AliveAgain

Think about it like a stone wall with 275 rocks. Take away 50 rocks, you see a difference but not that much. A little here, a little there, down to 170 rocks, take away 10 you notice it more. It definitely took a large drop to notice a difference. I could wear my size 20/22 stuff well into when I could fit into an 18. Then it just drops, drops, drops! I'd go buy stuff and just two weeks later have to exchange it for another size. People noticed at 200, but just since hitting 160 I've been getting the "Holy Cow! WOW!" responses.
Here were my stats:
270 - size 22
235 - size 20
215 - size 18
200 - size 16
188 - size 14
176 - size 12
168 - size 10
159 - can fit into size 8, but still most comfortable in 10

Think about it like a stone wall with 275 rocks. Take away 50 rocks, you see a difference but not that much. A little here, a little there, down to 170 rocks, take away 10 you notice it more. It definitely took a large drop to notice a difference. I could wear my size 20/22 stuff well into when I could fit into an 18. Then it just drops, drops, drops! I'd go buy stuff and just two weeks later have to exchange it for another size. People noticed at 200, but just since hitting 160 I've been getting the "Holy Cow! WOW!" responses.
Here were my stats:
270 - size 22
235 - size 20
215 - size 18
200 - size 16
188 - size 14
176 - size 12
168 - size 10
159 - can fit into size 8, but still most comfortable in 10

When were you sleeved?
You will be able to go back to a normal diet, but it takes time. Grains swell in your stomach and early sleevers need to focus on getting basic nutrition first. Breads and grains are, for the most part, nutritionally irrelevant. With them expanding, they take up valuable stomach real estate that could be used by something that "counts".
Just take your time with your progression. It will happen. You will eat normal again.

I have purchased from Emily a couple times and will continue to be her happy customer. Love her clothes.

Have you considered an insulated, soft-sided cooler bag? It looks like a purse or lunch sack, but you can use the frozen blocks that keep your food chilled for hours? Just pre-pack your Snacks the morning before, throw them in the bag with the freezer-blocks should carry you through lunch.< /p>
I really dig Greek yogurt with berries or cottage cheese with applesauce for my soft Snacks, but they do have to stay at minimum chilled.

They gave me a Protein Drink in the hospital about 6 hours after my surgery, whey Protein isolate with Water is considered a clear liquid. My doctor had me work to "drinking" up to 60-70g of protein every day immediately after surgery. I used the Unjury and nectar brands that come in powder form and you mix with water, broth, juice, or milks in a Blender Bottle. He encouraged me to make sugar free Jello with the unflavored protein to even get a boost in my snacks!

They gave me a Protein Drink in the hospital about 6 hours after my surgery, whey Protein isolate with Water is considered a clear liquid. My doctor had me work to "drinking" up to 60-70g of protein every day immediately after surgery. I used the Unjury and nectar brands that come in powder form and you mix with water, broth, juice, or milks in a Blender Bottle. He encouraged me to make sugar free Jello with the unflavored protein to even get a boost in my snacks!

Agreed. I was a little foggy for the first few months after surgery, but now I'm sharper than ever. Plus, foggy memory can be related to many things like B12 deficiency, thyroid dysfunction, plus a litany of other ailments. Now that I take Vitamins and supplements regularly, and give refined carbs a reduced role in my diet, I sleep better, think better, and overall feel better.

No one other than my husband, my doctors, and one friend know I had this surgery.
Recently, a good friend of mine changed nursing jobs from being in the ICCU for extreme critical care hospital patients to the post-op recovery unit. He's working in the hospital where I had my surgery and is now seeing patients coming out of all kinds of surgeries, including weight-loss. He's listened to me struggle with weight loss for years, and himself struggles to lose/gain the same 20-30 extra pounds he needs to lose. He does not know I had the surgery, and is not a fan of the high-protein, low-carb plan I've been following. Yet, I've lost almost 105 pounds in 7.5 months and he's in exactly the same spot on the scale unchanged.
He used to tell stories of patients in the ICCU who had heart disease, liver problems, and other critical organ failures, many of them related to unhealthy lifestyles and excess weight. He complained that they didn't do more to prevent those problems.
Last week he was talking about some of the new experiences in the recovery unit, and mentioned this "big princess" who was just too much to handle. My ears perked as he said she had gastric-bypass and was "a lot of work" to manage the pain. Like her pain was different from the pain anyone else experiences being cut open for any other reason. I asked if she actually had bypass or another type of WLS (tipping my hand a little too much) and he said, "What's the difference?" He finished it off by saying, "I mean what a princess. Who doesn't have enough self-control to just eat smaller portions and lose weight the real way? Doesn't she know she's ruining herself with lifelong Vitamin deficencies?" At that point, my husband could feel the hairs standing on the back of my neck and directed the conversation in another direction.
It just goes to show that even those who work in the medical field aren't always up-to-date on everything, and aren't experts in health. They know what they know to do their job, but outside of that they are just as under- and/or misinformed as anyone else who hasn't done the research. Just shrug it off and move on. Educate when you can, but be proud of taking your health into your own hands.

cool. I will go look again at some of those pants! My work peeps are getting tired of the baggy pants!

