M2G

Shrinkinmama...well you are only 4 weeks post-op so that does limit what you can eat right now. Have you tried yogurt? I always have a greek yogurt daily. I sprinkle in a bit of Splenda and a bit of sugar-free powdered Jello pudding mix (it's in the light blue box at the grocery store and you can get yummy flavors like cheesecake, and white chocolate...I mix it into PLAIN 0% fat greek yogurt, YUM!) Other things that your surgeon may allow at this point is cottage cheese and ricotta cheese. Cottage cheese is awesome with a bit of seasoning, and ricotta is great with a bit of splenda and cinnamon sprinkled in. I also eat a babybel light cheese (it's a tiny round cheese wrapped in a bit of red colored wax) and it's only 50 calories for the whole thing. Another soft food that is totally delish. At 6 weeks my surgeon cleared us for all types of food. YOUR surgeon's guidelines may be different, but ONCE you are clear you can add protien bars in, mixed nuts (go EASY on the nuts, as they pack a LOT of calories in a really tiny serving) beef Jerky, hard boiled eggs, and of course the standby that I have for lunch is lunch meat wrapped with a bit of cheese or rolled up with cream cheese to make it stay rolled up. Basically a sandwich without the bread. I hope that helps you out. Just know that the restriction on food is TEMPORARY and in a few months you won't remember what it was like to be deprived of anything. So hang in there!!! ANd thanks everyone for the nice replies...you all are so awesome!

SUPER CUTE!!! You ROCK Irene!!!

I haven't looked at this post in a while, but Irene, you are looking FAB!!!! My surgeon keeps pushing me to do plastics, but I'm undecided. I'm going to just live for a while and take things as they come. He thinks my arms/legs look great but is encouraging tummy tuck, etc. There is sooooooo much to consider. Thanks, as always, for posting about your journey for us!

FYI, this post is OLD!!! I think someone was looking through old posts and bumped it up. (And thanks for all the nice compliments!) To see updated photos (now I'm 19 months post-op) and recently posted some updated photos. http://www.verticalsleevetalk.com/topic/38995-18-months-and-counting/

Thanks Coops! Ifeel *exactly* the same way about you. You inspire me and keep me strong when doubt creeps in. Thanks for always being there for me! So glad we are in this together!!! HUGS!

CONGRATULATIONS!!! Hubby and I are both sleeved, and we both easily look -10 years younger. We can eat the same foods, share our ups and downs, and split a plate of food a restaurant. Best decision we both ever made (we made the decision separately, so I'm almost 19 months post-op and he is 14 months post-op!) So great that you are doing this together!

Beautiful!!!! Purple is a GREAT color on you!!!

I started out wanting a band. I did NOT want bypass as re-routing my intestines and causing malabsorption did not appeal to me. The "idea" of the band sounds great. A smaller stomach means you eat less food and therefore are full on less. However, as I researched the band, I learned about the vomiting (something I cannot deal with!) being stuck and not having food go down, yet still being hungry, etc. I started researching the VSG and while it is a big deal to lose 85% of your stomach, it sounded SO much better than the alternatives. It is purely a restrictive procedure, so you are full on less food. You still have to make good food choices, exercise, plenty of Water, etc. The one thing that I can say that has helped me tremendously is the fact that I do not have hunger. Not every sleever loses their hunger but a large majority do. It's amazingly easy to make good food choices when you are not driven by hunger. I also just had my labs pulled again at my 18 month checkup and everything is completely normal and perfect. My surgeon doesn't even think I need labs again at my 2 year based on my results. I'm almost 19 months post-op and I can't imagine having had any other surgery as I knew VSG was right for me.

Shrinkinmamma, I'm going to guess that you aren't doing anything wrong! I say this from experience. At my 4 months post-op I lost exactly -2lbs. Yep. 2. And nope I wasn't eating crap, sliders, grazing or eating too many carbs, etc. I did everything totally BY the BOOK and still had slow results. Just keep doing what you know is right and eventually your weight will drop. Just know that this is for life and that it will take time. We are in this for life and we didn't gain the weight overnight so we aren't going to lose it overnight. HANG IN THERE!!!

WOW, you look amazing! Congrats!

