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SEPTEMBER 2018 SURGERIES AND SUCCESS



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Finally got my date, 9/18

Sent from my SM-G975U using BariatricPal mobile app

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Well my friends TODAY IS MY FIRST SURGIVERSITY- and I may be waxing a bit philosophical. Goes with the TERRITORY- I'm older than Dirt, gives you a lot to reason with when You've attained 73 years 8 months and 10 days upon this Earth.
What advice would I give the Newbies and the Stiil- Strugglers as this point? Don't obsess about YOUR YESTERDAYS- the Past has passed- Don't Cry for What you think You've Lost- Look forward to Your New Tomorrows. Life now has Many Happy Moments in YOUR Future.
It has been a year of Some sorrows but Many Many Blessings. I WILL Never REGRET having Surgery- I did not Heal as I believed I WOULD- my pathway has had bumps, some bruised me, thought a few times I would fall off the Edge into Quicksand, twists, turns, A few times I thought I had gotten lost, Many Things changed for me, but more than CHANGE I finally found MYSELF- learned I was Still Strong enough. You Know we come into life a Blank Canvas, each of the portraits painted are unique. I have scars, been bumped and bruised but what I have encountered, I have survived, I have surmounted, And Each mar, each stretch- mark, each scar, and I have had some emotional Keloids, Those are my BATTLE RIBBONS, they show I have truly Lived and are STILL LIVING ! Like the line from the Big Lebowski- I ABIDE.
And one of the Boasts, Brag and Acknowledgment? I AM NOW LESS than HALF the Person I was at my Highest Weight, I have gone from 365+ to Just Over 180, and although I HAVE LIVED IT, it still amazes ME, I Still have a Few Items Left from Back Then- tried them on and they LITERALLY FELL OFF! I am a loose 18- tighter 16 in SIZE- and although my Dr Needleman , my Bariatric Surgeon, promised I Could and Would Lose Weight- I didn't really believe It Could Happen. I had so Many People promise Me Things that never really Happened, after you cry and cry, You find yourself Still Numb- Not even Flinching Any more. I was Never Suicidal because I had No Courage Left to Actually Do The Deal, And My Fears THAT is a SAD STATE OF AFFAIRS.
But Now having been a Subseviant Lump, because I was Told That was was Expected of Me- I was taught to Please my Parents, My late Husband, even the 3 children GOD had granted Me. Did anyone bother pleasing ME? NOPE for NOBODY thought I was Worthy, just behave & cause No Waves.
Took Me YEARS. and More YEARS to realize Frustr8 was and is a Strong Enough, Worthy Enough and Deserving Enough to continue Living. I no longer believe I am An Extension of Somebody Else, I Am and From Now On will be Strong, Reliant instead of merely Reliable, My Own WOMAN and my Bariatric Surgery helped me to Affirmation of This Fact. So Bradley J Needlman,of The OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL- WEXNER MEDICAL CENTER- Thank You for MY Wonder Wednesday- MY Day of DAYS & I HOPE TODAY you are giving a New Group their Terrific Thursday- and Next Year They Too look Back with Joy at ALL THAT HAPPENED FOR THEM. And May BLESSINGS Be Theirs.
So Celebrate wherever You May be and Face YOUR Tomorrows with Conviction and Strength for You Are Strong, Brave, Worthy , and if You Fear there may Be Trials and Rainy Days- DON'T! Everything you're going through TODAY does Bring A Bright and Sunny Future- AND IT IS WORTH IT ALL! MUCH 💘 LOVE. your FRUSTR8!!!!!

