chelie
My Journey
Feb 28, 2009
October 2007 I was finally able to convince my Primary to refer me to preventative medicine to see if I could get approved for bariatric surgery. I went in and was told "You don't qualify for surgery at this time" "You are only morbidly obese with high blood pressure" You need two co-morbidities to qualify" Man was I pissed off!!!
November 2007 Back to my primary I went to request a sleep apnea test. My husband has been complaining for years that I snore like a bear so maybe this will work in my favor. Finally get the referral and they do this in home test thing with a monitor you put on yourself. I couldn't sleep all night with that junk on so guess what they found negative for apnea LOL!!! Back to my primary and asked her to request a in lab sleep study. My Doctor smart woman as she is then wrote me a prescription for a anti-anxiety medication to take the night of the test (you'll sleep alright now she says with a wink LOL) I took my meds as ordered about 30 minutes before arriving at the lab. Met with the nurse and was attached to about a million wires and stuff then got in bed and drifted off to sleep. About an hour later the nurse was waking me up by shaking me awake. "We have to put this mask on you! You have stopped breathing 5 times in the past 10 minutes!!!" No wonder I'm always tired! Well, now I have my proof I do have sleep apnea but it takes another 4 weeks for them to writer the report.Then my primary forwarded my results to preventative medicine department. I'm Waiting, Waiting, Waiting for a call from preventative medicine for approval.
December 2007 I finally get sick of waiting and called preventative medicine myself. They state that
they only got the results that I did not have apnea! AAHHHH!!!!! Contacted my primary and she resubmitted my apnea positive results again. I only waited two days before calling again and was told then "We got them, now wait for a letter about acceptance"
January 2008 I finally received a packet in the mail, It contains an extensive psych/social self exam
that I must complete and bring to a meeting in March.
March 2008 Go to the meeting with about 100 other people. The Lap Band and RNY procedures
were briefly discussed, it was then explained that Kaiser requires all of it's patients to attend 6 months of weekly classes to be approved for surgery. After that we were told that we are to turn in our completed psych/social packet today, and there is a extreme back up for the classes to begin that in 4-6 weeks we will receive a letter by mail telling us when are classes would begin.
May 2008 I receive my letter. My classes would not begin until August 27th, 2008. Boy was I angry
I had already been waiting for 8 months now I have to wait 3 more months to start 6 months of classes! It then dawns on me that my surgery is at least another year or more away I almost gave up!
August 2008 I finally began the Bariatric Classes and decided then that I was once again going to
make weight loss happen again. This time there was a difference, I felt that because I was on track to surgery maybe, just maybe this time I could get the weight off and keep it off. You see, I've been heavy all of my life!!!! This time I decided to make my weight loss a priority in my life without any fad/starvation diet, just by portion control alone for now.
September 2008 I did a lot of studying on the different WLS procedures and decided that I am
going to request the Gastric Sleeve. The preventative medicine department at Kaiser really tends to push the RNY because of it's successes and long study history. They try to discourage the Gastric Sleeve as much as possible but once the saw how strong my decision was they agreed to allow me to have the VGS upon completion of classes. I was then informed that they only have one surgeon that does the procedure and that the hospital he works out of is about 70 miles away. I laughed out loud and told them that 70 miles is nothing!!!! They had no idea what lengths people from this and other forums have traveled for WLS.
December 31st, 2008 As my New Year's resolution I swore to give up drinking soda (actually all carbonated beverages... even diet
)
February 2009 I completed my last Bari-Class on the 18th and am now in a waiting pattern for my
Primary MD to sign approval for surgery and for all of my paperwork to be sent to my surgeon to request a surgery date. During the 6 months of classes I lost 15 pounds and have kept it off. Mind you we had Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, Super Bowl Sunday, I also went on vacation to Disney World and a 4 day cruise during this time. (Any other time in my life I would have put on at least another 50-60 pounds) I am so proud of myself, it is amazing, maybe I'm actually going to make it this time!!! Man I hope this is all behind me soon. I am so anxious for my new life to begin!!!
