Xerrie
I WOULD LIKE TO BE ABLE TO WALK WITHOUT HAVING TO HOLD ONTO POLES OR BUILDINGS! I am having problems walking and doing everyday chores.
I went to see Dr. Kamelgard March 1, 2001 (My 31st birthday). he was a very nice doctor. He answered all my questions, made me feel comfortable.
He referred me to Dr. Barnet for a psyc eval.
I went to Dr. Barnet for the eval. She does not take Aetna for this evaluation, I had to pay $350.00 out of pocket. I was very nervous when I walked into her office that I even forgot my own name when she asked me. She was not a smiling person. She did not even shake my hand when I put it out for her.
Ok, I thought that everything went well at this evaluation, but Dr. Barnet deferred me, stating that I was "NOT" ready for this surgery & that I had to change my depression medication! (I was on Paxil).
I WAS READY, I JUST FROZE WHEN I WALKED INTO HER OFFICE! She said that I had to be re-evaluated. (Yup, you guessed it! It would cost me another $350.00 out of pocket).
I GAVE UP!
(But I still open the little booklet that was sent to me from Dr. Kamelgard's office about WLS).
I can't stand to look at myself in the mirror, I have stopped doing all the things that I liked to do, I have stopped calling my friends to come over Saturday nights, all this because I HATE the way I look.
May 5, 2002 --> Ok, I have this crazy idea in my head again. I called Aetna and was told that they do not require a psyc eval for them to approve the surgery.
May 7, 2002 I emailed Dr. Kamelgard and explained this to him.
May 8, 2002 He emailed me back and said that the insurance does not require it but he does! **Smack** I called his office and left a message for them to call me so that I can set up another consultation.
May 9, 2002 Kathy called me back today and I explained to her that I am ready for this surgery but that I can't afford to pay for another Psyc Eval. Kathy told me to look for one in my network that is familiar with the WLS procedures and then there won't be a problem. I must have called atleast 20 Psycs around my area and in New York, none participate with Aetna. **Flush**
{TADA!} I resolved my problem. I called another surgeon in my area that participates with Aetna.
I found Dr. Schmidt & Dr. Fan in Hackensack, NJ.
The first question out of my mouth was, "Is a Psyc evaluation required by Dr. Schmidt and Dr. Fan in order for the patient to have this surgery?" I was told that is was not required but the patient must attend a support group. I was so happy that I almost started to cry. (Hey, it is cheaper than paying $350.00 for an eval) ** LOL ** The secreatary was pleasant, she answered all my questions, took her time to "LISTEN" to me and scheduled me for the earliest they had, August 8, 2002. I know, it is so far away, but time does seem to fly by! LOL
5/13/02 Okay, so I called today because I forgot the time of my appointment with Dr. Schmidt. I was told that I DO NOT HAVE AN APPOINTMENT WITH DR. SCHMIDT that it was a seminar. I panicked and thought to myself, "Oh no, another sign". I said I will be there and hung up. I called back and asked if there was an earlier date for the seminar, Jennifer was very nice and told me that there was an opening for June 17, 2002 at 6:00 pm but not with Dr. Schmidt that it would be with Dr. Davis. I panicked again and thought to myself, "I do not know anything about this doctor". I asked her if he was "Good", she said that he is good and that he is new to the "PRACTICE" and that he is "EXPERIENCED". I looked at postings from patients that had the WLS with Dr. Davis and they are happy with him and with his work. Wheeeew, that helped.
So, I am now going to a "SEMINAR" June 17, 2002 and it will be with Dr. Davis.
Wish me luck, now it is scheduled for an earlier date so I hope that I do not have to wait toooooooo long to go in for the surgery.
6/17/02 (Yippeeeeeeeeeee) I went to the seminar today, everything went well. I was given a folder with surgery information and questionnaires that must be filled out and mailed to the surgeon's office. I was given an appointment to see Dr. Davis on July 15th, 2002 at 2:00pm.
{Dr. Davis is sooooooo young and experienced}
I can't wait. I will keep you all posted.
