theworldaccordingtoeggface: Thankful for Good Health Giveaway!

theworldaccordingtoeggface: Thankful for Good Health Giveaway!: "Thanksgiving is a time to reflect on all the things we are thankful for. One of the things I am so thankful for is having weight loss surger..."

I'm thankful for having weight loss surgery as well. I could not have done it without insurance to help with the cost. I'm thankful for the support of my family as I travel this weight loss journey and I am thankful for the inspiration of those who have already had success with WLS - -- such as "EGGFACE"!!!
Happy Thanksgiving to all!
Andrea Hulsey
alhulsey@yahoo.com

One Week Post-Op

I am feeling better and stronger everyday. I have learned the secret to tolerating the protein drinks is to have a variety and not have the same thing each day. Some of the heavier milky shakes are hard to swallow, so I have enjoyed finding thinner more fruity protein drinks that go down easier. My one week appointment with my surgeon was uneventful. He said my incisions looked good and that I was doing very well. He progressed me on to the soft foods stage of my nutrition program - which was great news to me!!! I have been enjoying refried beans with cheese, eggs with cheese, and even tolerated some broiled flounder with lemon.

Weight History:

High Weight - 251
Preop liquid diet - lost 12 pounds
Hospital stay - gained 6 pounds (fluid)
One week post post op - lost 14 pounds total since beginning the preop liquid diet

I am on my way to being healthy!!!

Surgery Day! 8-5-10

I had to be at the hospital at 9:25a and surgery was scheduled for 11:25a. I was a little nervous, but in control. The pre-op staff were very nice and took good care of me. It was nice to have the versed to help me relax. The operating room was running behind, so I was not taken back until around noon. That is a weird feeling when they are wheeling you down the halls and into the operating room where all of the instruments and such are. It got colder and colder the closer we got to the OR. Finally when in the OR the nurse threw a warm blanket (felt like it had just come out of the dryer) on me. There was no waiting around. The anesthesiologist gave me oxygen and put meds in my IV and I was out! I don't remember the recovery room at all. Just as soon as I was awake, they moved me to my hospital room where my husband was waiting for me. I had to have my C-PAP with oxygen on for a while because me O2 levels were not maintaing well. I was immediately hooked to the PCA pump and had no pain - just stiffness and awareness that I had been operated on. The worst pain I had immeditately after the surgery was my neck and upper back - apparently a result of whatever position they had me in while in the operating room. My husband massaged some of the soreness out for me and after some rest this disipated. I spent one night in the hospital and had the best nurses around the clock. I had regular intervals of intervenous pain medication. By midnight, I was to be up and walking, so my nursing assistant took me for a midnight walk around the halls and I did well. I was allowed ice chips for the first 18 or so hours. Then I was allowed to sip on crystal lite lemonade. I was given a liquid lunch (broth, sf popsicle, sf jello, tea, water). I spent the day taking short walks around the hospital halls with my husband. By 6p, we were getting ready to be discharged. I had a liquid dinner while waiting for my surgeon to visit and discharge me. The last thing to be removed before leaving was the j-vac drain. It was quick and very uncomfortable. I was exhausted by the time we got home and went straight to bed. My husband was a SUPER nurse and took very good care of me. By day 3 out of the hospital, most of my soreness was gone and I could walk around the house just fine. Spasms in my esophagus and upper abdomen bothered me the first few days, but the surgeon's office said this was normal and would go away within two weeks - which it did. It was VERY hard to get the required fluids and protein in during the first week. I was also plagued with water diarrhea for several days until I could proceed to the soft foods diet at one week. All in all I had a very successful surgery and hospital stay.

Pre-op Testing - What a Day! 7-28-10

I was not nervous at all about this day. It was just another step closer to getting my surgery. Unfortunately, I had an "episode" when they came to draw blood. I was expecting to have blood drawn, but I was NOT expecting to have an ABG (arterial blood gas) draw. I got sick and almost passed out. They had to call a supervisor to do the draw. It was very embarassing. The rest of this visit went fine (ekg, regular blood draw, and chest xray). I packed a cooler with my protein shakes and water for the day. All in all the testing visit at the hospital took about 2 hours.

