Half~of~Bri

No surgery for me tomorrow due to a discovery of a large blood clot in my leg and some in my lungs. I had to cancel my surgery and am now going to be on blood thinners for at least the next six months. Just want to wish everyone good luck tomorrow, I'll be thinking of all of you! <3

Well folks, I was an August 13th sleever. However, I've been in the hospital all week after finding out I have a large blood clot in my leg and some in my lungs as well. I won't be having my surgery after all. :/ I will need to be on blood thinners and have my blood counts routinely checked for at least the next six months. But I'm not giving up. I've lost 17.5 pounds so far and I will not let this bring me down. I believe it was God's way of telling me this wasn't the right path for me to take. This came out of nowhere and I am otherwise healthy so I am so thankful it was caught when it was, before very very bad things came of it. I wish all of you the very best, and hope to still keep in touch with y'all.

My best friend of 15 years probably weighs 120 soaking wet. She's the kinda girl who can (and does) eat tons of fast food, pizza, and junk food and still looks amazing - she doesn't even work out! She tells me all the time that she thinks I'm beautiful, she doesn't think I'm that overweight, etc. even though I've gained 140+ pounds since we've been friends. She has been completely supportive throughout this whole thing because she has seen me struggle for so long, but has been very vocal that she is scared about me having the surgery, and even a little worried if I'll still be friends with her once I'm "skinny". I asked her if she was friends with me because I was fat or because of the amazing friendship we've created! Of course we've been friends since I was skinny and now I'm not, so that made her realize how ridiculous her statement sounded. Maybe your friend is just worried about how your new lifestyle will affect your relationship. She may not understand how you feel but maybe sitting down for a talk to explain your reasoning behind it and reassuring her a little will help. Good luck.

Whoo hoo! I'm an August 13th sleever. Here to support you if you need it. Good luck!

That is AMAZING! Keep rockin' it, girl!

Congratulations! I'm sure you're out of surgery by now, so I can officially say WELCOME TO THE FIRST DAY OF THE REST OF YOUR LIFE! You made it! Thoughts and prayers for a speedy recovery.

Oh, and Dr. Bauman didn't give me any specific amount I needed to lose, he said he just wants to see if I can lose weight by following the eating plan they gave me.

Yay, neighbors! Yup I live in Concord! It's so good to see that there are people in my area that have been through the same things. I've cut out all of the things you mentioned and I never drank soda or had caffeine much anyway so that was easy. I guess I'll have to wait and see what they say at my pre-op appointment tomorrow morning.

My surgery is 2 weeks from tomorrow. My surgeon doesn't do the liquid diet so I'm just on a really restricted low cal/low fat/low EVERYTHING tasty diet I've lost 15 lbs. so far. My fear is this won't be enough to make a significant difference in my liver size before surgery. I'm hoping to lose more before surgery but my weight loss slowed down a lot once I hit about 14 lbs. How will I know if I've done enough? I have a pre-op appointment with my surgeon and the hospital tomorrow and I'm not sure what to expect from that or if I'll have to do liquids in the last few days before surgery either.

Congrats! Thoughts and prayers for a speedy recovery!

Wow, what an amazing transformation. YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL! Keep rockin' it girl!

I love this! It's so true..the anticipation, the nerves, the excitement! Eeep!

My surgery is August 13th with Dr. Bauman in Concord, NC!

Hang in there hun, I'm sure it will get better. Just try to remember to keep your eyes on the prize! Take it one minute (and sometimes second) at a time. I know I'm not sleeved yet but I'm doing a pre-op diet that eliminates all of my favorite foods..I've been doing it for 3 1/2 weeks and have 2 1/2 weeks left 'til surgery. Try not to get discouraged, just remember this is short term sacrifice for long term gain! Take some deep breaths, go for a walk, listen to some music or relax and write all your thoughts in a journal. Sending you hugs, thoughts and prayers. <3

Congratulations! That is amazing, I'm so happy for you! Keep rockin' that sleeve!

Totally understood. My daughter, who I had at 17, was also abandoned by her father. I'm now married to a wonderful man who my girl thinks of as her Daddy, and he's in the process of adopting her. I totally get where you're coming from.

Good luck!! Sending thoughts and prayers your way! Keep us posted!

Our stories are eerily similar. I, too weighed around 150 in high school. I was also in a very verbally, physically and even sexually abusive relationship for 6 yrs with my high school sweetheart which led to me becoming a mother at 17. It's been 7 years since I ended the relationship and I'm still dealing with PTSD, depression and anxiety as a result. Counseling has helped a lot with that and I've come along way but I know that my past baggage is what got me 292.7 lbs. I know it may seem like I'm sharing a lot of heavy stuff to many people but I'm putting this out there as part of my healing process and learning that I can't be ashamed of my past and what I've gone through is not my fault. If you ever want to talk to someone who can relate to what you've been through I'm here.

WOW! What an amazing victory! Congratulations!

I felt the same way in the beginning. I went back and forth - every time I thought "Ok, I'm going to do this!", I would start the process and inevitably back out thinking maybe if I tried one more time I could do this on my own. I would cry to my husband that I was ashamed and embarrassed that my life had come to this. I did this back and forth game for a year and a half! Now that I'm only 2 1/2 weeks from surgery and I realize I could have been living my dream much sooner if I would have just admitted to myself that I need help. I thought if I admitted to my family and friends (besides my parents and husband, who knew I was going through the process) that would be like admitting that I've failed at my own attempts at weight loss and couldn't do it. I was also afraid of receiving criticism from others. I'm not a very assertive person so the thought of that intimidated me. I didn't want to have to explain all my reasoning for having the surgery if they weren't supportive anyway.That feeling was embarrassing for me so I decided to tell only my parents, brother, in-laws and grandparents. I chose to tell those specific people because I tried to think of how I would feel if they had major surgery without telling me first. I waited until I had my surgery date to tell everyone other than my mom and husband. As my surgery has gotten closer and I've grown more excited I've realized that this is a decision I should be PROUD of. It's hard to come out of denial and admit that you couldn't do it on your own, but making a decision to have a tool to help you through makes you a stronger person, not a weaker one. I've now told some extended family and my best friends. Mostly anyone I talk to on a regular basis that will certainly notice my weight loss (at that point, I'll probably end up telling them anyway, so why wait?) EVERY SINGLE PERSON that I've told has been 100% supportive and excited for me. Nearly everyone told me it made them so happy that I'm doing this because they know I've struggled with my weight for a long time Only YOU can decide if this surgery is right for you. If you know in your heart that it is and you're just embarrassed or ashamed, please talk to a family member or friend who you know will be supportive and can keep a secret. (Or you can talk to me, too.) You can tell as many or as few people as you would like, but please don't let a fear of being criticized hold you back from sharing this dream come true with others. Good luck sweetie <3

This seriously made me laugh out loud!

On surgery day, did you have to have a catheter? For some reason I've had a little fear of them (even though I've had one before, about 10 yrs ago) and I just want to prepare myself ahead of time. Thanks!

On surgery day, did you have to have a catheter? For some reason I've had a little fear of them (even though I've had one before, about 10 yrs ago) and I just want to prepare myself ahead of time. Thanks!