Tell Your Weight Loss Surgery Story

pre op and 8 mos post op!( the pic of me in the brown shirt is about 4 mos post op and in black updated at 8 mos post op)

Today I start my liquid diet with 4 meal replacement drinks a day. This will be a challenge since it's Christmas time, too bad they didn't have egg nog flavored drinks.. Oh we'll. wish me luck :-)

I'm so ready for this!!

I just found out that I am pregnant. I wanted to know is anyone still drinking protein shakes?

One of my fave parts of my sleeve....no more tears in the dressing room! I can see something in the window such as this hot lil number and buy it right off the rack! So pumped I found the purrrrfect dress for NYE!

I'm just curious about everyone's drinking habits with the band, and if it affects anything? Xx

Greetings all!!!! (Long, sorry in advance, I'm a rambler) I've been browsing the site for a while, and figured it was about time to register and do the obligatory "Hello" post. I'm a 34 year old guy living in Central Texas. I've struggled with weight my entire life, becoming pretty obvious once I entered my early teens and progressively getting worse. I managed my emotions fairly well, (thanks in large part to my mother, who as a single parent did a great job trying everything she could). As the years went by, my weight continued to climb. I have been luckier than some, and my highest has 'only' been ~330, and I am currently at ~274. Like most of us, I've tried variou…

My surgery date is January 7th and I am struggling with the 2 week fast before the surgery :-( ..Nevertheless I am so super nervous about the surgery itself.. I have a very low tolerance for pain... ppl say if you can handle having a c - section then you can handle this surgery... im just scared to fail nevertheless to get sick behind the surgery itself. ..

Created by MyFitnessPal.com - Nutrition Facts For Foods Hi - my surgery was Dec. 17. I came home on Dec. 18 in the afternoon, and immediately thought "What have I done to myself?!?" The pain was a big part, but not being able to get comfortable was an issue, too. I did not know that I would have pain in my left shoulder for over a week - I still don't know what that was about. People told me that surgery was the easy way to lose weight. I chose the sleeve because I don't want diabetes or other health problems that run in my family. As I tried every other way on the planet (sensa, atkins, weight watchers, jenny craig, you name it) I decided to give this a go. T…

Hello fellow sleeves! I'm 1 week and a few days post op and I'm down 13 lbs. I just started soft food. Refried beans, cottage cheese, egg beaters . I can eat about 1/4 cup of refried beans and 1/4 cup of cottage cheese mixed and microwaved so that's about a half a cup of food and I don't finish the whole cup but that's about as much as I can eat. For me, it's like a new adventure every day. I also use MyFitnessPal so I can kind of calculator how many ounces of protein I'm getting in a day. it's so important to get your water intake in also. What an awesome journey that we are all on. Any other shares?

Hubby came home with one of my gifts in a Victoria's Secret bag. Ok. It made me nervous. What if it doesn't fit??? Anxiety. Well. It did!! Woo hoo. Size large. Awesome!

Hello my name is Betty , Waiting for pup to give approval dr and surgeon have not seen a patient with pup. So hoping It goes through with no hoops, or stalls how ever just got first stall they dated the request for jan 2013 so insurance said no because it should have been jan 2014 . Now I'm being patient through the holiday to get a thumbs up. The good thing is I'm very positive and know all things work out I Got the faith! First question I have is how long is the norm after the sleeve is put in, is the stay in the hospital?

Hello, I have recently discovered this awesome ap and am just beginning to learn my way around it. On September 10 I had a vertical gastric sleeve done by Dr Michael Sweitzer at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, MD. I have lost 35 lbs and feel fantastic. I have a lot more to loose but things have slowed down quite a bit in the past month. I have a lot of hard work ahead of me but am looking forward to a new me in 2014! I look forward to the support of this forum and to offering what ever support and encouragement I can also offer in return.

Today is my 1 year sleeversary! Time has past so quickly, this time last year I was a nervous wreck. I am so thankful for the 75lbs gone forever now just another 50 more for me to hit my personal weight loss goal by summer 2014

My relationship with my former best friend and comfort has changed. The way I think about food has changed the way I feel about it has changed. It is weird to me at times that I for once in my life am not obsessed with what I am going to eat, or where I am going to eat. I think about eating to live now not living to eat and it feels so great. I think about making good food choices over hurried convenience over processed foods. I taste food, experience it and savor it in a new way. Has your feelings about food changed?

Hello bandsters, I wanted to write and express how pleased I am 2 months post-op with getting the band! I am 24 lbs down, and for the first time in a long time can I start the new year with a weight loss promise I can keep! Now that all of the holiday treats are out of the house, I can now refocus on reaching my 60lbs mark by March! Are there any fitness challenges going on now? If so please share, I'd love to participate!

Nov19th sleever checking in went today down 34 every thing great with no problems , thanks to everyone straford Kennedy hospital! Happy new year to all

When I have a BM its so "heavy" that it won't move in the toilet when its flushed, so it doesn't flush. Is this normal and does anyone know why? Is it because of the protein I'm consuming?

