brandynd

Hey kids! Today marks my 1 year surgiversary....I can't believe that one year ago today Dr. Rodriguez saved my life in Tijuana Mexico. For the first time, I'm happy with who I am and where I am. I still have about 20 pounds to go until I hit the point where I'm happy, but for your viewing pleasure, I thought I'd do a little photo whoring! Mmmwhuah! Before: After:

Happy surgiversary twin!!!! I am SO SO SO proud of you!!!!

Thanks ladies!! I feel phenomenal! I went from a 24, currently stalled in a size 12, but for the time being I'll take it! I know the weight will continue to fall off, but as we all know, the honeymoon period ends and you really have to work for every pound! I have so much more energy now though, and I FINALLY am beginning to feel like an after!

I'm just barely nine months out and have yet to gain anything. Of course I have the 1-4 pound fluctuation around AF, but none of it ever sticks.

So, I have to go to DH's cousins wedding at the end of the month. I thought that I had a dress that was too small last year that I could wear. I tried to put it on, but apparently I no longer have the boobs to hold the thing up, and it can't be taken in without compromising the dress . Makes me sad, because it's a $200 dress I never got to wear. ANYWAYS....I went shopping, but there is literally NOTHING on the racks that is appealing to me within a 40 mile radius of my house. I'm still a plus size (18 right now I believe, probably a 16 by the end of the month), but everything is just so....matronly I guess. I'm only 22, and I have to find something that looks good on me. I'm getting really concerned about this wedding, and a part of me doesn't even want to go at this point. DH's family has always made me feel inferior, and some of them have made some pretty nasty comments about my ever changing weight. The goal is to look as small as possible, but I'm not finding anything to help me accomplish that. There has to be a shopaholic somewhere on this site that can point me in the right direction! I love shopping, but to be honest with you, I've never felt so lost inside of the mall in my life!

Oh honey, your reaction is perfectly normal! If you look back on old threads, I WAS you 4 months ago! It's going to be okay. You just have to take a deep breath and remember why you're doing this! As for the immediate post-op diet, you're not going to even have a desire to have anything to do with food for the first little bit. It'll go so fast that before you know it you'll be back on solids! If you need to talk feel free to PM me, even if it's just for someone to talk you down for a minute! It's perfectly normal and okay to have a few freak out moments before surgery! If you need to cry, then just cry. It'll make you feel better. It's important to be honest about the way that you're feeling about everything. Fear and anxiety are perfectly normal reactions. If you have any questions, or need someone to talk to, come visit us on the post-op diet. We're all more than happy to help you!

Msk

So...is this an NSV? I'm not really sure....so I'm going to put it here anyways. I'm down about 60 pounds from pre-op and feeling great, which in an of itself is an awesome accomplishment. I've noticed though that I'm getting a certain amount of attention from our male patrons at work and I'm not really sure I know what to do with it. Yesterday I was handling billing questions from a guest, when he asked me if he could take me out to famous dave's for lunch. I thanked him for his generosity, and told him that I already eaten. He then looked at me and said "Well I could pick you something up and keep it in my room....you could always come up for dinner later.." and then winked at me! Ummm....okay. I have another male guest who came into the office yesterday afternoon asking for change. I went in back to the safe to get it out, and he proceeded to tell my GM of all people how "I'd like to take that little girl home to momma." He spent the rest of the afternoon walking past my office and staring....he even ran into a door frame he was so busy looking! Not to mention this guy was old enough that he should be hitting on my mother...not me. WTH?!? I'm nowhere near goal yet, and I don't see much of a difference in the way that I look, and while it's nice to know that people think I'm looking better I really don't know if I'd consider this an NSV because the way that these men are looking at me makes me feel like crap. I'm so much more than the way that I look, and all the attention makes me really uncomfortable. That and how anybody could find my work attire sexy is beyond me. I'm still wearing slacks that are WAY too big (I'm a poor college student and am putting off buying a new pair as I'm dangerously close to the next size down from what I am now, and don't want to buy something that'll only fit for a short amount of time), a hideous button down shirt with the company logo, and a black sweater that really doesn't have a shape. All in all, I refer to my work attire as hobo chic (that whole, I don't really care, but I'm not so unsightly it's unprofessional thing...it's a balance, whatever). Alas, I am choosing to pay attention only to the bright side of this situation, and view this as me gaining my old confidence back, and getting my mojo going again! I'm hoping that it's the old addage "When you feel good you look good." Is that how it goes? Whatever. Has anyone else experienced an increase in unwanted attention at work? Best way to go about addressing it without coming off as a snob?

I'm sorry....I just can't imagine putting my life in the hands of a surgeon who's willing to perform a major abdominal surgery on a patient for a measly 20 pounds. I always thought the VSG was a tool to help those who truly struggle to lose weight achieve their weightloss goals. I would have some major reservations going to a surgeon who's willing to cut into someone just for vanity purposes. Not trying to be snarky or rude, its JMHO.

I'm sitting here in tears writing this....I just took a shower and was getting dressed when I decided what the hell, why not try on a pair of jeans from freshman year of college. I pulled them up thinking "there's not a snowflakes chance in hell these are going to fit." Yet, they slid up and buttoned EASILY! I'm fitting into a juniors size 13!!!!!! AHHHH!!!! Holy.shit. (can I say that on here? If not I'm sorry mods!) I think I peed myself a little! I'M NOT PLUS SIZED ANYMORE!!!!!!!!!! I may have done a stupid booty dance in front of my full length mirror...but if anybody asks me about it I'll deny deny deny . Can I just say something? I LOVE MY SLEEVE! From size 22 to 13 in just over 2 months. Not too bad for a girl who weighed over 250 D.O.S. Love you all! <3 B.

