red_delicious

I am extremely carb-sensitive. I have had PCOS for 25 years, and full-blown type 2 diabetes for 10 years. In MY world, there is no difference between a "good" carb and a "bad" carb. All carbs cause me to gain weight and spike my blood sugar. I eat an extremely low-carb diet, with my PCP's blessing. My endocrinologist loves my diabetes numbers when I am eating "vlc" (very low carb). I have successfully lost HUNDREDS of pounds over my lifetime by eliminating carbs. Weakness has caused me to allow carbs back into my life every single time and that leads to weight gain.

There were other issues at play prior to my getting sleeved, including the shape of my pre-surgery stomach . . . my surgeon said that he was pretty surprised when he got in there and saw what it looked like . . . that made it so easy for me to gain weight . . . and the sleeve has done exactly what I wanted it to do. I am down 43.5 pounds in 7 weeks. But no matter what my sleeve makes possible, I will ALWAYS have to be aware of my carb intake. That is something I accepted a long time ago.

However, I know that there are plenty of people who can eat carbs and lose weight quite well. I used to be jealous of people who could eat carbs and still lose weight, but I got over it! Every one of us is different, with different tolerances for different things. No one can say, "you HAVE to eat carbs to live," anymore than anyone can say, "you can't lose weight while you are still eating carbs." I KNOW my body . . . and I KNOW that I can't eat carbs.

That being said . . . I still LIKE carbs! And I love apples. This time of year has always been hard for me because it's freaking apple season! I allow myself an occasional piece of apple. It's definitely easier to only eat a "little piece of apple" with my sleeve!

I was sleeved Sept 19th, I too didnt poop at first. I tried Milk of Magnesia, then again 6 hours later, no luck. My Doc ok'd me to use an enema,it worked in less than 5 mins and I have been going daily since. It not like before of course, mostly liquid now. (do not trust a fart) I felt sooo much better after pooping.

This literally had me LOL!!! . . .

I'm in St. Louis, too!

Hi Tracy!

I am in St. Louis as well, south county. I had my surgery with Dr. Varela at Barnes. So excited to see more STL people here, I thought I was the only one!

Kristina

I took Chinese Kenpo lessons years ago! I really enjoyed it . . . and I have considered taking it up again. Your post reminded me of how much I liked it! I'm glad you're enjoying it . . . you'll be fit AND able to kick a$$ like a pro!

I do not have reactive hypoglycemia . . . I am a full-blown diabetic . . . and for that reason alone, I should not have tried drinking chocolate milk (I had a serious moment of weakness!). My blood sugar was high for a couple of hours after that episode . . .

But it's interesting that what some people mistake for dumping does have another possible cause.

I am pretty sure I had dumping last week when I, too, drank chocolate milk. I know I drank too much, too fast . . . and I certainly did pay for it! Nausea, dizziness, sweating . . . I was rolling around on the bathroom floor . . . not something I am ever going to do again.

I was after my husband three days after surgery! My surgeon told me that my only restriction was that I couldn't lift anything heavier than 25 lbs . . . so . . . I just didn't try to pick him up!

I take 1000mg of Metformin twice a day for PCOS . . . and they are scored in the middle. I just break it in half and take it in two swallows. Mine is not extended-release, so it's okay to break them in half. I must admit that taking my Metformin is pretty much the most difficult thing I swallow all day . . . I am 3 weeks out from my surgery.

Nice to meet you, Charity! I am in Missouri, too . . . and I just got sleeved yesterday! I hope that your experience with the sleeve is better than your experience with the LapBand was. I considered the band . . . but after reading so many forums, I was amazed by how many problems people seemed to have with them. I think I made the right choice in getting sleeved.

It stinks that your boyfriend won't be able to go with you. Is there anyone else (mom, sister, best friend) who could go with you? I can't imagine going through this by myself!

Good luck to you . . . and welcome to this board!

Shanna

I feel pretty good . . . a little burpy . . . not in a tremendous amount of pain. My nurses barely checked on my all day . . . so I pretty much slept all day. I didn't really start sipping Protein Water until a couple of hours ago. I got up and did a couple of laps around the hospital floor I am on, and it didn't really hurt. Just a bit of pressure in my abdomen.

I did have a moment of real panic earlier, wondering what the heck I did to my body . . . I was in a LOT of pain and experiencing MUCH nausea earlier . . . but I am much better now.

I think I might be rambling a bit, LOL . . . so I apologize if I am. I really want to go home tomorrow, so I'm hoping they let me. I miss my kids!

At this point, I am pretty happy with my decision to go through with this . . .

