Dr Costa Karihaloo - newcastle area!

First topic message reminder :

Just had sleeve surgery with Dr Costa Karihaloo at lake macquarie private hospital and he and his staff have been fantastic!

any questions ask away.......

Hi guys,
I haven’t really gone missing in action, was reading all the time, jsut had mountains of work to get rid of, and have nearly done it all, also had training seminar in Melbourne for 3 days, as well as all appointments etc, so it keeps you jumping, (phew know wonder i have lost 6 kgs)

YES YES YES it is all a go for Wednesday 17th March, in the am I believe,
Opti has gone really well have lost nearly 6kg, hopefully will be at the 100kg mark on op day, but if not all will be ok, as I am not going to stress over anything at the moment. Actually thought Opti tasted ok, I put some equal into it.

My bags are still packed; I am ready to go,
Got the apple juice – Thanks Vouge
Go the degas – thanks to all for that bit of info
Also the Benefibre., soluble Panadol, Supadryn vitamins,
Hopefully got it all covered, if not,

How does the song go – Don’t worry.
Will keep you updated on owies or ouchies.

alter ego wrote:

Hi sandy_lou,
I am also from Newcastle, had my appointment with Dr Costa on 16th Feb pencilled in op for the 17th March,

Are you still penciled in for the 17th? Only 2 days to go! Wooo, how exciting. How you going with the Optifast? All the best and please report back with your experience.

sandy-lou, How funny! I actually had crap headache from driving so was keen to get out of there.Again, I am SO pleased I went, I'm feeling much more at ease now. Was great to hear from the patients also. Cant wait for the 24th to roll around now.




I'm Georgie!

LOL @ Cos...I felt the same way. I think I actually looked at you and nodded a couple of times...wasn't it a great seminar?! Your questions were great. You live 4 hours away????? Wow, you must be stuffed after such a long drive home and in crap weather. He really looked everyone in the eye, didn't he? I felt like he was directing the whole seminar to me.

I was sitting next to my friends Mum and Dad but I think it may have been just me and you in the room for a while. My name is Sandra anyway...nice to have nearly met you! LOL

sandy-lou, sorry we didnt get to speak at the seminar last night. I felt too stupid to approach everyone & say "hey, would you happen to be sandy-lou from the forum?" I hadnt been on the computer since the night before, otherwise I would of twigged to the hairclip! I was the one over to the side on my own , that kept asking questions! I just felt Costa seemed more approachable in the group situation than in his room? But maybe thats just me, I get so nervous & often cant get across what I'm meaning & feel I sound stupid. Anyhoo, I'm really glad I made the effort to go, & hopefully he'll see that I am motivated & prepared to commit to all this.

It was a great seminar! So much better than the week's before. Poor Nicole, I thought she was going to pass out, she could hardly breathe, those babies are sitting up high! Dr Costa is gorgeous, what a lovely man. There was only a very small group , 5 people, there was 20+ last week.

I enjoyed the past patients, lapband and bypass but he said he should have a sleeve patient by next seminar. Wish the 30th would hurry up!

He went over that pain from not chewing well and slowly quite a bit, maybe you were on his mind? lol.

hi sandy-lou,

I had a follow up after surgery appointment, so didnt get to see you. plus only on computer now at 11.50pm so didnt realise you would be there at 7pm. i didnt get out till 6.15pm. So if i knew, i would have waited so we could meet!

Hope seminar went well.

Everything is going really really well for me.
I am in a 31year old habit- as costa calls it and need to break silly old habits.

I need to eat a bit slower, im so use to having a lot more food and eating quickly. but cause there is not much room in there if you just woof down some toast or fruit before you know it you have had too much, and i get this massive pain near my chest bone and have to wait till it goes away- it feels like forever.

Any way let me know what the seminar was like.

Yay another one! Tell me all about your appointments, every detail. I'm hoping to make his seminar tonight but my husband is in Sydney and should be home in time for me to go

Edit to add, yay, he's home so will see you there at 7pm (I have a pink flower hair clip in)

Hi OMG - (love that name)

Im seeing costa today as well, be prepared for the wait its his 1st day back after his paternity leave!
My appointments at 3pm, maybe i will see you there?

workdanceplay

Hi all,

I am also going to Dr K for a sleeve. I had been considering the band but after attending a seminar in February have decided the sleeve sounds the better option. I was really impressed with him and have my first appointment today...very nervous. It is great to hear others stories and experiences. The positive certainly seems to outweigh the negatives which helps give me the courage to go keep going forward. I have been up and down with my weight my whole life and have a realy high BMI so I feel like I have to do something for my own sake and my family.

