chowchows

I felt just like you described, except I also felt like someone had a corset around me and was squeezing it so tightly that I was having to pant and gasp. I think my friend was afraid I was dying...she kept asking me "does this happen a lot" (she knows about the surgery and is a doctor, although not for humans, lol) and I couldn't even talk to answer her. I never threw up, but I felt really nauseous. My main doubt that it was dumping was that it occurred at least 2 hours after I ate. I had not eaten all day because I felt kind of overall yucky (which isn't a normal thing and what made me think stomach flu) and I finally decided I had to eat something before I went to meet my friend. The only thing that sounded good was some Cookies (I know, poor choice, but everything else sounded unappetizing). I ate them and felt fine until I was waiting for my friend. I told my DH on the phone that all of a sudden I was hurting. He knows when I say that I am hurting that I am serious...I have a seriously high pain tolerance normally, so he said he knew right then something was really wrong. When my friend came we walked into the restaurant, and as soon as I felt the heat from the kitchen/smelled the food everything started going to a pinpoint of light and I felt like I was going to faint. I sat down and told her to call DH and have him come get me...it took me three tries to even be able to tell her DH's number where he was at. I felt like I couldn't breathe in fully and I was panting like a dog and unbuttoned my pants...I'm sure my friend was mortified and all the other patrons were staring ...lol, I don't care....probably won't be going back to that restaurant for awhile! I went and sat in the car and debated whether I was truly dying, and had my friend put the AC on full...that helped the most. She kept trying to quiz me down medically, but I couldn't even really talk for most of the time. After about 15 minutes it finally started to subside. DH showed up about then and took me home. I felt much better, but still not good that night and (TMI alert) did have diarrhea. Same for the next day, but now I am just sore. I told DH that I think it may just be a strange reaction to stomach flu or food poisoning since my stomach has been altered so much. I am sure that when you have those things your stomach swells in reaction, and if it is restricted, wouldn't it make sense that it would hurt much more? I don't know.

I've worn a few from Walmart and thought they were ok at first, but the underwire always seems to push through rather quickly. Maybe it's just me...Playtex brand does the same thing, although I really like the fit of some of their "secrets" line. Ok, I guess I should admit, I have been on the hunt for the perfect bra my entire adult life..the weight loss thing has just brought it to the forefront and FOH discontinuing my 95% acceptable bra ruined my day. LOL!

This month has been slow in the weight loss dept...keep your fingers crossed that next month picks up so that I can eventually get the dressed zipped...then we will have that virtual cocktail party to celebrate! LOL!

Weight loss has been slow lately, but I stepped on the scale this morning and I am down 1.4 lbs from yesterday...which means that I am now over 1/4 of the way to my weight loss goal of 110 lbs lost (with a goal weight of 150)! I'm excited...I needed that benchmark to help motivate me...I felt like I was never going to get there. On top of that, I put on a dress that I bought on clearance (one of those fancy cocktail dresses...now where am I going to wear that? lol) and I can almost get it zipped. I started out from surgery in a very tight fitting size 20, and the dress is a 14. Guess I will have to celebrate and find a place to wear it once I can actually get it zipped!

Still not 100% over it, but feeling better. Thanks!

That's interesting...I had been feeling somewhat under the weather the night before. I felt better the next day, but I did eat something sweet a couple of hours before it happened...I'm inclined to lean more towards stomach flu/food poisoning now, but it was bizarre the way I felt ok one second and thought I was dying the next, lol. Never had that happen before.

I know most every doc probably has a 'horror story' out there, but I saw this thread on the VSGtalk board about a Dr. Aceves surgery, and I was floored. $1.5 million-oh crap! Lena, maybe you should converse with this guy and see if he was able to get anything out of Dr. Aceves. Between this story and Lena's Dr. Ortiz story, I'm actually feeling very lucky that everything went so well with mine. Scary stuff!

I'm thinking I may have a stomach bug or food poisoning, but it's not like any I have had before. It hit me suddenly, like a ton of bricks..I almost passed out in a public place...cold sweat, lightheaded, intense pain in a band around my midsection, nausea and stomach issues. I got better within about 1 hour, haven't felt 100% today, but much better. I ate a couple of bites tonight and now I feel bad again. (of course, I've never had the stomach bug or food poisoning with plication...can anyone here advise if they have...was it different from prior experiences?) Very strange. If I am not better in a day or so I am going to the doc.

