Hi ssss
That's good you have someone in the flesh close by. My husband is supportive - although he keeps reminding me that this isn't a snake oil remedy and that I still have to work hard - he'll give me gym membership as an incentive - I keep telling him that diamonds work better, but he keeps telling me they're just bits of glass that aren't going to help me get off my ... backside!!!

I have decided for the moment not to tell anyone except for my husband, because he'll have to look after the kids. I haven't made up my mind whether I will tell anyone I am going into hospital just so I can avoid having to tell them anything. I might just say I'm having a "girls weekend" away. Would you believe I am surrounded by health freaks. My husband, best friends, most of my family - I mean seriously fanatical nuts who get up at 4am to ride up hills or run marathons. It's hard when you have so many health conscious people around you to feel comfortable with yourself when you are 55-60kg overweight. They are able to have self control over what they eat - I lost that a long time ago.

This is a great website! We need to have something like this for all areas of our life - I think there would be less anxiety - ... someone somewhere would have posted something about something affecting us personally that we could read and say "I feel better because someone else is going through the same thing". I am looking forward to hearing "our" stories because we are going to have great success too and painless surgery, ha! LOL.

M.

Thanks Maria...

Yep...I get everything you say re not setting up for failure and managing expectations...also went through the stage pre opti of wanting to make sure I got to taste as much as possible...
Was pleased to send back the filo basket untouched and looking as if I hadn't eaten any of the little bits of meat...which I really didn't eat much of. Must say though the food was lovely and it was a terrible waste....would love to have brought it home for the family.

Tracy from Perth is being sleeved same hospital, same doc and same day as me -- and we're hoping to connect and support each other (although I don't want to talk for her). Really the only people I am sharing this experience with are the sleevers on this forum. Have told my hubby but not really discussing it with him as I don't want him to be too stressed about the whole thing. Have told one friend but again not in too much detail. The other people I've told -- and there aren't many -- have only said that I'm having surgery, nothing important, just fine tuning -- and discouraged conversation about why. Have told them I am on pre-op diet to shrink liver. I guess the good (?) thing is at my age, everyone is likely to consider its gynae related anyway and that's too embarrassing to discuss!

I think this community is tremendous and am looking forward to seeing all our stories unfold...what about you?

Hi ssss!
Good on you for having a positive outlook. I try to avoid high expectations or assumptions that way anything "good" is a bonus and I don't have too much work picking myself up - it sounds cynical when you write it down. I hear what you're saying, the whole idea that we are going to have control over our eating and lose weight as well seems like a fantasy ... one that I have wanted to achieve for many years. Lots of people sound confident and are having really good results on this website so with the posititve attitudes it will happen for us too.

You did an amazing job at self control at lunch. Apart from the filo pastry the beef salad sounded healthy, same as the soup. It was a wise choice to skip the tiramisu. It's not really a favourite of mine, so that sounded easy enough. I haven't really stepped up the self control yet. I seem to be eating a wide range of things (not over eating) - I think I'm subconsciously saying goodbye to food knowing I'm not going to be able to overeat it afterwards! I start Opti next week, the nurse wants me to do it for three weeks (not sure why) I haven't told her. That will start to make it more real for me.

I'll be thinking of you, counting down the sleeps. Are you sharing the experience with anyone?

M.

Hi Maria,

Nerves are fine....it all still seems a really long way away because I have so much work to do first.....must admit to really looking forward to a nice relaxing sleep and restful hospital stay with no dramas (and hopefully no nausea, no vomiting and no pain....which clearly suggests my expectations are already too high, although this has been the experience of some on the forum.) In some ways I think the whole notion of losing weight and not eating as much as I used to ...of being more controlled and disciplined about what and when I eat is so foreign that I can;t even visualise what it will be like.

Today I broke the opti for the first time in a week. I have been doing fine on it now -- don;t like it a lot but have found my peace with the bars. Today I went to an intimate lunch with 10 other people and some very high profile business attendees...I thought it would be too visible not to eat anything....so was served the entre (thai beef salad...basically strips of beef in filo pastry basket on bed of rice noodles, and shredded carrot and capsicum and chilli sauce. I ate three tiny strips of beef (about the size all up of a 20 cent piece) and maybe half a dozen forkfulls of the noodle mix (it looked like I hadn't eaten anything). For mains, the kitchen had made me a tomato soup (everyone else had salmon, prawn and bed of veges with hollandaise sauce). It was beautiful and I had about a litre on my plate (one of those arty very large soup dishes). I ate about a cup or less I think (there was a lot left). The only sad thing was that the chef knows I don;t like salmon and shellfish so had got me a lovely piece of lamb instead, which he left uncooked and made the soup at my request (sob). I then waved away the tiramisu cake for dessert followed by chocolates....

So I wish I hadn't had to go to lunch but felt quite comfortable about my choices...the smell of the hot fresh bread roll was sooo tempting and a month ago I would have demolished the lot. As I'm allowed two cups of veges a day I'm counting what I ate at lunch as that and I'm forging ahead with the opti bars.

I think because there is only a week to go I'm actually finding it easier than I thought to just stick with the diet and be dogged about doing what I need to do....hope I still feel like this after the surgery....

Thanks for asking....how are you going with getting ready...less than a month to go?

S

Hi Ssss
How's the nerves going? Are you surviving the Optifast?

Maria





Heaviest Weight: 126kg
Weight today (18.03.10): 125.3
Sleeve Date: 30.04.10
Surgeon: Dr Baker, Mater Hospital, Townsville.

