ProudGrammy

hi - now raise your hand, how many of you don't have anyone to talk to on the phone/person about WLS for support. My DH is supportive, but he can only talk so much (i'm actually the talker in the family) surprise surprise since he has never experienced the sleeve he listens well, but he can't really contribute or understand that much about the sleeve. Also FYI, i feel kind of weird talking about myself and WLS to him cuz he is obese. I have "mentioned" that maybe he would be interested into looking into the sleeve, after at least he sees how much i will have lost. And of course how great i look!! Don't have any friends to confide in, just some aquaintences that i wouldn't feel comfortable telling. My siblings do ask how things are going with the sleeve, they seem genuinely "concerned/interested" but again its not the same as talking to a "comrade in arms" By the way i do know this subject has been been brought up before..but one more time ok? Well, you guys, thanx for listening. You're always there for me! even if its 2:00 am , and BTW you all are looking especially nice today lets all have a great day your fellow sleever kathy

Pookeyism - love it - too funny kathy

DOOTER Heres your attention. CONGRATULATION, CONGRATULATION, AND MORE CONGRATS very very happy that you are doing so well. keep up the good work, i know that going from 340 to 300 is a milestone. you should be proud of yourself. keep up the great work continued best wishes kathy

joiebean i checked w/B & N - they are putting a copy away for me that i'm on my way to buy. Also another cookbook suggested. thanx so muchbest kathy

"Your body IS hungry. Of course it is, and its probably wondering what happened to its fuel sourc. This is one reason you lose so much weight in the beginning through this process of healing." Katie713Love how you put that - kathy

JoiebeanWhen I first was sleeved i did have dry heaves sometimes, not often, but i did have them. I actually eventually had to go to the hospital too, cuz i was now dehydrated. This happens to others sometimes too, so its not un normal to have this happen. BUT....Up until awhile aago, i probably wouldn't have posted here, but... a couple of weeks ago, i was kindof beginning real food, - i made a delicious veal stew. For whatever reason, i just wasn't thinking, the veal was so yummy i just starting eating away, too fast of course - when i was done - i was so upset, cuz i knew i had eaten too fast like i did in the good ol' days. Maybe even a dot more than i should have. Sure enough shortly after the food came up, but maybe TMI - it really came back up in full pieces of veal, gross. Trust me, that never happened to me again. Called my NUT in the morning worried about my sleeve, she said i should be fine, i told her i learned my lesson the hard way, and i could "see" her smiling on the other side of the phone, saying "you did learn your the hard way, but you learned to be more careful." So thats my story for good or bad. Best Kathy

my DH and i used to go out to meals alot. not only do i not really not like to cook, i just don't want to. Laziness come to mind - and the truth is, we just enjoy getting a meal from either Denny's-Red Lobster et al Now cuz of "my condition" no i'm not prego at age 58!! (having the sleeve) we choose not to go out to meals anymore. its just easier for me so i don't have to "suffer" looking at other peoples food!!! yes i'm sure their will come a time when I will have to go out to a party or something - and i'm sure i'll be miserable - i will just suck it up really - it will be torture, but i'll do my best good wishes kathy

quote from above lol "and i hate my body" "by the way pound equals how man kilos" hi sallynew 1 kilo = 2.2 lbs i kept asking my dh so i finally wrote it down BTW - i don't think any of us love our body right now until we start losing some weight - but come on sallynew et. al. lets not hate our body, we're doing stuff about our problem - so lets be proud about that and not say "hate" - we're on our way to loving it, and ourselves more (too corny?) best kathy

liberated welcome to this site. speaking for myself, and probably many others, improvement of there health is one major reason people have WLS performed. in my case i also have diabetes, i took meds and insulin. DOS 12/15/11 my PHP told me to stop all meds for diabetes. i was told to stay off the med til i saw my PHP again shortly after surgery. Now, no more meds or insulin per dr. couldn't be happier. hopefully with your decrease in medical problems, i will right behind you. continued good luck and best wishes kathy

