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

I worked in the medical field for many years and have always known that WLS was out there but did not know the details. One of the first things I heard about WLS was that it was not covered by insurance. Then I started thinking it may effect having children, so I never looked into it. I figured I would never be able to afford it.

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

With my current job, I have excellent insurance! They have been supportive of everything and have paid my claims within days. My Dr.'s Office got approval for surgery on the first call right over the phone!

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

Well, I have 2 first visit's. The initial contact was at a group seminar. This is a class that you must take before you can even get a consult appoinment. Then there is the actual consult. My surgeon was the speaker at the seminar so I got a wonderful idea of everything, then the consult was a mini-version of the seminar geared toward me, my current weight, my expected weight loss, and more. I think that with that first consult you are taking in so much info. The classes you have to take following the consult, answer so many questions that come up, the best thing you can do is go in with a written list of questions (so you don't forget in all the excitement what you wanted to ask). Then go to your classes and after you have completed everything and have your next appointment, that is the best time to go over things, because by now the changes you need to make, the food intake, the water (sip, sip, sip), when to eat, when to drink, when to take you vitamins and which ones together, etc... have been drilled into your memory, and most any question you may have had that first day has been answered (and probably with much more info than you wanted!)

What made you finally decide to have the surgery?

I made the decision to have the surgery the day I found out I have insurance coverage for it! I did not realize all the steps I was going to have to go through before the doctor would agree to do the surgery but I guess they want to make sure you have the will power to do this right and follow through after the surgery with all the vitamins, the right foods, no drinking and eating at the same time, etc...

How did you decide which proceedure to have?

I decided to have surgery based on my weight, my other medical issues, my future health, the surgery risks, and all the statistics on the surgeries. I am better off having the surgery than not having it. It is that plain and simple.

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?

The only real fears I have had, have been the fear of failure. I have been afraid that this is going to be like all those diets I have tried in the past. Maybe I will lose a little in the begining but what if I do not lose the weight! I know it is just in my head but I still think what if... I am not to worried about complications of the actual surgery for 2 reasons. 1) If there are no complications then I have done nothing but waste my time worrying. 2) If there are complications what good did worring about it do? It did not prevent the complications, so again I would wasted my time and stressed myself over something I could not control.

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 husband was concerned at first but after all the education on the procedure, and the benefits for both weight and long term health, he quickly became very supportive. My husbands entire family has been very supportive so has my father and step-mother and my friends. My mother, step-father and sister on the other hand thinks this is sooooo dangerous and I will never be able to eat food again. They are very uninformed about this procedue and most of what they think they know is wrong! The information they have is from at least 20 years ago. I have tried to inform them but they do not hear anything I say. I tried to get them to come to one of the education classes, the seminar, the support group, anything but they would have no part of it. I will let you know what they think after the surgery is done and I am healthy, skinny and active again!

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

My employer has been 110% supportive. He thinks it is a great idea, I work for the House of Delegates but do not get very much respect and he thinks that sadly, we live in a judgemental world and that I will be able to acheive more if I "look better". He has given me time off for my pre-op classes, blood work, and other appointments and told me to take off as much time as I need after surgery (make sure I heal properly). He is even keeping me at full salary while I am out (no vacation days or sick leave). I think he feels I will be able to better help him at the General Assembly after all this is done! He does not want me to come back too early at half speed, he said that this is going to change my entire life, so do not take any of it lightly! This is the most important thing in my life and as such should take priority over everything else and I agree! I am going back to work on 8-21-06 (12 days post-op). I still get tired rather quickly but since I pretty much have a desk job...I am okay to get back to work!

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

My stay in the hospital was great! The staff was wonderful and since they have a WLS unit and a specific staff to deal with WLS everyday, they could not have been better!

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

I did not have any commplications! :)

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 relieved after I got my date. It was alot of stress gone! It gave me time to organize, and make a plan to get my house in shape, myself in shape, and get all the supplies I would need over a small period of time (this really helped because some of the protein and things are not cheap, so I was able to buget for them over time).

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

The first week, I was excited and full of energy, I wanted to walk walk walk! But about 8 days out I started getting very tired, very easy, I think the vitamins and things that I had been "feeding" off of since surgery had finally run out and I was running on empty.

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

The hospital is about 4 miles from my house and my Doctor's office is on my way to work, so I have not had to go out of my way 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.

I went through the initial post op "diet", Clear Liquids, Full Liquids, Soft Foods and onto regular foods (no sugars). I have not had much trouble at all. I do not tolerate onions very well but that's about it!

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

The first few days I had tons of energy but it slowly dropped off, as I was not on my vitamins yet and just barly getting my protein in.

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

I have been taking the Optisource Multivitamin plus the BariatricAdvantgae Calcium Citrate and I have some liquid B-12 on hand. I actually started taking these before surgery.

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?

No Hair Loss, I dumped once but it was certainly my fault, I have had some trouble sleeping (started at about 4 months out). I have so much more energy...I can't seem to settle down in the evenings...Ambien-it's a wonderful thing! I got sick once about 4 days post op after taking some of my pain meds and once when I had my dumping episode - but it was my fault.

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

The worst part was not having this done sooner.

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

I have a wonderful group that meets once a month. It is a pre-op and post-op group. Everyone is great. I have made several very good friends that I can call and talk to if I am concerned about something and I have been able to help a few people through their fears and concerns.

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

I have 6 small marks from surgery, I am only 9 months out and they now look like freckles (maybe slightly bigger than the average freckle but barely).

Please describe any plateau experiences you have had since surgery.

I had my first real plateau at 7 months out and it lasted almost 6 weeks. I was at 155 and could not get those 5 pounds off that would allow me to say I have lost 100 pounds. It was a bit unsettleing since I had not hit a plateau for the first 7 months, I was scared that was it that I had stopped losing, but I seem to be back on track at this point. I am 9.5 months post op and I am down 100 pounds. So according to the 1.5 year weigh loss time frame I have another 8.5 months to lose the last 24 pounds!

Do you notice people treating you any differently now?

People definately treat me different! My own family treats me different which I did not expect.