DougNichols

I've dated a couple girls with WLS. They told me on the first date, it's no biggie.
If the guy is only concerned about your body, he's a crappy catch anyhow.

Three Years Later - What I've Learned
Here's my experiences from the sleeve process years ago. I wish I had this information before getting the sleeve, so I wanted to share it with all of you:
GAINING WEIGHT
Gaining weight is easy: you simply eat when you're emotional, lonely, or not hungry. Even though my stomach would barely fit a slice of pizza, I could still suck down an entire large meat Lover's Supreme by eating a single slice, waiting until my stomach could fit some more and then eating another. Until the pizza was all gone. You can also do this with ice cream, burgers, fries, and all the other miscellaneous crap food widely available via drive thrus.
This is why you're required to see a counselor and nutritionist - to handle your eating issues. If these aren't handled, then DON'T BOTHER WITH THE SURGERY. You will simply get fat again by eating smaller portions more frequently. If however you only eat when you're hungry - and stick to good foods then you're golden. Now OBVIOUSLY if you did that in the first place you wouldn't be fat. So surgery is a booster shot to your weight loss, and new way of life.
Think of it as waging a war, and surgery is a tank. Now a tank is a formidable weapon. Can run over enemies, shoot some big artillery but eventually if all you have is that one tank, you'll probably lose a prolonged battle. So you gather some strategy and military air support (diet changes), some recruits and soldiers (lifestyle changes) and NOW you have a master battle plan for your war. And ultimately a better thought out path to success.
You invested a lot of money and pain into this - don't screw it up.
FIRST FEW MONTHS
The first six months your weight will drop amazingly fast, because you're out of surgery and can only eat Soup broth for a week. And then slowly mushy foods come in, followed by a few solids. You don't really need a blender, there are ample canned goods you can eat. Baby food, blending a steak and other shocking posts you read about aren't required: just shop for other things that qualify. Going out with friends during this period is depressing, since your diet is so restrictive, you're staring blankly at the menu for a long time and finally decide on Water.< /p>
Get everything you need together before coming home. You'll be on some pretty loopy meds when arriving home, and won't be in any shape to hit the local Walmart. Nor will your family want to bother with it - so plan ahead.
FOOD AND STRETCHING
You can only eat maybe a half cup of food during the first couple months. Then a cup after about five months, then two cups after longer. You can hurry this process along by stuffing your face until your stomach hurts so bad you need to go lay down, or vomit. But if your eating problem is that severe then see my multi-faceted approach to surgery from above.
Each person is obviously different, but stretching your stomach (to me at least) seems difficult and a venture of pain and suffering. I can feel my stomach naturally taking in more food over time, however I've cycled that back down by going a few days drinking only delicious fruit smoothies. This makes my tummy literally shrink back to where it was after surgery, or pretty close, dependent upon how many days I go. You can also accomplish this via more extreme methods like water or veggie juice fasting, however banana/stawberry/pineapple with some coconut water and ice in the blender tastes much better in my humble opinion.
If you do continue to gorge like a tick on bad foods, then yes your stomach will stretch. I've met a few people who's stomach has returned to normal size. Again - everybody is different, I'm just telling you MY story.
How much food you can eat varies by food type:
RICE - I can eat maybe five spoonfuls of this before I feel sick. Stuffing in another three before my body registers that I'm full and it's a vomit party. You need to eat slowly - there's a point in which eating more means bending over the toilet. And once you've experienced that joy, you quickly learn where the limit resides. Rice expands so you gotta be careful. An average meal of fried rice and an egg roll is a full day's worth of food, that requires splitting up.
SODAS - Equivalent to drinking battery acid. I've met some people who've acclimated back to it, but why bother?
MEAT - Steak is bad, try like five or six bites before calling it quits. chicken is similar. Fish goes down a little easier, and you can eat more, maybe because it's flaky.
SALADS and FRUIT - I can eat one banana. Two is painful. Ditto with grapes, strawberries, etc. These foods process through your stomach quicker, so you can eat a little more often compared to stuffing down a sirlion.
PIZZA - Takes me about 12 hours to suck down a large thin crust. Regular or deep crust, I end up tossing half of it into the trash.
Desserts - They hurt. Bad. And then make me sleepy, ticked off and depressed. I mostly stick with natural sugars now like fruits and veggies.
RESTAURANT EATING
Eating out with friends has a lot of rules tagging along. You must wait 30 minutes after drinking water before eating (which works out great, since that's how long food takes to arrive). I order an appetizer or split a full meal with a friend, so this is not a big deal. I see and hear lots of drama about this mingling around, but it's not THAT bad, and you can easily make it look perfectly normal without telling people you had surgery. You don't need a little happy note from your doctor saying you had surgery, just get a doggie bag or go halfsies with a buddy.
CONCLUSION
These are just my two cents, and I hope they help someone.
I lost about 100lbs, then gained back 50.
I'm in the process of losing again thanks to a diet change (I went 100% raw food) and exercise.

