BlessedBeyondMeasure2012

My sister is looking into VSG and has Kaiser insurance. She lives outside of Denver. Now I have no clue how Kaiser works but does anyone have any experience with any surgeons there? She is nervous but excited and I'm just curious for her. Thanks for the help!

So I just had my gall bladder taken out two weeks ago. I went in having pain, they put me in the hospital that day and took it out the next. It wasn't making me sick, just hurting. The ER doc told me that it was only going to get worse until I got it out. Apparently the stones I had were small which made them more likely to get in one of the ducts and cause an obstruction. The best treatment would be to get it out. There is a medication called Actigall that can help with it if there is a reason that they aren't going ahead with getting it out. Talk to your regular PCP. Yes doing low fat and relatively bland will help but you need to get it out of there. I didn't realize that losing a lot of weight can put you at risk for gall stones, then there are the 4 F's (fat, forty, fertile, female -- and I fall into all but the forty catagory) that put you at an increased risk. Apparently I was just asking for my gall bladder to go crazy!

So yesterday morning, after I weighed I was moving my scale back to it's normal spot on our bath mat (I have to move it to the tile to weigh) and I dropped it on it's corner. Not it was a really nice scale, the Aria by fitbit, and it shattered. I am so sad! I almost felt lost this morning without it! I've always been a daily weigher when I'm in weight loss mode, now no scale. This is gonna be tough lol!

I hope it gets better for you! Don't forget... breathe in, breathe out, repeat. This too shall pass...

I'm a Shreveport girl. Dr. Merriman did my sleeve on 3/25/13. Having great results so far, no regrets!

Me too! I broke mine yesterday and I'm so sad! Hopefully we will both be able to replace them soon!

So apparently any big weight loss can put you at a increased risk for gall stones. If that is the case, why don't surgeons just take the gall bladder out when they are in there? I mean I know sometimes it does get done as a combo surgery but why not routinely? I had my VSG on 3/25/13 and will be having my ball bladder removed in the morning. I'm not excited.

When I started talking about having the sleeve done my sister also started talking about it. She is over weight and has been for most of her adult life just like myself. She is 5 years older than I am but is about 5 inches shorter. She has been my little big sister for many years. Well, she has had a couple of c-sections, laproscopic gall bladder surgery and a robotic hysterectomy and was concerned that she may have adhesions that would cause problems for a sleeve surgery. She talked herself out of the surgery and out of looking into it anymore than what she already had, which wasn't much but still. Well, I've now lost 102 pounds and she has gained about 20 in that same amount of time. She asked me this weekend if I thought she would be crazy to have it done. I was so excited! I have been wanting to encourage her to have the surgery but knew she was afraid to. She talked with her husband and he is supportive too! My prayer for her is that if she is supposed to have it done that God will put her infront of the right surgeon. She lives away from me so will be using someone other than the surgeon that did mine. I am so excited for her and that we could be doing this together. She is one of my best friends and is one of my biggest encouragers. I can't wait for the opportunity to be the same for her!

TOSS THE BOX!!! I had the same problem. It is still hard for me to wrap my mind around the fact that I have gotten rid of clothes that were too big that used to be my 'I'll get into those someday" clothes. I am almost through all of those and am fixing to be in uncharted waters, or at least I haven't been in them in years. You won't need them again. Ever. Get rid of them and make some room for the new stuff that will be finding it's way in!

I had surgery on 3/25/13 but lost 30-25 pounds in the month before that. I've lost a total of 101 pounds as of this morning. I had my gall bladder taken out on Monday but other than that, I've had no problems/complications. I have really got to get some pictures linked in here to show some progress. My weight loss has really slowed down over the past month but seems like it has picked up since my gall bladder came out. Hopefully it will continue on down. I'd love to be below 200 by Christmas. I guess we will just have to wait and see how it goes!

Thanks y'all!

I had a different surgon do my gall bladder surgery. I was hoping that he would use some of the same incisions as my VSG surgeon but nope. I'm thinking that buckshot sounds like as good of an excuse as any lol

That was originally my plan but a month before I was scheduled for surgery last year I found out I was pregnant. I had my sleeve done while I was off on maternity leave and haven't looked back. I just had to have my gall bladder taken out on Monday but otherwise, I've had no problems.

You look great! Keep up the good work pretty lady!

The Extra dessert gum is great! I love the lemon pie one!

I usually cut mine as I go. I don't cut it all up at once for the reasons you listed above. I can just bite into things but I find when I do my bites are usually bigger than I intend for them to be and then I eat too fast. I probably cut my bites about half the size I did before I had surgery.

So I now have 4 new incisions to go with the 5 I had from my VSG. I didn't get to eat or drink anything for over 24 hours by the time I finally had surgery. I am amazed at the restriction I have now with my sleeve. I had good restriction before. I could eat 5-6 oz of meat/food and feel satisfied. I had no trouble getting in my calories or protein. Now I have no idea how I'm going to do either. I'm happy that I have this new restriction, maybe it will kick start my weight loss again. The suckiest part is that I can't work out for at least a week. Will have to get back at it next week...

*wasnt planning on this

I sure hope so. Totally want planning on this when I came to the ER today lol

Off and on for the past week I've been having some pain in my upper belly, right in the upper middle and over to the right upper quadrant. Seems to get worse 2-3 hours after I eat. Hasn't been bad enough for me to mention to anyone before today. This morning, I woke up and it felt like someone had stabbed me in the middle of my upper stomach. I went to an urgent care center and they sent me to the ER. I had an ultrasound done and they found small gall stones and sludge. The pain eases on its own. I had some nausea with or from (who knows which) the pain I had this morning. That is better now too. I haven't had to have anything for pain so far.

My NP was suprised at my two weeks when I asked that same question. Her response was "you mean you're not already?!?!"

I've just recently started a workout regimen (nothing like cross fit, I'm totally not ready for all that) but nonetheless, I'm working out. I've been mindful of what I eat before hand but I am really interested to see what people "go to" for their foods before a work out. Teach me something folks!

This sounds so yummy! How much is a serving?

Therefore it makes you weigh more. I just started an exercise program (my own homemade one but hey, something is better than nothing). I have been doing some cardio off and on since surgery on 3/25/13 but nothing as consistently as I should have been doing. I own an elliptical. There is NO REASON I shouldn't be getting on it daily. Well, I have made a commitment to myself and to my husband (even though he has already bailed lol) that I am going to come home from work and get on the elliptical, adding a minute or two each day until I reach 30 minutes, maybe more later. And I will also do some weight training, upper body and some abs one night, lower body and more abs the next night. I worked out Sunday and Monday, this morning the scale was up. I was so close to losing 100 pounds, and I still am, just not as close as I was about two weeks ago. It's frustrating at the moment because I know I could not work out today and the scale would be down tomorrow but what good does that do me in the long run? None. It would would just be water from the muscles that I didn't exercise today and then when I start exercising again I would be in the same situation. I know that the muscles can only hold so much water and within a few days the scale should start going back down. I am going skiing this winter and I am determined to be in better shape before then. I want to be able to ski on multiple days and not feel like I am going to die from exhaustion or muscle soreness. I'm just saying though, seeing the scale go up SUCKS especially after you feel like you literally worked your butt and thighs off!