6/15/02 Today at 2:00 pm I go see Dr. Davis............wish me luck.
6/16/02 I went to see Dr. Davis yesterday and everything went well. He has me scheduled for October 16, 2002. We just have to wait to get the approval from my insurance and it is down the "YELLOW BRICK ROAD" to a healthy new life for me!
****UPDATE*****9/13/02
OK, it is FRIDAY the 13th and I received GOOD NEWS!
I just received the authorization letter sent to me by Dr. Davis' office (doing the happy dance)Wippppeeee, I AM Soooooo happy.
Oh yeah, oh yeah.....I'm happy, I'm happy!
Pre-admission testing will be OCTOBER 5, 2002
I will keep you all posted.
10/04/02
I had my ENDOSCOPY yesterday. It was not requested by Dr. Davis, I just wanted it for peace of mind. I'll have the results in a week. Tomorrow I have to go for my Pre Admission Tests! I am nervous, yest I am calm (Don't ask me why I said that) LOL Ok, I get nervous, then I "TALK" to GOD and I feel at ease.
GOD IS GOOD and I know that all will go well and I will be healthy in no time at all!
Oh,....today I went for a job interview at a Radiology Facility and since they are looking for a secretary to start November 5th, I told him that I will be having the surgery. He congratulated me (He is a Radiologist). I believe that I GOT IT in the bag! Please wish me luck and pray for me to recovery quickly and for me to get this job.
10/05/02
Had Pre Admission testing today. The lady who drew the blood was nice but she jabs the needle she doesn't slide it in. The lady who took my X-ray was not so nice. I really liked the goiwn that they made me put on for the EKG, from far away it looked like spongebob (I guess cause of the yellow and blue pictures on it)but it was needles, stethoscopes and all hospital related things. I really wanted to bring it home cause it was big and it WRAPPED AROUND ME nicely and it went down to just below my knees!
Anyway, that is all for now. I am still very nervous and have a dozen huge butterflies fluttering around my stomach!
KEEP PRAYING FOR ME..PLEASE.
10/11/02
I WANT TO SCREAM!
MY H-pylori test is positive. What now?? I have to wait till Monday, they might cancel my surgery.
Please pray that this doens't happen. I really need all the prayers I can get.
I can't stop crying..... :'(
Ok, first let me tell you that today has been the craziest day. I called Dr. Davis' office this morning (9:00am)to find out if my surgery was rescheduled due to the H-pylori and slight sniffles. Was told that I would get a call from Dr. Davis, waited and waited and waited....nothing. I called my PCP and was told that my surgery has to be rescheduled because of the test results and that I had to see my gastroentorologist to put me on antibiotics. I was crying, I was upset only 2 and a half days to go and my surgery rescheduled.....I stopped and thought to myself, "Self, there must be a reason for all this". I called Dr. Davis' office to get the new surgery date and was told that the secretary would call me back.....waited and waited and waited....nothing. I had a 2:00 pm appointment with gastro Dr., Dr. Raffael Gibilisco (What a handsome, kind, thoughtful and very understanding person). Dr. Gibilisco said that the pathology report (From the endoscopy) was negative therefore the surgery can go as planned....Again, I WAS CRYING......I told him that it had been cancelled for 10/16/02 and that I was waiting for Dr. Davis' office to call me with the new date. He immediately called my PCP and explained everything, my PCP imediately called Dr. Davis and explained it to him then Jennifer from Dr. Davis' office called my home and left a message that SURGERY IS A GO FOR 10/16 I was still concerened cause I have one stuffed nostril and one runny nostril.....Jen asked Dr. Davis and was told that as long as I have no congestion it was ok. So I ran to CVS and got me a bottle of nasal spray and now I am draining and constantly blowing my nose so that it doesn't go down (post drip) and cause congestion.
OH MY GOD*******GOD IS GOOD*******
Wooooooooooohooooooooooooooo, I am so happy, scared, nervous, anxious, happy,happy,happy! (Jumping up and down while blowing my nose) Hehehehhee.....PRAY FOR ME AND WISH ME LUCK.
