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

I had heard of it for years and was scared of it. Thought it was irresponsible and crazy. I finally started watching tv and reading about it and then I heard about an info seminar that my doctor was doing. A friend of mine had the surgery and encouraged me to go listen to him and attend his seminar.

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

It took me a while because my insurance company told me for 4 months that they didn't have my letter from my doctor. Once I finally got someone to sit on the phone with me while it was faxed over, then it took me two weeks and was real easy. I didn't have to do much pre-work for insurnace. I didn't have to do the psych eval or anything, so I think my experience was pretty easy once I got past the incomptent people that kept losing my information.

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

The seminar was FILLED with information. I left feeling overwhelmed and full of questions. It helped to have someone with me so that afterwards we could talk about it and compare our notes. Dr Baker really gives you all of the 'what-ifs' so many people feel like he's talked them out of it. He just wants to make sure that people are aware of everything involved in the surgery. I felt very confident in him after hearing him speak.

What made you finally decide to have the surgery?

I finally decided to have the surgery when I attended the seminar. I was convinced that surgery would change my life and that's what I wanted. I went into the seminar thinking that I might consider lap band....I walked out knowing that I wanted RNY.

How did you decide which proceedure to have?

I weighed the risks of each procedure and didn't like that with lap band you could gain your weight back so quickly. I also wasn't scared of the possible food restrictions with RNY. I figured that if I had restrictions then it would help me because NOT having restrictions was what got me to the point that I was at.

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 always reminded myself and people around me that my surgeon was very capable. It helped to remember that I was slowly dieing with my weight so out of control so it was going to take drastic measures to fix that. I also reminded myself that people have successful surgeries all the time.

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. I had a few friends that were hesitant and nervous for me, but were very supportive. I have had very good support around me pre and post op. There have been times recently where my friends who are also heavy have been a little jealous and have struggled with their feelings about their own weight. I'm very fortunate that they will talk to me about it and that it hasn't been something to negatively impact our friendships.

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

I told my employer and did my LOA paperwork. My supervisor never really talked to me directly about it. I just told them I was applying for a leave of absence for the surgery and told them when I'd be out and when I'd return. They were very nice about it and never hassled me or gave me any grief. I was out of work for 4 weeks because I had a complication from my first surgery and had to have a second repair 3 days after the first surgery.

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

My stay was pretty good. My night nurse was wonderful. I was really in bad shape my first three days and she was great to me. Overall my experience was okay, but some of my nurses or aids took way to long to get me things.

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

I did. I threw up for the first three days. They couldn't figure out what was wrong. On the third day I was so dehydrated and sick it was awful. They did a lab test and found that my stomach was blocked so nothing was passing through it. My doc thought it was a blood clot so they rushed me into surgery. It turned out it was scar tissue that formed and blocked my stomach. In 15 yrs my doc had never seen this. He repaired it and I was great after that. No other complications.

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 sore from having two surgeries, but I recovered really well. In fact, it was a great recovery. I felt better and better every day. It was amazing. I did everything the doc told me to do and it all worked well. I had an ovarian cyst burst 2 weeks post op and that was painful, but other than that my recovery was great.

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

My first few weeks I didn't sleep very well just because I was uncomfortable. Eating was kind of weird and it seemed more like a chore than anything. But I stayed on this site and people helped me with sharing their experience. It helps to remind yourself that this is a process and sometimes you just have to sit back and try things out to know what's right for you.

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

My surgery was 25 miles from my house.

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.

I haven't had many problems. I tried new foods at home before I ever ate them out in public just in case I got sick. The only food to this day that I'm not able to eat is ice cream. I sometimes have a hard time chewing up breads and lettuce, but some of them I can have, just depends on the texture. Other than that I haven't had any issues.

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

I moved around every day and slowly began exercising. I made sure to not just lay around or sit too long.

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

I take bariatric advantage vitamins, calcium, get a b12 shot each month, and take one protein bullet a day.

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've had minimal hair loss. Gas pains were bad my first month and I still get them from time to time. I get hiccups randomly sometimes and that's a little weird. I have vomitted from ice cream twice so I don't try it anymore.

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

Worst part was my first three days in the hospital. It's also really hard to see yourself change and get used to everyone commenting on it. It's hard to see the weight loss like others do.

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

I've used this site A LOT. I also talk to other patients and use my doc's office a lot for information.

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

My scars are really minimal. I'm surprised that they look like they do. I'm please with the way I'm healing.

Please describe any plateau experiences you have had since surgery.

I've plateaued some since my surgery and it was so frustrating. I cried the first time it happened. I went about two weeks and didn't notice much weight loss. It was frustrating but then I was reminded that my body has to adjust and catch up so plateauing is normal and expected.

Do you notice people treating you any differently now?

People talk to me about my weight loss all the time. I don't know if they treat me differently, but I know people always want to talk about the surgery and my progress. People seem to be really interested in this surgery.