SleeveDreamer

I have coffee everyday. I have always drank decaf, but during the holidays I have some different flavors with caffeine and if I go to Starbucks I get a skinny latte with caffeine and I never have any problems. the doctor told me that caffeine will dehydrate you and dehydration is not good for the sleeve, however, I drink almost a gallon of water everyday so there is no way I would get dehydrated even if I had more than one cup a day!

Lots of shrimp.

I am now over a year out and still don't have a LBD!

Happy 6 month Surgiversary to me! I luv my sleeve and would do it all over again. I will be 62 next week and honestly can say I feel like I am in my 30's for the first time in years. It's hard to believe it has been 6 months ago today that I was so miserable, with only 60 pounds of weight to lose, but ALL in my abdomen and chest area heading for my heart! I could hardly breathe after I walked and was constantly out of breath. I have gone from a size 18 jeans to a size 6. My % of body fat had gone from 57% to 32% (at last month's f/u visit). I could not get any of my clothes on, and when i did always wore a spanx or a flexees and was still miserable. I refused to buy any plus sizes. In 1999 I had Nissen Fundiplication surgery for my severe reflux condition. 1/3 of my stomach had protruded up though my diaphragm and was lodged between my lungs headed for my heart. In 1999 the doctor had literally sutured the top of my stomach to my esophagus. My abdomen and chest area was like a rock. Thank God for my VSG surgeon in La Jolla, Dr. Bhoyrul, who i feel literally saved my life. Took him 2 hours just to fix the esophagus and get my stomach bacj through the diaprhagm before cutting off the 85%. He was awesome and will spend as much time with you answering questions that you need him to. Because of his extensive repair, I was on a TPN for 18 days to make sure I would not get a leak in my esophagus. I am so lucky I had a doctor who took that precaution, even though the TPN for 18 days was not fun. (TPN is an iv for nourishment and hydration because you can't swallow anything). So for 18 days I could not swallow anything. I had no food or Water, other than sipping water and swishing and spitting it out. I did not ever get a leak because of this precaution he took. This had nothing to do with the VSG surgery part, this was because of all the repair work he did from the previous surgery. I had so many stitches in my diaphragm where he had to attach it back to my esophagus that I coughed for about three weeks until the sutures dissolved. I never had any pain or nausea even after going through all this repair. Had my drain removed after one week and didn't even know he removed it until he showed it to me. I have never felt better. I am now only 7 lbs. away from his goal for me and 13 lbs. away from my own personal goal. It is harder to lose the closer you get to your goal, so I will continue to go upstairs and do the endurance interval workout he has suggested for me on the treadmill. I have before and after pics on my profile page. The after pic was May 10th so I was at almost 5 months out. Please remember, that your time will come where you can eat anything you want and feel great. Your stomach needs to have atleast 12 weeks to heal. Give it that chance. Don't push it or try to rush it and you will do fine. Of course, when you see a juicy burger on every TV commercial, you are envious! But you will be able to eat it one of these days. Just not as much! There is nothing I can't eat. My sleeve is very accomodating! Please DO NOT get discouraged when you are in a stall. You are not going to lose a pound or so everyday. If I was in a stall, I would have Protein only and no carbs. I drink almost a gallon of flavored water each day. (After sipping on plain water for 18 days and spitting it out, I don't like the taste plain water anymore). Before surgery I was a Diet Pepsi addict. Don't even want it now. Don't want or eat anything fried now. Instead of bags of potato chips, I now eat Lundberg Rice Chips. I used to eat overly buttered popcorn every night after dinner. Since I have only eaten about 1/2 a snack bag or Smart Pop when we went to the show because i thought I would crave it, but didn't eat anymore than that. You may need to decide what you can and want to do without to take advantage of thie new healthy lifestyle you are now experiencing. It is worth giving up some things. You will LUV shopping for new clothes. It is so comforting to me to go to my closet now and put on a pair of jeans (even after washed and dried) and being able to zip them up and button them and feeling comfy the entire day. Keep a positive attitude and praise God that you are fortunate enough to do this for yourself! Enjoy the moment and don't worry so much about where you will be weight wise in a few months or what you will be able to eat in a few months. You won't know until the time comes and you try it anyway, so why worry about it now!. There is no way you are not going to lose. You aren't eating hardly anything and your stomach has been decreased by 85%. You will lose! Don't worry! And please don't forget to take the time to ask questions of your doctor. LUV MY SLEEVE! Good luck to all of you who will have your surgery in the months to come. My thoughts and prayers are with all of you. Janet :) :) :) :)

Today is my one year surgiversary! I am so happy. i only had 55 lbs. to lose and have lost 68. I have never felt better in my life. Congrats to all of us who have changed our lives for the better!

That makes 2 of us. I would hate to see the toal amount I have spent on clothes in wthe last year!

