lollyfidy1965

Scotty,
I spend two hours at the gym every morning, doing an hour of cardio, and an hour of circuit training. I drink 8oz of Muscle Milk Light before the gym, and 8oz of Muscle Milk Light after the gym. That's 200 calories, and 30 grams of Protein, and acts as my Breakfast. I've been doing this for almost 5 months now, and it's working well for me.
Laura

A conversion to RYGB is definitely possible...in fact, the "sleeve" procedure was originally done as a first step towards a more "severe" form of weight loss surgery, for those patients who needed to lose weight before having the second procedure. If you're truly convinced the sleeve isn't working for you, make an appointment to speak with your surgeon. Talk with him about your concerns, go over your approach with him, and your nutritionist (including exercise and diet), and see if RYGB is a better solution for you. There may be simple adjustments you can make, to your diet and exercise, that would net you better results, and would be worth trying, before going for the more involved procedure.
I wish you the best,
Laura

I've not experienced anything like that, but my advice would be to not ignore any kind of "chest pain". Give your surgeon, or doctor a call, and get it checked out. Better to find out "officially" that its just gas, or heartburn, or nothing at all, than to learn the hard way that you've got something serious going on.
wishing you well!
Laura

Scotty,
I spend two hours at the gym every morning, doing an hour of cardio, and an hour of circuit training. I drink 8oz of Muscle Milk Light before the gym, and 8oz of Muscle Milk Light after the gym. That's 200 calories, and 30 grams of Protein, and acts as my Breakfast. I've been doing this for almost 5 months now, and it's working well for me.
Laura

Find someone who NEEDS those clothes, and gift them away! Think of the good you'll be doing! I'm now on my third complete wardrobe (thank God for second-hand stores and clearance racks!!), and am taking more than 10 kitchen garbage bags of clothes (size 20 to 26, 1X to 5X) to two of my sisters. They will benefit tremendously from my loss! As for replacing clothes....seriously....find a good second-hand store (we have a place called "Savers" here...they're awesome!), and save as much money as you can, while you're dropping sizes so quickly. (On Veterans Day Savers had a half-off sale...I got 21 XL sweaters for $56, and 4pairs of 16 jeans for under $25. I completely swapped my wardrobe for under $75!!!)
Best,
Laura

Losing weight is a function of burning more calories than you consume. Unfortunately, each of us is different....some need more calories in, in order to keep things going. What I'm doing is working for me. I average about 13-15 pounds (loss) every month, and I'm quite pleased with that rate of weight loss.

Losing weight is a function of burning more calories than you consume. Unfortunately, each of us is different....some need more calories in, in order to keep things going. What I'm doing is working for me. I average about 13-15 pounds (loss) every month, and I'm quite pleased with that rate of weight loss.

I didnt have a wait for my surgery, so I can't help with the timeframe. I would highly recommend you read "The End of Overeating," however....it will provide a clear explanation for why you're unable to stop yourself from putting food in your mouth. It was very helpful for me, in terms of managing my behavior both before and after my surgery.
Best,
Laura

Read "The End of Overeating"...it will explain why you are craving unhealthy processed foods.

As hard as it is, and as horrible as it feels, resisting the urge to smoke is NOT "killing" you......it is "living" you!! Smoking WAS killing you! Do me, you, your friends, and your family a huge favor....keep resisting that urge, and live with us for a long time! As with any addiction, those urges WILL diminish, over time....as long as you don't reintroduce the chemicals your brain is craving! I know it isn't easy, but surely you are stronger than your brain!!
All the best!
Laura

O.T.R. is absolutely correct about the "hunger" likely being in your head. If you would like to understand exactly why this is happening, read "The End of Overeating". It clearly describes the ways in which the food industry manipulates the content of processed foods in order to cause our brains to react, chemically, to those foods EXACTLY the same way it would react to cocaine or heroine. Yes....your brain is addicted to foods (sugar, fat, and salt, in particular)....and the "head hunger" you're experiencing is your own special kind of withdrawal symptom. Your brain wants to experience that rush of chemicals...so its screaming "YOU'RE HUNGRY!!....YOU'RE STARVING!!!"...in order to get you to put its drug of choice (food) into your mouth. Read the book...recognize what you're experiencing for what it is...and keep your eye on the prize! Your health is certainly worth the effort!

Vitamin Shoppe sells a decent berry flavor chewable Iron. I take it twice a week. Zantac comes in a liquid...prescription only. Prevacid comes in a dissolveable tablet.

JoJo...I have alarms set on my iPhone, and keep some in the car, in case I'm away from home when it's time to take one. Do whatever you need to do in order to remember to take your supplements. They are critical to being healthy after surgery!!