So I had my 18 month post-op checkup this week (it's a smidge late due to scheduling conflicts, and now I"m actually closer to 19 months post-op, but hey better late than never) and was very happy with everything. From my stellar labs, to being -100lbs lighter, there is nothing bad I can say about the sleeve. It has given me hope in the never-ending weight battle. Never before would I have stayed the course through so many stalls (and for me personally there have been plenty!) I'm starting to see my body change even though the pounds are NOT melting away the way they did when I was a few months post-op. Just thought I would share some photos since that was my biggest inspiration when I was researching the sleeve. The photos just don't lie, they tell the story.

OMG, that is hysterical. Thank you for the laugh today!

You look beautiful! Love the heels!

OMG Coops!!! I don't ever think I've seen a before photo of you. You don't even LOOK like the same bloody person. You are just darling, and I know all about the struggle and the stall from hell, cuz we have been there together the whole da*m time. I'm so thankful you are my sleeve sista... always cheering me up when I am down. So allow me to return the favor. YOU LOOK FREAKING FANTASTIC!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You are right, the camera tells it like it is, and today it's saying you are fabulous!!! HUGS CHICKIE!

http://www.youtube.com/user/juliarh?feature=mhum That's my favorite video blog....she used to post here, but not so much anymore. Anyway, if you have the time, watch all her videos from the beginning, they are excellent!

Sounds yummy! All except for the name, the name made me think eeeeewwww! I love cake so if you say cake my mind was already in a sweet place, lol! Just like rice cake is certainly no CAKE to me! Ha!

I'm going to have to agree with everyone that you would definitely not be considered a failure in my book. In fact, I think you would be statistically considered a success (for record keeping purposes WLS is considered a success when you lose anywhere from 50-70% of your excess weight depending on what surgery you choose...I think VSG is around 60-65%) Anyway from that standpoint you are doing incredible!!! So congrats. However, I hear in your post that you are struggling. Does your surgeon have a nutritionist or a therapist that you can see/talk to? I agree that while I don't know your height, or BMI, etc. 140 lbs may just not be in the cards for you. I think we all have to work through our skin issues in various ways. Some have plastics, some want plastics but can't afford them, and some (like me!) are working on making peace with our skin and hoping that time/exercise will eventually help. I certainly wouldn't call you a failure, so I think you need to reframe some thinking and start thinking about how much you have accomplished and where you want to be in one year. Start working towards whatever reasonable goals you come up with. YOU CAN DO IT!

Well, mine originally was Mommy2Girls, but then I changed it to be shorter, M2G (plus after a couple of people who didn't want to type that out would say Mommy...lol, sounds wierd coming from anyone other than your kids!) But I have two girls so not only am I a Mommy OF 2 girls but I'm a Mommy TO girls (don't know what it's like to raise boys!) so I thought that Mommy2Girls cleverly associated the two ideas. M2G is much easier to type out!

You look wonderful! Congrats!! P.S. - Also love your polish color!

Some people are just so nosy! When I was pg with my first daughter 12 years ago, my hubby and I decided we weren't going to share her name. OMG, that upset so many people. It's like they just couldn't STAND that we had a name we weren't sharing. When she was born, we gathered our immediate family in the hospital room and shared her name with everyone at once. It was very special and I remember it fondly. None of our family had a problem with it but it was the nosy co-workers, or the busy-body neighbors who had their feathers ruffled because we weren't sharing. Stick to your guns and tell them it's a lot and mention that you aren't hung up on numbers, but rather how you feel. Or convert it to something silly like metric or some other form of measurement and give them that as a smart-a$$ remark. If you are feeling sassy.

Thanks for posting that website. I always joke that I like to eat my calories, not drink them. My surgeon's rules were no alcohol for 1 year post-op (he also admitted that it was the most commonly broken rule.) I did it though, and made it through the first year and no alcohol. For everyone who is struggling, get back to basics, detox from the sugar, carbs and alcohol, and get back on track. Use your tool, don't waste this gift you've been given!

I made my own version of PF Chang's lettuce wraps. I chopped up carrots, celery, onions, broccoli, cauliflower, and almonds. I diced 2 chicken breasts and cooked them in olive oil. Tossed in the chopped veggies and made a sauce from soy sauce, dijon mustard, vinegar, chopped garlic, and a bit of agave syrup. I also tossed in some spices. After everything was well cooked I served them in boston lettuce leaves. YUM! (Sorry I don't know the amounts of anything because I didn't measure of keep track of amounts.)

You make a beautiful bride, congrats!!!

Congrats! You are doing a fantastic job!

Congratulations!!! You are beautiful!