**NOTE: Dr. Gibilisco said that what showed up on the blood test was the ANTIBODIES to the H-pylori not the Bacteria itself. If it were a positive for H-pylori, it would of said so in the pathology report of the endoscopy.
Like I said and I can't say it enough****GOD IS GOOD****
Oh, I might not write again till I am on the other side of the rainbow.
10/15/02
I am very,very nervous. it is 11:18 and a million things are running thru my head. What if I don't make it?? What if I fail this tool?? What if I have alot of pain?? ALL THESE THINGS ArE IN MY HEAD. "GOD IS GOOD"
Ok, I will write again when I am better.
God Bless you all.
Much love, hugs and kisses to all.
with love: Sylvia
HUGS AND KISSES TO ALL.
PRAY for my quick recovery.
Keep your fingers crossed for me.
10/19/02
Hello Everyone...I AM over the rainbow.
I got home yesterday and I am feeling great. I HAVE NO PAIN! Only gas!
I want to thank Patricia (P M) for being so wonderful (hugs and kisses)
I just had my first bowel movement and what a relief that was.
I will continue to update, right now I have to walk,walk,walk.
10/20/02
I feel wonderful today. I MISS FOOD though. When my hubby is cooking for himand hte kids, I can smell it and my mouth waters (even though I am not hungry)
He baked brownies for the kids last night and I wanted to cry! :'(
But, I can do without those things now.....I do not feel hungry and in the end, I WILL LOOK WONDERFUL!
10/22/02
Heeeeeeelllllo EVERYONE!
Yes, I am feeling fine (well, tiny bit dizzy)
I am cooking today for my hubby and kids (they got tired of TV dinners and hubby is at work) and it is not bothering me at all.
One thing bothers me is that my hair is falling out so I started to drink protein shakes.
I am still on clear liquids until Thursday.
I am a bit upset with Dr. Davis and Jenniffer. Neither of them has returned my call. I called yesterday and spoke to Jenniffer and I explained to her that I have a lump (feels like a baby's head pushing up under my left ribs) and that it bothers me when I stand up. She asked me how long i've had this and I told her since Friday the day I got discharged but I also told her that it has gotten bigger! She said she was going to tell the doctor and call me back or have him call me back....TICK...TOCK....neither has called me. I called this morning at 11:00 am and left a message for her to call me, and once again, no one has called.
It is not a horrible pain, but it bothers me alot especially when I try to "TWIST & WIPE" LOL (if you know what I mean).
I guess I will wait till tomorrow to see if they call, if they don't then I guess I will be showing up in their office tomorrow afternoon!
10/22/02 UPDATE:
WOW! 10 mins after I wrote the top half of this dates report my phone rang and it was....TADA....Dr. Davis. He told me that what I am experiencing (the lump)is normal because it is the side that they work on (left side) and that is much more swollen than the right. He also said that I can start on puree today and to up my water and gatorade intake to, "AS MUCH AS YOU CAN TOLERATE".
~~~HAPPY DANCE~~~ :-) I am so happy.
10/28/02
Hello everyone. I think I dumped yesterday, I had canned tuna with a little lime juice and puree onions in it and I am not sure what happened but it felt as if it was a rock that fell into my stomach. I did not throw up, I did not get diarreah, no sweating but it feels (yes, still) as if I have a huge burp inside and doesn't want to come out. This morning I decided to go back on liquids until this feeling passes.
11/05/02
Hello everyone. I am feeling wonderful. I am still on the Puree food stage (And am tired of baby food already) LOL
I feel wonderful. I am so glad that I did this. The only problem is watching my family eat the delicious food that I COOK and can't eat. BUT......that is ok cause I am starting to look good and that is what this is all about.
On my home scale, I have lost 22 pounds so far. I go to dr. Davis' on Nov. 11th and then that will be the official weigh in and I will keep you all posted.
I wear a binder (The kind they give you in the hospital after you have a c-section) and that really helps when I walk.