Thanks-she is my baby! I replied to your concerns on your other thread...I totally understand your concerns, and they are valid.

I take 40mg, although I think my reflux has lessened since the surgery and I am planning on trying 20mg when my prescription runs out. It takes care of my acid!

LMom, While you might not be at your goal weight, I think the fact that you have done so well and are still losing is an emphatic success! You should congratulate yourself on all you have achieved while still looking down the path to where you want to go. I think 50 lbs is fantastic!

Thank you, I will have to check that out!

Can everyone share which PPI they take (and dosage), and if they think it works/why they prefer it over another one? I have been taking prescription Prilosec 40mg since way before my surgery, but I am almost done with my prescription and I am thinking about trying one of the OTC ones. I wasn't sure if the OTC Prilosec was the best, or maybe Zegerid or Nexium. I think since I had my hernia repaired, I can definitely come down to 20mg, but I'm just not sure which OTC ones actually work the best. TIA for your advice!

I worried that I would be the one person that it wouldn't work for. It was a big leap of faith for me, and one that I still encounter sometimes when I am in a stall or having huge cravings. I wasn't really worried what anyone else thought, just worried that I was wasting money and if this didn't work for me, then what was I going to do? I freaked out when I went into a stall two weeks out. I drove my husband nuts, but eventually I figured out the rhythms and cycles my body went into after the surgery, and now I just try not to fret. I actually developed a huge fear of going under after my last surgery (not wls), so I'm really not sure where I got the courage to go to a foreign country, meet the doc 5 minutes before I went under, and actually go through with everything. I really just tried not to think about it beforehand. I researched a lot for a couple of months, made me decision, then tried not to think about it for the month leading up to the surgery. This board didn't exist at the time I was researching my surgery, so I looked at all the other wls boards, and combined all the information from them and other sources I Googled. I did have a change of heart about 2 weeks out and considered going with the sleeve, but the extra night in the hospital (along with the worries I had from the beginning about the sleeve) made me realize that plication was a better choice for me since it was less invasive and allowed me to preserve my stomach material. I also feared social settings post surgery (there is even a post on here about eating out for the first time with others). To be perfectly honest, if I haven't told them no one has questioned my eating habits. I think they just think I am trying to lose weight and eat less like other dieters. When I was still on liquids, I carried an ensure around with me while out with other people. If we went into a restaurant I just sipped on it explained to the waitress and others that I had just had surgery. I told them I had a hiatal hernia fixed (which was true) and was on a liquid diet for a couple of weeks. No one batted an eye. I worried about having my surgery out of the country and explaining to my doc what I had done. Here's my confession, I still haven't told him, lol. I've decided that I will tell him when I have to tell him. I haven't gone to him for anything since my surgery, so I haven't felt the need to make an appointment just to confess. I need to get bloodwork done in the near future, to check cholesterol and such, and I will tell him then. I travel to Mexico all the time (Cancun area), so I wasn't really scared about that aspect of everything. Everyone else was scared for me with that. I had to explain to all my friends (that I told my plans to) how safe medical care in a foreign country can be. I had lived in two foreign countries in my twenties, so I was well aware that in medical care the US is actually pretty far behind in many aspects. I could go on and on, because worrying is my hobby. Honestly I just came to a point though where I asked myself if I could lose the weight on my own, and I knew the answer was no. I knew that my health wasn't getting any better, and my quality of life was only going to go further downhill as I got older and heavier. When I really thought about it, my fears paled in comparison to the fears I had about what would happen if I DIDN'T have the surgery. At that point I gritted my teeth, told myself that I could do it, and tried not to think about the fears. Instead I tried to picture the positive things this surgery could bring, and at that point I got really excited about it, booked the surgery and then went through with it. I've let so much of life pass me by over the years...I quit diving because I couldn't fit in my wet suit, I avoided all the fun outdoor activities here in Florida because I was so big and out of shape, I avoided parties because I was ashamed of how big I had become...the list just goes on and on. This was my chance to regain my life and reshape the path that I was on. I may never be super skinny, but for me the surgery has already been a success in that I feel like a normal person again. I feel like I have reclaimed so much of my life that I let go.

I don't know anything about the band, but this has been my theory for the last three or so months, since shortly after having plication.

