Fear!!

[BulletWithButterflyWings 423]

So how did everyone get past any fear you had? I'm so terrified of dying on the table, dying from malnutrition, or complications. On the other hand, I'm so excited that I can't stand it lol I'm having the surgery no matter what but I wanted to know if these feelings are normal or if I'm just being a paranoid psychopath....

[catwoman7 11,212]

you won't die on the table. Weight loss surgeries are among the safest surgeries out there - much safer than a knee replacement surgery, which as you know, they do every day. Gastric bypass has a 0.3% mortality rate - the sleeve is even lower. So at minimum, you have a 99.7% chance of NOT dying on the table. Given every surgery has some kind of mortality rate, even tonsillectomies, those are OUTSTANDING odds.

if you keep on top of your Vitamins, you won't die of malnutrition, either.

lastly, complications aren't very common, and for those who have them, most of them are minor.

I know it's easier said than done, but STOP worrying. You will do just fine and once you have all this behind you, you will be so happy you made this decision!!

[NYJenn 1,463]

I heard it’s safer then a hip replacement. So you’re good

[BulletWithButterflyWings 423]

7 minutes ago, catwoman7 said:

you won't die on the table. Weight loss surgeries are among the safest surgeries out there - much safer than a knee replacement surgery, which as you know, they do every day. Gastric bypass has a 0.3% mortality rate - the sleeve is even lower. So at minimum, you have a 99.7% chance of NOT dying on the table. Given every surgery has some kind of mortality rate, even tonsillectomies, those are OUTSTANDING odds.

if you keep on top of your Vitamins, you won't die of malnutrition, either.

lastly, complications aren't very common, and for those who have them, most of them are minor.

I know it's easier said than done, but STOP worrying. You will do just fine and once you have all this behind you, you will be so happy you made this decision!!

That makes me feel loads better. My landlord is in his late 60s and just had a double knee replacement lol. Makes me feel so much better that the odds are so low. I know I'm just being a paranoid psychopath but I'm a worrier. It comes with having 3 kids lol. Thank you so much for making me feel better. How was your recovery?

[BulletWithButterflyWings 423]

6 minutes ago, NYJenn said:

I heard it’s safer then a hip replacement. So you’re good

I like those odds lol

[catwoman7 11,212]

1 minute ago, BulletWithButterflyWings said:

That makes me feel loads better. My landlord is in his late 60s and just had a double knee replacement lol. Makes me feel so much better that the odds are so low. I know I'm just being a paranoid psychopath but I'm a worrier. It comes with having 3 kids lol. Thank you so much for making me feel better. How was your recovery?

Easy! I was very surprised. People are all across the board when it comes to pain, but just hanging out on these boards for the last few years, I would say most of us have very little pain. It's mostly just tiredness - that took several weeks to shake. But anyway, I've had other surgeries, and this one was pretty easy in comparison.

[BulletWithButterflyWings 423]

5 minutes ago, catwoman7 said:

Easy! I was very surprised. People are all across the board when it comes to pain, but just hanging out on these boards for the last few years, I would say most of us have very little pain. It's mostly just tiredness - that took several weeks to shake. But anyway, I've had other surgeries, and this one was pretty easy in comparison.

I've had 3 c-sections and the first 2 were a cake walk but my 3rd one was so awful. I'm hoping this isnt near as bad as that was. I have an extremely high pain tolerance but holy crap. I think it's because she was my only girl and had to make sure I never wanted anymore kids lol

[James Marusek 5,244]

Many people have fear before a major surgery. So it is quite common.

Since you are at the beginning of this process with a June surgery date, I would recommend three things.

1. Take a good before photograph of yourself, so that you have something to compare to after surgery. Many times we are blind to our obesity. We do not see ourselves. Therefore when the weight begins to drop off rather dramatically, we question if this is really happening. Photographs are a good visualization of our success. Many people carry a before and after photo with them, just to remind themselves of their success.

