What led me to Weight Loss Surgery?

Well, it has been a long journey getting to this point, but about two weeks ago, I had Weight Loss Surgery. In particular, I had a Roux-N-Y or Gastric Bypass. About 6 months ago, I found out I had severe sleep apnea, so went for some sleep tests. Being about 100 lbs overweight on a little 4'11" frame, I knew I could stand to lose some weight and it would help the situation. The doctor suggested a sleep apnea machine so I didn't stop breathing at night, and I COULD try a surgery to fix it but it only had about a 50/50 chance of working. He said the best way to fix the situation was to lose some weight. Now, I have been on every diet known to man and a ton of weight loss centers, Atkins, Weight Watchers (3 times), Deal-A-Meal, Diet Center, LA Weightloss,Doctor's Medical Weight Loss, Optifast, etc. I have never been one to stick to a diet...got too hungry and then would deny myself and binge...

My husband had been through WLS last July and did splendidly. In fact, he has lost 85lbs so far and only has about 20 more to go. He too, prior to surgery had been a weight loss failure but this worked for him by restricting the types and amounts of food he could eat. I knew this would be my ticket to better health so decided I wanted to get this too. Now, when the doctors give a bypass, it means that they re-route your digestive track..how you process and digest everything. I know it sounds severe to go through this, and I am not going to lie to you, it is a BIG adjustment, but I knew what I was getting into by doing this and was ready.

January 9th was the day I got a call from the Barix Clinics, with my Pre-Admission Testing (PAT) dates and surgery dates. I chose to have the same surgeon as my husband, Dr. Jon Schram. He is both friendly and caring, and will pray with patients prior to surgery should they request it.

On January 12th my health took a turn for the worse. I contracted a cold that would set off my asthma and my acid reflux would keep the asthma going for nearly 2 months. I was MISERABLE...and VERY ill. I spent my time between doctors offices, medical clinics, drug stores, and the emergency room and hospital. I would wheeze and not be able to breathe. I could not walk a flight of stairs or talk without wheezing more. I had to get my asthma under control. My husband patiently took care of me and the household for those two months. I wound up on a long lasting inhaler, 2x per day, a nebulizer 4x per day, steroids, and an emergency inhaler about 4 times per day...

To make matters worse, my acid reflux was kicking in. So, I also had to take prilosec 2x per day for my acid reflux, which was no longer just GERD, it was LPR, acid that came up my throat at night and gave me laryngitis, which lasted for about a month. Aside from the prilosec, I had to take 3 Tums with Calcium after every meal, Pepcid Complete at bedtime. I had to watch my diet very carefully to not eat anything which interfered with it (which turned out to be just about everything). I also had to prop my headboard up 6-8 inches, and sleep with an incline pillow. Nothing helped. In fact, I still had next to no voice going into my WLS surgery on March 30, 2009, and having no voice is a terrible thing for a high school speech teacher.
Next post...Day of Surgery