Another day,... another day of appointments

So guess what??? after all that, I still have more testing to do. Ho Hum.... Will it ever end. Today I got to do a Halter test.. Basically they put sensors on my chest that are attached to a heart monitor and I get to wear that for a day.

Then next week I am doing a breathing (PFT I think is what its called) test. That is supposed to help monitor how I will do breathing while being sedated. (I tried to tell them breathing was overrated, but they ignored me).

Then I have some more blood work to do (If only they would wear Edward masks when they take my blood.. LOL

And then...... Once I have my date, a couple of days before it I have another series of tests to do.... More blood work, a CMF, CMA (I think) and a Pregnancy test. Geez.... I hope I get an award or something....

Anyways. That is where I am at the moment...

OH P.S. I lost 4 pounds since my last visit. See I should go to vegas more often. hehehe...

Have a great weekend everyone!!!!

Saw the Dietitian today

Hey there, so today, I went to my monthly meeting with my dietitian. She is a nice lady, that calls me on my bull....! Hahah, I so need that. I sometimes try to con even myself into believing that I'm being good. lol

Anyways, while I was there I verfied that my information was sent to the surgeons office. She said I should hear from them in about 2 weeks to set my date. Once my date is set, I am to start a semi-liquid diet. Basically that means that I will get to have 1 meal a day and nothing but liquids the rest of the day. I need to loose weight right before the surgery so that my fat will be softer and easier for them to cut through to do the surgery. (Yes this is a graphic blogsite)

Anyways. so thats where I am.. I have started walking with my family. (My dad, mom and sometimes Jaron) during the late afternoon, evening time. When its starting to cool down basically. We havent gone too far compared to most people, but, with my dad having emphazima, and my weight issue, we are taking it slow. My doctor agreed this was a good idea. Although when it starts heating up, he recommends finding something indoors to do.

Hope everyone has a great week and I will be back with more info soon.

Finally finished the last of the testing!!!!!

Today I went to my last pre-op test. (The upper G.I.) It was not a fun test... I had to drink 2 chalk shakes. (Not chocolate, but chalk) and also a shooter of some alkaseltzer tasting crystals with water. Ugh, I so wanted to get sick after. Once you have drank all that yukky stuff, they move the table up and down so they can watch with the machince how it goes down your esophogus. Not fun. I am soooo glad to finally be done with that. (Although, I will have to do an upper GI at least once a year or as needed).

Now that I have finished the testing, my Dr. will send my packet of results down to the surgeon, who turns it into the insurance company for approval.

Once my insurance company approves the surgery, the surgeons office will call me and set the date for my surgery.

Typically they said, it can take from a week to a month to get the date set.... SOOOOO.... once again we will wait.

Thank you to everyone who has been helping me get through all of this. Its been so frustrating waiting and testing.

And a special thank you to my friend Brittney. She took me to my very first appointment, so that I wouldnt be alone or chicken out to get started...THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Muah

Sorry, Not much has been happening

So, today I went to my Dr. appoinment. Just for my routine monthly check in with him. He asked if I had a date set yet. I told him, no, that I have one more test left, the Upper GI, and I have an appointment for that next week. He started to get upset and called his medical assistants, and his office manager in the room. One at a time. I got to have front row seats to him getting upset with them about his patients having to wait. And told them to contact the surgeon (Dr. Cunneen) and find out what can be done about it. What an interesting appointment to say the least. Last night I had my other sleep test appointment, where I had to wear an oxygen machine. If was very uncomfortable, and I had to breath through my nose, when Im so used to breathing with my mouth or nose. I felt like I was going to suffocate. I didnt sleep much so Im not sure how they were able to get very good results. But at least that part is done. So, next is my upper GI, then hopefully I will have my surgery date. Hope everyone had a great Easter and I will update again soon!

