Susan D.

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3/15/2004 ~ The Beginning!
A Little About ME......

Hi, most of my life I have been overwieight, as far back as 10 years old. I have three beautiful children, Cassandra 13,Breanna who will be nine this month and Zachary, 5yrs. I am recently divorced. Its a good thing for me. We are much better friends, get along great, weird how that happens. I met a wonderful man about 2 1/2 years ago. He is great, gives me much needed support. He truley makes my life whole. I work full time, in 12 hour night shifts and attend a community college part time. I am a busy women.Weight use to be my only issue growing up,otherwise I was healthy. As I got older, things are catching up. I now have HBP, as I have gained weight in the last year it has been harder to control. Mild back and feet pain. Mild depression. History of Diabetes, Heart Disease, High Cholestoral, Stroke in my immediate family. All these scare me very much. I want to be around to see my kids have kids. I have tried many diet,like all of us. I usually dont have any luck unless I starve myself. So with the advice of my doctor, this is my next step to getting healthy. So I am on my way!!!

These Are My 3 Beautiful Kids, My Inspiration to Become HEALTHIER.


 

 



Breanna 9yrs, Zachary 5yrs & Cassandra 13yrs

5/2004

~~~ I have been thinking about having WLS for a very long time. I have a very good friend who had it done 2 yrs, ago. She looks incredible! Then I met two nurses I work with both have had it done, and they rave about, no regrets. So with all the good inputs, I have recently decided to go forward with it. The hospital I work for started a Bariatric Program this year, so I decided this would be the time to do it. I went to the information session and then spoke with my PCP, who agreed that this would be a good thing for me. She wrote up the medical neccessity along with a copy of my physical and history and we mail it to the program. They called me that next week and I was required to do two things before my insurance would approve me. I had to have 6 months of a supervised diet and then on open enrollment I would need to change my insurance from HMO to PPO. Well They had a diet class, that I had to pay for, that was every monday for six weeks, through the program. I attended. I also as of May got dovorced (a very good thing, 3 years waiting) which gave me the opprotunity to change my insurance, I was getting things done, faster than expected. Yeah! I am on my way to a new life.

 

 


This is ME and My Best Friend Lindsay. She is Wonderful, Can't wait till I can wear her clothes!!!






6/14/2004
I finished my six week class for the diet program. Now I only have to go once a month till I hit my six months. The Nurse that ran the class is also the manager of the Bariatric Program. We talked after the class and she seems to think that we can get this approved for this summer!!! WOW, I was alittle shocked and excited! I thought we needed six months, she said she already talked to some people with the insurance so we might be able to approve it earlier. Hey if it works, why not right?! I figured at least then I could get the other consults out of the way and get everything done, the worst is I will have to wait till my six month diet is done. She scheduled my appointment with her for tuesday to get ALL the info.


6/21/2004
I had my first appointment with the Dietician/Manager(Heidi-Jo)of the Bariaric Program. I couldn't tell who was more excited her or me! I have to pay $850 out of pocket for the program that insurance doesn't pay. I already knew this from the info session I attended. I paid $250 today and the other$600 is due two weeks before the schedule surgery. She went over the alot of things, the other docs I have to see and then things about supplements, diet, exercise. I have to have a psych consult, a pulmonary and cardio consult and meet with an exercises psysologist, and of course meet the surgeon. I see him next wednesday. I set up the psych consult on my own and is covered by my insurance, but the others are covered by the program costs. So I set my appointment for the psych doctor for friday. I am still in shock how fast everything is going. Heidi said it would. I am going to be thinner before you know it!


6/25/2004
I went for my psych consult today. I spent 1 1/2 with him. Really nice doc. Went over everything, I thought I would be there forever. I guess its a good thing. He passed me without any problems. He is going to forward my results to the doc by my appointment. One more step down, many to go.
