huh...

Hi Katrina, I have been nervous for awhile and scared.. yep. But now that my surgery is only five days away (September 19th).. I am getting more excited yet still a bit nervous. I went to my pre-op Tuesday at Celebration Center of Excellence here in Kissimmee Florida and had a Nutrition class from 9:30 am until 12 noon. They will explain everything step by step.. what to expect before and after the surgery. They will tell you what you can eat and during what stage. They also explain why its necessary to lose weight pre-op. They say it makes the surgery go smoother with the possiblity of less risk.. etc (something to do with fat around the liver and how the liver is in front of the stomach). You will learn how much liquids to drink and give you options on different ways to fill your expected amount liquid intake.. and protein, protein powders, vitamins and more. It is a real eye-opening experience. After that I went to pre-op testing.. which only consisted of an EKG and blood test and at the same time we did the "pre-admittion".. which is great since when I get to the hospital Wednesday, I can go straight up to the surgery floor without having to fill out pesky forms or do paperwork.. My doctor is very easy .. he required some clearance from my Cardiologist and pulmonary doctors and some labwork and psych evaluation plus see a nutritionist. Then he asked me to lose some weight to make the surgery less risky and thats about it. This is the kicker.. the day before the surgery I thought he would put me on laxatives all day and he said no.. just to not eat after midnight (my surgery is at 2:20 pm).. I questioned him on this and he said that the stomach really only needs about 3 hours to get empty.. (he jokingly told me that anyone whose stomach is not empty within 3 hours has a problem).. lol AND I was thrilled because he is not making me drink those nasty liquids other doctors make their patients drink. Yeah!! I really have a huge problem with drinking liquid medications (cough medicine, nyquil, pepto bismol etc).. cause I gag and yucckky. And I asked him about the liquid to drink after the surgery to make sure there are no leaks.. well when I told him I gag on liquid meds.. he told me he would do a real good test for leakage while I was still under so that I wouldn't have to drink the liquid after because he did not want me gagging or puking or anything like that. I tell you I LOVE LOVE LOVE my Doctor! I hope everything goes really smooth for you and try to relax and remember this is the beginning of the rest of your life. p.s. I wanted to mention that when I saw Celebration Hospital it gave me a MAJOR BOOST.. I was less nervous.. this center of excellence is SO state of art!! It made me feel very safe and that ALL would go well. Take care, Esther

Hi Kim, Wow.. there are so many of us having surgery on September 19th.. Sounds like a good luck day for all of us. My cousin was surprised when I told her my surgery is on the 19th because that's her birthday. She and I grew up very close and our love for one another is like sisters more than cousins. Just five more days.. YIKES!! Can you believe we are almost there? Good luck to you Kim, and I hope everything goes smoothly. Keep in touch and let me know how it went and I will do the same. Best regards and much good luck from, Esther

I too hope yours goes as smoothly as mine has! Let us know how you are doing! Wishing you a safe speedy recovery!

Hi Kim My name is Kim also my surgery is scheduled for September 19, 2007. I can be your surgery buddy. Kim