EXCITING NEWS!

EXCITING NEWS TO FOLLOW!!!!

I have officially been approved by my primary insurance for my surgery! Can I just whew?! What a relief. There of course was some drama in regards to the approval process. Here’s how it went down: my surgeon’s office called me two weeks ago saying that the insurance company had already gotten back to them in regards to my submittal. They needed a two year weight history letter from my primary care physician (PCP). So, I was going in for my medical/surgical clearance at my PCP’s office last Monday (the 18^th) anyway, so I figured I’d call the office and warn them that I would want the letter so that I could fax it to my surgeon’s office. Well, of course, instead of having the letter saved for me for my appointment, they mailed me what was supposedly the letter. Instead, they mailed me two graphs showing my weight over the last seven years. Okay, that was all fine and dandy, except there was no letter on letterhead as I had requested, and there was not even a doctor’s signature on it. I could have just put down some numbers and plotted them in Excel and said it was from my doctor’s office.

So, I get to my appointment with my PCP and I had him write out the letter and print it on letterhead right in front of me. I knew he had to fax my surgical clearance, so I figured it’d be a safe bet that he would also fax my weight history letter. Well, obviously not, because when I called the surgeon’s office the next day to verify they received both my medical clearance and weight history, Tanya (the angel she is!) from my surgeon’s office said they only had the clearance. So, I went on a two day argument with my PCP’s office about faxing over this letter and what not. It turns out they had done numerous things with this letter before finally actually faxing it to the correct number. They had tried faxing it to my cell number (you’d think they would have realized it didn’t go through); they lost the original letter; and then finally they sent it.

So, last Wednesday EVERYTHING needed for my insurance approval was submitted. And I got the letter in the mail from Blue Cross Blue Shield today saying I was officially approved. So, now it really doesn’t matter if Tricare (my secondary insurance) approves it or not because they would not pick up any costs that BC/BS doesn’t cover (which is minimal).

Now, I just wait until the hospital calls me to set up my pre-op testing. So, here’s my question for all my post-opers. What did your pre-op testing consist of? Also, how many nights did you spend in the hospital after surgery? I am scheduled to only spend one night overnight, and as long as my leak test comes out alright, I’ll be home the next day.

Thanks for your input!

OFFICIALLY THREE WEEKS TOMORROW TIL SURGERY DAY!!!

Eating & More

Just a warning guys, this is gonna be a long post. A friend of mine asked if I would blog about the eating habits that need to be implemented pre and post op. To answer this, I referred to a few things that I found extremely helpful. One resource I found extremely helpful (and I’m sure I will continue to find helpful) is the Ten Commandments to Bariatric Surgery Eating. I will list all ten commandments and then explain them as they apply to a WLS surgery patient. Now, these are not for everyone, and each surgeon varies their rules, obviously. This is just a nice list that can help demonstrate the most important rules for me. So here goes:

1.) You Shall Eat Your Protein First

                This is because protein rich foods help delay emptying the stomach, therefore making you feel fuller for a longer period of time. Protein is also used in building muscle, which is always a good thing! It is also said that getting in enough (or more) protein in a day will help reduce some of the hair loss. My surgeon recommends I get 60-70 g of protein everyday. Some foods that will help me get there, especially in the beginning stages post op are greek yogurt, eggs, low fat cheeses, and chicken/turkey. Of course there are others, but these are some of the most popular.

2.) You Shall Choose Solid Foods Over Soft, Mushy, or Liquidy Foods

                Solid foods help to fill up the smaller stomach pouch and stay in your pouch longer than soft, mushy, or liquidy foods do.  A huge way that people cheat weight loss surgery is they go back to eating “slider” foods which can drink the tool you are provided with during surgery.

3.) You Shall Avoid Eating and Drinking at the Same Time

                Solid food + liquid beverage = slushy, mushy consistency. (Refer to Commandment #2!) They say that the pouch/stoma act like a funnel, so adding liquid to a meal will make the food go down through the funnel quicker and therefore, you do not stay hungry as long, which results in eating again, and therefore more calories, which results in a weight gain.

4.) You Shall Avoid Drinks/Liquids With Calories

                Liquids, as stated before, pass through the pouch quickly and do not leave you feeling full. Therefore you end up drinking/eating more, which result in a lot of extra calories. Many drinks contain a lot of calories (more than you’d think....check it out!), so if you are drinking many high calorie drinks, you leave yourself short on calories for the day for actual foods.

5.) You Shall Take Small Bites

                Foods can get stuck!  It is a proven fact. Therefore, the smaller the bite, the less of a chance for obstruction. Simple enough!

6.) You Shall Chew Thoroughly

                Chewing thoroughly help you slow down, avoid overeating, and minimize the chance of obstruction caused by large food particles. It is important for weight loss surgery patients to chew their foods 20-30 times, or until it is the consistency of pudding, according to my surgeon.

7.) You Shall Eat Slowly

                Eating slower prevents you from overeating. It is said that it takes your brain 20 minutes to catch up to your stomach. I don’t know how true that is, but my surgeon recommends taking at least 20 minutes to finish a meal. One thing that can help with this is putting the fork or spoon down between bites (while chewing thoroughly!).

8.) You Shall Stop Eating as Soon as You Feel Full

                My surgeon’s office told me I would have to leave the “empty plate club” because I just would not be able to finish. Portion sizes in America are HUGE! It will be important for me to listen to my body and stop eating as soon as I feel full in order to avoid vomiting.