Bye for now!

Hi all,

I am also going to Dr K for a sleeve. I had been considering the band but after attending a seminar in February have decided the sleeve sounds the better option. I was really impressed with him and have my first appointment today...very nervous. It is great to hear others stories and experiences. The positive certainly seems to outweigh the negatives which helps give me the courage to go keep going forward. I have been up and down with my weight my whole life and have a realy high BMI so I feel like I have to do something for my own sake and my family.

Bye for now!

Hello ladies/girls...ect.

I didnt go to dr costa's seminar- I had a referal to see dr Garni as i thought i was having lap band, sooooo glad i didnt!

While i was there i spoke to one of his patients who had lapband surgery it then slipped and she then had the Gastric bypass, she swore by the bypass. She said that she had much better weight loss with the bypass then the band and less difficulties and said if she had her time again she would have the bypass 1st.

After i spoke to her i went home and couldnt stop thinking about the bypass.
Next day rang Dr Garni's rooms to make appointment. Then the devastation hit, he couldnt see me for 5 months! After crying for a couple of hours i rang back and spoke to his rooms again. They said Dr Garni would be away for a few months and thats why i couldnt get in, but suggested i maybe see costa. I had an appointment within 2 months. The staff said i didnt need another referall and didnt need to go to another seminar. but told me i had to read that booklet thingo-cant remember if i did?

When i saw Costa he said he hadnt seen me at his seminars, but i explained the whole story to him and he was fine.
I told him i didnt want the band- cause- too much maintanence and restrictions and possible probs.... He was fine I then told him i wanted the bypass not the sleeve -the thought of losing 2/3rds of my stomach scared the hell out of me. but he explained the process of the sleeve to me and it sounded so simply. He then told me that the bypass tends to be an absolute last resort, due to surgery complications and all the attaching and detaching they do...sounds creepy.

So the moment i walked out of that building my mind was made up- The sleeve it would be!!!

So its really up to you...Just keep in mind that Dr Garni DOES NOT do the sleeve, but Costa DOES! so maybe its worth the trip to go to one of Costas seminars.

Sorry for the long story, but hope something helps.
Good luck and like others have said you WONT regret the sleeve!

luv workdanceplay

workdanceplay - I just rang to book for the 10th and they said to call back on Monday in business hours. You're hilarious.."fat chick in the jacket, LOL"...for sure! My friends Mother is going that night, hopefully I can book in (thankyou Alter for that info, that sounds a lot better than last nights seminar) on Monday and I'll see you there.

Hi all,
great news workdanceplay, excellent weight loss, and how good is the feeling for playing netball, and your daughter obviously did notice how much happier you are, well done -

Re the seminar, I went to one about 4 weeks ago, Dr Costa was there on that night, as with Nicole dietician and 2 previous patients from WLS, one patient had gastric bypass and the other was a band, lots of info about all the different types of surgery plus could ask patients questions etc,

When I did go for my appointment with Dr Costa he did mention that I was at his seminar.!!!!! So either he has a good memory or I drew a lot of attention to myself,

Have started Opti, this is 3rd day, all is ok, and need to sweeten them a little bit otherwise taste like soy drink.
Hey workdanceplay, did you get to drink the Freusbin from Nicole for 2 weeks?
So far op is still pencilled in for the 17th March,

looking forward to the new happier me .

sandy_lou - thanks for that! I've rung and booked in for the seminar on the 10th. I want to really go into this knowing I've done all I possibly can. If that means driving a few extra hundreds of kilometres so be it!
If you decide to go we'll have to look out for each other, you know something along the lines " I'll be the fat lady wearing the black jacket"! Mmm... maybe that wont work....lol

cos im worth it - it says on the website "All patients having Obesity surgery need to read the information booklet downloadable from this webpage and attend one of the fortnightly Obesity Seminars at Lake Macquarrie Hospital (please phone 49433122 to make a booking for the Seminar)." http://www.drjongani.com.au/templates/drjongani_content.aspx?edit=false&pageID=1329

I booked in but they didn't mark my name off when I arrived so you could just say yes if asked. It didn't cover anything I didn't already know and about 20 people where asking questions that they could have looked up on the net, I found it a little frustrating. It went from 7 until 8.20pm and I struggled the whole time trying not to yawn.

workdanceplay - so happy for you & your pleasing results. I have read so much on this forum & have been inspired & encouraged by all the post sleevers stories. But especially so to see great results for someone who joined the forum same time as me & is going to same surgeon & hospital.


sandy_lou - I havent attended a seminar yet, do they make you? lol. The 10th isnt the best day for me but I could possibly get there. Though like you, feel that theres not much more info they could give you really.

