Hi All,
I just thought I would drop a note here about how important blood test are - you really need to keep yourself informed because I've found that most doctor's don't know much about bariatric patients. Vitamins, protein and minerals are SO important. I belong to a few groups on yahoo and there are people there that are 10-20 years out. OSSG Graduates is one. I can't remember the other big one I belong to off the top of my head but I'll post it at another time.
If you don't know - you need to get your blood levels checked at least once a year. To get everything checked it's about 12-15 vials of blood. You really need to pay attention to Vit D/Cal not only for your bones but because if it gets low you'll develop thyroid problems. You also could have severe problems with your teeth - one woman I've followed on the boards had to have 6 root canals in one year. Another didn't take her vitamins and has develop neuropathy and is on Disability. Me? I've got trouble with my teeth, edema (my feet swell all the time), thyroid problems, anemia, and I'm sure a lot of other stuff will show up once I get the results of the blood tests.
You also need to advocate for yourself. My primary doc is out on maternity leave and I went in to see her sub. I brought a list of blood tests - I made a mistake and missed a few I needed but he decided I didn't need some of them. Really ticked. You can download a chart to track your blood tests, get a list of the blood tests needed, and also get the ranges that bariatric patients should have as far as results.
Online groups are good but I also think face to face groups are too. Unfortunately, I find where I live that most of the groups run by hospitals and doctor's are more like sales meetings. I'm going to try and start one locally. I found a good website for local groups based on your zipcode - it's meetup.com. There are all types of groups there and it's pretty cheap to post/create a webpage for one of your own. It's free if you just want to join a group.
Okay, that's enough babbling for now. I had trouble sleeping tonight so here I sit typing at 4 am. Maybe I'm overtired and channeling Yoda, lol.
Please don't take the above as a lecture - I mean well.
Deb
I just thought I would drop a note here about how important blood test are - you really need to keep yourself informed because I've found that most doctor's don't know much about bariatric patients. Vitamins, protein and minerals are SO important. I belong to a few groups on yahoo and there are people there that are 10-20 years out. OSSG Graduates is one. I can't remember the other big one I belong to off the top of my head but I'll post it at another time.
If you don't know - you need to get your blood levels checked at least once a year. To get everything checked it's about 12-15 vials of blood. You really need to pay attention to Vit D/Cal not only for your bones but because if it gets low you'll develop thyroid problems. You also could have severe problems with your teeth - one woman I've followed on the boards had to have 6 root canals in one year. Another didn't take her vitamins and has develop neuropathy and is on Disability. Me? I've got trouble with my teeth, edema (my feet swell all the time), thyroid problems, anemia, and I'm sure a lot of other stuff will show up once I get the results of the blood tests.
You also need to advocate for yourself. My primary doc is out on maternity leave and I went in to see her sub. I brought a list of blood tests - I made a mistake and missed a few I needed but he decided I didn't need some of them. Really ticked. You can download a chart to track your blood tests, get a list of the blood tests needed, and also get the ranges that bariatric patients should have as far as results.
Online groups are good but I also think face to face groups are too. Unfortunately, I find where I live that most of the groups run by hospitals and doctor's are more like sales meetings. I'm going to try and start one locally. I found a good website for local groups based on your zipcode - it's meetup.com. There are all types of groups there and it's pretty cheap to post/create a webpage for one of your own. It's free if you just want to join a group.
Okay, that's enough babbling for now. I had trouble sleeping tonight so here I sit typing at 4 am. Maybe I'm overtired and channeling Yoda, lol.
Please don't take the above as a lecture - I mean well.
Deb