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Welll.... got my brachio. On post op day 4. Feeling pretty good. It's still very swollen. Here's post op day 3 photo. I can't wait to be healed and wearing t shirt. I have to wear this compression top for 2 weeks straight then for 12 hours a day for 4 more weeks or so.

Goodness I cannot believe that my 15 year surgery anniversary will be in October! A friend of mine is considering weight loss surgery so I went looking for this forum again and thought I would do a quick update! I had a VSG in Mexico (Mexicali) in October of 2010. I had zero complications and went from a surgery weight of 276 down to about 125ish. Size 24 to size 0. I had plastics in 2013ish (breast, arms, and tummy). I gained up to about 150/160 and stayed there for many years. Over the past 6 to 7 years I have gained weight thanks to nursing school and the pandemic 🥴 but I'm happy with where I am! I am currently at 170 and in a size 8. (Lots of weight/skin in leg area). My surgery continues to be the best thing that I ever did for myself. The only drawback is that I have GERD, and cannot skip a day without Omeprazole. My labs are fantastic. I can eat pretty a normal size meal but still have some restriction if I go over that. I'll try to remember to come back incase anyone has questions but really I don't think about the surgery or food much anymore 🤗

Hey y’all! I was sleeved on 04/28 so I’m one week out, however, I’ve been having some dark brown discharge (not super heavy) but it started 2-3 days post op. I’m wondering if it’s surgery related which would be weird right ? But I had my period 4/19 so wondering if it’s just delayed discharge from that. Pretty much wondering if this has happened to anyone else?

So I had gastric sleeve surgery in 2017 and ever since I have had severe GERD. I just went through an upper GI endoscopy and it was found that I have a huge hiatal hernia, like half of my stomach! My surgeon says the only real way to get relief is the have a gastric bypass but my current insurance does not cover any bariatric surgery. Is there a way to get them to pay since the surgery isn’t for weight loss? I have BCBS of Alabama.

Does your surgeon's office have a patient navigator or insurance coordinator? They are pretty experienced in dealing with insurance companies, so that's probably your best bet.

Tbh mine went great, like no pain, no gas issues, went home and following day went in for my iv treatment and again no pain or issues. hope everyone else that is having surgeries in May have a good outcome.

I share this story in hopes that it may help someone to never pick up a drink after VSG or to at least be hyper-vigilant about the dangers of drinking post weight loss surgery. I was sleeved in August of 2015 @ 310 lbs. Quickly lost most of the weight needed and began running 5k. Not really setting the world on fire, but it was really good for me. Prior to surgery, I had always enjoyed drinking with friends. Typical guy stuff - couple beers @ a football game or watching the game on Sunday, meeting for drinks after work, etc. Never an issue or problem. Never anything that i had to have. My doctor warned me against alcohol, sodas, and transfer addictions, but I thought "never me". WOW, was I wrong. I remember the first couple times I had a beer after the surgery (I waited 6 months), it was very fizzy and uncomfortable. I convinced myself that it would get easier, and unfortunately it did. Next came the rum and coke zero. Wow, that tastes great, and I get a buzz very quickly. That fast buzz turned into getting very drunk, very quickly. Our new bodies absorb the alcohol in 1/2 the time that a normal internal system would. Over the last couple yeaars there have been many episodes of drinking way to much, blacking out, and not remembering what happened. I have had to apologize for my behavior more than once after a night of drinking. I even started drinking every day. I would make a drink as soon as I got home each day. 1 turns into 2 or 3. Just like lays potato chips you can not have just 1. Alcohol consumed my every thought. When can I have a drink? How can I make sure I can get a drink? It amazed me how I was able to justify that if creamer was good in my morning coffee, how great would Rumchatta be (it's damn good, by the way). I am living proof that transfer addiction is a real thing. I am now in counseling for my alcohol addiction. Transfer addiction is definitely a real thing. Prior to VSG surgery I was over 300 pounds because I had an addiction to food, and all the wrong kinds of food. My new addiction is alcohol and it's best friend is food addiction. what goes with beer = chicken wings, or nuts and pretzels, what goes with a margarita = tacos, etc. Alcohol also makes it impossible to lose weight. So if you are really dedicated to clean eating but you drink, your weight may stay the same, but it surely will not go down. I have packed on 60 lbs of the 120 that I lost. And, I am slowly changing behaviors to get back to where I want to be. It is a journey,, but I am worth it. I will overcome. Addiction is sacrificing everything for that one thing ! Recovery is sacrificing that 1 thing to have everything !

Hi all, my name is Kevin, and I'm new to this board. I just signed up because, for the first time, I think I have a story to share. I've been reading on this board for months as I've been weighing surgical possibilities, and now it's weird being on the other side. I did my gastric sleeve with Renew Bariatics in Tijuana about 4 months back, and I'm at -82 lbs to date. If you're undecided or on the fence—believe me, I'm there. I wasted YEARS jumping around, attempting every diet, every exercise craze, every miracle pill. Nothing held. I'd lose 20 lbs and gain 30. I was at my all-time high last year at 312 lbs, and it started affecting every area of my life—my knees hurt all the time, my energy level was zero, and quite frankly, I just didn't know who I was anymore. I eventually made the decision after my first doctor quite kindly suggested WLS. Insurance here in the US would take an eternity with all the pre-reqs, so I investigated Mexico (fairly skeptically at first). But Renew Bariatrics would keep coming up in every search, and I started watching videos, reading testimonials, even stalking threads here. I ended up deciding to go for it. The Tijuana experience was much better than I expected. The hospital was clean, the staff were nice and genuinely professional, and they were very organized. I went alone (which intimidated me), but I never at any point felt in danger. My coordinator was responsive and the time to prepare me ahead of time, like what to bring and how the day would go every time. Surgery day was actually a blur. I was terrified of heck, but the surgical team made me feel comfortable and at ease. I had no severe complications—only some expected gas pain for a couple of days. The hardest part? The adjustment in my mind afterward. Eating slowly, learning to stop when full, and knowing that food wasn't going to be my crutch anymore took work. Still does. But here's the thing—I got my life back. I can move again. I sleep better at night. I walk into rooms upright. I've still got a long way to go, but this has made such an amazing difference, and I'm glad that I pushed the limits and gave it a try. If you're considering Renew or just need to talk to someone who's gone through it, go ahead and comment or contact me. I recall how valuable it was reading actual people's posts when I was still on the fence. Happy to return the favor. Thanks for reading my long tale—I'm happy to be here!

Real clothes

My boyfriend and I broke up over the weekend, and I just wanted to reach out to my bari-family for support 😓 I remember reading loads about how after surgery lots of people found that their relationships broke down for one reason or another, and the statistics around this being quite shocking. Whilst I don't contribute my break-up to my surgery/weight loss, I am struggling at the moment with the emotional side of things following it all. Rather than emotional eating, I am finding that I have 0 appetite at all, I just don't want to eat, I don't want to do my exercise, ugh. But I am also scared of just doing nothing. I don't know guys, I am rambling, but either way , just wanted to reach out to see how others have dealt with this in their own lives. ❤️