 
9.) You Shall Stay Hydrated

                I will need to drink a minimum of 64 ounces of water a day (Thank goodness I have started this practice now because it really is harder than you’d think). Many weight loss surgery patients drink much more than the minimum, but it takes time to be able to build up to that. The important thing is staying hydrated. My urine should be (and usually is) very faint yellow, if not clear.

 
10.) You Shall Take Your Daily Vitamins

                Following this surgery I will be on a daily regime of vitamins for the rest of my life. 

My vitamins are as follows (and all either in liquid or chewable form!):

                Multivitamin with Iron  one time a day

                Calcium Citrate (500 mg) twice a day during my mid morning and mid afternoon snack

                Vitamin C (500 mg) once a day

               

So those are the ten commandments of bariatric surgery. Another helpful resources was this HUMONGOUS binder I got full of information of what to eat, different kinds of exercise, different proteins, a whole meal plan, etc. This has been extremely helpful, and it has allowed me to prepare myself as much as possible prior to surgery.

I just wanted to comment on my pre-op diet. I think I may commit a full blog post to this topic in the future, but I just wanted to solicit some feedback from some fellow WLS patients. My surgeon only requires a “two week induction meal plan” prior to surgery which consists of a modified Atkins diet. I know that there are many people who were required to do a liquid diet for at least a week prior to surgery. What was your surgeon’s preference? Just curious!

And lastly, I just wanted to thank everyone who has already mentioned to me that they have read my posts, and look forward to seeing me on my journey. A special shout out to Elaine, Kathy, Glo, Molly, Bindy, and Carol for being especially supportive. I’m sure there are others of you out there who I forgot to mention, and I’m sorry!   

And on the FINAL exciting note for the evening—I am officially only 5 weeks out from surgery. This time in 5 weeks, I will be a weight loss surgery patient, and the rest of my life can begin!
 

Surgeon's Appointment and More...

I had an appointment with my surgeon again today. This was because I switched my decision from band to bypass. I was so nervous that he was going to tell me I wasn’t a good candidate for bypass and not let me switch. That was NOT the case, thank goodness. He told me I was a perfect candidate for bypass since I am so young, and because of the amount of weight I have to lose to get to goal weight.

Therefore, I am good to go with my gastric bypass surgery on August 16. That’s just 39 days away!!! Dr. Harrison (my surgeon) said that the surgery would take about two hours, and then I would stay one night overnight in the hospital. The next morning I will have to swallow some nasty cat scan dye stuff to check for leaks. As long as there are no leaks I will be set to go home.

Just FYI- I will  post pictures weekly post op on here for everyone to see my progress and then once a month I will do side by sides from my night before pictures and I will also take my measurements and post them here once a month.

I have an appointment with my regular family physician on the 18^th for a physical and then the last appointment I will have will be my pre-op stuff (blood work, EKG, etc.). I will make sure to post about those appointments as well. And if you have any suggestions for topics you’d like to see here, or any questions or what not, feel free to comment below or ask on Facebook. I’m being very open about this process, and want you guys to be as involved as you’d like, or just sit back and watch my journey J

My Biggest Fears

It is always interesting to hear the comments and remarks from people when I tell them I am getting the gastric bypass surgery. Most people are supportive and wish me luck on my journey. And then there are others who proceed to go on and tell me about someone they knew who had the bypass and has all these complications and all that. I never know what to say to these people. Of course this surgery has risks. I am not oblivious and I have done all the research, so I full well know what the risks are. But having these comments made to me caused me to sit down and think what my biggest fears of this surgery and journey are.

Now, just as a disclaimer: I know that some of the below fears seem irrational or petty, but as stated in my first post—I want to be complete candid, and that includes any petty fears I may have. So here goes, my biggest fears (in no particular order):

1.) Losing my hair- I have always loved my hair, no matter how stubborn it can be, and I am afraid of losing my hair. I know that many WLS patients lose some hair, but that RNY patients have it worse, typically. I am hoping that I will be able to get all my protein in and take my vitamin supplements and hopefully combat this problem before it starts.

2.) Dying- Obviously there is always a risk of dying in surgery. With the advances in medicine and the use of laparoscopic tools, the risks are decreasing, but the mortality rate will NEVER be zero. So, there will always be this fear. But the important thing I tell myself is that if I keep on the path I am on now, death may be sooner than it should be.

3.) Ruining friendships/relationship- They (and I don’t really know who they is, but...) say that when a person loses a lot of weight that people start acted differently to that person. I am afraid that friends will not support my decision or that my relationship will be damaged because of any attention I may get as a result of the surgery. I do not plan on changing who I am on the inside so I hope people stick with me and support me, but I can’t really beg people to do so.

4.) Failing- I don’t want to fail at another weight loss attempt. I know that this isn’t a diet and that it is a lifestyle change, but it doesn’t make it any easier to think about failing. I just want to be healthy and be able to enjoy my young adulthood. Hopefully having this blog and the support system that I do have will keep me accountable and I won’t have to worry about failing.

5.) Excess skin getting in the way of buying cute clothes- Even now I love wearing tank tops and sleeveless shirts. As of right now I have fat taking up the space of what is being showed off. In the future, the fat will be replaced with “turkey flap wings” (as Steve and I have affectionately been calling batwings). I am worried that I will be so self-conscious about my excess skin that I will not be able to buy the “skinny” clothes I want to. I think a big part of the reason why I’m okay with wearing it now is that I feel invisible as a fat person. I don’t get a lot of attention, and I feel like I kinda just “blend in.”

Well, there you have it...and if you have any suggestions of ways to combat my fears or anything, feel free to comment either here or on my Facebook. I would love to hear your opinions!