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Well Well it's update time. On August 27th Dr Doolittle, my ortho , removed a Ganglion Cyst from my Left wrist. Now I have been allergic to Hibiclez for several years so had to prep with my alternative, Golden liquid Dial, got the directions down pay and I NEVER GET any inflammation. Well I don't know what they painted my arm with pre- surgically but I suffered the Torture of the Damned- shortly after returning home I was unwrapping their fine gauze handiwork, wrong shade for Betadine, but it made me swell and blister. It was Ambulatory SURGERY but I still went to LaLaLand, knew I probably would , I hadn't slept well the Night BEFORE and although it can often done with a Local DrD joked. He DIDN'T need comments from The Peanut Gallery as he did His Magic. Really wasn't all that painful, have me a script for Tramadol, still have most of them left. Okay , You All know wierd things happen to Me and if course I do talk about them. Well I also have an adhesive sensitivity, might go with my latex/rubber allergy. so about the only bandages I can routinely use are Nextcare. So I put on a large bandage dressing, went to remove it at the Doctors Office, since I was having stitches removed. I have been sutured/ stapled so often at my age it truly is NBT. aWell the one side, the one over the top of my wrist, the bandage ripped up my skin, looked like it was down to the subcutaneous layer, hurt so so much and it was oozing blood badly. Wonder if it is going to leave scarring. So every day I change the dressings, every day it bleeds once again so I finally bought some Telfa 3by3 pads that wouldn't stick to the wound, no more bandages except gauze for a while, I Think it is starting heal some but still looks wicked bad. Wonder if he did my cyst removal minimal invasive, only the top one of 3 slits was sutured, the other 2 maybe trocar/camera placement?
Okay that's Chapter One of my Update. I have suddenly started producing lipomas, maybe they always was there, just weren't apparent until my arms got slender/gaunt. Had an consulting appointment with my General surgeon, thought she might remove both the ones that were prominent, she will remove the one September 24th but won't remove the one lying in the antecubital fold, said she is nervous about getting too close to the nerves et cetera lying just under it. Orthopaedics wouldn't do it, although he has Operated on other area of both upper limbs, Dermotologist refused to do it, told me to consult General Surgeon, she refused, so where do I go next? Could a neurologist do something? IDK but maybe a trip to OSU where they aren't scared of their own shadow, have to see my PCP the 23rd, local hospital demands a physical within 30 days before surgery. Maybe he will have some bright ideas and can help me figure where I go next. That's Chapter number 2! .
Okay now to the Third Chapter. About 11 weeks ago a Surgery Day was set up for October 3rd so 2 procedures in 10 days, Me Oh My! And having had the Right One. done in December of 2016, I do know what it us like. This is one I DO WISH I could sleep through, not so painful as nerve- racking. 4emember lying there with my poor little eye propped open. Really doesn't 5ake a long time but right at the point I was ready to tell the Opthamologist "I CANNOT TAKE THIS ANY MORE", Dr Reeder said "We're All Done!" Now this one will be done by Dr Koehler, her partner, she had no open Time and Dr Koehler, he did although booking way out because I think all the other people in Knox County had cataracts ripening at the Same Time!
And do you think That Could be enough? Nope, no Way, now my Left shoulder has gone bone on bone, due to my arthritis more than Rotator Cuff Complete Failure, although he will fix them also, it's called a Reverse Shoulder Replacement, and most likely before the End of the Year, because it WON'T GET BETTER until then. My Birthday is December 26th, maybe if he isn't going ski- ing or leaving town for Christmas, that Would Be a Lovely Birthday present for Yours Truly, My Birthday does fall on His Regular Surgery Day!
And since nobody's planning to shoot me and put me out of My Misery, guess I should have consulted a Veterinarian, they do help their patients become Angels when their Quality of Life fades down.
So I will Keep on Keeping on, one of these surgeons ought to give me a Big Basket of fruit for Christmas because I am sure fattening their wallets single- handily !👈😣👉

