 |
|
|
|
|||||||
|
||||||||||
|
||||||||||
 |
|||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
||
|
Surgeon: Dr. Henry Buchwald, University of MN, Minneapolis Latest update: July 2005 BEFORE AND AFTER PICTURES: PROGRESS PICTURES:
by Colleen:
I am 39, married with 2 children, 9 and 3 years old. I first started researching wls in June 2000. I decided it was finally time to do something about my ever-increasing weight. The edema in my legs was embarrassing and my knees were killing me. I am no different than anyone else who had decided that wls is their only hope for a lasting solution. I have yo-yo dieted for my entire adult life, and my age has finally caught up to me, and I slowly started creeping up. I almost died when I topped the 300 lb. mark. That was the proverbial straw. Once I decided to pursue wls, most of the information I was finding was regarding the RNY procedure. When I realized the eating AND drinking restrictions the small pouch would cause, I was doubtful that wls was for me. I couldn't foresee never being able to drink with my meal (such as it would be) ever again. Then someone emailed me on a egroup post board and told me to check out http://www.duodenalswitch.com. I was HOOKED! I read every word of every link on this site. Even the entire Hess report for the nitty-gritty low down on the BPD procedure. I knew I had found my answer. I live in the Midwest, and was discouraged by the distance I would have to travel to find a BPD surgeon. After 1st going to Omaha, NE, and being declined because of my psych evaluation (long story, won't go into it here) . This is where I say I DON'T believe the MMPI (Minn.M??Personality Inventory) written test should ever be used as a pre-requisite for qualifying for a life-saving surgical procedure. Especially if it is evaluated by a psychologist that doesn't even know me, and only spoke face-to-face with me for about 30 minutes before rendering their decision. So....the fighter that I am, I wasn't going to let this stop me. No way! So I called and scheduled another consult with Dr. Henry Buchwald in Minneapolis, MN. This is about a 5.5 hr trip one way from my home town in Iowa. But let me tell you, I was DARN well worth the drive. After first determining that he doesn't require a psych evaluation (unless my ins. co does, which it doesn't) I made the appt. I LOVED him!! He was so knowledgeable and really listened to why I thought the BPD was the surgery for me over the RNY (he does them both). He also made sure that I understood about the life-long commitment to nutritional supplementation I would need, before agreeing to do my BPD. I am so excited about my surgery! It's in 12 days, and I'm like a kid waiting for Christmas all over again. 1/20/01: I couldn't have my NG tube removed from my nose until I had bowel sounds or a B/M, and that didn't happen until Thurs. After it was pulled, I returned to the land of the living. Coughing is really painful too. I've found out that I really like percoset (sp?) elixir. The pain meds they sent me home with. I'm really mobile and the binder is a GOD SEND! Don't leave the hospital without one. It got mine on Tues. afternoon (surgery was mid-day on Mon) and it made a world of difference in pain while getting out of bed AND walking. So far, no nausea at home. It's strange, I've found that my protein supp. drinks go down easier than plain water. ? Strange. I'm already sick of jello and chicken broth. Thank goodness I can go to pureed food on Wed. I'm so excited looking forward to having more food choices. The hospital nursing staff was wonderful at Fairview-University Hospital in Minneapolis! Wonderful caring people. And talk about good looking resident and intern doctors! The trip up was really foggy, but not un-safe. The trip home (what I remember of it anyway) was a bright beautiful sunny day. I dozed most of the way, while my mom drove. We even stopped at the grocery store on the way. So far, so good. <crossing fingers, and knocking on wood> The only problem that I'm really experiencing thus far, is trouble getting my water in. I only can drink celestial seasoning warm tea, otherwise, it really hurts my tummy. I'm sure I'll do better in the future while relearning to drink and eat. 1/31/01: My mom and daughter both say they can see a difference already..especially in my face (the place I need to lose it the LEAST!) and my jeans are fitting less tight. This has been a really great ride so far. My post eating indigestion has even improved (as many DS post-op told me it would that were kind enough to respond to my questions online). All I see ahead of me from this point on is even more enjoyable times as the weight comes off. I'll post more later and some updated pics after our local 3/31 meeting. By that time there should be a noticeable loss. 11/17/01: 1/4/02: 2/27/02: 5/9/02: 2/20/2003: July 2003: It was full of stones, and I had had 2 pretty painful attacks. My wls surgeon didn't remove it during my wls, cuz it was healthy then, and he is of the 'school' of thinking, to NOT remove a healthy organ. So I guess I have him to thank for the SECOND scar on my tummy ;). Hope everyone is having a wonderful summer.
I'm still doing great. Have put on about 10#'s and everyone says I actually look better. At my smallest, I was pretty thin. I have maintained this weight for about a year now. Last fall, I got my motorcycle license and go riding as often as the weather permits. If you would have told me 5 yrs ago that I'd own & be riding a motorcycle at age 44, I'd have laughed. Who's laughing now? Me still! Because it's so much fun! Still no health related issues. I still take my prescription iron pills to keep the edema in my legs from returning. (I was always on the 'anemic' side, even before my wls). The only thing I would have done differently throughout this whole process, is I would have found a way to come up with some way to finance the additional money needed to cover the complete belt lipectomy plastic surgery procedure when my insurance would only approve the apron removal. I'm not satisfied with all the extra skin around my rear end. And I still may try to finance it sometime in the future.
|
|||||||
 |
|||||||
|
Email the site administrator with questions, corrections, or suggestions. Copyright © 1999-2006 by The Duodenal Switch Information Zone, all rights reserved. Text, graphics, and HTML code are protected by US and International Copyright Laws, and may not be copied, reprinted, published, translated, hosted, or otherwise distributed by any means without explicit permission. |
|||||||
