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[lesliethequeen]

I seem to have taken over this thread, didn't mean to...but today I have to rant for a while and I hope you don't mind. There isn't another place where I feel comfortable doing this, so I appreciate your patience.

Today I went to the doctor for my one month check up. I have lost a lot of weight (to my way of thinking) and thought I would have a nice visit.

Now, I like my doctor but he is definitely tough and would not be for everyone. He is big (maybe 6'4") and forceful and I have always been a bit intimidated by him. I like him, he's one of the top docs in California...but I am scared of everything, so sometimes he intimidates me.

Okay, so he asked me what I was eating. I told him I was still on pureed/soft food (which is what his literature says to eat) Also that today was my day to move onto chopped foods and he went ballistic!

Why was I still eatting pureed food? Why? Why? Why?

I tried to tell him about my 3rd week trip into "I'll eat whatever I want" land and how sick I was, so I went back to softer foods. .

He said I should be eating chicken, I told him I had tried and it made me sick.
I should be eatting eggs and on and on...told him I had but he had stopped listening by then.

Then I tried to ask him about the "Month of Misery" and he asked what I was talking about. I told him about BTV and how I had been warned to watch out for certain problems. He went ballistic again - said that only happens in 6% of cases and I should not go onto a place where they tried to scare me and on and on again!

By this time, I felt like I was plastered to the back of the chair by his outrage! Every time I tried to get a word in edgewise, he'd start again.

I went to the front and made an appointment for another month and he found the literature that he had sent me - the literature that I had been following like a religious transcript (well, except for that one weekend) and he shows me the paper that says "Pureed/Soft Food" He points to the examples and says "See? We gave you examples...you aren't suppose to be just eatting pureed food!" I said that that was what I was eatting. He didn't seem to believe me! He sort of threw his hands up in the air and left.

So darn weird...

So, I left feeling like a failure, when I actually thought I was learning slowly how to live with this crazy thing I have done.

Then tonight for dinner, I had some lovely soft fish...paired with some fruit...and it got stuck and I thought I was going to die a slow and ugly death...and I would never find out who got kicked off of "Dancing With The Stars"...

My daughter told me to not let it get to me, the whole doctor thing, but it's hard. I am such an insecure person anyway and here is the guy I trusted to help me going ballistic! I don't get it...

So, here I am, pouring my heart to you all because I know you will understand me. And I have no intention of not coming back. I have gotten so much good info here, and so much support. I could not have lived through the last few weeks without you.

Thanks for listening...sorry about the book I wrote...

[terribletory]

OMG! I would rant too!

I wish I could tell you to ignore him, but he is your doc.

At my office, I just discuss that stuff with the dietitians - they are awesome.

Hang in there - you are a freak now and you are not alone!

[T2Nashville]

I agree with Terre - does your doc have you seeing a Nut as well? That's who you need to be talking to.

Leslie - if you've done your research and read postings here, you'll know that we always encourage people to follow their surgeon's advice.

That being said - there are some truly idiot surgeons out there, and mine was one of them. I had done all my research - he did a great job on the surgery itself, and the hospital was a Bariatric Center of Excellence. But he and his staff knew next to nothing about after care. BTV saved my life.

We aren't going to tell you stuff that will hurt you here, and if he's forcing you to eat things that get stuck - that's a good way to wind up in the hospital. No one knows your body better than you do, and you already know what you need.

I did liquids for 2 weeks, then pureed for 2 more. After that, I tried 1 single scrambled egg and thought I was going to die! That's when I called my Nut and asked this question - "Can a person live on protein shakes for the rest of their life?" He said yes! It's not optimal, but if you have a good one, it can certainly get you through until you are ready to chew, chew, chew.

Maybe he was just having a bad day. Or maybe he's just a jerk. Either way, take it with a grain of salt and continue the plan you know works. None of us would be where we are now if this thing didn't work, right?

[baka]

Guys a Dumbass imho!

Tammy nailed it

Ian

[ttowe]

I agree with Terre - does your doc have you seeing a Nut as well? That's who you need to be talking to.

Leslie - if you've done your research and read postings here, you'll know that we always encourage people to follow their surgeon's advice.
Maybe he was just having a bad day. Or maybe he's just a jerk. Either way, take it with a grain of salt and continue the plan you know works. None of us would be where we are now if this thing didn't work, right?

Tammy, I couldn't have said it better myself.

Leslie. We aren't giving you medical advice here. That would be unethical. We are giving you lifestyle tips and hints.

While you should listen to your doctor, he should also acknowlege he doesn't live with our alterned anatomy and we have tips and suggestion to help you get through a difficult transition.


One more advice,.  Watch the refridgerator roultette show. You'll discover that sometime things work, and sometimes they dont.  You may not be chewing  long enough. Try chewing yoru food until it pretty much pureed in your mouth. This should help you get those lean meats in that you really do need.

[auntb]

Have you ever had a bad time with this Doc before? If not give him another chance they are people too.

I went to a appointment once with a friend her Doc railed at her about how little she had gained (she was preggers and was always and still is a pipe-cleaner while eating like a lumberjack) and why wasn't she eating what they had told her to and she needed to eat "until she exploded" if she had to. We were in shock she left crying. I had to go back to get her coat and the office manager pulled me aside and explained that earlier in the day they had lost a patient and her baby that was anorexic and had stopped eating. The next time she went the Doc told her that he was sorry but was just very concerned for her they worked it out.

That said you are the one in charge of your body and you need to do what makes sense to you.

[MacMadame]

the office manager pulled me aside and explained that earlier in the day they had lost a patient and her baby that was anorexic and had stopped eating.

This happens a lot in medicine. Your doc sees 10 patients who think they have something serious but it's just the flu. You come in with something serious but it also has flu-like symptoms. He's much more likely to tell you that you have the flu and also not to listen to you because those other 10 patients all thought they had something else too.

It's not ideal, but it is human nature...

[HopenToBeThin]

My Dr is an awesome surgeon with a great stats, but he sucks when it comes to advice beyond the surgery.  He is at a center for Excellence.  When I first started there the nut told me that I would pretty much be eating plain chicken and fish the rest of my life because there just were not any bariatric recipes out there other than shakes which they did not want you to do after week 3.  That was at a time when there were at least 10 books already published.  They have gotten much better giving classes on how to make shakes and food that is good for the different stages, but they were awful when I started.  I learned pretty quickly not to talk about the stuff I learned here with my Dr or the nut, but I freely pass along the info to the other patients out in the waiting room.  I still find it hard to believe that people do WLS without the benefit of a place like BTV.  I seriously would have gone bonkers without my haven and peeps here.

[lesliethequeen]

Thank you so much. As usual, you are right...i had thought he might have had more than one person in the day who wasn't doing what he wanted them to do and there was a frustration factor there.

I have seen a nut, but just the one visit. I don't think my insurance pays for more than one visit. I have a degree in nutrition, so I know where to find good nutrition information. And you folks are a really great source of what it is like to live with this new body.

I KNOW my problem last night was not chewing enough. It's a learning experience.

It's a day to day challenge...but I really appreciate you guys. Thanks for being here for us Freaks!

[kelannsmi69]

I guess I'm telling another story about my experience.  I had things getting stuck for 6 months.  At first you get something stuck quite a few times and then it gets longer and longer between those incidences.  I woke up after 6 months and things stopped getting stuck.  I thought it was a miracle.  I know people who live off baby food.  You trust your body.  Don't be afraid to sample new things but if it is painful and distressing to you trust your own instincts.  I just want to hug you and tell you it does get a lot better.