TWO WEEK LIQUID DIET

It's day four of the 14 day liquid diet and I am tolerating it pretty well. I have tried different protein shakes and have a couple that I really like. They fill me up for several hours, so I have not had a lot of feelings of hunger. I have, however, WANTED to eat other foods - especially when my family is eating a meal. Nine more days of this liquid diet, then clear liquids on the day prior to surgery. So far, I've lot 3 pounds in four days.

I have my pre-op appointment this Wednesday, which is supposed to take several hours to complete. I am very exciting about this surgery, but am starting to get a little nervous and anxious as well!

APPROVAL AND SURGERY DATE

I was surprised to find a voice mail on my phone from the surgeon's office on 6-25-10 stating that they had submitted my file and I had been approved by insurance!!! This was a huge surprise because I was told by my insurance company's bariatric nurse for dietary monitoring that I had to have one initial visit to weigh in, then have six additional visits for monitoring of diet and exercise for a total of seven visits. I didn't even know that the surgeon's office was going to submit my file to insurance one month early. I called the bariatric nurse to confirm that I have been approved and the good news is TRUE! Today I scheduled the surgery for August 5, 2010. So far, it is a "GO". Now I am just waiting to schedule pre-op testing, find out how much out-of-pocket I will have to pay, and to start the two week liquid diet.

Right now, it really hasn't sunk in - - - I'm still in shock that the approval happened so quickly and without any problems. I am blessed!

IS THE END IS SIGHT?

My fifth appointment with my dietician went well. She seemed to see the end in sight! She is very encouraging and I only wish insurance would cover appointments to see her AFTER surgery. I had a 1.5 hour appointment with the surgery center nutritionist recently. She went over eating habits, vitamin requirements, protein supplements, etc. She also was very helpful. I am completely off of carbonated and caffeinated beverages now. I have one more hurdle before the surgery, which is mastering eating meals without drinking. I understand that this is a "MUST" for the by-pass surgery to work effectively. So......I will conquer this hurdle in the near future. One more appointment with the dietician and I will have completed the insurance requirements. I have completed all of the group support requirements and surgery center requirements. I keep a notebook of all of my records and documentation in this journey. That notebook is overflowing at this point! Physically and mentally I believe I am ready for this surgery. Emotionally, I hope I can cope and make it through. With God's help, I am sure I can. There are so many individual and family emotions invovled in this process - LONG TERM!

TIME PASSES SLOWLY

It seems like it is taking FOREVER to make it through the insurance requirements for WLS. I had my fourth dietician visit and my fifth support group session this week. My bariatric nurse called last week to check on my progress. I have completed the sleep study, been diagnosed with sleep apnea, and now use a cpap machine. I have lots of ups and downs over the past couple of months. One big DOWN was the realization of just how bad my obesity is....when I saw a candid picture of myself. Pictures somehow do not look the same as what I see in the mirror at home! I have been doing my best to dot every "I" and cross every "T" so that I won't hit any snags with insurance. I am SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO ready to have this surgery, get healthy and improve myh self esteem!

SLEEP STUDY

One more milestone has been met. I had the surgeon required sleep study this weekend. That was strange!!! Even though I kind of knew what to expect since my husband and father have both had the study, it was still odd to have all of those wires all over me and was expected to sleep! I did finally sleep a little and was relieved at 6a when the technician came to get me ready to leave. Needless to say, I slept a good part of that day when I got home to my own bed.

APPOINTMENTS, APPOINTMENTS, APPOINTMENTS

It feels good to make even the slightest progress in this process! In two weeks time I have attended a group therapy session, attended the required education class, taken psychological exams, met with the psychologist for an evaluation, and met with the surgeon. I was VERY impressed with the group therapy and plan to attend regularly both before and after my surgery. The psychological exams took 3 hours and were exhausting! The psychologist seems to think I am "normal" and will do fine with the surgery. The surgeon and staff at Obesity Solutions are phenomenal! I feel like I could not be in better hands at this point. Now I just have to bide my time doing the insurance required physician monitored dieting and attendiong the group support sessions. I hope time flies!!! I am SOOOOO ready to proceed with this surgery and get healthy!

