A grabber tool. I couldn't bend to pick up or reach anything for weeks. Also have a plan B for what happens if you aren't well enough to be left on your own after two weeks.

Hey y'all. I'm two weeks away from my lower body lift, flankplasty, mastopexy, and brachioplasty. I have my preop clearance complete, and am waiting to hear from Dr. Capella's office about a final visit before surgery just to go over things once more (and I assume receive my prescriptions and things to fill and take home so I'm all ready when I get home.)

after creeping on this forum for what feels like forever, I made a shopping list on Amazon of some things people seem to suggest are most needed. A walker, toilet seat riser, and wedge pillow seem to be the most recommended. I might also get a sleep mask for the hospital because I remember being constantly woken by the hallway lights after my gastric bypass. But what do you guys recommend?

I am starting to get pretty nervous. I have only ever been put under once before (for the bypass) and I was terrified. I still am. Right now I'm all caught up in preparing myself mentally for the recovery at home, but day of all I'm going to do is cry about anesthesia. Hoping the good doctors are Hackensack will be willing to pump me the good anti anxiety drugs for that :P

Overall I am really excited, and just want to be as prepared as possible. My girlfriend is set to stay with me for the first 2 weeks post op and take care of my 3 year old son (even though he will be in daycare everyday from 8-6 so not too bad) and I have a reclining couch to sleep in.

I know I'm pressing my luck, but have any of you had to travel out of Manhattan for surgery? I am going to Jersey, and I am wondering what the best way is to get there and back. Especially back. Living in the city, I don't have a car, but I can't picture traveling on the trains and buses 2 days post op...

sorry for the overwhelmingly long post, but it's all starting to feel overwhelming. All of you who have gone through this are all so brave. These two weeks are going to fly by and I just can't wrap my mind around it.

I definitely don't recommend scheduling consults now.

I have a similar history - my dad died two years post-op for me and 3 months after that I was diagnosed with BED. Looking back on that time period, I can say with 100% certainty that pursuing plastics would have been a really bad decision, even though I had reached my bariatric surgeon's goal for weight loss (not my own goal).

I recommend that you spend this time working on your mental health. Hopefully you're being treated for BED and working with a therapist to address the emotional eating and to regain your healthy habits. You won't want to relapse after you have reconstructive surgery.

Consults now, if you're still going to lose 50-100 pounds, will be pretty useless for you anyway since you really have no idea what your final reconstructive needs will be yet. For example, there are people who have awesome breasts after losing 100 pounds and then, BAM, in the next 20 pounds their breasts totally disappear.

Definitely wait until you reach a weight that a) you're happy with and b) you can maintain. Then schedule consults. :)

As for time between surgery and consult.. I had my consult in February and the first surgery in June - I could have done surgery sooner, but I needed it to fit into my class schedule since I'm a full time student.

I would wait until you are closer to your goal. Also a lot of plastic surgeons want you to be at your goal weight for at least a year before they will consider doing surgery.

As for timing, I had mine scheduled within 2 months of my consult but then again I'm in the mid-west not a major city.

I forgot to ask you. If i don't have anyone to accompany me is it OK if i go alone ? I don't mind being alone because from what I read it seems a nurse always goes and checks on the patient. Would i just need to take maybe shakes with me?

Thanks again,

Jaz