March 2009 I called Harbor (Kaiser) today to check if my paperwork was received. They reported
that they had received it. The lady on the phone then said you're all set for your LapBand. I said wait!!! LapBand I'm not getting a LapBand I'm requesting a Sleeve. The Lady then told me that the paperwork from Fontana (Kaiser) said LapBand. I told her to please make a note that I defiantly was not getting a LapBand that this was an error in paperwork and I would be contacting Fontana for clarification. I then called Fontana and spoke with the receptionist and requested to speak with the Bariatrics Specialist, she says "They are unavailable can I take a message?" I tell her the problem and she says "please hold on for a moment". Next thing I know the Bari Specialist is on the phone apologizing but also saying "it doesn't matter what your paperwork says it's what the doctor decides to let you have that is important". Mind you I'm a nurse and I sure know that what the paperwork says is important!!! (That is how people get the wrong leg amputated because of stupid stuff like that!!!)
I made him promise that he was immediately sending a correction for my paperwork and informed him that I would be calling to see if it was received. 2 hours later I called Harbor (Kaiser) and they had received my corrected paperwork. The Lady on the phone assured me that my file was now corrected and all I had to do was to wait for the surgery schedulers to call me to schedule my surgical consultation.
March 31st 2009 Well, impatient person that I am I called and talked to Harbor (Kaiser) again today! Now they are saying that I will not get a call for even my consult until July or August then a couple of months until my surgery after that. AAAAAHHHHH!!! I wanted to go postal LOL
Soooooooo ..... I then called Fontana (Kaiser), Pacific Hospital (contracted by Kaiser for RNY) still isn't signed on for sleeves so I guess I have no choice but to wait!!! Right now I feel like all of my classmates will be skinny and my fat ass will still be waiting for surgery at this rate. I'm so pissed!!!
No one at my house seems to understand why I'm so upset they just don't get it.
(5'10 165lb Husband said "You've only been waiting since Nov. 2007 for it, that isn't so long... I almost shoved my fist down his skinny little throat!!!!!")
Will you guys come visit me or send care packages if I end up in the looney bin?
Thanks for letting me rant and rave!!! I'm so thankful for this place!!! I know all of you get it!!!
April 8th 2009 Yesterday I found out from virgokitty78 (a member here at OH, Thanks a million La Kesha!) that it was UCLA Westwood not Torrence so that changed my feelings about everything. So I went to the seminar today and loved the surgeon!! He was really great, funny and knowledgeable. There are 2 guys there who do the surgeries and between them they have done around 1300 Bari procedures. They use a 32 bougie which I was really glad to hear (some people are still using the larger ones 38-40). He said that Kaiser client's have priority over other people so it shouldn't take long for me to get a date. In fact he said if I had all my ducks in a row he could do my surgery in 2 weeks. That isn't going to happen because I have to get my paperwork, labs sent off to them and for UCLA you have to have a psych consult and who knows how long that will take for Kaiser to get it scheduled for me. I called Fontana today and left a message with the Bari Assistant Alex that I'm changing to UCLA and to send my stuff to them and to call me about anything else I might need to do for them that I haven't already done. Of course I didn't hear anything back today. But maybe, maybe the ball is finally rolling in the right direction again!!!
April 15th 2009 I get a call from Kaiser Fontana
, Chelie I am sorry to tell you this but UCLA is not contracted with Kaiser to do VSG, so you have been placed back on the waiting list for Harbor City Kaiser. Of course if you change you mind and want a R&Y we can accomodate you at numerous sites. I wanted to reach through the phone and strange her. I was taught in my classes that UCLA was the only site contracted to do sleeves for kaiser and I know for a fact that they are still teaching that to the people who are in the classes now!!! I have been jerked around enough by these people I am really steaming now!!! I picked up the phone and called member services to issue a formal complaint. As I told the girl on the phone my story she kept saying things like "oh my" and "really?" I told her that I wasn't just complaining for myself but for everyone else who was about to be in my shoes to as the graduate from their classes. I could tell she seemed concerned for me. She said that a report was being made and I should hear something back in 2-3 days. She gave me a number to the Divisional Service area and informed me that I should call there too! Boy did I. I reached another woman (head of member complaints and issues) who also couldn't believe her ears at my story. She promised that she would be getting to the bottom of this and that this was "truely ridiculous" and she personally would be getting back to me.
