FINALLY!

I finally received an orientation date! January 29th! I'm literally counting down the days!

I have been chasing this surgery for 4 years. I asked my family doctor twice to refer me to the network and he refused both times. The first time he referred me to Dr. Poon, but when I researched what he was about, it sounded like another diet program to fail at. I live quite far from their offices as well, so I never ended up attending. The second time, my doctor talked to me about depression and thought maybe I should try antidepressants to see if it would help me gain control of my habits and supress my appetite. I took Prozac for a few months before stopping because I didn't like the way they made me feel.

I had had my family doctor since birth and he retired in April 2018. I eventually decided to try the walk in clinic to see if I could get a referral from them in September 2018. Again, I got the whole Dr. Poon talk and the talk about nutrients and what I should be eating. At the end of the visit, he did agree to refer me to Bariatric Network, but a few weeks later when I followed up with his office, they informed me that he had actually referred me to Dr. Poon instead. I once again denied the referral. I'm sick of diets and it seems like a short term solution for a long term problem.

I FINALLY got an awesome new family doctor in October 2018 who agreed that the Bariatric Network sounded like a great opportunity for me based on my history. He agreed to refer me and did so November 9th. I was originally referred to TWH, but I called them to be redirected to Humber River because I liked the thought of just getting on and off the 401 for the journey to Toronto because it is about an hour away (with traffic).

I had called Humber to check on my file at the beginning of December just to make sure it had been successfully transferred, and it was. I waited anxiously for my package in the mail, but nothing. Two days ago, I decided to call the hospital again just to see if I had been assigned a date and the woman I spoke to was very friendly and offered to book me in for January 29th! She sent me my paperwork through email a few hours later.

I am so EXCITED! I know its a small step in the big picture of it all, but it's a step forward!! I have started keeping a journal to track some goals I'm working towards because I know I have some emotional eating issues and just eating out of habit when I'm not hungry. So far I haven't had any pop for 5 days, I've been working on getting 8 glasses of water a day, cutting back to one coffee a day (from 2-3), and upping my protein. I meal prepped on Sunday, which has been super helpful since I do have a 9 month old at home and that has been one of my excuses for a while. I've been talking to other post surgery patients and asking lots of questions, I've read books, I've read websites... I'm informed and super confident that this surgery will help me change my life!

Woo! That was long, sorry! But I'm too happy right now! Only 20 days to go!

That is so exciting!! I am so happy for you! The process was long and annoying for me I am at st.joes in Hamilton and my orientation was October 2017 and I just got my surgrey date!!! So do not give up when it seems there is no motion to your journey!!

You remind me of myself when I was waiting for the orientation letter! haha Things start to speed up but keep calling for cancellations to get your dates moved up after orientation.

Your healthier lifestyle goals are great! Keep doing them and talk about your changes with the social worker and nurse. They will appreciate the effort you're making.

Thank you! Will do! Is that how you got your first appointment so quickly? (Just looking at your timeline!)

I definitely plan on bringing my journal with me to show them the changes I've made so far.

You don't need to bring your journal to orientation, no one will be sitting with you one on one for that. No one will really care to see your journal until the dietitian... but keep doing it because it can help you understand how many calories were in certain things and what is worth the calories and what isn't. Now I know how my body reacts to different foods and I've lost 12lbs by changing how I eat.

At the orientation, ththey give you your first 3 appointment dates. It might be different at Humber (I'm at Toronto Western Hospital). My first date was February 27! And the nutrition class was sometime in April and at orientation they said the average time from orientation to surgery right now is 1.5 years. So I called weekly for cancellations and after 2 weeks, they were able to bump up my dates significantly.

At the moment, my psychiatrist appointment is scheduled for April but I'm positive that will change. I could be wrong, but I'm hopeful for a May or June surgery date.

So, keep being proactive, keep making changes. Talk about your commitment with the bariatric team and hopefully before September 2019, you'll have your surgery!

Woohoo how exciting for you! I remember being over the moon when I finally had my orientation back in April and now here I am so close to surgery. It does feel like it takes forever but when I look back at it, it feels like it just flew by.

It's awesome that you are making changes at this point as it shows you are really committed and ready to jump in with both feet. Keep reading and watching videos and researching and learn as much as you can as it will help get you in a good place when the time comes. I am so happy for you!

Thank you!! After having a baby, it definitely seems time flies! Lol at least I'm staying busy!

Congratulations on your surgery!! When is your date?!

Congratulations! I'm so pleased that you stuck with it and got the referral you so desperately wanted.

Best thing I ever did for myself.

That is exciting! I am also at Humber. My orientation was Nov 9th (Same day you were referred). lol

I am still waiting for my next step, which will be a call for an appointment with the surgeon. From my understanding, if you get approved by the surgeon, then we will get our next 3 appointments at this time.

I called yesterday regarding my appointment date and they told me that they are still working on the appointments for people would had orientation in October. So still sitting here waiting.

The process seems long at the beginning but does go very fast. From orientation to surgery I was under 9 months at Humber. Making changes now and being able to show your progress will go a long way to getting approvals. Good luck!