minaleigh

Hey guys! Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and is enjoying the holiday season! I was thinking about goals, what I want to accomplish, and of course, with New Year's just around the corner, resolutions! I never really made any before, especially weight loss ones, because I just knew it wouldn't work. But with this awesome new tool in my possession, I decided I should since I know it'll happen!

Here are my resolutions/goals, both weight and non-weight related:

-Achieve onederland by my birthday in August. I figured 48 pounds in 8.5 months is doable.

-To be considered a "hot geek." I love video games, superheroes, cartoons/anime, anything geeky!

-Go to New Orleans this summer. My friend and I have been saving up so this is a huge possibility.

-Six Flags is calling my name and I want to be able to ride roller coasters without embarrassing myself trying to squeeze into a ride or to go to the Water park without feeling self-concious and having to wear a t-shirt and shorts.

-Properly clean out the trunk of my car!

-This is an evil one. I want to be able send a picture of me to my cheating ex-boyfriend with the caption, "If only you knew what you would be losing."

-Study abroad. I was offered before, but the places I could have gone (amazing places!) were, well, for a lack of a better term, "skinny countries." I knew if I went, I'd be perpetuating the stereotype of the "typical fat American." Being shy doesn't help, either.

-Graduate with my Bachelor's in Art and Design.

What are your goals and resolutions for the upcoming year? They can pertain to weight loss, NSVs, or anything! I'd love to hear some.

I had surgery 11/21. I've been teetering between 25-27 pounds lost the past few days, which is my fault because I wasn't as good when I went to visit my parents for Christmas , but it'll turn around now that I'm back with my healthy fridge and pantry!

I'm on soft foods right now. I mainly eat eggs, deli meat, Protein shakes, cheeses (no fat, since reduced fat and regular make my stomach hate me), toast (yeah yeah, carbs... but it really helps my ketosis settle down), yogurt, etc. Can get about 45 oz of Water daily, when I couldn't even get 16 oz a day before because of acid reflux. I have better time eating slower and chewing more when I eat alone. If someone is with me, I mindlessly eat and get the slimes. Have only thrown up once the past week and it was at work. I really only feel nauseous when I first wake up, but I think it's either because the ketosis gives that awful taste in my mouth or I'm really thirsty.

Sad to say, I'm not doing much exercise. I work in a movie theater so I'm standing and walking around all day, so that's basically my exercise the days I'm at work. Sometimes when I'm walking, or doing something that involves moving my arms a lot at around head level, strangely, I feel a sharp pain in my chest and get winded suddenly so it has discouraged me from doing much. I never felt this "out of shape" when I was 42 pounds heavier! I did sign up for the gym at school so when the semester starts back up in January, I'll there be every day that I'm at school!

I had surgery around 10:00 a.m. on Monday, November 21, and was discharged on Thanksgiving Thursday around 6:00 p.m. I'm not typical though, as I had complications that forced me to stay a few more days. Most everyone is just a one, sometimes two, night stay.

That's so awesome! Congrats!

Oh, and also at the Christmas party, one of my guy friends was flirting with me! We've known each for a long time but have never been super close. He was always more interested in another one of my friends. Not in a mean way, but he just never paid much attention to me in that way. It helps that I was wearing a pretty awesome looking outfit that would have been way too tight on me before my surgery.

First off, I just want to say I have the most supportive friends a person could ask for. My best friend in the whole wide world came to hospital every day the four days I was there after my surgery. He stayed for several hours, if he didn't have work, at a time, even when I was drugged up and sleeping. He even contemplated skipping one of his classes so he could stay with me, but I told him no, especially since finals were drawing near, lol. Now that that is out of the way, onto the story.

I consider myself in between the pureed and soft food stage, because while I still puree some stuff, my doctor gave me the go ahead to try some soft foods. Like I said, my friends are super supportive. I went to a Christmas party at my friend's house, and the two that were planning the food put a lot of thought and consideration into what they would have at the party based on what I could eat. One of my friend's signature dishes is homemade mac and cheese, and she made it with reduced fat cheese so I could have it since more fattening cheese makes me very sick right now. They also had some sort of chili cheese dip and crab meat dip. They know soda is my weakness, mainly coke and sprite, so my friend hid it before I got there, lol! He even bought my favorite diet juice drink just for me and gave me a saucer sized plate so I couldn't overload.

