M2G

Awwww, that is awesome! My hubby and I are both sleevers. I was the one to first bring up WLS for *both* of us....while his first reaction was "you go on and do this, you'll be great at this" having him come with me to the surgeon's seminar and learning some of the facts for himself was the clencher. I'm 18 months post-op and he is 13 months post-op. Together we have lost over -170lbs...that is an entire person!
Congrats on not only showing your support for your wife, but joining her in her Quest to get healthy!

Awwww, I *missed* it...shoot!!! Well HAPPY BIRTHDAY anyway, sounds like a lovely day. I forgot that you both share a day...did she make the cake? Sorry I missed it...hugs my dear friend!

Cheri...wow, looking fantasic!!!

Hang in there Cheri! All stalls are from hell! I know for me personally the honeymoon was over by the 4th month. Ever since then it really has been very slow going. But the key is to never give up. I'm almost 18 months post-op and it has taken me this long to lose -101 lbs, AND -8 of that was pre-op. SO I hear ya for sure. There is one big difference for me when I stall (which is a LOT, I'm more the same weight all the time with the rare movement downwards) now post-sleeve as opposed to just dieting. I DON'T GIVE UP and throw in the towel and call it a day and dive headfirst into the ice cream. So having the sleeve gives me confidence that I can keep going, even if it is at a snails pace!

After studying before and after face pictures of so many other people, I secretly wondered, if after losing the weight if I would feel like my nose was too big or my eyes would be enormormous, or suddenly I would have massive wrinkles where fat once was. So I was pleasantly surprised with my little comparison. More evidence that when you gain weight it affects every part of your body!! Amazing isn't it?
11 Months Post-Op

Hang in there Cheri! All stalls are from hell! I know for me personally the honeymoon was over by the 4th month. Ever since then it really has been very slow going. But the key is to never give up. I'm almost 18 months post-op and it has taken me this long to lose -101 lbs, AND -8 of that was pre-op. SO I hear ya for sure. There is one big difference for me when I stall (which is a LOT, I'm more the same weight all the time with the rare movement downwards) now post-sleeve as opposed to just dieting. I DON'T GIVE UP and throw in the towel and call it a day and dive headfirst into the ice cream. So having the sleeve gives me confidence that I can keep going, even if it is at a snails pace!

Hang in there Cheri! All stalls are from hell! I know for me personally the honeymoon was over by the 4th month. Ever since then it really has been very slow going. But the key is to never give up. I'm almost 18 months post-op and it has taken me this long to lose -101 lbs, AND -8 of that was pre-op. SO I hear ya for sure. There is one big difference for me when I stall (which is a LOT, I'm more the same weight all the time with the rare movement downwards) now post-sleeve as opposed to just dieting. I DON'T GIVE UP and throw in the towel and call it a day and dive headfirst into the ice cream. So having the sleeve gives me confidence that I can keep going, even if it is at a snails pace!

Um, just so you know I am 15 months post-op and I have not ever thrown up since being sleeved. Not once. And that includes post-anthesia nausea...(thank you scope. patch to ward off nausea that my surgeon gives his patients!)
So there you have it. My hubby is sleeved and threw up approx. twice. Both times he was about 6-7 weeks out and was at a restaurant and trying to eyeball his food (vs. mesauring it at home) and it wasn't a big deal.
I have an almost un-natural fear of throwing up. It is the biggest single reason that I didn't pick the band (seems like a LOT of bandsters have medically band-induced bulimia!) No. Thank. You.
So PdxMan is right, not everyone comes on here and says "guess what? Today I didn't throw up!"

Wonderful job and congrats on being more committed to the exercise. That will carry you far. You look so cute in your Tee and shorts, you look ready for anything! LOVE THAT!

S~You look amazing!!! You have that "glow" of accomplishment on your face (and nope it's not sweat!)
***LOVE THIS POST***

You lost -10 years at least! BEAUTIFUL!

Omg...
Sleeve 4 me... you look amazing and yes! You have great arms... I want your arms... xx
M2G... 100lbs...100lbs...100lbs! That made my day, and boy did I need cheering up and then the dress...fan-bloody-tastic! You look amazing and then the shoes... my those shoes!!
Seriously, ladies you are two hot mamas!!

I didn't blenderize anything, lol.
For the pizza craving though, try taking some ricotta, spices and a touch of plain Tomato sauce and top with with a bit of cheese. Put it in a mini-ramekin and heat it in the over and broil the cheese on top. Maybe it will help?

Torani uses Splenda. Sorry that you can't tolerate them, as they have been a lfiesaver for me.
Also I like to sprinkle in a touch (like a tsp.) of powdered sugar-free pudding (Jello brand makes the little boxes of pudding mix, and the sugar-free stuff is in the blue box) but I will get flavors like cheesecake (or white chocolate) and sprinkle the powdered pudding into the yogurt, it thickens it a tad and it sort of is like eating real cheesecake! The sugar-free pudding has some calories also but very minimal, I think 1/4 of the box is about 25 calories so a sprinkle might be about 5 calories? And to me it's like eating dessert, only WAY better for my body!

