Tell Your Weight Loss Surgery Story

I had a VSG at Northwestern Hospital (Chicago) on March 3 2015. I've lost over 110 pounds in those 7 months and to keep my progress up I'm able to do vigorous Step Reebock workouts for an hour every day. (My favorite workout from the 1990s) I'm off the pre-diabetes and cholesterol medicine and the only remaining pill I have to take is a fraction of the blood pressure medicine I used to take. Probably after New Years I could start looking into having the hanging skin slopped off. Having the surgery was one of the best things I ever did.

Hello all. New to this forum and am a bit overwhelmed by all of the topics and threads so hopefully I'm doing this correctly. My name is Rachel and my surgery date is scheduled for December 1st in central Jersey. I'm using Dr. Abkin. I've been going through all of the pre op prerequisites and it's all just a lot to wrap my head around. I've struggled with my weight my entire life, and at 31 I feel slightly defeated that this is what I've had to turn to. Besides being morbidly obese (I'm 251 with a bmi of 41), I have no health issues. I've lost weight before, but I can't keep it off. What is it about this surgery that's going to make it different, ya know? Anyway, I'…

I have had a rocky road............................... April 29th I had a lap band fitted. (no fill) July 28th I had the port removed due to infection / over granulisation. October 20th - Had my port refitted - and first fill of 4mm put in. I have had the best part of this year under bandages and been visiting the team to control infection, it was only this week did I have the final act of a 'new' port and 4mm of saline placed into my band. Despite a difficult year, where I have considered 'bypass' + 'removal' out of desperation, I am now focussed on making the very best from my delayed time out, As I have read and read and read everything on lap band and f…

Havent been on this board for a while, so Hello to All! I was banded back in early January of this year and have accomplished amazing results with the band and with my health. I have lost almost 20 inches on my waist, off 4 of my 5 daily medications and over 120 pounds to date. I have followed my 1200 calorie a day plan to a tee. But all of a sudden, right after the change in season and temperatures. I have been going off my plan and craving Snacks and junk like chips and stuff. "HAS THIS HAPPENED TO ANYONE ELSE"

Hi! Everyone, I found this forum two weeks before my surgery! Glad I found it cuz it answered many questions I had. I finally joined last night. Anyways, I had my sleeve surgery 10/13th!! So I am in 7 days now. I'm from Massachusetts and went to Dr. ursula mcmillian.

Lower left abdomen pain is still in pain. Everytime i cough or sneez it feels the muscle rips. Anyone else have this issue. I am 6 days post op from surgery. Had my surgery Sept 29 2015

Hi everyone! Long time lurker, first time poster here. I went through my gastric sleeve surgery after almost 8 months of back and forth because of insurance issues. Finally the 14th of October was my new beginning. As my surgeon was inside though, she discovered a small hernia that she fixed for me. I was wondering if anyone else had this happen to them and if so, how their recovery has been. I am still having pain from the gasses in addition to the regular pain associated with this surgery. I'm having these feelings of...What did I get myself into? now, wondering if I did the right thing. Please tell me this is normal and that I will get relief soon.

Any suggestions what I can purchase from a restaurant (currently traveling) kinda sick of panera bread(soup)

Hiya, everyone! I'm a longtime lurker, first time poster. I wanted to finally introduce myself. I decided to go with the gastric sleeve after having been diagnosed with cirrhosis of liver, multiple hernias, a bad kidney, gallstones, arthritis, and an ulcer haha that's a lot going for a 27 year old mom. I didn't tell the public that I was having the surgery and other things taken care of at the same time. The only people that know are my fiancé, my mother, and 3 of my girlfriends. I had my surgery on 10/8/15, a day shy of a week ago. The day of surgery I weighed in at 254lbs. It's been a rough journey, very hard on my body and I've been in a lot of pain. Usually, …

Hello, sleeves or soon to be. I had gastric sleeve surgery in May 2015.y weight before surgery was 247, today October 21, I am at 195. A total loss of 52 pounds in almost five months. After gastric sleeve I caught a massive and I do mean massive infection called cellulitis. Within 3 days, it was all over my entire stomach. Landed me back in the hospital for a week and a half. Then they let me go home with a pick in my arm.( needle in right arm that leads to main vein in the heart.) Had a nurse come by 2xs a week and I administered my own meds everyday day for almost 2 months. As of today, I take diebetes meds now, never did b4. But, I do not regret my surgery. And I have …

So I had my surgery on may 18th. So I'm right @ the 5 month mark my highest weight was 560. Since surgery I have lost about 150lbs give or take I haven't been getting on the scale lately. But it turned out that I have an abnormal gall blatter which was removed Monday 10/12/15 (yesterday).not as bad as the other surgery but still in a little pain. But as for everything else I would do it all over again. I feel so much better than I used to.

