Toronto Western vs. St. Joe's Hamilton - is one better for bariatric surgery than the other?

Yes, we are definitely fortunate to live where we live. I called the TWH bariatric centre this morning to register for my oritientation (supposed to be Aug. 16) and i just mentioned that i was expecting Hamilton instead of Toronto (most of my support people live around the hamilton area) and she just said "oh, i can transfer your file over there if you want to, it's no problem at all!). I was so surprised that it was that simple. I said "are you sure that's okay?" and she said "it's no problem at all, I'll do it right now". So i just have to start over and re-wait the extra month that I already waited. And i'm fine with that. From what I have heard and read, Toronto sounded like an excellent place as well and I was okay with that too. But since it was so easy to switch, I just switched because it was more convenient for me and everyone else involved.

If you don't mind me asking... why couldn't you get the sleeve?

I actually went through Guelph, and from Orientation in December 2016 till my surgery this past Friday on July 21st... well, the numbers don't lie. I made it in and out in less than a year.

That's quick! How are you finding their program and how are you feeling after surgery?

I feel fine, actually. A bit of soreness in the upper tummy area, and uneasiness when cold liquids settle in my stomach, but overall everything is fine. I'm walking several times a day, I'm constantly drinking at least 2 table spoons of liquid every 15 minutes (sometimes more, sometimes less, no one is perfect) but my main thing is - STAY HYDRATED. You need to keep up those liquids no matter how "annoying" it is. Warm chicken broth, Diluted (for me) Diet Cranberry Juice, and H2O. I'm sleeping fine, keeping up with my meds, and just taking it day by day.

That's great news! Sounds like you are doing all of the right things. Day by day is all you can do. I'm sure you will be feeling better very soon. How long do you have to stay on liquids for?

I was on the Pre-Op Optifast 900 for 2 weeks exactly (If in doubt, just get Chocolate. Vanilla is the stuff of nightmares). Since I'm not even a full week out from surgery right now, I'm currently doing ; Lots of water, more water, and then more water on top of that. Some Sugar Free Jello here and there, Chicken Broth, and Diet Cranberry by Ocean Spray. I only dilute it a bit because it's already diet and severely under numbers compared to normal juices. But the Diet Cranberry + the other flavors of it they have are the absolute BEST.

I personally feel great.

Hi All

I finally decided to take the plunge and receive the referral from my Dr for surgery. I have been referred to Humber River. Has anyone gone here? What is your timeline like? I called yesterday as it's been a month and I hadn't heard anything. I am booking a week away in August and wanted to confirm that I wouldn't be missing an opportunity for an appt if I was away. The receptionist was very nice and told me it's 1-2 months for processing and they are booking for Sept. I saw my family Dr June 20th, does 3 months for orientation seem like a long time? Also has anyone dealt with Humber River with the cancellation list? I have a flexible schedule and can call every day if needed, but I don't want to bother/annoy them. I am really hoping to have this done before next June if possible so I can recover while the kids are still in school. I also have some other health issues that this surgery is going to help. Does anyone know if factors such as these are taken into consideration? Also do you need to have a sleep study done if you do not have sleep apnea? Sorry for all of the questions and thank you for any insight anyone can give me

Sorry, i don't have answers for you as I am also just beginning my journey. Perhaps you can post this in it's own thread so more people will see it (right now it is buried in my thread and maybe not getting noticed?). I got a call from the Hamilton clinic (that i switched to) and my orientation is 3 months away - so it does sound like that is about how long it takes. Calling for cancellations seems to work for a lot of people. Best of luck to you!

Hi everyone, I'm new today. I was referred the end of February and received my orientation session date of June 7 the beginning of May. I also had some forms to fill out that had to be returned within a week or you were out of the program. I was referred to TWH too. At orientation I received my first 3 appointment dates ranging from mid September to mid October. Great thing is you can do them via telehealth so except for the Nutrition class I don't have to travel to TO which is about an hour or so away. I'm super excited but also worried I'm going to jump through so many hoops only for them to say sorry you don't qualify.