has anyone gone through this process with portsmouth hospital?
I had Dr. Pacculli from the office with Dr. Looser as the secondary surgeon. Your first visit is soooo exciting...mine was anyway...lol It was filled with a ton of info and almost seemed sureal. After all this time the one thing in life that i knew would work was happeneing!! Nancy Seesman will go over all of the risks...the surgery itself what they expect of you...what you can expect from them bc you are now part of the team that is going to change your life forever. I brought a member of my "support" group...just in case i forgot anything...to ask or what was being said. It is alot of info and they really do take their time to listen and answer any and all questions. Remeber NO question is silly dumb or stupid...if it is on your mind ask it!! You will get your "bible" the little book that explains all and yet still has you wondering all kinds of things...lol. Then you will have to start your requirements...nutrition visits...any tests you may need...ie sleep studies...gall bladder tests ect. She will also let you know what your target weight loss is. When you get close to this number you get your appt with the Dr.!!!! i started the program on January 15th of 2005 and had my surgery on March 31st 2005. The time it takes to get thru the program will depend greatly on how fast you meet the requirements. You will have to meet with Dr. Wagner and atleast start the behavior mod classes. That is a five week course. If your surgery is scheduled you jsut need to make up the classes you missed after your recovery. All in all..I LOVED the practice...have had a few complications from the surgery...but wouldnt change a thing!!! If you have any questions i am on yahoo racegirl212455 and aim with the same name. You can also email me at [email protected] anytime!! Good Luck with the program and i am sure i will see you at some meetings.
372/301.5/192
omg!michelle,thankyou sooo much!if you dont mind i added you to my yahoo list!you have got me sooo excited!would you mind if i emailed you now and then if i have any questions?did you have to lose 10% of your body weight?if you dont mind me asking,what was your starting bmi?what kinds of things does dr.wagner go over with you?so you have to see all of these poeple before you get to meet your surgeon?i just have this huge anxiety that its not gonna happen for me,i want this sooo bad!!thanks again michelle!
You are so welcome! You have to looses 10% of your excess body weight...for me that was 18ibs. My BMI was 58.2 at my highest weight, 47.1 the day of my surgery and is currently 30. I am 11 months out. Dr. Wagner when you have your first meeting will go over what your expectations are...what do you think the surgery will do for you...why did you get to the point your at (needing the surgery). He just wants to make sure there are not any unreal expectations Like i am doing this to become a supermodel and make tons of ging showing off my new body!!! It definetly doesnt cure all!! He wants to make sure mentally you are in a good place..you understand the surgery and are willing to make the changes mentally that need to be done. By no means am i perfect and have been perfect since the surgery, Some of our old ways are hard to give up!! We have the benifit of this new "tool" but like i said old habits die hard!!! He will go over with you in the classes things you can do to make changes. Alternative ways to figure out and analyse the obsticle...wether it be bad food choices...alcohol...not wanting to exersize ect. We all go thru the OMG's!!!! DOn'T WORRY!!!! You have taken the first steps and it will all fall into place!!! It may not seem as it is going as fast as you would like it to some days, If you are like me "I WANT IT NOW!!!!!" But it will. Patience is the key. We didnt get big over night the surgery doesnt happen over night...but when it does...the weight will seem like it goes off that way for a while! It is amazing!! Things will happen!!! You can email me or IM me anytime you like. If i am not on yahoo..leave me a message i will get right back to you as soon as i can. If you email me same deal! Good luck with everything your journey to a new and healthier you has just begun!!
Hello Jen,
I also had Dr P out of Ports, she was with dr Gens for my surgery, I can answer any questions you have as well.....my E mail is [email protected]
Take care
And Good luck at your appt Thurs
Jane
Jen,
Hope your appt w/Dr Looser went well. I had Dr P for my gastric bypass in Aug 2004. Dr Looser did my appendix in October. I had originally met him at the informational meeting and thought he didn't have much of a personality/bedside manner. I have to say I've eaten my words about him since receiving the excellent care for the emergency appendectomy. He's a fantastic surgeon, as is Dr Gens and Dr P. You're in good hands!! Best of luck to you on this fantastic journey!
Heidi
HI there,
Hope your appt with Dr L was great. I have seen him a number of times (gallbladder, breast lump, bypass for me, bypass for hubby, hernia for son, etc).
At first I was ho-hum about him, but after a few meetings I felt not only confident with him as a surgeon, but I like him as a person (I think he needs to "warm up"?)
I had started at 322 and had to lose 20 lbs before surgery. I was 296 the day of. I am now down to 203.5, and am almost a year out.
I work Monday nights so I don't get to many of the support group meetings (that's why I love this site), but I would be happy to answer any questions about the process, etc... .
Huggs!
Gurtie B
Where are you meeting? At the hospital I met with Nancy (she;s the coordinator) and she is very nice. When I met with her she told me to contact Dr L for an appt and gave me a whole LIST of other people to get appts with (nutritionist, dr wagoner, PT, the Upper GI, labs, all kinds of stuff). Then she did a physical and weighed me. She showed me the band and told me about both procedures. And then she told me how they figure what you need to lose and what you will need to lose. She also talks about support group meetings and stuff. She is very nice, a bit reserved. I think my first appt with her was about 2 hours? I really can't recall exactly. And Joe (my hubby) had one too near the same time. It's all kinda blurry.....
Nancy is a wealth of knowledge - feel free to ask lots of questions. She will follow you through the whole process and even was able to go into the OR with me (which was very comforting - my last conscience thought was "what the heck am I doing to myself? Am I NUTS?????)
But I would not trade this for anything. Sorry to ramble, but I love to "talk" WLS!
Huggs,
Greta
aka:Gurtie B
PS: My mom is the pre-op Nurse (Pam), she's right across the hall from the bariatric office and I think she has some before and after pictures of me in there IF you are interested.
Karen Most Active
Recent Topics
