Finally Sleeved after trying for 4 years!

Wow...I wrote this review and not sure where I wrote it. I thought I maybe started a new account but was able to recover this one. SO here goes. I started this journey in 2016. I almost was approved on 4 different occasions and would get through the process and when it would go to insurance, i would be denied due to no comorbitites. In 2018 I started again as a cash payment, found a surgeon in my town, paid about 6k only to be denied at the end because the hospital refused to take any more cash payment bariatric patients. I started to think that it was a done deal. Then, I got a new insurance last year and started the process over again. Due to COVID, it put everything off this year. Once they started allowing elective surgeries again in August, i finally got a surgery date of Nov 17th. I was sleeved on 11/17/2020. My HW was 325. My SW was 284.5. I am now exactly 7 days PO and my CW is 271.5. It was a rough surgery to be completely honest. I had been researching VSG for many years , clearly. I had come in contact with many individuals who had VSG that said that the procedure wasn't that bad. Just the gas. Walk walk walk and sip sip sip. I wasn't prepared for the intense pain, the restriction, the stomach spasms. I instantly woke up with buyers remorse. I have cried almost every day since I got home until today. Today was a good day. The restriction is easing up and I'm able to take in a little more each day. All I can say is that everyones experience will be different. My advice is to never compare yourself or set and expectation based off of someone elses experience. I know there is a light at the end of the tunnel and eventually I will see it. I'm taking it one day at a time and looking forward to sharing my journey.

I went this past Monday and had my initial appointment with the nurse practitioner, dietitian and my psych eval. I was there a total of 5 hours. I think everything went well... all three people I saw signed off on the surgery stating that they felt like I would be a good candidate. I already eat kind of healthy and they did say that most women after they have hysterectomies gain weight for no reason. I guess it's just the changes in the hormones or the lack thereof. I have decided to not tell my boyfriend that I am going to have the surgery. We have talked about it before and he says he feels like it is the lazy way out and that I should just work out the old-fashioned way. I explained this to the psychiatrist and she asked me if he would be supportive. I told her no and that I really did not care. I am doing this for me and my kids...not for him. We have been off and on for about 4 years and if he wants to exit to the left he can be my guest. LOL. I was good until the nurse practitioner told me that I had to completely be nicotine free prior to my surgery. So they got nicotine levels on me and even though I have reduced the amount that I am smoking I went from a pack a day to half a pack a day my nicotine levels were really high. I was pretty bummed that they are making me completely quit smoking in the next 4 weeks. :(
On a good note I was told that my insurance does not require 6 months of dieting attempts and that it should take them about 2 weeks to get the approval. I was also told that because my BMI is right at 40% that I do not have to do the 2-week liquid diet prior to surgery... they did do a lot of blood work and it did come back that I was vitamin D deficient and my bilirubin levels were very elevated. We already knew about the bilirubin levels being elevated because I have gallbladder disease but they did tell me that they would take out my gallbladder and sleeve me in the same procedure so I'm excited about having both of those things done at the same time. The only people that know I am getting sleeved is my kids godparents and my father. Everyone else thinks I am just having my gallbladder removed. Fingers crossed that my family care doctor can get me some meds to help me stop smoking and that I get my appointment within the next month. I can't believe this is all happening so fast!!#

I waited and waited and finally took it upon myself to contact the surgeon since they never called. I have my psych eval and first visit on june 6th. I will be seeing the nutr.. the psych and the nurse practitioner. I need to have my gallbladder removed as well but right now that takes priority... I am hoping they will schedule both surgeries fairly quickly. Fingers crossed!!