Smoking

Ha, my dentist smokes and drinks and chews tobacco when hunting lol

They told me I had to quit and that they would do a urine test well I cut back from a pack-2 a day down to about 5 cigs a day and was going to borrow a friends urine well they never tested me and the surgery is scheduled. before I met with the surgeon i washed my clothes and purse and showered and then got dressed and didnt smoke again til after the appt and said on the form I had quit so i think they just didnt think twice. I know smoking is bad but I feel like its my body and my risk to take 

You my dear have no clue what you are getting yourself into.  Who is to say the day of your surgery they have you do a urine test?  Then what who's urine will you use then?  Lying about things only gets one into trouble down the road.

Between this and the makeup post, one has to wonder - do you plan on complying with anything?

As Gwen said, are there ANY of your doctor's guidelines/rules that you DO plan to follow (or are you going to be one of the people who is eating Big Macs and KFC bowls right after surgery)?  

Yep, you can decide to continue to lie to your surgeon about having quit smoking, just as your surgeon can refuse to do your surgery when they test you the morning of surgery and find out that you are still smoking like a chimney.  (No matter how freshly washed your clothes are and how freshly showered you are, though, non-smokers can usuall still smell cigarettes.)

Lora

You need to get real.  

Your surgeon says stop smoking. So you don't stop but lie about it.

Your surgeon says no make-up for the op. But you plan to ignore him. 

Have you any idea how hard it is to follow your surgeon 's advice post-op? You can't do it if you think "it's my body". You have to believe in your medical team because many uf the rules you will be given are essential for success.

Continuing to smoke will compromise your healing. You don't have to take my word or the word of everyone else--Google it. Smoking also increases your risk of ulcers.

I'm not being sanctimonious. I smoked for 10 years. It's hard to quit. It's also sometimes hard not to fall face first into a cheesecake or a bag of chips, and you'll need to refrain from that as well. My point: sometimes you have to pull yourself up by the bootstraps and do things you don't want to.

As you say, though, it is your body and your risk to take. If you want to risk ulcers, poor post op healing and infections that may require expensive IV antibiotics from the poor healing, okay then. I will say that if I was a surgeon and found out a patient lied to me the way you did with the urine switcheroo, I would dismiss that patient from my care.

I'm not/never was a smoker, but in St Joe's, Hamilton, one has to quit for 6 months prior to surgery before they'll even consider you.

Tests ( blood/urine ) do reveal if you smoke or not.

I met my surgeon last Friday ( 14th ) and he asked me if I smoked.

Quit while you're ahead and do not lie about it.

Good luck!

My Doctor here in Florida required me to be smoke free for 90 days before surgery. After the ninety days he would do a blood test for nicotine. The day I made my appointment for my consult, the lady on the phone asked if I was a smoker...I never smoked another after that and did my 90 days. The Dr. also instructed that the first time you fail it then he will give you only 1 more time then you are out of the program. Very Strict. It interferes with healing. It also causes you to produce something in your intestines that can impede healing inside as well as cause ulcers.  I passed mine after 90 days and am now just over 3 months out...have remained smoke free. I wanted this life changing surgery more than my cigarettes..... Believe me I would like one every now and then but don't want to wake the nicotine monster inside...

Jennifer

I was a smoker for 30 years and quit cold turkey the day I told my surgeon that I wanted surgery. He required me to quit or no surgery. It was hard but when I want something bad enough, I know I can do it. I had to make that decision...do I want to continue to smoke...or have weight loss surgery? Just like both times I found out I was pregnant I quit smoking immediately and went right back after they were born.

My doctor had me take a urine test for nicotine about 2 months before surgery & the week before surgery. I found out that it only takes 4-5 days for nicotine to be out of your system & not show in a urine test, but I also knew I wanted to make a healthy lifestyle change & there was no room for cigarettes in my life anymore. I still struggle every day but I know if I'm going to eat healthy to be healthy....that also includes NO CIGS!!!

Good luck to you!!! You know you have our support!