exoticheart

Ditto them both........Not only would I do it again , I wish I had done it 10 years ago........Same as you I have no co morbidities and am/was 100 pounds overweight. I am 3 months out and down almost 40 pounds and my body and mind are so much lighter and feel more free....I have been blessed so far with no issues wtih surgery or post op........good luck to you and your journey

I've been reading these posts for several weeks and there seems to be lots of issues people have had both big or small but it's rare to see anyone that wished they didn't do it. I've been on the fence about the sleeve. I don't have any medical issue....outside of 100 lbs overweight and I'm afraid of all the issues that seem to come with having the sleeve. I was wondering from all you post-ops.....would you do it again ??

I have been told and have read that you cant take your Multivitamin within 4 hrs of your Calcium or it will cancel out the calcium .....So I take 2 chewable multivitamin 8 a.m , 12p calcium, calcium at 4pm , 8pm calcium.I get a B12 shot monthly. Also I was told and read that your body can only absorb 500mg of calcium at a time and anymore then that will be waisted............so much different information out there is overwhelming sometimes..........not sure what is what, but this is my regiment. There is liquid calcium and mulitvitimin but they taste just as bad and made me nautious more then the pills.

..

I just started my Vitamins yesterday. They go like this:

2 chewable multivitamin

2 b12

1calcium chew

4 hours later:

2 Iron tabs

1 Vitamin c

4 hours later:

1 calcium chew

Oh God after the first ones today I am sooooo sick. Nauseated and wanting to vomit. Please share if you have any tips on how to take less pills or have an easier way of doing things.

I know exactly what you mean and we share the exact mother and that is why to this day she still doesnt know that I had the surgery done. I didnt want my haridresser , the mailman and the checkout lady at wallmart to know either lol................Good luck and much success with your weight loss journey and your mother

I know they care, but seriously? My mother said: Be sure that this is what you want to do and I know you will thoroughly look into it and weigh the side effects of such a procedure.

Well DUH!!

I really shouldn't have told anyone outside my immediate family. I told my mother to keep it under wraps, but I'm sure she's told her friends, my uncle, her hairdresser, etc. I could kick myself.

Hello and welcome to an awesome site, full of information and support....Everything will be great and you will love your sleeve like the rest of us........Just breathe and everything will be ok..Keep us posted on your WLS journey ............

Hello All,

I am new here and Ijust wanted to introduce myself. I am krystle, 25 out of washington state. Tomorrow I am having surgery and I will be getting the sleeve. I currently weigh 295. I am very excited and nervous at the same time! Tonight I will be packing my hospital bag, It's like I am packing for a vacation in a way but not really. The hospital I am going to is Evergreen in Kirkland. It's really nice I hear. I have been struggling with weight issues since I was a child and I look forward to my new life with the sleeve. I currently have back problems and don't sleep well. I get shortness of breath when I climbs stairs or a hill and I don't want that anymore. I look forward to meeting new people on here and I will drop by tomorrow and say hi. Thanks again for the awesome welcome!

You look hot and congrads on your success..........next up ,a black mini skirt

You will do great, this surgery is amazing and soon you will feel great too

It has not hit me yet yesterday I just want to eat..but I made it...ok I'm really starting to feel it now writing this...be back to tell it all....

My time line is under my profile , I went with Dr.Suh in Corona and everything went extremely well. However the wait time and post care is nothing like Kaiser.....two hour apt wait times post op. I have 2 co workers who quit going to there follow ups with him but if you are a Kaiser patient you will be followed through Kaiser bariatric specialist after as well. But surgery wise was great.......Good luck on your journey , be patient and we were not held to the 10% weight loss , they just want you to change your eating habits. When I started Options I was 234 and was 252 by end of class, my co worker had gained 10 (stress I guess).........

Thank you for the information. I could imagine how dreadful it was going to SD for the procedure considering the time it took to get home and you may have needed to put over and walk to avoid blot clots. They've now lowered the time of options to 3 months.Im most grateful for that. I can't wait to actual get my surgery date and post updates.

Thanks Again

OmG you look amazing and thank you so much for posting your before and after picture. I am only 2 months out but its very nice to look and see what we can actually attain through this wonderful procedure. I am sooo with you on 98% of the time about loving it and the other 2% still want a whole cheeseburger..Keep up the great work and thank you again

It is really hard for me to believe that it has now been 6 months since I had my surgery, but here is is, August 23. When I got sleeved on Feb 23, I was so worried that I wouldn't survive the surgery & that even if I did, I would end up failing with it just as I had with ever other diet I'd ever been on. I saw how successful others had been & was inspired by all the information they shared about their experiences, but I just couldn't let myself believe it would work for me. Well, 6 months later, I am still a work in progress, but it is definitely working.