I am now in love with shredded chicken. Place chicken breasts in about 1 cup of chicken broth and leave on low for 8 hours or high for about 4-6 hours and take out the chicken before serving and run your fork through it. YUM.
I've done it with taco seasoning and also with BBQ sauce...you could add whatever seasoning you like. Leftover meat in our household *always* gets eaten later or the next day!

I have not been on this thread in a while and there are some very cute girls in dresses here! Sophia, I love that color blue on you, it's amazing!!!
I finally had a chance to wear a LBD (it's actually navy blue, but it looks black in the photo.) -100lbs and rocking a new dress, what could be better?

I have not been on this thread in a while and there are some very cute girls in dresses here! Sophia, I love that color blue on you, it's amazing!!!
I finally had a chance to wear a LBD (it's actually navy blue, but it looks black in the photo.) -100lbs and rocking a new dress, what could be better?

You look wonderful, so radiant and happy! CONGRATS!

I've been following your story and I'm soooooo happy for you that your leak is healed and the horrid stent is gone! I love your new photo, you have a wonderful smile! Just remember to take things slowly in regards to eating, even though you are (3 months roughly?) out, just treat it like you are a few weeks out with the ordeal you have been through. Also don't swear off burritos forever, but definitely they don't agree with your sleeve right now. So start with less spicy, more bland food and you will probably just have to experiment with stuff to figure out what makes your sleeve happy. I'm so glad you can eat real food again and that the constant vomiting is gone!

Torani uses Splenda. Sorry that you can't tolerate them, as they have been a lfiesaver for me.
Also I like to sprinkle in a touch (like a tsp.) of powdered sugar-free pudding (Jello brand makes the little boxes of pudding mix, and the sugar-free stuff is in the blue box) but I will get flavors like cheesecake (or white chocolate) and sprinkle the powdered pudding into the yogurt, it thickens it a tad and it sort of is like eating real cheesecake! The sugar-free pudding has some calories also but very minimal, I think 1/4 of the box is about 25 calories so a sprinkle might be about 5 calories? And to me it's like eating dessert, only WAY better for my body!

I just wanted to say that I'm so sorry you are going through all of this. It sounds awful, painful, horrible and just plain exhausting. Add on top of that losing your job, your boyfriend, and basically having zero support, I think that any one of us in the same situation would feel a ton of regret, wishing to hit the "rewind" button and go back to life before surgery.
Also I think many of us *know* and *understand* that with any surgery there are RISKS. We realize there are risks, but *hope* that we fall into the 98% of people who DON'T have ANY complications at all. I know for a fact at support group there were people who were banded 3-5 years and yet when things like "erosion" and "slippage" were mentioned they acted shocked. A few of them asked for clarification, and I was thinking, "I've never even had the band and I knew all about those possible risks of being banded!" So I think a lot of times we go into this just hoping and praying that complications do not come our way.
I think that 1-2% leakage rate sounds really minimal until you ARE that 1-2% that has a severe complication then it's 100% for you! And that is the awful truth. And I'm sorry you are living through this and all the pain it has caused you, physically, emotionally, financially, and every other way. But I'm glad you are alive, and I know deep down you are a fighter because you are worth fighting for. I am glad you have a forum like this that is a place for you to vent and kick and scream and to SHARE. Thank you for sharing. I hope you feel like the people here care about you and I hope since you are lacking support from your real-life friends and family that you can at least come here and feel like everyone is cheering you on and hoping that soon you will have healed and that this will all be a distant horrid memory.
Please keep sharing, and we can keep lifting you up and for those of us who are the sort to pray that we can continue to include you in our prayers. Stay strong, and may better days lie ahead for you! HUGS!

WOW! Congratulations!
I know we say this about everyone, but it still amazes me that we all lose weight AND lose about -10 years off our age! :woot:

Thanks Peacequeen!

That is hard, but sounds like it will be okay! Look at all those 20's and 2's in your new date...good strong date. :-) Mine was 10-22-10 and for some odd reason I really like the date!

Okay, checking in over here and waiting for the day our lovely Coops tells us that she strutted her stuff at the pool!
I have some wonderful news to share!!!!
I FINALLY AM NO LONGER OBESE(according to the BMI scale!) WOW! I've been waiting over 15 months for that WORD to disappear from my medical profile. WOW.
However, this week was bad workout-wise and I'm wondering if that is partly why I finally slipped below >30 on the chart. My whole family has been sick, started with my oldest (11 yo) DD, she got strep. Then my hubby was sick. Then my youngest DD (9 yo) got strep and I finally went and got tested but it came back neg. So I muddled through the week, (starting feeling ill Mon. night) and today, Sun AM I think I am finally better. So I did not hardly work out at ALL this week, and I can feel it. I plan to get some exercise today, and again on Mon. and hopefully get back up to where I was before falling ill.
So other than being SICK, this was a great week since I finally am no longer medically obese!!! :horn: