I'm out of here!

I guess I missed some secret password or something to get support on this board. I just posted yesterday and all I got was two critics of my surgeon and my profile. I guess I came to the wrong place. I see 31 of you read my post but only 2 responded - that's pretty sad. I can't get support from my hospital's own support group because they don't meet anymore - I guess I'm on my own! Good Bye Iowa!

Hello Carol, dont feel that way i'm sorry I couldnt get to you sooner I been gone all this weekend. anyway congrats on your weightloss I hope things go better with your leg. just dont give up on here we are here so please stay with us. take care Laurie

Evidently you took my response as a criticism, I never meant for you to take it as that. When I respond to something on the message board, I always read their profile as well so that I can have more information before I respond to the question or statement. I am sorry that you feel that you are alone, by all means, you are not. We have all chosen to use this website as a tool in our quest to be healthier and I would hate to see you not use that in the future. There is a lot of help within this site and I would hope that you would see the good in it. Weekends are fairly busy for a lot of people who frequent the boards so I would hope that you would give us another chance. I have learned in this journey that you need a very supportive group of family and friends. Through here, I have received numerous positive comments on my upcoming surgery and I thoroughly enjoy this entire website. It has been a great help, a great way for me to prepare for my upcoming surgery as well as meet some awesome local people who have already went through this surgery. Give the Iowa Message Board another chance, we are all here for the same reason, and you can always email me personally. I look forward to hearing from you. Tamara

I don't think you should take it too personally. First you posted on a weekend. Not much activity. Second, I also gasped when you mentioned aspirin as I can only take Tylenol for pain & since my arthritis kicked in & my orthopedist wanted me on Celebrex, I have to take Prilosec to protect my pouch from damage. You obviously are on top of things there since your doctor has you take pepcid to prevent problems. Most of us don't take them or only had to for a short while. Every doctor is different. I think I would have posted something warning you about the potential problems but you had already explained. Third, maybe the remark about updating was uncalled for but some people are more interested in keeping a diary type journal than we are. I don't update my profile & don't plan to in the future. I don't think her remark was meant to be mean. She just noticed that you had been planning a wedding & now was talking about dating. It may have been worded better so it didn't sound like scolding but I don't think she as being malicious. I open & read many more posts than I respond to. I bet you do too. I didn't have anything to add, perhaps I should have written to encourage you, so I'm sorry you got upset with us. I am sorry you are having the pain. I'm glad it wasn't a clot. I know when my knee started bothering me, that was the first thought that came to me & also the doctor. Have you told the doctor about the bruising? It seems that that amount of aspirin shouldn't do that to you, however, I'm not a professional. Congratulations on the dating side! Have fun. Dixie

I am very sad about your remark regarding not updating your profile, I enjoy reading them and it is even better to watch someone go through the changes after surgery. I just wish you would reconsider on the updating, everyone loves to read a great success story. And you are right, I wasn't trying to be negative about her profile or malicious, it is just useful when responding to a message on this board. I think this has taught me that sometimes it is better to just not say anything if we are going to criticize everyone's responses. Some responses are better off to be emailed directly to the person rather than posted on a board where everyone has the opportunity to riducule each other. I hope that we can represent Iowa well and not do that in the future.

Carol, sorry to see you leave..alot of people read and dont respond on here cuz it is a shame i also think people need to respond more on here. on support group meetings i am looking for more cuz i feel you need to go more then once a month. so if you ever want to just sit and talk let me know we can meet in lake view or here in carroll and i can come to odebolt also. let me know i can email you my number you can email me yours also cuz i have unlimited long distance. lynda

I completely understand how you feel. I hung out here for months before my surgery and after and I learned really quick that it was very clicky (sp). The only person I found to be friendly was Elizabeth. Try the national message board, there is always someone willing to give you support. Best of luck. Patti

Patti, I'm so sorry that you have been made to feel this way. I have never thought that this board was "cliquey". If you have posted and I did not respond, I am sorry. Lately, there have been many people that offer support to as many others' as they can. I have seen so many people that try to respond and support as least one person each time that they log onto this site. I have gotten wonderful support from the Iowa boards - and wish the same for you. Please know that I am here for you if I can ever help. God bless, Andrea P.S. I wish that Elizabeth would post more often. She was the one who made many of us feel welcome on here!!

I agree with Patti Jo. Unless you are in the "group" there is little support. I am one year out and my best support is my husband and my family.

DeAnne, I am sad that you have been made to feel this way also. Do you post often? If you have posted and I did not respond, I'm sorry. Please know that I am here for you if you need support. It is so nice to hear that your support is your husband and family. I have wonderful support from home, also, but I feel very supported on this board. Please let me know if there is ever anything that I can do for you to help you feel more supported on this site. God bless, Andrea