I am new here and FULL of questions!

I am new here and FULL of questions: 1) I have selected a surgeon, and I am working on my packet to send in ASAP. Is there anything that I need to consider before I pick this one for sure? 2) What can I do to better prepare myself for the surgery? 3) I have read some of your profiles and I am not sure on how to update mine and keep my other info on there and how are you putting the profile pages. 4) Are there any of you that would like to give me any other advise? I am sure that as my journey goes on, I will find more to ask. Thank you!

Allison, I will try an answer some of your questions. First of all when choosing a surgeon please make sure this is a surgeon that has done several of these surgeries. There are so many surgeon's that are getting into the field and have little to no expertise on it. Make sure to ask. As for preparing for surgery I haven't had surgery yet, but I will tell you what I've been doing to prepare. First I've been doing a lot of researching. That's the most important thing to do. Make sure you read anything you can about surgery. I've also worked on why I do eat or did eat. I've read so much about people's dependance on food. I found my source of why and tried working on that problem NOW. As for profiles, you can go under UPDATE PROFILE at the top, then on the left after you are signed in you will see something that says "general info" that's how you add things to your page for people to view, also Below that is profile picture and colors which you can change also. Most importantly though know your surgeon, feel comfortable with him, get your eating habits straight and research. I hope this helps. If you want you can also visit. www.wlsandyou.com I hope you have a sucessful journey! Amy

Thanks Amy! I have been reading a lot and I am trying to find as much info that I can and I feel that the choice of surgeon that I have decided on is pretty good. I am going to see what his staff can tell me this AM right after I go to Curves!

Hi Allison! I'll share with you the best thing I did for myself. I had surgery 3 weeks ago and started making changes when I started my visits with my doctor 5 months prior. Through research, I learned how my eating habits would change so I started making the changes months ago. This helped me tremendously as I didn't go "cold turkey" following surgery. Some of the changes include quit snacking, chew slowly and thoroughly, eat 3 meals and no more, learn to drink water/fluids, and change my attitude towards food. I think it's impossible to live on the post-op amount of food when you're pre-op. But at least you can start cutting down...especially the sweets. It'd really help to start developing a post-op mindset. I believe because I made these changes months ago, my recovery has been a breeze. I have had absolutely no problems and feel that I've made it easier for myself. Good luck! Karel

Welcome! 1. I chose Dr champion in Atlanta. he;s done 1800 of these, with 3 deaths.. that's amazing. Dr Duncan was a close runner up, but he has teams who do surgeries and theirs combined were 1800.. not close when my surgeon has personally done 1800. I'm not saying Duncan is a bad surgeon.. but the number he;s performed was the most important to me. 2. Diet now.. what ever has worked for you in the past.. do it. You won't have to fight to keep it off. Know the risks. KNow the bad things that can happen, so if they do.. you will recognize them. 3. Click on My Profile on the top, then log in, and click general and update there 4. Don't let people make your mind up. Do this for you and only you.

Also.. ask this on the main board. You will get 4x the response.

Thank you Karel and Kay for your information. I am still searching for the right surgeon for me and I am watching what I eat as well as excersizing so that I can help get through the surgery better than if I do not. Please let me know if there is any other information that you might find helpful.