Neoteric Verve

Are you doin' the Dougie?!?!?! I am. This is terrific news!!!!!

Don't give up!!! There has undeniable an option for you out there. If you really want this it will happen. If I were anywhere near you we'd have to brainstorm and figure out something. One thing you can try (if you haven't) is this: 1) Have your doctor take your height with your shoes OFF. Shorter height + same weight = higher BMI. My doctor did this to me and my BMI went from 54 to 60 (and that freaked me out). 2) Guerrilla tactics. Ankle weights (c'mon I've seen worse), heavy clothing at weigh-ins. 3) Have yourself weighed during your monthly. As you perhaps retain more Water you'd essentially weigh more. Remember, height taken barefoot.

You're welcome.

Y'all are very welcome! :-)

I posted this in another forum on VST but I realized it may be more fitting here. I was looking around the web and saw this guide on VSG dietary guidelines. If anyone wishes they can click the attachment and save it, print it or just read it. I made a copy and am thinking of taking a few to my next support group in case anyone wants one. I think it's only 14 pages (well the 1st page is the title page). I am reading through it right now. Enjoy. I credit Liz Goldenberg MPH, RD and Jaimie Sherry MS, RD, CDN of www.cornellwls.com for the booklet. dietary_guidelines_sleeve_gastrectomy.pdf

I was looking around the web and saw this guide on VSG dietary guidelines. If anyone wishes they can click the attachment and save it, print it or just read it. I made a copy and am thinking of taking a few to my next support group in case anyone wants one. I think it's only 14 pages (well the 1st page is the title page). I am reading through it right now. Enjoy. I credit Liz Goldenberg MPH, RD and Jaimie Sherry MS, RD, CDN of www.cornellwls.com for the booklet.

I just had my first support group tonight for Dr Teng's program. It really is refreshing to see so many that have had WLS. There were R-n-Y, Lap-Band and VSG people there. I don't know if anyone from here was present but feel free to drop me a line (anonymously if you'd like). While I can certainly understand if you don't want to say who you are you can nonetheless look on my profile page to get a picture of me. Maybe at the next meeting you can say hi to myself or my wife before, during or afterwards. I appreciate the people that came out to share their experiences and trials. If any of you read this I thank you. I also hope to see you for years to come as this is not a Sleeve-You-And-Relieve-You program. Follow up is for a while. Who knows, maybe we can organize a WLS outing and cater to our dietary needs (at all phases). Again, thanks to all that attended. Blessings to you all.

Or if anyone else has this answer. Aetna I think requires that bariatric surgeries be performed at an IOQ (Institute of Quality) hospital. On their site the only two that are IOQ in Nevada are North Vista and Desert Springs. My problem is that my surgeon of choice is Dr Teng. I just ran through a barricade to get past the bill owed. That has been cleared up now. I want to stick with him because he took out my gallbladder and did a great job. Thing is, he operates out of MoutainView and Summerlin hospitals. I know he has had patients with Aetna so I'm just curious.

No she really is jealous. You're making a definitive change while she's standing on the sidelines wishing. Wishing she were you. She doesn't want to be obese alone. You were her Binge Buddy. So in actuality she's more hurt than jealous or angry. Friends like that you don't need. Now don't let a crazy guy like me dictate who your friends are. But she needs to clearly understand that "either-get-on-board-or-watch-me-pass-you-by" mentality that you may adopt. I am sure as her friend you love her but right now you have to love you even more.

Nice job, bro. If the proof wasn't evident I'd swear it was two totally different people. I bet you are in complete awe of yourself as you damn well should be!!! Keep it goin'!

Ferris Bueller you're my hero! LMAO

For us with Aetna (myself included), going through the pre-op phase hearing these stories is quite unnerving. They do in fact seem hell-bent on not paying. Well isn't this WHY we have insurance? I'm not willing to sacrifice my health any further just so some pompous corporate executive can have an extra $10k tacked onto his/her salary!! Screw 'em. FIGHT. Bullies hate being hit in the mouth!!

Occasionally a small injury to a prostatic vein does stain the prostatic Fluid and thus the ejaculate brown. It may not be of any significance but recurrence demands an urological opinion. Semen appearance and texture can change naturally over the course of months, days, or even from one ejaculation to another, due to a variety of factors including diet. Semen from a mature male is usually a milky or pearly-white color. It is not uncommon to see a yellowish tint to the semen if you've abstained from ejaculation for a while. Semen colored with red streaks may signify blood. If you occasionally see a bit of blood it's not necessarily a cause for alarm, but if you see a lot of it, or if it persists, the condition should be brought to the attention of your physician. The same goes any other drastic color changes, which may indicate infection. A lot of factors go into the appearance and consistency of semen, including diet, ejaculation frequency, etc., so changing any of these can alter the way your semen looks. Also, it's easy to think that semen is simply sperm cells in Water, but it's a much more complex substance than that. So it may have been the absence or presence of something other than actual sperm cells — such as sugars or Proteins — that caused your semen to look different before. A nocturnal ejaculation may have more prostatic fluid in it (which is whiter and thicker), while a daytime ejaculation may have more sperm and fluid from the seminal vesicles, which tends to be more clear and less viscous. If your semen is stained with a red or brown colored fluid it may well be blood. Sometimes a small blood vessel may burst when you ejaculate. Within a day or two the semen should return to its normal state so there should be no need to worry. If it continues then you should see your doctor. Blood in semen may be present for many different reasons, such as infection, trauma and sometimes, but rarely, cancer. Normal semen may have an off-white or yellowy hint to the color. Where semen is uncharacteristically yellow in color it is a sign of infection, treatment is simple with antibiotics.

