My Updated Contact Letter

[Guest guest]

Hello Pre-Ops!

My name is Beth Brown and I am almost Two months post op. I wanted to send

all of you newbies my updated contact letter. Use it if you need it! Best

of luck!

Pre Op stats: 39 yrs old, 5'2 " , 357 Lbs

Submitted Packet: July 18, 2000

Scheduled Surgery: One week later, July 25, 2000

MGB: August 10, 2000

The surgery went off without a hitch and I have had the model recovery. I

had no nausea and little pain. I never filled my post op PAIN meds and never

needed them. My five, one inch incisions closed wonderfully.

The pain I felt went away in about a week. It was located underneath my left

breast. I felt pain with each breath and it was days before I could take in

a deep breath. Coughing, sneezing and laughing made me grab my chest.

However, it was NOT miserable or stabbing pain. The only reason I point it

out is that it scared me. I had heard so many post ops say that there was no

pain. Therefore, for the first week, I lived in fear that the pain I was

feeling was not normal and maybe it meant I had a leak. The key to leak pain

is that it gets worse and this pain was slowly getting better.

I finally relaxed about the pain and began worrying about leaking from

drinking/eating to much. The patient manual says that you can or should eat

about 2 tablespoons full. I seemed to eat a bit more than that.

This fear quickly passed when at 2 weeks post op, I ate too much......and boy

did I pay! I threw up violently. So hard that I pulled a muscle in my

chest. I try very hard to never let that happen again.

Even with all the fear of a leak, I found it much harder to stay on liquids

than I ever dreamed. I wanted food! Real Food! And I am the one who swore

she would go 2 months on liquids only. I thought other post ops were weak

for whining about food. Oh I had no trouble " eating my words. " I would have

eaten anything at that point!

So as soon as my first two weeks post op passed, I ate mashed potatoes, mac

and cheese and (I could not help myself) a small Mc's hamburger and 5

fries. I had no problem with any foods as long as I ate slow and chewed

well. However at this stage, my tastes have changed and I am finding that

although I may still crave foods that I loved before surgery, when I eat

those foods they just don't taste as good post op. For example, I rarely eat

fast food and for me that is a huge change! I no longer drink coffee and

can't stand the thought of drinking anything carbonated. Pre-MGB, I had at

least 2 cups of coffee every morning without fail and averaged at least one

soda a day.

The hardest part of the MGB has been dealing with what post ops call " head

hunger " . It took me 3 weeks post op before I really felt as if I had control

and now I eat what I want, when I want it and never (I really mean NEVER) do

I wish I could have something, or never do I feel deprived of something I

want. And I am still losing weight! Ahhh the freedom I feel is almost

euphoric! I love eating like an itty bitty skinny person!

My advise to kick head hunger is to be kind to yourself and eat a little bit

of anything you crave then sit back and observe the reaction. Maybe you

won't crave it anymore or maybe you will find that you still love it and can

eat it in little amounts. Worst thing that can happen is that it makes you

sick and you vow never to let it cross your lips again!

Regardless of any pain or food discomforts I would have the MGB again! I

have lost 43 pounds as of this morning and I could not be happier.

I have had my first check up with my PCP. He is thrilled! I completely

trust and respect his medical opinion. He has been in email contact with Dr.

Rutledge and fully supports the MGB.

As for advice I have for Pre-Ops, here goes:

1. Expect a hard time with head hunger for the first two weeks.

2. Stay in a hotel with a refrigerator and a microwave.

3. Spend your 2nd day post op at the Life and Science Center in Durham. It

offers you the opportunity to walk a lot but unlike the mall it has a lot of

sit down exhibits to make it easy for you to pace yourself. It has a

Butterfly House that I felt symbolized what we are going through. Slowly

wiggling out of your fat cocoon to spread our wings.

4. Get on the Egroups MGB list.

5. Organize a Littermates and Post ops last supper. Seeing post ops eat made

me much more relaxed! And having the before pictures in your hand and the

" After body " standing right there in front of you makes you rest well the

night before your MGB!

6. Have all your pre-op and post op medications filled and handy for the

trip. Try and get your PCP to give you samples.

7. Organize and learn your medication schedule and supplement requirements

so that it is second nature.

8. Remember to measure your legs, arms, chest, hips, neck, and waist.

There will be times when the scales will not move but the inches are falling

off. I know that first hand! I lost 30 pounds the first month and 3 inches

off my waist, 2 inches off my thighs. The second month I only lost 13

additional pounds but I lost 4 inches off my waist and 4 inches off my thighs

for a total of 43 LBs, 7 inches off my waist and 6 inches off each thigh!

Apparently, by working out, I added muscle and it weighs more than the fat,

therefore, my clothes were loose and the inches were gone but the weight lose

slowed. Be prepared and careful not to let this natural phenomenon derail

your progress!

9. RELAX it is not as hard as it looks and it is well worth any trouble you

have to go through.

Self Pay:

I fought my insurance company all the way to the top. No luck. So my

husband and I investigated many loan options. We ended up going for a Home

Equity Loan. Not only was it the best interest but it also is tax

deductible. We borrowed $16,000. Here is the breakdown:

Anesthesiologist $926

Hospital Deposit $11,000; Total hospital bill $6005. I was unable to have

surgery at because of my weight. If you can go to it is a flat

rate of $7,000.

Dr. Rutledge: $3455

Hotel $37.50 per night....$285 for the week plus 1 day Extended Stay America:

To get a view of the rooms, the locations and to make reservations:

http://www.exstay.com. We stayed at the Tower Blvd. location. It was right

across from a large mall, movie theater, lots of restaurants and easy highway

access. The rooms are very clean, have a refrigerator, microwave and most

importantly a recliner. I found it much easier to sleep in a recliner

because of the incisions. Rolling to my side in a bed was very uncomfortable

and sitting up from one was even a bit painful.

Pre-Op Medications TIP: Persuade your PCP to give you all the samples they

can. Especially the Pre-op antibiotic. This one pill would have cost me

$15.85 had I not gotten it from my Dr. as a sample! And I have insurance!

Have all your post op meds filled before leaving for North Carolina. You

will need some of them immediately after leaving the hospital and if you have

insurance and have them filled at your local pharmacy then you will only have

to pay your co-pay. If you wait until you get to NC, then you may not be

covered.

I hope this has helped you in your research! I send you all my good thoughts

and positive vibes for a speedy recovery!

Beth Brown

MGB 8/10/00

357/314