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Hi all . At work I have let quite a few people know what I'm doing . I'm not real good about holding things in & being secretive . Up until today people have been very supportive . For some odd reason today a couple people said negative things . Things they had heard about the surgery . Of course the stuff is taken out of context & exaggerated . It's not deterring me from my plans . As a matter of fact I heard from Dr. Oh's office . I will have my pre-op labs done on August 14th . Then I can get on the cancellation list . The sooner the better . Kathy

Kathy, everyone has a comment, suggestion, or a plan.... you know where you are and what is best for you. Keep your mind focused on your decission, of which I am so proud of you! Remember that you taking such a big steps to make changes in your life can sometimes make others feel insecure and come across as negetive or even as sabatures and some may be jealous. Ofcourse my spelling is terrible, but I hope you get the message in my words. Hugs to you. Pam

Thanks Pam . I appreciate the support . I'm lucky that my immediate family is being very supportive . I know some people have to deal with their families negative bias' too . Kathy

Hi Kathy! I have heard just about every comment there is. I get everything from, OH COOL! I want to do that! To, "Oh no... I know someone who knows someone who died from that surgery!" I hate having to explain to people how safe it is and that I wasn't going to die from it. I told a few people here at work and they have taken it upon themselves to tell perfect strangers at our last conference that I had surgery. I was totally appalled but couldn't exactly say anything in front of these people. Of course the people they told said, "well don't let so and so hear that, his brother died in surgery!!" GRRRR! I saw some people I hadn't seen in almost a year over the 4th of July weekend. They were impressed with my weightloss. The husband asked me how I did it because his wife wanted to try what I was doing. I said "I had WLS." He backed away from me like I was sick or something and said, "Oh." And then smiled and said, "Well you look great." I don't know if people are just surprised that I went to such drastic measures or what. I try really hard to not be offended by the reactions. But sometimes its realllly hard! I am glad to be almost a year out now. I don't get the comments as often anymore. I feel like a normal person now. But I still cringe when people ask me how I did it because I just never know how they will react. I don't want to lie and say, diet and exercise alone. Even though it isn't too far from the truth. I just have a tool that helps me along the way. Wow, sorry for rambling. Take care and lots of luck to you in the coming weeks! Lori

Kathy you will continue to hear comments all the way through this whole process. I still have people (14 months out) who come up and ask me "You're losing SO much weight! How are you doing it!" and I tell them - I'm not shy about telling that I had the surgery, it saved my life just as if cardiac bypass would have. And I get everything from "GOOD for you taking matters into your own hands like that!" to "Oooohhh..." implying I took the easy way out. Ask Dr. Oh to put on an extra thick layer of skin while you're in the OR! Michelle

Kathy, I totally understand what you're going through. With my surgery (lap band, not RNY) coming up next friday, I've started to tell a few people. I too have gotten everything from, "good for you for taking control of your life" to "well, can't you just eat salads every day and loose weight that way?" even my mother, who has seen me loose about 20 pounds in this pre-op process, has said, "why don't you save yourself 15 thousand dollars and just not do the surgery! You're loosing weight so well on your own!" Alas, not everyone will understand, and we just have to be confident in ourselves that we're making the right decision. Michelle

Thank you for all the positive feedback . I do have a friend that lost her brother from complications of GBS . He had a surgeon that is still semi-practising in the area . It is a series of tragic events , that could have been prevented if he'd known this doctors medical history . I haven't told her my plans . I dread if/when she finds out . Kathy

I didn't mean for that to sound like I was uncaring that this guy's brother had died. I just wish that the gals hadn't told these strangers about my surgery. Because then I feel like I am being judged or looked down on or something, I really don't know how to explain it. I feel bad when I hear of people passing from complications. When people die, it is usually because of their medical issues, not because of the surgery in and of itself. Or it's the doctor's inexperience that kills them. But people don't want to hear that. I think some people WANT to believe that it's the WLS that caused the death so they can keep saying how bad it is. They don't see how many lives are SAVED by this surgery. I am sorry for your friend's loss... Lori

Lori , I didn't think you didn't care . I agree , that it seems everyone knows someone who had a bad experience like : diarrhea the rest of their life , puked every time they ate , etc...I'm just fearing my friends reaction . I believe (& so does she) that her brothers death was the result of a doctor who should not of been practicing (& still is) . This doctor was not inexperienced , but for some reason has such a high mortality rate that his privileges have been revoked in many hospitals . There were hearings in Olympia , to try to revoke his license , etc...Kathy

Oh my, Kathy! Sure hope I don't know who that doctor is. Can you write me and tell me why you chose Dr. Oh? I was going to have the 'other' doctor at St. Francis Hospital do my laptop. Just got the medical history questionnaire today to fill out. I'm ready to start this journey.