Well, at the party, I probably ate more than I should. I never really felt the signals that I was eating too much at one time (ie burping, slimies, etc), but it was more like I was grazing throughout the night. I started out with about, I'm really bad at measurements, 2-3 ounces of the chili cheese dip and a few noodles of the mac and cheese and it was amazing. Drank some juice afterwards and then stopped for about an hour, before I had some of the meat from the deli tray, probably about four pepperoni sized pieces. We started playing a game so I mainly sipped Water during that time. Afterwards, I had some more of the chili cheese dip and some crab dip on a couple of crackers (I know, I know, some consider carbs evil but I couldn't resist ) and a cube of cheese from the deli tray. All in all, I probably grazed on about 8 ounces of food in a 5 hour time period. By the end of the night, I realized I probably ate way too much, and I felt a bit of heaviness in my stomach, but luckily no nausea or slimies, just a bit of burping. The next day on Wednesday, I was reluctant to go on my scale because I was certain I had gained. Turns out, I had lost 1.2 pounds! Wasn't sure if I was ever going to say this, because in the beginning I severely regretted my surgery, but I love my sleeve!

I tried on my favorite jeans last week and I can fit more than a hand's width in between the waistband and my stomach! I was even more surprised when I looked at the tag and saw they were actually a size 22, when I had thought they were a size 24! I wore them a few days later and while visiting my mom, she said, "you need to stop wearing those pants, they're practically hanging off your hips." It was a great feeling. I can now comfortably wear a size 20, when before they would be digging into my stomach so much, I'd resort to unbuttoning them and hope my shirt covered it.

I work in a movie theater and we are given two t-shirts for work. Well, a week before my surgery last month, we got new shirts for the holiday season. I wasn't sure what size I needed so I had my manager give me an XL and 2X and I would just trade the size I didn't need for another of the size I did. Tried on the 2X first, and it was too big, so I tried on the XL and while a bit snug, it fit better. Yes, I was definitely pear-shaped because I could wear an XL shirt but needed size 24 pants. Well, the district manager was working with me the next day and I told her I needed to trade in my shirt. After one of the supervisors went upstairs to switch them out, he couldn't find another XL, so my manager suggested I just get a 2X. I politely told her no (since I knew I would be having the surgery in a few days and it'd be a waste), and I'm glad I did because now my XL is too big! It'll probably be another month before I can comfortably wear a size large, but it feels good to physically be able to see my weight loss.

The first two weeks after my surgery, even though I was throwing up the whole time, I had cravings like crazy. I wanted pizza, nachos, bread, etc. Now that I'm a little more than a month out, my cravings have gotten better, except a time or two here and there. Well, for the aforementioned Christmas party, I was supposed to make Cookies. I made sugar cookies, and before my surgery I would use a spoon to get whatever leftover batter there was, but I really didn't have the temptation to this time. Well, I bought some vanilla whipped topping and used food coloring to make it red and green, for Christmas. While stirring, naturally I got some on me. The first time I did was the only time I licked it off, out of habit mainly, but after realizing what I did, it was pretty easy to just keep a paper towel next to me to wipe it off. To me, that's a big accomplishment.

Those are my NSVs (so far ) and sorry for the long post! I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday season!

I'm about a month out, and my cravings have gotten better than what they were in the beginning. I was craving pizza and chicken nachos like crazy! Now the past week, I've only had two cravings. A few days ago, I really wanted to go to the nearest gas station and get the biggest coke from the fountain I could. Today, after I left work, I passed by Steak and shake and really wanted fries and a milkshake from there. As you're able to introduce a wider variety of foods, the cravings will get better. Living on just Soup and other liquids would make almost anyone want just about anything else.

That's so fun! I've always been shy so I think that even when I do lose a bunch of weight, I'll be so inexperienced, that I won't be able to say anything back! I'm not nearly as far as you, but I could tell one of my guy friends was flirting with me last night at a party. We were playing a game where the point is to win these cards that have describing words. I read off my cards to one of my other friends and say, "hey, look, I'm juicy and sweet." My guy friend, who I've known since first grade but we were never super close, said, "yes, you are." He's never really noticed me that much before and tends to go after different types of women, so I thought it was funny.

