gustavo52974

As the surgery gets closer, especially when you're in the hospital gurney right before they wheel you into surgery, you might start freaking out and questioning your decision. Try to remind yourself that you made the decision to have surgery when you were clear-headed, calm, and rational, and that a little freaking out now is normal. Fear is natural.

Oh my god, me too!! Now I can't believe how much people can eat! Or that I was ever able to eat that much (and usually more). Now I absolutely LOVE that I can't eat that much. I'm full after only a few bites! It's great!

I have Cigna too, so I'd be interested to find out as well. They covered my surgery, but by the time I need to have skin removed, their policy will have changed to not cover it.

I hate to cook. Like, seriously hate it. So why don't you come to my house and cook for me too!

Why does anyone pick on, castigate, beat on, or criticize other people? Because they see something in others they don't like in themselves. Formerly overweight people who are nasty to people who ARE overweight are like that because they hated being fat themselves. It works that way with a lot of different forms of hate. Case in point: in high school I got tormented by certain guys because I was gay. I ended up seeing most of them in gay bars years later. Straight guys who have no sexuality issues with themselves usually don't care if another guy is gay (unless they're extremely ignorant and/or stupid). But these guys obviously had problems with their own sexual orientation and they took it out on me. It's human nature and most people don't have the intellectual sophistication or strength of character to overcome it.

I was in surgery for 3 hours. I have no idea why.

It sounds to me like you're doing fantastic! Today starts my sixth week and I'm only losing 2-3 pounds a week. But my surgeon said I was doing really well, and he was extremely optimistic that I'd be able to achieve my goal weight. I wouldn't worry so much about how fast it's going to happen. Everyone's body is different and everyone loses weight at a different pace. From what I've seen here, the people who weigh more tend to lose faster in the beginning. But we all taper off at some point.

Oh, it does get better over time. BUT, the first 4 weeks post-surgery were probably the longest 4 weeks of my life (except maybe for boot camp, but that was a long long time ago). Yes, a support system is very important. But they're not the final answer. I had an outstanding support system, but they didn't ultimately decide what went into my mouth, how much walking I did on any particular day, how much anxiety I felt, what food cravings I had etc. They helped, but in the end it was all up to me. Unless your support system is going to act like a dungeon master, you need to be able to make these choices for yourself and be able to deal with the mental obstacles as they come whether your supports system is there or not. A support system makes it easier, but you can't expect that they're going to do all the work for you. If you do, then no, you're probably not ready.

Well it frustrates me to no end when people say that their surgeon allows them to eat things like this and then they post here that they're having problems with it. No, it's not their fault that they're having problems if they were allowed to have it. I'm just always taken by surprise by what others are allowed to eat.

Wow! A total failure of deductive reasoning if I've ever seen it...I hope you properly edumicated him!

My surgeon wouldn't even let me have popsicles...or jello for that matter. Are you taking bites out of the popsicle, or are you just licking it?

I sympathize and I think they're being too harsh on you. But they do the psych eval for a reason. This surgery really isn't for everyone. It has pushed my willpower and tenacity to the max. I've gotten depressed and had some anxiety moments, but I was able to handle them. And I've learned a LOT about myself...some bad but mostly good. The sleeve can test your strength and if you're not up for it, maybe you shouldn't get it. Ok haters, go ahead and criticize this, but I really DO think this surgery isn't for everyone.

I didn't know what Zip Fizz was either: http://zipfizz.com/index.html Looks kinda scary to me.

Thank you! I've attached the pic so you can get a better view (click on it). It's in front of Madam Tussauds Wax Museum in New York City (Times Square). I don't live too far from it so it should be easy to do.

I weigh myself ever day also. I like to be able to calculate my rate of loss and to be able to predict future loss. I also use an app called WeightBot. It's an older app, but it is predictive, gives you graphs and tables, and calculates your BMI. I've noticed that I've settled into the groove of losing about 1 pound every 2-3 days. If I continue with that frequency, I should reach my goal weight by December. However, I know that there are stalls, slowing down of weight loss, etc., so I'm not holding my breath. I do know, however, that I eventually WILL get to my goal weight, so I'm not worried. I'm past the halfway mark already. I need to take a new pic to Celebrate. So people, should I go back to the statue of Morgan Freeman in my profile pic and attempt to take the same picture with myself now, or should I do something different?

Precisely. I gotta do better with that.

I didn't experience memory loss so much as I got "foggy" and easily confused. And yes, attention span and concentration were diminished. I don't think I'm getting enough calories yet for it to go away completely though. Even before surgery, if I didn't take in enough calories and carbohydrates, my mind would start to get foggy. I seriously can't understand how those who starve themselves or eat very little can make it through the day.

Did you have it on bread?

Your first tattoo! That's great! Be careful...they can be addicting!

That's terrific! My NSV this week was being able to tie my shoes without worrying that I had roughly 30 seconds before I passed out. Yay me!

I don't know about anyone else, but my food dreams stopped after a while. Mine were quite vivid though. Two of my favorites were swimming in a bowl of beef stew and performing the musical Evita with a cast made up entirely of hamburgers and french fries.

Great job! You're totally rockin' that dress too. Makes me look forward to being able to wear a tank top again.

Here are a few more of my favorites: “No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” ― Eleanor Roosevelt “Failure is the condiment that gives success its flavor.” ― Truman Capote “It is better to remain silent at the risk of being thought a fool, than to talk and remove all doubt of it.” ― Maurice Switzer “The best index to a person's character is how he treats people who can't do him any good, and how he treats people who can't fight back.” ― Abigail Van Buren "Nice is different than good." ― Stephen Sondheim

Starting weight: 260 Surgery date: July 9, 2012 Surgery day weight: 250 Today's weight: 210 Pounds to lose until at goal weight: 45