Hi flipflop...

You might also want to add yourself to the April 2010 topic in Sleevers Monthly...

We start getting sleeved on April 6 and you would be the last for the month on the 30th...

It will be great to keep track of each other and compare notes as we progress.

At least three of us are on optifast already and it's not that long till we get started.

cheers from another newbie and April sleever

s

Hello flipflop and welcome.
Yep we all felt nervous and anxious at some stage.
As others have said, if you feel comfortable with your surgeon then go for it. I see others have been sleeved by him so thats a bonus.
Your time will zoom by.

Hi,

Thanks Linda, I am celebrating that the weight is finally going, never to return lol

Maria, nothing is too personal in here. I've even chatted about my marriage problems and people have been so supportive, expecially when I was feeling so low.

We chat in here, and in pm and some of us are linked by phone. Pm me and I'll give you my number, if you want to chat sometimes.

I havent started a diary as I seem to say what I want to say, somewhere in the forum. For me, my ticker tells my tale, even though, I am staying off the scales for a couple of weeks at a time - better results then, at least thats my theory.

Alex

Hi Alex,
Thanks for that. I needed to hear that you guys have all been happy with your choices.
I will try and meet up with you all at some stage - the 27th is my son's birthday so could be a bit tricky - if we are in Townsville I will definately try to pop in just to say hello.
I have been tracking your sleeve ... yes I was skulking around in the background before getting the nerve to actually post anything LOL ... I have been wondering how you are doing? I'm glad to hear that you have been doing so well. Where do Tsv members chat - just in the Townsville members section? Are you keeping a diary? Sorry, not getting too personal am I?

Maria

Akadano54......LOVE your avatar!!!
Linda :))

Hi Maria (flipflop),

Townsville girls are meeting on the 27th at the Souvlaki Hut, Charters Towers Rd, at 10.00. We have a Tvll group site in here and chat to each other, why not join us on the 27th and in the site as well?

We are a mixed group and the three surgeons have operated on people in our group, so you will be able to chat to them. Its my understanding that all three Drs are favourties with their patients, so I am sure that whom ever you shoose, you wont go wrong.

I was sleeved three weeks ago by Dr Bovey and Libbeed and maybe Timetochange had Dr Avramovic and Kimba went with Dr Baker. There are many others who will give feedback, you just need to pm or ask on the site.

Choosing your Dr is an anxiety producing exercise, as is the pre-op wait, but oh, so worth it in the end. Hang in there, ask your questions and read earlier posts as you will find the answers that you seek. I know that I did and I am so thankful for the wonderful people in this site, who take the time to help alleviate some of our anxieties.

cheers,

Alex

Nice to talk to you Gail and Linda,
I do hear what you are saying. The reason for my worry is because I actually had the chance here in Tsv to have either surgeon. I've made my choice only because one was able to get me in so soon - I just want this process to start (I know you can understand that). Then I went into the Surgeon Topic section here, and everyone is singing the "other" surgeons praises - and that's o.k. maybe it's because for a long time he was the only one doing them up here. I just want this to work so much.

Maria






Heaviest Weight: 126kg
Weight today (18.03.10): 125.3
Sleeve Date: 30.04.10
Surgeon: Dr Baker, Mater Hospital, Townsville.

Thanks Caz,
I have seen what a fabulous effort you have all achieved and I'll have to stay focused on that. I'm sure that the people sleeved by my surgeon will all have good things to say about him, ay? Yesterday I had a grin from ear to ear because I have been given a date that's not so far away - and now...anxiety, gotta luv it!!!





Heaviest Weight: 126kg
Weight today (18.03.10): 125.3
Sleeve Date: 30.04.10
Surgeon: Dr Baker, Mater Hospital, Townsville.

Hello :),
Surgeon.....choose someone you feel comfortable with, as Caz said, ask around, everyone will tell you if they are happy or not!. Don't choose a surgeon that is a long way as the travelling will get to you and believe me you will need to see them quite a few times post op for a while!
Hunger..... you have to get your head around this one in your own way.... it is just so different with every single person, well, from what Ive read on here it is!! LOL
Staples..... Yes sometimes they do fail, not often, surgeons can give you figures. They usually put 3 rows in though and some use glue as well. Again, they wouldn't use them if there was a more efficient way and most have no trouble.

It's good to ask questions, don't stop.
Linda :)

Hi flipflop and welcome,
Believe it or not we have all been through what you are going through so we understand.
We also know that it is fantastic on the other side so we had nothing to worry about LOL

As to the surgeon go to the surgeon section and check to see if he is there, or ask the others.

Cheers Gail

Don't Panic - in the words of the "Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy".

We all had concerns to start with, but look at the feedback from everyone. You'll be fine. The hunger WILL go away (if not right away, not long after), can't help with the surgeon, but perhaps try and find someone else they have operated on to get an opinion.

It will be fine.

Hi!

I have been getting used to this wonderful site for about a week now but am only brave enough to start posting. This is probably because I have only just had my first appointment (yesterday) and been given a date - so now it's real ... 30th April here I come!!! Scary.

I've had most questions answered just by reading through all the topics - and had all the questions I didn't know I needed to ask answered as well. I also have to admit that I have been very inspired by photos in the gallery.

I can feel my anxiety building...please help put me at ease - I'm starting to stress over silly things like choice of surgeon? what if the hunger doesn't go away? what if the staples don't work?