My surgery is scheduled on dec 31st..Happy New Year to me.originally I was going to be a self pay in Mexico but my job finally gave me health insurance(I work at a restaurant that's nota chain so it's fairly common to not be covered)I jumped through all the health insurance hoops and actually got approved fairly quickly.i started my pre op 2 week liquid diet over a week ago and have struggled greatly with it..I have cheated 3 times so far.strangely I have still lost 12 pounds so far.my question is..am I screwed?will I get to the hospital and they will some how know I cheated and won't perform the surgery???i need this surgery..I need to get healthier and want a long life…

I have lost a total of 40 pounds and I don't notice a difference in my clothes at all!!! How much weight did u loose before you noticed a change in your clothes size?

Hey guys have not been on in a while well I am so happy I am 64 pounds down I was sleeve on 9/30/13 the weight has slow down a bit but it's coming off for sure I am excited

I am so excited I got my approval on Christmas eve and now my surgery date is Jan 17th such a wonderful week of blessings!! Now i want to do a pre-surgery liquid fast any suggestions?

Wow, is it ever hard to stay away from food on the holidays, I have just started this journey and know its at least 6 months for approval. No one calls back, Insurance is tricky and I need to loose some weight. This body of mine does not handle the lbs well. I'm going to start again today with the requisite phone calls but don't expect to hear anything until after the New Year. Why is it so hard to write in this forum??? I'm not sure why it is required... but if it will get me to the end of this journey I will continue to do so. Having some doubts.

I had my sleeve in March and so far I'm down 107 lb. love it. My first christmas went well although I wanted to eat more but couldn't ! I feel great. Happy christmas everyone.

Woo Hoo! Finally made it to onederland after gastric bypass surgery on 9/25. I lost 20 pounds on my lovely (NOT) pre-op diet, and another 30 in the three months since surgery. I'm thinking I'm a pretty slow loser, but I'll take it. I'm almost halfway to goal! This is the first time I've been in onederland for decades. This website has been a Godsend, and I so appreciate all the support I've received here. HUGS and good luck to you all!

Greetings & Salutations, I've been overweight my whole life and now just before my 41st birthday I've finally decided to take control and do something. My first consultation is coming up in a couple weeks but I'm really not sure whether to get banded or have the bypass surgery. I was leaning towards the band because I can get back to work faster, I really can't afford to be off for more than a week and a half, two weeks max. I've been hearing a lot of people say they were able to be back in two weeks, if that's true then I'm just not sure what the right decision is.

I am the one on the right .. I never thought I would see it [ATTACH]37403[/ATTACH] [ATTACH]37402[/ATTACH]

I have survived the EGD and the pre diet. Now just waiting to insurance approval let the wait begin.

Hi my name is Lisa I am a 33 year old mother of 5 last 2 babies were born May1st yes twins, I love all my babies but I am at my highest weight ever 273lbs, I've always struggled with my weight and I'm just so excited to be having this done, my mother had her lapband put in over 8years ago and was over 400lbs she is now under 200. I Have my final appointment on January 9, 2014 I am so excited, then I wait for all paper work to be sent to insurance company praying that goes quick and surgery will be last week of January or first week of February. I cannot wait to see what I look like in July anyone want to share how much weight they lost in first 5months?

After a long road with my pre-approvals, I am now scheduled for January 27th? Any others around my state?

I am 41 years old and weigh 198lbs. I am 5ft5inches tall. That puts my BMI at 33.1. I have tried several diets - WW, Atkins, diet pills and diet shakes. A few pounds will come off but I gain it back and then some. Its crazy because I graduated high school at 118lbs...then when I married at the age of 25 I was 150 lbs. Then I had my first child and then the second...now I'm 14 lbs. heavier than when I was 9 months pregnant with my son. I am sick of looking at myself in the mirror, in pictures and I absolutely hate running into people that I haven't seen in awhile. I had blood work done a few months ago and cholesterol is 204 and have sleep apnea. Last year I looked…

Hi, I had a lapband in November, 2008 and did really well for quite a while. Lost over a hundred pounds but for past several years could not lose anymore. Everytime we tried to get better restriction with the lapband, I would not be able to tolerate the pain and inability to get food down so we would back it way off, let everything get back to normal and try again. I ended up in the hospital with so much pain from a recent attempt to get some restriction and new I had to drop the lapband because I still needed to get more weight off. I had first actual Dr, appt. with my recommended gastric bypass surgeon, Dr. Carl Pesta, and his staff on August 5, 2013 and was approved …

I started my diet to shrink my liver, sleeve surgery is scheduled for December 30th, my starting weight is 289

Hi all! I havent been on here in a while. I was banded almost 2 years ago. I was on here every day in the months before my surgery, and the months following. Just a quick re cap for all that dont feel like searching my old posts, My story began at the age of 29. I was right at 360 ish pounds give or a take a cheeseburger or two;) and going up. Miserable, High blood pressure. It was taking a toll on my marriage, However my wife was always supportive and loving. I can see now how much it affected our marriage though in the size 32 pants I wear today. It was also effecting the life I wanted to live with my two little girls. I could not be the daddy I needed to be for th…

