S05.E12: Tracey's Story

[Dru Blood]

1 minute ago, meow-mah-leg said:

husband about my very important newly acquired knowledge and he replied "what in the hell kind of forum are you on???????"

Mine said the same thing.  He is even mad I let out his secret plan to palm me off on some unsuspecting female as just a regular old diamond in her engagement ring!  He was hoping she wouldn't find out and he could tell his guy friends he has 2 wives, one living and one dead on the living one's finger.  Sick-O!

[meow-mah-leg]

HAHAHA LOL!

[Laura281]

7 hours ago, meow-mah-leg said:

drive through LIQUOR STORES???? I have never heard of such a thing. Holy smokes! That should be outlawed!!

I grew up in Houston... lived there 48 years.  Back in the mid 70s is when I saw my first drive-through beer store (although not liquor).  My boyfriend worked there, and he says the owner got the idea to build it after seeing them in Ohio.  Now I've lived in Cincinnati, Ohio for the past 10 yrs, and there are 10 times more of those drive thrus here than I ever saw back in Houston.

[Dru Blood]

6 hours ago, Laura281 said:

 Now I've lived in Cincinnati, Ohio for the past 10 yrs, and there are 10 times more of those drive thrus here than I ever saw back in Houston

The ones in the Outer Banks were started by a couple of brothers from Ohio.  I don't know if they started the idea there first or just carried something they had seen from home down to North Carolina.  I still think it is a dangerous idea.  I had seen drive UP windows in liquor stores in Maryland as a kid, like '70's, but not a DRIVE THROUGH one until the Outer Banks.  Nuts!  But hey, if you are too lazy to get out of your car to get food, what is wrong with being too lazy (or drunk) to get out of your car to buy booze.  Just wait...drive up (or through) whorehouses couldn't be too far down this nation's road (at the rate things are going), present company excepted, of course.

Edited March 24, 2017 by Dru Blood
misspelling

[peaceknit]

5 hours ago, MichelleTX said:

Yes, here in my part of the Lone Star State we have a drive through daiquiri hut. A delicious frozen drink to go!?

Wut?? Wouldn't that be an open container?

[mellowjoi]

2 minutes ago, peaceknit said:

Wut?? Wouldn't that be an open container?

No, just leave the top of the paper on the straw and it's considered a closed container.

[peaceknit]

1 hour ago, 55Unicorns said:

What is that little black cap Anthony wears all the time?  It looks like a piece of pantyhose.

Also called a du-rag.

[WillowG]

Just watched 600 pound life supersized about Tracey from this evening.  Does anyone know and/or can someone say why we shouldn't just watch the supersized episodes with more info?  Is something else deleted from them because it doesn't make sense for me to watch the same patient twice when the second one is the same with more facts/info--after I see that a supersized episode will air.  ???

[silverspoons]

1 hour ago, meow-mah-leg said:

I wonder how long that operation took to remove one of those masses off of her legs. He always says "surgery went very well" :)

My ex is a vascular surgeon and these surgeries take a long time. There are so many blood vessels to tie off. I remember a smaller arm mass taking 12+ hours. As much as it seems like just cut it off or suck out the fat, it doesn't happen that way. These masses grow because of blood flow to them and removing them safely is a tedious long process of tying of every vessel, because missing just one can be very bad.

 

I wonder about the Cleveland Clinic too. It should not be about money if you live close. I was very sick, bedridden 7 years ago with a rare genetic condition and I was scared of how expensive it would be to go to the Mayo Clinic and waited 8 months to go. It turned out a consultation , 3 hours with a specialist was cheaper than seeing my primary care doctor locally. I spent a week at the Mayo getting tests and care for less then a trip to the ER locally  ($1800) and they offered payment plans if you needed them.  I had a friend in Ohio and her husband was ill and I told her to go to the Cleveland Clinic and she was worried about cost but she had all the tests like MRI's and bloodwork done at her in network hospital and just took her husband to the neurology clinic for a consult which was under $300. I would think that it would be cheaper for Tracey even if her insurance would not pay for any of the Cleveland Clinic consult to pay for the consult out of pocket then travel and relocate to TX before trying locally. I'm not sure how many of these patients are on mediciad  vs Medicare, but all of the big teaching hospitals like Mayo and Cleveland Clinic take Medicare.

