CowgirlJane

I think that is a major accomplishment!!!! Congratulations!

Yeah, PDXMan that is where I am at - low energy. I realize that I am still fairly early on in my recovery, but i also suspect low carbs since low energy started during my low carb preop diet. I am hesitant to use you as an example though - i am not a runner and I know that men's bodies just seem to function differently then women. I started out at 49 BMI so i feel very aware of needing to really lose that weight the first year - that golden window. Right now, I am getting about 20-25 carbs a day. As I am moving into pureed diet, I am going to start adding back carbs via veggies and see what happens. I have no intentions of eating high carb food no matter what as I know that I have a bit of a carb addiction and it is easy for me to go from Pasta to sweets. I was just curious about actual studies showing actual differences in results between people that stay under 40 carbs a day versus people that don't restrict it post weight loss surgery.

I am wondering if there have been any published studies that shows that weight loss surgery patients who follow low carb diets lose better then those that dont? I am 2 weeks out, just moving into pureed foods and while I have been planning on low carbing it, I wonder if the evidence supports that. NUT is more moderate about carbs - she wants us to eat Protein first, but isn't worried about fruit and higher carb veggies. Of course, simple sugar type carbs and junk food are off limits to get maximum weight loss. I am still very tired, can't tell how much of that is due to being fairly low carb so far - I generally have 20-30 total carbs while on liquid diet.

Pat, that was a very insightful and terrific post. I guess alot of us "failed" with the band, or it failed us, or some combination thereof. I think to be fully honest, i could have done better with the band if I had been able to continuously muster the strength to not eat even though i felt hunger. If i had better aftercare. Maybe if I had better access to support. But reality of the situation was that it was so hard to live with. I lost about 30 pounds on the liquid diet (full month!) and then over the next year lost an additional 40 pounds.... by dieting and exercising. I got nowhere near goal and really just couldn't sustain it better then any other diet. Then the reflux and all started hitting.... But what i also know is that even if i had done "better" it is still a very flawed solution. I keep saying this over and over again - but back in 2001, in Europe where I was banded, the brochure they gave me indicated that it should NOT be considered permanent and would most likely need to be removed. I didn't really understand it at the time - I saw that as a feature, easily reversible - but that isn't what it meant at all! It meant that most everyone will need to get rid of the damn thing sooner or later. I am trying to learn from my mistakes, hoping like mad the sleeve really is a better solution (2 weeks post sleeve so it is a little early to tell) and making the best of it. No use wasting energy over the past - all there is left is the here and know and what tomorrow brings.

Don't be discouraged. I wonder if you aren't also comparing yourself with people who are higher BMI? Higher weight/BMI means more weight loss in terms of # of pounds. Have you also measured so you can track your losses by the tape measure even when the scale isn't cooperating? I have been tracking my food using myfitnesspal.com and I feel like that is helping me ensure that i am getting enough Protein, Water and keeping the carbs and calories low. It is just a suggestion to see if it helps. You have lost 8.4% of your body weight. I have lost 9.4% of my starting bodyweight, which isn't much more then you, and I think I am doing AWESOME. I have lost 28 pounds, counting the 8 pounds preop and the 21# since my surgery on 12/12 but I started my preop diet at 308. I met with the NUT today and she said I am right on track, I suspect you are too you just can't compare yourself to heavier people (and definately NOT to men who lose so fast). This is an individual journey.

I am so sorry these serious problems have happened! On the one hand, having WLS actually found a deadly cancer for one person and perhaps saved her. On the liver problem - what a tragedy to have it compounded by a leak. I have to say the story gave me "pause" in that i would hope that my surgeon would NOT go ahead with WLS if he found my liver was dying. It seems so strange that didn't show up in the pre-op blood work. I am not a medical person, so what do I know, but it is shocking. You have my prayers for your friends recovery. Keep us posted.

That is exactly the message I get too, right after hitting "join group" button

This is my first challenge - but I am game to give it a try! I really don't know what my rate of loss will be as I start transitioning to pureed, soft and then regular foods, but i am setting an aggressive target. Surgery weight: 300 Current weight: 279 Valentines goal weight: 255 Final goal weight: 160

Okay, I now realize that the group you mean is on the verticalsleevetalk. When I tried to join, I got an error message. I do have a skype account and would be very interested in participating.

I would love to join - how do I add myself to the skype sleevers group? I am pretty new to skype....

I know that at 2 weeks post op I am moving further away from the highest risk period. I start pureed foods on Wednesday, and resolve to continue being careful. My surgeon told me that they think most leaks actually happen in the first two weeks, but we all know that many are discovered weeks later. I have an optimistic view, I feel like I am recovering fine, but there is this little niggling worry since revision patients have a much higher risk of leak. Just curious if any of my fellow revision patients were told anything in particular about this - what to watch for, when they can consider themselves "out of the woods" for a leak.

Are there any that give a real workout and are still fun?

I haven't done circuit training in years - but in my 20s I got into it. At the time it really helped me work off the last 15 pounds kind of thing. It can be very high energy/high calorie burning. Water aerobics is awesome, but I don't think burns fat as effectively as high intensity circuit training.

I think it is worth a try. I went to a therapist over a year ago who was supposed to be an expert in eating and food issues. What became obvious is that she was experieinced with bulimia and anerexia - and I just didn't fit into any of the catagories she had. I knew that I wasn't getting anywhere when she loaned me a book about a woman who named her eating disorder "Ed". I really couldn't relate at all. She was really opposed to weight loss surgery as she didn't seem to believe that people overeat because they have an insatiable appetite combined with a lifetime of bad habits. I am thinking there are better ones out there, I intend to start seeing a different counselor as soon as the food deprivation anxiety kicks in. I was sleeved 12/12 and so far, so good, no big anxiety or food mourning or anything like that yet.

