Lissa

So tell the nurse that you don't want him with you when you weigh. Not a big deal. Pre-op, I wouldn't DREAM of telling someone how much I weighed. Now, I don't care. I've come so far that I will shout it from the rooftops!

I haven't tried that one. See if there is a place to order a sample online. Amazon often has stuff like this, or links to websites that are reputable to order them.

I didn't have those dreams, but I assume they'll stop with time. I dont' have the same crazy dreams I had pre-op, i.e. flying, being chased by Grimace the Menace, falling off cliffs. Now I have dreams about my mother coming to tell me something, or I dream about what it will be like to finally be "skinny", which I'll never actually be! LOL

There is a book called "When food is Love" by Geneen Roth that I read many years ago. I still reference it sometimes and it discusses using food as a crutch to make ourselves feel better. I literally ate my problems pre-op and I'm now having to deal with all those issues, both internal and external, on a realistic basis rather than eat food to cover them up. It's very similar to an alcoholic, but my drug was food. I see a therapist regularly and I talk to her about the crazy urges to eat junk food. I do well so long as I keep myself busy and keep the junk out of the house. My splurges are that I allow myself chocolate flavored Protein bars for breakfast and I do allow myself one single serving bag of cheetos a month. For me, it works because I know that I CAN have something that meets my craving, but I can't have a ton of it. The sleeve definitely helps with that!

Our stomachs are sleeved, not our heads. This is why it's SO important to change your lifestyle along with the sleeve. We have to incorporate better food choices and exercise...and realize that this isn't a diet. It's a lifelong change.

I'm doing oddly well in those two areas, but my tummy... argh, my tummy!!!

Yes, there's a lot of work to do, but it's SO worth it when you start having those NSV's !!!

It seems that you're leaning towards the sleeve, but you should take your doctor's recommendation into account. IIRC, though, you can revise to a GB or DS (duodenal switch) from a Sleeve if there is a need. Some of my reading indicates that the sleeve procedure was originally used in WLS patients as a precursor to a full GB, but the sleeve worked so well it began to be used as a stand-alone procedure. Did he give you other specifics about why the GB might be better for you than the sleeve? Perhaps your doctor is more comfortable performing the GB than the sleeve. In that case, you may want to seek a different surgeon. Ultimately, it is your decision. My surgeon and I discussed all three options (VSG, GB and LB) before he recommended the sleeve, which I had already been leaning toward anyway. Had I wanted one of the others, Dr D would have given me what I wanted, but he made a very clear cut case for the sleeve vs the other surgeries, IMO.

I wish I could double-like you post! I keep thinking I don't have a flattering angle! I'll try that when I take pics again, probably this weekend. Today is a long day of work for me, or I'd try it today.

Yay!! that's great news!!

I agree with call your doctor. Our sleeves heal at their own rate, no matter what stage we're "supposed" to be in post-op. Some of us can handle denser foods much earlier than others, despite the timeline. I was told to step back a stage any time I vomitted. If you're having a tough time with soft solids, you may need to give yourself a couple of days at your earlier mushie stage to give your sleeve a little extra time to heal.

My sleep apnea machine (BiPap) has made a tremendous difference in how much energy I have and in how much sleep I need. I'm down to about six hours a night, no matter how hard I try to sleep more.

I took my BiPap to the hospital as welll and was required to use it. I agree that you should be using it, especially if you're taking pain meds.

Call your doc on this one. I can think of pros and cons to eating something like that. My biggest worry would be that you'd still have some in your tummy on surgery day and end up with a piece of the seed caught in your incision/staple line.

Oh, I forgot! Welcome to the loser's bench!!!

I wish I had words for you to give him. I don't, but you are STILL in my prayers. Perhaps letting him know that people all over the world are praying for you will ease his mind somewhat?

I don't drink with meals, and sometimes I'm still uncomfortable drinking within a half hour after eating.

chicken broth was my preferred food for the icky feelings. For some reason warm went down much easier than cold.

BTW, I now do between 1/2 and full hour on the elliptical or the recumbent bike 3-4 times a week, with circuit training and/or weights every other day. I'm 10.5 months post op. You should see my biceps and my thigh muscles! They are KILLER!

Chad, A little walking won't hurt you. If you're totally unused to it, try walking up and down the hallway in your house. I could barely walk pre-op...out of breath between my front door and the car. I started walking up and down the hallway, literally. By three weeks post-op I walked 1/4 mile around the lake in my apartment complex. I was so excited you'd have thought I completed a marathon! You CAN do it! Every little tiny bit of exercise helps. Lift a can of peas in each hand a few times twice a day... If that's all you can do, it's still exercise.

Try to stick to Protein as much as possible. Tuna, chicken, pork and hamburger are all cheap options for food. Peanut Butter is also good. Eat mainly unprocessed foods (no hamburger helper or frozen meals). Avoid potatoes, but there are plenty of cheap veggies available now at the farmer's market that you can have on a low carb diet. Drink Water or iced tea, avoid sodas and try not to drink caffeine. They do make decaf iced tea. I hope your daughter's recovery goes well. It's tough to deal with that stress while you're doing the pre-op diet, but you need to find something else to do to deal with stress, like exercise, maybe? I'll keep your family in my prayers.

Skinny, How old is your friend? That filter is only supposed to stay in for six weeks if they plan to remove it. My venous doctor said I am way too young to keep that filter for life. I had just turned 45 when I had surgery.

I have those days. I just try to concentrate on my protein and I'm learning to use high protein foods as snacks instead of carby junk.

Justine, It really isn't that big a deal. My conscious sedation made everything really warm and fuzzy and I literally would do it all over again if I had to do so. It is like being high, truthfully. My c-sections were both a MUCh bigger deal and scared me way worse than the IVC filter install/removal. I do remember that the doctor doing the removal kept telling the nurse to give me more phenergan (spelling?) because I was entirely too jovial. What she didn't realize is that I have issues with anesthetics and the more you give me, the more aware I become of what's going on until I'm unconscious. Nothing hurt, my memory became clearer rather than fading like Versed usually causes. IF you have to have one, do not let it intimidate you at all. I'm considering plastics once I reach goal and there's a real possibility that I'll need another filter. I'll still have my plastics even if the filter is required.

I have only told one guy I've dated since being sleeved, but it came up while he was telling me how much he likes BIG girls. I let him know that I'm on my way down the scale, not up. We haven't been out again, but it's not a big deal. Usually, I just order something small, and I've been lucky that most of my dates have been with guys I've known for a long time, so they already know about my sleeve. Most of my friends, male and female, already know about the surgery and call my sleeve by his name, Rex. So, we have three way conversations, me, them and Rex.