| March 2003....continued |
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| Even though the greatest common bond we share is our need to be healthy and the surgery itself, breaking off into groups could help individuals alot. And I also agree on another way in breaking up into groups, by topics. If one group is discussing getting over plateaus, another emotional issues, another food issues, another exercising....etc. That way if there is something in particular you want to know about hey theres the group to go see. One person suggested splitting off into groups by how long after surgery. That I didn't like, because then I can't get a chance to discuss with those who are in different stages after surgery what they went through and what they did to get through it. Dr Vohra also brought up a newsletter that they had wanted to start but were waiting for patients to send in letter, stories, ideas, recipes.etc. I think it's a great idea. I'm actually thinking of submitting a story from a point of view everyone tends to forget, the one of someone starting this journey and waiting for their day of "rebirth". Lets face it, the day you actually have surgery is a new beginning, just lke your actually birthday. Well I finally get to meet with Dr Vohra tomorrow. Wish me luck, as I'm going to ask him about the psych eval and having to redo it. They gave me an appt for April 16th!!!! I was hoping to be scheduled by then :'(. Not for nothing but I feel that my therapist of 3 yrs knows me a hell of a lot better than some shrink will in an hour. So wish me luck on that and I'll let you know how it goes. Hopefully he wont require me to do too much more. Well goodnight for now. And guys if you like what you're reading drop me a line in my guestbook, I'd love to hear from ya!!! |
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| Wednesday, March 5, 2003 So I did it, today was my first visit with Dr Vohra. I waited a very long time (about 2 1/2 hrs) but it was well worth the wait. He is a very nice man, and he took his time with each patient that came to see him. He left the forum open for me to ask any questions I wanted, which was great. Unfortunately the one question or should I say request was turned down, the psych eval. So yes, I have to wait until April 16th for my appt. But that doesn't mean that I wont call them once a week to see if they have any openings. Hee hee...they are going to hate me.... The only doctor that he referred me to was a pulmonologist. As far as the ultrasounds and the blood workup I can do that with whoever I please. So naturally as soon as I got in my car I call the lung dr to make an appt, I got one for March 19th...wooohooo!!! I also scheduled my ultrasounds (abdominal and venous) for next week on the 11th. God my manager is going to hate me. Too bad, this has to get done and I am tired of being considerate to everyone elses schedule and getting screwed myself. The last thing is some blood work, I called my PCP and made an appt for the 28th, but I'm gonna call my endocrinologist and see if I can have him take my blood for me, or maybe even that loser cardiologist. Anything to speed things along. I see Dr Vohra again on the 31st to see where I am at on the last of my prelims and how they fair. I'm hoping against hope I don't need a sleep study. I know I should have one, but honestly people, is that really necessary at this point? If I do have sleep apnea, it will be cured by surgery. And lets face it, my boyfriend sleeps right next to me and he is a very light sleeper. I snore when I'm sick with a head cold. Otherwise I'm pretty good, especially now that he doesn't smoke in the house anymore for me. So I am hoping I will be given a surgery date when I go back on the 31st. He said more than likely we will set the date that day or give me a tentative one. I can't believe in less than 4 weeks I could actually have a surgery date and sure wont be July 16th. This one's for you Gadaleta. Funny we even spoke about why I left Gadaleta. I told him I didn't apperciate being treated the way I was. His staff and he were both cold, they don't return calls. It doesn't make me feel comfortable at all. I explained to him I see a lot of drs, and I know there is no excuse for the way they treat patients, or should I say potential patients. It's like one woman said who I met in the office today, they treat us differently because we are obese. Dr Vohra asked if I was happy with his staff, and I said I loved them. I do, they are genuinely sincere and helpful. And that puts me at ease a lot. The truth is I am about to have a life changing surgery, it helps to trust your dr and his staff. Anyway, waiting didn't hurt too bad, I got to meet some patients who had the surgery and got to discuss how they faired. It was nice to see how open they were. It's like an extention of his staff, because his previous patients help doctor us in easing our choice and in educating us about their experiences. Nothing sounds better than from the horses mouth itself. This one young woman and I bonded really quick, it was a shame she wasn't in the reception area before I left, I would have really like to talked more. Maybe we'll get to meet again. She was real helpful in some ideas about handling food, and she knew what she was talking about, being 5 weeks post op. So all in all it was a great day. Tomorrow I'll make some more calls, see if my endocrinologist can do my bloodwork, and get my referrals for the ultrasound and the lung tests. I'll keep you guys informed. I hope I'm helping with what I have to share. And remember if there is anything you want to know, email me or drop me a line in my guestbook. Night everyone!!!!! NEXT PAGE |
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