NancyJerry

Hi Robin! And good for you to be making the plans and jumping through the hoops to get your Sleeve. It is a life changing event and the time will pass more quickly than you think. How to get started.....maybe slowly. Do you watch tv? Get up at EVERY commercial and walk in place. Set a timer to walk outside for 5 or 10 minutes every couple of hours. Sometimes baby steps are really just baby steps. I loved, loved, loved food. My pre-op diet was not as strict as a lot of the ones I see posted here and it made me feel so good. All I had to do was cut out sugar and carbs. Everything else was unlimited. meats and most veggies plus added 50 additional grams of Protein per day. I lost more weight doing that than I've lost in the past 2 weeks; and I didn't feel deprived. Just some suggestions. I know you'll do it if it's what you want in your mind, body and soul. P.S. - Don't lay around with a cold (that's how colds turn into bronchitis and pneumonia) get outside and walk around. Your lungs will thank you!
Good luck, we're here for you!

Click on your name at the top of the forum page.
Click on My Profile
Click on EDIT MY PROFILE
You will see a purple bar. On the far right you'll see "MY SURGERY"
Click on MY SURGERY
Then click on MY PHOTOS
Hope I got this right and it helps!

I'd toss the candy, plan some healthy meals for the week - I like to browse the FoodNetwork website for ideas - and make a grocery list. That way, I've got healthy meals planned and available.

Thanks for the mention of waistbands, too! I have several pairs of jammie pants and a couple elastic waist pants. I just hope they'll be loose enough or I can move them up or down to a comfy spot! I booked first class tickets for the flight home so at least I won't be crammed in like a sardine right after surgery. :/

Me too nancy. My bras weren't the issue. The darn waistband was not pleasant. Even scraped my incision had to keep it covered.

Happiness is tying my shoes and not being out of breath!

2 reasons why some people panic over stalls. 1) They just had major surgery that transformed their life forever. When they hit a stall, they wonder if it worked and WTH did they just do?! It's an uneasy, completely normal and natural reaction. 2) Many people want immediate results because we are, by nature, impatient. Nothing wrong with either of those two reactions. Most people just need to be educated. The stall is going to happen. Our bodies, for some reason, just have to do it. I never mind because I know that although the scale isn't moving, I am losing inches. Just know that everyone is different and most everyone have these very real feelings. You don't so that is good for you! BTW...Congrats! Looks like you are doing very well!

This is a turtle running a slow race. See me putting on my snickers? This is the most fantastic thing I have ever done. But I have to remind myself that this is a process and it takes time. I constantly have to readdress my fear of food. So I have resolved myself into eating Protein, veggies and little bit of starches. This has helped tremendously. I really have to not eat sugar or it will raise my A1C for diabetes. So slow is the way to go. and it might be better to not weigh yourself more than 1 x per week. It will drive you crazy. Sit back, and enjoy your ride to skinny haven.

Pdxman Explains it very well

All WLS surgeries are something to not be taken lightly, for sure. I chose VSG over GBP because:
I did not want to have my intestines re-arranged
Possible bowel obstructions due to #1
Didn't want dumping syndrome
Wanted a fully functional pyloric valve
Didn't want malabsorption issues
Read too many stories of people gaining a lot of their weight back

So far, the only negative thing has been that I can't eat huge portions anymore. Oh, no ... wait ... that's a good thing! I don't regret my decision one bit to get the VSG. I stick to the program as best I can (I'm not perfect) and it has been great for me.

Oh my goodness! You look gorgeous! I bet you feel great too!! Keep up the amazing work - it's very inspirational to us newbies!!

Oh my gosh! That is so cool! I never get tired of reading the "I made my goal" threads. It gives those of us, early on this path such hope and inspiration. Thank you! And enjoy!!

Why don't you call them and find out? And if they tell you they are waiting or the insurance approval call the insurance. Nag until you get results?

I just had a single graham cracker sheet with a tbsp of reduced fat PB. I also eat fruit, or grab a slice of sandwich meat, or some baby carrots/raw broccoli with ranch dip, a yogurt, applesauce, basically whatevers handy that doesn't scream "you may as well just rub me on your thighs cause I'm headed straight there anyway" when i look at it

Oh my gosh! That is so cool! I never get tired of reading the "I made my goal" threads. It gives those of us, early on this path such hope and inspiration. Thank you! And enjoy!!

Thanks guys ; )
I was running with a re-connected friend ( after 7years of not seeing her), so I know I was running the right pace because we were able to chat a bit. I was worried about using it as a "race" so I took it easy.
The poor girl tho. She is using running as a weight loss tool (as I was/am), so I encouraged her (boot camp style) to sprint the last 150m. She kept up and did a bang up job, crossed the finish line, and promptly PUKED!!! Lol!! I thought she'd be mad at me. But she just laughed and asked me to do more runs with her!! Lol
My time wasn't great, but I wasnt working on that, and I broke so many other self- barriers, that I'm estatic about the run all together!

Where was your surgery performed?
The AMA standards are quite different than those abroad and sometimes things like this happen because of it. To be discharged without pain medication is completely inappropriate. If you live in the US I would recommend seeing your primary for pain Meds or going to the ER. You definitely need them. I know I was in so much pain I took them regularly for an entire week and I won't even take an aspirin.
Best of luck.

