I GOTA DATE !!!!!!!

I am so excited,  my information was just submitted to insurance on thursday last week. I got a phone call today saying I was approved. My date is September 29th. My surgery is at 8:30am and I have to be there by 6:30am. I am so happy. It has been such a long process for me so I am relieved for a date. Now I have to start planning and writing my to do lists.  So tell me the good bad and ugly of what happens between now and surgery. What will I need at the hospital. What should I have waiting for me at home. To make things a little more crazy I have 4 kids ages 3-9. So I have to figure out where they are going and make all their lists. (Have you figured out I love to make lists?) Seriously any advice would be greatly appreciate it. At St. Vincent is there a place for my mom to stay the first night with me? Is there room for her to stay in my room. How long were you in the hospital. Anyone from the area of st. vincent hospital that knows of any inexpensive hotels close by. Since I have to be there at 6:30 am and I am coming from ft wayne I really didn't want to get up at 3am to be there on time. Sorry this is so long. Thanks for listening and any advice.

Holly

Holly,

Congrats on approval and getting your date !!!  If I recall right your surgeon is Dr. Kaderabek.  I'll try to answer some of your questions and I'm sure others will help you out too!  Your mom will be able to stay in your room w/ you until you leave if you like.  They brought a cot in for my wife and she stayed w/ me the entire time.  You will be attending an all day nutrition/pre-op class where you will be given a lot of information regarding what you will be eating during the different phases of your journey.  You will be given samples of vitamins, etc.  You'll have a chance to take a tour of the bariatric floor of the hospital.  You will be given a packet w/ all your info and guidelines to help you along the way.  You go over any medicines your currently taken and they advise you on what to take and not to take leading up to your surgery.  This class takes most of the day and you can bring one person, sometimes two sets of eyes and ears are better than one.  You will also have to do some pre-operative testing that takes around 2-3 hours to get done (blood tests, ekg, gall bladder ultra sound, upper gi, chest x-ray), a separate visit w/ the pulmanologist for review of your chest x-ray and history, this didn't take long at all but remember to get a copy of your x-ray before you leave the hospital the day of your pre-op testing and take it w/ you to pulmanologist appointment.  You will be advised to start attending bariatric support groups in your area if your not already doing that.  I'll let the ladies answer the questions on what to bring and fill in the gaps I left.  But this is a start for you and again congrats on your surgery date it will be here before you know it !!!!!  Keep us posted !!!

Jamie 

The very best piece of advice I got was to bring t-shirts or tank tops to wear between your binder and your skin.  Those binders will itch, make you sore, and can even give you a rash.(poor Peggy)  So you will want something between to make a barrier.

Don't worry about packing too much for the hospital stay other than your personal hygene items.  I didn't have time to do much with puzzle books, reading, or that kinda thing.  There is free internet in your room and TV too.  So, if you do have spare time, you can enjoy that. 

Take easy walking shoes, some that are comfortable.  I took my crocs.  You will be walking a lot and it is best if you can slip your shoes on and off easily.

Take chapstick because your mouth will be dry for a while after surgery. 

I went to the dollar tree and got small little containers that are sized for salad dressing and such.  They are great for when you get home and measure out your food.  I measured mine out in one ounce servings and put them in the small containers so it was easy for me to grab what I needed and it kept the contents fresh and covered.  I also used them when I went back to work to make it easy to take my lunch.

Congrats and huge hugs,
Tracy

Congratulations!! What the others said is right. The advice of wearing a t-shirt is a great idea Tracy. That is something very important. I had no idea what to take but some extra comfy clothes and my husband. They gave him a cot too so he could be right by me. I hadn't been online here at OH prior to my surgery so I just took the advice of the medical staff as far as what to take and all.
The tests you take are easy and the all-day nutrician class is so very helpful. Focus on success now and don't be suprised if right before your surgery you get scared and doubt your decision. We have all had that feeling and believe me, it goes away and you have the rest of your life after that to be healthy.
Good Luck to you!!

Congrats on the rebirth date, I was told tht if a cot was available they would bring one in for my husband to stay if he wanted to, at St V's you have a private room.

Not sure about the prices of a hotel around that area, may want to ask St V's they may have something set up for discounts.

Keep up posted on how thing are going.

Hugs

Peggy