mamasez

You have to restrict your carbs yourself. 1400 is wayyyy to many calories to be taking in. The rule is to eat your protein first. If you follow this rule, you cant hold the carbs after and your calorie intake will be less than 1000 for sure and you will lose weight. The sleeve helps us and is a good tool. Its not magic and it doesn't keep us out of the carbs. We have to follow the rules of the sleeve to be successful. Just think of it this way, once we get to maintenance we can have a bit more carbs and maintain. You have maintained 180 for almost 2 months so you know you can maintain and have some carbs then. Right now you are in the losing phase and its time to put on your big girl panties and start following the rules and cut out those carbs and slider foods!

Congratulations, Pookeyism! You have a terrific attitude!

You are going to be THE best fitness expert on the planet! Congrats on meeting ur goals!

Good day all... I am new to this site and came on here looking for sleevers that wanted to lose over 200 lbs. I was sleeved on 2/14/11 and have lost 130 lbs ( highest weight 433 lbs) but I have no lost weight in 4 months...I go to gym but am frustrated with being stuck at 300 lbs...I have no one to talk to or who understand ... Everyone says look how much you have lost but I want to loose abt 50 to 100lbs more

You are SO right on track! I really got serious about my pre op nutrition plan and wound up losing almost 60 pounds prior to surgery. Even better than the weight loss was the change I made in my diet that has stuck with me throughout this process. I learned to love my veggies, chicken breast, baked fish and all those things that are good for you. Also, I really lost my craving for junk food carbs. I'll have a little dish of ice cream now every now and then and maybe a cookie or something but when I'm done, I'm done. I do miss eating a normal size meal, but life's just a lot of trade-offs. Great going and best of luck in May!

May I please add one final comment? Until yesterday, I have tried to keep any negative thoughts about particular posts to myself, trying to ignore the negative speak that can sometimes be found on forums. However, yesterday I allowed myself to flap my jaws and defend "men" since I find it unfair to lump groups of people together as one "type."
IMO, one post in this thread was particularly harsh and uncalled for, but it is the poster's right to voice that opinion, afterall.
We all want support and understanding here and everyone should get it here. I apologize if my initial comment may have caused anyone to feel otherwise.
"A tongue has no bones but it can break a heart."
Leah

Why is it ok to go from supporting a sleeve sister here to all out man bashing? All men are NOT "notoriously lazy" stupid, unable to expess themselves, evil a-holes! Wow! I'm sorry your feelings are hurt, thinoneday, but some of the nasty responses about "men" here have been ugly and harsh. None of us knows what your husband really meant or why he made that comment. But to condemn "men" is NOT fair. All men are not the same.

Been there, done that, had the same feelings. My sleeve is a hard tool to fail with. It only allows me to eat so much. Could I suck on high cal shakes all day and defeat (for lack of a better word) the sleeve? Yeah, but that would be just too stupid!
You will have to work at becoming healthy in body and mind b/c there is no easy way out of obesity if you love food and have depended on it in the past to help you for whatever reason. Again, there is no EASY way out. But my sleeve has made a new, healthy life possible. I am 4 months out now and already I am forming a new relationship with food. I do still enjoy food, but I am not using it as my "friend" anymore.
When I dieted in the past, I had a temporary mindset and always gained the weight back. My sleeve provides me a forever plan and I am living this new post-sleeve life one day at a time. I am going to treat my.sleeve right by trying to undereat the sleeve because I wantt its effects to last the rest of my life. I had to make up my mind that food never really was a good friend anyway. It was a crutch and it was slowly killing me because we had an unhealthy relationship.
I can't tell you that the sleeve is the right decision for YOU, but I can tell you that it is a wonderful tool that can change your life. I did go through a lot of emotions about how drastically my everyday life would change. But honestly, it has changed for the better. I am learning so much about developing a healthy realtionship with food. I do enioy my food still, but I am no longer dependent on it. I am learning to enjoy it and use it appropriately. Only took me 50 years!

I completely understand what you are going thru. I felt the same way. For me, after soooo many disappointments, diet failures, massive weight gains (over and over again), the humiliation, physical pain, heqlth problems and limitations, and so on, we are scared to believe in anything. I questioned "could this be true? Get surgery and then lose the weight and associated health complications and embarrassment? And keep it off? It CAN'T possibly be for real! Maybe I'm letting myself in for more heartbreak by chasing this rainbow!" And then, scared half out of my wits, I went ahead with the surgery. I followed every rule to the t both pre- and post-op. And to be honest, unlike what some other sleevers report, this has not been an easy fix. But it IS a Godsend. This surgery has helped me tremendously, but at the end of the day, just like so many say, this is a tool, not a magic mystical pill. To me, it is VERY important for us to address our fears head-on. You are not crazy. You are facing your fear. Stare it down and never give up on yourself. This tool will work for you if you are willing to put in your share of the work. I wish I were one of those people who never got hungry and have to remind themselves to eat. I do get hungry, but not nearly like it was pre-op. My restriction is not as much as some others have but it IS there, and it is very helpful. I am 3.5 months out (surgery 10.17.11) and have lost 64.4 pounds. I can now pretty easily consume about 4 oz of protein plus a few bites of veggies per meal. I am still fighting head hunger and trying to resist nighttime snacking. And I am trying to exercise (walking for now since my hips, ankles and feet are pretty much shot from intense pounding whilst obese) 4 to 5 days a week. So yes, there is effort on my part. But I am so glad I had the surgery. I am attending monthly support group mtgs and read helpful and motivating posted on this forum. I hope this reads as it is intended: as a helpful and compleltley no BS account of my WLS experience. No pretend sunshine; no dramatic negativity. You are worth this. You can meet success. I believe in both of us!

