sometimes even a little sip gets me going. I'm with Swizzly, potatoes are NOT my friend yet. They fill me up SO super fast. Hope you are feeling better today!

I have been losing about .5 lbs a day but on my pre-op diet I couldn't eat and now that I am post-op I haven't started it back up. I get full so fast I cant imagine adding bread back into my diet. BUT even still last week (3rd week) there were a few days I gained half a lb instead of lost. I know I shouldn't scale watch BUT I cant help it.. lol.. Now I am a month out and it is back to half a pound a day.

WATERMELON. it's out of season and I cry a little every time I spend the big bucks...lol....but it's the treat I crave like nothing else. If anyone had told me I'd literally crave watermelon more than candy, donuts, fresh baked bread....I'd have said they were crazy. I bought a deli container of melon chunks and ate it in the car the other day. LOL. But I thought...ya know...this is the time I used to break down and get fast food...after shopping. It's a habit trigger. So, now I eat watermelon in the car after shopping. I can live with that compromise.

Ive had Type 2 Diabetes for some time now (many years) I have been super fortunate so Im not sure Im the best person to compare to. My Type 2 was mostly controlled by my intake of carbs and sugar. I was also very lucky if my A1C climbed or even my daily/weekly checks were elevated, I could control it by watching what I ate. I am not on any medications because my body reacts well to reducing carbs and sugars on my own. My highest A1C ever was 3 years ago and it was 9.6. I was mortified. My Dr wanted to prescribed me metformin which she did but I had a horrible reaction to it (Im allergic it seems) I asked my DR to hold off on giving me something else and to allow me to control it by my food intake and what I eat. She told me I had 3 months and if I didnt have significant improvement that I would need medication. 3 months later I had an A1C and it was 5.1 my DR was shocked as was I lol. It seems for me if I am on insulin or drugs for diabetes my sugars go insanely high and often times its worse than what I started with. I suppose this is why my DR allowed me to try to control it by food. My sugars are usually around 113-120 if I am behaving myself, my fasting sugar hovers around 141-160 in the morning

As Nip said, your starting weight makes a difference, as does how your body tends to react to weight loss. I always lost slowly when I dieted, and I've lost slowly with the band (but not as slowly, and no regain!). I started with about 75 lbs to lose and I lost about 60% in the first year, which was 1 lb/week for me. I'm working on the last 20 lbs now, and I expect that to take longer. Some people lose faster, some slower. But to me, the important thing isn't how fast you lose, it's whether you are doing it in a healthy way. You have to follow the band rules and you must exercise. Lots of people lose without exercise, but you lose a lot of muscle that way, which is a set up for regain. And you have to know what kinds of things to look out for with the band. There is a lot to learn with this tool, but if you use it properly and take the time to learn things, and ESPECIALLY don't just let problems go because you're losing weight anyway (like frequent PBs/barfs or reflux), you will do great!

Is my stomach small now even without a fill? I read something in my post-op packet from my doctor that my stomach is the size of a tablespoon but it dosnt say if it before or after the fill. I know if i drink something too fast i feel super sick to my stomach. I hate this feeling...i cant wait til two weeks from now when i feel slightly better.

Good for you. It was just a broken record for me. I've seen nutritionists many times. But whatever it takes I'm ready for! I hope this goes fast.

I usually get hiccups if I drink or eat too fast. Maybe slow down and see if that works.

I lost more then 30 pounds prior to surgery without very much exercise. This is what I did. 1) replaced my Breakfast with a Meal Replacement shake ( I used high Protein slim fast) 2) two hours after each shake I would have a 100 calorie or less snack. 3) dinner could be anything I wanted as long as it was under 500 calories. 4) one last 100 calorie snack after dinner 5) made sure I didn't eat anything after 7 pm. 6) I drank lots of Water, or crystal light, or tea sweetened with Splenda. That's it. I managed to lose all this weight from the end of may till my pre op apt in the beginning of August. You can do it! Don't get discouraged! Good luck and keep smiling!

