Finding Myself

Hi Everybody, Just wanted to say Hi again, and I'd love to hear about everyone! I am just under 5'3 and weigh about 188 lbs, +/- 5 lbs on any given day. I've lost and gained so much weight over the years and my body seems to like to stay here. I'm tired of lugging an extra 60 lbs around!! So I'm getting sleeve on June 14th by Dr. Kelly in Mexico. What's everybody else up to?

I'm almost a year out and went through that. It gets better with time! Just take good care of yourself. I've exceeded my goal and feel great, celebrating my one year surgiversary in two weeks. Hang in there!

Paleo bread is not made with wheat. It's made with either coconut flour or almond flour. If you are like me and avoid gluten at all costs (read the book Wheat Belly!!!) then you eat no wheat! I keep paleo bread in my freezer but only use it occasionally. It's good for some things but if you're expecting something like wheat bread... It's nothing like it. But I do like it a lot! I follow a paleo type of diet. 9 months out and at goal.

It's probably more related to your sinuses than anything. Our stomachs function just fine. I had sinus issues a few years ago and ended up needing surgery for it. See an ENT.

Butterthebean how long does your green shake stay "good" in the fridge?

I haven't been on VST too much lately but checked today and I'm so glad I came across this thread! I am almost 8 months out... was a "low BMI" before surgery but honestly for my height, I was just plain fat. Started at just under 5'3 and my highest was 197 lbs. Now, I'm down to 127 lbs and feel GREAT! It hasn't been a super easy journey but I'm thrilled with how things have turned out... This surgery allowed me to break my addictions. Simply put. I can say it allowed me to lose weight because of portion control, but at the end of the day, what it really did was give me the power to break my food addictions. That's what made it hard! Giving up massive quantities of sugar and processed foods. Anyway, I am slowly converting to Paleo and I'm so thrilled to see others doing the same thing! I CRAVE nutrition like this now, and am starting to see my beloved McD's double cheeseburgers as "plastic food" now. I am a very very firm believer in Paleo. I wish more than anything I could have done it and stuck with it before surgery, but I couldn't... so here I am now. So many things I was scared of, and here I am now, 5'3, 127 lbs (and still losing, my original goal was 125 but I think 120 or even 115 is more like it) wearing size 6 jeans and I feel GREAT! My hair, that I thought would turn dull and fall out, is growing like crazy, long, and I'm NOT BALD! I think my improved overall nutrition was far better than anything else! ANYWAY - for you Paleo eaters... isn't it weird how SO MANY OF US convert to this after the sleeve?????

I had surgery with Dr. Kelly last June too!! And Omar does rock. I just talked to him this morning. You are in good hands with both Dr. Kelly and Dr. Illan!!!

You have NO worries. Dr. Kelly was my doctor and I have done fantastic. The bougie isn't a die-hard measurement; it's merely a guide and they don't suture right next to it anyway. So a moot point. I had surgery with Dr. Kelly last June and I'm at goal and doing fantastic. I had a BMI of 34.2, and now I weigh 130 lbs and feel fantastic. Do not choose a doctor based on this bougie size because it doesn't matter that much! What will matter is how you work your sleeve as a tool, post op. Good luck!

Siren, I was so glad to read your post! I'm the same way... just over 4 months out and I'm doing really well. I am about 15 lbs from goal! Finally feeling "normal" and loving it. I went to a party last night and saw people I haven't seen in 15 years - and it was GREAT to be the THIN one for a change!!! And listen to comments from people who remembered the "fat" me. It's a great feeling to be comfortable in your own skin!!!

You said you received no after care - you didn't get your go-home packet of info, of medications, etc? No info on diet? It was his wife who went over that info with us. I got sick at the hotel, 2 days after surgery, and when I called Dr. K and told him, he was there in 15 minutes, taking care of me AT THE HOTEL. He's a busy man for sure but if you have questions, then contact him on FB or just call. Omar gets about 200 emails a day, I try to tell people that if you don't hear back on email then you need to call. But honestly, what exactly did you expect? Your surgery went great, you're losing weight, and no complications. I'm not sure I understand what has annoyed you? I had surgery on my sinuses a few years ago. I met the rude doctor once before, he was late the day of surgery, and his office didn't do ANY follow up with me after surgery. It was a far worse experience than I had in Mexico, and it was here in the US!

Hey Guys, wanted to chime in, too... I was sleeved down in Mexico in June - 4 months out yesterday! I'm about 10-15 lbs away from goal (I say that because I'm at 140 right now and looking lean and mean so my original goal of 125 may be too much). I am finally at the point where I love my sleeve! It was a journey, for sure... and still is! Like Louisianagirl said, you will learn a whole new set of rules for staying healthy along the way! Good luck to everyone!

