I just found out on Friday that my tentative surgery date has been set for 1/15/10.  I am ssssooooo excited.  What a great way to start the new year.  Just think when I make my New Years Resolution this will be one that I accomplish. 

Check out my blog.

It is a wonderful thing!!  I'm excited for you, too!  Let's see.... what did I do to prepare?  Okay, went shopping for sugar-free Jell-o and sugar-free pudding, and picked up way too much broth, and got lots of bottles of IsoPure clear ready-to-drink protein at The Vitamin Shoppe.  Then, went to my local liquor store (even though I'm not a drinker) because I figured they'd have the little containers that people make "jello shooters" in.... and they DID.  They are perfect for your "one-ounce-at-a-time" phase, and the day before I had surgery, I made up a whole tray full of different flavors of Jello (probably 50 or 60 little one-ounce cups), so that I wouldn't have to do it when I got home.  Then stored them in a Tupperware container so they'd stay fresh for the couple of days I was in the hospital.  My surgeon also gave us a shopping list of things to have on hand, like bandages for the little incisions, gauze and a wound cleaning solution.  I was only on the clear liquid diet for a week, then on week two, started the soft foods stage....that was fat-free-sugar-free jello pudding (you have to buy sugar-free pudding and make it with fat-free milk), and smooth (no lumps) yogurt, and fat-free small-curd cottage cheese, and Taco Bell re-fried beans, and Egg Beaters.  So, I had those on hand, too.  And then, I could have regular protein drinks (not just the clear ones)... so I bought Syntrax Nectar Sweets Chocolate Truffle protein powder (for me, I think this is the best tasting one for the nutrition value).  I also LOVE Oh Yeah Vanilla Protein shakes.... but they've got something like 12 grams of fat, and I'm only supposed to have 8 grams of fat at a sitting.  So, for the first few weeks, they were great, since I was only drinking an ounce or two at a time.  But now....I'm at a stage where I'm not allowed to have more than 25 grams of fat per day, and when you factor in the fat content of your fiber supplements, and the fat in other things that you eat.... that 12 grams of fat in the shake really cuts in to your requirements.  If you have the money to do it, I highly recommend going to www.BariatricEating.com and ordering their "sample package".  It's a little pricey, but for me, was well worth it.  It comes with a bunch of single serving packages of different protein powders that are sold on the site, and also some that are available commercially, and my package had both a chocolate and vanilla Oh Yeah ready-to-drink (RTD) shake, and a couple of other RTDs, and Susan Maria Leach's book "Before and  After", and a shaker bottle, along with a lot of printed information.  The book was great.  The first half is excerpts from her pre-op and post-op diary, then their is a question and answer session that she requested and got help with from many of the top WLS surgeons in the country... and the last half is all recipes that you can make for your family after you've had the surgery, and each recipe give you the nutritional information for a WLS portion so you don't have to figure it out!  It's probably been one of the most helpful books I've got.  And of course, I joined OH.... but I also joined www.SparkPeople.com, because it's amazing.  You can not only log your food, you can log your cardio and other exercises, and you can join groups of people like you, for instance, I belong to a group of people who are trying to lose weight and also suffer from osteo-arthritis, and I belong to a group of people who have suffered with depression, and another group of people who have been diagnosed with high cholesterol.... and a few other groups.  And, you get "points" when you do certain things, like log in and spin the wheel, or answer three trivia questions, or post a comment on another member's blog, or make a blog post yourself, or "huddle" with your groups, or log your activities, or log your food..... and when you have so many points, you get a "trophy".... and each point level is different.  It's fun, although not specifically for WLS people.  And when you log your food, you get a breakdown of how much fiber you've eaten, how many calories, how much protein, how much fat, and any other nutrient you want to track, for the past seven days (in a chart below the food log).  I tell you, that site is addictive.  You can even enter your personal recipes, and as long as you give the number of servings that the recipe makes, it will come back and give you a "nutritional label" just like you see on the boxes and jars of stuff you buy at the store.  PLUS, it's got great videos of exercises you can be doing for core strengthening, upper body, and lower body.  And most of them are ones you can do at home with a balance ball and workout bands.  So, there are lots of things you can do to get ready.... AND you can always email me....

Hugs!
Erica

Thank you.....
Any hints or advice is appreciated.

Soooooo excited

I was originally scheduled for Dec 1, but had some issues so I contacted the insurance company and they told me something different everytime I called them.  So, I am taking a chance and have to call them on Dec 1st to see if the case is still showing open and if the date can be changed to January 18.  These insurance companies confuse me so much.