I had my long awaited surgery on Thursday. I am still in the hospital 2 days later and I want so badly to go home. Uhhh! My surgery went well except I lost more blood than expected during the surgery. My surgeon told me that when they moved my spleen out of the way, the capsule that covers it is very fragile so it started to bleed. I didn't need a blood transfusion, thank God because they stopped the blood in time. Other than that, I feel great. I'm walking, feeling no pain, just minor discomfort. My appetite is non existent. They have given me a breakfast, lunch and dinner of chicken broth, jello, decaf tea, crystal light and water. After a few sips of b each, I'm done. This has been an okay experience so fast but I don't think I realized the magnitude of the decision I made. I'm so very thankful to the stories I have read on this app. It really helped me too know just what to expect.

I am in public safety where keto is running rampant. There have been quite a few diet preachers that I have dealt with, even my best friend that was pretty unsupportive and was upset because intermittent fasting was working for him. He doesn't realize that we have different genetics. Most of his family is tall and skinny wile mine is short and overweight. I had tried most diets with short term success but he as well as those around me didn't understand that either. It was EXTREMELY aggravating and in the end I made my decision, didn't tell hardly anyone and know that I made the right choice for me. Everyone says that I look amazing and I feel amazing, you just have to know that you made the best choice for you and that it is your life not theirs!

I am still only able to eat 1/4-1/3 cup, I use a baby spoon. Put my spoon down between bites. But it only takes me about 5 min to finish my meal. We are not supposed to read or watch tv while eating and I live alone so no conversation to distract me. Do i just sit here and twiddle my thumbs until it's time to take another bite. Now, I know if I eat too fast I miss the full signal, so I'm not talking about big bites or spoonful right after spoonful. Am I worrying over nothing? Oh yeah, I'm talking about mushy's.

Wow. Things are changing sooooo fast. I know this can't go on forever, but I will eat it up as long as it last!! Last Sunday night I went to Walmart to get me a couple of cheap temporary pants. Went to goodwill, but the did not have any 30" in length. I started this journey wearing 48" waist. They were getting too big to belt up and they were literally falling off!! I was able go fit into 42" waist!!! Walking around with the family today, I noticed that these are now getting loose. It has only been week. Feels great!!!

Has anyone noticed that people who preach ad nauseam about this or that, rarely accept the same manner of preaching directed at them? They're good at dishing out one-size-fits-all advice but are often prone to react with hostility if their methods are challenged. Hard-core diet preachers can ruin a good day fast... if you let them. And that's the key. Don't let them get to you. You will be tested by people who want to bring you down; resist. You will be belittled by people with questionable agendas; don't let them get to you. Stay away from negative people. And if you can't stay away from them, figure out a way to tune them out. Be strong. And if you're a woman, be twice as strong. Girl power!

