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

A friend of my sister-n-law had the surgery and I couldn't believe my eyes. She looked and felt wonderful. I believed it was a gift from God.

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

I was very fortunate. I had no problem getting approval for my surgery. I have been on many on line support groups where people had problems but were persistant and continued to debate with insurance companies and usually won. it did somtimes take time and even involved having a lawyer as a last result. I say don't give up its your life and it can be a wonderful one.

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

It was scary but exciting. I can't believe I thought I might not qualify. Of course I did. I think you need to bring a list of questions that you might have with you.

What made you finally decide to have the surgery?

I knew I was going to die if I didn't do somthing.

How did you decide which proceedure to have?

This was the procedure my doctor offered and I heard it had very good results.

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 was aware there were complcations that could arise with this as with any major surgery but I was so very miserable and uncomfotable that I felt like this was more of a chance to live than I might die. Iwas going to die without it anyway.

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 son thought it was a cop out or an easy way out. My daughter, a thin person, was scared to death but knew I was going to die if I didn't do somthing. MY mom and dad were scared thinking this was very drastic and that i could do it on my own. They were pretty supportive after surgery. Now they are proud and somtimes think I'm to skinny (lol)

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

I was not working.

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

I WAS IN A SPECIAL BED THAT STOOD YOU UP OR LAID YOU DOWN. THANK GOD FOR THAT. I WAS IN A PRIVATE ROOM WHICH COULD HAVE BEEN LONELY BUT I WAS SO SICK THAT I'M SURE IT WAS FOR THE BEST. I WAS IN FOR 5 DAYS. THE STAFF WAS WONDERFUL. TNE NURSES THAT I HAD WERE VERY KIND AND HELPFUL. THEY SAID I'D BE UP THE SAME NIGHT AS THE SURGERY BUT THAT WAS NOT THE CASE FOR ME. I WAS IN ITENSIVE CARE UNTIL ABOUT 2AM. I had to get blood I couldn't breath and had blown up to much bigger than i was. They thought I had some sort of blockage and would have to go back and opperate. Thank God they didn't but I was so full of water. My legs were swollen to twice the size they already were. i was given treatments to help me breath and oxegen. I have no idea what the problem was from. I really wasn't in that much pain. I never really walked until the day before I came home. I was in the hospital for 5 days. I brought lots of things but relly never used anything except my toothpaste, toothbrush, hairbrush, shampoo, and huge tentdress to come home in.

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

see number 11

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 FELT TERRIBLE AND DEPRESSED FOR ABOUT 2 MONTHS. I cried all the time and thought I was going to die. My husband is no support at all and the rest of my family live quite a distance so I talked to them everyday and had them scared to death. PLEASE REMEMBER THIS WAS NOT THE NORMAL WAY THAT PEOPLE RECOVER. I DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO ME BUT IF YOU ASK IF I'D DO IT AGAIN MY ANSWER WOULD BE IN A HEARTBEAT.

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

CERTAINLY NOT WHAT I EXPERIENCED.

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

It's about 250 miles to the hospital. It is unfortunately to far for aftercare.

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 decided before the surgery that i would never again eat anything with sugar unless it was natural like in fruit.

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 HAD NAUSIA MORE THAN VOMITING. WHEN I DID VOMIT IT WAS MORE LIKE FOAM. I VERY RARELY GET EITHER ANYMORE. I GET WEAK AND HAVE TO LIE DOWN EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE WHEN I DUMP.I WISH I WOULD GET SICK A LITTLE MORE OFTEN AS IT KEEPS ME IN CHECK. HAIR LOSS IS PROBABLY BEEN THE WORST FOR ME. I DIDN'T HAVE THICK HAIR TO START WITH SO IT IS VERY NOTICABLE ON ME. IT STARTED AT ABOUT 6 MONTHS OUT. IT ISN'T WORSE BUT NEVER GOT ANY THICKER YET. I GUESS I'M A STRANGE PERSON. FOR THE MOST PART I USE HAIR SPRAY TO GIVE IT A BIT MORE BODY. SOOMTIMES I WEAR A WIG BUT IT SEEMS LIKE TO MUCH HAIR FOR ME AS I HAVE A VERY SMALL HEAD.

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

THE FIRSTCOUPLE OF MONTHS

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

I am in on line support groups ossg-graduate and ossg-se. They are very helpful and informative. I do wish there was one in the Orlando, Florida area for post ops beause Miami is about 225 miles away. I believe that support is very important especially when the honeymoon stage is over and you are afraid of overeatting and gaining back your weight. After all I failed everyother thing I ever tried.

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

It went from under my breat to below my belly button. It is not very pretty but I think of it as my war scars. It reminds me to be thankful. Iknew it was going to be a big scar after all it was major repair work. I look great with clothes on.

Please describe any plateau experiences you have had since surgery.

I never really had a plateau until I stoped losing about the end of January 2000. I believe that is because I literally walked my as off lol. I now go from about 120 to 127. I'm fine with that.

Do you notice people treating you any differently now?

Of course people treat me differently now but thats because I am different. I have much more self esteem than I ever had. I smile and interact much better than I ever have.