New to board and completely petrified of surgery

[EvRev 1]

Hello All-

This is my first post on the board. I have been poking around reading it for a while, but have decided to finally post. Basically, I am getting pretty close to getting a surgery date (which where I'm having surgery requires me to clear all of my pre-surgical testing, endoscopy, stress test, pulmonary function tests) and I am sickeningly nervous. I am sure it will still be at least a few weeks until my surgery from when I complete the tests this Wednesday, and I have no idea how I am going to make it to my surgery date this worried/nervous. I am so incredibly scared of having surgery. I know this is the right decision. I have always struggled with my weight but been very active and been able to keep it somewhat in check (like 250 lbs on a nearly 6 foot tall frame) but unfortunately, 2 years ago I sustained a hip injury from many years of playing lacrosse, and I have never been able to get back to running/refereeing lacrosse/doing the things I did to keep my weight in check, so my weight has gone up over 50 lbs. I know I was always struggling before to keep the weight off, and I know I won't be able to manage it long term even if I lose here and there. Everyone has type II diabetes in my family and I know I am at a high risk. I don't want to confront those things, and that is why I decided to have surgery. I know it is the right decision, but I am just so incredibly petrified that I will die during the procedure. I work in the medical field and am super nervous about general anesthesia, as well as complications like leaking, or just anything going wrong during surgery. I know that statistically the risk of these things is low, but it still exists, and anytime you undergo general anesthesia you are taking a risk. Was anyone else this scared before surgery? How did you get through it and get yourself to go through with it? How did you manage to not lose your mind worrying in the time leading up to the surgery? I know I need the support of other people who have been through this right now, and that is why I have finally signed up. I welcome any input you guys have to offer.

Thanks!

[MRSKOUBiK 27]

It's normal to feel nervous.

My sleeve was my first surgery... But, I didn't get nervous until the very last minute. I was too excited about all the changes I knew would be coming my way.

I just wanted to say GOOD LUCK!

[Sheila 1]

First off, Welcome Ev. And congratulations on making a decision to become a more healthy you.

I can't say I have been nervous about surgery. What my big worry has been all along is if I stay the weight I am I will be facing all the "for sure" complications down the road. I already have diabetes, I have high cholesterol, I have osteoarthritis in both knees and feet. Even though heart trouble does not run in my family, I have been very scared of having a heart attack due to my weight. I am 5'6 and weighing 300 (at my heaviest) was just to much. When I hit that mark, I knew I had to do something.

Surgery is always a scary thing. Yes there are some complications that can occur, but you have to ask yourself, are you willing to live with the possible complications from surgery or know that staying overweight will definitely cause way more serious complications later on down the road.

I have not had my surgery yet, but with fingers crossed I will get a date soon. There are tons of people who have had their sleeve and are over a year post op. Read their stories, ask them questions, they can pretty much answer just about any question you have as well as or in some cases better than a physician.

I know you will be fine, and once the surgery is done and you are past recovery, you will be so happy you had it done.

Good luck and continue to read the forum. It will help put your mind at ease.

Sheila

[EvRev 1]

First off, Welcome Ev. And congratulations on making a decision to become a more healthy you.

I can't say I have been nervous about surgery. What my big worry has been all along is if I stay the weight I am I will be facing all the "for sure" complications down the road. I already have diabetes, I have high cholesterol, I have osteoarthritis in both knees and feet. Even though heart trouble does not run in my family, I have been very scared of having a heart attack due to my weight. I am 5'6 and weighing 300 (at my heaviest) was just to much. When I hit that mark, I knew I had to do something.

Surgery is always a scary thing. Yes there are some complications that can occur, but you have to ask yourself, are you willing to live with the possible complications from surgery or know that staying overweight will definitely cause way more serious complications later on down the road.

I have not had my surgery yet, but with fingers crossed I will get a date soon. There are tons of people who have had their sleeve and are over a year post op. Read their stories, ask them questions, they can pretty much answer just about any question you have as well as or in some cases better than a physician.

I know you will be fine, and once the surgery is done and you are past recovery, you will be so happy you had it done.

Good luck and continue to read the forum. It will help put your mind at ease.

Sheila

Ha, I guess where my mind goes is 'I'd rather live to see the complications than potentially die on the table...' So... I mean I agree with you, as long as I make it through it's definitely the right decision. It's just undertaking the risk that I'm having an issue with. I have read a lot of people's stories, and I know this can be a super awesome thing. I would say my number one fear is having the surgery, and number two is failure, meaning not losing or regaining weight after the initial losses related to the procedure. I have read a range of surgery failure rates in the clinical literature, everything from like 13% to 40% for VSG, so it is hard to know what I am really getting into. I'm just hoping I'm not jumping the gun by still going with a reasonably new procedure. I know that this is all just crazy anxiety, but I wish I didn't have to contend with it right now. It's a hard enough decision to make without having to worry ALL the time. It's definitely a situation where I feel like I'd be better off if I weren't in medical research so that I didn't have access to and time to pour over statistics and articles about the procedure. I'm trying to stop that, but I feel like I want to know everything before I get into this! LOL

[Sheila 1]

Ev,

I too work in the medical field. I am not a doctor or a nurse, but I am around them every day. I also have access to all the medical literature, but I have purposely chosen not to look at it. I did not want to freak myself out. What I have done is I watched the surgery on YouTube (which I found totally cool), I have talked to many people who have had VSG, I have prayed about it, and I know I have made the right decision for me.

One thing you have 100% control over is when or if you have this surgery. If you are having doubts, put it off for a little bit. Make sure this is something that is right for you. Only you can say that for sure. Schedule appointments with a bariatric surgeon, ask loads of questions, become as informed as possible. I think what I would do is stop looking at medical journals and statistics. Find out from people who have gone through it. And if you decide this is not for you, you are no worse off. Just take your time.

I hope you come to find peace in whatever decision you make for yourself.

Hugs,

Sheila