I go for my surgeon consult on wednesday. This will be a nervous week. Once I see him, they will submitt for approval to the insurance. Heidi-Jo (manager) said there is no need to worry, but till I get a date I am worrying. This whole process has been going so smoothly. Can life be so nice? We'll see how it goes........ :)



6/30/2004
Ok, I had my appt with Dr. Fitzgerald today. He was a very nice man. I did not feel rushed in any way with him. Took his time to explain EVERYTHING! He likes his job. LOL. He told me I was his youngest patient, boy that made me feel good. To hear the word Young and Me in the same sentence. He was alittle interested in my piercings, hehehe. After I was done talking to doc, I saw the nurse and then Heidi again. After Doc dictacts my H&P from visit he will send that and my psych report to insurance for appproval. She said probably by Friday or Tuesday. (off monday for holiday}. Ok, so now I am to set up my last two consults, the cardio and pulmonary. He said to make them for late next week. I didnt think I could get one that fast, but Heidi said if I have a problem with it to call her and she would set them up. I got backup. Yeah! So, once request is submitted to insurance and I get approved, she will call me to set up labs and get a date. WOO HOO. Its getting closer. I am so happy and so scared all at the same time. Keeping Fingers crossed for quick approval. I start back at college at the end of August and am trying not to take a semister off. For that reason keeping everything crossed!!



7/6/2004
Well I waited until After the Holiday to call and make appointments. I have my pulmonary appt. next week on the 14th. Hopefully all is good and I won't need any other tests for him. I called the cardiologist and they schedule a stress test and echo over the phone for me to do first. That will be on the 15th. Back to back appointments, how lucky am I. Then I go see Dr.Harman on the 21st to get results from test and hopefully get clearance. I called Heidi-Jo (Dietician/Manager of Bariatric Program) to tell her the dates of my appointments. Once those are done I call Heidi and she gets all the results together and sets my date, if insurance has been approved. She still is telling me we'll do the surgery by the end of July. Man that is cutting it close. But we will just have to wait and see. Till Later........



7/14/2004
Today was my appointment with Dr.Angsten (pulmonologist). It went pretty well. He asked me alot of questions and reviewed my history. He doesnt see any reason to do any tests, since I dont have any symptoms of sleep apnea. He said he has no reasons why I shouldnt be cleared for surgery. Yeah!! He wished me good luck and said he would send his report over to Dr. Fitzgerald. One appointment down.



7/15/2004
This has been a long day for me. Today I had my stress/exercise test done and the echocardiogram. I was told to be at the hospital at 8am. So I showed up 15 minutes till...trying not to be late. The nurse comes out to tell me they cannot take me till 8:30am.......um,o.k. Small set back no big deal, besides the lack of water in my body. I had to be NPO since midnight, so by this time I wasnt really hungry, but I sure was thirsty. So I sit there waiting and waiting for it to be my time, finally the technologist comes and gets me for the echocardiogram. That was a breeze. Just had to lye there while she did her work on my chest and uppper belly, taking ultrasound pictures of my heart. It took maybe about 25 minutes. Then it was back to the waiting room till they were ready for the stress test. So its about 9:10 or so, and finally a nurse comes out to talk to me. She was there to deliver me some bad news. Dr.Harman (cardiologist) could not be there till about 11am. What are you kidding me? I have not ate or drunk anything all night and morning and now I have to sit here for another hour and a half. Man was I alittle upset, but I sure didnt want to do this all over again. So I agreed to sit there like the angel I am and wait, and wait, and wait. Fianlly about 10:20 they came and got me. Fianlly! First they had to start and IV so they could administir the medication they use for the test. I had to sit there for about 30 minutes so the medication could circulate through my body. Otherwise, wait some more. Next I had to lay on this table while they took some pictures (kinda like an xray) of my heart, and then sit back in this little room and wait for the doctor to show up.Well they finally got ahold of him and he would be there alittle after 11:30. Man, by this time, my head was pounding, unbearable! One of the small side affects from the med they gave me. I begged for a small drink and a tylenol. Suprisely they gave it to me. I could not believe the headache I had. Well finally Dr. Harman showed up, and it was time for the excersie part of this test, whoo hoo. I had to walk on this tredmil for a little while, while they increased the speed and made it incline. Then after my heart rate got up so high (160 beats per minute) they would give me the rest of they med and they take more pictures. Man I thought I was going to die. I didnt realize how out of shape I was till I had to do that. But I made it, barely! I think I finally got to leave that place about 12:30. I went straight home and took a nap, the headache just made my day. Oh of course, I drank like 2 glasses of water as soon as I walked out of there. I was glad that was all over. Not that it was a bad experience, I think if my head didnt hurt so much, I would of be just fine. Well just another obsticle out of the way. I have a follow-up appt with Dr.Harman on the 21st to get my results. Till then...............



