M2G

I waited like 2 days post-op. I have always been a straw drinker and I probably always will be. For me it actually helped because I love a straw. I am not a gulper, I am still a sipper, and always have been. However, you do take in more air with a straw and for that I paid. The price was 2 little burps for every one sip of Water I took. Oh well, it was gone by about the 3 week mark. I'm not advising you to go against your drs. orders, but rather just sharing what I did.

Christie, you look amazing. You have done such a great job, and you are still an inspiration to me. I am so happy for you. CONGRATS!!!!

Congratulations!!!

Really funny!

Haven't updated in a while: SN..............Starting Wt........Current.......Goal.......Lbs to Goal Mommy2Girls............229..............217............210................7 (OMG I set a goal of -19lbs...and now it is down to 7 it is feeling much more "realistic" than when I set it...woo hoo!)

I just wanted to point out how profound I think this statement is. What a great way of viewing our past relationship with food. And Brian, it sounds like you have a pretty good handle on what you are doing a why, so now it is up to you change your behavior before you slip back into old habits. Never easy stuff, but you are worth the effort to yourself!

Absolutely freaking fantastic!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WOO HOO LITTLE LADY!

WOW!!!!!!!!!!! Century Club, well done!!!!!!!!! Congrats on your loss, keep rocking that sleeve!

Wow, what a big difference! You look fantastic, congratulations on your success!!!

B - Protein shake S1 - Fage 2% - 4.5 oz L - tuna salad S2 - cheese and almonds D - turkey and ham and cheese rolled up and grilled in Pam spray in a pan I also drank a Special K H20 strawberry kiwi powdered thing (kind of like a crystal lite) except it has 5 grams of protein and 5 grams of Fiber. I might eat something else later...snack #3, I'm already at 90 grams of protein but that is probably since I started my day off with a Protein Shake. lol.

I just checked my food log and I was between 20-35 g per day when I was one month out. I still try to keep my carbs as low as possible becuase that is the only thing that seems to work for me. I also wasn't cleared to lift weights until 6 weeks post-op.

My insurance is a high-deductible plan, so my surgery was about $5K out of pocket and all the pre-op visits and post-op visits are billed accordingly. If I haven't met my deductible for the year the cost to see the surgeon is around $120. Once I meet my deductible, then it runs around $12. The one thing that is FREE from my local surgeon is all of the support groups. They run monthly support groups and there is zero cost associated with that. He also does a bunch of classes, but they do cost $$ and can be pricey. My post-op visits are 1 week, 3 weeks, 6 weeks, 3 months, 6 months, 9 months, 12 months and basically every 3 months until you reach goal. Once at goal you can opt for every 6 or 12 months for continued checks. At 6 months and again at 1 year I need to have labs pulled and that will be through my primary care dr. and then the results will go to my surgeon BEFORE my 6 month checkup. That is just a glimpse at how my surgeon with insurance operates. I would be interested to see what sort of follow up is included to a self-pay patient (i.e. you pay $15K for your surgery, but does it include all the follow up or is that billed seprately, etc.)

Thank you all for your comments!!! ASBgirl...the before picture was taken in Fall '09 and I had shorter hair back then (and it wasn't my highest weight! ). In 2010 I started growing it long for a trip to Hawaii and ended up liking it longer. I am taking Biotin but it's not preventing loss...only helping promote new growth. I just blogged about the hairloss...ugh! http://thisonebody.blogspot.com/?zx=ebb1b1add24a77a6

Congrats on your loss and your maintaining! Thanks for sharing your info with us. My hubby and I are *both* sleeved...and loving life. There are a few more huband/wife teams on this board...maybe you guys will be next!

That is exactly my thoughts! Totally different person in the after picture. WOW! Congrats on your surgiversary, you look fantastic!

Shanny, you look great! Congrats on 51lbs being gone...keep on rocking that sleeve!

I think this is a very good idea for you. Stressing about what the scale says instead of listening to what YOUR body is saying isn't good. You look fantastic, and it's not like you are saying "hey I'm going to start eating crap and quit exercising"...you are ready to test the waters of maintenance. And you may find that you end up dropping a few lbs before Dec. and if not, like everyone else said the plastics will certainly help. Start enjoying your body and quit stressing about the number on the scale! I know I may fine-tune my goal as I get closer to it. I think that is normal. I agree with you about this forum. It has truly been a lifesaver.

Hang in there Lisa. My husband is 2+ weeks post op and is missing food something fierce. He is on mushies (which for our surgeon is exactly 5 foods one of them being cottage cheese which he hates, so he now down to 4 foods) and no meat. He said he never KNEW there were so many food commercials and he just salivates when the girls and I sit down to eat. Just hang in there and things will get better. It is hard stuff, changing this relationship we have with food. It will all be worth it, eventually, give yourself some time.

So I don't log onto the board for one measly day and LOOKIE what I missed... CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am so happy for you and your husband and your son. What a wonderful blessing, and I'm so thankful that you are going to be closely monitored during the pregnancy. :preggers: And on a personal note, you have given so much time and effort to this board, that I will be happy to listen to all of your ups and downs during the pregnancy and of course PICTURES!!!

Here are the 20 worst drinks in America (not sure what it is based on, but this link shows the sugar equivalent in donuts, dessert, cakes, pies, treats, etc. so it is very eye opening) http://blisstree.com/eat/20-worst-beverages-in-america/ And I found this about their smoothies (def. high in sugar and low in protein!) http://nutrition.mcdonalds.com/nutritionexchange/itemDetailInfo.do?itemID=3701

I too wish we had a support group for just sleevers, but we get lumped in with the RNYers. It's okay, and I've only met one other sleever at support group (been sleeved almost 5 months). I really don't miss my old way of eating and I absolutely adore that I can be full on such tiny portions. I truly think that the biggest part of the success of the sleeve is directly linked to the loss of ghrelin. I could easily defeat my WL efforts by eating Cookies, candy and ice cream. But I truly want to make this a success. Now my husband was just sleeved 2 weeks ago. He is on mushies but the notes from our surgeon extremely limit the choices of mushies. He is really missing food right now. I hope it is temporary.

Sounds yummy. I will have to try it soon. Thanks!

http://theworldaccordingtoeggface.blogspot.com/

I didn't have to do any type of pre-op diet either. Looking back, I wish I had, I'm guessing I would be that much further along. Oh well. Can't change it now...lol. Oh, and DH was just sleeved Mar. 1st and (of course same surgeon as me) and he didn't do a pre-op either. So if you are up to it, then I say go ahead and try and drop some lbs before surgery. It's good advice!

I'm not sure what the symptoms are (try googling it) but sometimes people get "thrush" after surgery and need antibiotics to kill it. Not trying to scare you. I just came home from taking my husband to his 1 week nutrition class (he was sleeved 10 days ago) and one of the warning signs that you need to call your surgeon about is thrush. So I would google that and see if a white tongue might be associated with that. Or it's like Tiffy said and is just the fuzzy Protein icky stuff going on. Hopefully that is all that is wrong!