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

A friend of mine at work had the surgery and she did great. That really started me to thinking about having it.

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

My insurance company is Blue Cross......I was approved in less than 7 days. Any advice would be to just hang in there, don't let them jerk you by the chain.....be persistent with it.

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

My first visit was wonderful. He was so kind and compassionate and wanted so much to help me. Everyone in his office was outstanding. The one thing I did that made the visit a big success was research on this site and I wrote down a list of questions to ask. My husband went with me and we both worked on the question list so we didn't leave anything unanswered. This helped tremendously with the final decision, too.

What made you finally decide to have the surgery?

The fact that I could have it laproscopically and the reassurance of the Dr.

How did you decide which proceedure to have?

There was no decision. Laproscopic was the only one I went after.

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 didn't have any before surgery. I was so exhilirated that something was being done that they never entered into the picture. After everything was over I realized the what the possibilities had been. The Dr. explained all of them pre-op but I had to do something and I just dealt with them. The % of mortality is so low that I considered it and put my faith and trust in Dr. Demaria and God and went on with it.

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?

There was total support from everyone. My husband had some fears, but he didn't express them to me and dealt with them. We talked about our concerns, not our fears, and family support/peer support/freind support was simply outstanding.

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

They were totally supportive. Five people from where I work have had the surgery and there is still 1 more to go. I simply told them what surgery I was having and why and all was ok. I was off for 4 weeks. By the end of the 4th week, I was more than ready to go 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 was wonderful. I was at the Medical College of Virginia in Richmond and the staff was outstanding. I had my surgery on Friday morning and came home on Sunday afternoon. The most important things I had with me were my own pajamas and my chapstick. My lips were so dry and nothing helped but the chapstick

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?

After my surgery I felt like I had done too many situps (which is a laugh since I couldn't do the first one). I went through the "why did I do this" for a day or so and then some of the weight came off, I started feeling better and that went away and hasn't been back. I didn't have any real anxiety to cope with.

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

My first few weeks home I spent resting, trying different things on the liquid/pureed diet and tried to get in touch with the new me. There was an emotional change going on but it wasn't anything I couldn't handle. It was mostly the realization that there was a different me and would be that way for the rest of my life.

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

A 3 hour drive. After care was handled by my local family dr. He removed my staples and kept check on my blood pressure and diabetes since he was the one prescribing meds for those. He was in touch with my surgeon and relayed aftercare progress to him.

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 became lactose intollerent and could no longer tolerate any type of grease in foods. My food tastes changed drastically and have changed several times. The foods I used to love are no longer on my want list. We now use olive oil to cook with instead of vegetable or canola oil, I use a lot less mayonnaise, I use lactose free milk..I can have some dairy products as long as it's not a lot at a time. We use sugar-free candy, which is a real treat. My fruit intake is more than pre-surgery.

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

I started walking and exercising more. I had not done any of this before because my legs and back wouldn't let me.

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

Daily: 1 multi-vitamin, 1 B-12 and 1 calcium pill

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 nausea, vomiting unless I ate too much sugar, grease or dairy...found a wonderful pill Omnigest that takes care of all of it. No dumping. Did have hair loss but increased protein intake and that stopped.

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

I went into the whole process with such a positive attitude and a very high excitement level that there wasn't a worst part to any of it.

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

I belong to the MCV Bariatric Club and have several friends who have had/are having the surgery that we support each other. It is very helpful to be able to talk to someone who has been there.

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

I had 5 little scars and 1 drainage tube scar. They have all disappeared. They were what I expected.

Please describe any plateau experiences you have had since surgery.

There have been plateaus and it seems they have been at every "milestone" loss. The worst one was when I hit my 100 lb mark. I stayed at 99.5 lbs for weeks...could not do anything to push that other 1/2 lb. but when it did, it went 2 over so it was worth the wait.

Do you notice people treating you any differently now?

They are more outgoing toward me.