TMT welcome aboard congrats on WLS - glad you are happy - many new wonderful things to experience while going through this journey. We're all here to answer any and all questions we can-with the advise to go to your dr. with a real medical question. sounds like you are doing great on your liquid diet of Protein shakes et al. i was lucky also not to mind drinking the Protein Shakes, some people can't tolerate there taste, so you are lucky. protein is always going to be invaluable - always will have 1rst part of your meal. Of course Water is VERY important too. We're supposed to get 64 oz a day - kind of hard to do at first, hard after awhile too. I'm having problems getting all that water down daily - still working on it. Again TMT, glad to have you in the neighborhood. best wishes kathy

hi frodo at 3 weeks i wasn't eating bisque etc. seems kindof early for me. i was on clear broth, Clear liquids,sugar free popsicles, plenty of Water. do what your dr. says of course, but if i ate bisque at this early stage, i would feel nausciou too. Remember your stomach is just healing after major surgery. it's true that you do have to be patient before you eat more real foods, it will happen good luck kathy

hey mama boy were your doctors right about people on the internet after the first week, i woke up with a gigantic toad on my stomach ok, ok - sorry karen, had to get that off my chest . it was really only a tadpole Back to being serious, which is really hard for me .... you might see some bad stories, that are totally honest from fellow sleever that are enduring difficult problems..but that happens sometimes unfortunately. Mostly you'll see good sinncere happy thoughts from all. font keeps changing sorry my dos was 12/15/11 - and this board has been terrific. all people here are very nice, and ask any and all questions and you'll get good answers, like we all say though, we can only give "laymens" opinion, if you need more medical information, you should always ask your dr. My totally main problem were with sweets, give me a sugar donut and i'll be your friend forever. This surgery was terrific for me. I am very happy i had it. Really no complaints with recovery at all. We all love to eat food on this site, thats why we came to have the sleeve to begin with.. I've lost weight before, you know, yoyo.. Weight would never stay off. With the sleeve you eat small amounts, enabling you to lose weight, but with following the new ways of the sleeve, your journey will start successfully, you will become the new healthier and happier you. As many say, the sleeve is the tool we need to assist us in losing weight. We must work with it (the sleeve), and it will work with you and you really will be the better for it.. Hoping the insurance does follow through and you'll be approved and have the surgery done and over with. You are the only one who can make the wise decision to have the sleeve. You look very intelligent to me, so i'm sure you'll do whats best. best wishes good luck kathy

lol i knew this was going to happen, by the time i finished my novel above, someone else would have answered your questions better that i did. oh well - go figure!! i reread what i wrote earlier and i think i spoke to much about your early stage too. - i agree, we all lose weight at different speeds. no one correct answer to that. best still kathy

no bud, i wish i could answer your questions properly - but all doctors have different responses - thus bringing me to the answer to my question about help from your dr. in Mexico. how's that for a no answer,answer? lol Ok - i'll try and help alittle. At 5 weeks where you are i was told to drink Protein shakes. Protein throughout this whole journey is of the utmost importance. I was lucky and didn't mind the taste of the shakes. Many people can't drink the shake because of the smell, taste or whatever -like i said i had no problem. The other thing to do is drink plenty of Water, water,and some more water. At the early stages post op you might not be successful at drinking that much water, drink very slowly, remember your stomach just had major surgery. but at some point you are officially supposed to drink 64 oz. You don't want to get dehydrated- so please drink enough water, you can also have sugar free popsicles, they are good too., and broth. At this early stage, drinking plenty of water is even more important than protein. I never had heartburn, but the dr. sent me home w./Prilosec which i continue to take. I've been told that al lot of walking will help the gas decrease and stop. I will be honest and say i was never a person to excercise, but i know many many on the board do walk even for simple excercise. But others after a certain amount of time/per there dr. are allowed to gradually get back into excercise. i'm definitely not sure of next - most have a mushy phase where they put food in a blender. i didn't have to do that per my NUT (nutritionalist) (msp)/doctor. Next is soft foods like cottage cheese, yougurt- others i can't think of. Next is the regular food that you start out with 1 oz., then after a couple of weeks, 2 oz. now 3 oz. - thats it for me now per my NUT, but all dr.s are different, remember. You get one of those small medicine measuring cups and the food volume is supposed to fit in one cup etc. i'm going on and on and others reading this might have said get to the point alreadyLOLOL - or they have just fallen asleep. Other people will jump on the bandwagon with more thorough info ask questiosn on the board anything you are not sure of/remember we're here to help but we're not doctors lolol best wishes kathy WLS 12/15/11