 

I was hoping that Tracey's family would have visited her during the year. She seemed so sad about leaving her grandkids. I was waiting for them to come down for Christmas or her birthday. Maybe the extended stay hotel prevented them from having visitors? I was wondering why they did not have get an extended stay with a full kitchen. I have always stayed at the ones with full kitchens and I'm a pricelice/hotwire non full price payer. I could see maybe not knowing the area and staying at the one they did for the first month and then after knowing they would be there longer, they could have found a short term rental or an extended stay with a full kitchen.

[Lizzie Jones]

7 hours ago, meow-mah-leg said:

I learn so much here. Never heard of a liquor drive through and now I also just learned that black men wear little caps to make waves in their hair. I just told my husband about my very important newly acquired knowledge and he replied "what in the hell kind of forum are you on???????". 

Tell him the best one. :-)

7 hours ago, Dru Blood said:

He is even mad I let out his secret plan to palm me off on some unsuspecting female as just a regular old diamond in her engagement ring!  He was hoping she wouldn't find out and he could tell his guy friends he has 2 wives, one living and one dead on the living one's finger.  Sick-O!

Are there posts about this I need to read because now I am totally lost.

 

Edited to add: Nevermind. I found the posts. :-)

P.S. You're right. Your husband IS a sicko. lol

Edited March 24, 2017 by Lizzie Jones

[Cherrio]

6 hours ago, silverspoons said:

I wonder about the Cleveland Clinic too. 

That was my first thought when it said they lived in Lorain.   There is also University Hospital in the same area that is almost as big.

I think a lot of these folks believe there is no other doctor than Dr. Now who can help them.   Then for some there is the lure of tv, a few thousand dollars and "free" surgery.   They probably do not think much beyond the basics.

 From being a Clevelander for much of my life, I think that The Clinic may intimidate some people.  It sounds silly but may be true.

[Barb23]

8 hours ago, Dru Blood said:

Uhh!  Just a heads up, in the Outer Banks (North Carolina) they got a BIG chain of these, they're called "Brew Thru."  Even have t-shirts!  You can actually drive your big, honking, pick-up truck into what is essentially a giant "beer cooler", and they load you up and on you go, chucking your empties as you drive.  I lost my mind the first time I saw 'em.

I was just going to post about the Brew Thru.  We own many a Tshirt from there & my son& his cousins loved driving thru when they were little.  Ha ha, they still love driving thru now that they can drink.  

8 hours ago, Dru Blood said:

The ones in the Outer Banks were started by a couple of brothers from Ohio.  I don't know if they started the idea there first or just carried something they had seen from home down to North Carolina.  I still think it is a dangerous idea.  I had seen drive UP windows in liquor stores in Maryland as a kid, like '70's, but not a DRIVE THROUGH one until the Outer Banks.  Nuts!  But hey, if you are too lazy to get out of your car to get food, what is wrong with being too lazy (or drunk) to get out of your car to buy booze.  Just wait...drive up (or through) whorehouses couldn't be too far down this nation's road (at the rate things are going), present company excepted, of course.

As a fellow Marylander (don't know what area you grew up in)  do you remember Goldbergs on Ritchie Hwy in Brooklyn Park as having  a Drive Up window?  My BIL was a frequent customer there back in the late 70's.

Back to Tracey - did they say how soon she can get the next growth removed?  I'm sure it will feel weird having one leg with the growths removed & the other still huge. I'm sure there will be plenty of physical therapy for her.  I was so proud of her at the end when she walked by herself without the walker in Dr Now's office.  I'm sure it took awhile because of her baby steps but what an accomplishment.  All I could think of was Pauline riding in her monster (as Dr Now called it) electronic wheelchair way after her surgery saying "owie" because HER  legs hurt. After watching Tracey,   Pauline doesn't know what pain is.  

Edited March 24, 2017 by Barb23

[Elizabeth9]

10 hours ago, meow-mah-leg said:

I wonder how long that operation took to remove one of those masses off of her legs. He always says "surgery went very well" :)

He says "so and so did very well" during surgery- like they had to do something!

