FatJuicyMouse

I felt like I was being blown up like a bullfrog by my machine after surgery. It was set to 14.5 and I knew that was too high. Since I have central sleep apnea as well as obstructive, I can't ever say goodbye to my machine. My prescription was still good so I self paid for an APAP machine. I have no idea what the pressures are going to at night but I breathe so much better. Can't say I sleep better, since my insomnia has gotten worse after surgery, but I don't have to belch like a sailor once I sit up in bed. It was cheaper than another sleep study since I haven't had insurance for five years. (It cost me over $1,000 WITH insurance to have one done!) My new machine was about $700 but I got a bunch of bells and whistles with it since I knew I would be keeping it long term. Linda

Hot mama! I would kill to look that good!

Same thing happened to me and I didn't even have a catheter to cause a problem. For the first few months after surgery, I would wake up in the middle of the night and have no idea why. Eventually it dawned on me that I had usually gotten up to potty at that time of night but I felt not the slightest urge to go. I am almost a year out and it has gotten a bit better. I do feel the need slightly during the night to go but if I ignore it, I can go back to sleep and just get up in the morning. Now, no matter how much I drink or how long I wait, I never get that "gotta go right now, get out of my way!" feeling. I treat my bladder like a little kid and say let's just go see if we need to use the pot just in case, k? I live in fear of a bladder infection, so I do force myself to go unless I am all snuggly in the bed. Then it is way to hard to convince myself to get up!

I could tell my pressure needs had changed a month after surgery. I belched like an old drunk every time I sat upright and that had not happened before! I called my PCP who had set me up with the sleep study (I have no idea which doctor read the results - never met the man or even know where his office is) and got a copy of my prescription. I then ordered an APAP online and have slept like a baby and found a few of the more than 17 masks I have tried over the years actually worked without leaking now. I don't have insurance and could barely pay for the sleep study, machine and masks when I DID have insurance. There was no way I was going to have a sleep study when I wasn't anywhere near my weight loss goal! My old machine was set at 14 and the new one never seems to go up that high now. I made the investment because I not only have obstructive apnea but central apnea and I was never going to be able to do without a machine. Linda

Mine came out the other end, with shakes, sweating, weakness and nausea. This has happened to me many times before surgery and has even happened to my husband and son! Just didn't know what caused it then...

Early out, sugar really did me dirty. I had eaten a protein bar that had too much in it (and I had gotten this one at my surgeon's office!) and my belly said no way, girlie. I tried again at about 3 months out and I could handle sugar but it makes me feel weird. Hard to describe the feeling but it is almost enough to make me completely avoid it. Almost. I used to have a piece of dark chocolate every day to satisfy the head hunger (50 calories) but in the last week, I feel like I have eaten a pound of it after the first bite. Good timing, too, with all these easter baskets around!

I got that from my daddy after he had been overseas for a few tours. Picture MC Hammer pants from a decade or two back. They look like you could pass by the outhouse for about 30 days before you are "full!"

Back in the bad old days (last August) when I walked in a joint and grabbed a size 24 or 26 off the rack I knew how it was gonna fit. Now that I have lost a few pounds, I can't find diddly that fits! I do have the problem that if it fits in the belly, my butt and thighs make me look like I am wearing 30 day shitters. I've kinda gotten used to that. What I can't understand is why I have to put labels on my pants so I remember which 14's are the ones that run big and which 18's I shouldn't get rid of yet. I have some of my clothes from the 70's and I know it will be a long while before they fit since they didn't so vanity sizing then and nobody had heard of size ZERO! I got a pair of pants at Sams Club that fit good for a while and then they were too big. So I got the same pants a size smaller. I wore them two days and now I can pull them up and down without unbuttoning them. Now I need the next size down? In less than two weeks? And my measurements are pretty much the same, as is my weight for the last month. My shirt fit now depends on whether the buttons close over the roll and not the girlies. I shore ain't used to that!!! But that is a subject for another day...

He did my sleeve last September and, if I am reading the surgical report correctly, he fixed a hiatal hernia at the same time. I have MUCH less reflux symptoms than before. I still get symptoms but very rarely and it is from either eating too much or having a highly acidic meal. Before surgery, I was taking a Pepcid AC in the morning and at night and eating tums and rolaids all day long! I have also read about other folks suddenly having reflux problems after surgery, so all I can say, is that this is MY experience...

Oh, boy, do I hear ya! My belly is the one thing that makes me think I didn't really lose 50 pounds. It seems to be just as big, just droopier and more pillsbury doughboy than before. My pants get baggier than hell around my butt and legs but my gut says I ain't movin' down a size till I look like I am wearing 30 day shi**ers. When I sit down, it STILL looks like I have another (bigger) set of boobs under my 36 longs. Makes we wish I could get lipo!

I guess I was lucky because I have a young grandson. I tried some of his baby food, The meat isn't bad and you can add spices. They have all kinds of fruits and veg and the consistency was always better than I could achieve trying to blend my own stuff. That got old after a week so I did take a pork chop and use a magic bullet with some chicken stock and blended it, but not so it was actual mush. I then proceeded to chew the hell out of it until it WAS absolute liquid and then swallowed. Mmm, mmm good!

Wow! Scary stuff! I have practically lived on Splenda since I was diagnosed with diabetes. I know there are certain days where I feel hungrier than others and could never figure out why. I am able to get my water in only because I use wally world's version of crystal lite. I am going to ditch that stuff today! I wish I liked stevia. I have several versions of it but it has this slight aftertaste of licorice and I HATE licorice. My favorite meal is greek yogurt with Splenda and vanilla (and sometimes blueberries -mmmm!) <sigh> I am off to clear out the kitchen. Maybe this will even break my stall!