I'm glad I could be of some help! My surgical team was great, and they did give me an antibiotic (I believe it was macrozit) and a mild pain pill to help as well. I will be honest with you, I have almost no tolerance for pain meds and the pain pill still didn't do much for me, but I did have some Xanax with me (I'm a nervous flyer) and that relaxed me so the pain was REALLY mild. If you can, I would suggest going to your doctor and telling them you're having some anxiety and see if they'll prescribe you with Xanax or something similar....it's a life saver! The flights home weren't too bad at all...we flew from SAN to SLC and that flight was only about an hour...do yourself a favor though and ask for the wheelchair assist if you're flying into a large airport. You're not going to be in much of a shape to walk from gate to gate and you'll probably tire out pretty easily. Also, if you let the airline know you just had surgery at least 24 hours before your flight, they'll either upgrade you to first class (which they did for us from SAN to SLC), or give you bulkhead seats (which we got from SLC back to OMA). It'll make your flight a great deal more comfortable. Just be ready for some swelling. I fit comfortably into a seat on the way for surgery, but on the way home I had to use a seatbelt extender I was so swollen! It wasn't painful or anything, but it did bruise my ego a bit to know that I was so swollen! Yuck! If you end up choosing a surgeon in TJ and you're feeling up to it, you should ABSOLUTELY go to the outdoor shopping center! The power of the USD there is strong, and I'm still kicking myself for not picking up a new Coach purse while I was down there! Such great deals, and they have a Centro de Mexicana that sells 100% juice for what amounted to like $.17 american. You'll want to have lots of juice and bottled Water on hand! Also, let me know when you pick your surgeon! After my discharge from the hospital I was sent to a really nice hotel (they did check on me everyday while I was in Mexico), and there was all sorts of stuff within short walking distance (as well as a little taco palapa with the BEST beef broth ever...it's all I could keep down the first 24 hours after discharge) so I could keep myself occupied. I didn't want to sit in a hotel room all day and dwell on some slight abdominal pain...but that's just me! What else can I tell you about....Oh yeah....if you spend a few days in San Diego, go to Sea World for me and take pictures? The only regret I have from surgery is not going to Sea World. I wanted to see Shamoo! But in all seriousness, all of the surgeons commonly used here are great, and no matter what you choose I'm sure it'll be the right choice.

Oh you are so sweet! You'll be there in no time! I still have a ton to lose, lucky for me I'm tall and I carry it fairly well, so I look alot thinner than I really am. I'm sure you look great already!

Hey there! You're asking about advice for surgery in Mexico, and everyone on here who's gone will try to push you on their surgeon (myself included) because, let's face it, we all think our surgeon was the best. So what I'm going to do instead is give you advice from a completely objective point of view, without dropping the names of surgeons if I can help it. What helped me the most in researching the VSG in Mexico was calling the surgical groups that I was considering directly. Sure, the opinions of others can make you feel more comfortable about surgery abroad, but once you talk to the right coordinator about the right surgeon you'll just know....it's hard to explain. I will say though, don't choose anyone until you're 100% comfortable with making the decision, and accepting any of the risks and complications that can come along with the surgery. It's a huge decision, and you don't want to pick the person who will operate on you just based upon price or what you've heard from other individuals. I will give you a list of questions that I asked myself and the coordinators before making my choice, in the hopes that it'll help you out. How many surgeries has the physician performed? What is his complication rate? If something goes wrong during surgery, will I have to pay additional money to correct it? How many nights will I need to be in the hospital, and what happens once I'm discharged? What does the surgeon charge, and what all does this fee include? Is the hospital (or surgical suite) located in a safe area of town? Am I allowed to bring a companion? How long has the surgeon been performing the VSG? Do I feel comfortable putting my life in to the hands of this person, whom I've never met? (for me, this was the deciding question on which surgeon I chose.) Would I be comfortable with someone I love telling me that this was the surgeon they've chosen (alot of times I don't consider the fact that my decisions effect others, so this one was helpful as well) For me, the decision boiled down to what I found to be the most important factors when getting the surgery, which were how many times has the surgeon performed the procedure, how many leaks he had, and the fact that he had a zero fatality rate. I know that your list of priorities may vary greatly from mine, but I hope this will at least give you some questions to think about. Try not to sweat it too much, and please (even though we all are well meaning and have your best interest at heart) take our words worth a grain of salt. The decision that you make will be the right one for you. There's no wrong answer, just the surgeon that's going to be the best fit for what you're looking for! If you have questions or want someone to talk to, feel free to shoot me a PM, I'd be more than happy to provide you with stats on all three surgeons.

So....after divorcing my scale for a couple of weeks (stupid weight fluctuations drive me up the WALL!) I stepped back on it today and *gasp* my weight has dropped another 4 pounds and put me into the obese range instead of morbidly obese! Woo hoo!!! I thought I would bounce around those same 3 pounds FOREVER! I've come to the conclusion that I'm destined to be a relatively slow loser, but at this point I don't care. When was the last time I've been able to lose 40 pounds and keep it off? Umm...never! Just a little feel good information for a dreary Monday here in the midwest! Time to do my victory dance