BrownDoesAll

Stalls are part of the journey. You must learn to stay strong, stay focused and be sure your doing what your supposed to be doing at the phase your on. Try not to panic. Your body is getting adjusted to the new calorie restrictions as well as healing from surgery. If you stick to the plan, stay in the phase your in, be sure to stick to the portion sizes recommended at your stage, you will lose the weight. Check yourself.. if your "cheating" that may cause a problem., but if your not.. then know the stalls will move on. Talk to your NUT if your stall is more than a week or two. Even at that time , you may be losing inches.

Hi Sheba. I was sleeved in 2011 and I started at 330 and lost about 75 pounds before I started to level out. I was a slow loser.. not sure why.. didn't think it was race related.. but interesting thought. I was a size 24 to start,, then when I lost the weight and got down to a size 18 I thought I was where I wanted to be. So since my weight lose started to level off. I didn't try as hard and started back to some old eating habits. I am sad to say.. now that I look back.. I wish I had stayed the restricted calorie phase longer and lost more weight.. I am proud to say I have managed to keep it off. I agree I had no desire to be paper thin, my husband began to bring home chocolate and chips ( my weakness ) and I think it was a way to keep me the size he really liked. Any way.. the only surprise and what I warn newbies about is the lack of energy in the very very beginning. It was really hard for me.. I thought I had made a mistake. I was very tired and weak for a few weeks.. be ready for that.. but don't fear hang in there and it will past. After 2 years, I'm still satisfied with my decision. the sleeve is a tool that is helping me to continue my weight loss journey. As I said.. I didnt' loose the weight I wanted to in the beginning and am now 255 and starting the journey down again. It's harder after 2 years. So stay focused, stay strong and try to lose as much weight as you can in the beginning.. Good Luck and stay in touch

High protein is the key to good weight loss after this procedure.. listen to your NUT and surgeon, but I remember having to drink protein drinks in the very beginning, While your doing liquid diet only you'll need a way to try and get your protein in . I never found a protein drink that I liked, except Nutriwise ( google it online) It's a hot chocolate with protein that taste delious. I'd suggest you read the posts about Protein drinks in the Food and Nutrition section, there should be some good suggestions for protein drinks, and what to do with the unjury protein during the liquid and pureed phase. Your taste buds are gonna be a bit different after the surgery so don't stock up on Protein drinks,, but do begin to investigate them. Good Luck. Keep us posted.

MrsFullerRN, I'm going to ask what I hope is not a stupid insensitive question. Didn't you know about this part of the process before you signed on the dotted line? I'm going to assume you did and are now just panic'd face with it right in front of you. Relax.. you can do it. just think about the end result. this is the time when you must use the your head strength and your mind over matter part of your brain. An all liquid diet is not easy.. I'm not gonna lie.. But its well worth it.. Think about the new you , that you want to see when this is all over.. Now is the time to begin to gain control over food and not let food control you. You had the strength to choose this process, and I bet you have the strength to make the journey. Relax you can do it

I am an "in your face, no holds bar person" so my advice is to sit her down, when its just the two of you and tell her how you feel. Tell her how it makes you feel when she comments. If she continues, I would ignore her. Let her deal with her own issues and not make them yours. I have a cousin that is very envious of my weight loss. She says I took the easy way out.. (ohh. that made me really mad)). I ignored her for a very long time, then finally had to say something when I purchased some really nice jeans that I looked pretty good in.. and she said " Oh you think your cute" and I said.." Why yes I do".. She commented about not going out to diner with me because I don't eat anything. That's when I finally sat her down and we had a heart to heart. She didn't realize how her comments made me feel until I told her. Since she and I are really close ( as I am sure you and your friend are close).. She was able to reign in her negative comments. My advice, sit her down and have a good heart to heart.

DreamBig.. took 2 years.. wow!! DangerousD.. yes.. my time was really long.. I had to do the 6 months pre-op diet for my insurance then took an extra 2 months to get the surgery actually scheduled. Sorry the time didn't really fly by.. But I did take that time to get prepared. Read lots of post on this forum and got the foods ready that I would eat in the first few phases. I'll be really honest.. I had a couple of Good Bye items. I couldn't gain any weight during that time or my insureance wouldn't approve the surgery, so I didn't overdue it.. But shouldn't say this.. I did indulge just a tiny bit.. I was really looking forward to the procedure. Hang in there. your journey has begun.