That's excellent workdanceplay, congratulations! 16kg, well done! You sound happy in your post too so I can only imagine the happiness in real life.

Last nights seminar was Dr Gani talking about lap-band and he skipped past the sleeve. Dr Costa is talking on the 10th but I don't think I could sit through another one, do you think I should go? I've done that much research I can't imagine anything changing my mind.

hi everyone,

Just thought id let you know how im doing!

Todays weight loss stands at.......16.6kg......!!! and thats over a 6 week period!
Dr karihaloo is a magician, he has given me my life back!

I asked my daughter - almost 9, how i looked the other day and the first thing she said was "happy" and then she said mummy you look healthy and happy. She is exactly right. Its been 3 and a half weeks since my op and im now playing netball " dont laugh" i am of course so unfit but my friends and me are just having some fun. I have already become so much more social and i only sleep half the amount of time i use too during the day.

I just cant believe how much the sleeve has changed my life... I read post after post on this site leading up to my op and most of my Q's were answered, the main thing i was looking for was the negatives- I couldnt find any? So i saw that as a good sign. The sleeve is amazing, difficult in the first 3 weeks especially. But know i am almost back onto normal food and losing weight- its weird?

Anyway I totally recommend Dr Costa Karihaloo, and his staff , and the hospital staff were wonderful, at first i was embarrassed to let them see me in a hospital gown, i thought that they would think that i was disgustingly fat and looked revolting, but not once did one of them bat an eyelid, I felt relaxed, safe and reasurrured.

Anyway any more Q's ask away only too happy to help out.
Till next time workdanceplay....

Hows the weightloss going workdanceplay?

I'm going to the seminar tonight. Is it easy to find where to go? I'm a little embarrassed asking for the "obesity seminar", unless I just wait and follow the large people, lol. Is anyone else going?

alter ego my BMI was also 43.
my GP didnt believe me at 1st, till he did the maths himself and got a big shock!

Welcome to some more Newcastle people.

Dr Costa is going to be very busy by the sound of it,

Hi workdanceplay, great news on the weight lost, sounds awesome, so looking forward to my big day, so I can join you on the losers bench.

sandy_lou you may have to take a thermos of soup to the Long lunch, but go just the same, can't break with a tradition.

did my BMI it is 43 , I really just want to get to a healthy range.

He's having a busy day on the 30th! My friends Mother has an appointment on the 30th too, so that's 3 people, LOL. I'm so impatient, I want my appointment now. (stamps foot like a toddler).

I was hoping Dr would say mid April too as I would like to be up and about for Lovedale Long Lunch (but without the lunch, I can still enjoy the bands, we go every year with about 80 women). It's on the 15th May, maybe I should wait until afterwards but I'm sure I won't be able to.

Is anyone getting their super to pay for it? I have enough but feel a little uncomfortable spending that much money on myself and would like to try and access my super.

Welcome Eternlslady

Great to see i have had another friend join the "Dr Costa" thread.
When you see him tell him you want the surgery at that time and he more than likely will do it then. I needed to have mine when i did because i needed some time off before uni starts. and he worked well around that.

I have FINALLY found other people going to Dr Costa!!!

My first appointment is the 30th of March. I have already attended his seminar (December), have my referral, etc.
Looks like there is a chance we could run in to each other in the waiting room!

I am not from Newcastle, I am closer to Wyong.

sandy-lou- I dont have a date as yet. I did ask Dr Costa how long a wait for the surgery once you make a definite decision & he said only a couple of weeks. So when I see him 24th March I'm hoping we'll be looking at mid April. Which for me fits around school holidays & husbands roster & also the fact I live over 300km away, so will probably stick around for an extra couple of days to be on the safe side before I venture back home again.

workdanceplay- great to see all going well for you!