The hospital where I had my initial Bariatric Surgery appointments is the Rolls Royce of hospitals. It's also a huge medical campus and quite a freakin' maze. I signed in and was set up at a computer, where I had to answer almost 350 T/F questions. Then came the hour-long appointment with the psychologist. She asked me about past attempts for weight loss, psychiatric history, support systems, etc. I then had to run over to an adjoining building for an EKG, bloodwork, and chest X-rays.
Then BACK to the original building for an hour-long appointment with the Nutritionist. That appointment was absolutely not what I was expecting. I thought they were going to have me go on a diet immediately, to help kick start the weight loss before the surgery. Nope, it was all to prepare me on what my diet will consist of after the surgery. They gave me tons of recommendations that I need to put into place now, so I am used to them after the surgery. Since I'm a vegetarian, I need to increase the protein in my diet, and add a protein shake into the mix for breakfast. I need to switch to decaf (or herbal) tea and downgrade to half-caff coffee. No more carbonated beverages. There are more suggestions, but those are the ones I'm working on right now. I told them I was going to start the C25K program and they set a goal for me to lose 20lbs by my appointment mid-September. They admitted it's not really how much or little I lose, just that I maintain and not gain. That's what the insurance company is looking for. If I gain weight while being advised by a nutritionist, I won't be very compliant with my post-surgery diet, now will I?
I meet with the surgeon this coming Wednesday. I have no idea what to expect at that appointment!
As of this initial appointment, I am officially 261.0 lbs according to the medical scale.
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