Surgery went great! I felt excellent afterwards. Starting weight on surgery day was 178. Down 10 pounds. I can only take sips of Water and a tad of Protein water. It doesn't sit well if I were to gulp and if I do get too much liquid in my mouth I have to spit it out in another cup. This is something that will take time. I'm still happy I did this.

Hi All! I have my final appointment with my primary care physician on June 4th. Was hoping to be a June sleever, but it looks like I will be early July. Anyone else out there having a July surgery!? I'm so stoked to start this journey and this site has offered me so much info. Thought I would reach out for support now.

10/25/15 will be a month since my surgery and I'm happily blessed & thankful to say I haven't had not one problem and I'm down an amazing 20lbs???????????? a little over a week to go until my one mt dr. visit aiming for a 25lb loss????????????????

The 10 countdown has begun for us and I was wondering if anyone else is having their surgery on that day! It would be nice to talk to others who are in the final countdown to surgery day!!! If your anything like me, your beyond excited and nervous! Also, does anyone have any last minute advice on ANYTHING?! I've really over prepared (if that's possible) but I just don't want to miss out on learning anything I can before the big day!!!

someone asked me why i chose to do this procedure and i might as well say the many reasons why i decided this path for myself... mind everyone i suffer from ankylosing spondylitis.. really bad arthritis in my lower back that affects my joints in my arms and legs to swell and is very painful and fibromyalgia.. also a rsd. which i have 2 herniated disk in my lower back that hit a nerve in my back... ive have always been a lil over weight not too crazy or anything... the most ive ever weighted before i made this decision was 220. and thats because i was first pregnant with my first baby girl in '08.. then i was 180 for the longest and didnt have any problem. then in '11 i …

Hey guys so im sched for VSG 10/22. For some odd reason today after having intercorse with my husband i was crying crying crying. All i could think about was if something were to happen to me on thurs. I felt very odd and having second thoughts. Idk what to do! Someone helpe please. He just laughed about it and made it into a joke but i really was so emotional it felt like the last time i was going to be with him. Plz no one judge me. Thanks.

I realized something today. In the past (aka, "before surgery"), I would look forward to meals. Like, "oh yum, we're having ribs tonight, I can't wait!!!" I noticed that I don't do that, or think that, anymore. My mother moved in with me a couple of years ago, and she makes dinner every night (it's so awesome). She texted me earlier today to see if I was working late, and said "it's meatloaf night." In the past, meatloaf-night meant a happy dance. Today, it was more like, "oh that's nice." OH. THAT'S. NICE. Whiskey Tango Foxtrot. Who in the blue blazes thought "oh that's nice." WHO????? Me, that's who. It seems that food has lost its hold on me. It's a…

Hiatal hernia repair with a VSG this gas pain is killing me

Hello all, my surgery was on 9/4/15. Since then, I've lost over 40 lbs, but I've lost 74 lbs since I began this journey in April. Further, there are few people that know I've had the surgery. With that said, I don't know how to respond/react when people notice or compliment me on my weight loss. For example, I saw a friend I haven't seen in almost a year. She immediately said "damn, you've lost a lot of weight...you look like you lost a whole person!" Then a person who knew about the surgery who hadn't seen me for a couple months saw me and kept telling me how good I looked. While I appreciate the compliments, it's awkward because I know I'm still big and I don't notice…

As it turns out, I have a pretty bad case of dumping syndrome. And I'm not entirely sure what causes it and how to manage it as it had started up rather suddenly. I wasn't sure it was dumping syndrome but I have confirmed it with my surgeon that it is. After I eat I become severely nauseated for about an hour, 30 minutes if I take zofran. It's so bad all I can do is lay there and groan. I can't talk or walk. It seems to be set off by anything sweet- ice cream, evens glass of milk, yogurt, etc. It also seems to happen at other times- just after any meal. I'm not sure what's triggering it. Can dumping be triggered by portion size alone? What foods trigger your…

Hi, 39 year old male had surgery almost a week ago. Starting weight:303 Weight day of surgery:286 Weight this morning 6 days post-op:277

Married and living in West London, I was born in Australia. No kids, no pets, just me and the Hussyband living with the Mother-in-Law, but we are heading up to Liverpool early next year to start anew somewhere you can buy a house without going into debt for the rest of your natural life. I have been thinking about having weight loss surgery for a long time - way before I met my beloved Hussyband. A friend in Tasmania had it and it worked wonders for her. But I wasn't ready then. I was having way too much fun being the happy drunken party girl. Yes I was big - but it never stopped me from having fun, and by having fun I mean picking up lots of strange men for gratuitou…

SW 385 Size 36 Surgery Date 8/12/14 CW 201 Size 10

As I read different post I read of all the different kinds of pre op diets required. Some are all liquid , some have none at all, some like mine just require low carb high protein and no sugar as seen below, don't know why?

