Matt Z

Congrats and Here's to an easy surgery and a smooth recovery!

Any core building exercises will help! I'm in the same boat. Being overweight we hunch and don't realize it. I had the added surprise of finding out I had spinal arthritis, but didn't know because all the visceral fat was protecting the nerves. I picked up a posture corrector on Amazon and I use that on and off. And I make a consious effort to keep my head up, shoulders back and spine upright. It's such a weird feeling! It took years to screw up our posture, it's going to take time and effort to get it corrected.

Right! Sadly Dehydration and inefficient levels of hydration aren't the same, I'm not even sure if they can test for "proper hydration" only if it's a problem and you are actually dehydrated. There is so much "art" involved with this whole process!

That sucks! But it's more than likely what is causing your losses to suffer. We need water to process fat, we also need water for everything else our body does. I'm pretty sure I've provided this information for you in the past, so I apologize for the repeat. Current medical science is showing we need 90 - 110 oz of water a day, normally. That's outside of any extra exercise or weight loss. Good luck!

I certainly didn't expect to break more than 100 LBS in less than 9 months, let alone a year! Other than really hammering the water intake... I can't think of a reason why my specific results are what they are. But, water really REALLY is amazingly important to weight loss.

Wrong size or "capacity"?

Not everyone feels restriction. But this is EXACTLY what the band is doing. By forcing you to eat less and better, THAT is what is causing the weight loss, nothing else. As far as how slow, that's common with the band too. And it's one of the reasons that most surgeon's don't even offer the band anymore. To be honest, it surprises me every time I see a new person getting the band.

This is super controversial, but... I'm using patches. Have been since before my surgery and my 3 month, 6 month and 9 month labs *all* came back in the normal range. So, that's an option if you don't mind a lack of proper clinical studies. Also there are the Tespo vitamins, they are liquid and I hear pretty tasty.

If you don't have a fever or severe pain that isn't tolerable with meds, then yes. Swelling, bloating, etc will happen during healing. If they gave you an incentive spirometer, be sure you are using it every hour! It does help!

In all seriousness, check into Intermittent Fasting. When I stalled out hard around 230... it was Intermittent Fasting that allowed me to get down to 206, I'm fighting getting lower, but 25ish extra lbs from fighting at 230... I'll take it. I'm doing a "light" IF, I pretty much only eat between 8am and 6pm. Check into it, there are a few threads around here, it really REALLY did help out with getting me down to where am I now, it might help you out as well.

Great job! You look fantastic!

Doesn't sound like the "issue" was on your side of the interaction at all. Just keep on being you!

Thanks... it's ok. Overall it's just that, "not everyone is the same" sorta thing is all. Sorry you had a bad interaction, but as they say "don't let 1 spoiled apple ruin the bunch".

Never let an interaction with 1, affect your interaction with all. I can't even dance around all the things I'd like to say because it will *ALL* come out wrong in this wonderfully PC world we live in. But, not all men think that, not all men act this way, etc etc etc etc stereotypes are bad no matter who we are taking about, etc etc etc. Take each interaction as it's own. Not sure what this guy is "bringing to the table" in your interaction (meaning his thoughts, feelings, history, moral compass, etc etc etc). I've got a friend that has no idea when girls *ARE* hitting on him... even when it's beyond obvious that it's happening. So... that's my 2 cents.

Not all strains or products make you hungry. I'm on Dronabinol myself, a FDA approved THC. Haven't had a single issue. I would be more concerned about the sugar content of the edible since they most seem to be gummies or candy in nature. Have you discussed this with your surgeon?

Pre-op jitters are more than normal! You're fine!

Pound the water, get into the habit of consuming upwards of 128 oz of water a day if possible. Not only will it help ease and prevent constipation, but your body uses water to process fat. If you don't get it the minimum it needs (current research shows 90-110 oz of water a day is the requirement for a normal human) the fat loss *will* suffer. It sounds like a lot, but it really isn't when you start working at it. Good luck!

The "you are guaranteed to lose your hunger" bs surrounding the sleeve is exactly that, bs. No surgery is guaranteed to make someone lose their hunger sensation. All the Ghrelin "research" isn't solid fact, we still don't understand hunger, how it happens, what *actually* triggers it, etc. Currently the information around Ghrelin is "we believe" not "we know". The sad truth is, the majority of WLS patients, no matter the surgery, will retain some level of hunger sensation or will regain that sensation within a year of surgery. It's rare that someone loses the sensation permanently. And some, never lose it at all. So if someone promised you that the sleeve would kill your hunger because it "removes" ghrelin production... well, they didn't tell you all the facts.

Congrats, before you know it you'll be coming up on 1 year post op!

Insurance reviews take 2 weeks on average, no matter the urgency marked. If it was a real emergency or had a high urgency for safety reasons, then the authorization would happen over the phone first, then in writing. Insurance companies are notorious for dragging their feet.

Thanks. There are a few reasons that sorta came together at the same time that are forcing me to limit/reduce my time here. I'm going to try to retain some level of interactivity... but with what's come up, I don't have too much of an option other than reducing my BP time. Same, I'm still doing my light IF fasting from 6pm - 8am typically. Sometimes more, sometimes less. But the scale is pretty much just floating between 207 and 213, body fat % dropped to 23.1 and is holding. Curious if I'm going to get another minor "whoosh" or if this is it. Part of me is ok with where I'm at. When I was 17, I was 200-210 wearing a 36-38 pant. Today, I'm 210.7, 23.1% body fat and wearing a size 36 pant.... and I'm 40. So, I'd say being the same height, weight, pant and shirt size I was when I was 17, when I'm 40... isn't anything to scoff at. Hope everything works out for everyone. I will be around still.

Greatly increase your water intake. This will help flush out the things causing the bad breath. I tell everyone they should be shooting for 128 oz of water a day. I know it sounds like a lot, but it's a habit we all should get into, sooner than later. Current research is showing the human body needs between 90 - 110 oz of water a day, a normal human body. Those of us dealing with WLS and trying to shred every cell of fat we can... this is where the water helps, because fat is processed by water, and if you don't give your body enough water to meet it's own needs, fat loss will suffer. I know you are pre-op, so the reason here is slightly different (even though the increased water **WILL** help you drop weight now) the extra water is going to help your body flush out everything it's working to clear. Not enough water means things get left un-processed. Have you had your upper endoscopy yet? Did they note any GERD, Reflux, ulcers etc? I know Ulcers can cause some nasty breath. Take a tums or OTC acid reducer to see if that helps with your breath, if it does... then you might have some ulcers making themselves known.

That's an NSAID. So it's on the "NO" list for bypass patients. *EDIT* And I see it's been answered already. There are some natural alternatives to NSAIDS, like Turmeric for instance. So coupling a natural alternative with the pain meds we are allowed to take can come close to mimicking an NSAID.

I noticed an increase in sense of smell for a little while. I noticed an increase in taste ability as well for a bit. Both have gone back to normal at this point.

No worries! Give them a call, I wouldn't worry about "bugging" them, honestly I had to keep tabs on everyone constantly in order to make sure things were getting done in a timely manner.