Dr. Kelly is my doctor and I could not have gotten better care through ANY other doctor or hospital. 4 months out, almost to goal, not one complication and still have terrific follow up by Dr. Kelly. Be wary of what you read on these forums as there are a lot of lies and back stabbing. Contact individual patients if you can. I quit using Obesity Help because it was nothing but a bunch of gossip that made a hard decision even harder. Make an informed decision for sure.

Yes!!! I knew someone on here talked about triggering that valve! I'm curious to know more from PDX.

Iggy I am a HUGE foodie and even did some wine tasting a few weeks ago paired with food. Yes I cleansed my palate between wines with water! I think these are exceptions to the rules. You aren't gonna eat like that every day! You also need to go by how you feel. If its not agreeing with you, or you feel nauseous or too full, then you need to stop. But if you take tiny bites and chew well and don't take big gulps you'll probably be fine.

I'm referring to those of us who drank large quantities with our meals. I suspect I was not as satisfied as I could have been because I was washing food right out of my stomach! I used to drink huge amounts with my meals, not just sips. That's what I'm talking about.

Someone posted this elsewhere recently but I couldn't find the post... I'm only 3 months out and can only eat about 3 oz of any solid Protein, which means I am not eating much in the way of fruits and veggies. How long does it take before we are ABLE to eat just a little more, so we can get better nutrition? Any words of advice on getting better nutrition in the early stages?

Thank you Nyxa. I think your posts are awesome. I am a meat eater but I am only 3 months out and CRAVING vegetables. I can't eat enough right now to get it all in so I'm looking for sources of Protein that are not animal based. I'm also having some kidney stone problems so looking for alternatives. Can you recommend any good books for us? Probably did in your post but no I couldn't read all of it. I'm not looking to go vegan, just looking for alternative protein source recipes.

Some of this just makes no sense to me. First, we don't have a pouch. We have a sleeve, which means we have a fully functioning stomach with a fully functioning pyloric valve. Bands and Bypass patients have a pouch that doesn't utilize the valve like we do so it's different for them. But we have very little room in our stomach now, and Water does make the valve open which will allow food to pass out of your stomach more quickly. Someone described it on here as the more solid foods without so much liquid will allow you to feel full longer and you will be less likely to overeat. But also because we can only hold about 4 oz of food in our tummies now, and if you drink a lot of water you aren't gonna feel like eating your nutrition/protein so it's not as good for you. I think this is more about developing good eating habits than anything! If you go back to drinking a giant glass of water with your meals, then you will likely start to feel hungry more often and more likely to overeat. The reason it sort of doesn't make sense is because... what about when we eat Soup? There's a lot of liquid in soup. It doesn't HURT us to eat soup, it just isn't as filling, right? So I think of drinking with my meals as creating soup in my tummy that is going to fill me up with less food thus not allowing me to get enough proper nutrition. I'm 3 months out, and I don't drink with my meals. It's become normal to me now, and it makes me realize that all those years of drinking a ton of water with my meals was probably really affecting my digestion in negative ways. Much of what we do in the first 3-6 months after surgery is DEVELOP GOOD HABITS. Eat high quality Protein and veggies; drink when it's appropriate but mostly learn how to eat in ways that maximizes our nutrition - these things apply when we are a few years out so that we can maintain our weight loss.

I had my first sashimi meal yesterday and it was SO good. It was VERY gentle on the sleeve!!! I had two small pieces of tuna with wasabi and ginger, and several small pieces of scallops with some spicy mayo. It was my most satisfying, best meal since being sleeved. It will be my go-to food for a while.

Oh I went to your profile!!! Congrats! You look great!!!

pics?????

Rawr, what caused the staple to come out?

Are they hard seeds like flax? I'm gonna check these out... but again, how soon post op can we eat these? Do they soften up?

Hi Everyone, Seems we all want to share our journeys, me included... being a writer at heart, I finally got the nerve up to start a blog about my own journey. I know there are many many out there but if anybody wants to read, please feel free. www.drmcsleevie.com

If you guys are talking about the broth at Case de Mole (I think that was the name) it was pretty simple, and I think that what made it good was 1.) we were all starving pre op (LOL) and 2.) we were happy to finally eat post op. LOLOL Seriously though, it had rice and cilantro in it and I think that gave it a little extra flavor. (we couldn't eat the solids, though) I'm sure it was a home made chicken stock with those goodies in it. We also had some broth at another restaurant (Omar said they order it as "sick soup" for VSG patients haha!) that was filled with fresh vegetables and fish. It was terrific as well.