Baby steps...

One step at a time.  I keep reminding myself.  It seems like everything is moving along so slow.  I met one of the surgeons on Friday.  It was a one on one meeting instead of a large seminar like other drs. do.  I was able to ask questions, etc.  After my appointment with him I had my nutritional consult.  Now for the things I still need to get done before a date can be set:

• I have to have my gallbladder sonogram done.  My PCM ordered that before I went to see the surgeon due to my gallbladder acting up.  Hopefully I will not need it removed.  If I do, it will be in a separate surgery than the bypass.  The surgeon said they don't like to do both at the same time.
• I have to have my second night of a sleep study done and get calibrated for a CPAP machine.  I did my first night a long time ago and was diagnosed with mild to moderate sleep apnea.  
• I have to get a letter of clearance from a Psychiatrist stating I am mentally capable of handling the changes my body will go through and the emotional toll I will go through.

The big hurdle will be to get Tricare to approve it.  I meet the criteria, so it shouldn't be a problem.

Once I get approved I can set the date!!  They are scheduling about 3 weeks out right now.  Once I have a date set I will have to get bloodwork with 30 days of the surgery date and then there is a diet I will have to follow for 2 weeks prior to reduce the amount of fat in my liver.

The diet is as follows:

• Breakfast - 1 protein shake, a multi vitamin and a calcium supplement
• Lunch - 1 protein shake, and a calcium supplement
• Dinner- 3 oz (palm size) lean protein serving (i.e. chicken, fish, turkey), non starchy veggie (NOT potatoes and corn), a multi vitamin and a calcium supplement.

I will also need to drink AT LEAST 64 ounces of water each day.

They gave me a list of which  protein shakes to use and which ones to avoid and what to look for in a shake.  The shakes will be a part of my daily routine after the surgery, so doing this before hand will help me figure out what flavors/types I like, can tolerate, etc.

There is a  list of medications that I can't take for 2 weeks prior.  Tylenol and Mobic are the only two I see I will have to stop.  Of course I will go over my list of meds with the dr to make sure there are not also on the list.

Now that I have done the research, and done the soul searching I am ready.  I wish I could speed time up to the day of the surgery.  I am ready to start that part of the adventure.

I find myself checking out clothes and shoes in the misses/juniors dept and thinking "wow I will be able to wear that soon".  I am afraid I am going to really enjoy shopping for clothes again once I reach my goal weight.  Of course until then I will be hitting up resale shops and thrift stores since my size will be changing so quickly.

I don't just think about the good that will come from this surgery.  I think about the bad too.  The scary side effects.  The worst case scenarios.  I try not to dwell on them, but they do cross my mind.  I know that this is not going to be easy, that there are days I will be crying in pain or frustration, but I also know that soon I will be able to actually JUMP for joy!

I read somewhere that some think gastric bypass is the easy way out.  I guess those are the same people that consider a c-section easier that natural.  Oh well, there are people like that and I won't let them get to me.