Most of the time I consider myself to be an average loser. Certainly, I am not one of the people who is losing 20-30 lbs a month. But I've been very consistent in my weightloss so far & it has really started to add up. The stalls are frustrating, but I just do my best to keep working through them. I try to eat low carb, high Protein, but I am not super strict about it. I might have tuna on crackers or the occasional beer. For the most part I do low carb, high Protein, with a few cheats every now and then. I am militant about going to the gym. I started off walking & have slowly worked myself up to jogging 20 minutes straight. I go the the gym religiously 3-4 times a week where I do at least 30 min of cardio & weights. I also try to work in a zumba class once a week.

I don't know what else to say other than that it really can work if you are willing to work it. It has not always been easy, and there have definitely times when I wish I hadn't had the surgery (usually when I am craving a huge cheeseburger or bread or something & I know I can't eat that with my little stomach). Those moments pass quickly & 98% of the time I am thrilled that I had the procedure. I am happy with my results & hope that at the 1 year mark I will have reached my goal. I am including some pictures because I know how motivating it was for me to see the progress people had made. So as embarrassing as it is to post my heavy pictures, here they are.

I say shout it from the roof tops and be proud of your accomplishments!

I am beyond thankful for the success that I've experienced thus far and praise God for this opportunity to have a longer healthier life.

The dilemma I have recently discovered is I've begun to question myself about the amount of enjoyment I get in talking about my WLS journey. I have always enjoyed sharing my story with others for a number of reasons. The most predominate reason though is that I have found so much encouragement form others as I was looking into and beginning my journey and I hope to be able to provide that encouragement to others. I really love sharing the adventure with others.

With weight as the topic I feel I have been to the near extremes, I was never on a public service special but I had gotten to the point where some of the basic life functions where cumbersome to say the least. Maybe the depth of sadness I felt at those times in my life are now being counterbalanced by the happiness I now feel. I've had better than average success with this WLS surgery and I feel like I'm in the best possible position moving forward with the rest of my life. I'm still seeing scale and NSV regularly and feel badly that others have struggled where I have not. So my question is this justified, is it ok to still be so happy and excited. Am I providing any value by continuing to tell my story or am I an attention ***** destined to turn into a daffodil?

Just came off 3 week stall and have dropped 4lbs in 4 days...the last few weeks played havoc on my mind but should of known eventually it has to come off ....eating right and moving so just have to be patient

I am 7 weeks out and just recently started thinking about how I miss eating a normal size meal....I am happy I can't eat what I use to eat but do miss the normal amount of food...some days the planning of 5 to 6 mini meals gets frustrating ...hoping it gets easier

It can take up to 2 months sometimes to dissolve, just leave them be and they will fall off..I had 2 that did that to me and my co-worker had 3 that we had to wait it out...........just a pain but is normal.

I had surgery 3 weeks ago... I've done wonderful and have no complaints. My incisions seem to be healing great BUT I have noticed that I have the internal stitches poking though on one of my incisions. It doesn't hurt its not infected... but I'm not sure what to do at this point. I know they are dissolvable, so should I just wait it out?

Hoping someone went through something similar or has some insight as to what I should do...

Thanks!

Your arms look amazing

Still working on my bat wings but here's my most recent picture and I Iove my new haircut I've never had short hair before because of my fat face, short hair rules it's so easy to manage. Next on my list is a visit to the plastic surgeon to discuss reinflating the girls...LOL

Recovery , depends on each individual...pain tolerance, tired ,energy etc....

What about recovery. Easier , harder?

Thank goodness for husbands and pre surgery pictures..............YOU LOOK AMAZING

Ok Im insane for even considering posting pics but here I am... LOL

I hit 100 lbs (on the nose) down today. My husband took the before pics the night before my surgery. I hadn't looked at them until today. It was QUITE a wake up call to me. I've still got about another 50 lbs to go. It depends on how I feel I look when I get there. I'm aiming for a size 10. My "after" picture was taken when I wanted to see what the dress I ordered for my brother in laws wedding looked like (we did away with mirrors in our house years ago. I guess it's time to get some full length mirrors huh?)

