SURGERY DATE!!!!!!!!!! YEA!!!!!!!!!!

hello to everyone....i haven't posted on here a lot. I finally have a surgery date, April 30...I am so excited!!! Also, a little scared.....I'm scared I'll lose a lot of hair, I'm scared I will be really sick, and of course, I'm scared something will go wrong in surgery. If anyone could give me any advice, I would love to hear ALL of it. Good and bad!!! I am 29 years old. I am married to a great man, and I have two daughters, 4 years, and 18 months. I am 5"3 and weigh 260 pounds. I need a shopping list, too. What do I need to fill my pantry with, since I have a DH and 2 Little ones!! Thanks for all the help and advice!!! I'm looking forward to being a LOSER!!! Beth from Beebe, AR

Congrats and good luck. I will be right behind you. Mine is on the 4th, which is the Friday after you. As for shopping, what I did was stock up on SUGAR FREE - (JELLO & PUDDING) and Ramon noodles. I know it is early for the noodles but when you have to buy a little here and there you get what you think you will need. Well good luck & GOD Bless See you on the lossing side. Cynthia 14 days to go.

Hi Cynthia, I'm a patient of Dr Gibbs too! Just had my 6 month check up (at 7 months) with him and have lost 81 lbs so far. He's a fabulous doctor and JoBeth is a top notch nutritionist who will be with you every step of the way. I see that you're just a couple of weeks and counting and wanted to mention something to you about your shopping list. Please know this is not meant to be critical, but helpful. I'm concerned about the ramen noodles you said you're stocking up on. I don't know if you've gotten the informational handout from Dr Gibbs and JoBeth yet, but on page six it has a list of food you can have the first four weeks. The only mention of pasta of any kind is whole wheat. Ramen noodles are loaded, loaded with fat and sodium, and while cheap, they offer absolutely NO nutritional value whatsoever. Many WLS folks have problems with pasta, whole wheat or otherwise. If you haven't gotten the book yet (usually given out at your pre-op appointment) I'd be glad to copy that pagee for you so you can start shopping. Good luck on your journey, it's a fun ride, for sure!!!! Susan

Congratulations on your date! I know you are excited, and scared. The scared part will work its way out. Just keep thinking positive thoughts, if you go into it expecting bad things to happen, chances are they will. Just say a prayer and ask God to watch over you and keep you safe then trust Him to do it. Here are some items from my Nut's book for you to have on hand when you get home from the hospital: SUGAR FREE CLEAR LIQUIDS: fat free broth, plain sugar free gelatin, coffe or tea (decaf/unsweetened or sweetened with Splenda), unsweetened fruit juice, unsweetened popsicles, sugar free flavored beverages (crystal ligh****er, sugar free kool-aid) SUGAR FREE FULL LIQUIDS: all liquids permitted on clear liquid list, hot cereals (oatmeal, cream of wheat thinned with skim milk), fat free soups (strained/made with skim milk-ex. healthy choice cream of mushroom), skim/fat free milk (calorie countdown chocolate milk is really good and good source of protein/calcium), V-8 veggie juice, sugar free pudding I'm not sure when Dr. Baker's patients are allowed to move to the soft foods stage. Dr. Gibbs' patients start soft foods on day 6. I have a list for those also if you want it. My husband cooked for himself and our 2 kids the first week and I "drank" my meals in a separate room. I didn't think I would need to do that, but I had head hunger really bad that first week. Don't stress about anything, you'll progress just fine after surgery. After a few weeks, you're new life becomes routine to you and your family as well. Gotta go, if you have more questions feel free to ask! Take care, Denise

Thank you soooo much for the help!! I am very excited.......I will let you know how everything goes!!!!! Thanks again, Beth

Congratulations on getting your date! Hopefully I won't be too far behind you. I look forward to hearing about your progress. I think we're all having (or have had) the same fears/anxieties/nervousness and you'll be fine. I've heard so many great things about Dr. Gibbs. Keep us posted! AT

Congrats on your surgery date, what hospital will you be in? April 30 is my birthday and also the day that I will be at Baptist having my RNY, to be performed by Dr. Gibbs. Debra

Thanks to everyone for responding so fast!! You guys are great!! Dr. Baker is my surgeon and I will be at Baptist on April 30!!!! Keep me in your prayers. I'm doing the shakes now and WOW, I'm sick of them already!!!! I will keep everyone updated. I'm sure I'll need more advice about my post op!! Thanks again, Beth From Beebe