Sweet mother of..... Who knew!

Could've been worse. It could have been a Krispy Kreme........

It's gonna kill some of us. I was recently talking to my brother and told him I was getting WLS, The Sleeve in particular. The guy is 6'1" and weighs 500lb. Already a BMI in the 60's I believe (or very close) and is on dialysis and a Type II Diabetic. I for years have urged him to do something. He always replies "you're nearly my size, who are you to advise me?". And I've tried my share of diets, exercises, hypnosis (yes that too) and anything else to lose weight. When VSG came into my life I was again interested in WLS. Before, I had no favor with Gastric Bypass or the Lap-Band. When my doctor began her rundown of the various ones she bored me until she began talking about the Sleeve. I got very interested. Started doing my "homework" and decided to inquire further with a surgeon. Well, long story short, I'm on my way. My brother says that if he wanted to lose weight he could and would. Also he points out that he's in good shape. ARE YOU SERIOUSLY F'N KIDDIN' ME????? He meant it. I wanted to choke him. Bro, you're 50 years old. You weigh 500lb. On dialysis. Diabetic. What part of those last three are cool?? Which one makes you think you're doing just fine? He feels that a real man doesn't need surgery. I should be able to just drop any amount I need to and keep the days rollin' on. It's that kind of mentality that is going to kill some of us. Even beyond surgery, we won't go to the doctor to get routine check-ups. Are we too macho for our own good? Do we float around in our lives with a false sense of invincibility and chinks in the armor? I can't get my brothers to get checked for prostate cancer, breast cancer (you damn right I get checked for that too), and to have a general confab with a REGULAR physician every six months. To me, one year is too long in between Dr-Patient meetings. If something pops up in January I sure as hell ain't gonna wait until December for it to be detected... I believe our (as men) thought processes sometimes get in the way of our potential longevity. What do you guys (and gals that roam here) think? What can I do to help not only my brothers but men in my community to get the necessary screenings and checks? Now I could be completely wrong in this next statement (correct me if I am). Aside from a "Y" chromosome and a reverse Testosterone:Estrogen ratio, men and women are virtually similar. So why do women on average live longer? It could be a biological phenomena but I think it's simpler than that. They don't have foolish male pride and they openly COMMUNICATE. Now these are stark generalizations but only serve to prove a point in that some men are afflicted by them. Some of us really believe that whatever problems we have will eventually work itself out of our systems. Yes, brother, it's called death. You gotta please stop the machismo and get real about longevity. I looked around. There aren't many 500lb, 85-90 year old men patrolling the retirement golf courses or anything else for that matter. We have to do better. We have to do it now. Put aside pride. Be proud of living. Now is where some would say "do it for your kids if you can't do it for you". I say this is the PERFECT time to be selfish. If you can't do this for you then you have no hope of doing it for anyone else. Sorry for the elongated rant, but my brother had me a bit cross this morning. I hope he changes his mind. I wouldn't mind having him around for another 30-40 years...

"Amanda fakes left, goes right, dribbles two steps in, takes one step back to get separation, pulls up, releases at the buzzer...........SWISH!! Nothin' but NET!!!! :high5::dance::cheer2::bounce::happy::bounce::cheer2::dance::high5:

How soon after VSG surgery is it allowable to do these things? I know I can't do core training or strength conditioning for 6-8 weeks (or longer) but I can jog and sprint, right?

Guys. As a gentle reminder, if your lady friend asks you anything about her weight be tactful and considerate. Difficult but not impossible. Ladies, please try to avoid putting us on the spot 'cause most of the time we really don't know. Woman: "Honey, what size do you think I would look best at?" Man: "The only number I can think of is the one that keeps you around me for the longest time. I may not know what it is but when you finally smile in total accomplishment and comfort we'll both know. THAT'S the number I want to see you at!"

By the way, I apologize if it sounded angry as I am and was not. My wife does that to me as well. I feel uncomfortable being painted into a corner and it makes me feel awkward. I say what I think will get me out of the corner. Wrong or not I do. Do I specifically have a number about her "ideal" size? Nope! But surprisingly I (and possibly most men) have a specific number about MY ideal size. Go figure...

Congrats on your weight loss. Now, listen to yourself. You weren't happy with his answer of "I like what you are comfortable with. YOU kept pushing and because you didn't get the answer you wanted you got angry. Is that fair? He didn't care about a specific number, you did. Don't worry about a perfect number. Just focus on health and well-being. You'll both be fine. I think you may be miffed at 130lb because you felt it was unattainable for so long (and even now perhaps). You are doing beyond awesome, just stop painting him into a corner. I'm sure he was thinking "well if you get mad at the NUMBER that I put out there why did you press me for one?" He may have tossed that number out there on a whim. Who knows. I think he does support you at ANY weight.

Thatpatch seems like a transdermal medication to alleviate nausea/vomiting. It's more than likely expected to be removed after a period of time anyways. I do hope you continue to feel better and better. Again, congrats on the sleeve!

It's always nice to see people on here so beaming with excitement!! It makes me all jumpy too that I am getting closer and closer to a new me as well. I am so very happy that you got approved and so quickly. What did you provide Aetna, if you don't mind me asking?

Wow!!! There sure are a lot of "rebirths" on 11-JUL-2011. Congratulation to you all and I hope all goes extremely well for you. Let us know how it goes if you can.

H.I.P.A.A. is all you have to say! They can't ask and you don't have to tell.