isajck

I know exactly what you mean! When I first discovered that site, I was on it for hours, LOL. Now it's bookmarked and I do not travel without it.

Okay, so now I am on the registry just reading random bedbug stories.....why or why do i do this too myself as I sit in my bed on my laptop....Thank you for the site, great resource.

Why wait 6 months or a year and stretch out the new stomach when you can have some the day of discharge and rip it open!!! Go for it ... Try not to die and get back vst let us know you did !

I wasn't aware that Soda was an option...

My close friends and family members were very supportive when I told them of my plans, too supportive and it was actually a little off putting. Now that I am post op, I sort of wish someone would have told me what your friend said. Look at it this way, at least she cares enough to try and help instead of just jumping on the bandwagon for a serious life altering surgery. Give her a little slack, if she has never been seriously overweight then she has no idea what you are going through. Maybe when all is said and done, she will jump on board with the support that you want from her.

I've tried several flavors of Isopure and each is more disgusting than the last. Kicking myself over that waste of money because they are not cheap! I keep hearing about Premiere Protein Drinks but am lactose intolerant and afraid to risk trying it. Maybe if I could find them for sale individually I would take the risk and try one but cannot purchase a whole case when I have already wasted so much money on Protein junk to date.

Be honest, it does no one any favors not to be. I had a two week pre-op liquid diet and ate chicken almost every night for dinner except the last night. I was honest with my surgeon and it posed no problems. At the hospital they were most concerned that I was compliant with no food after midnight, which I was.
It was explained to me that the main reason for the lenghty diet is to give the system a rest and also try and reduce fatty liver (if you have that, i did).

I wasn't. My surgeon's office works like a well oiled machine. They have a general list that is followed and believe me, that list fulfills all of the insurance requirements. They just check off as they go, making for an easier approval process.
A good office knows what is required and works to insure it it met prior to submission, cuts down on the denials and wasted time.

First let me say I feel fabulous! I've lost over 70 pounds in just over 5 months. I went from a 22 to a very comfy 12. The road has not been easy and for all you newbies...here is my list of amazing highs...and of not so sunshiny lows.
Disclaimer: This is my experience...it may not be yours.

It will be uncomfortable for a few days post op
I was not hungry for weeks after surgery
I was scared to eat or drink and I didn’t drink enough...thus Constipation and weakness
I didn't feel normal for about 6 weeks. I needed naps and I took them
The weight literally falls off...seriously I was looking for pools of fat in bed when I woke up in the morning
I hit the 4 week stall and it lasted two weeks. Expect it and don't stress
On day three, I had a massive freak out…seriously threw a four year old fit…pissed off my stomach was gone.
No one noticed for months and that irritated me.
EVERYONE notices now and it's all they want to talk about.
Don’t tell anyone you are going to Mexico to have your stomach cut off unless you trust them completely.
I threw up alot...just slime mostly...while I was learning my new tummy. It will scare you and if you are like me…it will happen a lot when you transition to solid foods.
food addiction does not magically go away...if you have a problem before..you will still have it. I think about food all the time, but I finally have a way to resist it. I am a sugar addict. I never crave carbs, but I crave sugar like a mad woman.
Going out to dinner is awkward. I hate watching people eat
Put the lotion on the skin! My skin got really dry.
I’ve lost half my hair at 4.5 months post op. Mine came out in chunks. Freaked me out! Our Golden Retriever and I are in a competition for shedding. It will be ok. Take your Vitamins and buy Nioxin. It doesn’t help my Hair loss, but I feel like I am at least doing something about it.
Don’t take a powerful laxative when you are constipated…especially before your child’s school performance. It may say “See results in 2-4 hours” but it means 30 mins and then you’re stuck on a mini toilet with both legs numb, crying to everything holy to save you.
Shopping is amazing! I still feel like people are looking at me like I don’t belong there…but that’s all in my head.
My shoes no longer fit. they are too wide now!
Your pre WLS Spanx will look huge in a couple months
Trust me…put some Granola bars in your glove box and a few packs of mixed nuts. Sometimes your hungry and there is nothing that you can eat.
Handy meals from the market or gas station when you didn’t plan ahead. Single string cheese, an apple, mixed nuts, readymade hard boiled eggs, The inside of California rolls- no rice, campbells Soup at hand or ready made Soup in a coffee cup.
Handy items at fast food places that sit ok on my tummy include: Taco Bells refried Beans or the inside of a chicken taco. Wendys chili, McDonalds oatmeal, McDonalds yogurt parfait
I feel guilty in front of my heavier friends. I always try to wear a sweatshirt so I don’t rub the weight loss in their faces.
You get drunk really fast...like a half glass of wine. Be careful...it sneaks up on you...and before you know it, you’re waiting for your hubby to pick you up...from less than a glass. Its crazy. I don't really even try anymore to drink.
I crave raw fish, cooked fish, broiled fish, grilled fish...any fish really and it feels amazing on my tummy.
I cant eat steak
I love that I have collar bones
I update my Facebook pictures and secretly love the compliments
I own a woman's North Face now
I can buy bras at Victoria's secret
I pack all my food for work in snack bags and the little tupperware containers for salad dressing.
I can still have M&M's...its just like 9...instead of the king size bags
Take heartburn medicine everyday...don’t wait until you get heartburn.
Buy stock in Maalox
You can have a full meal at Costco- samples + WLS = Cheap Date!
Food Portion jokes get really old
Fast food burgers makes me want to vomit.
At 5 months...salad is wonderful. I can eat about a cup of greens...which takes me a while and I feel a tiny bit normal.
Post-op, If you can swing it, buy a Vita-Mix blender and make your own soup. Canned soup was nasty right after surgery. Freeze them in 4oz canning jars. It will be two servings.
Quit Smoking before surgery. I waited and it slowed my healing. It also gave me terrible heartburn. I am 5 weeks smoke free
You don't have to "confess" you had WLS. It's ok to say thank you for the compliment and not feel guilty. I'm just now starting to accept that I had a little something to do with this insane loss. I tell people when they ask now how I lost the weight, that i exercise and use Portion Control.< br /> People will treat you different. Salesladies ask if I need assistance, men hold open doors and the skinny girls at work talk to me now. It's shallow and pisses me off, but it's nice to not be invisible anymore.
WLS is very difficult. For me, it’s not physical, but the mental. Sometimes I just want a cheesecake like before. It goes away very quickly, but it still comes and goes. Sometimes I get angry at my sleeve because I can’t eat something I see others eating. Most of the time I have to hide my expression when I see people shovel food in the way I used to. It’s shocking to see when you’re on the other side of WLS. I used to inhale my food like a tiny food thief was going to come in and take it away from me.
You will have to say no to your family when they all want to go to a Chinese buffet. I’m still not ready to walk in and be near a buffet.
It feels awesome to give your clothes away, however, do not offer them to your heavier friends. It’s insensitive and they won’t return your calls for a week.
Last one...I played laser tag this past weekend with a bunch of 9 year old boys. It was soooo Much fun!!!