My hair never fell out.. Not sure if I'm lucky.. I've also heard that Biotin doesn't work. You should focus on taking the vitamins prescribed by the NUT and your surgeon. B12 is critical after surgery. To be honest, yes.. I lost a little in the breast area.. they didn't get too small.. but did go down a cup size. and they are a bit saggy. But still happy no longer a size 22.. the rest is all gravy

Gotta love sharing those NSV.. Keep 'em coming

Awesome!! How long did that take? I am really jealous.. You go girl!!

The decision to have the sleeve was fairly easy. After the research and reading and talking with the surgeon I was ready. the pre process for me took 8 months. 6 months of pre diet for my insurance, then wait time for the scheduled procedures and finally the surgery. By the time the surgery date rolled around I was more than ready. I had surgery in the past , and I knew what to expect. Once you get on the OR table your out like a light and when you wake up you don't even remember going to sleep.. The surgery itself was a breeze. There was some pain the very first day, but really not that bad. From there the journey began and almost 2 years later I'm still on it. It's a life time decision that I have never regretted. Good Luck!!

Having the procedure and following the plan you will lose weight. Losing weight will initially address the medical issues your facing. However, long term success, the procedure will give you a great tool, the rest of the journey to a happy healthy you..is all up to you.

Yep.. check with your NUT give her a list of the pureed foods your eating? Are you using protein shakes? How's your fluid intake.. What's an example day for you?

Love Tuna.. tried it yesterday YUM!! thanks for sharing

I agree with everyone. I also understand your trepidation. Having been sleeved for almost two years I am proud to day I have not gained any of the weight back. I believe the sleeve was the tool that helped me maintain my surgery weight loss of 75 pounds. The sleeve gives me restriction and a reminder not to eat too much. My portion sizes at one time are a bit larger than at the beginning, but still smaller than pre-surgery and still smaller than most everyone in my family. I think the smaller stomach is always there to remind me of the journey. It's there to remind me to stay in control. Having said that. In almost two years, I've not reached my goal weight and am still trying to lose more weight. The surgery doesn't change our brains (wish it did). We must still be mindful of what we eat, when we eat, how often etc. Our bodies still have the ability to gain weight. We are in control. binge eating, grazing, too many bad carbs (in my case), sweets etc not controlled will cause us to gain weight. I think, like the others have said. the sleeve is the tool that should help you in your desire to get to and maintain a healthy weight as long as you add it to a true desire, plan and implement a healthy way of eating. Good Luck!!