I really liked this episode.  Attention all participants, everywhere:  if this lady can walk, YOU HAVE. NO EXCUSES!  She did really well for herself.  I would love to see a follow up on them.

[Miss Ruth]

1 hour ago, Cherrio said:

Then for some there is the lure of tv, a few thousand dollars and "free" surgery.  

I'm sure that free gastric bypass surgery (or even other types of surgery/treatment) would be a huge draw for many people., especially those who have no insurance.  I would sure take advantage of this if I needed it, obligatory shower scene and all.

[meow-mah-leg]

I don't quite understand how hundreds of veins can simply be tied off without major complications to ones circulation. Does the blood flow just gets redirected? How can this not cause a huge drop in body temperature when so many veins are tied off at once?  I really wish that Dr. Now would do more explaining about the technicalities involving the operations and medical aftercare for the people on the show. 

[Hockeymom]

A comment on the drive through liquor stores -

I think it's a great idea! We should have drive through everything! The less I have to talk to people the better.

When I was a kid, our liquor stores delivered - can't tell you how many times we ordered stuff for our mom who was "in the shower" and couldn't come to the door. All my friends did this. We had the cleanest parents in town!

[Ocean Chick]

10 hours ago, ChickenLatte99 said:

It is a wave cap. Black men use them to make waves in their hair.

Also known as an Aunt Jemima or a do-rag.  Some African-American men wear them as a fashion statement.

[meow-mah-leg]

25 minutes ago, Miss Ruth said:

  I would sure take advantage of this if I needed it, obligatory shower scene and all.

I always find those shower scenes heartbreaking. When they grab long shower brushes to get in the folds...and are in pain when trying to clean everything. I am not good with names but that young woman who was hosed down on the veranda every morning....that was just so sad to see. At least she got clean.. I don't think James ever got clean. A damp washcloth which is just moved around a little here and there is not going to do the trick. 

[Miss Ruth]

Quote

No offense, meow-mah-leg, but I'd rather see how people deal with their diet/cravings before and after surgery than to watch the surgery itself.  I can find and watch that type of thing on youtube.

As for the shower scenes, I'm sure that is staged for the camera.  I would venture a guess that the show also provides that new, with fold-marks still showing, clear shower curtain that we see quite often.  I might have to wear two pairs of those gasoline-soaked drawers for this, but I wonder how often some of then actually bathe given their limited mobility and pain.

Edited March 24, 2017 by Miss Ruth

[Miss Ruth]

I watched Angel's story again last night.  She was sitting on the toilet and bathing with a rag that was about one-fourth the size of a wash cloth.  That amazes me every time I watch it.

[AZChristian]

15 minutes ago, meow-mah-leg said:

I don't quite understand how hundreds of veins can simply be tied off without major complications to ones circulation. Does the blood flow just gets redirected? How can this not cause a huge drop in body temperature when so many veins are tied off at once?  I really wish that Dr. Now would do more explaining about the technicalities involving the operations and medical aftercare for the people on the show. 

 I am not a doctor, but I have stayed at a Holiday Inn Express on occasion.  

If my understanding is correct, once a vein is tied off or cauterized, the blood will reroute to a normal vein.  They do it with larger veins when they do varicose vein surgery.  In lymphedema surgery, there are hundreds of tiny, tiny veins that are simply there to service the bad tissue.  They are no longer needed for normal circulation, once that tissue is removed.

[Hockeymom]

1 hour ago, AZChristian said:

I am not a doctor, but I have stayed at a Holiday Inn Express on occasion.  

Hahahah!

[meow-mah-leg]

Thanks for explaining AZChristian. Makes sense.

Miss Ruth, haha, will now check the shower curtain next time I watch :)

[Trees]

2 hours ago, AZChristian said:

 I am not a doctor, but I have stayed at a Holiday Inn Express on occasion.  

If my understanding is correct, once a vein is tied off or cauterized, the blood will reroute to a normal vein.  They do it with larger veins when they do varicose vein surgery.  In lymphedema surgery, there are hundreds of tiny, tiny veins that are simply there to service the bad tissue.  They are no longer needed for normal circulation, once that tissue is removed.

