My story!

If you stumbled onto this blog and had no idea what Bariatric surgery is, then this is the post to read.

What is Bariatric surgery to me?
It is a Godsend. Yes, I prayed for a solution to my problems because I had run out of ideas, and needed help. I'm glad God had an extra angel to kick me in the butt and get me moving forward. But, I digress....
Bariatric surgery is a way to lose weight and keep it off permanently. It consists of two different, but similar procedures.
One is to cut the stomach and make it smaller. This way, you have to eat less, and you lose weight. This is called Roux En Y, which is the name of the procedure.
The other is to insert a band around the stomach, slowing everything down and allowing you to lose weight. This is the Lap band method.
Personally, after going to a session sponsored by the Surgeon, I chose Roux En Y.
Both procedures have been standardized, that is, they are pretty much done the same way all over the country, so, if you are in anther part of the country and have a problem, the doctors there will know what they are doing.
So, I will write down just what I went through and how I came to choose this course of action in my life, and I hope it helps those who are reading this to understand me a bit better. I also hope that those who are looking into this form of weight loss, will get something from this. If you write and ask questions, I will answer them.

Part 2

So, how did I find this type of weigh loss?
I went to get a baseline endoscopy/colonoscopy because I never had them before and it was suggested by my family doctor. I was feeling lousy. I had many, many medical problems that were caused by my weight and age, and wanted to find out what to do about it.
The test required me to get a host of blood tests. I went in fasting and "donated" 11 tubes of blood. I figured if they didn't find anything wrong, they weren't looking.
Well, after the colonoscopy/endoscopy, I had a consult. I was fine for a fat man, but I needed to fix some things. I had a "fatty" liver, and a few polyps that they took out, but I was cancer free.
They put me on a high fiber diet. Let me tell you, I loved that diet. I didn't really lose weight, but I felt much better after a few weeks.
Then, they called me to ask me to do another endoscopy because they found some indications of Celiac Sprue (look it up!) and wanted to confirm that. I went in for the second endo and sure enough, they confirmed Celiac.
So, I lost the high fiber, and had to go on a wheat and gluten free diet. I still had to get fiber in my diet, so I added Metamucil and lots of fruit and veggies.
While I was there, I asked about weight loss programs, and was told about a doctor coming to the area who was an expert in weight loss surgery. Bingo!

So, I started to investigate the surgery online, and I knew I was getting ready for it. I just had this feeling that this was my next step.
My personal life will stay that way. Suffice it to say that I had an "empty nest" just before all this happened, and I decided that after all these years of giving to others, that it was my turn!

MY TURN!

That important to me, and probably to you.

If you don't decide that it's "Your Turn", then you might not be able to succeed in this type of surgery. This decision may be up to you and your spouse, but for me, it was my decision.

I made an appointment to hear the surgeon speak in order to determine if I wanted to do this. He spoke for about an hour and a half and answered a host of questions afterwards. There were about 50 people there at that meeting.

He told us that the process was a long one, and that the surgery was probably the easiest part. The tough thing was to jump through all the hoops for the insurance company, and the pre-tests.
He told us about the "team" approach. His team consisted of a nurse, dietician, and personal trainer, as well as psychological counseling. There were several steps to get to the final goal:

1. Qualifying for the surgery – You have to be at least 100 pounds overweight to qualify. Each Doctor has their own requirements other than that, and I imagine it depends on where you go in the country.
2. Making sure the insurance company is going to cover you. This one is very tough, but my Doctor has a very complete plan to make this as painless as possible. Even with his help, sometimes the insurance company will give you a hard time. I was lucky that everything worked well with my company and it only took about 2 months to get approval.
3. Meeting with each member of the team to start your quest. I met with the Dietician and she gave me such valuable information about eating, tat I began to lose weight much easier than I ever did before. I met with the Trainer and he started me on exercise walking, and told me how to get the most out of each session. The nurse gave me information on the actual procedure, and what to expect during each part of the journey. I did a lot of studying. Very impressive team!
4. Getting your surgical date. There is a lot to do to plan ahead of time. I had to get food containers, utensils, and a magic bullet blender. I also ordered vitamins and minerals ahead of time so I would have them after the surgery.

I went into the hospital on Tuesday morning, and left on Thursday morning. I was up and walking around about 2 hours after the surgery, and I walked every two hours after that around the clock. I got to sleep a lot in between, and felt just fine. There was little or no pain. It was hard to maneuver around the tubes and wires and stuff, but everything was on wheels and I got used to it.

I had 7 holes in my belly since the surgery is now done laproscopically. The doctor sewed me up on the inside and just taped my belly wounds on the outside. (After 2 months, all I have left are some red marks and they are disappearing more and more each day).

The nursing care at the hospital is amazing. They were there for everything I needed. I would hope that other hospitals did the same.

I was able to move around without problems when I got home, and learned about proper eating the hard way.

I took a long drive on Friday, the day after I got home because my son needed to go somewhere. I had no problems.

I was also lucky to have the summer off. I was able to work towards proper eating at my own pace without having to go around a certain schedule.

Now, I know I left out things. If you want to know about something, ask. You can email me or post right here in comments.

Other post people may also post their stories here, and you may do that without revealing who you are if you want.