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Well it's 12:27 AM and I am officially NPO for a 7:30 AM surgery. I have been a busy little elf or victim, depends on your viewpoint.
This will be my Third surgery in a little over a month. August 27th I had an ganglion cyst REMOVED from my left wrist, it was pressing on the nerve underneath, either pain or numbness in my fingersz- THAT ONE wasn't all that bad and besides I do like my "ortho", he's a cutie pie but I didn't tell him THAT, like many surgeons he's a tad conceited already.
Then on September 24th I had a Lipoma(fatty tumor ) removed from the outer surface of my upper right arm. Yeah, Dr Pimple Popper does these in her office, not My Surgeon! I'm plunked on my back in an OR with blue sterile cloths blocking my view- at least Ron the Nurse- Anesthesia dude was passable fair, only flipping thing I could look at! And WTF she was doing to ME I am Not Quite Sure, I am bruised from elbow up to my shoulder, I have a big hard hot lump where she removed it, no sutures- just glued/welded shut and UGLY. The old joke was "Beauty is Skin- Deep while Ugly goes through to the Bone" well this is wicked nasty in appearance. Looks almost like hand and fingerprints, did one of the crew steady my arm That Way? Don't you think with as much as insurance pays they could have put it on some sort of support or put sandbags on each side to stabilize IT?
Now today, October 3rd, I have my Left cataract REMOVED by my Opthamologist Dr Koehler, which means I have to show up Bright- Eyed and Anticipatory at 6 AM and I am NOT a Cheerful Happy Bluebird when it is still DARK out!
My Bariatric Surgeon had THAT SAME WARPED SENSE OF HUMOR- planned it also for 7:30 AM, the only TIME I really relished being ripped from my bed was to produce an new little human being and THAT SADDLE was put away years and years ago! And TRUTH be TOLD I still was crabby then TOO!
The same day next week ( October 8th) will be my one week with Dr Koehler and also my two week with Dr Mc Laughlin, the surgeon who wreaked havoc on my unsuspecting Arm. It looks like she got revenge for man- stealing and I never even met the Dude. I have been through a lot in my time and I have never seen Such an Odd lump like this- not infected- No discharge or ANYTHING but it's weird- looks like an misplaced Breast implant- honest IT DOES! She is an General Surgeon, want to bust her down to Private First Class, 3 World Fairs and A Punkin- Chucking contest and THIS IS A NEW ONE For ME.
And I had hoped to have my Left💪 Rotator cuff repaired before the End of the Year while my deductibles are met. Dr Doolittle ( my ortho() says it won't be a mere repair after all but a Total Reverse Shoulder Replacement, due to my degree of arthritis envolment. Anybody know if Google Play Store has a Masochistic App, thinking of having One installed because it appears I AM A GLUTTON FOR PUNISHMENT Currently.
Well I got some clean loose comfy clothes laid out, refuse to sleep in THEM- if you have any Spare🙏 Prayers laying idle Send Them My Way, okay? Time to take a Deep Breath and Try to get some Sleep.
FRUSTR8 OUT- zzz zzz.

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On 8/26/2019 at 9:31 PM, CoramDeo said:

Finally got my date, 9/18

Sent from my SM-G975U using BariatricPal mobile app

On 7/17/2018 at 3:11 PM, Frustr8 said:

After thinking I might make May-June-July-or August for my surgery, it turns out I will be singing a SEPTEMBER song. Do I have a surgery twin, someone who will be going through this wonderous transformation with me?

You have been through the ringer! I too had a ganglion cyst removed from my left wrist years ago. Hoping everything goes well today!

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Had my surgery 9/26/19 at 9:30 am here in Atlanta. Went well and I did have a hernia that Doc repaired. Surgery weight was 345 on 9/26/19 (which was down 25lbs from program start).

One week out from surgery I’m down 12lbs to 332.

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Did well with my cataract SURGERY- took a lot longer than eye#1, Dr Koehler told TOMKITTEN, my son, it was More Complicated than He Planned, probably needed it last year when. I had my Bariatric, went back Yesterday for my One Day AFTER appointment He told me my eyesight is now 20/20, don't think it was That Good even when I was a Mini-Frustr8, now once the intraocular swellings go down I May Be Able to read my paperback books once again. I have no trouble watching TV at all, now I only have to wear my eyepatch at night, out in public where I could get bumped or when there is dirt or dust blowing in the air. So GOOD PROGRESS there. Right arm is still distended and sore, much to tell at G Surgeon about THERE. And that is my Latest Update.
Until my next Posting- Frustr8 Out!