Starting weight: 320 lbs.
I replied to everybody in the original thread. Fruits and veggies are unhealthy? You guys crack me up.
SAM's Club opened at 7am, and I was right there for a big haul!

Breakfast
Look at those lucious strawberries, fresh mangos and plump tomatoes. I had to wipe the drool off me before checking out. So I came home and made a banana/spinach/pineapple/strawberry smoothie:

LUNCH/DINNER
I got hungry at 1pm, so had a few yummy grapes. And then at 4pm I drank a ton of my freshly juiced cucumber/celery/apple/orange drink.
Around 7pm I'll have a big salad and then drink the rest of my juice until bed.
Walked for 45 minutes on the treadmill. Now my kitchen is GREEN:

I've dated a couple girls with WLS. They told me on the first date, it's no biggie.
If the guy is only concerned about your body, he's a crappy catch anyhow.

DAY 6 - 312.9 lbs (those stupid green Beans messed up my losses)
So I just spent the day chillin'. It's Sunday after all. I think those green Beans from last night stalled me out. Can still feel them in my stomach, ewww.
For Breakfast I had my usual smoothie, lunch a banana + grapes and for dinner I'm having another banana. My food intake is WAY down from what it used to be. Before, I'd stuff my face any time my small tummy could fit food.< /p>
Worked out for 40 minutes on the treadmill. I was really sore doing it the first three days, but now I'm golden. After my workout, I feel like working out again.
juice today:

Which made a good 5 glassfuls:

There are countless videos on YouTube showing hot women wearing a fat suit, and getting treated like crap:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uE1Z-si4skY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3X031RoEZvw
Funny how they instantly feel bad about themselves, just putting it on for a day.
Many people just don't like fatties (men or women). Way it goes.
I'm losing weight so I won't die of a heart attack at age 50, and can live to play with my grandchildren. Plus I can be comfortable in my own skin. If I get noticed by some women, then there's a bonus.

There are countless videos on YouTube showing hot women wearing a fat suit, and getting treated like crap:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uE1Z-si4skY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3X031RoEZvw
Funny how they instantly feel bad about themselves, just putting it on for a day.
Many people just don't like fatties (men or women). Way it goes.
I'm losing weight so I won't die of a heart attack at age 50, and can live to play with my grandchildren. Plus I can be comfortable in my own skin. If I get noticed by some women, then there's a bonus.

1) Ride a normal, lightweight bicycle. Not a fat bicycle.
2) SkyDIVING! Always wanted to, never been thin enough
3) Join back into martial arts
4) Be hot enough that girls look at me / talk to me when I visit the gym. Right now they ignore me like I'm a disease

I went cold turkey on surgery day. Since I was already doped up on drugs from post-surgery, the withdrawals weren't an issue.

Coke is bad. It's like drinking battery acid. More a nightmare than a dream. I tried some about 4 months out, and ran around the room yelling OW OW OW sh*# sh*# sh*#! Don't want to go near it ever again.