Unfortunately it happens to alot of us........I have had 2 stalls since my surgery 6 weeks ago and havent lost any in almost 8 days....I no longer compare myself to others weight loss or beat myself up for doing the RIGHT thing....I now look at it like this.....I am eating better then I ever have, I feel better then I ever have...I can no longer eat an entire pizza and half a chicken breast fills me beyond belief and I am gratefull for that. I know that in a year or so I will be so much closer or close or at a decent weight and for now I will just be patient. I drink Water and move around more then I ever have and will wake up every day thank full that I put my body through the surgery. Dont let it consume you , your body went through trama and when it heals and figures out what its suppose to do next it will stabalize and all will be good again

I had my surgery one month ago (7/11/2011). It went well and my recovery has been great, but my weight loss is nowhere near where I hoped it would be. I started at 278 and lost 9 pounds with the pre-op diet. In the past 4 weeks, I have lost 10 more pounds total and that was mostly in the first 2 weeks. These past two weeks, I have gained and lost the same 2 pounds ... and that just seems wrong. I am feeling like I spent all this money and changed my anatomy and it just isn't working! I have read about stalls, but most folks seem to lose so much early on and I am just not losing anything. The really strange part is that the math doesn't work ... I have been tracking my calories in and haven't had more than 1000-1200 on any given day, which should put me at a greater loss by now. I drink my Water. I get my Protein in. I have eliminated sweets and bread and Pasta. Is there something wrong with me? What should I do differently?

Yap I do.........I was in a hurry to have it done and then the week and the day just about knocked me off my feet with anxiety. I questioned myself , thought I was crazy, what if I die........and I can tell you it was a complete waste of time to worry....the surgery is great , and you will feel great. I think we just sink ourselves with the unknown......You will do fine and you will be fine, try and put it out of your mind and just think how awesome you will feel after just a couple of days after surgery.......It is awesome and I would do it over again and wish I had done it sooner....I was a wreck the night before and Im telling you it was a waste and I got all worked up for nothing.........Everything will go so smooth and you will feel terrific after getting a new tummy No worries mate, really !

So I am nervous .....i keep questioning myself . Any words of wisdom ?

Nobody knows your body better then you, so dont let a family/friend tell you to just diet and exercise. If that was the case it would of worked the 1st through the 200th time we had tried it. Single mothers are strong , independant women and so are you, so pull your strength back out and make your appointment and do what you feel is best for you. If talking about the subject is only going to bring negative conversation then just keep it to yourself and proceed with your best life plan.

I was on the lapband discussion forum three years ago. I was banded in October 2008 and was a "success" for nearly 18 months. I lost 106 pounds and felt great! Then the band started tightening and loosening for no apparent reason. It was incredibly frustrating. Each time I went in to have Fluid put in or removed, it cost me $250. I admit I lived with it much too tight for a long time due to finances. I vomited daily and had chest pain with every meal, but I kept trying to make it work!

In May of this year, my band lost restriction completely. Fearing an erosion or slippage, I saw my surgeon. He repeatedly tried to put Fluid in, but was never able to get any back out. He announced that I had a leak and I would need to have it removed or repaired....... I was devastated.

I am able to get insurance coverage to have the band removed, but not to do a revision, repair or replacement. Even with the 50 pounds I've gained back over the past year, apparently my BMI is too low to qualify. (It won't be for long if I don't do something about it!)

My family thinks I'm crazy to even consider a revision to sleeve surgery. They want to know what makes me think this will work any better than the band ... not the mention added expense. They are confused about why I can't "just diet like everybody else?" I feel guilty about making the "wrong" decision about the band and guilty about not being able to diet "correctly." Trying to lose weight and get healthy should not involve this much guilt.

I live in San Diego, so the logical choice for me would be Mexico. I've read great things about Dr. Aceves, who seems to have the most experience in revisions from the band. Even though it will cost me more, I'd like to have him do the revision in one surgery instead of having the band removed with insurance first. It's a matter of logistics. I can't take time off from work twice this year to have two surgeries and I'm a single mom with a 10 year old.

I know this is the right decision for me, but I'd appreciate a little support and encouragement.

Mim

I tried my best to do what the preop required but did do a food funeral countdown, and had my favorite foods for dinner the week prior to surgery,because I knew it would be forever before I could even taste them again...I agree with previous post , they do sleeves on people with double the weight and the liver isnt an issue. Just do the best you can so you know what to do post sleeve.......But dont beat yourself up , theres a reason we all needed the sleeve. And even though your dates set doesnt mean theres a magic wand to stop our habbits prior. So enjoy some and eat good too

So my surgery is right around the corner. I am super excited and nervous! My doc has me on a strict high Protein low carb diet. I am eating the right foods but I am not eating the right measurments. I am still pretty hungry after eating 4 oz of Protein. Am I alone in this? Am I totally ruining my surgery? As I said, I am not eating bad foods, but I'm still being bad _shame_

http://www.drinkclick.com/

http://www.drinkclick.com/

Its delicious

Ok, I recently tired the Skinny Latte at Starbucks and loved it. I'm not a super coffee drinker....other than your normal coffee with Creamer.

So since basically giving up coffee since surgery, would like a Protein drink that taste like the skinny latte to enjoy in the mornings.

I prefer warm drinks over the cold ones. Is that possible with the Protein powders?