7/21/2004
I should of known how this day was going to go. I work last night from 7pm till 7:30 am. So for one I was already tired. My appt with Dr.Harman (cardiologist) was at 10am. I show-up, about 15 minutes later the nurse comes out and takes me back to a room. She talks to me for a little bit, does and EKG and listens to my heart. And then tells me that the doctor should be here in a couple of minutes. Well I am sitting there waiting......and guess what?.....Yep, he is going to be late. He cant be there till about 11:30 or 11:45. Man, I hope he is not like this in an emergency. Which I know he is not, He is one to the doctors that rounds on the unit I work at, in the hospital. He is lucky I already know him enough to put up with this. Lol. Well I told them I would just come back at that time, if that was ok. She said that would be fine. So I went and visited a friend of mine who just happened to live a block from his office. Lucky me. So I went back at 11:45 and he was there. They took my right back and he came in and we discussed my results. He said everything looked good. I had mild mitral valve regurgitation, but most of the population has that and not to worry about it. He would clear me with no problems. He did ask me to let him know when the date is, so he can come and visit me when I go to have it done. How nice. Well I am glad that is all done. Getting closer to getting a date.



7/22/2004
Tonight was my monthly Bariatric support meeting. Its for pre-ops and post-ops. Well during that meeting I got some good news. I found out from the manager of the clinic, who also runs the support group, that they submitted my info to the insurance company today!! OMG, I couldn't believe it. Fianlly, I might actually know something. I was happy, I couldnt speak. My fiancee was just as suprised. He comes with me to the meetings. I also found out that Dr.Murr would be working with Dr.Fitzgerald on the next 5 surgeries. Which makes me extremely happy. Dont get me wrong, Dr. Fitz is an excellent doctor here at our hospital, very good reputation. But since this is new at out hospital, I am alittle nervous about it. Dr. Murr has been teaming with Dr.Fitz for the last two years, but now its on Dr. Fitzgerald turf. But having Dr.Murr there with his reputation for this surgery just makes it alittle more easy for me to sleep at night. I trust them both, but with them together, its a godsend. So now I just sit and wait for the response from the insurance company. Waiting game once again......



8/2/2004
APPROVED!!! Can you believe it. I got approved. I am so excited. And scared. And nervous. Sh$t, I dont know what I am feeling right now. The office called me today at 4pm, to tell me. They just got the call from the insurance company 15 minutes before. And they waited that long to call me?! LOL. No more BIG HOOPS to jump through! Its finally here, Im APPROVED! My finace was in the room when I got the phone call, He looked at me, and He knew what it was about. He is happy for me, he loves me the way I am, I dont doubt that for a minute. But this is going to make me happy and healthy. I can finally look forward to running around with my young man, keeping up with him has been hard. (he is 24, I am 30....go me! LOL) But soon, he is going to have a hard time keeping up with me.LOL. I love that man. So I get off the phone and we talk about this for a minute. Then I have to call my best friend and tell her the good news. She is having a hard time with this whole thing. Its not that she doesnt want me to be happy or have it done, she is just alittle more scared than I am. She says she doesnt want to have to whoop a doctors butt if something goes wrong. LOL, Silly girl. I know it will be ok, we keep reassuring each other...sometimes I forget who is actually having the surgery. Hmmmm. Well anyways, Tracy, the office coordinator is going to be calling me back within two day, count them with me please. TWO DAYS, to give me my surgery date and a day to come in to do all the labs and xrays, and then to see the nutritionist and excersice psysiologist, she called it the 3 hour educational appointment. She said plan to be here all day, with the appoint and lab work. Yuk. But can you believe I am APPROVED!!! Got to go tell the world.God Bless......... :)



8/3/2004
Well I got my date. I was snoozing away again, with one ear open, waiting on that phone call. And it finally came. I am scheduled for next thursday, August 12th. Wow, that is less than two weeks away. I have to get busy now and get things together. My kids start school on Monday, so I have to make sure the first half of the week goes good for them. Get them back into thier routine. I am working up till tuesday, so not much time to do anything but work and wait for "the day" to come. I have such mixed emotions about everything, I am scared and excited all at the same time. I know everything will be okay, but its hard not to think that something could go wrong. Well enough of that.... I am going to be a loser. Woo-hoo.