I would agree...but will they do the sleeve on people with BMIs in the low 30's? I thought plication and the band was the only real option for BMIs in the low 30's, but I haven't really researched it, so that might be totally wrong.

I have trouble with my lower esophogeal valve not closing completely, so yes, PPI's will be long term unless I choose to have a big surgery to correct it. I was hoping that the surgery might help, because as you said it's a variant of the nissen fundoplication..but so far it's about the same as before.

I would agree with Jenn, FattoPhat, and Mednar...research your options and definitely check out the VSG board, but for me I am pretty much happy with my plication. I am 3 and a half months out, and have lost 34 lbs (not including any pre-surgery losses). While I had hoped for a little faster weight loss, the slower weight loss is getting me where I want to be. I have gone from a very tight size 22 to the point where I am now wearing some size 16's and some (tight) size 14's! I have to admit that I am bad...I have something sweet almost every day, and still I am losing weight. Although it might be slower than others who are super good, I don't feel deprived at all. I am in my mid/late 30's and I was very concerned about excess skin. Overall I have to say I am pleased with the way my skin is rebounding...I don't think that if I lost it fast like with other wls methods I would be as happy with my skin. Hubby was just telling me this morning that he thinks my skin is tightening wonderfully (he knows I worry about that). I think the sleeve is a great wls, but there are some concerns I personally had, and it just didn't feel 100% right for me. For you, it might be exactly what you are looking for. We are all different, have different genetics, health concerns, lifestyles, and issues. I wouldn't say that either the plication or the sleeve is better than the other, just different and will provide different things for different folks. As for going out of the country, I would do it again, and in fact I am thinking about having an out of country boob job once I get to my goal weight. I would stress that you need to know some Spanish, or have flash cards to ask for basic things (pain meds, help with going to bathroom, etc...). Also know that you are going to have to take the initiative more than the patient who has their surgery in the US and has a full pre/post op care plan. These boards have been very helpful for that. If you have a question at any time, just ask/research these boards...I'm sure one of the posters or lurkers (and there are a ton of them!) have the answer. I personally correspond off the boards with a couple of the posters that I felt I had a lot in common with. These email conversations have been very inspiring and helpful. Maybe you can find someone on here that you can at least have that connection with. Good luck in whatever route you decide to take!

No one knows? That was very brave of you to go completely on your own! I didn't tell most people (family included), but hubby knew and was my rock of support. I don't think I could have gone through with it if he wasn't there.

My family hasn't seen me since I started losing weight, but as soon as they do I am sure that my evil sister will start hating on me. Anytime I have ever lost weight in my life she always does that. (She was always skinny as a child, and skinnier than me as an adult, but that's about all she has going for her and she knows it.) I'm trying to make it a point to stay away from the people that I think will act ugly towards my weight loss. I am an emotional eater, and I have realized over time that some of my "friends" and family are very poisonous, and I react to their hurtful comments by overeating...I'm trying to break that 30+ year cycle now. I didn't get therapy pre-surgery since I was a self pay in Mexico, but I am trying to make better mental health choices and life choices, because I know that my weight is directly tied to my emotional well being.

I'm gonna admit, August has been a rough month for me. I was wondering how others deal with cravings? I was always an emotional eater before, and I feel that I am backsliding and I'm not sure how to deal with it. For a couple of months I had no cravings, but I've had them really strongly and been very bad lately. Sigh. Still losing, but not very much this month.

Really restricting my carbs makes me MEAN! I don't know if my hubby could stand me if I restricted my carbs severely. I had no real cravings for a couple of months after surgery, but now they have come back in full force. I am just going to have to figure out what satisfies my head, without blowing my calorie intake. I like fruit, and it does satisfy my sweet tooth, but so far it doesn't seem to like me post-surgery.

I think that is her term for plicationers. (now that sounds like vacationers, which I could totally get on board with!)

I'm right there with you on that...every time I mention my original goal weight my hubby looks sad, lol! He likes the curves and a little padding.

I have been rethinking my goal lately too. I honestly would be happy with 180, which is 30 lbs more than my "goal". 190 doesn't look bad on me, and would put me comfortably in a size 12, so anything under that just be icing on the cake. I think it's going to take me at least a year to get to my goal if I do continue to push for the 150. It might even take me that long to get to the 180 at this rate. I think it's good to have an ultimate goal in mind, but I think it's also good to be realistic, and know when you feel healthy and comfortable in your weight.