Getting Excited! & Some info about baby utensils

It is now 28 days until my VSG surgery. I got a call this morning from the doctor's office and they went over everything that they have and what they still need from me. They needed my endoscopy study and they wanted me to do an online anesthesia orientation, which I completed yesterday.



I called my GI surgeon and had them fax my endoscopy to the doctor and I received the rest of my instructions:

• They asked me to move my history/physical and pre-op bloodwork up, seeing as though my surgery was moved up by three weeks. I have now scheduled that for next Tuesday.
• I am to stop taking NSAIDS (which I stopped after my endoscopy, when the GI doc said to never take them again).
• I am to stop taking any vitamins which contain Vitamin K, which can change the body's clotting process.

So, that really pumped me up. I did forget to ask if I meet with the doctor before the surgery for an appointment, but I am 99% sure that I don't see her again until I am wearing the paper gown.

So, 28 days.

Next week is a busy one with my last insurance mandated weigh in on Tuesday, then my pre-op workup on Tuesday and my last bariatric support group meeting before surgery on Wednesday.

Busy is good. Keeps my mind off of things.

I was scheduled to have a tooth cleaning on January 28th, but I have decided to cancel that. I have that mitral valve prolapse and there is an ever-so-slight risk of endocarditis with a dental cleaning and they used to pre-medicate with antibiotics prior to appointments. They no longer pre-medicate and I am just jumpy enough not to want to have even a slight risk of a heart infection.

It's getting close, peeps!!

By the way, I did buy myself a tiny set of flatware. I did not want to eat, post-op, off of plastic baby spoons and forks. Especially since the forks tend to be spork-ish.

So I bought this set online. It really does slow me down. I have been eating with it every day and also using the smaller bowls and plates that I purchased and it does, indeed, slow me down and make me take smaller bites.

Now, when I look at typical forks, I think, man, that looks like a shovel!

After the Endoscopy

I had my endoscopy today. It was ok. I was afraid. The guy who started the IV really jabbed me hard, but he got it on the first try, thank God.

Everyone was nice, and when the drugs wore off, I thought they had not started yet. I didn't have any nausea.

I was out of it for a while and was glad that my husband was there to listen to the instructions and results, because I was gorked.

• No sign of Barrett's Esophagus
• No ulcers
• No large hiatal hernia
• Some fundal polyps, which he said were nothing to worry about, usually caused by protein pump inhibitors, such as nexium
• Some stuff in the small intestine, but I don't remember what it was. He biopsied it and I will find out on Tuesday what the deal is. He said something about, "it is probably not lymphoma" and that was what my mother died of.

So, this is over with and I am off to bed. I have a minor sore throat and I am very tired. Oh and I had dry mouth like crazy. Still, this was an easy appointment.

A new Pool & an upcoming invasive test

Pardon my typing today, I decided to get acrylic nails, which was probably stupid, since I have an endoscopy scheduled for Friday. Halloween. They may make me take one off for the pulse oximeter.

I am afraid because:

• It's in a surgery center, not a hospital (think Joan Rivers)
• I am a chicken
• It involves an IV -- fainting from the needles here.

But I have to do it, so I had better just think of the positives:

• At least they sedate us now, it used to be that we had to do these awake, "Swallowing The Bicycle Chain" is what my mother used to call it.
• And...I can't think of any other perks.

So that is Friday and this is Monday and I am all in knots.I thought of changing it, but the only thing they could do was to change it to December and I am more afraid of driving into the city on a winter morning than I am of the actual procedure, so I guess that says something about me.

I hate winter driving!

I was due to renew my pool membership at the hotel where I swim, but due to a possible child molester there (who I called the cops on), I am afraid to swim there and it was adversely impacting my swim. I realized that I am completely vulnerable in the water, because there is no lifeguard and usually no other swimmers. Someone could come in and throw a TOASTER in there with me!

Electricity AND water!!!! NOOOOOO!

I got a membership to LA FITNESS instead. I still have issues over changing in the locker room, but since I know that it's very common, now I just grab my stuff and change in the bathroom and shame on them for not having private rooms.

15 weeks and three days until my surgery, if I counted right. The winter will be nearly over. That's a good thing.

I think when I go for my next weigh in I will be down by about five pounds. I had to buy a new pair of jeans, they were a 22W, down from a 24. The 24's where falling off of me. I made sure to get belt loops on these ones so that I can wear them longer.

I have not gotten my CPAP yet. The insurance company is dragging it's feet.