8/12/04
Well its the day!! I am nervous and excited. I cant sleep, but then who does? I have to be at the hospital at 5:30am, its only a 10 min drive, so I am here till then. I did the rest of my pre-op labs yesterday and weighed in for the last time. YUK! Im at 320lbs. Gained a few. Hurricane Charley is heading our way. It says it suppose to hit here in the tampa bay area. They canceled all the surgeries on friday at the hospital, but thursdays are a go. I guess I will be in the best place if it does hit. Our hopsital is a emergency medical shelter. Funny thing is, I was suppose to be at work right now, they called in the hurricane team, which I am on. I kind of laughed, told them I would be there, but as a patient. LOL. Well I am going to get things together and I WILL SEE YOU GUYS ON THE OTHER SIDE!!!!



8/16/2004
Well I made it. I am on the other side. I survived WLS and Hurricane Charley! Everything went well. I was in ICU for the first 24 hours following surgery, its just a protocol they follow there. I had my leak test friday morning and that was fine, and so they moved me to the floor. My pain wasnt too bad, I did have a PCA pump that I remember using a few times. Since the hurricane was suppose to hit us, I wasnt allowed any visitors from friday to saturday morning. That really sucked. But the hurricane missed us and my honey was allowed to come back and see me late friday night(my co-workers snuck him in). By Sunday I was ready to come home. I was discharged late in the morning. I came home and layed down in the bed and I think at the point I got the most rest since my surgery. I havent weighed yet, I will on Thursday when its one week out. I came home with a drain, I decided to name him "Jack". Its a pain in the butt, but I guess its doctors orders. Chris is wonderful. He has been measuring out all my fluids for me, making the jello, giving me my meds one time without me asking. I think I brought home a nurse, lol. Well I am going to go rest now, take care.



8/20/2004
Well its been one week and one day post-op. I feel better today, its been rough, but not to hard. I figured out that Im not really hungry, just feel like I am missing something. I have had alot of pain when eating jello, but it goes away within a minute. My pre-op weight in the hospital was 317 and as of yesterday I weighed (on mine at home) 292lbs. Hmmm, can I believe the scale? I am excited to see the weight go, but I am still in denile that I will lose all the weight, its just hard to think that all my life I have been overweight and now I might actually begin to lose it and get to a normal weight. My fiancee is encouraging me 100%. He is making sure I take my meds and getting enough to drink, I couldnt ask for a better man.
Well its early here, so I am off to get the kids ready for school. Have a great day.



Sept. 2004
This month has been extremely hard for me. After dealing with the infection within 2 weeks after my surgery, I got a stricture. I have been having alot of problems eating from the start. So getting it through the doc's head that I can't "really" keep anything down, was hard. It took me getting to the point of not holding down water anymore, for them to do something. I have gone for almost six weeks without eating hardly anything. The surgeon referred me to a GI doc, who looked at previous x-rays and swallow tests, and told me he could see the narrowing for then. HMMMMM, was I pissed! Anyways, he did the dilation the next day, and was I happy to be able to drink again. I go back to work next week, this is going to be very interesting. Do I still wished I did this? NO. But I also am keeping an opened mind, cause I know that things should get better in time. So this is just a bump in the road of life?! Man do I wish I had bigger tires, so I wouldnt feel it as much.
