Second Letter

Yesterday I received my second letter from the doctors office.  It lists the appointments before my surgery.

1. June 13: Informational, Dietary, and Behavior Mod. class  4pm-8pm

2. June 25: Physical, Pre-reg and lab work 11:30am-?

3. July 5: Appointment with Dr. Hutcher. Spouse must attend. 10am

4: July 9: Surgery 10:30 am ( No eating or drinking after midnight)  Thats going to be a long 10 and a half hours!

The paper also says that it is mandatory for Joe and I to watch that Emmi presentation online. We've watched it a few times.

I'm nervous.  I flip-flop back and forth.  Yesterday I wanted to cancel it.  I fear I'm too informed, too smart for my own good.  I wish I didnt know so much.  I also know that the chances of anything bad happening are so slim that I shouldnt worry. I search the web everyday, looking for rare complications, peoples stories, and medical data.  I've found alot and will be asking my doctor to address some of these questions before the surgery. Here are a few of those questions.

Will there be hormonal inbalances after? When do they generally even out?

How do I deal with frothing? ( Mucus buildup in the tiny stomache which can come up the esophogus)

How long should I see blood in my stool? What color is a bad sign?

Can I continue to wear pressure stockings once home?

How many cases of Wernicke's Encephalopathy(lack of B vitamin absorbtion causes brain damage)  have you had?  And is it possible to get a B vitamin injection post-op?

Can I blood bank my own blood pre-op?

What can I do to avoid pernicious anemia?

What are the symptoms of strictures and how do you treat them?

How often do you see beriberi?

Those a few, I have many more. I'm afraid my doctor is in for a real grilling.

The 5 phases of foods we've been eating have been wreaking havoc on our systems.  All of us are very gassy from the excess of fruit and veggies and I think it will take quite abit of time to get used to it. (the food, not the gas)  After surgery I will not be allowed any tough meats and the meat I do eat in phase 5 will have to be cut into pieces no bigger than my damn fingernail. Smmmmaaaalllll. Hehe. No more fresh bread, any bread I eat has to be heavily toasted. It seems the yeast in the bread tends to make it sticky and hard to pass. No more stringy veggies, although I dont really eat stringy veggies now.  Nothing with a membrane. That sounds very gross. Oranges and the like. No skin on any of my fruits or veggies. No coconut. Very limited dairy, sometimes people develope a dairy intolerance and have to switch to soy. And of course, sugar. As little refined sugar as possible.  Too much will make the new stomach DUMP and we want to avoid that at all costs. I'm avoiding that by buying as much stuff as I can SUGAR-FREE.  Just about everything has a sugar-free double these days. 

Sometimes I think that if I just stayed on this phase 5 food and did some exra walking that I could lose alittle bit of weight and forgo the surgery.  And then I realize that I've had this same conversation with myself 1000 times before.  I would lose 20 pounds and then gain back 40.  Before I knew it I would be 50 years old and weigh 350 lbs. By that time I would have diabetes or high blood pressure and not be a good candidate for the surgery. I dont want to end up that way.

Anyway, thats it for now! Tata!