The circulatory system is an amazing thing. I learned this after a heart attack, in cardiac rehab.  They showed how tiny veins will branch off to support areas of the heart that are being "starved" by blockages.  Those tiny veins are apparently the only reason I didn't die at age 58 when I survived a "widowmaker" heart attack (100% blockage of a huge artery). 

That heart attack and the education through rehab was a wakeup call to eat way better - not just the scare, but the new knowledge of how specific foods affect the body.  That's another reason why I find myself reacting so angrily to the folks who abuse their bodies with all that trash they shovel in, thinking it's "food". 

Enabler - learn to make delicious fresh oatmeal, sweetened with some fruit, for a nutritious and satisfying breakfast for the patient, rather than eggs/bacon or a fast food sandwich - or whatever else the patient shovels in fast.  Serve an 8-ounce glass of water to replenish the body that has become dehyrated overnight. 

Then try to say how expensive "real" food is.  A big box of oatmeal and dried fruit to mix in - a couple bucks and will provide dozens of great breakfasts.  Water?  Even if you drink bottled, cost is pennies, compared to that big gulp of pop.

Tracey - the ending was positive and she is making progress.  I hope she stays with it.  She sure was resistant and her weight loss seems MUCH slower than it would be if she were truly dieting.  I'm cautiously optimistic about her.  I'd have liked seeing her really embracing new food choices. 

[TicketToHellPaid]

Sadly I can't find much in this episode to keep my ticket to hell. I do find it odd that Dr Now decided to just start cutting the swellings off. Why didn't the lyphodema Dr. do that if that was necessary?  Why didn't they show therapy with compression on the legs and massage to get the fluid out.

[Lizzie Jones]

There is nothing wrong with having bacon and eggs for breakfast as long as you're not shoveling in 2 pounds of bacon and 3 or 4 dozen eggs at a time. (Hear that James!!).  Personally I do better on a breakfast of eggs (with or without bacon or sausages) and a piece of fruit then I do with oatmeal. Then eggs keep me fuller for longer. Most mornings I have 2 boiled eggs or a 2 egg mushroom omelette and a banana or an orange or a grapefruit and a cup of sugarless tea. If on the odd occasion I'm still hungry after I eat that I will peel and eat a whole cucumber.

45 minutes ago, TicketToHellPaid said:

Why didn't they show therapy with compression on the legs and massage to get the fluid out.

Sometimes that does not work and the mass needs to be surgically removed. Mine need to be surgically removed but nothing can be done for me until I hit 300 pounds or under. (Just keep dieting, just keep dieting ....)

[Thriftykins]

1 hour ago, TicketToHellPaid said:

Sadly I can't find much in this episode to keep my ticket to hell. I do find it odd that Dr Now decided to just start cutting the swellings off. Why didn't the lyphodema Dr. do that if that was necessary?  Why didn't they show therapy with compression on the legs and massage to get the fluid out.

Maybe that doctor wasn't a qualified surgeon.  And I think Tracey's case may have  been too severe for massaging and compression to work.

[auntjess]

On ‎3‎/‎23‎/‎2017 at 3:40 AM, Barb23 said:

By the way Anthony talked at the end, it sounded like she had been to many doctors who couldn't help her.  How discouraging.  

That was surprising, not being put on a low-salt diet.  Dumb question, but since Dr. Now talked about how much weight she lost from fluid in the surgery, is there any procedure to drain the fluid periodically?

On ‎3‎/‎23‎/‎2017 at 11:52 AM, Morgalisa said:

Dr. Now seems to keep some long hours (at least when filming). It is often dark when patients arrive from out of town and he is still there in the office.

This seems to be something new for this season.  Never noticed it before.

On ‎3‎/‎23‎/‎2017 at 0:08 PM, AZChristian said:

So James got $4,000, PLUS whatever his father got from the second mortgage on his home.

And $304 collected at the Mexican restaurant.

[xwordfanatik]

13 hours ago, peaceknit said:

Also called a du-rag.

I had a white coworker that wore one.  I jokingly called it his "don't" rag.  He thought that was funny.

Gotta love a guy with a sense of humor.  That's one of the things I like best about my husband.

I liked Tracey & Anthony finally being able to ride together in the front of the car and hold hands.  I wish them the best.