April16th 2009 (Less than 24 hrs later) I received a call from Kaiser's Divisional Service area offices the man on the phone told me that my case is under review and that he had looked into the contract issue and UCLA was definatly contracted to do Sleeves for Kaiser and he didn't understand what the problem was. He assured me that his office would be contacting Kaiser Fontana and telling them to approve my case for surgery at UCLA ASAP!!! If he was standing in front of me I probabally would have kissed him at this point
I am so happy! I called late this afternoon to Kaiser Fontana and they say that they hadn't heard anything from Divisional about the contract. I think I will give them until Monday afternoon to figure it out before I start making a fuss again!!! LOL
April 17th 2009 I received a call from Fontana Kaiser informing me that not only was I approved for UCLA but Kaiser West Los Angeles also. I informed the caller to send my request for surgical consult to West Los Angeles so that I could meet the doctor. The advantage of getting surgery done at Kaiser is I can have my gallbladder removed at the same time, if I go to UCLA I will get Sleeved then wait for a few months and have the gallbladder removed in a separate surgery at kaiser later.
Kaiser West Los Angeles has just opened there Bariatric Surgery department so I'm not sure how many surgeries they have done so far. At this point I'm willing to talk with them but if they haven't got a good enough track record for me I'm going to UCLA for sure.
April 23rd 2009 Got a call from Kaiser West Los Angeles today. They have scheduled me for surgical consult on Monday at 10:30AM (4/27/09). The lady on the phone had no idea how many WLS either of the surgeons (there are two I found out) have done previously. "It's a new department I doubt very many" she said. I guess I will have to just wait and see.
April 27th 2009 Met with Dr. Robert Casillas (Kaiser West LA) today and I was so impressed with him that I scheduled my surgery with him for MAY 19th!!! He was willing to take me next Tuesday but I needed more time for my work to find a temp to replace me while I'm out. He arranged for me to meet with the anesthesiologist right after I saw him because I live so far away. They even did my pre-registration and had me pay my co-pay today. So all I have to do is show up on the 19th. They still have to call me with the exact time of surgery but that will come a day or two before surgery. WOOO HOOOOO!!!!!
May 18th 2009 Kaiser West LA called me this AM and requested that I arrive at 8:00AM tomorrow morning my surgery is scheduled for 10:30AM. I'm so excited can hardly wait for my new life to begin!!!
May 20th 2009 I'm Sleeved and home. Tired from pain meds and feel very thirsty but can't drink more than 1oz per hour per my doc right now! AAAHHHHHH!!!
May 23rd 2009 Well was allowed to start my protein drinks today. It took 3 hours to get in an 11oz ready to drink Premier Protien from Costco but I made it!!! Boy this isn't going to be easy!!!
May 26th 2009 Went into Fontana Kaiser Bari Program and weighed today (I promised myself I would never weigh myself at home so I could control the obsession to weigh daily) 227.9 lbs woohooo down 7 lbs in one week! What a great feeling!!! I have found that warm things go down much smoother than cold for me so I'm warming up my protein a little instead of drinking it straight from the fridge. Also am drinking herbal tea nightly which has helped alot with getting in the right amount of fluids.
June 16th 2009 Went and weighed at Kaiser today 220lbs that means 15 lbs down from surgery day!!! I go back to work on Thursday (darn just when I was beginning to enjoy being home!! LOL) I may be losing weight slowly but that's OK because maybe my skin will have time to catch up. I'm eating mushy foods right now and have had a few bites of chicken without trouble. Getting all the fluids in is still a struggle. I'm hoping that going back to work will help me with this. Only time will tell!!!
