Looking for a support group around Lancaster county.

I live in Lancaster county, in the lower right corner, just outside of Kershaw. I am looking for a support group. My surgeon is in Nashville, TN so it is not possible to attend support meetings for his patients, but I really want and need to be able to talk to and share with others. I will be having a partial DS, but hope that does not matter to a WLS group, I feel that each person should check things out and find what surgery is the best one for themself. I can travel as far as Charlotte (my hometown) or Columbia, but would like to find something closer to home if possible. Anyone know of one in my area?? Patty

WHAT IS A PARTIAL DS, MS PATTY? WHY SHOULD IT MATTER TO ANYONE WHAT YOUR DECISION IS; IT'S YOUR HEALTH! ... WHATEVER THE BEST IS FOR YOU & PHOOEY ON CRITICAL PEOPLE! KICK THEM TO THE CURB! GOD BLESS YOU DAWN & NICK

I had a stomach stapling in 1982 and a revison in 1989. The old staplings tend to develop leaks and fail. The staples are still there, though I did have a surgeon in 1998 who tried to reverse the WLS, and I can NOT have a RNY because of the two staple lines, one horizonal and one vertical, and the fact that one of the surgeries damaged the blood supply to my stomach. Dr. Husted, who is excellent at complicated revisions, said my best chance of taking off the weight was a partial DS. That is the Duodenal Switch with out the reduction in the stomach size. So, I will only have surgery on the small intestines and NOT the stomach. And, many of us DSers have found some people on the boards, especially the main board, feel we are wrong in our decission to have DS. I think each person should chose what works best for them, this weightloss business is not a "One Size Fits All" deal. Each of us have different reasons for our choices. But I have been to a group meeting that if you didn't follow the RNY pouch rules and talk of no other way of eating, you were an outcast!! DSers have many of the same concerns as RNYers, we just have a few differences in needs and ability to eat certian foods. Patty

I READ YOUR PROFILE, MS BUBBLES & WILL START PRAYING NOW FOR YOUR DATE, YOUR SAFETY & YOUR NEW HEALTHY LIFE! ARE YOU STILL LOOKING AT MARCH 06? LIKE I SAID, "KICK THOSE CRITICAL PEOPLE TO THE CURB"! THERE IS ABSOLUTELY NO REASON TO KEEP ANYONE IN YOUR LIFE THAT DRAGS YOU DOWN. PERIOD! YOU GO FOR WHAT IS BEST FOR YOU! &, KEEP COMING TO THE BOARD HERE ... THESE ARE THE BEST PEOPLE ... UNDERSTANDING & READY TO CHANGE THEIR LIVES! SURROUND YOURSELF WITH PEOPLE LIKE THEM/US WHO WILL LIFT YOU UP. I HAVE "CLEANED HOUSE", SO TO SPEAK, IN MY RELATIONSHIPS ... I FOUND MYSELF SURROUNDED BY USERS & TAKERS ... NOT ANY MORE ... &, DO YOU KNOW WHAT THEY DID? THEY MOVED ON TO OTHER PEOPLE TO LEACH OFF OF. WELL, I'M SO MUCH HAPPIER. & SO MUCH WISER ABOUT WHO I OFFER MY KINDNESSES TO ... TO THOSE WHO ARE IN NEED & VALUE THE HELP SO THEY CAN GET ON THEIR OWN 2 FEET! ANYONE CAN DISAGREE WITH ME, BUT IF EVERYTIME WE MEET, IT IS A "BATTLE" OR A FEELING OF BEING "ATTACKED" ... I DON'T WASTE MY PRECIOUS TIME HERE ON EARTH. SO, KEEP THOSE SHOULDERS SQUARED, A SMILE ON YOUR FACE, DO SOME "HOUSE CLEANING" & STAY HERE WHERE YOU ARE VALUED & UNDERSTOOD. GOD BLESS YOU DAWN & NICK

OH, I FORGOT TO ASK ... WITH ALL THE PREVIOUS SURGERY LIMITATIONS, WHAT KIND OF FOODS CAN YOU EAT AFTER SURGERY?

