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YEA!!!! I finally have a surgery date - June 25, 2012

NanaG67

NanaG67

Member
Finally had my appointment, but it wasn't what I expected at all. They weighed me, took my vitals, had me sign some papers and go to a group meeting. After the meeting we scheduled my surgery. HOWEVER......They told me they needed cardiac clearance from my primary before they could do the surgery. So as long as they have the letter from him, my surgery will proceed as scheduled.:rolleyes:

I also have to do blood work June 4th (fasting) and start liquid pre-op on June 18!
Gloria
 
What wonderful news!!! I am so very happy for you. Did you ask the surgeon about the potential for additional surgeries that my general surgeon warned me about? I was thinking about this all day and was hoping everything would work out in your favor :) :) :)
 
Hi Pat. I am happy that I finally have my date, though I really was disappointed with the 2nd consult. It's not what I expected at all. I never got chance to talk to the surgeon. Like I said it was a group setting, full room of people and all they did was go over the things to do prior to surgery, then the rep from Bariatric Advantage came out and talked to us. The way I was told, it would be a meeting with the surgeon and nutritionist and schedule my surgery. I never actually met Dr. Barker, only his surgery partner, which is the first person I saw my first consult. There seemed to be many people there that were getting revisions from lap bands to gastric bypass. I felt very overwhelmed and do not do good talking in crowds of people. I did ask about the letter of medical necessity because if my FSA cannot pay for my supplies, then I will not be able to afford the specific bariatric protein they want us to take. But I was told they would have an answer for me next week when the associate dr comes back from vacation.
 
That is so great to hear:D, to bad you didn't get to talk with your surgon, try to see if you can email your questions to him or get an additional appointment with your nutritionist. I am like you I tend to clam up in crowds of people I don't know, I have always been intraverted and being overweight didn't help. :cool: Tom
 
What is the brand of protein they want you to use and how much do they want? Heck, my surgeon had a list of at least a dozen acceptable proteins. Costco and Sam's Club carry a brand called Premier Protein that runs about $25 for 18 drinks with 25 grams of protein. These were on the list of acceptable ones. I used them until recently. I now use EAS Carb Advantage with 17 grams of protein. WalMart has them for $4.79 for four 11 ounce drinks. Kroger and KMart sell the same shakes but for $7.79. Ya gotta shop around!!! I heard RiteAid sells them in bulk packages but don't know how much they cost from there. Since I am eating food with protein now I don't need as many shakes. The Premier shakes taste good but I like the EAS better.

Some people on the forum use the low Muscle Milk powdered protein and say it tastes good. It's also at WalMart and is reasonable. I'm sure you will find something you can afford. Besides, you probably won't be using it for too long. Once you start eating protein foods you will back down on the shakes :)
 
Hi Pat, I see your down 8 more lbs, that Great:D!!!!! I knew the scale would start moving again. a few more Lbs and off to the pool...
 
Pat, they had a rep there from Bariatric Advantage, and you should've seen the people flock to the free samples. They have a 90 day DS kit which has all the supplements (vitamins) for $152.45 and I can get the 1 week pre-op diet kits for $61.95 but that is strictly protein only. It's not that I couldn't afford it per se, but with 6 people in my house and only 1 person with an income it's hard to afford this without my flex card. I'll have to talk to my hubby and see what we can afford. On the plus side I don't have to pay anything on my surgery, they show a zero balance!! That in itself is awesome!!!
 
I'm sure I spend around about the same on all my supplements but considering that I don't spend anywhere near as much as I used to on groceries it's probably a wash. We do need the supplements otherwise we will become malnourished so we have to do what we need to to get healthy. It's awesome you don't have a surgery co-pay. Wish I could say the same *LOL* I'm sure it will be well worth it in the end.
 
TwoMas said:
Hi Pat, I see your down 8 more lbs, that Great:D!!!!! I knew the scale would start moving again. a few more Lbs and off to the pool...
Click to expand...