Congrats on your NSV! It's very cool to be noticed by the opposite sex every once in a while. Keep working towards your goal and you'll have to fight them off with a stick!

I don't think there's a chance in heck I would be able to eat an entire hot pocket. The thought of something greasy like that makes me cringe. I am sticking with simple foods for now - greasy stuff just doesn't sound appealing.

Yeah, I'd never be able to eat a whole hot pocket. I'm nibbling on deli meat wrapped with a tortilla right now, and I had to take part of the tortilla off, and can only eat the two openings! I'm full now and I was nibbling for about 20 minutes.

The thing about the hot pocket that I ate was when I came home, my roommate (who's a stick and can eat anything and everything without gaining an ounce) was eating a hot pocket. I decide to make one (it was one of those plain cheese ones) and was going to eat just some of the innards until I got full and give the rest of to my roommate. Got to the second bite... and rushed to bathroom! Won't be doing that for a loooong time.

I went to a support group meeting right before my surgery. A lady told us that when she was six days post op and tried to eat a whopper, with all the trimmings, from Burger King! She had to go back into surgery for a leak. I can't even eat the cheesy inside of 1/3 of a hot pocket without throwing up and I'm a month out! Even thinking about eating a burger, healthy or fast food version, makes me feel nauseous.

I had this same problem, and I'm 4 weeks out. I was carrying one of those barf bags they give you in the hospital! When I was at school, I couldn't spit of course, so I had to swallow. That made me so nauseous. Luckily, it's pretty much stopped now. Only when I feel nauseous, either from eating to fast or not eating enough, do I have the excessive saliva. It'll get better!

That's amazing! My friends tell me they can see a difference. I can only see it in "the girls" area. We're at about the same weight and headed towards the same goal. Great job so far!

I'm sure you're there now!

And sgraff, you only weighed 151.6 before surgery and are at 146.8 a week later? Did you mean to type that 251 instead? I just don't see anyone weighing 151.6 getting this surgery. That's my goal! Lol.

I had a gradual system for walking after I got out of the hospital. I started out around 5 minutes every hour. Never had to wake up in the middle of the night, though. That sounds kind of odd. You'd think the doctor would want you to get your rest, at least during night hours. I'd never fall back asleep if I got up to walk around!

I'm now trying to do 10 minutes every hour. It's easy for work, since I'm on my feet all day anyways. I can get forgetful when at home, especially if I'm working on a project or reading a good story and lose track of time!

For some reason around my area, it's really hard to find liquid tylenol! I was told it was because there was a recall on some of it, but I'm not sure. I had to buy the children's tylenol. First time I took it, I felt so horrible. I think it's because since kids won't take medicine unless it's candy-flavored (I had the grape kind), the sugary Syrup did NOT sit well with my stomach. I think I was about a week out. Literally within 5 minutes of taking it, I got so hot (it felt like I walked into a sauna) and nauseous that I had to rush to the bathroom, lean over my sink, and keep cooling myself off with Water from the faucet. You probably wouldn't have the same adverse reaction, but I don't recommend children's liquid tylenol (I'm still scared to try it again to see if I'd fare better). I am not a medical professional by any means, however.

I've been drinking G2 (it's a nice break from water!), and even during the Vitamin Water craze (not sure if you went through it, but when they became super popular, I was in high school and everyone was drinking them!), I've never had one. I'll have to check them out.

I do have an update though, with something I didn't mention before. If no one notices this post, I'll make a new topic just for it.

Did anyone else get really winded easily after surgery? I'm almost 4 weeks out and doing simple things like getting ready in the morning, taking a shower, or even preparing a meal makes me short of breath and my heart starts racing. Even 35 pounds heavier, this never happened, at least not doing those sorts of things. I figured it might be because I had a more difficult time with having be in the hospital longer and therefore making me weaker. Like I said, I get my Protein in, so it's not that I'm low on energy. I've tried exercising, to build my stamina back up, but even walking a third of a mile makes me have to stop, take a breath, feel my pulse, and calm down. Before my surgery, I could walk at least half a mile and be fine. It's not a feeling like I'm low on energy, but more like I just ran a mile carrying a backpack of bricks! I asked my surgeon, but he didn't have an answer. My mom says it's because I'm not exercising enough. Well, I'm exercising more than I did before surgery (I was SUPER lazy), and I still get this winded feeling. Any help?