[auntjess]

17 hours ago, Momof2boyz said:

have a friend who knows someone that was featured on this show and she said that the show paid for her surgery.  That's part of the deal and why people sign up to be on the show 

I understand from some post on this forum, that TLC agrees to cover whatever Medicare or any insurance doesn't cover.

14 hours ago, meow-mah-leg said:

I learn so much here. Never heard of a liquor drive through and now I also just learned that black men wear little caps to make waves in their hair. I just told my husband about my very important newly acquired knowledge and he replied "what in the hell kind of forum are you on???????". 

Would The Forum, or The Boards, be a great TLC show?

[auntjess]

6 hours ago, Barb23 said:

Back to Tracey - did they say how soon she can get the next growth removed?  I'm sure it will feel weird having one leg with the growths removed & the other still huge.

When he did it, he said he'd do the other side top growth next, but at the end of the show, he said that he'd do the bottom on the same side next, and if she tolerated it well again, he'd do the other side, top and bottom,  in one operation.

5 hours ago, Elizabeth9 said:

He says "so and so did very well" during surgery- like they had to do something!

They have to live through it.

[themabeldifference]

She can put on her own socks! Impressive!

[MichelleTX]

15 hours ago, peaceknit said:

Wut?? Wouldn't that be an open container?

It's legal as long as the lid is taped down and no straw in it. Sounds crazy I know. We actually have gone through and picked one up but didn't drink any until we got home. 

[Hockeymom]

1 hour ago, auntjess said:

Would The Forum, or The Boards, be a great TLC show?

How fun would that be? It could be like The People's Couch, except instead of showing assorted people on their sofas reacting to different (Bravo?) shows, they could show different posters on their computers. You know, the person with the screen name Snuggles is really a tattooed biker, and the person named Psycho Killah is a ten year old girl scout.

We'd be famous, and other people would be posting about us.

I can't wait to tell the producers how to spell the my name on the check!

[TicketToHellPaid]

3 hours ago, Lizzie Jones said:

There is nothing wrong with having bacon and eggs for breakfast as long as you're not shoveling in 2 pounds of bacon and 3 or 4 dozen eggs at a time. (Hear that James!!).  Personally I do better on a breakfast of eggs (with or without bacon or sausages) and a piece of fruit then I do with oatmeal. Then eggs keep me fuller for longer. Most mornings I have 2 boiled eggs or a 2 egg mushroom omelette and a banana or an orange or a grapefruit and a cup of sugarless tea. If on the odd occasion I'm still hungry after I eat that I will peel and eat a whole cucumber.

Sometimes that does not work and the mass needs to be surgically removed. Mine need to be surgically removed but nothing can be done for me until I hit 300 pounds or under. (Just keep dieting, just keep dieting ....)

Ohhh, are they on your legs too?

3 hours ago, Michael Stabosz said:

Maybe that doctor wasn't a qualified surgeon.  And I think Tracey's case may have  been too severe for massaging and compression to work.

Idk, I like Dr. Now so this is not a criticism, he seems to love surgery, even outside his specialty. He is a cardiac specialist and any MD can practice whatever medicine they want but are not called a specialist without extra years of schooling in the subject, he is now practicing as a bariatric MD and as a surgeon. 

I like him but I wouldn't let him do a lot of surgical things on me.

[TVWatcher12]

Yet again her mother and kids are fat too! The cycle repeats itself. Back-to-back creepy leg episodes? I don't think there is even a cure for lymphadema though...

[AZChristian]

2 hours ago, Hockeymom said:

You know, the person with the screen name Snuggles is really a tattooed biker, and the person named Psycho Killah is a ten year old girl scout.

Just for the record.  I AM from Arizona, and I AM a Christian (albeit one with a warped sense of humor and a love for snark).

[Hockeymom]

1 hour ago, AZChristian said:

Just for the record.  I AM from Arizona, and I AM a Christian (albeit one with a warped sense of humor and a love for snark).

And I'm an actual hockey mom from Philly!

[Lizzie Jones]

2 hours ago, TicketToHellPaid said:

Ohhh, are they on your legs too?

 

Yes. Not to the extent of Tracey's. The bulk of my weight goes from my waist to my knees. I have 1 lymphedema mass on the inside of each knee. My left leg is worse then my right leg. Considering I have been going through what Tracey has been going through mobility wise she has really impressed me. That woman is a rock star!

