Getting Started in South Jersey

[Malyss 31]

Greetings.

I am a 35 y/o woman with high blood pressure and sleep apnea. I have tried a variety of methods for losing weight and after a recent regain of some of my weight, I started researching WLS. Back in September, I attended an informational seminar held by the surgeon that I am interested in having perform my surgery. I had my consultation with him back on the 29th. I am working with my insurances to work this out. I am very interested in the VSG.

Over my lifetime, I've gone through a few different weight loss programs. I can remember joining Weight Watchers with my parents back around 8th grade. The summer after my freshman year of high school, I chose to attend a Weight Watchers Summer Camp up in PA. I spent 4 weeks in weight loss prison camp and lost 20lbs and got down to about 260lbs, but eventually regained it after returning to civilian life. Back around 1999, I found out that my weight had crept up to 382lbs. I only know this because at the time, I was a holiday temp at a postal facility and was able to make use of one of the walk-on scales one evening. After that, I bought and read the Atkins New Diet Revolution. I cried while reading it because many of the ideas expressed in the book just made so much sense to me. While following that program, I was able to get back down to 260lbs, but I eventually relapsed and started gaining weight back. Earlier this year, I rejoined Weight Watchers via their online program and started losing weight again, but eventually went off of the program. I think that part of what trips me up is my hunger and large stomach capacity. I can eat large amounts of food before ever getting any kind of signal from my body that I'm full or that I should stop eating. If I eat to satiety, I end up eating a lot. I'm even a slow eater, so it's not quite as though my body isn't getting a chance to register that it should be full. I just don't know.

Based upon the materials that I've read and watched concerning VSG, I find that it appears that it should be a good tool for me. The restrictive size of the new stomach should be helpful. Also, the reduction of ghrelin would be beneficial.

So far, I've attended an informational seminar held by the surgeon that I am interested in having perform my surgery. On September 29th, I had my consultation with him. At my doctor's appointment, I weighed in at 348lbs. I'm 5'8.5" tall, so I have an approximate BMI of 52. I have my laundry list of quests to accomplish towards my goal of having the surgery. I can cross off the sleep study from my list, as I have already recently gone through that ordeal. Back in late August, I woke up on a panic one evening after having an alarming episode in which I was unable to breathe in or out for a moment or two. It took some severe coughing before my breathing returned to normal. It feels as though it has taken a while, but tomorrow I will receive my CPAP machine. I don't want it, but I acknowledge that I need it, at least for now. I'm dreading it, but I am also looking forward to the device and the assistance that it should be able to provide me in getting a better night's sleep.

As far as I go, I have my hobbies to keep me busy. In addition to reading (Terry Pratchett, George R. R. Martin), I dabble in a variety of crafts including sewing, painting, steampunking, and so on. My husband and I attend the annual Asbury Park Zombie Walk. In the past year, we've become interested in the steampunk genre and attended our first Steampunk World's Fair last May. I have a variety of steampunk projects in the works for next year. At some point, I need to assemble a Gatling gun arm for my husband. I'm not quite sure what I have in mind for my costuming for the next event. I think that I am going to wait and see where I am weight -wise before investing in sewing up any costumes for myself.

Not my surgeon, but I have found some of this doctor's question & answer videos to be quite informative.