June 18th 2009 Started back to work today and boy did it kick my butt!!! I'm dragging!!! LOL hopefully I will get more strength back when I'm eating all regular foods again. Still struggling to get in all my fluids. Hopefully this will get better with time.
June 26th 2009 Today was my 4 week post-op meeting with my surgeon. I weigh 216lbs which is 19lbs down since surgery an average of 3 lbs per week he is really happy with my progress and says that he doesn't want me losing any faster than this. Cleared me to eat all foods and exercise as I am comfortable to. Boy am I happy can't wait to eat some ground beef, I'm really getting sick of chicken!!! LOL
July 4th 2009 Ate steak for the first time post-op today and boy was it yummy!!!
July 19th 2009 Two months out today and I'm down to 208lbs which is 27lbs down from surgery!!! My friend Lyndaaa gave me some clothes that she has shrunk out of (thank goodness she's a sleever too!!!) but I had to go shopping today to have clothes to wear to work!!! LOL
I can wear a size 18 pants and a 1X shirt Whoo Hoo!!!
My husband says this is going to get expensive
He doesn't even know the least of it!!! LOL
July 30th 2009 A friend's father in law passed away and I needed to attend the funeral today. I went to my closet to get out my old standard black dress and guess what waaaay to big no way was I getting away with wearing it. So I tried on one in the back of my closet that I was saving for when I got skinney also waaaay to big!!! Now What am I going to do????? Yelled for my daughter Shannon (27) Do you have a black dress???? I'm really in a bind here. She goes through her closet and gets on out for me "Here I think you can wear this one" I put it on guess what? too big too! LOL so she goes back into her room I hear rummaging and digging then she comes in hands me a dress and and says this is the last one I've got and it's never gonna fit because it's from when I was in high school. I grabbed it and it fit great!!! Shannon sat down on the bed and started to cry saying "I've never been bigger than you Mom". I felt so bad for her but so good for me!!! After the funeral my husband and I talked about trying to find a way to help our daughter get the VSG surgery too. She can't qualify through our insurance but maybe we can find a way to finance it in Mexico. We will have to see. I'll talk with her about it later.
August 6th 2009 I'm down to 202lbs and have stalled but I'm not complaining because I now can wear jeans in a size 14!!! Still in a 1X shirt but that means if I find a cute shirt in the juniors department of wal mart I can get into their size 2X (16-19) which makes me really happy.
August 14th 2009 I finally made it to onederland!!!! I went to Kaiser (Dr. Casillas' office) for my 3 month check-up today. I got called in by this new little skinny nurse she asked me to step up on the scale the numbers were bouncing around as usual and finally stopped at 199.0
I shouted YES a little to loud because I was soooo happy
Guess what the skinny little bitch had the nerve to say...
Oh you lost weight?
It took every ounce of me not to slap her upside the head!!!
When I finally saw Dr. C he told me he was really impressed with my weightloss and to keep up the good work and told me I didn't need to come back until my 6 mo. check-up.
September 23rd 2009 WOW where has the time gone this month!!! I've been so busy!
I went to see my son in Minnesota, my niece got married and I did the wedding cake for her, I took my clinicals for my RN and passed and next weekend is my 30 year high school reunion!!!
I'm down to 189lbs now fitting into size 14/16 pants and extra large tops.
I couldn't be happier with my progress so far!!!
October 20th 2009 I'm down to 183 now fitting in to a size 12 pants!!! People are calling me the incredible shrinking woman. Sadly my head hasn't caught up with my body yet. It's weird I still feel like the same girl, until I take a close look in the mirror or try to find something in the closet to wear to work. Then it is shock after shock over how many clothes I have shrunk out of. All I can say is...
I LOVE MY SLEEVE!!!!!
November 19th 2009 I went for my 6 month check-up today! I hate how the scales at Kaiser all say a different number! This office scale says I'm 179. I guess I should be happy at least the scale is moving in the right direction. This was the last time I have to go to West LA for follow-up. YEAH it's about a 2 hour drive for me!! I have been released to my primary care doc. which makes me really happy. She is only about a mile from home!!!