I got sleeved monday 10/12 and Im just getting home. I am finding a VERY hard time drinking the isopure. And getting my protiens in. Also, cold things make my sleeve FREAK OUT. I am in alot of pain, but I dont want to hurt my body be not getting enough fluids. Any help?

I am currently 7 months out. I know its a bit early still to worry but i have some questions. I am currently 149 but would love to reach my goal of 135. I am at what seems to be a stall. Has anyone gone through this and still reached their goal weight? Some times i catch myself thinking, oh no the surgery is over (cant help it, and sure im not the only one) thoughts anyone? Ty

Good morning! I am go on day three of post op sleeve and so far so good. I'm nauseous and hurting but that's expected. Can someone please tell me how many days they did clear liquids post op? My doc didn't leave me with any info but from what I'm reading it says about 3 days? Any advice would be most appreciated. Thank you kindly.

Today my parents got home from a trip, they have been gone since beginning of September. I went to see them tonight and they always bring home goodies for us taking care of the house and other things while they are gone. They bought some jackets that are rain proof and wind proof so when they are packing up the camper. They bought me and my husband one to, so we can leave in camper. It is a size Large and it is almost to big for me!!! I got really excited to be able to fit into it and be able to wrap it around my front side!!! I am so excited to be able to go into almost every store and be able to fit into clothes!!! I am loving my sleeve and just got over a three-fou…

I had my band 6 years and have had off and on good and bad experiences. I lost 70 lbs but have put 25 back on since I had my gallbladder removed. Since June I have had severe heartburn that does not go away. I have had numerous swallow test and was on liquid diet for three week along with the fill completely removed. Nothing has helped and I was told to get it removed is my only hope. I'm scared to go back through this again and pray no complications happen. I trust my doctor but it's that fear again what if I go through this and this isn't the problem. I'm also a little sad for having to remove it and my husband thinks I'm silky because I've been so sick and I should wan…

HI Pals, my name is vickie and i am 413 lbs, and has of right now I'm waiting on my approval from my insurance to get the gastric sleeve. I have so many mixed feels i don't know how to feel or what i should be feeling. when i first started this journey i was more excited then anything, my insurance company put me on a six month diet and in that time i have been in between weight ranging from 413lbs-425lbs i now back to 413 and at the last minute trying to lose 5-10 more before my surgery date. I'm getting closer and closer to the approval and getting really nervous and having all there crazy thoughts run through my head, it does help I'm in a new state with no family an…

My journey started in February 2015 I went to Rex & began the steps to have VSG. My insurance is with Cigna so I knew I had a four month monitoring program I had to start with my dr. After two months of going through the program with Rex I found out Cigna only covers "Super Bariatrics Programs" & guess what, Rex wasn't apart of that! After that I did give up, I just felt like maybe it wasn't meant to be. Besides I had planned a all inclusive trip to Cancun so Id think about it afterwards. June came around & I had made my mind up: this surgery was going to happen. I found out that Duke qualified as a Super center so I did the online orientation…

What are some good protein bars? Thanks

I had my last class today December can't get here soon enough!

Hello! My name is Sidda and I was sleeved on September 29th, 2015. That was six days ago and I figured that now would be a good time to start a thread to keep up with my thoughts on everything. Today I feel much better than I have been, I have a lot more energy today and my stomach doesn't hurt half as much as it did the first few days out. It is still swollen and tender in a few areas and I am pretty well bruised up but that's to be expected, right? The first day after surgery, I had trouble even getting a few ounces of liquid down for the x-ray test. In fact, I only managed to finish the first cup they gave me, I couldn't take any of the second one. Getting up from the…

It's been 2 months and I'm down 43 lbs. I have some stall here and there but overall I think I'm doing good. Sometimes I can eat more than other but I do my best and never eat. Any tips on helping the weight drop more quickly.

