The Journey So Far
The main purpose of this web site is to provide information about my experiences with WLS (Weight Loss Surgery). When I first got serious about having Roux-en-Y (RNY) Gastric Bypass (GBP) surgery, most of my information came from the internet. My wife and I found some of the most valuable stuff from sites developed by people who had been through this surgery and were willing to share their experiences with the world. Lots of other good information was available from online groups like OSSG and the many sub-groups available through Yahoo. The people at the surgeon's office encouraged us to attend one of their monthly support group meetings before my initial consultation.
I decided that I was interested enough to make an appointment in December of 2000. I called the surgeon's office and was told that the earliest appointment I could get was with the newest doctor in the practice, at the end of February 2001. We were frustrated when in the middle of February, someone from the office called to reschedule for the middle of March. Later, I realized how lucky I was to get in so quickly. The waiting period to get an initial consultation is much longer now.
On Valentine's Day, my wife and I went to the hospital where the doctors in the surgery practice hold a monthly support group meeting for anyone in the area who has had, is planning to have, or is interested in WLS. My wife took extensive notes and we learned a lot including the fact that I would not be a candidate for laproscopic surgery . Since then we have only missed one meeting. Many of the people at that meeting are the same ones we had gotten acquainted with on the OSSG-SA group I belong to. They gather for dinner at a different local restaurant each month before the support group meeting. What a fabulous group of people with a huge store of knowledge!
At my consultation on March 13, 2001 the surgeon told me to get an echocardiogram, a cardiac stress test, a new sleep study (even though I had been diagnosed with sleep apnea over a year earlier), and to lose 30 pounds. That last one made me mad. I thought "If I could lose weight, I wouldn't be here." Then I realized that I could lose weight; I'd done it dozens of times. What I've never been able to do is keep the weight off and once I have the surgery, that shouldn't be too much of a problem for a while. So I've given it a good shot and while I haven't lost 30 pounds yet, I'm doing pretty well toward that goal.
When those tests were under way the doctor's office called to tentatively schedule my surgery for June 11, 2001. In the meantime, I continued to go to support group meetings and gather information from the internet. On June 5, I was scheduled to go in for my pre-op tests and the final consultation with the surgeon. The tests went fine, but when I arrived at the surgeon's office that afternoon, I was told that my surgery would have to be moved from the hospital I had originally been scheduled into to a better equipped hospital. This meant that it would also have to be postponed 9 days until June 20, 2001. At first I was upset because I was psyched up already. After a day or so, I settled down and realized that it is probably for the best. So that is where I am now, waiting for the 20th to arrive. I'll keep you posted on my progress.