As others have said, let me begin by congratulating you on your 100 lb loss! Fantastic! Now, as to your "lazy" heart. 130 bpm prior to surgery was a MAJOR sign that you were taxing your heart to the maximum. As mentioned, generally speaking, a healthy adult has a heart rate (HR) of 60-100 bpm. A rate of 130 bpm is considered tachycardia (fast hear rate) and can be caused by a number of health issues. If you were never diagnosed with a cardiac arrhythmia (irregular heartbeat), and your rate is now down to 80 bpm, it was most likely caused by your heart trying to compensate for all the extra work it was doing to feed blood (and therefore oxygen) to all of your blood vessels. As mariamitani mentioned, think of it as a motor trying to pump Water out to a thirsty crowd of people that just can't get enough to drink. Too much demand for one tiny little motor! The poor thing was going as fast as it could and even then it wasn't keeping up! Good think you've lost the weight as you may have been headed to serious cardiac disease if you heart continued to work that hard! There is also a chance that your blood vessels were somewhat blocked with lipids (fat) and cholesterol build-up and that was decreasing the diameter of the blood vessels. Think how much harder it is to blow through a thin straw than a nice wide-open thick one? That's what your heart was working against........so it had to probably pump harder and faster to overcome the resistance (and maybe a symptom of hypertension (high blood pressure) was also present?). Now you've most likely dropped your lipid count (even inside your blood vessels) and your cholesterol level. Nice open arteries (and veins) are lowering the work for you heart. Fantastic! But if you're tired, you may be feeling that way due to low Iron levels (and possibly low carbohydrate levels and dehydration as well). Iron is required to bind oxygen to your red blood cells (RBC). When your RBC reach the muscles, the oxygen is detached and used to convert glycogen to energy and make the muscles work properly. Low iron means low oxygen and greater fatigue, less aerobic capacity, strength and stamina. So get your iron levels checked! Green leafy vegetables are a great source of iron, but the best source is red meat (just watch the fat levels!). Talk to your doctor or nutritionist (NUT) for more info and proper medical advice on this...... And of course, exercise is great not only for your heart, but your whole body, your lungs, your emotional health, energy levels, etc. Just make sure you're in good enough shape physically to start (slowly) and build your way up to more vigorous regular exercise. Congratulations!

With every swallow I get a pain then I feel like I need to burp. If I don't the next one is worse until I do burp. I was told burping is a sign of drinking too fast, but this is definitely not the case. Is this normal?

If I eat too much or eat too fast, I feel like I'm having a heart attack -- excruciating pain right in my chest. Well, I've never had a heart attack before, so I'm assuming it feels like excruciating chest pain. It sounds like you may just be trying to eat too much. Congrats on your weight loss, though! That's awesome!

I had a fast recovery and flew 8 days after my surgery. Just don't lift too much too early. Getting in and out of my car was harder than flying. Just remember to walk often to keep your circulation moving. Everyone is different. Start slow. Get plenty of rest and sip that water.

Agree with the others above. Generally, eating too fast or too much is the cause of this. Or eating something that your body (for whatever reason) takes a while to digest. For me its chunk tuna from a can. I can only take maybe 1-2 tablespoons of this stuff before I get that need-to-barf feeling. Meanwhile, grilled steak or dry baked chicken go down just fine. You will learn over time which foods agree with you and how fast you can can eat it (or whatever)...for now, take it slllooooooowwwwwww. Take a couple bites at a time, and take a break in between these bites to gauge where you are. Good Luck!

When you lose a lot of your excess body weight, you'll have a lot of new found energy for hiking. Don't think of WLS as cheating. I think some people's bodies work against them and the WLS evens the playing field. Almost all my relatives are extremely overweight. There's a combination of bad genes and bad nutrition in my upbringing working against me. My advice is to forget all those bad habits and less nutritious food you used to eat. Establish a new plan. Avoid sugary drinks, fried food, and processed foods. Create new favorite foods. You'll find 6 weeks on a liquid diet will allow you to forget all your old cravings and really reset your likes. As you add in nutritious food, your brain will crave these new foods. It is really easier to prepare all your meals at home. Avoid fast food restaurants. Bring a sack lunch to work everyday so you control what you eat and stick to your plan.

Thank you so much for your advice. I’m trying my best to break those bad habits: eating fast food and cutting out processed food. I no longer see WLS as cheating, but I still have to keep it from some people. I have very judgemental family and friends. Given the pandemic keeps me away from socializing and I haven’t seen my family or friends in a long time, this helps me transition more easily. I workout every day by either walking or lifting weights. I can’t wait till I forget the sugar cravings! Thanks again for all your words of advice.

My surgery is in the morning. I started the journey last year but stopped because I did not feel comfortable with the doctor I first picked. Fast forward 7 months later and I found an amazing surgeon that I have complete confidence in. I have diabetes, sleep apnea, hbp and fatty liver. I am doing this to not only change my life, but to save my life. I'm a little nervous about surgery but no regrets with my decision. Good luck to you!