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Great read! I'm both hopeful and jealous. Can't wait until it's me.

Good luck with it. I have 6 months of supervised diet and now 4 1/2 months in I'm getting very antsy. I know that in retrospect it won't seem that long but while you are going through it the time just drags. As you wrote, worse comes to worse you wait the 3 months. It's going to happen even if it's tough to be patient.

Instead of crash diets why not try a local WLS support group? Or, maybe see a nutritionist to get a refresher on the basics. It's amazing how much we can forget when we aren't constantly forced into doing things. The sleeve is just 1 tool. That doesn't mean you don't need to use the others.

Thanks for sharing your story. We don't always want to hear these things but it's very important that we do. I really appreciate you advice about having a strong network of help. That's something that I can do and will make sure I do when my time comes.

I haven't done the DDP program but I've looked at it on the website. It looks pretty good based on what they showed. Lots of pro wrestlers now do yoga because they get beat up so much for a living. Trish Stratus couldn't even straighten up from horrible back issues. A friend got her into yoga as a way of helping her back. She retired from pro wrestling and opened a yoga studio in Toronto. My favorite programs are the ones put out by Rodney Yee but if you like the look of the DDP program you should go for it.

I've been doing yoga daily for over 5 years now. Nothing beats it. Yoga won't firm you up on it's own, it won't give you that 'yoga' body you see on TV. I know that because I've been as high as 284 pounds despite daily yoga. What it will do is make everything else feel better. You can run, bike, swim, climb, lift, surf or anything else you like to do better than you did before and with less pain. It's the best way to prevent injury and recover from all other activities and life in general. in my opinion everyone can benefit from daily yoga.

Exercise can be a job but just like a paying job it's something you have have to do. Hate it but do it anyway. I get up at 5 am 6 days a week to run for 40 minutes on the elliptical. It's a real grind but it's something that I know I have to do if I want to stay alive so I do it.

I was around the same weight when I made the decision. My doctor was against it because I just wasn't big enough until he realized that he had been saying the same thing for 7 years and I still hadn't gotten rid of the excess weight. I am also a diabetic and am looking at weight loss surgery as a way to fight that horrible disease. You may not have any weight related conditions but at that size you are at increased risk of developing them. My advice is do whatever you have to do to get healthy. Follow the guidelines set by your NUT religiously for the next 4 months and see where you are at. If you are not making the progress you should be then start going through all the other tests you need for this surgery. If you are doing well and know you can keep it up then you don't need this.

Been waiting since April when my Cardiologist finally agreed to sign off on this. I still have 2 more medically supervised weight loss visits before they can even submit to the insurance company. I keep reading how fast it goes but I just don't feel that way.

Just be honest and don't sweat it. It's not a job interview. Go in relaxed and you'll be fine.

The pictures are a great idea. Eventually you're going to look at pic 1 and be stunned how different it is from your latest. That's something you can't really do looking in the mirror. My sister-in-law had a gastric bypass a little more than 3 years ago. 3 months after doing it she just didn't look all that different even though she said she lost a lot of weight. Then all of a sudden she started wasting away. Now she's healthy and even though she's put on 10 pounds from her bottom weight she still looks and feels great. Just keep plugging away at it.

Thanks for sharing. It's a big help to hear about longer term results for those of us who a pre-op and trying to figure out what it's going to be like.

That's good enough reason to follow instructions and stay on that pre-op diet. Missing a little solid food is nothing compared with what happens if they do have complications because of an enlarged liver.

You'll soon be able to move better than you ever did with the weight on. Enjoy it. Sounds like lots of fun.

The medical field is full of generalities. They love to gather up tons of data and talk averages and percentages. That doesn't mean you can't keep losing after a year and it also doesn't mean that if you have bad habits you'll keep losing after 6 months. There are lots of people able to lose tremendous amounts of weight without surgery but these bariatric surgeons like to make it sound like it's impossible. It's your body and your health. Don't let someone else stop you from achieving your goals.

Unfortunately there is always going to be stress for all of us. It might be money or kids, relationships, work, even the news of the world for some people. What you need to focus on is your reaction to the stress in your life. You've already identified yourself as an emotional eater. Get some help with that. Go to a support group or see a mental health expert. Focus on how to deal with stress as opposed to trying to eliminate stressful situations because some new ones are always going pop up.

Finished up month 4. 2 more appointments left to go. My NUT has been great but there isn't that much she can teach me at this point. Most of us have been on strict diets for years before we considered weight loss surgery. At least she's cool about it and focuses on some of the new ideas and thoughts about nutrition. I do feel there is a value to working with a NUT but 6 months is just overkill. I've been told it's not something most doctors are in favor of. This is strictly the logic and bureaucracy of insurance companies and not medicine.

Nothing wrong with going to a support group for help. To succeed you need to develop good eating habits. No weight loss surgery can do that for you. What's smart is that you is that you understand the situation and are going to do what you need to do to make it work.

I'm all for saving money but this isn't buying a car. You're not shopping for the same model at a different dealer. Maybe you can tell the surgeon that the price is high and you are considering other doctors just to see if he'll come down a little? That's about as far as I'd go unless you think you'll get better medical treatment elsewhere.

Remember the old joke - what's the best way to lose 10 pounds of ugly fat....Cut off your head! Seriously you can do it if you have enough time. Sign up for My Fitness Pal and plan a diet where you lose 1.5 pounds per week. Then stick to it. You want to get this procedure which is why you will be able to do this and succeed.

Haven't heard it but it sounds like an urban legend to me. Companies changes insurance providers all the time. In the past 10 years I've had 6 different ones and that's staying in the same job. We've had lots of employees with different issues and I've never heard on anyone being excluded from the insurance plan when we switched. Like anything else you just want to make sure there is no lapse in your insurance so you don't end up with a pre-existing condition that is excluded.

From what I have heard it's the removal from part of the intestine that eliminates diabetes. We don't have that with the sleeve so it isn't immediate but it sounds like it still can happen in a short period of time.

I don't know what Chub Rub is but I bet you're still tired of it and this is the best way to take care of it.

Very helpful mamamckinzie. It's great to hear long term results from someone coming at this from a different situation. There are many with a lower BMI who still face deadly weight related diseases. Glad to hear that 1 year later it worked out for you. Thanks for sharing.

That's great. I've been in that situation in the past. It's one of those "I can't believe I can't fit and I'm eating stuff that will make me even fatter" moments. Great job one of the best NSVs that I've seen.