DAY 5 - 313.4 lbs
(actually was 312 something this evening, but we'll count the 313.4 since that was early morning)
Had my usual smoothie for Breakfast, and then a banana/coffee a little later. For lunch I was in a hurry, so had a banana + handful of peanuts. And then for dinner I went to a barbeque restaurant to attend a hypnosis lecture (don't ask). Not a lot of raw food at a barbeque restaurant, I just want to point that out now.
So I had a choice of a salad, some sides of green Beans (no doubt laced with sugar), and finally a raw baked potato. The salad was HORRIBLE. Filled with chicken, all sort of cheeses and everything I didn't want to jam into my body. Plus they used the cheapest possible lettuce you could find (the nasty big sections of iceberg lettuce that you never eat).
Baked potato looked rotten, like it was sitting under a heat lamp for the past 3 hours. Ewww. I tried to take a picture so I could post here, but the guy gave me a dirty look.
So green Beans it was! I got a double serving but only ate half, which filled me up for a long, long time. Not 100% raw but at 91 calories and 5g of fat, MUCH better than that nasty (FIVE HUNDRED calorie) salad for dinner choice. Plus it's natural food so hey - what can you do. And then the guy sitting next to me kept sucking the rather startling amount of excess snot in his nose loudly into my mouth/esophogus, which rapidly reduced my appetite.
The creepy part was this girl carrying around a basket of rolls and bread. When people were exiting the line, with a roll already on their plate, she was offering an EXTRA roll. And people were TAKING IT. Zomg.
Next time I go out to eat, gonna just get some Water and take a couple bananas with me.
Hey girl, hey! Actually went out into public tonight, so was late.

It's not your fault, nor a carb monster. Processed foods have been genetically engineered to be the most addictive possible, so you'll eat more of their product. Many good books detailing what they've done.
Gotta get off the crazy food train.

It's not your fault, nor a carb monster. Processed foods have been genetically engineered to be the most addictive possible, so you'll eat more of their product. Many good books detailing what they've done.
Gotta get off the crazy food train.

Today is my one year surgiversy. It also happened to be the day of my one year check up. It all started pretty great. I walked in and all the employees were making comments on how great I looked, they asked if I would be interested in a commercial spot or a website spotlight...my surgeon came in and actually brought another surgeon to come in and look at me, stating "this is why we do this!". I was on cloud 9.
I weigh 121 pounds at 5'4". I have lost 111% of my excess body weight. I am healthy, happy and doing great except for some pretty icky acid reflux. My life is totally different. It is really sad, but the world is so much kinder to a skinny person. People smile, comment on how they like your dress, shoes or hair and I have oddly gotten much further in the corporate ladder. I would like to think it is because of something I am doing, other than my new found confidence...but no, it is my looks. Men that I don't think even SAW me before are all over me and I have discovered for the most part they are pigs. Lol
I have had a few complications from surgery, all relatively small other than drop foot. (This is a real complication of rapidly losing a lot of weight and damaging your no longer cushioned peroneal nerve from crossing your new, bony legs)
My weight loss was weird. 5 pounds overnight, nothing for weeks, then 10 pounds in a week and nothing for a month. There seemed to be no reason for the weird pattern. I went from a 16 jean/XXL or XL top to a 2/XS or small top. My shoe size was an 8.5 and is now a 7.
Towards the end of my appointment I mentioned that my acid was still out of control and he wanted to x ray. DAMN IT. I have an paraesophageal hernia and he said I need a sleeve revision and repair of the "hernia" to get any relief. Basically my new, much smaller tummy is slipping into my esophagus.
In short, yesterday I had big plans to tell you guys all my good news, and now I am seriously bumming.
What now? I am scheduled for revision in September. I don't want to go through this again, and am afraid of losing more weight from the new surgery. It has a longer recovery and another liquid/purée diet. 121-122 is already a bit too small for my build, and my surgeon said he wanted to schedule me for September, trying to gain a bit before going back in. I wondered if I heard him right. Is the man that has harped healthy choices, lean Protein and veggies really telling me to GAIN weight.
Has anyone else had to have a revision due to a para esophageal slip?

There is no "honeymoon phase". During the first month or two you're only sipping Soup broth and getting very little calories in, so naturally you'll drop weight faster.
The real challenge comes when you begin sucking down regular food. If you start eating pizza and crap food again, then yeah you'll gain it all back. You must change your diet, your outlook on food to achieve your goals.

I'll get voted down for this, but do you really NEED a nutritionist?
Mine didn't do squat for me. I learned more on YouTube and nutrition sites in an hour than I did with my nut in 5 visits.