My doctor said something sort of strange to my husband after the surgery was done. He said that my stomach was unusually "long" and took a lot more staples than he expected. I wonder if my "long" stomach had anything to do with why I have never experienced real "fullness" whenever I eat? I might ask him tomorrow . . .

Anyway . . . I don't post on here very often, but I do lurk. So I'd like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for their constant input. I have learned a lot just reading everyone else's stories!

Shanna

Oooohhhh . . . please add me to August 25th!!!

AUGUST!!!

1 BigSexxy, MamaMcKinzie, heygirlfriendB, chelle622, rubyspring, newdaycomn

2 brookb, MissBliss, Gaylebco, Heatherr, Lynn225, TipsyNoodle

3 zetagirl210

4 Julie76, chelle622, skyblew, angel1

5 trizzy35, happyevraftr, BigManIndia

6

7

8 SunnyinSD, Ladybug86, MeMeMEEE, Kayla, Toyia, Casuzarry, Forensikchic

9 Wondering1, nurselisa22, LindaS, red dress girl, Shell77

10 Indymom, Happylife, Houston_Rich, Tarada9

11 Jimmy James, missjanab, PhatGurl80, hereigoagain

12 Ms.girl, sdorr

13

14

15 Treequeen,WyomingMountainGal, BroadwayBaby

16 Miss Hope, E.K., birdlady, ScentsyLady (Sonia), smiley2604,BigJoe102

17 ~winecountrygirl~,

18

19 Beach Baby, Shakin-n-Atlanta

20 buzydebb

21

22 JELLYBEANS, pamblan, blkhulagirl, mimimermaid, nurseteela, caycaye, Michelle Peruski, Slimming Sara

23 RachelinTX, LR6909

24 KristeyK, KristinaRN, Intime, Kami, laladotdot,

25 Jenny A., renogirl, red_delicious

26

27

28

29 eyemallrt

30 Lisha, CT Fats, Tallnlovely, beautyjunkie824, Lissa in FL

31

Thanks for the encouragement, y'all! I haven't posted much in here because I was obsessing about the stinkin' insurance approval . . . but it came through and they gave me a date! I look forward to joining you all on the losers' bench!

I am getting sleeved on Thursday, August 25, by Dr. Morales at St. Clare Hospital in St. Louis!

NOW I feel anxious! LOL!

I got a call from the surgeon's office today to schedule my consultation! I'm scheduled to meet with Dr. Morales in St. Louis on May 26!!!

All of the other requirements have been met . . . and I am currently on a 3 month medically supervised diet . . . so . . . hopefully by the end of summer, I will have my sleeve!

Nice to "meet" you! How are you feeling?

Class of '90 here! I'll be 39 next month . . . and I have been fat since I was 19 (right after I had my son!) I'm looking forward to spending the last year of my 30's not being ginormous! Here's looking at 40!

I can't wait for my next reunion . . . I have been avoiding them since I graduated! Next up -- 25 year reunion!

Well, MSanti . . . I have heard from others who have been there that the surgery has been effective in helping those with PCOS. I know that it can't make mine any worse . . . and I am confident that it will work. I am confident that it will work for you, too. You seem to know what's going on with your body.

I do wish you all the luck in the world on Monday and during the post-op . . . I look forward to hearing from you how it went and how you are feeling.

Have a fabulous weekend!

I just wanted to share, not one, but TWO big NSVs I had today!

NSV #!

When I gained weight, I stopped wearing nice clothes. In fact, I only bought clothes that were absolutely necessary--a few pairs of jeans, some sweaters and Tshirts, and a couple of pairs of shoes--basically, whatever it took to not get arrested . Yet, I love clothes. In fact, I read fashion magazines and go shopping with my fashionista girlfriends; I just didn't want a giant wardrobe in a size I didn't want to be!! But, today, after losing 65 lbs, I decided it was time to get some cute clothes. All my other clothes are too large, and I was just sick of everything falling off of me. So I went to Old Navy, which is pretty affordable, and I figure I'll pass these clothes on to someone else who is losing weight when I "under" grow them! I am soooo happy I did this!!!! It's been sooooo long since I wore an item of clothing I actually like! I know that as I lose weight, they won't fit anymore, but it's so worth it to have some cute clothes. I feel like it's going to help motivate me to keep losing weight!

NSV #2: As I gained weight, my jewelry stopped fitting me. And in particular, I have a necklace that has a single pearl that drops off of a chain. It's really simple and cute, and I used to wear it every day, but as I gained weight, it got too tight around my neck... it was so sad to see my favorite necklace sitting in my jewelry box and being unable to wear it. But, today, I got out my old friend---and it fits again! I'm so, so happy!!!!

This made me lol!!! Congratulations on your awesome NSV's!!!

