PRE-OP, PSYCH & CONSULT DONE! Need help!

Well today was certainly a busy day! I had my pre-op done at Centennial Women's Hospital, then it was off to Dr. Houston's office for Consultation and meeting with nutritionist, then woof off to Evelyn Frye center for Psych Eval. Man what a long day! But everything is done, psych eval approved and I'm ready to go. GREAT, huh? Then why all of a sudden am I scared???? I'm not scared of the surgery, I'm scared of the everything after. The What Ifs. What if I fail? WhaT IF I get so hungry I can't stand it? What if I wish I'd never had it done? etc. Did anybody else do this? I even woke up in the middle of the night last night and thought "what in the world am I doing?". How, if any of you went through this, did you work it out? Is it just jitters or do I have a REAL problem? I want the surgery, feel it is the only way, and am not afraid to die - so what gives??? Duh, I feel like such a dunce Sorry, I'm rattling. Would appreciate any advice,etc. Jeanette (8/25/04)

Hi Jeanette, What your feeling is pretty common! The only time I wish I didn't go through the surgery, was about 3 days after I came home from the hospital. I was in the bathroom and just started crying my eyes out, wondering why the hell I did this! Oh, it was awful! And my mom didn't know why I was crying, which made things worse. However, I'm almost 5 months post-op - Ya know what? It's the best thing I've ever done for myself! EVER! Just keep thinking positive! It's totally normal to feel tht way, honest! I started feeling better a few days before surgery, then I got totally nervous surgery day - until they brought me my very own purple hospital bed! LOL! For some odd reason, I felt better! Good luck, Katie

Hi Jeanette, I think being nervous and wondering about the what if's doesn't make you crazy, but in fact is very normal. I agree with Katie, I think that when you start seeing results, you'll do fine and glad you had the surgery. Best of luck to you. Kathy

Thank you all for your support and words of encouragement. I love these message boards. They are so helpful. God Bless You all and thanks again. Jeanette

Hiya Jeanette!!! I'm so glad to hear you got all your ducks in a row today. I did the very same thing, hitting it all in one day. So how do you like our fair doc? Isn't Dr. Houston the greatest?? You're in such skilled hands! Please believe me when I say that we ALL have felt what you're feeling. Its perfectly normal. Its very true when people post that you dont get hungry any longer. Sometimes i'll forget to watch the clock and meal times pass me by 2 hours. My dh and daughter will come tell me they're starving. You may mourn food, I know I have. I deal with head hunger sometimes too. But it all gets better and you get through it. We'll all be here for you any time you need the support. The whole team at Doc Houstons is wonderful and they are always there to help. God bless hon! Keep me posted on your date. I'd love to swing by Centennial and check in on you. I work right down 22nd. Hugs! Melanie

YES, Dr. Houston is great! Because of previous surgeries (7 hernia repairs) he said surgery might take 6-8 hours but he was very confident he could handle it. He didn't seem to mind that I was a more difficult case. I feel totally at ease with him doing my surgery. My surgery is scheduled for August 25th at 7:30am. Please feel free to drop by and see me. I do feel much better today then yesterday. I visited my therapist this evening and we did some "head" things. That certainly helped a lot. And the support from these message boards is great. God Bless everybody for being such an inspiration and support to those of us "not yet on the other side". Jeanette