I have come to the conclusion that I really could care less what others think about the surgery. They can think what they want, but I will always KNOW that it was the best decison of my life and that I will live a much longer and happier life because of it. I will KNOW that it was not "the easy way out" no matter what others think.

No one other than my husband, my doctors, and one friend know I had this surgery.
Recently, a good friend of mine changed nursing jobs from being in the ICCU for extreme critical care hospital patients to the post-op recovery unit. He's working in the hospital where I had my surgery and is now seeing patients coming out of all kinds of surgeries, including weight-loss. He's listened to me struggle with weight loss for years, and himself struggles to lose/gain the same 20-30 extra pounds he needs to lose. He does not know I had the surgery, and is not a fan of the high-protein, low-carb plan I've been following. Yet, I've lost almost 105 pounds in 7.5 months and he's in exactly the same spot on the scale unchanged.
He used to tell stories of patients in the ICCU who had heart disease, liver problems, and other critical organ failures, many of them related to unhealthy lifestyles and excess weight. He complained that they didn't do more to prevent those problems.
Last week he was talking about some of the new experiences in the recovery unit, and mentioned this "big princess" who was just too much to handle. My ears perked as he said she had gastric-bypass and was "a lot of work" to manage the pain. Like her pain was different from the pain anyone else experiences being cut open for any other reason. I asked if she actually had bypass or another type of WLS (tipping my hand a little too much) and he said, "What's the difference?" He finished it off by saying, "I mean what a princess. Who doesn't have enough self-control to just eat smaller portions and lose weight the real way? Doesn't she know she's ruining herself with lifelong Vitamin deficencies?" At that point, my husband could feel the hairs standing on the back of my neck and directed the conversation in another direction.
It just goes to show that even those who work in the medical field aren't always up-to-date on everything, and aren't experts in health. They know what they know to do their job, but outside of that they are just as under- and/or misinformed as anyone else who hasn't done the research. Just shrug it off and move on. Educate when you can, but be proud of taking your health into your own hands.

I never really did because I know that there is no such thing as getting too much Water. I just try to do the best I can each and every day with my liquids. Even at over a year out. Compared to pre-surgery, I still don't come anywhere near what I used drink, liquid wise.
Am I really going to stop and assess at 6:00 PM ... "Well, I had a Gatorade (20 oz), 3 glasses of water (30 oz) and a Protein Shake (10 oz). There's my 60 oz of liquid for the day so, I don't have to drink anymore."
No ... I'm going to keep going and pushing myself to drink more liquids. If I am assessing my intake and I discover I am short, do I beat myself up?
No ... I am going to keep drinking and try to do better the next day. Come up with some new tricks to get it in.
And if I am meeting my goals each day, should I pat myself on the back?
Yes ... but you should continue to push yourself as you get more time in because one of the things you should be adding is exercise, and that is going to take some liquids to maintain.
Bottom line, never get complacent on your liquid intake.

Trader Joe's has a great Frozen Greek Yogurt!

My advice? Hang in there... its gonna be boring for a while!
I ate lots of eggs... scrambled with cheese or with salsa. Lots of pureed Soups, Protein Jello & SF pudding, I even strained vegetable beef Soup and had the broth. I did lots of avocados mushed with some salt too. I love, love, loved curry paste- added it to some cottage cheese and it was delish! I also tried the ricotta bake recepie (search for it on the food forum)... it was awesome.
Emlefe is right, stick to his plan- it works. I promise it does go by fast and before you know it, you will be moving right along and onto more solid foods.

Great! I need to get this stuff out of my house before it takes over

Found a few things I'm interested in... sending you a message now!

Hi everyone! Trying not to post too many times, but wanting to let you all know I still have over 160 items for sale with new items just added this week. I've successfully sold to a few VST users, and would love to help out more of you on your weight loss journey. I will be taking these items to various yard sales this month, hoping to offload a lot of it. So grab it while you can!
tupperware containers in a closed guest closet away from the pets.

