Update about my first appointment - Long

I had my first appointment with Dr. Kellum on Thursday at noon. They told me to expect to be there for 3 to 4 hours. I didn't know how long it would take me to get to Richmond so I left about 10:45am and got there at 11:40am. They took me back pretty quick and I met with a nurse and then a nutritionist. Then they had 2 students ask me about being part of two research studies, which I had to decline because of the time involved. Finally I was taken to another room and a female doctor came in and introduced herself and was asking me some questions and then Dr. Kellum poked his head in the door and I'm not sure what happened, but he came in and she left. He then sat down and talked with my friend and I for what seemed like a long time. I was really impressed with the time he spent and as somebody told me once you get him going he is really funny and smiles alot and that was very true. I felt so much more comfortable with him than I did Dr. Schirmer who spent maybe 3 minutes with me and seemed like he was in a hurry and then for some reason kept closing his eyes while he talked to me like he was trying to take a nap. I told him that due to logistics with my life that if I got approval I would much rather wait until June to have the surgery so my kids could go to their dad's and I would have been at my job for at least 6 months before taking time off...etc... He was fine with that. Now the hard part is I have to quit smoking completely, but I knew that and even though it is very hard I am ready to do that. The other was that he wanted me to lose 40 pounds by June. MY BRAIN SAID OMG! I'm not sure how I am going to do that, but he suggested a full liquid diet from now until June so I started Slim Fast yesterday. By the time I got home from work yesterday I was starving and ended up eating a few cheddar cheese cubes and then I made a tuna fish sandwich for my youngest and ate what was left of the tuna (just tuna and mayo) and later in the evening ate a bean burrito with some cheddar cheese on top and a small bowl of raisin bran crunch cereal. I think I made some good choices, but I'm not sure. How do you go from eating regular meals to only liquids? I didn't even had time to prepare for it. Now I am trying to desperatly think of things I can eat that have almost no calories, but will make me feel somewhat full. The other thing is that he wants me to have another psych evaluation even though I already had one last year. I sure hope the insurance will pay for it. I think I'm going to have a terrible time of it the next few months and hopefully I will get close enough to the goal that he will go ahead with the surgery. Well that is how my appointment went. I'm feeling pretty stressed out, but optimistic too. Andrea

Hey Andrea. I am glad you liked the new doctor and that he was so nice. My surgeon doesnt require the weight loss prior to surgery so I have no advice there, but I can commiserate on the quitting smoking thing. I started trying to quit 2 months before my first appointment with the surgeon. It's been more then 3 months now since I had my last one and I STILL get cravings (it doesnt help that my husbutch has not quit yet!). One of the things I did that helped me quit was, whenever I started really craving one, I would either drink some water or do some kind of exercise (ie: leave my desk at work and walk a lap through the hallways). The water is good for weight loss too (fills you up). Good luck and stay optimistic! Lisa

Hey Lisa. Thank so much for the tips. I am trying "everything"...patches...homeopathic smoking withdrawal tablets...300 mg of Wellbutrin daily...and sucking on Halls (sugar free) when the craving for the menthol kicks in. I have cut way back, but still not quite there yet. Hopefully soon! I cannot imagine what I would do if I had another person in my house that smoked, but thankfully being single means I don't have to deal with that...you have a lot of will power! I hope you have a great day. Andrea

Andrea, It sounds like things went well for you. About the 40lbs yes, its going to be hard, but I am sure you can do it. May I make some suggestions. 1. Going from eating regular food to only taking in liquids is going to be very hard.So, maybe try decreasing your calories by about 1000, I do not know if you drink soda or coff. but if so replace it with water. 2. This is something we have to do after surgery, so get in the hang of it now. Exercise, I mean nothing too hard try and do some walking. Before my surgery I was able to loose 30 some odd pounds. (I also had the help of diet pills, but taking away the food I ate and adding in the walking was a big help. 3. Know inside and out that you can do this. Staying postitve is the most important thing both before and after surgery. I hope everything works out for the best. Melissa

I am trying really hard to stick to twice a day SlimFast (I bought Optima and the low-carb kind) and only eating protein. I know I have to go the exercise too and that is really hard for me because I hate the feeling of my heart pounding in my chest. The doc suggested water aerobics and there are two places that I am looking into. I would like to try something to curb my appetite, but I don't know what would be the best thing to take that would not raise my blood pressure. Thank for the support, it means more than you know. Andrea

Hi Andrea, My surgeon also put me on a liquid diet prior to surgery. I lost the 20 lbs. she wanted me to lose in one month, but I found it really difficult. What I did was have liquids during the day, but I allowed myself one healthy meal in the evening. I really like the Whey Protein Powder in chocolate. You can find it lots of places, but the cheapest is Sam's Club or Costco. You may want to shop around and compare prices because the prices ranged from $65 to $25 for the exact same product and amount. GNC and Vitamin World have it too. Anyway, good luck and keep us posted. You can do it! Hugs, Rosa

Hey Rosa I saw the big tub of Whey Protein when I was at Wal-Mart and wondered what it tasted like. What do you mix it with? I plan to go to Sam's soon and buy a mattress so I will definatly check that out. Somebody mentioned that the SlimFast probably had too much sugar (I think they are right) but that is what the doctor told me to try and after the appointment I went to the Super Wal-Mart in Richmond and bought some. I just went yesterday and bought some of the precooked, cut up chicken to add to some lettuce and I got two dressings made by Walden Farms that are no sugar, no carbs, no calories, nonothing (make me wonder how they got any flavor in the bottle) so I will probably have eat that for lunch and then just have the protein shake for dinner. I hope I can do this. I will definatly keep you all posted! Hugs, Andrea

Hi- I quit smoking on Jan 3. It isnt easy, but it is NECESSARY! Soooo many potential risks with anesthesia and smoking. I smoked for over 25 years. May I suggest trying nicotine gum? It totally saved my butt. You can replace the all the little smoking rituals with the gum, and it also helps with the oral fixation. Best of luck to you!

Hey Mark. I have not tried nicotine gum yet because of the cost, but that oral thing has definatly got me so I will definatly try it. Thanks! Andrea

Andrea, I'm not a doctor but three months of nothing but full liquid seems a bit extreme. You might want to get a nutritionist opinion. I would think Southbeach or Adkins for a month and 1/2 and then do full liquid would be more effective but I'm not a doctor. I've lost 15 pound in a week on Adkins. I would think a full liquid diet for that long will put you into starvation mode and you wouldn't lose much. If you have trouble with the liquid diet check in with a dietician or a nutritionist. Good luck with the smoking. My partner quit in October using Welbutrin. It was difficult but it worked and he has only had two slip ups since. Good luck, Chip