[applesauce]

Where to start

I am a 42 year old who lives in Australia with my Husband and 13 year old twins. You will have to excuse my use of cm and kg's I am afraid.

I have had weight problems all my life, and lost more than 40kg twice so far and lots of little amounts in between those times. Of course every kg has come back with it's freeloading relatives to raise the stakes even higher. I have been married for 24 years and spent the first 10 years fighting my weight and infertility before we finally got a pregnancy to terms, resulting in my adorable daughter & son

I am now a type 2 diabetic with high blood pressure and close to immobile at home weighing in at 142kg. I have toped the scaled 18 months ago at over 165kg. I am not sure how much over that I went as the scales only went that high and it took months for them to register my weight. My weight stopped going down about the time my father passed away (just before Christmas) with pancreatic cancer. To say it scare the you know what's out of me doesn't even come close. I know my weight could lead me down that same path.

I have looked at WLS on and off for at least 5 years and always put it back away as far to high risk, and basically trading one abnormal life for just another kind of abnormal life. Fear had a good way of talking me out of it. Here in Australia lap band is the most common WLS and most doctors are reluctant to use any procedures that involve malabsoption. Until I found my doctor a few weeks ago there was not a single doctor here in the state I live that would do anything except lap band for public patients.

Today was my first appointment with my doctor, it could not have gone better. I thought I would have an uphill battle talking him into doing sleeve gastroplasty but he thought it was a great idea for me. In Australia they tend to make the "tube" smaller than I gather they do in the USA about 100ml. I love the idea that the variety of food will be so much greater than a lap band. Even better news was that with some luck I will even get it done in about 6 months rather than the 12 month weight I was told I should expect.

Oh I should say here that my other half is going to have it done as well, he has a slipped disc and when our GP wrote the referral for me he told my other half he should look at it as well So our house is due to become the house of tiny tummies hehehehe I told the kids that junk food around here would be getting very rare and to tough it out *LOL*

I have raved on and on here so will stop, any questions just ask, I am sure I will have dozens to ask as things progress. I have to see a dietician & physcio along with blood tests and ultra sound in the next 2 weeks before I get my surgery date.

applesauce

[fr1endly2]

HI SAUCE!!!
WELCOME to the board and thank you for shareing a bit
about your life!!!
I can relate to alot in your storey i had many years
of infertility as well resulting in the adoption of my first
two kids and then finally 13 years later conceived my
first son who is now almost 5.

ANYWAY welcome to the boards
and i look forward to getting to know you
thru your posts!

[celadon]

Hi and welcome to the board. It will be interesting watching the process from the perspective of someone in another country. I hope everything goes well for both you and your husband and that you keep us posted of your progress.

[rozzy345]

Welcome and good luck on your journey, it should be interesting going through it with your hubby.

Roz

[Chilly]

Hi and Welcome This is a GREAT place to vent, ask questions, and for SUPPORT! There are no questions too silly either! Nice to meet you!

[DocSanae]

Welcome to the board, thank you for joining us.
Hope you find this board helpful.
(((((((HUGS)))))) May your journey go well.

FYI; 1 inch= 2.54 cm, 1kg = 2.2.lb.

[Kenyar]

Hi! Welcome to the boards. You will find a lot of useful info here as well as genuinely nice people to support you throughout your journey. we look forward to getting to know you

[applesauce]

Many thanks guys

I am a little surpised there is not other couples here doing it together.
Feel free to ask anything you like on how things are done down here
I plan to get reading other bits of the forum and jumping in there as well as updating this thread with what I have been upto. As usal there might be a few cultral differences so please give the benfit of the doubt if I do something to odd to what you would consider the norm and just let me know. I have no problems taking my foot back out of my mouth

applesauce

[applesauce]

Well things have moved along here way faster then expected. We have both done our rounds of dietician physcio & physician and all have given us the all clear for surgery. So it was back to the surgeon last Tuesday. We could have feel over when he said with a bit of luck he could do us in 6 weeks time. We where expecting closer to 6 month wait. Going in as public patients we will not get a surgery date until approx 2 weeks before, and there is a chance we can be bumped down the list for emergencies but we both accept and understand that. He says he is 95% sure we will be done within 10 weeks

So my final getting to eat what I want fell down in a huge heap as we had to start on modi fast immediately. I had dropped 3kg before I went back to the surgeon and now only 4 days into modi fast another 3kg has vanished. Tho I know that will be more water weight than anything. But hey close to 1 stone is 1 stone gone for good in my book.

Oh and my husband changed his mind to a sleeve rather than a band after all that. He decided the recover time was as quick so set and forget seemed best. All the reports coming in on the benefits of actually removing rather than leaving the stomach behind is so encouraging in regard to long term appetite surpresant.

I am curious why Americans with the huge cost factors over there do not consider surgery here in Australia as an option. I am asking that because our standards are as high if not higher, so very safe and cost wise you would be up for approx USD10,000 plus airfares & accommodation. Just comparing that to choosing somewhere that might not have such high health standards. Is the cost factor so much cheaper to say go to Mexico or Asia ?

applesauce

[fr1endly2]

GLAD things are moveing forward wonderfully for you
KEEP stoppin in to update us!