Thanks Tom. I've been trying to spend some time outside every day to keep me from munching. I really never have been one to eat large amounts of food at one meal but I tend to graze every couple of hours. I have been doing yard work to try to get some exercise. The wheelchair makes it slow going so it takes me 5 times longer to do everything but I'm slowly making progress. I have a weekly lawn service but they don't tend the flower beds. I have been pulling weeds, fertilizing, watering, etc. I noticed my toad population has increased so I must be doing something right :) :) :) I'm not going to be planting a vegetable garden this year but I may have a couple of small tomato plants and herbs in pots. I can put these closer to my back door for easier access. I may even try planting some lettuce in pots.
 
That is funny about the toads, my grandkids saw their first toad in our yard tonight, he was huge! I don't have much of a green thumb, but our cacti are coming along nicely.
 
I just stick things in the ground and add water and they grow like crazy. Through the years I have slowly been adding perineals in my back yard and then divide them up and replant them every few years. It looks real nice if I keep the weeds pulled. The toads hide under all of the shade plants and do a real good job eating the slugs that used to chew holes in my hostas. This year I am going to seed over all of my vegetable garden beds with grass seed. If I decide to plant veggies again I can always clear out the grassy areas all over again. The weeds keep growing in the bare plots so I have to get grass growing in them to stop that.

I live next to a guy who does very little to his yard. He cut the back lawn for the first time this year just 3 weeks ago. His weeds were waist high!!! Dandelion fuzzies from his yard were flying all over the neighborhood and are giving me the gift of weeds in my back yard :mad::mad::mad: I dropped him a hint by telling him if I was able to I would cut his yard for him so he cut it the next week and has been cutting it almost every week since then. I spray all of his cement spaces in the front of his house, his driveway and back yard to keep the weeds from growing there. 3 years ago they were chest high in his back yard so that's when I started helping him. He's young, strong and seems healthy so I'm thinking he's either lazy or just doesn't like yard work. Other than that he's a real nice guy and even asks me if I need him to help me with anything. Compared to his yard mine looks like paradise *LOL*
 
Congratulations on your surgery date and good luck! I've also been doing some yardwork just to get myself moving and have gotten to enjoy it. I've never had much luck with keeping plants alive but I am planning on planting some new things to see how they do. Maybe it can be a new hobby to get my body off the couch and my mind off the food :). Good luck with everything and congrats on your weightloss so far, you're doing great.
-Jenny
 
Gloria, so glad to hear that you have a date. Hope things are progressing with the cardiac issues you've mentioned. My hunch is you wouldn't be thing far along if they didn't believe this surgery will help you live longer & healthier.

The waiting is crazy, getting all the paperwork & ducks in a row, etc. When you start backward planning things you need to get done, take care of, etc. things will start falling into place. Stay healthy & positive; I'm going to be just 12 days ahead of you. I'm thinking if I can actually do this, there's help for all of us.

Wishing you all the best - keep posting & let us know how you're doing. Prayers & hugs ~~ Mary
 
The only reason I even have to wait on cardiac clearance, is because last year, I went to the hospital with chest pains, things were undetermined and they had me there overnight. Nothing was cardiac related, but I had to do a chemical stress test anyway. I was told I was fine, but because there was something in the test, the surgeon wants clearance from my doctor. So, Wed I will be at the dr to get my clearance. The only time I get chest pain now, is if my left shoulder is bothering me, which is all the time because I have a 6% impairment in my left shoulder from an old work injury. But my chiropractor is keeping that in check, so I really should be good to go.
 
I'm almost certain that cardiac clearance is normal before any surgery where general anesthesia is involved. In some cases the surgeon will accept the clearance from your primary care physician but in other situations the surgeon requires that a cardiologist provides the clearance. I had to see a cardiologist for my clearance even though I have never had an issue along those lines.
 
You are right. They said all they needed was a letter from my primary doctor. So when I called them about the letter, they said I had to come in, and that is fine.
 
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