Scheduled and learning all I can - ThinnerTimes - Gastric Bypass Forum, Lap Band Forum, and Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy Forum

cathy82 · 10-16-2009, 05:47 AM

I spent hours yesterday reading threads on this site. It was very reassuring that I have made the right decision. My journey began in May when my husband told me he was planning to have gastric bypass surgery. I was opposed to the idea because of horror stories I had heard. I attended the info session with him and was surprised by the favorable statistics. I went to his first support group in June and began thinking that I not only supported him but was becoming interested in it myself. Now here is the unusual part. We are going to different surgeons and hospitals. He hopes to have his surgery in December and I am scheduled for February 8th. I chose a different program after researching it and talking to friends. It is not that his program has a problem, but I am the anxious type and I know I will do better if I go to where I believe the statistics are best and the after care sounds suited to me. Ironically at my husbands primary doc appointment last week they discovered underactive thyroid and atrial fib. This might delay his surgery, so I in fact may be going first. We want our surgeries at least a month a part for recovery and to be fair to our teenage son. My husband and I are both tall and about 300 pounds. He has to lose weight before surgery on his program. My surgeon just wants me not to gain any more. I did put on 20+ pounds this past summer when I was caring for my mother and in the weeks after she died. I just stopped walking and ate the wrong stuff. Now my joints are killing me and I know I need to get some of this off before surgery. I know I am a comfort/stress eater and realize after reading stories on here that I will have to be vigilant not to backslide after the surgery. I am pretty sure that I can follow the program to the T. I have lost nearly 100 pounds 3 times in the past. Once with medifast, once optifast and once on an Atkins-like protein diet. I just gained it back and more a few months after I ended the diet. I hope this time that I lay down new habits that I will carry forward. Having my husband on a similar program will hopefully reinforce each other.

Marella · 10-16-2009, 07:19 AM

Hi Cathy... welcome to Thinner Times.

My program also involved me NOT gaining weight, instead of losing.

I'm sure it will work out great for both of you... you can compare programs as you go along -- which indeed have their differences AS do the people here at TT have found a wide variety of differences between docs and programs.

The best is your confidence in your professionals. With you having this peace, you'll have a better 'mind' outcome.

Beware that men typically lose faster than women, and if his surgery goes on as scheduled, he'll be far ahead of you with his loss and will reach his goal far sooner (because it's a higher goal than yours). So don't let this despair you. I may be wrong, but it's just a heads up... we all lose at different rates.

Take care, and I wish you and your husband the very best of health.

poet_kelly · 10-16-2009, 07:42 AM

Welcome to TT. Good luck to both you and your husband. How exciting to go through this together!

Like Marella said, do be aware that sometimes men lose faster. And everyone is different, anyway. So while you're both having the same surgery, one might lose faster, one might have more pain after surgery, etc. And if you're going to different doctors, expect to get different advice about a pre-op diet and vitamins and when you can start solid food again and stuff.

Kelly