I guess we'll see what her scale says next month when I go in for my regular check-up.
4 comments
November 2007 Back to my primary I went to request a sleep apnea test. My husband has been complaining for years that I snore like a bear so maybe this will work in my favor. Finally get the referral and they do this in home test thing with a monitor you put on yourself. I couldn't sleep all night with that junk on so guess what they found negative for apnea LOL!!! Back to my primary and asked her to request a in lab sleep study. My Doctor smart woman as she is then wrote me a prescription for a anti-anxiety medication to take the night of the test (you'll sleep alright now she says with a wink LOL) I took my meds as ordered about 30 minutes before arriving at the lab. Met with the nurse and was attached to about a million wires and stuff then got in bed and drifted off to sleep. About an hour later the nurse was waking me up by shaking me awake. "We have to put this mask on you! You have stopped breathing 5 times in the past 10 minutes!!!" No wonder I'm always tired! Well, now I have my proof I do have sleep apnea but it takes another 4 weeks for them to writer the report.Then my primary forwarded my results to preventative medicine department. I'm Waiting, Waiting, Waiting for a call from preventative medicine for approval.
December 2007 I finally get sick of waiting and called preventative medicine myself. They state that
they only got the results that I did not have apnea! AAHHHH!!!!! Contacted my primary and she resubmitted my apnea positive results again. I only waited two days before calling again and was told then "We got them, now wait for a letter about acceptance"
January 2008 I finally received a packet in the mail, It contains an extensive psych/social self exam
that I must complete and bring to a meeting in March.
March 2008 Go to the meeting with about 100 other people. The Lap Band and RNY procedures
were briefly discussed, it was then explained that Kaiser requires all of it's patients to attend 6 months of weekly classes to be approved for surgery. After that we were told that we are to turn in our completed psych/social packet today, and there is a extreme back up for the classes to begin that in 4-6 weeks we will receive a letter by mail telling us when are classes would begin.
May 2008 I receive my letter. My classes would not begin until August 27th, 2008. Boy was I angry
I had already been waiting for 8 months now I have to wait 3 more months to start 6 months of classes! It then dawns on me that my surgery is at least another year or more away I almost gave up!
August 2008 I finally began the Bariatric Classes and decided then that I was once again going to
make weight loss happen again. This time there was a difference, I felt that because I was on track to surgery maybe, just maybe this time I could get the weight off and keep it off. You see, I've been heavy all of my life!!!! This time I decided to make my weight loss a priority in my life without any fad/starvation diet, just by portion control alone for now.
September 2008 I did a lot of studying on the different WLS procedures and decided that I am
going to request the Gastric Sleeve. The preventative medicine department at Kaiser really tends to push the RNY because of it's successes and long study history. They try to discourage the Gastric Sleeve as much as possible but once the saw how strong my decision was they agreed to allow me to have the VGS upon completion of classes. I was then informed that they only have one surgeon that does the procedure and that the hospital he works out of is about 70 miles away. I laughed out loud and told them that 70 miles is nothing!!!! They had no idea what lengths people from this and other forums have traveled for WLS.
December 31st, 2008 As my New Year's resolution I swore to give up drinking soda (actually all carbonated beverages... even diet
) February 2009 I completed my last Bari-Class on the 18th and am now in a waiting pattern for my
Primary MD to sign approval for surgery and for all of my paperwork to be sent to my surgeon to request a surgery date. During the 6 months of classes I lost 15 pounds and have kept it off. Mind you we had Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, Super Bowl Sunday, I also went on vacation to Disney World and a 4 day cruise during this time. (Any other time in my life I would have put on at least another 50-60 pounds) I am so proud of myself, it is amazing, maybe I'm actually going to make it this time!!! Man I hope this is all behind me soon. I am so anxious for my new life to begin!!!