Sleeved in Nov 2011 started at 330 now almost 2 years after I'm about 255. About a year back I sort of went into maint mode. Down to a comfy size 18 I was very content. I did want to go down one more pant size so I attempted to "diet" to lose more weight. I excersied, joined a gym ( URGH!! ) I so hate gyms, I so hate excersise. I bought the Wi Fitness Zumba Kit,, Did enjoy that for quite a while. My daughter and I really got into the dances. But as with most things time gets in the way. Got home too late from work to get in a good zumba session before having to cook, eat diner and get the grandson ready for bed. Went back to the NUT she suggested a 3::2 way of eating.. Stick to 3 low carb high protein meals a day and only 2 snacks. Did that.. and careful tracking of everything I ate. Found that I had been snacking more than I realized. Eating the 3:2 way helped me stop the food grazing and gain some control. With that I did lose another 5 pounds,, which got me to 255.. Where I've been stuck again for many many months. I"ve recently stumbled on Intermittent Fasting (IF). yes another FAD.. but appears to be working. You basically eat normally ( what ever your normal is ) for 5 days and eat 25% less calories for 2 days called fasting days. I call them CONTROL days. Having done that for about 4 weeks the scale is moving in the right direction again. During the normal 5 days, I eat what I consider sleeve normal, low carb high protein with added veggies. Portion sized are larger than in the very beginning of the sleeve, but still smaller than most. I do track what I eat using my Fat Secret phone app and I can see I average between 1200 - 1700 calories a day for normal eating days. I've cut back on the snacks, but will admit to having the occasional bad snack a couple of times a week. Then on what I call CONTROL days ( Monday and Thursday) I don't eat until evening diner. Then its my normal chicken, fish, pork, minimal days beef, with hearty veggie, on occasion small amount of rice, or pasta, totals to about 300 cal meal. Followed by a power crunch bar (200 cals). The rest of the day I drink, typically hot green tea. there is science behind the IF way of eating.. Might very well be another FAD, but the theory is two fold. One of course obvious.. eating less calories 2 days a week, then you'll average out eating less calories for the week, resulting in weight loss. The other, not so obvious.. is making the body rest from eating for a length of time caused the body to " eat its on fat" for energy. Therefore I stop eating from 7pm on Sunday night and don't eat again until Monday night around 7pm, giving my body 24 hours of rest..hence the term Intermitting Fasting. MOnday would be considered my FAST day. I call it my CONTROL day. because that's the day I start off with a cup of protein hot chocolate, then control my urge to eat until my diner meal. If the urge to eat ( typically not hungry ) gets the best of me I eat a small salad. These days have helped me gain control over my grazing and junk food eating binges. So.. I'll be bloging on my goal to go down at least one more pant size. I'm on my way!!

Typically leg cramps are caused by lack of hydration. How far along in the process are you? No worries you wont stretch your stomach with water. It pretty much goes through you and doesn't stretch your stomach.Try to also lower the amount of salt in your foods. check sodium content of the soups. If you sip slowly and try to increase the amount of water you can get down at a time. Obviously don't push it.. or you'll get sick, Sip and drink slowly

Looking Great!!

In the beginning using the smaller fork helped me slow down. Eating too fast you don't realize your full until its too late, then you get sick. Eating too much will cause you to "bring it up", sometimes there is no stopping it. When you've done that a few times, you'll not want to repeat that and learn to slow down. Begin to actually savor your food , slow down, enjoy the flavors, enjoy the company (hopefully not eating alone). That's the best way to get through a restaurant meal. You'll only be able to eat a very small portion, while the rest of the party woofs down their large meals. When you've learned to savor and eat slow, and talk and enjoy the dining experience you'll finish your smaller portion around the same time they complete their larger portions. Good luck and stay strong.

Give it some time and try again. Not sure why, but our taste buds change over time and our tolerance to foods also change over time. Also remember to eat slow. My problem with soups was eating too fast. Once I learned to slow down tolerance was much better. In the case of French onion soup.. could have been the onions or the bread. Hang in there , it gets better.

Totally agree.. Tasting while cooking quickly becomes eating while cooking. Let's face it.. It's always sort of been eating while cooking. Hard habit to break. IN my case I began to count the number of tastes. Once is really enough, two taste max. Then moved down to no tasting. Good Luck

Grazing a bit too much. Reaching for food when you know you should be done for the day. How do you make yourself say no!! I try like Niki to " just say no " but its really hard. Try not to have bad stuff in the house. but even reaching for another piece of turkey at some point is too much. Gotta just say no!!

Chelsi congratulations on your choice to change your life. Sounds like your positive with a good attitude, you'll do great. Follow your NUTS direction and don't move past your stages before your allowed. Check out the Food and Nutrition section for other foods to eat during this stage. Above all eat slow and don't eat more then suggested. listen to your sleeve.

If I understand the question, your asking about drinking with food? You can not drink with food. You can drink either 30 minutes before you eat,, and wait at least 30 minutes after eating to drink again. When you do drink, in the beginning do not gulp, sip slowly, not with a straw, but sip slowly. Drinking too fast will cause pain. Sorry if that didn't answer your question.

Agreed.. Walk, slow . Don't drink

Hi Mel, Welcome. Hopefully your friend told you this was a good site to get advice and encouragement from people that are either in the same situation or have been there. I've never been banded, but have had a sleeve for 2 years. Thought I'm still working, it's been the best decision for my health. You stay positive and stay in touch, we are all in it together.