Gastric Bypass - Surgery And Recovery
What did you experience during gastric bypass surgery?
During gastric bypass surgery I was under, what they call general anesthesia so I was experiencing nothing.
Were you afraid just before the surgery started?
I was very afraid, luckily they give you a little shot of something that loosens you up a bit but at that point I was ready to give my life to my surgeon and as soon as they put the mask on she said to me "see you on the other side." and at that point I felt very comfortable, I was very confident in what was going to be on the other side.
How long did gastric bypass surgery take?
The actual bypass surgery itself takes just under two hours. I had it done laproscopically, which means they made 4 or 5 small incisions in my abdomen, blew me up with gas and then used small instruments -- which are portholes basically -- to manuever my insides and make cuts and staples..
How long did it take to recover from your gastric bypass surgery?
For the first seven days I had very limited mobility. Two weeks after gastric bypass I had to return to the hospital for a follow up visit, which was extremely painful. It took me about a month before I felt back to the world of the living.
How did you cover the costs of gastric bypass surgery?
There were several costs that were not covered by insurance, including program fees, vitamins, you know the various things, coupes, the coupes of Canada. That was paid for by my family and myself, but insurance did cover the costs of the operation itself, it was I believe in ten of thousands of dollars.