11/09/02
I feel great. I go on Monday to Dr. Davis' for my first post-op and to remove these steri strips. I have a slight tuggin feeling on my left side when I raise my arm up. I have some energy and I have been doing some crafts that I had put off since last year. I go on my exercise bike for atleast 10 mins daily (I do not want to over do it since I am still healing inside).
How is everyone? Cause I am feeeling wonderful.
I went for my 1st post-op yesterday and guess what?................I weigh 217! I LOST 31 pounds in total. I couldn't believe it! ~~Happy dance~~
11/24/02
On Friday I went for my yearly GYN exam and Pap. My OB/GYN was so happy for me that I had this surgery. Okay, the good news is that I was weight at the GYN office and I was down to 213 (With clothes and shoes) the nurse said to subtract 3 pounds for the clothing and shoes and that makes me 210 pounds! Happy, happy....Joy, Joy 38 pounds gone, gone, gone! Yesssssssssssssssssssssss.
12/29/02
Oh boy, where do I start....
I know I have not been on in a long time, I have been busy shopping. (The holidays and stuff)
I am feeling great, I am starting to look even better and I love the compliments that I am getting.
I am now 195 pounds (53 pounds less). I can eat anything and everything (very little, though.
The only complaint that I have is constipation. It has to do with the multivitamin with Iron that I am taking. Other than that little problem, I HAVE NO REGRETS. I would do it all in a split second.
Well, I will continue to post. Bye-bye for now.
I WILL BE UPDATING PICTURES EVERY MONTH...Now I do not mind the snapping of flash...LOL
02/17/03 "BLIZZARD OF 2003"
WOW, I am so sorry I have not updated in a while, I have been very busy. I am now 180 pounds, I have lost a total of 68 pounds so far and I am feeling wonderful.....my only problem...hairloss. Lots and lots of it at a time.
I am taking biotin to see if that will help. (No progress, yet...it's only been 4 days that I started), My hair was to my waist line and I had to chop it off. Now it is to my shoulders. :'(
03/11/03 Hello everyone...yesterday I went in for a follow up visit, I had to see Dr. Fan because my surgeon Dr. Davis has left the practice. Everything is going well and I am now officially a "BIG LOSER" I am down to 174 pounds....a loss of 74 pounds in total...I also showed him the picture of my highest weight which was 280 and he couldn't believe it (He had never seen me on a one on one basis) he said that I was supposed to subtract the weight that I have lost in total to my top weight...so according to him in Jan 2002 I was 280 and now I am 174 so that is a total,total weight loss of 106 pounds...but...I told him I'd rather start from the official weight of 248 when I went for the consult with Dr. Davis......so, that is where I wanted it to officially start at 248........ANYWAYS, I want to yell how happy I am......people have to do the "DOUBLE TAKE" to realize it is me.
Yes, I have lost 106 pounds in total since last year, but my official weight was 248 when I was weighed in my surgeon's office. I am a big loser, I am a big loser....:P
April 25th 2003
Hello everyone, how are you all doing?
I am doing great.
The weight loss has slowed down a bit but the hair loss has accelerated. :'{
That is ok, I know it will grow back.
I now weigh 168 but I have excess skin.
I can tolerate all foods, no problem eating (or dumping).
I do get full very quickly. I have switch my vitamins from children chewables to "vitaballs" chewing vita-min-gum.
I do take the children chewables on weekends because when I do take them I have to lay down for a while, they give me a tummy ache.
July 12th, 2003
Hello everyone, I am doing great..I am down to 150.
I got back from a wonderful vacation in PR. **Funny thing** I went upto my grandpa and said "Excuse me sir, can you tell me where I can find Felix"? He said, "That is me, at your service...how can I help you miss"? Then I just looked at him and asked "Don't you know who I am"? and he said "NO". I said I am Sylvia and he still didn't believe me until he saw my husband and kids going down the stairs. He was so surprised that he started to cry. He & my grandma raised me since I was 4 till I was 18! It has been 1 year since we have seen eachother..... was very happy.
