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

through a friend who had surgery and i was very impressed.

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

insurance approval was ok but you just have to be patient.

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

It was exciting and ask all the questions that you can

What made you finally decide to have the surgery?

no weight loss with what ever i tried i just couldnt do it alone

How did you decide which proceedure to have?

the restrictions that came with the gastric-by pass

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?

really had no fears

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?

some were concerned, some were happy, and some were on the fence.

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

n/a

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

stay was ok,was there for 4 days and bring a cell phone.

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

none

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

anxious to get the surgery. i just tried to do every thing i needed to do and was asked to do by the doctors.

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

week1- not hungry , tired of soup ,scared to eat but wanting to eat week 2- sneaking to try diffrent things ,hunger building,some nausea, gas gas gas it like to kill me

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

not far at all

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.

could- grits,eggs,mashed potatoes,broccoli,all mushy foods couldnt- mayo,regular butter, bread,lunch meats,bar-b-q sauces,ketch-up, ramen noodles,chicken baked,hamburger,any spicy foods,i acan go on and on off limits-any thing sweet week to week things would get better and the throwing up slowes down.you are able to figure exactly how much to eat and learn how long to chew. month to month-with me chewing is still a problem.so throwing up is a problem.my knowledge of what and what not to eat is good but i still try things to see if i am able to eat it.

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

very slow.

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

childerns multi vitamins with iron and viactiv calcium chews

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?

nausea is still a problem so i cope with it one meal at a time.

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

surgery- the way i felt when i woke up,not being able to drink nothing for two days after(in hospital) now-not being able to eat a hamburger LOL!

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

n/a

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

not to bad

Please describe any plateau experiences you have had since surgery.

none yet

Do you notice people treating you any differently now?

yes boyfriend very jealous we argue a lot..............im getting a lot of atteneion ......