I tried a recipe on here that was suppose to be like a frap....I didn't care for it. Maybe I put to much instant coffee in it...not sure.

So hit me guys with some recipes.....remember, I prefer warm drinks.< /p>

Thanks,

Robin

Note: I put this in the recipe section too....but I know alot of more people come here.

Yeah for you,,,,, being persistent is a great thing and good luck on your WLS journey

After months... and Months... and MONTHS of searching for over a year a change. I finally found what i was looking for.

I was so ready to give up, but something deep inside told me, that progression is active and never stagnate.

I swear to everything i love, i was going to remain this chubby, insecure guy forever, but THIS, THIS right here was the light at the end of the tunnel for me.

i know a lot you are still curious and wondering what the hell i;m talking about, so let me tell you.

Today i found the FIRST doctor in over a year, that didnt turn me down. Not only does this doctor ACCEPT my insurance (Amerigroup=trash) but he ALSO started doing the surgery i longed for... the SLEEVE!. I spoke to him today and he was great. Taller than i expected but straight to the point to if or buts. His staff were also amazing. Even though I've done my research about the sleeve for over a year and change. They explained EVERYTHING with accurate details, so i was impressed because the other doctors that DIDNT accept my insurance but did the surgery, didnt know much or were fluent enough to break it down properly.

I don't want to get my hopes up or nothing but i havent even submitted the paper work to Amerigroup as of yet. Hopefully they approve and dont try to screw me over AGAIN for the millionth time.

I feel so relieved right now. Now i can start on my journey to become a SLEEVER!!!!

oh by the way the Dr. name is Gorecki!

I started researching and lived on this web site from the moment I registered for the options nutrition class, so 6 months full of research I had so much information I felt I was ready for anything.......so I am going to say its an abnormal normal to be obsessed with researching our wls lol..........Be patient and good luck on your journey

I am from ontario and I am wondering if any of are from Ontario too and if so can you can tell me how long it took you to have surgery? I went to see my doctor last week and he was going to get me registered but i am dying from the wait.

My husband thinks that i am obsessed with this because i have so many questions and i can't stop reasearching things about the surgery.

You look fabulous!

Hello and Welcome...........I have similiar story... same age and work for a hospital for 16 years and have great insurance. I was sleeved on June 24 th and feel amazing and soon you will too.........Good luck to you and this is a wonderful source of information and the people are terrific..

Hello everyone! I have been dragging my feet for a while and decided it was time to just in here and introduce myself. I have been so inspired by so many of you ~you guys are amazing.

OK, well a little about me. I am 41 years old and have been married to the love of my life for 20 years. I have a 19 year old daughter and 17 year old son. I was diagnosed about 10-12 years ago with lupus and fibromyalgia. My PA at the time tried many different medications to try to relieve some of my pain without much success and I spent a lot of time either in bed or on the couch. I was over weight before this, but a combination of the meds and lack of exercise I gained over 100 pounds. I have since found a new rheumatologist and feel like a new woman!

OK, so fast forward three years ago. I work for a hospital and have worked there for 20 years. For our entire married life, our family has been covered under my husbands insurance. My husbands insurance was horrible and we were paying high premiums, so I decided to check in to obtaining health insurance through the hospital. Well, as it turns out, we now have amazing insurance and I don't pay a dime in insurance premiums. The other nice thing is that any procedure or test that is done at our hospital is completely covered-no out of pocket expense for us at all.

I quickly decided to check in to our bariatric program at work. I went to my first seminar almost three years ago and found out that my insurance had just changed the policy for covering WLS. You have to have our insurance for three years before they will cover it...great just my luck. At the time I was planning on having the lapband done. In addition to my aches and pains, I had high blood pressure.

So I have been waiting for the last three years to have my surgery. Meanwhile, earlier this year, I was diagnosed with both sleep apnea (I wear a CPAP at night) and most recently diabetes.

My three years will be up on September 15th. I started my 6 month supervised weight loss in April and will finish that in September. I finally was given the ok to have my surgical consult, so I am ecstatic about that. It finally feels like this just might happen. Oh, I almost forgot to mention. On my first appt. with my primary care, I told him that I was there for my 6 month supervised weight loss for lapband and that I was afraid of the bypass. He said well why don't you do the sleeve? That is when I found out about the sleeve! I had never even heard of it before that!

It turns out that my insurance just began covering the sleeve on the 13th of this month! I really think it was meant to be. I feel much more confident regarding the success of the sleeve compared to the lapband. I was worried to put about my body rejecting the lapband because of the lupus. Honestly, I am just so ready for this. I think the 3 year wait turned out to be a blessing in disguise for me!

Anyway, this week I have my surgery consult and I will take it from there. I am super excited to get to know everyone and learn everything I can about how I can have the most success when I finally have my surgery.

Take care,

Becky