Just a balancing comment.
In the month+ since I hae been sleeved I have spent about 6 hours on camera for various network TV programs and documentaries. It can really test your wits. I have people who watch the footage and are brutally frank if I am foggy or inarticulate. I got a solid thumbs up.
The loss of weight, discontinuation of a bunch of drugs, relief from sleep apnea, and restoral of normal testosterone levels, all add up to a big boost in alertness and mental function for me. No one whoreads this thread should think for a minute that they are trading away mental function for appearance. For me the opposite has been true. It is really important not to reduce science to sound bites. That never works well.
Sent from my iPad using VST

LOTS OF CLOTHES FOR SALE -- VERY CHEAP!
Mostly size 20-22 bottoms, 1X and 2X tops, swimsuits, dresses, skirts! Some brand new, some barely worn 2-3 times!
I have uploaded pictures of everything I'm selling and/or giving away to Flickr. This is my first time using the service, so please PERSONAL MESSAGE ME if the link does not work for you.
I've set "asking prices" but am willing to discount for anyone looking to buy A LOT of items, even throw in items (t-shirts, etc) for free!
You can search by "sets" on the right-hand side by size, type, season, etc. (the size is the first number in the title)
Not looking to make a profit, just trying to cover the expenses of having to buy "newer" clothes myself
Will most likely use PayPal for payment, but open to conversation.
Willing to email, Skype, or speak with anyone with questions or wanting to talk about what they like!
Will also be posting these items on Craigslist if you live in the San Jose,CA/Bay Area and would like to meet up in person.
All clothes kept in a smoke-free home.

Really hoping this will hep some of my friends on here as they progress on their journey. It is truly an exciting place to be in need of needing new clothes for work, home, or play! Much better if you're not having to do it at full price. Best of luck that you find something you like!
Cheers,
Emily

Thank you everyone who has replied so far! I will be marking things as sold and taking down the pics once the items are shipped and on their way!
I'll be keeping the items posted for a while and continuing to add more pics as I take them!

Hi SoulWarden, I do not have anything that is actually tagged as a 3X. If you are familiar with any of the brands or stores I've listed, there may be 2X that run more like a 3X? I do have some capri pants in size 24.

Breast reduction actually led me to considering VSG! I went to the plastic surgeon in October for a consult at my biggest (40I/J) and he told me he'd rather not operate on me at that size. He told me about VSG, his daughter had it done. Said I'd be better off losing weight, they'd shrink and "deflate" THEN do a reduction and lift at about 1-1.5 yr out. His biggest reason was that I was at higher risk of complications like losing the nipples and just general surgical risks. So I guess I'll be saving up for part two now that I'm down to a 34G :-)

WOW! I have not been on here in about 4 months. Life just got a hold of me, then summer hit with a vengence. Now the kiddos are finally back in school.
I have just returned from my check up. Hard to believe I am only 4 months away from my one year anniversary. The doc is very pleased with my progress and so am I. At my one year mark he has agreed to give me a referral to see the plastic surgeon for body contouring. I have a lot of excess skin around my butt and thighs. So I am very excited about that. He is pretty sure the insurance will cover it so double bonus. My goal is to be 140 by 12/28/13 which is my one year mark.
This journey has been so life changing. This summer I wore tank tops, summer dresses, went down a Water slide with my kids and even wore a bathing suit almost all summer! I even wore my first little black dress while in Vegas as you can see from my profile pic. I am at this moment down 107lbs from my heaviest point and down 76lbs since the surgery.
My food cravings come and go but I find myself craving "refreshing" foods like fruit or fish. Strangest thing. If I eat sweets, I get a case of dumping syndrome. I start to sweat and feel nauseous so I just stay away from those foods now. I do not drink soda or beer. On occasion I have a piece of toast. I am able to eat a bit more than before. But according to my doctor I need to make sure my portions stay small, eat a little more often if need be as long as I am eating the right foods, but small portions. Otherewise, you can run the risk of stretching your sleeve. I did not come this far to have that kind of a problem. There was a point around 5 months post op when I was dealing with heartburn but I got that under control. I am dealing with Hair loss which is very sad. So even though I am getting my Protein in I am suffering through my loss of hair. I am trying a couple of products to see if I can grow it back. I will keep you posted on that. My stomach gurgles a lot. I am so used to it now though. When I am getting full I start to burp a little. I call that my full meter I still have a tendency to be an emotional eater so I try to stay aware of that. Guess that is just life at this point!
My activity level is through the roof! I have so much energy, I sleep better, I have more patience and am a lot calmer. This procedure not only saved my life, it gave me a life. :wub:
Only a few people know that I have had the surgery and I personally like to keep it that way. I was given a tool but like any tool it will not work if I don't use it! So I don't want to hear people say I took the "easy way out". I may have to punch them. So I just don't say anything.
Anyway, I hope all of you sleevers out there who are newbies are doing well, hang in there it gets better and all of the seasoned sleevers are keeping on. I love this board and have missed seeing what the December sleevers are up to.
Take care!

So this thread came to mind today for me...
So I decided to just ask my husband, "Did I lose weight in my vagina?" He belted out laughing and nearly fell off his bike. Did I mention we were mountain biking at full speed? He said he'd have to put that one in the books of one of the things he loves about me.
Oh, and he his answer was, "Yes, a little bit"