Good morning all. My name is Star and I joined the site a couple of days ago. I have been quietly soaking in all the information that I can for my journey ahead. On Wednesday, 4/18, I will be sleeved. I am so nervous, but a lot of the posts on here have helped ease my nerves... Just a tiny bit lol. I am 29 and have been big my WHOLE life. So to think with the help of this tool I am about to receive, I will be able to finally get my body closer to where I want it. I think we have all felt that we are thin people trapped in a large body at least at one point or another. So I just wanted to thank you all for posting your knowledge and experiences so that people like me (scared out of my brain) can get a better understanding as to what might happen to someone who is about to go through it. Thank you again.
Kisses,
*Star*

Cream of Wheat, and Malt-o Meal. Someone here mentioned adding cottage cheese to spaghetti sauce and warming them up (not too much) and that is quite filling! I've also added cottage cheese to my Tomato Soup.< /p>

Walk, walk and walk some more. I had to pee like a race horse for 2 days due to the IV so I made a point to walk around the nurse's station every time I got up to use the bathroom. When I was too nauseous to walk (first day), the nurses brought me hot blankets to lay across my belly and chest. That helped too. Good luck and walk a LOT!!!! Oh, and I had next to no gas pain left after about 24-28 hours.

Hi Piper! Not sure why this post is underlining every letter I type, but can't seem to undo it, so let's live with it and go on to more important things.....First, I want you to know that your post could have been written by me!!! Same here, I had a low BMI, figured I should be able to do it on my own, yadayadayada.....and the fact is, for me anyway, I couldn't or I wouldn't or I didn't. At age 58, I made the decision and have never regretted one single second of it. Everyone has to do what is best for them, but if you re-read your post, you are concerned:
that you will have to exercise 5 days a week (hmmm, if you want to lose it without the surgery, you will have to do the same thing; with the surgery, it's much easier because you can move a lot more.).
that you will feel queasy.....yes you do at first, last a few months. Small price to pay and some people feel just fine. When you see your body changing so quickly, you don't even focus on that.
that you can't eat normal portions? Well, if we were eating normal portions in the first place, we wouldn't be here.....how about eating what ever you want and not feeling guilty about it. Sure you eat much smaller portions, but I think because you are at a lower BMI, you probably won't have the head hunger that others might have because of binging or out of control emotional eating.
that you can't drink wine? I have a glass or two each week with a nice dinner. It's divine.
that you will become fatiqued? Having an extra 80 lbs will tire you out a lot more! Trust me.
that you will become Vitamin deficient? You'll get your blood work done 2-3 times a year; at this point, mine is textbook perfect; no more high cholesterol, no more high blood pressure; those were before the surgery!
that you were discouraged reading about a woman who was 5 days post op? Have you read all the thousands of posts from people who feel they have gotten a new lease on life, that they feel healthy and normal for the first time in their life?

Everyone has to do what is best for them and only you can make that decision. But I had 83 lbs to lose and I am on the last 18 right now; so we are similar in that way. The thought of how I felt so deprived when I was heavy, feeling guilty about everything I ate, being the fattest person in the room, and starting to have health problems; makes me so grateful and thankful every day that there was this solution. It wasn't Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig, or Slim Fast or joining a gym.
We have all felt like you do; we truly have. We have been where you are. It's down right depressing. The few inconveniences you go through with this surgery are nothing compared to the rewards.
Anyway, I just wanted to tell you that you are not alone in this; and that I personally feel you have a very exciting journey ahead. I do think it is probably the best solution for people like us, but only you can decide if this is the right time for you.

You Guys are the best!!! I needed to hear some positive feedback and you have made me feel sooo much better! I guess being a lab rat never entered my mind and now that I have read your posts it makes me think that some Dr.s are like car dealerships-once they sell you the car they don't want to service it. I am so grateful to all of you as my new family.

Get a new doctor my dear!
What is that.. 13 pounds on average a month?? Are you kidding me - that is fantastic! I believe that most "doctors" strongly suggest that anyone who needs to lose weight should average 1 to 2 pounds a week. You have averaged over 6 months time, about 4 pounds a week... you are on track!
If you ever have a doctor that makes you feel like crap - write your own self a prescription.. for a new one!

I think you need to focus on how far you have come instead of listening to your doctor. I personally think some of them are more concerned with their statistics than they are with each patient as a human being and individual. You have made fantastic progress with just being able to walk as far as you can as often as you can. That is GREAT! Plus, you were able to overcome such a downer experience without going straight to food for comfort!
My doctor is the same, he tells me I'm not losing enough and not doing something right. Yet, he refuses to look at my food journals to tell me what I'm doing wrong. He rushes in our appointments and when I leave I feel like a failure. At our first appointment I cried a little because I'd had two days of weakness and near-fainting. I was so weak, I needed my husband to drive me to the appointment. The doctor told me he thought I needed psychiatric and pharmaceutical help. Yeah, from 5 minutes of being scared and crying he diagnosed me as depressed. I went to the psychiatrist and he talked to me for an hour -- said I was absolutely fine and would not prescribe anything for me. Turns out I had really low sodium/potassium/magnesium levels from the clear-liquid diet and that's what was making me feel like crap. Just because he's a good surgeon, doesn't make them good doctors. We're all just mice in a lab to them....

You look GREAT!! I know just how u felt. My last pic was with my son at 4mos of age. He'll be 13 this year! Congrats and keep rockin' that sleeve! Hope to join u this summer.