Take Care.


Dec. 6, 2004
Hello ALL. I know I haven't updated in a while. I been back at work, and going to school, while trying to manage this whole weight loss thing. Its been hard for me. But today I am so HAPPY. Well, today I got into a size 18 jeans. I am so excited. I haven't been able to fit into 18 jeans for about 13 years. I bought the jeans for the "when I get there" time. I have been wearing 22 for the last three to four weeks, but they were getting loose on me, so I figured "lets do this". I am almost four months out. I am down now 91 lbs. Its been full of its ups and downs. I still can not eat what others are eating at my point. But I have finally come to the point, that its ok, it will get better, and I move on. Well Have a good day and I will write more later.



January 19th, 2005
I am feeling pretty good lately. I have been working alittle overtime lately, the extra cash is nice. I am finally down 100 lbs, actually its 102lbs. I am pretty happy with that. I can't wait till I get below the 200 mark, its been incrediably a long time since I seen that!
I went out on a limb this month and had my hair cut, dyed and highlighted. I cut about 6-7 inches off. Something I would of not done before. I have gotten alot of compliments so I guess it was a good change!



February 22, 2005
I have finally reached my 6 month mark! Its been a bumpy ride for me, but I am doing okay with it. I am down 117 lbs now. I am still having a hard time believing I have lost this much weight so quickly. I have my good days and my bad days, but I try to keep a smile on my face. I had my 6 month check up with my surgeon last week. He finally addressed the problem I have been having. I often have episodes of throwing up, but its mucus most of the time, alot of it, and it will last for hours at a time. It makes it very hard to eat something, the first bite I swallow it would feel like it was stuck or coming up. He said it was the mucus build-up in my stomach that made me feel like I was full. He started me on Allegra-D to see if that helps. It took that office six months to figure something out. I just hope this helps, I am so tired of visiting my bathroom. He also went over my labs, my protein levels have dropped to the point I am labeled nutrition deficient. He lecture me about the protein, and I told him how the shakes make me feel and how meat is usually the only thing I get in, due to all the mucus. I can't handle any of the protein shakes, they make my stomach very upset. I eat meat first before anything else, but I am hardly ever to get much down. Sometimes I feel like I am going to starve myself to death, not intentionally though. I just don't see how I am surviving on the amount of food I am eating.
My Iron level was elevated again this check up, but my cbc shows I am anemic. I don't take any iron supplements, so this was strange to me. So now he sent me to my primary doctor to have her do some additional tests.
My primary doctor is having me tested for hemacromatosis, iron overlaod. She also started me on B-12 shots. Hopefully this will give me a little kick of energy, cause I have been extremely tired lately. Very hard to keep my eyes open at times.
I still don't have much of an appetite, but they say it will come back with time. I do drink my water everyday, nothing else taste right to me. I take my multivitamins and other supplements they told me to take everyday too. So now I just wait for the results to come back. Things just have to get better. Happy thoughts!!!




 

 







 

Pictures of my kids at Universal (3/2005)















June 2005...Vacation in NYC....Had a BLAST!!! We did alot of walking, just think I would of never made this trip a year ago!





6/30/05
It's been a while since I have udated! Well First of all let me say "HAPPY BIRTHDAY BREANNA"!! That is my middle child, she is turning 10 years old today. Well alot has gone on since February. I am now down to about 160 - 165, it seems to go back and forth these last couple of weeks. If I don't loose anymore weight I am perfectly happy where I am! The eating issues for me have gotten alot better. Still can't tolerate beef, mostly hambuger meat or anything with fat on it, I get really sick, and you know what happens. The throwing up is alot less often now than it was 2 months ago. I am having this episodes of being really tired, to the point I can't do anything to keep my eyes open. It's really weird. I make sure I get at least 6 to 8 hours of sleep. It seems to come and go in waves. I had it really bad about 3 months till about 6 months and then it went away. Well its back again. Hmmmm. Overall I feel alot better than I did a few months ago. I am excersing now. I walk every night at work, about 20 minutes worth, and then the YMCA twice a week.Trying to tone up before I get any cosmetic surgery done.
