Miss Candace

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Obesity & Me

Describe your behavioral and emotional battle with weight control before learning about bariatric surgery.

My battle with controlling my weight is a day to day struggle. The "fat gene" definitely runs in the family (on both sides), so it seemed "natural" that i was over weight. Even as a young child, i was always the biggest kid in class & was often made fun of by the other kids. Never really being accepted. Emotionally, it was very hard to say the least & took it's toll on me at times. I've developed a pretty thick skin & often wore that "Happy face - nothings wrong - everything is great" mask so others wouldnt feel pitty. I worked extra hard to "prove" that i was fast enough & could keep up w/ everyone else. My energy, while at the office, was always office charts. Throughout the years, coworkers have always commented on what a great personality i have, how outgoing, energetic & upbeat i am. But truth be told, that was what projected to hide & protect the "real me". When at home, i would completely crash.

What was (is) the worst thing about being overweight?

The worse thing about be overweight is: 1) How the rest of society looks at you & the prejudice projected against over weight ppl. That we are sluggish, lazy, unmotivated, sloppy, dont care about ourselves or those around us. That we eat nonstop & if we "just worked out we lose the weight". but its not that easy for some of us. 2) The looks you get when: your at the all-you-can-eat salad bar, trying to walk down the airplane aisle to find your seat, standing in line for the rollercoaster, trying to find an empty seat at the movie theater or when standing on the school playground at your childs graduation. 3) The rollercoaster effect. losing 70+ lbs only to put it back on PLUS & the constant disappoint and feelings of being a failure.

If you have had weight loss surgery already, what things do you most enjoy doing now that you weren't able to do before?

There is an entire list of things i enjoy doing now that I wasnt able to before, but in short: crossing my legs, running up the stairs, walking up multiple flights of stairs, going on outdoor hikes (instead of just in the mall), being able to fasten the airplane seatbelt with out struggling, sitting in a small 2-seater car with out feeling like Im taking up the whole thing.

How did you first find out about bariatric surgery and what were your initial impressions of it?

I dont recall how i first found out about the WLS. Probably from a commercial or something. Nor do i recall how i got turned out to OH.com. I do really what however, seeing the term "MORBIDLY OBESE" in my PCP file. That didnt sit well w/ me at all. I think I may have asked her at that time about WLS options. Im not sure. Nor am I sure about who exactly referred me to OH.com, however after finding OH.com is when my eyes were really opened to the possibilities. I didnt realize how many different kind of WLS existed at the time & what each intailed. OH.com really helped educate me on that & decide which one i felt was right for me.

Describe your experience with getting insurance approval for surgery. What advice, if any, do you have for other people in this stage?

Getting insu. approval was EASY for me. I told my PCP what I wanted & simply had her deem it a "medical necessity" & write up a referral. I then went to Stanford & had them submit the referral & letter of medical necessity to my insu & the rest is history. They paid for EVERYTHING less the office visit co-pays. Done deal.

What was your first visit with your surgeon like? How can people get the most out of this meeting?

i will have to think back on that one & update you later. Im sure its probably listed in my profile.

What made you finally decide to have the surgery?

Since i was tired of the up & down rollercoaster - I gave myself 1 last try at losing weight on my own. I sworn that if i gained weight after that, then that would be the last straw & i would get the RnY GBS. After looking about 70lbs, i regained about 80 & said THATS IT! What do i need to do & where do i go to get this done?!?!? Research lead me to Dr. Curet at Stanford Medical here in Palo Alto CA & i was on my way.

How did you decide which proceedure to have?

Lots of reading & research mostly through OH.com

What fears did you have about having complications or even dying from from the surgery, and what would you tell other people having the same fears now?

I didnt have ANY fears nor was I in the least bit apprehensive. I knew 100% that this would be the best thing for me. It was just deciding on which option to go for. I wanted to LIVE w/o all the health complications & knew replacement and back surgeries my mother had. So i wasnt afraid at all when it came time to have the procedure. I knew my quality of life would be crap w/o the procedure & would totally die way before my time if i kept on the road i was on.

How did your family and friends react to your decision? Would you have communicated anything differently if you could now? How supportive were they after your surgery?

My family & freinds freaked out of course! After all, this is a major procedure & "perminent". But my fam & friends know that I am the type of person, who once my mind is made up - thats it. Im going for it & they have no choice BUT TO support me in my decisions. Luckily for me, I have a great support system full of wonderful friends & fam who completely understood & to this day, have remained 100% supportive of me (for the most part).

How did your employer/supervisor react to your decision? What did you tell him/her? How long were you out of work?

i didnt tell my employer the specifics of what i was having done until AFTER the procedure. I used all my PTO time & took a medical LOA for like a month. So i was out of the office for at least the first 6 weeks post op (i think). Maybe 5 weeks - not 100% sure at this time. When i got back to the office, people where at first looking at me like - "something is different about you.... I dont know what it is - but you look different. Did you do something to your hair??" lol Then the next week, more & more ppl would comment on how good i looked & all of a sudden they realized i was dropping weight like crazy! They wanted to know what i was doing, what weight loss system i was on, if i was working out yada yada. Finally i broke down & told a few close friends that I had had the GBS at Stanford & thats why i was out on medical LOA. "OOOOOOOOHHHHHH!!!! ... OMG!!!" lol it was great. They were great. NOW they understood how come i wasnt ABLE to eat as much & how come i would get sick if I did. They took better care of me & started to watch out for me & protect & defend my decision when others were "too nosey". I'll never forget them for that & will always cherish their friendship.

What was your stay in the hospital like? How long where you there? What things are most important to bring?

Staying at Stanford was great! I was only in for 3 days. I was up & walking around the day after surg. & told them to take that damn morphone (sp) away from me the night i woke up on the 1st day.

Did you have any complications from the surgery? If so, how did you deal with them?

I didnt have any co-morbities going into the surg & no complications post op.

In the weeks after you got your surgery date, how did you feel? How did you cope with any anxiety you might have felt?

In the weeks following the surg. i was kinda weak & tormented b/c i was bored & couldnt really smoke b/c i didnt want the inhailing to tear anything inside. my stiches healed up perfects & now you can barely see any scares. I was tired & slept A LOT but i think that was more so i wouldnt eat. I found it difficult to "sip" 1,2 & 3 oz of water.

Describe your first few weeks home from the hospital. What should people expect from this period?

When i got home was another matter all together. I mourned food & lashed out against those who came around with food. I couldnt stand the smell of food & my son had to go to my parents to have his meals. I couldnt cook at first b/c i wanted to EAT IT & cried so much & had a complete fit when my BFs came over with Burger King.

How far did you travel to have your surgery? (If far, how did this affect your aftercare?)

Stanford hosp. is really close to me, so i didnt have to travel far at all. At the time my parents lived just down stairs from me, in the same apartment complex. So logistics for the post-op care was a breeze.

What was your actvity level in the days and weeks after surgery?

Low to none. I pretty much slept & stayed indoors for the most party of the first week post op.
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