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Well an update on my Sore upper arm. First the office nurse growled. at me, said why didn't I call? Well the take home instruction sheet said Call if it pops OPEN- is draining BLOOD or other shades of leakage- some swelling is to be EXPECTED. Okay-bee, I took that to mean" Don't be a Whiney- pants- We'll call you to check on YOU if We Deem it necessary. Otherwise GOOD LUCK!"
Doctor McLaughlin strolled in, she says " So How is YOUR ARM?" my retort " Wicked- Looking!" And it was Too. Asked Me ( probably joking) Did I Do THAT? Surely a wrong angle to have self- inflicted such a wound!
So off we March to an larger Room where she proceeded to suit up, glove. and mask up and she went excising, excavating, and extracting stagnant blood and blood clots from it. I THINK it is flatter, certainingly lower degree of PAIN, took a kidney basin and a half of fine- gauged blood clots out and now the biggish surgical hole is packed with idioform gauze, and I have appointments to return Friday and Monday next mornings to have it repacked. Not given antibiotics because doesn't appear infected, this is Okay, American doctors over- prescribe antibiotics in the first place, then when we get a really evil one we have become drug- tolerant and they have to trot out the very strong IV varieties. No I Am Not Really fearful of IVs but who wants excess expensive holes punched in THEM?
And she made me raise my Right ✋, not easy with the degree of pain, and take an oath I WOULD CALL📱her with any nasty developments 💪arm- wise. Didn't feel I Was That High a priority- remember I have been ignored by many doctors in the past- remember I used to be FAT that equates to the Medical community with Lazy , Stupid and Unmotivated- and basically ignored. So now on top of packing, gauze wrap et cetera I have 4 inch elastic wrap so it Looks nearly as Fat and Swollen as BEFORE. But We Shall see tomorrow how everything LOOKs.
Some Days I think I Am Living in a Cheap Soap Opera, maybe even with Poor Scripting- but it StillBeats being Dead All Hollow, doesn't it?
Now this coming Week I have, on top of the Monday re- packing, a visit to my PCP in the late morning, perhaps I will get the pelvic/PAP test that Medicare will pay for before I turn 75 and they no longer cover it. Then on Wednesday I have my yearly Mammogram and in the afternoon re- visit my orthopaedic surgeon, would get down on my knees and beg for the Reverse Shoulder/ left rotator cuff surgery I badly need before the first of 2020 when I have to meet Deductibles once again. Ooh Have I got a Brilliant plan for him- if he's not leaving town for Christmas- my birthday is the next day, also one of his designated surgery days- 2 Guesses what I WANT for my Birthday and Christmas THIS YEAR! And the argument about PAIN- piffle- I have been bee- bopping around with upper arm pain for 2 weeks after Dr Mc Laughlin and her "Oopsie" lipoma Removal, what's a Little More in the Grand Scheme of Life. Really hope hope he doesn't insist on bended knee, it's really Not Lovely seeing me like a Beached 🐳 down on the floor!
So until later🐊 Gator, I've run out of words!

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TO misquote old Arnold, I'M BACK.
Let's see- some updating. Went to see that durned General Surgeon, remember I said I was busting her down from General to Private? Maybe I should have given her a Dishonorable Discharge! .
It will be a Full Month Thursday and it is NOT Healing by First Intention. I am now a client of our Local Hospital's Wound Care Clinic, have had it repacked 3 times, and now I have a a Mini- Wound Vac attached, this is not a happy situation, hurts, taking Tylenol when it gets too hurty, prop it up on a pillow, think it might feel like a a post- gunshot wound, really never have been shot, have had bullets fly close enough to be that I've smelled the chordite but never actually punctured. Now they do wet- to- dry dressings, because there is visible bloody drainage, the mini-vac keeps it from building up and distorting the wound again but it also means I have to wear jeans/slacks with pockets because the tubing snakes under my clothing and I carry Baby Vac in a waist level pocket. Said on the info literature "Single Use- in one week sequences- shoot I'm on my 10th or 11th day. Go there again tomorrow- OH JOY- hopeful it is starting to heal from the inside out- They Swear there are no signs of infection- so maybe my 1/2 of the affair is Okay.
Saw my ortho for my monthly yesterday- he went Mildly Ballistic- said Why didn't I come to HIM or at least call?" Because I believed the Medical ethics were " You had to dance with the fellow what brought you to the BarnDance" or to put it in less colloquial terms, you weren't allowed to request Surgical provider # 2 to rectify Surgeon#1's Screw-Up, am I wrong in that assumption?
Still approached Dr D , D for Doolittle, my orthopaedic about my Grand Plan, the "Happy Birthday" Reverse Shoulder Replacement-- said that was his plan also and he is amenable ONCE That Rotten Wound heals and I am again approaching a Healthy State. Said might even do it before Thanksgiving if. I didn't want to wait clear into December, but definitely BEFORE years end while all my deductibles are ALL Paid . And then I WILL STOP acting. like Barbie Doll and cease demanding surgery after surgery- I am truly weary of it all- instead of 2019 being "The Winter of My Discontent" it has become a Slash-Me Series and I have hung up my Masochism Booties for quite a while.
My ganglion cyst has either developed a lot of subdermal scarring or it is returning-he did it arthroscopically in August but nearly even odds it will require another cutting into, he sees me again November 18th, at which time He will reevaluate.
Who would have believed my Cataract Surgery would turn out the Most Successful? I now have 20/20 distance vision, haven't been That Way since I became Myopic at age 10. Well, I do now have to use Reading Glasses , hey NBD, I will do Just Fine with that mini- limitation!
I REALLY REALLY wish Dr D had went ahead with my Lipoma removal even if it would be only on the fringes of Orthopaedia, his politeness of sharing ME with other professionals sure BACK-fired, didn't it?
Got my Blood Labs BACK, hard to believe but my ONLY glaring deficency is Vitamin D, even with my pea-poor diet the Vitamins and Protein Shakes are carrying me through. And I still am losing, slowing down the rapid descent, maybe a couple pounds a week but I don't seem to have a raging case of malnourishment after all. PCP says the other values are on the Low end but but still approximating " NORMAL". if there is truth in Advertising my t- shirt should READ "ALWAYS AWESOME---NEVER NORMAL"
But my Peeps- I am Frustr8- 5ft8in and 180 pounds of Red- Blonde contrariness- an Orginal from the Get Go!😏😝👍

