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

My Step Mom had RNY Surgery 7 years ago and my Step Sis had it 5 years ago. Both had great results.

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

I have Kaiser Insurance so it was not an hassle at all. They just require all bariatric patients to go through a bariatric program which I believe makes the patients have much better results that will last.

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

my first visit with my surgeon was my Orintation with Kaisers Bariatric Program. He led the orintation. My first pre op appt with him was good. he was very open about his expectations for his patients and what I needed to do to get to my goal. I recommend bringing your support person to every appt with your surgeon and with dietician/nutritionist. I found that my husband picked up things that I missed at appt. And he also had a different point of view on what I do or have done to help in the process.

What made you finally decide to have the surgery?

I wanted to start a family and I didn't want to be a big Mom trying to keep up with my little girl. I ended up pregnant during my first stint in the bariatric program but when my daughter was 6 months old I rejoined the bariatric program and here i am 5 weeks post op a year later! :)

How did you decide which proceedure to have?

I never wanted the RNY. I originally wanted the Lap band because these were the only options at first but i found out that the sleeve gastrectomy was now an option and after researching for a few weeks I decided on the sleeve because of the amount of maintenance the lap band requires. I did not want to have to have so many checkups after having surgery.

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?

My only fear with having surgery was the recovery. i have a low tolerance for pain, but my pain was surprisingly low. the pain I had was more muscle pain and the gas pain. my incisions never gave me any trouble and are healing great.

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 was very supportive. My husband was behind me 100% during the whole program. the rest of my family was behind me also. I have a very strong support system in my family and friends.

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

I missed 3 weeks of work. my doctor released me 1 week early to go back to work. When I was interviewed for my job I was in the bariatric program and I let them know I about it and they were ok with it. I was still hired for the job. My coworkers have been very supportive. my unit really stepped up to help my work out while I was off for surgery and recovery.

What was it like attending your first information seminar on weight loss surgery? Were you glad you attended? if so, why?

I learned a lot about weight loss surgery before even asking my doctor about it. the information class i had to take for my doctor to give me a referral did not tell me anything new since I had already did research. I am glad I did the class though to get my referral. like I said I had to take it to get my referral which my doctor put in for me that day.

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

My hospital stay was great! my nurses were so attentive to my needs and they explained everything to me before doing anything. The most important things to bring to the hospital are chap stick! a robe and some slippers with non skid bottoms because the hospital socks never fit right!

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

I had no complications from surgery. My surgeon did find during my surgery that I had a hyetal hernia that he fixed. :)

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

I was excited!! I did not have any anxiety until the day before my surgery. I could not sit still. I tried to keep busy all day to wear me out so I could be able to sleep the night before surgery.

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

I spent the first week and a half after surgery at my in laws home so that my daughter would be taken care of while I was recovering and my husband could go to work and school. I came home after the week and a half and was feeling really good and was able to do things for myself as well as take care of my daughter who was 15 months old at the time of my surgery.

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

I live in the Sacramento, Ca area in Rancho Cordova and my surgery was in Fresno, Ca. a 3 hour drive. I go to fresno for all of my check ups. I chose Fresno on purpose. It was either fresno or the Bay area and my family is in the fresno area so that made my descision for me.

Please describe in detail what things you could and couldn't eat in the weeks and months following surgery. What foods have been off limits? Please explain how your dietary tolerance changed week-by-week, and then month-by-month since surgery.

in the first week I had a really hard time drinking or eating anything cold. It was very uncomfortable to have it go down. I also had a hard time with sugar free pudding packs. they upset my stomach. I have been trying everything and I am tolerating all meats. I have had beef, pork, chicken and its all wonderful still! I cannot drink milk like before. I can drink it but only about 3 sips and then it makes my tummy a little yucky.

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

Right after my surgery I had no energy. That lasted for about a week. I would walk around the house to walk but I got tired very quickly and I slept a lot. by week 2 I was doing a lot better. I was playing with my daughter again which takes a lot of energy! now I am 5 1/2 weeks post op and my energy level is about medium! I still get tired but it takes longer to get there. like yesterday we took Isabelle to the Sac County Fair and we were there for 3 hours walking around checking out everything there was to see and I was not tired until we were there 2 1/2 hours!

What vitamins and/or dietary supplements have you taken since your surgery?

I take a daily multi vitamin (gummy vitamins for adults that I found at Costco) and sublingual B12.

What side effects (nausea, vomiting, sleep disturbace, dumping, hair loss etc.) were worse for you? For how long after surgery did they persist? How did you cope with them?

I have not had any bad side effects as of yet. I was already lossing my hair before my surgery due to hormonal changes from pregnancy.

What was the worst part about the entire bariatric surgery process?

the long wait after getting a surgery date. 6 weeks is too long to wait. right after surgery the next day anyway having an upper GI was really not fun at all. It was not how I wanted to have my first "food/drink" after surgery. Barium is horrible tasting stuff and they xray tech kept trying to get me to drink more but I could see the xray and I could see that my new stomach was already full of it and there was no way I was going drink anymore because it was coming back up a little and soooo uncomfortable.

What aftercare support group/program do you have? How helpful/important is this?

I have not gone to any support groups or anything like that. I did not go to any before my surgery.

What is your scar like? Is this what you expected?

my scars are just healed and they are little red lines. It is what i expected. my surgeon said they will fade overtime.

Please describe any plateau experiences you have had since surgery.

week 3 post op I did not lose any weight. the first 2 weeks I lost 13lbs then in week 4 I lost 7lbs. It was weird.

Do you notice people treating you any differently now?

I have not been treated any different that I have noticed.