I'm almost 4 weeks out, and I still can't sleep through the whole night. Even right now, it's 3 a.m. and I'm supposed to be up at 9 to go to a doctor appointment. When I do fall asleep, I usually wake up every two hours. Never really had problems sleeping before surgery.

Thanks for the tips guys!

Oregon- I'm surprised I could eat it, too. But now that I think about it, it took more like 45 minutes to eat it, which I know I shouldn't be doing. I also didn't eat the whole tortilla part, just the toppings. After I was done, I kind of worried that I was able to eat so much. I have some powders for Water (not sure what the brand, I've had them forever, way before my surgery), just haven't gotten around to trying them. My doctor and nutritionist both told me to stop drinking 30 minutes before a meal. I thought it was kind of a silly notion, because like you said, it'll just go right through. Otherwise, we wouldn't be able to drink 64 oz of fluids in a day if our stomach can only hold around 3-6 oz. Besides, I never really plan my meals out, so I can't determine a time when I'm going to eat, so trying to stop 30 minutes before a meal gets a bit annoying.

Sleeved Realtor- If longer-life was sleeved a day after you (and after reading her signature), that means I was sleeved 6 days after you. Right now, I can't imagine eating a 2 egg omelet with cheese! I tried one egg with a little bit of cheese mixed in and it was so uncomfortable in my stomach. I think I got the "foamies" that I keep seeing people talk about. It's weird I can eat the tortilla pizza, but not a whole egg with cheese!

Longer-life- I'll give your suggestion about eating just a little bit when feeling hungry after eating a try. I've never had Powerade Zero or Sobe, but I'll check those out!

Thanks, everyone!

Okay, so it's been about 3 and 1/2 weeks since I've been sleeved. I had a lot of problems at first, having to have two additional surgeries plus an ER visit, but so far I've been doing 110% better. I just have some things going on that I can't really explain.

My doctor just started letting me have soft foods. I found an eggface recipe for tortilla pizza and decided I was going to try it. I looked up ingredients on Walmart's website and after comparing items online, I went to the store and bought what I believed to be the healthiest choices. Lowest carbs and fat, best Protein, etc. Now, for the tortilla part, I decided to try the smallest corn tortilla I could find, about 6 inches in diameter I'd say. Cooked it up when I got home, and I could eat the whole thing! It took me about 30 minutes, but I was able to eat it all with only a slight feeling of fullness.

With that said, when I make eggs, I can pretty much only eat one scrambled egg before I feel stuffed. Why can such a small amount of that make me feel full, but yet I can eat a whole mini-pizza? Is it because the egg is heavier? Same thing with pureed chicken. I'll have some in a tiny, tiny bowl, only able to eat about two to three spoonfuls, before I give the rest to my dogs.

On a semi-related note, I am having a really hard time getting in my Water. I estimate that I'm getting in only 24-32 oz or so, when I really need 64 oz. I'm getting my protein in easily. It's just when I drink water, I get really gassy, having to burp a lot and experience a feeling of something lodged in my chest after only a few sips at a time. It's uncomfortable and puts me off sipping throughout the entire day. It also doesn't help that since I can't drink 30 minutes before, during, and 30 minutes after a meal, that takes away 4 and 1/2 hours that I could be drinking. When I have a Protein Drink, I can usually down a 10 oz (I'm not sure about the size, it's a bit smaller than a can of soda) in about 45 minutes easily, without the feeling of something lodged or that gassy feeling. I can't even do that with 3-4 oz of water. Does anyone have advice?

I'm also experience hunger at random times of the day. I can eat, become full, but be hungry an hour later. Sometimes the feeling of hunger gets to be so much, it's really uncomfortable. I'm taking Prilosec twice a day, mainly to stop heartburn, but I've been told this helps curb some of the hunger. Is it mainly head hunger that I'm experiencing? I know everyone's different, but I was really hoping that the sleeve would help reduce the hunger feeling. I just hope I haven't already stretched my sleeve in some way or that the doctor didn't make it small enough to begin with.

Any help would be awesome. Thanks!

My hospital experience wasn't the best. I had mine on Nov 21.