2. Walk 30 minutes each day, every day until surgery (or equivalent exercise). Walking helps the recovery process go smoothly and minimized the pain levels from surgery.

3. Wean yourself from caffeine and carbonated beverages now. After I gave up my 6 diet coke a day habit, I suffered from a week of severe withdrawal syndrome consisting of severe headaches and body aches. I was miserable. You don't want to combine the effects of caffeine withdrawal with the effects of surgery.

[GradyCat 3,695]

It's normal to be afraid, after all there are risks with surgery. But look at all the people here on this forum that survived it. I had zero complications and no pain.

[BulletWithButterflyWings 423]

7 hours ago, James Marusek said:

Many people have fear before a major surgery. So it is quite common.

Since you are at the beginning of this process with a June surgery date, I would recommend three things.

1. Take a good before photograph of yourself, so that you have something to compare to after surgery. Many times we are blind to our obesity. We do not see ourselves. Therefore when the weight begins to drop off rather dramatically, we question if this is really happening. Photographs are a good visualization of our success. Many people carry a before and after photo with them, just to remind themselves of their success.

2. Walk 30 minutes each day, every day until surgery (or equivalent exercise). Walking helps the recovery process go smoothly and minimized the pain levels from surgery.

3. Wean yourself from caffeine and carbonated beverages now. After I gave up my 6 diet coke a day habit, I suffered from a week of severe withdrawal syndrome consisting of severe headaches and body aches. I was miserable. You don't want to combine the effects of caffeine withdrawal with the effects of surgery.

All great points! Thank you. I've slowly started to wean myself off of carbonated drinks. Diet Root Beer is my stuff lol. My surgeon said I could have diet soda on my liquid diet but I'm just going to go ahead and quit it while I can. I'm pretty active already because I have 3 kids and my 9 year old son is very active lol.

[ARMoma45 353]

On 4/20/2019 at 7:04 AM, BulletWithButterflyWings said:

So how did everyone get past any fear you had? I'm so terrified of dying on the table, dying from malnutrition, or complications. On the other hand, I'm so excited that I can't stand it lol I'm having the surgery no matter what but I wanted to know if these feelings are normal or if I'm just being a paranoid psychopath....

I can honestly say the I have no fear now. However when I was much younger and had small children I considered having RNY and decided against it because of my fear of dying and leaving my small children without a Mommy. You have to remember though that back in the early/mid 90s the procedure wasn't as safe as it is now.

[Frustr8 7,886]

Fear and worry are like buying a rocking chair. It does give you something to do but it sure doesn't get you anywhere!

[Cameo325 27]

On 4/20/2019 at 7:04 AM, BulletWithButterflyWings said:

So how did everyone get past any fear you had? I'm so terrified of dying on the table, dying from malnutrition, or complications. On the other hand, I'm so excited that I can't stand it lol I'm having the surgery no matter what but I wanted to know if these feelings are normal or if I'm just being a paranoid psychopath....

I am right there with you! Scheduled for surgery May 16th & all I can think about is 'what if i'm the .01%'.

[BulletWithButterflyWings 423]

4 hours ago, ARMoma45 said:

I can honestly say the I have no fear now. However when I was much younger and had small children I considered having RNY and decided against it because of my fear of dying and leaving my small children without a Mommy. You have to remember though that back in the early/mid 90s the procedure wasn't as safe as it is now.

That's the fear that I have because of my babies. I guess you don't really realize how much you really live for your kids until you're faced with something like this. My kids are my world but I know if I dont do this, I'm more than likely going to die young anyway from some obesity related complications.

[BulletWithButterflyWings 423]

28 minutes ago, Cameo325 said:

I am right there with you! Scheduled for surgery May 16th & all I can think about is 'what if i'm the .01%'.

That's how I feel lol. I'm scheduled for June 19th. Super nervous too lol. What kind of pre op diet do you have to do? Mine is 2 weeks of full liquids only.