At 5 months post-op I'm still only averaging between 650 and 700 calories a day, including at least 90 grams of Protein. It is very possible to get that much protein and eat fewer than 600 calories a day...I did it for several months. It's all about the food choices you make. I eat no starchy carbs, and only lean protein...those two choices keep my calories very low.

JoJo...I have alarms set on my iPhone, and keep some in the car, in case I'm away from home when it's time to take one. Do whatever you need to do in order to remember to take your supplements. They are critical to being healthy after surgery!!

I take Flintstones Complete chewables twice a day, Celebrate Calcium plus Vit D three times a day, Celebrate B 12 once a day, and a sublingual Biotin (that's for the hair loss). Since adding te biotin, my hair has almost completely stopped falling out. It's fairly cheap...I order mine from Vitamin Shoppe online.

An anomaly? Absoloutly not. You are completely normal. I felt Absoloutly no restriction on liquids, and minimal on soft foods. But once I got to dense Proteins it was like "OMG, that's all I can eat?". You are gonna be fine. Just keep an eye on your portions.
Btw. The constant hunger you are feeling now is referred to as head hunger. I know you are saying " no it's not. I'm really hungry. " but trust me. With a bit of self dicipline in a couple weeks you look back and see that it is your mind holding on to old habits. It remembers how often & how much you use to eat. Once it understands that it is gonna get nourished it will stop sending all those false signals. I was right there with you. After surgery I would have choked a rhino with my bare hands for a Five Guys burger at any given moment. Now they're opening one in my dinky little town & TBH, though I'm happy it will be there if and when I want one, I have no real desire for it anymore.
Here is a link to my first post on this forum. You can see I felt the same way.
http://www.verticalsleevetalk.com/topic/40235-is-this-too-easy/

Sounds like you need to find a new PCP. It's very important that your PCP be supportive of your decision, because they're the doctor you're going to be working with, once you get beyond follow ups with your surgeon. You don't want that doctor to be constantly reminding you of the potential for failure....you want that person to be your biggest cheerleader! I wish you great success!! Laura

No one here can tell you "what to do"....we can only express what our own experiences have been. Personally, having the "sleeve" performed was a life-changing opportunity for me, and I would do it again, without hesitation. As for the last comments in your post, everyone who has any form of WLS will be required to take supplements (vitamins and minerals) for the rest of their lives. That is a given, and was never really an issue for me, when considering whether or not to have surgery. I chose the "sleeve" over "gastric bypass" primarily because there is no re-routing of the small intestines, and, therefore, a lower risk for malabsorption issues, following surgery. Yes, it isn't reversible...but why would I want my old stomach back?? It didn't do me any favors in life, now did it??
Do some research on WLS surgeons in your area, and make an appointment to go speak with the one you like best. Ask him your questions, and speak frankly with him regarding your concerns. And do as much research on the topic as you can. Only then, when you've gotten all your questions answered, and your concerns reassured, make the best, informed decision you can make....do what is best for YOU, and don't concern yourself with what anyone else thinks. As for liposuction....that may make you "look" thinner, but it isn't going to resolve the underlying issue...which is, ultimately, your relationship with food. (Yeah...that's just my opinion...take it for what its worth.)

My total out of pocket expenses were limited to a $100 co-pay, kbby....I didn't have to pay any percentage of the total bill. I was incredibly fortunate...and HP approved my surgery within 2 days of receiving the first request for approval from my surgeon's office.

My final bill was almost $27,000 (at a top-notch facility in Boston, MA). My out-of-pocket for my life-changing surgery?? $100. Thank you SO MUCH, Harvard Pilgrim H.M.O!!!

My total out of pocket expenses were limited to a $100 co-pay, kbby....I didn't have to pay any percentage of the total bill. I was incredibly fortunate...and HP approved my surgery within 2 days of receiving the first request for approval from my surgeon's office.

My final bill was almost $27,000 (at a top-notch facility in Boston, MA). My out-of-pocket for my life-changing surgery?? $100. Thank you SO MUCH, Harvard Pilgrim H.M.O!!!

Im 5 months post-op, and am able to eat about 2 oz of "dense" Protein (think chicken, turkey, salmon, etc). I'm able to eat 1/4 cup of tuna salad, along with 1/4 cup of cottage cheese, or 1 string cheese. I have 8 oz of muscle milk light every morning before I hit the gym, and another 8 oz after the gym. (that's roughly 7am and 10am). I eat lunch between 12 and 1pm (the tuna salad/cottage cheese combo is typical), have a small "snack" around 3pm (usually a low-fat, 1oz cheese stick), have dinner between 5:30 and 6pm (usually 2 oz of chicken, cooked a variety of ways), and finish the day with a snack around 8pm (almost always a Quest chocolate brownie protein bar). I average between 650 and 700 calories/day, with roughly 90 grams of protein, and fewer than 30 grams of carbs.