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And Surprise Surprise I am still Pelvic-Free- maybe I should drop,BreadCrumbs in front of the Exam Table and see if I can get a Physician to follow THE Trail?

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Well an late- breaking Update from moi- visited Speedy Gonzales my esteemed PCP earlier today. Told ME unless I am having lower pelvic pain or other such issues, he declines the Great Honor of performing a Pelvic on little old ME. Well I DID think it a good idea at the TIME, gosh folks I have hit the AGE when you can't even pay a Man to examine Down THERE, perhaps I am so OLD I am no longer interesting even to the Medical Community.
And guess what- I not only weigh less than my son the Tomkitten but I weigh 20 pounds less than Speedy does, he had to admit it TODAY- I maybe am in a Healthier State than HE is- maybe he needs to listen to His Own Advice- He's over 200, but Praise GOD I am Not, not no more and Never Ever Again! And that, all my Buddies, is One Solid Promise! ✋

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My arm wound from the Lipom a removal. on September 24th is healing but not by "First Intention"- n9w visit Wound Cl8nic at least once a Week- have a PICO mini wound vac, gently chugging away, tunneling almost resokved, open are diminishing but I will end up with Curious shaped scar there, as long as it ISN'T. a full Keloud I'll wear this Battle Ribbon with pride, I fought the battle but I'm still the Victor- a little music from Queen- my friends- and my Life will March on,
You know Life is a Strange Old Thing but it beats being "Dead-Gone- and forgotten" all hollow so heading toward the Future pretty bravely.

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And here I am Once Again- yesterday was my LAST WoundCareCenter visit- Whoop Whoop Hurray- I have to wear a BandAid over it until the First of YEAR because the skin will be fragile until then. 2 months 2 Days. to heal from What Was Billed as a Simple Low-Grade mostly elective SURGERY, and I currently have a deep dimple in my upper arm fleshy Will it Smooth out? Certainly hoping so!
And one month from Today, Thursday December 26th, my 74th BIRTHDAY my Shoulder SURGERY will occur. Warned him unless He wants to Avoid Hearing ME sing "HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME" I intend to be up yodelling at the top of my Lungs, and yes My Peeps I CAN YODEL just like the Old Time Movie Cowboys. Another of my MANY MANY Talents. So to shut Me up he had better order pre- sedatives in the Holding Area- reminded ME it will HURT- NBD I am already in pain, already can't raise my arms above 45-60% from level- so this will "cure" rather than" harm" things And Can Only improve my Life Quality, the way I'm thinking 🙉or least seeing👀. So stay tuned to This BatChannel for the next chapter of the FRUSTR8 SAGA, cause knowing how I am, I go into Nothing without a little kicking and screaming, I earned every red- gold strand of hair and temperment over my Lifetime, and I suspect if I haven't grayed by 74 I won't ever do IT!
Catch you all on the Flip Side, Okay?👈😝👉

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