Hi my name is Donna. I am 62 years old from MA. I was hoping to lose all of my weight by now but did'nt. When I started on my journey in 2005 going through the consultation and the phycological part before the surgery, the surgical team wanted me to have the RNY because I had a sugar addiction. I did not want that. I was so excited when I heard about the band. Well, since starting at 314 lb, I am 230. I would like to get to my goal of 160 and will do that in 2014. I can do this. I know the good thing is if I didn't have the band I would be eating 4 slices of pizza. Now I can only eat one, if that. Or go to McDonalds and have a burger, fries and a shake like I u…

I had bypass on 12/09/13 and am concern Might be consuming my fluids to quickly and too much? I can drink my protein shake in about 30 mins and can drink water very freely. Should I be concerned?

Hi, I had a lapband in November, 2008 and did really well for quite a while. Lost over a hundred pounds but for past several years could not lose anymore. Everytime we tried to get better restriction with the lapband, I would not be able to tolerate the pain and inability to get food down so we would back it way off, let everything get back to normal and try again. I ended up in the hospital with so much pain from a recent attempt to get some restriction and new I had to drop the lapband because I still needed to get more weight off. I had first actual Dr, appt. with my recommended gastric bypass surgeon, Dr. Carl Pesta, and his staff on August 5, 2013 and was approved …

I am 8months out & wanna drink some wine 2day but scared im not sure how I'm gonna feel & don't wanna ruin my day any suggestions

Well i had my surgery Nov 19 2013. I had tried so many times to lose weight and i gain it all back. So the last straw was when i lost 40 lbs dieting and gain all back plus more with health problems. I had plus 3 pitting edema and heart would feel like it wanted to jump out of chest. Doctors told me losing weight was good but gaining it back put to much strain on my heart. So this surgery gave me second chance and to feel alive again. I am only 32 yrs old with 5 awesome kids and hubby. Now i feel like i have so much more energy to play with them. Also now i will be around for them. So thankful for this life saving second chance...

My surgery was supposed to take two hours but due to a large, unknown hiatal hernia, ended up taking 5 hours. I have had a couple incidents of nausea, but never vomited. I am very sore, but otherwise, am doing great. I just had 2 sugar free Popsicles and they were fantastic. My new tummy took them well and they were refreshing for my dry mouth. Looking forward to going home tomorrow.

Hi can I get some feedback from the diabetics that had the sleeve procedure done and are experiencing fluctuations in blood sugar readings. I checked today and it was 121 usually its around 90 a sudden spike. It could be that I am to soon out from surgery. Had my sleeve Nov 11 2013. some readings were around 70 and 80 which i think is ideal. So please let me know if what im experiencing is normal for now. thanks.

Well, I've jumped through every hoop and here I am, waiting on that final approval. Once it is approved I have my appointment to see my surgeon again and pick my date. Kinda freaked out, but super excited.

I can't lie, I'm feeling a mixture of emotions. I was finally approved by my insurance company and my surgery was scheduled for January 28th. I'm hoping the next month goes by quickly and the nerves settle down. Hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas.

So I am just started my gastric sleeve journey. I am 38 years old with three fantastic little boys. I have been to the information session and in the process of seeing a cardiologist, PC, and getting a EGD. I am going thru georgetown bariatric with Dr. Derek Weiss in georgetown, ky. I am self pay. Stupid insurance has a wls exclusion. The price of surgery is around 16,000. I have worried about paying this much but have come to term that it's a small price to pay for my health. I also worry about the surgery it's self and complication. I love this site but it can also scare the crap out of you! I know that I have todo this to get heathy for myself and family. My question …

Hi everyone! Is there a thread where I can read surgery day stories? I've searched but I will admit to having a little trouble using the app on my phone.

My new date is set 30 Dec any advice on shakes to get after surgery I am from Egypt and will order online yet not sure which is good

It is not as bad as I thought, but smelling all this good Xmas food is a bit much? Another 2weeks 2 go before surgery

Hello all. I'm new here also, my name is Christine! I had my VBS surgery Monday the 16th of December. So I'm 3 days out, and once they got my pain medication stable and found out which one works for me I have been getting stronger every day. I'm enjoying getting into the routine of all this protein intake and how I can sneak protein into my water so that I can get my water and my protein needs met at the same time. I am looking forward to the next stage when I can introduce pureed foods, but I would like to know where I can go find recipes from experience sleevers who have already been there done that. I'm 39 years old have two teenage boys and newly separated. Would love…

I was discharged from the hospital today, with my new sleeve, whom I have named Bossy Bess. My surgery was Monday morning 12/23/2013, and I must tell you all.....no problem with C 0 2. My surgeon had said at my final appointment that he tries to remove as much as possible. The hardest part for me was getting off and on that inflated Bariatric mattress. Glad to be home.

Loving the new me!