Day 1 of Opti - feeling a bit overwhelmed

I had my pre-op yesterday and started Opti this morning. It wasn't that bad. I made a slushy with lots of ice.

I can't help but feel a bit overwhelmed today. The constant questions to myself of "am I doing the right thing?" and the ever present "you'll fail at this like you've failed at all the other weight loss attempts".

I'm not sure if I'm feeling so bummed because i've had a crazy few weeks. I've been to the UK to visit family with the kids which was insanely busy, drove to Sudbury Saturday (after landing in TO from England), drove back to TO Sunday for my pre-op on Monday and home again yesterday. I have to have a colposcopy and cone biopsy tomorrow as I had an abnormal pap smear recently (My surgeon isn't concerned and said my op can proceed anyway).

Things just feel so BIG and like too much. I've handled much more in my life and I know this will all be fine and I'll wonder why I was so worried. It's just hard.

I've been on Opti for 9 days now, it's about establishing a routine and making sure you drink enough and have the 4 shakes a day. I'm surprised you had to go to TO for the Pre-op they said I could have done mine by telehealth, and I'm only 2-3 hours away depending on traffic. You may have been like me and felt some things are best done in person to make sure they have all the stuff they need.

The Opti is pretty brutal but think of it like training for after surgery, you'll actually be able to have a bigger variety of liquids, although not nearly as much.

It is hard but you can do it.

Big changes are coming and you know it. Your surgery is a tool, and you decide how you are going to use it to its fullest. None of the things that have happened in the past few weeks are going to impact you after surgery. Take this time during OPTI to study your book from your Centre, research here, and maybe try some Youtube guided meditation to calm your thoughts.
The thing about Opti is that once you start, **** gets real. Remember you've started this process a long time ago and you had valid reasons for wanting to change your life. Now you are starting to be afraid of the change to come. Trust me, if you do your research, stick to your plan, keep your head in the game (try posting on the What Are You Eating/Doing thread) measure, log everything, you are going to be amazed at how your body quickly responds to a healthier lifestyle. You've got this girl.

I don't think it's opti itself that's the issue. I think it's just everything else. Incidentally the vanilla is disgusting even with TONS of ice.

The bariatric clinic just called me saying they have the pap results now and want me to postpone surgery until the issues are properly resolved. I told her that I'd contacting the surgeon's office a few weeks ago when I received word my results were abnormal and he said he wasn't concerned and didn't see a reason to postpone but the bariatric clinic said they highly recommend I wait until the biopsy results are back (I'm having it tomorrow). So conflicted.

The vanilla is disgusting. I added decaf coffee crystals, but it was only tolerable with that.

If you are getting the cone biopsy tomorrow, they should know within a day or two what your results are. You should be able to continue with Opti and make a call in a few days. Personally I would go with what the surgeon says.

Yeah I'll stick with the Opti and I'll def try some decaf coffee in next vanilla! I will wait until after my appointment tomorrow and see what he has to say and take it from there. Maybe they'll be able to expedite my results.

I added peppermint extract to the vanilla. It was the only way I could get through it.

I was quite emotional in the weeks leading up to surgery. When I started the Opti it was like - Holy Crap this is really going to happen.

You have more on your plate right now than just thinking about this surgery.

I like the idea of meditation. Breathe deeply and relax your body and your mind. Try to turn your thinking around. My thoughts were not that I was going to fail at this; I thought Thank God I finally have the help I need to be successful.

I think the travel, the back and forth, the pap issue, upcoming surgery would probably put most of us here on edge.

One day at a time. Take it one day at a time.

Hi anncha,

It's no wonder with everything going on that you feel the way you do. I bet you're exhausted... physically and emotionally. And with the upcoming procedures, it probably feels like there's no end in sight.

I relate to worrying about if the WLS will work for me. I had real fear about that. I felt like "this is my last resort, and what if I fail at this too". I would read the boards over and over, obsessing about people's successes... how they did it, how long it was taking them, what they were eating, etc. And after all that was done, I've been figuring out my own way. I've learned to listen to my body, my heart... do it my way. I'm not perfect, and I know I'm in the honeymoon phase and I will adjust when I need to... but for now, I eat sensibly, for the first time in my life. I know weighing and measuring and tracking is important for most people... but that would be counter productive for me, because I would feel so restricted by that, so I don't. Instead, I make good choices 90% of the time. For the first time, I'm not obsessing over food. And in less than 5.5 months, I'm down 88 lbs.

You WILL succeed. You will find the way that works for you. We will support you. Avoiding overwhelm in an already overwhelming life is so important.

Hang in there. Get through what you have to get through tomorrow, then deal with the next day. And stick to your guns about not delaying surgery because you were told otherwise.

You got this girl!! ((Hugs))

Thank you for taking the time to reply. You guys have hit the nail on the head. Everything feels like it has come at me all at once.

On the plus side I have my super fancy all expenses paid trip to the Ritz in Barcelona to look forward to in the middle of April (7w post op) with no kids and no hubby and with my girlfriend :)

i chugged the last vanilla shake with decaf coffee. It was horrifically disgusting lol I'll try peppermint next :D I'm not hungry though which is nice!

I didn't get any vanilla, so I can't say for sure... but I heard of someone making two shakes: choc and vanilla together, and splitting it in two, to temper the taste of the vanilla. I have no clue if it will work.

Also, I made all my shakes with 400 ml of liquid, not the 300 ml suggested (200 ml was brewed decaf, 200 ml was water). I found with less liquid, it wasn't palatable for me. Then I served over ice in a glass with a straw and sipped.

Good luck!!