March 2009 I called Harbor (Kaiser) today to check if my paperwork was received. They reported
that they had received it. The lady on the phone then said you're all set for your LapBand. I said wait!!! LapBand I'm not getting a LapBand I'm requesting a Sleeve. The Lady then told me that the paperwork from Fontana (Kaiser) said LapBand. I told her to please make a note that I defiantly was not getting a LapBand that this was an error in paperwork and I would be contacting Fontana for clarification. I then called Fontana and spoke with the receptionist and requested to speak with the Bariatrics Specialist, she says "They are unavailable can I take a message?" I tell her the problem and she says "please hold on for a moment". Next thing I know the Bari Specialist is on the phone apologizing but also saying "it doesn't matter what your paperwork says it's what the doctor decides to let you have that is important". Mind you I'm a nurse and I sure know that what the paperwork says is important!!! (That is how people get the wrong leg amputated because of stupid stuff like that!!!)
I made him promise that he was immediately sending a correction for my paperwork and informed him that I would be calling to see if it was received. 2 hours later I called Harbor (Kaiser) and they had received my corrected paperwork. The Lady on the phone assured me that my file was now corrected and all I had to do was to wait for the surgery schedulers to call me to schedule my surgical consultation.
March 31st 2009 Well, impatient person that I am I called and talked to Harbor (Kaiser) again today! Now they are saying that I will not get a call for even my consult until July or August then a couple of months until my surgery after that. AAAAAHHHHH!!! I wanted to go postal LOL
Soooooooo ..... I then called Fontana (Kaiser), Pacific Hospital (contracted by Kaiser for RNY) still isn't signed on for sleeves so I guess I have no choice but to wait!!! Right now I feel like all of my classmates will be skinny and my fat ass will still be waiting for surgery at this rate. I'm so pissed!!!
No one at my house seems to understand why I'm so upset they just don't get it.
(5'10 165lb Husband said "You've only been waiting since Nov. 2007 for it, that isn't so long... I almost shoved my fist down his skinny little throat!!!!!")
Will you guys come visit me or send care packages if I end up in the looney bin?
Thanks for letting me rant and rave!!! I'm so thankful for this place!!! I know all of you get it!!!
April 8th 2009 Yesterday I found out from virgokitty78 (a member here at OH, Thanks a million La Kesha!) that it was UCLA Westwood not Torrence so that changed my feelings about everything. So I went to the seminar today and loved the surgeon!! He was really great, funny and knowledgeable. There are 2 guys there who do the surgeries and between them they have done around 1300 Bari procedures. They use a 32 bougie which I was really glad to hear (some people are still using the larger ones 38-40). He said that Kaiser client's have priority over other people so it shouldn't take long for me to get a date. In fact he said if I had all my ducks in a row he could do my surgery in 2 weeks. That isn't going to happen because I have to get my paperwork, labs sent off to them and for UCLA you have to have a psych consult and who knows how long that will take for Kaiser to get it scheduled for me. I called Fontana today and left a message with the Bari Assistant Alex that I'm changing to UCLA and to send my stuff to them and to call me about anything else I might need to do for them that I haven't already done. Of course I didn't hear anything back today. But maybe, maybe the ball is finally rolling in the right direction again!!!