I did have an appointment with a plastic surgeon. Dr.Joshua Kreithen. Really nice doctor. I really feel like I can trust him. His before and after pictures are great. On top of it all he is an artist...now he apparently knows ow to use his hands to create beauty!! He has been working with Gastric Bypass patients, so that is a plus too. He suggested a Lower Body Lift (LBL) and then later a separate inner thing lift. After that a Breast Lift with Implants. He complimented me on my small waist and curves I already have. THANKS!! Phewww alot of cutting, but in the end it will be worth it. Well, unfortuntaly I don't think insurance will pay, maybe just the LBL but not the rest,so I am trying to get a co-signer to get a loan.
I am still trying to get used to the new me. I only really hits me when I look in the mirror. Its hard to believe that it me. My finacee is such a great guy, I don't know what I would do without him. He has been an incredible help through this whole thing. We celebrated our 3 year together last february.
I am still attending college part time. I think I finally decided what I really what to do. I always wanted the medical field, and have been working towards Radiology. But I am going to switch to RN, I am working towards my AA while I finish up preq's for the RN. Then I hope to get my BA and move into forensics...GOALS!
Well till next time. Hope all is well. Thanks for reading. Take care.



12/30/05
It's been a lil'minute since I updated my profile. My life has been up and down since I last updated. I ended up having to drop out of my last semester of school, due to health issues. I have had a lot of issues with my electrolytes being off alittle. I was so tired and just not feeling good most of the time. I still have issues with froathing and throwing up. I have had an appetite, which is good, because if I didn't I probably won't weigh much of nothing by now. My weight has been about the same since about June, give or take 5lbs either way. Now more recently I found out that these episodes of just not feeling good, to the point like I may pass out is my blood sugar dropping. At work the tested my levels a couple of times when I was feeling bad, and it was 38 and 40. I never seen nurses running around so fast, bringing me orange juice and sugar packets, then trying to make me eat something, like peanut butter and crakers. I went to my PCP and all she really said was to watch what I eat. AGH! So I am constantly dealing with bouts of low blood sugar. I am going back to school in January and hoping to feel good enough to make it through the whole semester. The rate I am going, its going to take me 10 years to finish college. But on the other note, my family is well. Oldest daughter is giving us a few problems, but then what teen-agers don't. We are working through it day by day. The two little ones are doing well at school. My youngest is going to be tested for the gifted program again this year....I wonder where he gets that brain from..lol?!
Well some good news....I am getting married. We have finally set a date. July 29th, 2006. It will be on his birthday. I guess this way he can't ever say he forgot our wedding date..LOL! But it was both of our ideas, and superstition says its good luck. So luck be with us, please! His family will be coming down from New York, some of them have already schedule a week off to be here....so it will be quit a occasion. Alot of stress and happiness, I'm sure.
I have already looked into plastic surgery. I seen one plastic surgeon, who suggested a lower body lift. I would like to see if my insurance would pay, but the plastic surgeon's office never submitted it to my insurance, saying that it won't be covered. Well can't they at least try? My weight has been stablized for a while, and I have been feeling alot better lately, espeically now that I know what has been causing me to feel so bad at times and how to handle it.
Well hopefully it won't be as long till the next post. Take care.




5/22/06
Not much has changed since my last post. My weight stays about the same. I range from 145 to 150. I am still going to school. It doesn't feel like I will ever get done. I am only taking a few classes each semister, so I know this is why it is taking so long. I still work full time at the hospital. I have two babys kittens now, they are adorable. We named them Carma and Carmen. I have been very busy planning for my wedding. I am getting married July 29th, 2006. I am so excited and nervous. Time has flown by so fast. Can't wait!

About Me

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