butterfly199

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My surgery has been scheduled for Halloween Day!  Some people think this is kinda weird or bad luck. But, I think its a great way to start off the Holiday season by not gorging on candy for a week straight.  I have some final pre-op stuff to do this week including a physical, pre-op lab work for the hospital, and my EGD on Thursday to cap it all off.  After that, I start my liquid diet on the 24th.  It's hard to believe by time I have my surgery it all happened in less then 8 weeks.  It's weird knowing I'm taking such a huge life altering step.  After talking it over with my Mom (who seems more supportive of the idea now), I've decided not to make it "facebook" official until after the procedure and have gotten to a point that I'm more comfortable with myself. Call me chicken, but this is more so the avoid the "don't do it" vs "way to go" drama that would probably ensue.  It will be interesting to see everybody's reactions the first time the see me after the surgery, especially those who didn't know it was coming.

There's a lady I work with that has had the same procedure done through the same doctor's office. It has been nice to hear about her experiences. She said the weirdest thing is to not crave anything. It drives her husband crazy when they are grocery shopping and he asks what she's in the mood to eat and she honestly doesn't care.

I ate Cinnabon for one last time and it honestly wasn't that good. I don't know if I'm upset or happy about that. Oh well.  Maybe if I remember the not so good one, I won't miss it as much.

Enough rambling for today.

I had my cardio gram on Monday. It went really well. The tech told me could give an in depth analysis, but said just by giving a quick look everything looked good.  The results were sent off to a cardiologist for interpretation and should be back within a couple days. After leaving the doctors office that day, one of the PA's called and said my Thyroid levels came back abnormal.  They were actually too low (.3 should be at least .4).  So they wanted me to retest so they could look at my T3 and T4 levels in addition to my TSH.  Her concern was that my dosage was too high.  Which it technically is, but I'm supposed to skip a does each week.  I didn't do that before my labwork. I went in today and had the blood drawn again. so hopefully this time it comes back better.

Last night, I had my sleep study. Again, they couldn't give the results there and will have to wait a couple days before the doctor gets sent the results.  I worked an AM OT shift yesterday on about 4-5 hrs and sleep and was up for 20 hrs by time I finally got to go to bed last night.  Then, they wake you up at 5am and send you home.  I slept well while I was there, just not nearly long enough.  Such is the story of my life. 

So what comes next? I have no idea, I guess I wait the for the results to come in? I will most likely email my coordinator at the doctor's office tomorrow to see if there's anything I should be doing besides waiting.  The final pre-op test is the EGD, which I have to be sedated for. That means Rick will need to take me so it won't be easy to schedule.

I think after that, I may only have some sort of dietary class to take. We'll see.  But 2 big hurdles down, it feels good to be closer.

I got my insurance approval letter in the mail today!!!  Whoo hoo!! That's one step closer. I also did my blood work today to check my TSH levels.  I've been trying really hard to be a good girl taking my thyroid medicine.  My surgery Coord said that she's seen surgery detailed before do to bad TSH levels.  I would hate for that of all things to hold me back.  I was incredibly impressed with the guy at Labcorp today that drew my blood.  He actually listened to which arm I wanted it drawn from, and he hit it on the first shot without digging around. And the best part, no bruising!!!  I don't look like a druggy .

My cardiogram and sleep test are coming up soon. That will leave only 1 more pre-op test, but then I believe there will be some sort of dietary class to take before surgery as well.  I'm really hoping to have this done and on the mend by Thanksgiving. I know I won't be partaking Thanksgiving Dinner this well, and honestly, that's just fine by me.  The more I think about some of the things I will miss out on food wise, the less I find it bothers me. I know I'll be able to see the same things in smaller amounts, but I know that every bite will count, and its already making me look at food in a whole new light.  As much as I love donuts, I know I will be just fine not eating them anymore. (Maybe just a bite a great once in a while.) But I honestly don't get that OMG anxiety thinking about missing out on them anymore.

One of my co-workers has finally gotten her surgery date. She 's going in for bypass on Oct 23rd. I'm very excited for her. Its going to be nice to have somebody else going through a similar process around the same time.  It's amazing the support and interest I have from my co-workers, even those who aren't going to have WLS.  It seems that there are people who are not more excited and motivated them to start eat better and exercise more.  We've actually started talking about starting a walking group before our PS1 shift at work.  There's a lake nearby that's about 3 miles around.

I also got a call from the insurance company today. I my heart dropped at first thinking it was going to be some sort of road block. As it turned out, there's a department at the insurance company that gets reports when certain times of medical visits are made.  I was flagged as having had a appointment about weight loss, so they were call to follow up to make sure I was getting all the resources and information I might need.  Once I informed them on my intentions, they just wanted to make sure I knew there were support groups and pre and post op counseling available if I needed it.  That conversation makes me more confident that this really going to happen.

I had started looking into WLS back in February after I started my new job.  It felt like a good time to start a new phase in my life.  A new job, a new place to live, and new way of living.  After months of talking and researching, my husband and I finally decided to proceed with the process. 

I decided on the sleeve procedure after speaking with several people who had bypass and the DS.  It seemed the only complaint many of them had was the dumping syndrome.  Some even said they would've gotten the sleeve instead if it had been available at the time of their surgeries. Since I've previously had some success loosing weight (although unable to keep it off) I decided just a restrictive procedure would be adequate.  

I've mostly told coworkers that I've decided to pursue this.  The support and excitement from most of them has been amazing.  I've told my parents and a few others in my family but haven't completely broadcasted it yet.  I was a new experience for me telling my parents about my decision.  For the first time in my life, I knew I didn't have their full support behind my decision.  I listened to their concerns and understand what their reservations are. But it was definitely a new experience for me.  Its has been a few months since initially speaking with them about this.  Since then, I know my dad now is more supportive of my having WLS since his has spoken with several people who have had it done.  I've yet to revisit the subject with my mom, It's not because I don't want to, the opportunity really hasn't presented itself. I'm sure the conversation will be coming soon.

I had my consultation today.  I feel it went well and have started scheduling my pro-op testing. It will be about 3 weeks before to receive the final approval from the insurance company.  There's going to be more out of pocket expenses then I expected, but I feel it will be worth it in the end. I felt the doctor's feeling very thankful for my health and circumstances.  I got the impression that everything was very straight forward and easy when it came to me as I don't have any serious health issues and have an easy insurance plan (according the the insurance lady).