Well, it's no rocket science. I've known forever that I eat too much carbs, it didn't make me stop eating them. Knowing I have PCOS didn't scare away the craving for pastries, Pasta, pita-bread etc. All my attempts to go on low-carb diets were terminated when I just couldn't adhere to the orders.

Well I am almost 11 years older than you are . . . and I actually put on a BOATLOAD of weight when I had my first child back in 1992. Prior to that, the doctors knew that something was wrong with my hormones . . . but they had no idea what it was. My doctor at the time was a DISCIPLE of low-fat/high-carb diets. He gave me a 40 page handout with specific diet instructions consisting of crap like plain baked potatoes (so good for you! It's low-fat, you know!), Pasta with no sauce, rice cakes, tuna salad made with mustard (mayo is evil!) . . . and I completely followed this diet . . . and I just kept getting heavier and heavier.

So I reduced my intake of the baked potatoes, plain pasta, rice cakes . . . and exercised myself nearly to death! All the while, I had doctors crabbing at me that I was non-compliant! I felt like the biggest failure!!!

By the time I figured out the carb connection (PCOS was not known to be an insulin disorder until not that many years ago) . . . I was already over 325 pounds. I dropped a bunch of weight low carbing . . . and I have been stuck fluctuating between 260 and 285 for years.

If I had known about the carb thing before I got fat and ended up with type 2 diabetes . . . I would have stopped eating carbs. No one told me . . . and I was too ignorant at the time to even think that maybe they didn't know what they were talking about. I am still a little pissed about the whole thing! LOL

I have PCOS and I am losing well. I do have to say that I did have surgery on my ovaries and had them scraped after having an ectopic pregnancy. So maybe that helped, I don't know. But I do have PCOS. One thing I have learned that NO DOCTOR ever told me is that eating a lot of carbs is really bad for PCOS patients -- leads to increased estrogen levels which lead to creation of more cysts, which leads to increased estrogen levels, etc. So I eat a low carb diet -- it's worked out really well for me. If you have any other questions, please don't hesitate to ask!

This drives me crazy!!! It's something that so many women with PCOS, including myself, had to learn on their own. Completely ridiculous!

I'm editing my comment . . . because I was unnecessarily snarky. I'm getting all defensive, and I definitely didn't mean to.

I certainly did not mean to offend anyone . . . I should have just said that if someone is in doubt as to whether or not something is "allowed" in their faith tradition, then perhaps a forum full of laypeople with no authority within that tradition isn't the best place to receive that kind of specialized guidance. I know that I am in no way an authority . . . and I would hate for someone to take my advice on matters of church doctrine as in some way definitive. I talked to my bishop. He told me what I need to do.

What other people choose to do is really up to them. I just know that the Catholic stance on this is not a matter of my opinion . . . but one might be better served by consulting with their priest or bishop if one is truly seeking spiritual guidance on this.

I hope everyone can forgive my snarkiness . . . I was just trying to offer a more orthodox viewpoint for those who might have been interested. No disrespect of anyone else's beliefs were intended. Honest.

I too trust Him completely, but I don't think it makes me a hypocrite to not follow what the Catholic Religion dictates as the rule. I believe in a loving and comprehensive God, not a God of punishment and confusion, and I rest my case about religion

I wasn't making a judgement . . . that's not my job. But this IS a thread about how religion plays a role in this . . . and I was simply stating the Catholic viewpoint.

I don't think it's confusing at all . . .

I just wonder why some people insist on calling themselves Catholic when they state quite plainly that they don't believe in what the Catholic church teaches. Why not just be Episcopalian? They have "easier rules" to follow.

Anyway . . . the reason I even chimed in here is because I, too, wondered if this was justification for using artificial birth control . . . and according to our bishop (whom I consulted, and whom, by my following of the Catholic faith, I acknowledge as an authority in matters of Catholic doctrine) said that it is not. Therefore . . . I will not be using artificial contraception. I was responding to the original poster . . . not attempting to call anyone a hypocrite . . . except to say that "I" would feel like a hypocrite if I went against my faith on this.

That is all!

Another option is to only receive under the species of wine. Both the host and the cup contain the true presence, body and blood, soul and divinity of the Lord. I am allergic to wheat . . . so I frequently only receive from the cup (teeny, tiny sip).

It's an older thread . . . but I am a practicing Catholic . . . we plan to use NFP. My husband and I like to leave the creation of life decisions up to God . . . I trust Him completely with every single aspect of my life . . . why would I think that He doesn't know what he is doing with regards to this issue?

No one makes me be Catholic . . . but I am . . . and I don't pick and choose what aspects of my life to trust to God. I trust Him completely. To do otherwise would make me a giant hypocrite.