April 15th 2009 I get a call from Kaiser Fontana
, Chelie I am sorry to tell you this but UCLA is not contracted with Kaiser to do VSG, so you have been placed back on the waiting list for Harbor City Kaiser. Of course if you change you mind and want a R&Y we can accomodate you at numerous sites. I wanted to reach through the phone and strange her. I was taught in my classes that UCLA was the only site contracted to do sleeves for kaiser and I know for a fact that they are still teaching that to the people who are in the classes now!!! I have been jerked around enough by these people I am really steaming now!!! I picked up the phone and called member services to issue a formal complaint. As I told the girl on the phone my story she kept saying things like "oh my" and "really?" I told her that I wasn't just complaining for myself but for everyone else who was about to be in my shoes to as the graduate from their classes. I could tell she seemed concerned for me. She said that a report was being made and I should hear something back in 2-3 days. She gave me a number to the Divisional Service area and informed me that I should call there too! Boy did I. I reached another woman (head of member complaints and issues) who also couldn't believe her ears at my story. She promised that she would be getting to the bottom of this and that this was "truely ridiculous" and she personally would be getting back to me.April16th 2009 (Less than 24 hrs later) I received a call from Kaiser's Divisional Service area offices the man on the phone told me that my case is under review and that he had looked into the contract issue and UCLA was definatly contracted to do Sleeves for Kaiser and he didn't understand what the problem was. He assured me that his office would be contacting Kaiser Fontana and telling them to approve my case for surgery at UCLA ASAP!!! If he was standing in front of me I probabally would have kissed him at this point
I am so happy! I called late this afternoon to Kaiser Fontana and they say that they hadn't heard anything from Divisional about the contract. I think I will give them until Monday afternoon to figure it out before I start making a fuss again!!! LOLApril 17th 2009 I received a call from Fontana Kaiser informing me that not only was I approved for UCLA but Kaiser West Los Angeles also. I informed the caller to send my request for surgical consult to West Los Angeles so that I could meet the doctor. The advantage of getting surgery done at Kaiser is I can have my gallbladder removed at the same time, if I go to UCLA I will get Sleeved then wait for a few months and have the gallbladder removed in a separate surgery at kaiser later.
Kaiser West Los Angeles has just opened there Bariatric Surgery department so I'm not sure how many surgeries they have done so far. At this point I'm willing to talk with them but if they haven't got a good enough track record for me I'm going to UCLA for sure.
April 23rd 2009 Got a call from Kaiser West Los Angeles today. They have scheduled me for surgical consult on Monday at 10:30AM (4/27/09). The lady on the phone had no idea how many WLS either of the surgeons (there are two I found out) have done previously. "It's a new department I doubt very many" she said. I guess I will have to just wait and see.
April 27th 2009 Met with Dr. Robert Casillas (Kaiser West LA) today and I was so impressed with him that I scheduled my surgery with him for MAY 19th!!! He was willing to take me next Tuesday but I needed more time for my work to find a temp to replace me while I'm out. He arranged for me to meet with the anesthesiologist right after I saw him because I live so far away. They even did my pre-registration and had me pay my co-pay today. So all I have to do is show up on the 19th. They still have to call me with the exact time of surgery but that will come a day or two before surgery. WOOO HOOOOO!!!!!
May 18th 2009 Kaiser West LA called me this AM and requested that I arrive at 8:00AM tomorrow morning my surgery is scheduled for 10:30AM. I'm so excited can hardly wait for my new life to begin!!!
May 20th 2009 I'm Sleeved and home. Tired from pain meds and feel very thirsty but can't drink more than 1oz per hour per my doc right now! AAAHHHHHH!!!
May 23rd 2009 Well was allowed to start my protein drinks today. It took 3 hours to get in an 11oz ready to drink Premier Protien from Costco but I made it!!! Boy this isn't going to be easy!!!
May 26th 2009 Went into Fontana Kaiser Bari Program and weighed today (I promised myself I would never weigh myself at home so I could control the obsession to weigh daily) 227.9 lbs woohooo down 7 lbs in one week! What a great feeling!!! I have found that warm things go down much smoother than cold for me so I'm warming up my protein a little instead of drinking it straight from the fridge. Also am drinking herbal tea nightly which has helped alot with getting in the right amount of fluids.
June 16th 2009 Went and weighed at Kaiser today 220lbs that means 15 lbs down from surgery day!!! I go back to work on Thursday (darn just when I was beginning to enjoy being home!! LOL) I may be losing weight slowly but that's OK because maybe my skin will have time to catch up. I'm eating mushy foods right now and have had a few bites of chicken without trouble. Getting all the fluids in is still a struggle. I'm hoping that going back to work will help me with this. Only time will tell!!!
June 18th 2009 Started back to work today and boy did it kick my butt!!! I'm dragging!!! LOL hopefully I will get more strength back when I'm eating all regular foods again. Still struggling to get in all my fluids. Hopefully this will get better with time.
June 26th 2009 Today was my 4 week post-op meeting with my surgeon. I weigh 216lbs which is 19lbs down since surgery an average of 3 lbs per week he is really happy with my progress and says that he doesn't want me losing any faster than this. Cleared me to eat all foods and exercise as I am comfortable to. Boy am I happy can't wait to eat some ground beef, I'm really getting sick of chicken!!! LOL
July 4th 2009 Ate steak for the first time post-op today and boy was it yummy!!!
July 19th 2009 Two months out today and I'm down to 208lbs which is 27lbs down from surgery!!! My friend Lyndaaa gave me some clothes that she has shrunk out of (thank goodness she's a sleever too!!!) but I had to go shopping today to have clothes to wear to work!!! LOL
I can wear a size 18 pants and a 1X shirt Whoo Hoo!!!
My husband says this is going to get expensive
He doesn't even know the least of it!!! LOLJuly 30th 2009 A friend's father in law passed away and I needed to attend the funeral today. I went to my closet to get out my old standard black dress and guess what waaaay to big no way was I getting away with wearing it. So I tried on one in the back of my closet that I was saving for when I got skinney also waaaay to big!!! Now What am I going to do????? Yelled for my daughter Shannon (27) Do you have a black dress???? I'm really in a bind here. She goes through her closet and gets on out for me "Here I think you can wear this one" I put it on guess what? too big too! LOL so she goes back into her room I hear rummaging and digging then she comes in hands me a dress and and says this is the last one I've got and it's never gonna fit because it's from when I was in high school. I grabbed it and it fit great!!! Shannon sat down on the bed and started to cry saying "I've never been bigger than you Mom". I felt so bad for her but so good for me!!! After the funeral my husband and I talked about trying to find a way to help our daughter get the VSG surgery too. She can't qualify through our insurance but maybe we can find a way to finance it in Mexico. We will have to see. I'll talk with her about it later.
August 6th 2009 I'm down to 202lbs and have stalled but I'm not complaining because I now can wear jeans in a size 14!!!
Still in a 1X shirt but that means if I find a cute shirt in the juniors department of wal mart I can get into their size 2X (16-19) which makes me really happy. August 14th 2009 I finally made it to onederland!!!! I went to Kaiser (Dr. Casillas' office) for my 3 month check-up today. I got called in by this new little skinny nurse she asked me to step up on the scale the numbers were bouncing around as usual and finally stopped at 199.0
I shouted YES a little to loud because I was soooo happy
Guess what the skinny little bitch had the nerve to say...
Oh you lost weight?
It took every ounce of me not to slap her upside the head!!!
When I finally saw Dr. C he told me he was really impressed with my weightloss and to keep up the good work and told me I didn't need to come back until my 6 mo. check-up.
September 23rd 2009 WOW where has the time gone this month!!! I've been so busy!
I went to see my son in Minnesota, my niece got married and I did the wedding cake for her, I took my clinicals for my RN and passed and next weekend is my 30 year high school reunion!!!
I'm down to 189lbs now fitting into size 14/16 pants and extra large tops.
I couldn't be happier with my progress so far!!!
October 20th 2009 I'm down to 183 now fitting in to a size 12 pants!!! People are calling me the incredible shrinking woman. Sadly my head hasn't caught up with my body yet. It's weird I still feel like the same girl, until I take a close look in the mirror or try to find something in the closet to wear to work. Then it is shock after shock over how many clothes I have shrunk out of. All I can say is...
I LOVE MY SLEEVE!!!!!
November 19th 2009 I went for my 6 month check-up today! I hate how the scales at Kaiser all say a different number! This office scale says I'm 179. I guess I should be happy at least the scale is moving in the right direction. This was the last time I have to go to West LA for follow-up. YEAH it's about a 2 hour drive for me!! I have been released to my primary care doc. which makes me really happy. She is only about a mile from home!!!
I guess we'll see what her scale says next month when I go in for my regular check-up.
About Me
Bloomington, CA
Location
31.3
BMI
Surgery
05/19/2009
Surgery Date
Jan 30, 2009
Member Since