Ive seriously been sticking to the diet and excersice and ive only lost 35 lbs since aug 4 what the heck?! I havent lost any weight in like 2 weeks this is so depressing everyone i know that has gotten the surgery is double or more the weight loss that i am. Its so aggravating. I feel like im just destined to be overweight forever. ???????? i dont know what else to do. I feel like when people see me they dont notice a change. Its embarrassing for me to see people that know about my surgery cuz i feel like theyre expecting to see me smaller and im still fat. I dont know what else to do. Sorry i just had to let that out. Im going through it right now.

The one on the left is my current disgusting state of 220. The other two are edited versions. I'm thinking the middle one is what I might look like at 160 and the last one on the right is what I might look like at 140 LOL. sometimes. When you're on day nine of the stupid effing liquid diet you got to find a way to amuse yourself

My name is Peggy and was sleeved 8-19-2015.I have been over 400 twice in my life.This time I began at 379 @ the age of 57.Ten years ago I lost 175 lbs in a support group to gain again to 379 .Age and loads of medical issues caught up with me.I had to do this or have no quality of life. I feel grateful because I don't have that nagging feeling of being hungry 24/7.

So I have my first class October 14.how Meany classes is there

Hi everyone its been a minute since I been on here October 17th will make it seven months since I had the gastric bypass. I am down 100lbs my starting weight was 275 here is a before pic and after. I am 175lbs and have 30-40 more lbs I want to loose but I am happy were I am God has really helped me thru this journey its been a long one but I am gone keep pushing I went from a 2xl in shirt to medium and large from a 18-20 to 11-12 ????????????☺

Ok last night I took my sons to JCP for new jeans and as I was checking out the "bold" salesgirl says "Now we have the kids covered, what's Mom gonna do about those sagging pants she's wearring?" I just laughed. Haha. Yep I'm 6 weeks postop and down 44 lbs. Time to invest some $$ in myself. (Just a little). No doubt this is soooo worth it all. Love it!!

I am 25 yrs old and always so depressed dude to my weight i have 3 children and I'm a stay at home wife my children ages are 3yrs 18 months & 4 months my husband is 23 yrs I'm always angry in a bad mood plus health issues always tired with my energy on the floor this is why i took my first step in looking into WLS i feel hopeless ????

I got sleeved 10/12. And I'm finding it tough, but not impossible to get 64 ounces of Water AND 40 grams of Protein in. But I'm really glad I went through with it. Has anyone else had that weird feeling that they'll never need to eat again? I know that it's only temporary... but it's a weird feeling. I was 320 when I started my pre-surgery diet... I'm 295 right now. Looking forward to being able to get active again.

I have heard a little about the five day pouch test. I googled it. It said someone 4 months out shouldn't do it. True? Is the whole "test" just a hoax?

10 months post op. I've lost 150 lbs. 80 more to go. No longer Diabetic, no more insulin shots, Blood Pressure &-Cholesterol is normal. Can walk without pain. No more Neuropathy. Can sit in booths now in restaurants. Can fit in airline seats. Buying clothes is fun again. Food no longer controls me I control it. Best decision I ever made was to have this surgery. I feel better, I look better, & I'll live longer. I now am addicted to exercise. I workout at the gym 3 days a week. I go to the Park for long walks &-walk 3 miles 4 days a week. My dog goes with me & she has lost 25 lbs. My Nutritionist & Surgeon is proud of me and I'm proud of myself. I'm enj…

Good morning friends! Today is finally the day!!! Could not sleep last night and woke about 5am. The hospital pre op had given me a scrub stat bottle to use the morning of the surgery to decrease infection risk. Took my scrub stat shower and woke the family up. Kids are all off to grandparents and my husband, mom and I are on the road to the hospital! Nervous and super anxious!! Oh the anxiety is raging!! Will keep you all posted along the way!

I hear a lot of us saying we don't know what to wear now in our new bodies! Let's share what we are wearing and give each other some ideas for what works at goal and on the way down!!! Montage ladies!! For me, it's all about pretty dresses! Skinny jeans!! And something a little sexy!!

.

Ok I was 10 pounds from my goal weight; my oldest sons birthday was Monday so I eat some junk yes I know I shoulda cut it off that day but in 4 days I've gained 11 pounds I'm soooo upset now I've got these 11 plus my other 10 now to loose seems like if I look at junk I gain how can I live from now on so I guess I'll go back to what I was doing only eating sweets on CHRISTmas, Thanksgiving and our birthday so typically 5 times a year any thoughts?