Psychiatric Evaluation

So, yesterday I completed my Psych Evaluation. This was one I was kinda worried about. No I don't think I'm crazy, lol. Most of you know I suffered through depression for quite a while after I had Jaron, so I was concerned that they might think that I wasn't emotionally stable enough to handle the surgery.

He asked alot of questions of course. My two favorites were, at the beginning he told me three words that he wanted me to keep in my head and he would ask me about them later.... Red, Cadillac, and Farm..... No Problem, Gary has a Red car, he loves Cadillacs, and well Farm, I'm not sure how I used word association with it, but it worked. SO thanks... heheheh.. The other question that I loved was that he wanted me to count backwards from 100, by 4's. So I did. I got to about 60 and he was like, OK that's enough. And then stated how I was the first person in a long time that first didn't roll their eyes and say, ugh I hate math, and that I was quick about doing the little challenge.. That made me feel proud of myself (I love Math, and I'm great at number patterns). Anyways, obviously those questions didn't have anything to with the weight loss part, but he needed to ask them I guess. The other questions about weight loss were a little harder to answer. Especially the main one, of... What made me finally make the decision to have the lap band surgery. My answer is a basic one.... I got scared that I wouldn't be able to live long enough to see Jaron grow up. The hard part was saying it out loud. But I did. I tried to be as honest with him as I could. I figured if I'm not honest with him and myself, then I wasn't going to be able to help myself.

Now the good news...... He said I was a great candidate for the surgery and cleared me. YAY!!!!

I now only have one step to go. The Upper GI. I had some financial issues with Kern Radiology, so I am having to wait for payday to do that one. But once that is done, they will be submitting my information to my insurance company for approval.

I cant wait.

Ill be updating once I have more info. Have a great weekend everyone!!!

Nutritional Evaluation

Had my appointment with the dietitian today.

I had to have a nutritional evaluation, to see if I qualify for the surgery as far as my efforts dieting and nutrition are concerned.

After a very long discussion, she said she would give my information to the doctor and that it looked good. We discussed everything that will change as far as what I will be able to eat once I have the surgery. Then she gave me some things to do in the mean time. I am to start a protein suppliment, that I will be on untill at least 6 months after the surgery. I am starting a multi-vitamin, and here it goes....... I have to have a minimum of at least 2 bottles of water everyday.. just to start off with. Yay... So it is now time for me to begin on this journey. I have to get myself off sodas before I have the surgery (unless I want to let one sit out all day and go completely flat.. but thats out of the question). That will be my biggest obstacle for now. I also need to cut the size of my portions. I know this might sound obvious to some of you, but its not always as easy as it seems.

The rest of this week, I have an abdominal ultrasound, a chest xray, an upper GI and I think thats it. (For now. seems like stuff keeps being added). THen in 2 weeks I have my psychiatric evaluation. (No jokes)... And then I should be on my way..Yay

Love everyone, and thank you for the well wishes about my grandmother.

Met the Surgeon Today

I met the surgeon today. He was very kind and answered all my questions patiently. He went over with me many of the types of foods that I will not be able to eat, and also the foods that I will still be able to eat. He explained the Realize band to me, how it works, some of the good things it does as well as the complications that can happen. He was very detailed. He gave me alot of information to take home and review.

He said once I get the testing done (he ordered more), then he will submit my information to the insurance company and then, once that is approved, we schedule the surgery. He said, depending on how long it takes me to get the tests done, I could be looking at surgery in about 6 weeks. Yay.

For the surgery, I will travel down to Los Angeles on a Monday (more than likely) and then go to a pre-op type class to get some understanding on what to expect. Tuesday he would do the surgery, and they would keep me overnight for observation. Then I would be able to go home Wednesday. THis was an example of course, because it hasnt been scheduled yet. I will be on pain medication for a minimum of 2 days he said. And NO driving during that time. So now I will just have to figure out, who will be able to take me and stay with me, and then drive me home.

I cant wait for it all to happen. I will update further soon!!!!