My problem was that there were NO foods that I couldn't eat after any of the surgeries. BUT, with the partial, I am gonna have to be very careful about portion control. I will NOT have the reduction in size of the stomach that most DSers have, so I will be the only control on how much I eat. The really good thing about the DS is the boost in metabolism. Only aprox. 20% of fat calories are absorbed. I will have to be very carefull to get in all my protien, I am required to get in 100 grams of protien thru out the day, then I can have fresh veggies and some of the lower suger fruits. With DS sugars and carbs are still absorbed almost 100% so I will have to be careful about them, but have been told that no foods are prohibited, but some are best in very small quantities. All in all it sounds very much like the High-protien, low-carb diets popular today. The major difference is the change in metabolism. My present metabolism is really bad! Most "virgin" DSers can loose around 100 lbs in 6 to 9 months, but my weight loss will be slower. I am working on portion control now. Now if I can just get thru my Lumpectomy on the 28th and get good news from that and my Ins. co, then I will be on my way. Even though I am working on portion control and cutting down on diet colas, I have been finding myself eating instead of dealing with the stress of the Lumpectomy. Anyway, yes, I am still looking at March, but may be able to work out putting funds into a Medical FSA and then I could go in as early as January. Patty

EEEUUUUU ... I HATE THAT IDEA OF NO FOOD RESTRICTIONS ... THAT IS HOW I GET MYSELF IN TROUBLE. IF SOMEONE SAYS TO ME ... "OH, YOU CAN EAT ANYTHING, JUST USE YOUR HEAD ... I'M A GONER BEFORE I EVEN START!" I AM A VERY STRONG WOMAN, BUT WHEN IT COMES TO FOOD, THAT'S MY ACHILLIE'S HEAL ... OBVIOUSLY. WITH MY RNY, THE RULES ARE MUCH LIKE YOURS ... MEDS & SUPPLEMENTS DAILY ... FLUIDS 1st, THEN PROTEIN (YOU DIE WITHOUT SUFFICIENT AMOUNTS OF THESE 2 ITEMS) ... GREEN VEGES NEXT & THEN TINY AMOUNTS OF FRUIT IF YOU HAVEN'T GONE OVER YOUR CALORIC GOAL. I CAN DO THIS ... THIS IS SO LIKE ATKINS & ATKINS WAS THE ONLY DIET I EVER FELT GOOD ON WHILE I WAS ON IT ... &, I LLLOOOVVVEEEEEEE MEATS, POULTRY & SEAFOOD - YUMM, YUMMMMM! BUT WE HAVE RNY NO-NOs ... NOTHING WHITE ... SUGAR (noooooooo) BUT THIS REALLY ISN'T DIFFICULT BECAUSE OF SPLENDA & ALL THE WONDERFUL S-F FOODS & TREATS ON THE MARKET. NO BREAD, PASTA, RICE OR POTATOES ... NO FRIED FOODS OR FAST FOOD JUNK LIKE FRENCH FRIES & ONION RINGS. NO CHIPS, CRACKERS & SNACKS LIKE THAT. THIS IS PERFECT FOR ME, BUT IF I HAD TO DO IT WITHOUT THE POUCH, I COULDN'T CONTROL THE PORTIONS. SO, FOR ME, I HAVE THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDS. AFTER ALL YOU'VE GONE THROUGH TO GET TO THIS POINT, I JUST KNOW THAT YOU WILL DO WONDERFULLY! YOU'RE INFORMED & MOTIVATED & YOU HAVE A WONDERFUL HUSBAND THAT SUPPORTS YOU. YOU'LL COME OUT THE OTHER SIDE HEALTHY & THIN. KEEP US POSTED & WE SEND OUR PRAYERS FOR THE LUMPECTOMY! GOD BLESS YOU DAWN & NICK

We have a meeting in sumter. I don't really know how close or far we are from you. I know all surgeries are welcome.