[Aw my lahgs]

4 hours ago, TicketToHellPaid said:

Ohhh, are they on your legs too?

Idk, I like Dr. Now so this is not a criticism, he seems to love surgery, even outside his specialty. He is a cardiac specialist and any MD can practice whatever medicine they want but are not called a specialist without extra years of schooling in the subject, he is now practicing as a bariatric MD and as a surgeon. 

I like him but I wouldn't let him do a lot of surgical things on me.

Dr Now actually was a pioneer in the development of bariatric weight loss surgery. He's also a vascular surgeon. Both these things are not things he "just does".

[EmeraldGirl]

When I watch the supersized episodes I feel like I'm reading and not staring at the people properly. I can't take my eyes off them (I'm going to hell too - but it keeps my weight down).

My BIL has lymphedema in his balls! He's only mildly overweight too. Are genetics tied to it? Tracey's nightmare mother was quite heavy but her legs were "normal". 

Don't they follow these people for another year and do that "transformed" show?  One year isn't enough ... we all want to see what happens. That's why the original show was so powerful. But once it became a hit they needed to keep them coming. 

[55Unicorns]

23 hours ago, ChickenLatte99 said:

It is a wave cap. Black men use them to make waves in their hair.

Thank you!  I've seen them off and on over the years, and kept wondering what the point was.  Excuse my ignorance, lol.

[gardendiva]

1 hour ago, EmeraldGirl said:

My BIL has lymphedema in his balls!

This is not something you can just drop here and just walk away from, LOL! I might need you to elaborate. Does he have to wear special clothes, for example...

[LocalGovt]

On 3/23/2017 at 5:02 PM, meow-mah-leg said:

drive through LIQUOR STORES???? I have never heard of such a thing. Holy smokes! That should be outlawed!!

We have em up here in NE Ohio... :)

[LocalGovt]

14 hours ago, Hockeymom said:

And I'm an actual hockey mom from Philly!

And I do represent the local government. :)

[abbey]

11 hours ago, EmeraldGirl said:

 

My BIL has lymphedema in his balls!

Is that what the guy with the 132 lb scrotum had?  Cannot remember anything but the title of that show lol.

[Tabbygirl521]

12 minutes ago, abbey said:

Is that what the guy with the 132 lb scrotum had?  Cannot remember anything but the title of that show lol.

Seriously, I think it was called The Man With the 130-lb Scrotum. That was ... very, very hard to watch. (But of course I DID.) Another case of, When did you first realize something was not normal?? And yeah, I think it was lymphedema. 

Edited March 25, 2017 by Tabbygirl521

[cynicat]

People are wondering why she didn't go to the Cleveland Clinic.  It's entirely possible they won't do the bariatric surgery on patients that large.  These patients have a high chance of dying from the surgery, and those deaths would add into morbidity/mortality statistics for the hospital.  They may not want to take the risk.  

New Orleans is notorious for drive through bars.  No shock there.

These two were a great couple and I wish them well.  I was a little worried Anthony was going to leave at one point, but it seems that he really does love her.  Tracey's backstory was horrendous and I can't understand for the life of me how she lets her mother in her life.  At least the cycle is not continuing and her children seem to be well-adjusted and grounded.  Kudos!

[Trees]

33 minutes ago, cynicat said:

People are wondering why she didn't go to the Cleveland Clinic.  It's entirely possible they won't do the bariatric surgery on patients that large.  These patients have a high chance of dying from the surgery, and those deaths would add into morbidity/mortality statistics for the hospital.  They may not want to take the risk.  

 

My thought about Cleveland Clinic was for lymphedema help.  Apparently she's had it for, what, 15 years or so?  Imagine if she had sought out help from CC when it was small how much better her life would have been?

[Moloch Must Die]

19 hours ago, MichelleTX said:

It's legal as long as the lid is taped down and no straw in it. Sounds crazy I know. We actually have gone through and picked one up but didn't drink any until we got home. 

And here in California I can hardly even find a drive-thru Starbucks, and the closest one is only there because the building used to be a Jack in the Box.

There are so many interesting snack opportunities in other states.