Welcome sallynew I've heard so many wonderful things about having surgery in Mexico, or i think there are other countries, areas too, and i "think" one of the primary reasons people initially go out of the country is for the lower cost when they don't have insurance. I also hear about the extra wonderful care that is given in the hospital to patients how you are treated, maybe even better than in some U.S. hospitals - not to mention the wonderful doctors. but.... i always wondered about questions a patient might need to ask a NUT or dr. in general once you have left the country. Maybe there is a contact # for help, i just am curious, hopefully then people like sallynew can get some info/help. yes - i was lucky that insurance covered my sleeve so i opted to have surgery in NY state. please don't "hop" on me if you think i'm putting surgery done in mexico down, ok -cuz i'm really not. Have i been diplomatic enough? thanx best wishes kathy

baydawg&wifefy Welcome how wonderful that you and DW will be doing this weight loss journey together. I think other family members have been in the boat helping, supporting each other too. It is exciting knowing that you will be able to do more and more in life. Health will improve so much - and thats very exciting. Just life in general will improve day by day. good luck best wishes kathy

hey wishes, - i don't dress up much at all - not working - but i had a big event to go to and i also didn't have anything to wear - many people on the board said to go to 2nd hand stores - or there are people on the board that actually sell there clothes that are too big for them now. good luck kathy

Hi Karma84 many many people document their journey - my dos was 12/15/11 - i always had the good intention to document, but i never started - its supposed to never be too late - but... IMO document away so you remember all the good and possibly bad stuff on this wonderful journey. good luck type away kathy

hi jhansen - i am 5'3 , 58 yrs young - average build - started WLS at 235 - 12/15/11 going for 140lbs - 150 might be more realistic - in your case just a total guess may go for 155-160 since you are large boned - this is just an example to start with - others - please chime in. best kathy

hi wanna yes of course you are right - all weight losses happen at various, different speeds of time. my DOS was 12/15/11 - so far i've lost about 43 lbs which i'm very happy about. - i am hoping to be at 50 lbs loss sooner than later, but who knows, Mr. Stall might rear his ugly head. When you get to losing 50 lbs. you'll get there - check out my motto below about patience, good luck best wishes kathy

Muddy, like you said all doctors are different although "we're all the same"- we all have the same tummies. Why does one dr./ NUT tell you one thing you are supposed to abide by, and some other dr. says something totally different for his patient. One example are Snacks. I hear some doctors/NUTS say yes you can/should have a snack between a meal. My NUT says only 3 meals a day, nothing else. I was so relieved not to have a mushy stage. Also my dr. told me i didn't need a pre-liquid diet. To me this is all confusing - but of course i do follow my NUT.. I guess we all have in common that we need to drink a lot of Water per day, eat small bites of food slowly, and the infamous - chew and chew and then chew some more.. oh and the other thing we all have in common - do our best with all above, and wish all other sleevers good luck, AMEN!! kathy

hi jason, sorry you are having such complications - the problem with with your legs sounds very painful and obviously not wanted. Hopefully your pain will subside and you will improve each day. scan on legs, tummy problems oh no, - i am sending healthy wishes your way. get better soon - kathy

Paola a couple of years ago i was so disgusted with my weight, i gave all my small clothes from years past to rescue mission/salvation army. i was just so upset i couldn't wear them. now i wish i had kept them so i also could go shopping in my closet. oh well - hindsight, right glad you got to go shopping in your closet, how awseome is that, clothes without spending money.- continued great work - kathy

Fellow Sleevers Greg, i'm truly happy for you and others, but its kind of funny about medicare now probably officially will be accepting the sleeve. i am on disability medicare, (I'm 58 yr. young) and when i had my sleeve 12/15/11 - medicare didn't accept the sleeve procedure. luckily i had a second ins from my office, BCBS, which after a long procedure w/medicares denial, BCBS covered the sleeve for me - but it was an extremely long process. I am so happy for all the other medicare people that will probably now be accepted for the sleeve without going through the hoops i had to go through a year ago. I just wish it had happened earlier - hope that doesn't make me an awful person - kathy

its true, my php had suggested the lapband - well that basically was all i knew of except the "big" gastric procedure which i had no intention of doing. when the surgeon at the seminar supported the sleeve, i also had to explain the sleeve to my php - pretty funny kathy