Got a surgery date!!!!!!

After 4 years of research and 9 months of preparing......I will be having my DS on May 28th.

The enormity of it all has fully kicked in. Any advice on surgery date and what to bring and TRULY expect

would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Amy

Yeah!  Congratulations!!  : )

--gina

Thank you, Gina!

Congrats!  It is such a wonderful day when you get your date.  I think you might be my surgery twin. I am on the 22nd...and also found out about the ds in 2009 and began scouring the web about it then.  Because of insurance and my surgeon's vit requirements pre surgery, when this became a real possibility for me in December 2012, I just had to keep researching and doing everything I could to get ready.  This did afford me time though to contact potential surgeons (about 10) with about a million questions for each, learn more about vitamins and post-op life, and more.  Of course, I am still no expert, which is one of the many reasons why I love this board.  Who is your surgeon?  

I am having the surgery in Atlanta. Dr. Fritz Jean-Pierre (in with Dr. Dennis Smith) will be doing the surgery. I always thought I knew a little bit of what I would be facing but it seems lately that I have seen a lot of new DS'ers with nausea (chronic). I am nervous about it but I will definitely proceed as planned. I feel in my heart that the DS is my only solution. Where are you having yours and what surgeon are you using? I had UHC in 2007 but they did not cover any weight loss programs or surgery. I just kept hoping and researching. My husband got a new job last year and we also have UHC but it has been amazing! They have been wonderful and my cost has been almost nothing so far. I am truly blessed. Good luck to you!

Amy

I didn't believe it was really going to happen until  I got a date. Congrats.

The first couple of weeks are the hardest don't kick yourself for your decision to have surgery. It will get better.

You can try to get set up for when you get home. Different kinds of bouillion available, a strainer for creamed soups,
tuna and mayonaisse for a little later on. Any kind of diet flavored water that you like (power-ade 0, propel 0, gatorade G2).

As far as in the hospital I was pretty out of it the first day. Some magazines if you are up to concentrating, chap stick.

It is just something to get through. I used the pain meds liberally in the hospital and not so much for the first 2 weeks home.

Don't worry about eating/protein too much the first month. Concentrate on liquids. Oh, and they might give you something to exercise
your lung capacity. That turned out to be a useful marker for me as I got better. I never would have guessed when they dropped it off in my room.

Good luck,

Pete

Thank you, Pete. I have to admit that I am getting nervous about "understanding" my body and it's needs after the surgery. Did you have any nausea? I have seen several posts recently about chronic nausea and it has me freaked out a little (a lot). Thanks for the information, first hand experiences are what I need.

Thanks again,

Amy

I know there are people that have a lot of trouble with nausea but that wasn't my experience. I had no issues pre-op
and I only had some issues the first 2 or 3 weeks post-op. Mostly I put my issues down to healing, pain meds, and learning
to drink slower than I had ever considered possible pre-op.

If it is becomes a problem for you it's good to hear from the people that have had to deal with it but it isn't a certainty for anyone.

There will be more than one freak out along the way. I had more than one. Try not to panic and take it step by step. It's easy to look on-line
and focus on the "worst" case that show up in the threads. I couldn't do it but try and find the middle path between pessimism and optimism.
I'm only at that point now because after a year some things you figure out to change and some you just accept.  For me there hasn't been anything
really bad. I'm very happy about that.

Pete