New to OH and Worried

 So I'm pretty much a baby to OH and I am hoping to have RNY GB. My first plan was to get banded but when weighing all pros and cons I decided on RNY. Even though I haven't been approved yet and am barely going through my Pre-Op tests, I am really only worried about 2 things. I am anxious about the approval process for insurance but haven't thought about cause I know I will stress over it. Anyway my two main things are going under anesthesia...totally mind-racking for me the feeling of not being in control and wondering if I will wake up?...and the second thing is saggy skin...I am SOOO worried about excess skin. I was wondering if anyone has gotten rid of excess skin by exercising or if that alone doesn't help...also feel free to share your experiences with anesthesia. Muah!

Hi there!  And welcome!
First I just wanted to throw this out there...have you looked into the DS?  It might be a more comfortable option for you if the GB worries you in any way.

But as far as the anesthesia goes...I personally found it wonderful, lol.  My anesthesiologist gave my IV a shot to calm me down before I was actually put under.  I remember a lot during this time, but I don't recall laughing at everything, that my mom, husband, and nurses all told me I was doing.  I'm still pretty sure they're just messing with me, lol.  But I remember my bed being wheeled into the OR and I remember moving myself onto the table and that's about it.  I took a little longer to wake up than most, but not so long that it was a concern.  I was in pain, yes, but I just remember thinking how relaxed I was and how nice it felt to fall asleep.  I threw up once after my first attempt at eating, and then got seriously nauseous one other time, and that's about it.

I am worried about saggy skin too, so I'm with you there.  But the very fact that we're younger, in our 20s we have more of a chance that our skin will bounce back much better.  Check out sweetcheeks8402 profile!! She amazes me and i can only HOPE I look that good w/o surgery!!

The BEST way to avoid the saggy skin is working out!! Not just cardio, but strength/resistance training.  Start now, don't wait until you're already losing before you start. 

Best of luck!!

 OH! I know...she looks A-*******-mazing! LOL...so I guess it just depends on your body type etc etc...we shall see but like others have said...I'd much rather be 140 pounds lighter than still be fat!

First off congrats on making a life changing decision. I was in the same place you are just over a year ago. Now I'm a year post op and have lost 110lbs with my realize band. And let me tell you, it has been the best decision I have ever made. As for being put under for surgery it really isnt bad at all and you wont remember anything. Like stephanie that posted on here, I remember being moved into the OR and moving myself onto the table and that it was really really cold in there, they wrapped me up in some blankets and the next then I knew I was in recovery and the the RN was asking how my pain level was and telling me I needed to wake up so that I could go see my parents. It took me a while to wake up too and he kept reminding me that my parents kept asking what was taking so long and my dad was starting to worry so he kept trying to keep me awake so that the drugs would ware off enough so that they could see me. My pain wasnt bad at all but make sure you take your pain meds BEFORE the pain gets bad. As for the saggy skin issue, I would take the saggy skin over that extra 110lbs any day! Yes we are young and that will help; however, if you have strech marks that area will not shrink up as much as you would like it to w/o surgery. It also depends how long you have been heavy and where you carry your weight. Just remember this surgery isn't made so that we can look fantastic after, its was designed so that we can be HEALTHY. Looking better is just a bonus and if you dislike the saggy skin look into plastics, scares make one hell of a topic starter. GOOD LUCK

The beauty of anesthesia is that you neither know you fell asleep and you wake up before you realize anything ever happened.   While it is certainly valid to be afraid of going under, statistically it's very safe and most likely you won't have an issue.   This falls under the category of "one of the risks of surgery" .....I was fine with the anesthesia but it was the morphine that made me sick.  

Excess skin can be helped (not eliminated) by exercising with weights.  My arms look great because I work on them very hard.  I might some day get some plastic surgery for my stomach and inner thighs but it's in no way a medical issue, just a cosmetic one.  

Good luck!

~Emily~

 Stephanie...your experience with anesthesia puts me at ease and I think its very true what you say about working out now...and Brittnie...I know that col feeling...hospitals are always really cold. When I had my son, I had a c section and I remember it being chilly but as soon as the medicine was in I got more cold...but also I think you get shaky from anesthesia, any type, in general. Emily, I hope to one day be able to afford PS if I need any...especially if my boobs deflate :(...I guess everyone is different and genes and skin type too...thanks girls for you help! XOXO 

Boobs...yeah, I forgot about those (because mine don't exist anymore!!!)....I'd get those done too. :-) 

I'm not quite as far out as the other ladies who have posted here....

As far as the insurance question goes, one of the things about finding a surgeon who specializes in this procedure is that his or her office deals with these issues all the time.  They are often familiar with your insurance company and know how to 'sell' your needs to them.  Looking back, I spent tons of time on unnecessary worry over insurance approval. 

As for the anesthesia, I has a little tougher time with that than most I think.  Whatever they gave me made me SO nauseous and it took forever for them to figure out what to put in my IV to alleviate it in recovery (or at least it seemed like forever at the time).  I woke up from surgery wondering what the h*** I had done to myself, but since I got off the narcotics (about 3 days after surgery) I really haven't regretted having RNY for a moment.  

As you're going through this process, take heart, the anxiety leading up to the surgery is SO much worse than life afterwards (at least that's been my experience so far...but, in all fairness, I'm still on the honeymoon!)

-Gillian

 Yeah, you are right about the insurance part. My surgeon belongs to a surgeon "group" and they have this whole pre-op program set up where you lose 25 pounds, and go through all of your tests, and then they submit for approval, I guess so that they can have at least 6 months of dieting (i.e. the 25 pound loss you must do before surgery), and all of the necessary tests so that they know you have been under constant medical supervision...seems like they know what they are doing...and anyway that surgery group is the affiliated with my insurance group, healthcare partners...so hopefully all goes well...and as far as the anesthesia...I know all too well about being super nervous for surgery. Like I said in an earlier post, I had my son via c section and s**t was it nerve-racking. I mean and you are awake for that...they just numb you from the lower chest down...and its weird because even though you are breathing fine, your diaphram is numb so you cant feel the breaths you are taking, you pretty much have to keep telling yourself that you are ok...I almost flipped out but my hands were strapped down so I couldn't really. LOL...I'm sure everything will be fine I just hate the feeling of not being in control of my body and stuff...its weird but my aunt said that they just give you something to relax you and the put the mask on and boom you cant even think you are just out. She said in her surgeries it literally felt like a second had gone by and she was awake!

The approval process was not 'smooth' for me but I knew it wouldnt be... I was denied and had to appeal three times before getting approval on the final round... i submitted to insurance in January and it too****il March to get approval, my surgeon was very busy at the time so it wasnt until June for me to get surgery.
Anesthesia didnt bother me... I had a surgery on my ankle a year or so before this surgery so I already knew what to expect... anesthesia makes me sick (throwing up) so I knew that, it also makes me very tired and very cranky.
With skin you have two choices - be fat or have excess skin... you cannot exercise it away...  proper nutrition, staying hydrated (inside and out! water - lotion) and exercise will help.. and lots of praying lol. Also save save save for plastic surgery... being younger I think its more important to us to look 'normal'... I wish I had started saving a long time ago... I figured I wouldnt be that bad and be ok but am looking at 40K worth of PS to 'fix' my body... the only thing I am really needing is a tummy tuck, the rest would be more for cosmetic purposes than anything.. my stomach is like a big tumor hanging on that needs to be cut off :-)