August 25th 2003
Feeling great.........having the best time of my life.............Feeling like a teenager again!
I am now fitting into my 7 year old's clothing (size 10/12 children). I wear small pants and medium tops.
I fit into 7/8 jeans (women's) and into 28 (men's).
I TELL YOU, I LOVE THE NEW ME!
Sept 6, 2003.....Today I took my son to his pediatrician and he looked at my hands and said, "You better go and have your iron level checked". He said that by looking at my hands he can tell that I am anemic! I gasp and almost cried when he said that because I have been feeling very tired lately and cold all the time. He gave me a rx for liquid iron and I took it in to the pharmacy but they had to order it. It is Feosol over the counter but not the pill, it is in liquid.....pediatrician said it will be absorbed much quicker.
I hope I feel better soon....
OCTOBER 16th, 2003
Happy 1 year anniversary to me! I am feeling and looking great.
I do feel a bit sluggish, though. Partly due to my anemia and to my long hours at the office. Too much paper work and sometimes I am there 8-10 hours a day.
11/21/2004 (ALMOST 1 YEAR I HAVE NOT WRITTEN)
WOW! How time flies!
Today, I am healthy and I do feel very sluggish. I have been getting b12 shots at my pcp's and also my iron is very low.
Other than that, I feel and look wonderful. I have not had time to go online like I would like to (My teen daughter is always on the computer). I have to update this page and the pics soon. I am still at 133 pounds. I like me like this. I wear a size 3/4 jeans, x-small leggings and small tops. I went from size 11 wide shoes to 9 1/2 medium width shoes.
I will be posting a new pic of me soon.
08/15/2013...201 pounds! Smh....saw a billboard that read, "weight gain after gastric bypass?"
I took it as a sign!
Jan 2002: 280 Pounds
Sept 2003: 140 pounds (NO TUMMY TUCK OR LIPOSUCTION DONE, ~~~YET)!
Weight Summary
January 2002= 280 pounds (my all time high)
July 2002= 248 at consult with Dr. Davis
October 15,2002=241 day before surgery (-7 pounds due to stress)
November 11th 2002= 217 at 1st post-op visit (-31 in total)
November 22nd 2002= 210 at OB/GYN's office (-38 pounds in total)
December 27th 2002= 195 (-53 pounds in total)
February 17th 2003= 180 (-68 pounds in total)
March 10th 2003 = 174 (-74 pounds in total)
April 25th 2003 = 168 (-80 pounds in total)
July 12th 2003 = 150 (-98 pounds in total)
August 25th 2003 = 143 (-105 pounds in total)
Sept 1st 2003 = 140 (-108 pounds in total)
Oct 16th 2003 = 135 (-113 pounds in total)
Dec 05th 2003 = 133 (-115 pounds in total)
Sept 13th 2005 = 140 (Yes, I gained a couple of pounds, but due to stress)
August 23, 2010 = 190 ( I have gained 50 pounds and I am scared)
August 15, 2013 = 201 (61 gained)
That's the new me July 2005 in Niagara Falls Canada with hubby.
THIS IS THE HAPPY ME.............AT 140 POUNDS!!!!!
with love: Sylvia
Hospital Reviews
Product Reviews
- Crystal Lite Iced Tea
- Designer Protein - Designer Whey
- Popcicle - Sugar Free
- Snackwells - Snackwells Chocolate sandwich cookie
- Xenical Orlistat - Roche
Surgeon Info:
Surgeon: Daniel Davis, M.D.
My first impression: WOW, he is sooooo young. That was at the seminar. Had a consult with him answered my questions. I had surgery 10/16/02 and he came to visit 10/17/02 and on 10/18/02 to discharge me. His assistant, Dr. Sven, is wonderful.
Insurer Info:
AETNA US HEALTHCARE
I did not have to deal with them at all. Jennifer at Dr. Davis' office took care of everything. She sent in the approval request form and got an authorization number in like 4 days. Thanks Aetna and thanks Jennifer