Get rid of any therapist you don't click with. I wasted almost 6 months on a crappy therapist, and regret it. Huge waste of money. Taking notes doesn't equal helping you out!

So 98% raw.
This is fascinating! Glad it's working well for you.

I've dated a couple girls with WLS. They told me on the first date, it's no biggie.
If the guy is only concerned about your body, he's a crappy catch anyhow.

I've dated a couple girls with WLS. They told me on the first date, it's no biggie.
If the guy is only concerned about your body, he's a crappy catch anyhow.

Get rid of any therapist you don't click with. I wasted almost 6 months on a crappy therapist, and regret it. Huge waste of money. Taking notes doesn't equal helping you out!

pizza. At one point I was eating 3-4 whole pizzas a week.

Cardio gets the fat off! If you’re in the early stages of this weight loss, I just want to share and point out, that the best thing you can do to see inches lost and pounds keep coming off is Cardio! And tons of it. Cardio can be boring. I’ll agree. But it’s soooo effective in getting the heart rate up and also building the endurance required to get through those intense weight training sessions when they are added into your exercise regimen.
I have been doing some tests on myself just trying to figure out my body. I am a gym rat at this point nearly 7 months post op. I do a lot of strength training and cardio. I notice some weeks I just don’t have the energy reserve to weight train, but because my endurance is so great I just go cardio crazy just to say I didn’t sit on my a** all week. This usually happens about 1-2 weeks before my menstrual comes along. I notice during this period I lose pounds (somewhere between 4-6 pounds in a week if I go consistently 5 days straight at 1 hour each day). Then when I jump back into my weight training, there is no loss, but rather a small gain (usually about .5-1 pound) but inches are loss. I’m guessing this is because muscle is replacing fat, and a pound of fat is much fluffier than a pound of muscle, thus why weight stays the same but body looks and feels smaller. Unintentionally I have been playing this game with my body, and it happens to work! Bodybuilders would call this cut and bulk phasing. Where they’d do massive weight training and eat like crazy to bulk up and gain some serious muscle, then do massive cardio and cut calories to cut some serious fat. They play this game alternating week by week sometimes longer, and this is what creates that chiseled ripped look. You bulk up for muscle, and cut to get rid of excess fat!
In spite of it all, if you’re beginning to work out, don’t overwhelm yourself trying to weight train. Leave that for later when you’ve plateaued and want to switch up your regimen and jump start your metabolism. Just get into cardio for now. Your intake is already limited. The cardio will do its job for you. Become comfortable (not bored) with it. Switch it up. Try walking 30 minutes a day. When that gets easy, try a treadmill at the same pace but with an incline. You’ve doubled calories burned that quick! When that gets easy, jump on the elliptical (low impact and easy and burns a ton of calories once you get your breathing right). When that gets easy, add the stair master. Incorporate programs like 0 to 5k to increase endurance. Just work on that heart! It is essentially what burns fat and boosts the metabolism. Once you’re good with that, start weight training. You’ll have the endurance necessary to get through the workouts, and you’ll begin to tone and build muscle.
The best thing for your body at this stage in the game is to get active. Don’t just sit around because your stomach is the size of a tennis ball and wait for the weight to fall off! Be proactive! Nothing worse than a skinny fat person! Meaning a person that is in the ideal weight range as far as BMI but has a body fat % of over 30%. Believe me, most skinny people are fat! Also don’t get bogged down with BMI charts. They are very misleading. For example, a man 5’8 at 200 pounds is considered to have a bmi of 30 which is obese. But what if he is only 8% body fat (like most bodybuilders)? Is he really obese or unhealthy? Or in vice versa, a female that is 5’5 at 130 pounds and 38% body fat. Her BMI is 21 which is in the normal range, but she is unhealthy. Build muscle, burn fat! And the best way to jumpstart that is cardio. You will look better and feel better.. hope this helps you guys, especially the beginners!

Canned tuna in Water has a ton of Protein. Mix with mayo, make a salad. Goes down smooth:
http://www.fatsecret.com/calories-nutrition/generic/tuna-canned-water-pack?portionid=6356&portionamount=1.000

I am excited for you. I will check in to see how you are progressing. You seem like someone who when you put your mind to it it, will do what it takes to succeed.