Making Progress

After numerous attempts this week and LOTS of frustration, I finally got to talk to a case manager with my insurance, who opened my case and assigned me to a nurse. I know this is only a tiny step in the process, but it was the first REAL progress that I have made with the insurance company, so I was on cloud 9 after this conversation. Only three days until I have my first conversation with my nurse and then one week until I have my appointment with my PCP and can discuss my plans with him. I am a member of the "Obesity Help" message board, which has been SOOOOO helpful, supportive and informative as I begin this journey.....it is a connection to countless people who have been or are in the same position as me.....as connection that I could not have if it were not for this message board. I am so thankful for this resource.

First Small Step

This would seem like a small step for most people, but I have been waiting months for this day! Now that my new insurance has taken effect, today was my first chance to finally talk to someone at the insurance company to verify coverage and to request entry into their Bariatric Services program. Once I had the coverage verification, I completed the last paperwork for my doctor and rushed my "inch thick" package to the post office to get it into the mail ("priority mail" - no less!). I am supposed to have a case worker from the insurance company call within two days to register me into the bariatric program. I am going to be devistated if I end up having my application for bariatric surgery denied by the insurance company! I'll keep praying and keep my fingers crossed!

In the Beginning

This blog has been created to document my journey to a better life. Overall, I have a GREAT life with a loving family, a great job and a loving church family. God has blessed me in many ways throughout my life. The part of my life that needs a major change is my health. I grew up with no weight problems whatsoever. As a child/teen could eat anything I wanted at any time of day or night and not worry about putting on pounds. That all changed VERY QUICKLY as a young adult. My desk job, of coarse, has led to a sedentary lifestyle and my laziness has lead to little or no activity after work. After marrying, our favorite thing to do was eat out and cook out. Luckily, there was no judgment of my weight gain from my husband....we were just two happy little pigs eating our way through life. Soon, we added twin boys to our family, which kept us very busy and tired. There was no time to sit around and eat after the boys were born, so I was able to lose down to my pre-pregnancy weight (even though I was still obese) very quickly and without much work. We built a house, settled down and the boys started school and soon the pounds started building back on. Of coarse, my husband could just drink slimfast for lunch and get his weight down, but not so for me. Once those pounds went on, they stuck like gorilla glue!!! I have tried fad diets through the years and could lose a few pounds here or there but always went back to my old eating habits and gained the lost pounds back - plus a few extra!

I have always taken care to get my annual gynocological exams and the doctor has always noted that my blood pressure is "up a little". Several years ago he suggested that I start getting regular exams from a PCP, so I did as he said and made an appointment. The PCP was very concerned with my blood pressure and put me on medication right away. He also put me on the dreaded DASH diet to help lower the blood pressure and help with the obesity. I was also concerned after this exam, so I vowed to change my eating habits by implementing the DASH diet to lower my blood pressure and weight and I would begin regular exercise. I jumped into this endeavor head first and while it was THE HARDEST THING I HAVE EVER DONE (even harder than raisng twin boys!!!), I was successful (for a while). I stuck to the diet and exercised religiously. I remember my PCP asking if I could make this a permanent lifestyle change. At the time, I answered yes, because I was feeling so successful after losing 53 pounds. This is the most committed I have ever been to getting healthy and is absolutely the most weight I have ever been able to lose. The truth is, I was miserable! Yes, I felt good that I could buy smaller clothes and I was getting complements left and right, but inside I was truly miserable! My diagnosis of myself: I am addicted to food. I don't have to be hungry to eat.....I love the way food tastes. I fell off the wagon and FELL HARD! Those 53 pounds (and of coarse a few extra) came back with a vengence and I simply gave up on the dieting and exercise.

Now I have another plan that will hopefully be a tool to help me lose the weight for good and to maintain a healthy lifestyle and weight. I am pursuing bariatric surgery. I persuaded my husband to attend a Bariatric Center of Excellence seminar. It was very informative and won me over. I feel like this is the answer to my obesity problem.

Where I am now: I have completed my paperwork (LOTS of paperwork) for the Surgeon's office. I have new insurance that takes effect January 1, 2010 that does cover weight loss surgery, so I am impatiently waiting for Monday, January 4, 2010 to roll around so I can contact the insurance company to get started on this journey. Once I talk to the insurance company, I can submit my paperwork to the Bariatric surgeoun's office and get started. Most likely I will have to go through six months of a supervised diet and six months of psychiatric counseling to meet insurance requirements. I don't look forward to wading through six months of delay, but if insurance will approve after all of that, I am willing to "do the time".