Came in at 7 a.m. for a 9 a.m. surgery. I was going to be his second case that day. Promptly got into a gown and those thin hospital stockings. My mom was the one who drove me and my dad and best friend came in later. My friend was even contemplating missing his Spanish class (we're both 22 and go to the same university) so he could stay with me longer before I had to go; he's the best! After waiting around until 9:30, they took me to the recovery room. Poked, prodded, and finally was wheeled into the OR.

I remember waking up in the recovery room freaking out because it felt like I couldn't breathe, even though I had a gas mask on. Fell back asleep and woke up in my room. It was a private room, as are all the rooms on the first floor of the hospital. Even one side of the floor are typically reserved more for bariatric patients. I don't remember being in a whole lot of pain, mainly just the incision that they took the stomach out of was bothering me. Sadly, it went downhill from there. Throughout the day, I did the routine walking and trying to get some fluids down. By the next day, I took a turn for the worst. I was using the shower and I felt very nauseous. I then threw up bile and blood while in the shower. They took me back to the room and tried different kind of cocktails of drugs, as they thought maybe my pain medicine was making me ill. They got two ounces of Water and one ounce of liquid pain medicine before I started violently throwing up.

I was then wheeled to do an upper GI where I had to drink some nasty liquid chalk. They found out my stomach had twisted and whatever I tried to get down had nowhere to go so it was forced to come back up. On Nov 23, they performed an endoscopy and put a stent in my stomach to prevent it from closing up. The next couple days, I was so drugged up, when they asked me what my birthday was, I said JeeJee. After my endoscopy, I had to rush to radiology before the radiologist left. I was still heavily influenced by anesthesia, so as I was waiting in the wheelchair in the room where I was having my second upper GI done, they asked me my name, I said, "Miss....." Couldn't even remember my name! They concluded that the stent procedure fixed what was wrong. To finish up this part of the story, I was released two days later on Thanksgiving night after four days in the hospital.

My story is already too long, so I'll try to shorten the next parts. I ended up having complications after being released. I saw the doctor that next Wednesday, on the 30th and he had me do a CT scan the next day. Came in at 6 p.m. on Thursday, forced to drink way too much of that iodine contrast, even though I told the nurse I was a bariatric patient and couldn't hold much, she just told me to basically drink until I almost burst. CT scan found nothing wrong. That night is when I started throwing up an average of three to four times a day. I called the doctor every day and did everything he suggested, but nothing was working. All this time, I was also producing excessive saliva and couldn't stop spitting. I was dutifully taking the liquid pain medicine the doctor prescribed every four hours. I tried going to school but could never make it a whole day because I was in pain.

Fast forward last Tuesday, Dec 6. My mom ended up taking me to ER, where I waited in the lobby for 2-3 hours. They took some tests, weighed me (I had lost 25 pounds in 15 days). Turns out I was severely dehydrated. Put an IV in me, gave me another iodine contrast bottle to drink and did another CT scan, and still couldn't find anything wrong. ER doctor came in, poked my stomach, and then lectured me about how my stomach was smaller and I should get used to not eating as much. I told him the only thing I ate that day was 1/2 an oz of applesauce, and before that I was living off of one or two popsicles in a whole day. He just said, "That's no fun" and then left the room. They tried multiple times to call my doctor to get me admitted but he never answered. I was discharged at 3 a.m. Next two days, the vomiting continued, and even got worse. I couldn't drink, eat, or even move without feeling nauseous. I'd wake up from a dead sleep to throw up. I was so tired from not getting a night's sleep since my surgery, that I had fallen asleep sitting up in bed with a trash can between my legs and my head resting on my nightstand. My mom then called the hospital and I was admitted on Thursday at around 11 a.m. They didn't even weigh me or do proper vitals before the OR nurses came into my room and said I was being prepared to go to surgery. Around 1:30, I was taken into surgery where they removed the stent. Woke up feeling 110% better.

It's Saturday and I haven't thrown up since! I've even been able to have pureed chicken, scrambled eggs, and applesauce! The only thing I can complain about is that my stomach muscles were exerted so much from throwing up, that they are now really stiff and sore! I'm just glad to be feeling better.

After reading several posts, it seems my doctor utilizes an extra slow process. I had my sleeve Nov. 21 and had to do two weeks of Clear Liquids. I'm on my first week of pureed and have to do it next week, too. I can start soft foods on week four and that phase lasts a whole two months!