The start of the journey
May 29 2009 05:25 pm
I had looked at lap band briefly and the end of last year. The costs were what put me off initially. So I got stuck into doing some more research - what drs had good reps, who had been done and had problems and what were they, what food was involved etc.
I spoke to a couple of people that I knew of that had gotten done. One had major problems with hers and had to have it removed, the other had no problems.
I joined Yahoo lapbanders site and lurked and read what peoplethere had to say. I decided I would go and speak to a specialist and see what they said about me having it done. I was just going to take my time with it all.
The first specialist I saw was lovely. He put me at my ease as I had been panicking that they would say no you can't be done. He explained everything in detail to me,
He was more than willing to do my surgery but the hospital he operated out of had a bmi restriction and I was over that limit. Yeah stupid hey!! You're going to have an operation to lose weight but your too heavy. So he referred me to another specialist.
I came home and rang to make an appointment with the new one and was expecting to have to wait for a couple of weeks or so, but no, I was in the very next Monday!!!
I asked hubby to come with me so that he knew what it was all about as well and to catch anything I missed or ask any questions he might want to know.
When we saw Dr Adib we found him to be extremely friendly and positive person. He went thru things again about the surgery and then said he could do it on the 22 May, (It was the 20th April when I saw him). Hubby was straight away, "book it in for then". I was sitting there like a fish with my mouth opening and closing. I said "but we don't have the money yet". Hubby had already said he would sell one of his cars to pay for it, but as of that date we still hadn't sold it. Dr Adib said that he would do payment plan to help us out until the car sold.
While I was excited about having it done, I was also feeling guilty, that hubby finally after years of trying, had a car that he could show. But he insisted it was okay.
The dr had me starting optifast on May 1st, 3 weeks prior to my operation. The optifast stage is to shrink your liver. The dr during the op hangs up the liver so he can get to your stomach. If it is still fatty it can be damaged very easily, so getting rid of all fats from it, makes it safer to work on.
I had to see his dietician who gave me the eating plan for the first 3 weeks. I also had to make an appointment with a psychologist to make sure I was ready for the op.
With it being so close to not being able to have food, I had some friends come over for lunch for what we called the "Last Supper". Good food and good company.
I was nervous, excited but feeling positive that this was the start of something good.
I spoke to a couple of people that I knew of that had gotten done. One had major problems with hers and had to have it removed, the other had no problems.
I joined Yahoo lapbanders site and lurked and read what peoplethere had to say. I decided I would go and speak to a specialist and see what they said about me having it done. I was just going to take my time with it all.
The first specialist I saw was lovely. He put me at my ease as I had been panicking that they would say no you can't be done. He explained everything in detail to me,
He was more than willing to do my surgery but the hospital he operated out of had a bmi restriction and I was over that limit. Yeah stupid hey!! You're going to have an operation to lose weight but your too heavy. So he referred me to another specialist.
I came home and rang to make an appointment with the new one and was expecting to have to wait for a couple of weeks or so, but no, I was in the very next Monday!!!
I asked hubby to come with me so that he knew what it was all about as well and to catch anything I missed or ask any questions he might want to know.
When we saw Dr Adib we found him to be extremely friendly and positive person. He went thru things again about the surgery and then said he could do it on the 22 May, (It was the 20th April when I saw him). Hubby was straight away, "book it in for then". I was sitting there like a fish with my mouth opening and closing. I said "but we don't have the money yet". Hubby had already said he would sell one of his cars to pay for it, but as of that date we still hadn't sold it. Dr Adib said that he would do payment plan to help us out until the car sold.
While I was excited about having it done, I was also feeling guilty, that hubby finally after years of trying, had a car that he could show. But he insisted it was okay.
The dr had me starting optifast on May 1st, 3 weeks prior to my operation. The optifast stage is to shrink your liver. The dr during the op hangs up the liver so he can get to your stomach. If it is still fatty it can be damaged very easily, so getting rid of all fats from it, makes it safer to work on.
I had to see his dietician who gave me the eating plan for the first 3 weeks. I also had to make an appointment with a psychologist to make sure I was ready for the op.
With it being so close to not being able to have food, I had some friends come over for lunch for what we called the "Last Supper". Good food and good company.
I was nervous, excited but feeling positive that this was the start of something good.
For years I have battled with my weight. 20 years of stertoid medication didn't help, along with bad eating habits.
I had stopped smoking in September 2006 cold turkey. The determination that I had then, finally came to me in 2009. It was the right time for me to do something about my situation. I hadn't had any steroid medication for over 12 months, so no more excuses.
Now if you asked if there was one thing that motivated me more than anything else, then the answer is yes.
At the beginning of the year I had a bad fall in our ensuite. I was on the toilet and got up and took a step towards our bedroom. My left foot started to slide on the tiles (they had residue of Ajax on them from the cleaner). I ended up doing the splits, falling onto one knee, then onto my back.
I laid on the floor and sobbed. My husband came in to help me up but I couldn't sit properly due to pain and weight. There was no way that I could get my 167kg blob back onto my feet. As I laid there visions of firemen and ambulance officers coming to try and get me up had me sobbing harder.
I cried for humiliation, shame and disgust. It was the lowest of lows for me.
My husband was able to get my son's hoist and lift me that way and take me to the bed before releasing me. It didn't help that our son's overnight carer arrived during this time, so there was no hiding what had happened.
Right there and then I vowed that this would not continue. I wanted to live, I wanted to see my kids grow, get married and have children.
For me this is probably the kick start I needed.
I had stopped smoking in September 2006 cold turkey. The determination that I had then, finally came to me in 2009. It was the right time for me to do something about my situation. I hadn't had any steroid medication for over 12 months, so no more excuses.
Now if you asked if there was one thing that motivated me more than anything else, then the answer is yes.
At the beginning of the year I had a bad fall in our ensuite. I was on the toilet and got up and took a step towards our bedroom. My left foot started to slide on the tiles (they had residue of Ajax on them from the cleaner). I ended up doing the splits, falling onto one knee, then onto my back.
I laid on the floor and sobbed. My husband came in to help me up but I couldn't sit properly due to pain and weight. There was no way that I could get my 167kg blob back onto my feet. As I laid there visions of firemen and ambulance officers coming to try and get me up had me sobbing harder.
I cried for humiliation, shame and disgust. It was the lowest of lows for me.
My husband was able to get my son's hoist and lift me that way and take me to the bed before releasing me. It didn't help that our son's overnight carer arrived during this time, so there was no hiding what had happened.
Right there and then I vowed that this would not continue. I wanted to live, I wanted to see my kids grow, get married and have children.
For me this is probably the kick start I needed.
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