Ask your surgeon for his practice's stats. What I was told is that the general info out there is that revisions don't lose as well. The theory is that they have become accustomed to feeling overful and are more likely to stretch the pouch. My surgeon's office is however reporting similiar/same results for revisions as for "virgin" sleevers. I think it is because they focus heavily on education and follow up, but that is just a theory.

You sound like me - I feel that I had an irrationally high fear of the surgery. I don't like medical procedures of any kind, and the anthesthsia scared me alot. So, here is what i did.... I broke my fears down and really investigated and learned about them. Due to the band, I had this small persistant cough, caused by the mild and ever persistant reflux (slipped band). I had this idea that my lungs and stuff couldn't hold up to the anesthesia. Well, I talked to my doctor about it and they really checked and helped me understand that people with truly impaired lungs get through surgery just fine. I did that with my major fears. Then, I had the band removed before I was really ready to be sleeved. I did that because the doctor suggested it might be lower risk and most importantly he wanted that slipped band OUT before further problems developed and I just wasn't ready to be sleeved. That was the smartest decision ever. Even though my band had been emptied, I had regained all my lost weight etc etc, i apparently still had some restriction. Once that band came out I was so hungry. I started gaining weight. I tried to diet, i tried to not eat so much but the hungry drive was enormous. One day, it really hit me - I needed the help that the sleeve procedure provides and that without it I would just keep gaining. The dreams and ambitions I have for the rest of my life would be cut short by increased obesity. Of course, some of the concerns I had - risk of leak etc still remained, but were in much healthier perspective. This is major surgery, it is a big deal - but - it isn't THAT bad. Compared to the terrible things obesity is doing to my body, compared to the risk of just dropping dead (middle age and high BMI is a deadly combination), compared to me missing out on stuff i want to do surgery started looking pretty good. It was a long process for me to get there, but by the time my sleeve was done, I was pretty excited and looking forward to it, with a little bit of fear as opposed to being dominated by the fear and anxiety. BTW, my surgery was 12/12. I lost 8 pounds on the preop diet (really, just lost what I had gained since having he band removed) and have lost another 20 pounds since my surgery! Woo hoo - feeling like a great start.

My blood pressure went high after the surgery too. Scared me, but they said it wasn't high enough for them to medicate me for it. It was more like 160-170/95 or something like that which was very high for me. Today I checked it and it is a much more civilized 123/80. I don't take blood pressure meds but because I have had borderline BP in the past, I have a machine at home.

I felt all that in the first week too, not sure why, but it is much better now. I was sleeved 12/12

She posted in the band to sleeve revision forum, gets a little less traffic but I am guessing after Christmas you will get more people piping up. Okay, for me, I don't consider the sleeve to be more drastic then the band. I can understand why you do, as I used to think that way - but after having a band for 10 years, I do NOT consider it to be a simple, reversible, benign procedure. It does alot of damage to your stomach tissue - scar tissue, adhesions. It also did other damage, although in my case it was fairly minor, luckily. I think if you are having problems with the band you should get that thing OUT. I think you are also at very high risk of regaining everything. I regained all my lost weight and then some before I had the band removed. After I had the band removed, even though it had been "empty" for years I started gaining more weight. I was very very hungry 24/7. I am still a new sleever, so I guess I can't really do a fair comparison yet. Even less then 2 weeks out I don't have any of the negatives that I remember from the band. I don't feel restricted (hey, I am still on liquids and not consuming much so may be early to compare) but I don't feel hungry either! (I did have a few days of some hunger about a week out but I figured out why and was able to solve it) Wow, what a difference as with the band I often felt restricted but still hungry. What I will say is that recovering from the revision has been harder then original band implant surgery.

I am less then two weeks out, feeling good but unbelievably tired. I was warned about this... first 2-3 weeks would be like that. Are you sure you are getting enough fluids? That is the most obvious reason for exetreme fatigue. I hope you find a good solution - it is pretty miserable being so tired.

I don't consider it the "easy way" but really the "only way out". I say this because once you have reached a certain level of overweight, it is pretty much shown that most people can't keep the weight off. Even if they diet and get some off... it eventually comes back on. I have experienced that myself repeatedly so I know it it to be true for me personally. Weight loss surgery... the only way out, my last chance to get my weight under control.

Not all surgeons recommend the 3 times a day. Mine recommends 3 small meals of 100-200 calories each plus 2 100 calorie snacks (approx). One of those snacks might be a protein drink.

I have an android and have tried 3 different ones - myfitnesspal, dailyplate and I forgot the name of the 3rd one. Myfitnesspal works best both on the Android and on the computer. What i like is that it is very fast, some of them are much more tedious to enter information.

Walking is good exercise. I have knee problems so cant jog or do certain other things, but I can walk up and down hills which gives me a good heart pounding workout,. I haven't gotten back up to my preop levels, but i will....

What is hot coco Protein rich? Is that a chcolocloate protein mix made up as hot chocolate? I tried making a hot coco out of a protein mix and it wasn't good. I am taking PPI, I am getting plenty of protein. The liquids are harder, but if i count the Protein drinks etc I am getting enough fluids. I wasn't hungry my first week, but now in the evenings I am hungry and liquids don't seem to be cutting it. I have lost 16# since surgery on 12/12 (plus 8 preop diet) so I feel like I am losing weight fine, just hungrier then I expected.