I'm saying prayers for you. Feels funny praying for someone named bedhead, but i am sure God knows who I mean.

I was told that allllllll the time. I was always told why? your a lite weight, you don't need this! blah, blah, blah...obesity kills period! And it will catch up sooner or later. I was obese over a decade and just found out after losing all my weight and now having a normal BMI that I have atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries). It's not about how one looks or what size one is, it's about our health, and what fat does to the body. Maybe you can tell them that!

LoserMama & PDX man -- some really good points here, thank you. There may be something to that "window of opportunity," because I have read that at least from anecdotal "research" some people start to get more appetite back down the road. And yes -- caught in the act -- I really shouldn't be eating pizza but gave it a try very, very slowly and did OK. The slow eating and chewing thoroughly makes all the difference! That said, pizza isn't very low on the fat side, and so I am watching that more with my Protein. One of my favorite high-protein lunches is a mini noodle Campbell's Soup at hand doctored up with the

I have an appointment on Feb. 7 to discuss my meds. I don't crush, chew, or open any of my meds and the Strattera only comes in a time release capsule. As far as I know, any ADD medicine for adults is in tme released form. I will talk to my doc and see what my options are. Maybe since I am not digesting enough of the medicine, I may need to have the dosage increased.
Thanks to all of you for the input!!

Hi All,
I am getting sleeved on Oct 17th by Dr Nick Nicholson in Texas. I was determined to be sleeved before turning 50 next summer. I am sooooo looking forward to having a birthday at a reasonable weight.
I started my two week pre-op diet today and I quickly remembered why Slim Fast did not work well for me as one of the myriad of diets I have tried in the past. I am to have 5 SlimFast shakes or bars (any combination) each day plus 5 oz of lean meat and up to two cups of non-starchy veg for dinner each day. I have one heck of a headache and my stomach is upset. I'm getting the 64 oz of Water in and hoping the head and stomach will calm down in a day or two as I get used to this pre-op thing.
I am taking my 11-year-old son to the state fair tomorrow (we homeschool) and am not looking forward to avoiding all the fried food and yummy stuff they have like funnel cakes, candy, etc.
Hope things are going well fo the rest of you guys!
Mamasez (Leah)

What am I MOST scared of? I need to come out of this surgery alive and kicking for my 11 year old son who has Asperger Syndrome (High Functioning Autism). Not only am I his Mom, but I am also his Teacher (homeschool), best friend, Rock of Gibralter, etc. He is VERY attached to me and I manage his special diet, supplements and meds, make sure he can function within his schedule (changes and deviations from the norm are very difficult for him) and more where he is concerned. Hubby and I are telling our son that I am on a special diet and will be going to the hospital for "some tests" when I have my surgery. Otherwise, eh would be terrified if he knew I was ahving surgery. Since he is homeschooled, he will be here with me when I get home from the hospital. Thankfully, my husband works from home, so that will help with juggling our son when I am sore and out of it if the anesthsia affects me the way it ahs in the past. I expect to be in some pain afterward b/c my pain tolerance is low and I've always been a slow healer.
I am concerned also about the usual type of stuff like: What will the pain be like? Will I lose and keep the weight off this time after going thru all this hullabaloo to make it happen? Will I be able to stop my emotional eating? Will the anesthsia make me ill? How long will it take till I can do everyday tasks again?
But we ARE going to make it through this, October Friends! This is the perfect time of year to have the surgery. We will be doing great by the holidays and not adding on tons of weight this year from all the holiday foods! We are having this done before major ice and snowstorms (for many of us) and after the horrid heat (for people like me in TX where we have finally just come out of a long, long heatwave). We have a new year ahead that will be OUR year for healthy bodies and smaller, more attractive clothes! We will be better able to get around, exercise with more ease, and feel less outcast around non-obese people. By golly, we will surely be proud of ourselves! And I know we will be thankful for the surgery in the long run. We must take each hurdle a day at a time.
Looking and moving forward!
Sleeving on the 17th,
Leah in TX, aka Mamasez