You look awseome. Congrats! isn't fun buying cute clothes?

I made some of the lasagna cupcakes and the cheeseburger cupcakes from emilybites.com. For the cheesburger one with the pickle on top, i used just one won ton wrapper instead of two, and it turned out fine. These are so good and filling and really save you from bread, pasta, and lots of carbs! Tastes just like the real thing!

I still make these all the time and I am almost a year out. I also have done patty melt ones. I use onion, ground beef, caraway seed, and mustard mixed together and tastes just like patty melts!

It's funny how I went back through this thread last night and read all the posts including my own. Now looking back, almost one year later, I can say how great this past year has been, how much better I feel, how much money I have spent on new clothes, and how I appreciate each and every one of you who have gone through this journey with me for sharing your successes and trials. Praise God that we were able to have this opportunity and for enriching our lives in the way we have done. Happy Thanksgiving to all the December 2011 sleevers! YAY!

I also forgot about Eggface's pizza recipes on Mission Carb Balance toritllas. Although hers are on whole wheat and mine are not. Can't find those for some reason but prefer these for my taste. http://theworldaccordingtoeggface.blogspot.com/2010/02/spinach-artichoke-tortilla-pizza.html

OMG that's right! I completely forgot about her tortilla pizzas! thanks for reminding me!

I have found the best thing to make my pizza on is the Mission Carb Balance Flour Tortillas. Only 6 g of net carbs per tortilla and they taste great not like paper or cardboard! IMO taste much better than Flatout. Just my opinion.

The main reason I don't eat the crust is because it is too filling. When you start eating bread, the doctor recommended that it be toasted, so I don't think crust would be a problem.

I was allowed pizza at 12 weeks when i was allowed bread or pasta. Bread tends to swell and could get stuck in staple line, and that's why my doctor said 12 week cuz it takes 12 weeks for your staple line heal. now when i eat it, I stick to one piece (not huge like Costco!) and don't eat the outside trim crust. Too filling for me.

I would be curious to know their rasoning. aybe you could ask your NUT or doctor and let us know.

Congrats!

It's really easier to figure out once you start planning a little. For instance, I concentrate on at least 4 oz. of Protein meat like meatloaf, beef patty, piece of steak, pork chop, shrimp, or smoked sausage. I can't stand fish except for shellfish so I never eat that. I do not like chicken that much since my sleeve and never eat breasts anymore cuz they seem so dry to me now. I will eat boneless skinless thigh portions cuz they are more moist. I usually mix grated parmesan in a little mayo and coat the top and then crushed croutons on top and bake them. Turkey meatballs are a great choice too. 3 or 4 depending on size and number of servings, etc. Put some jarred marinara sauce on them and microwave them according to instructions and then sprinkle parmesan on before eating. Then I make a little green veggie to go with the meat. I don' t eat hardly any carbs from bread, Pasta, or rice anymore. The only carbs I really eat are jarred grapefruit sections after my meal cuz it just tastes good to me. I also love the Starkist Sandwich Ready Albacore tune in the pouch. This is almost. 4 oz. and you can put it on two Wasa crisp breads with a half slice cheese on top and then put under broiler for a few seconds and you have a tuna melt. Never eat lettuce salad anymore, don't even want it. If I am out I get a cobb salad or something where I can eat just the protein off the top and never eat the lettuce. It's funny how your taste buds change. Also try the wonton cupcakes recipes from emilybites and they are like a meal in themselves and so many to choose from. And you can make a panful and eat them for several days.Hope this helps! If you want more ideas for Breakfast or lunch message me privately. I am almost 11 months out but at my goal so on maintenance now.

Wow that is a new one Never heard of that. Guess all doctors are different, but since a pre-op diet is when you try to lose as much as possible and also Water weight, it's surprising to me they would want you tohave that much sodium since sodium makes you retain water. Unless they are concentrating more on getting your portion sizes down, since those meals aren't really that big. Interesting.

Great news. ope this issue is resolved as you continue to heal. Good luck to you!

Although these seem covneient they are defeating the purpose of this surgery for anyone. They are loaded with sodium and preservatives, and the carbs are mostly bad carbs becuase of the high starch content. You need to concentrate on protein first, then veggies, then starches. When you eat prepared dinners like this, that is hard to do. It is best to get in the habit of preparing your own meals, no matter how small theymay be right now.

My favorite are the OH Yeah bars. Have them at vitamin shop and vitacost. They are really good. Peanut butter and caramel are the best.

Be careful with these since they are full of sodium. You really need to concentrate on eating your proteins first, then veggies and that is hard to do with those prepared meals.

Try ready to drink protein drinks. They will help fill you up a little so you won't be wek. Also SF jello is considered a liquid so try that too

Be careful cuz most granola is full of sugar.