Please feel free to add any other thoughts or tips...

...and I don't mean the temperature!
OK, this will sound like bragging, and it IS a little, but remember where I'm coming from: I had been obese my WHOLE LIFE. I first had to wear size 38 jeans in junior high school. And now I'm wearing size 34, bordering on size 33.
I was at the gym this morning -- it was arms day, biceps, forearms, trapezius, and deltoids (shoulders) -- and was working out HARD. I was looking in the mirror to check my form, and suddenly I thought -- who IS this guy? I realized that I'm looking... well... A-MAZ-ING! I mean I'm 42, so I don't look like a kid; I have laugh lines on my face, and (when I don't shave my head) a little gray around my temples. But my shoulders are broad and muscular (amazing what deltoid workouts will do, guys; wanna look broad-shouldered and thick through the chest? WORK. ON. YOUR. SHOULDERS!). My chest is just slabs of flat, hard muscle. My forearms literally RIPPLE with muscle when I move my fingers. My legs are turning into little tree trunks, and a lot of HARD work on my glutes (butt) has rescued me from the dreaded "white guy ass" -- I am getting a nice, muscular butt. I still don't like my midsection; the remaining flab and loose skin are all there, but sometimes when I move and the light is right, you can see my rectus abdominis quite clearly. Another term for rectus abdominis? SIX PACK! ME! A SIX PACK!
I wished I could have taken a picture to show you, but I'm not THAT vain; I don't bring my camera to the gym with me
I have to compare and contrast this with just two years ago, when my face was lost in a SEA of chins. My legs were big, but it was all just flabby, jello-y fat. My arms were big... with fat. They JIGGLED. And my midsection... oh dear god, what a train wreck; I had to wear size 3XL shirts just to avoid too much plumber's crack! I couldn't walk 200 yards without being tired. My feet hurt all the time. Men treated me with scorn, and to women I was simply invisible.
Now, men often do submissive body language (you know, hunched a little shoulders and eyes down) or challenging, threatened (puffed up chest, swagger, frightened/"tough" glare) body language. The one thing they don't do is scorn me. And women... well, as often as not, women have a sort of "hungry" look in their eyes when they're looking at me. I've even caught women out with their husbands/boyfriends "checking me out" and then looking away, embarrassed when I smile at them.
Am I bragging? Yes, I am. But this is all so bloody new to me. I'm a hunk! I have to avoid turning into a vain douchebag (and this obviously borders on douchebaggery already), but I figured that "Gastric Sleeve Surgery Success Stories" was the place to put this bragging if anything was.
Two years ago, I was obese, depressed, hated my body, sore, sick, tired, a clear "beta male," invisible to women, and probably on a fast track to diabetes, heart disease, cancer, or some other form of slow, painful death.
Now? I'm fit -- within 2% of my "normal" body weight according to the height/weight charts. I can run several MILES without running out of steam or injuring myself. I lift weights nearly every day. I am happy, healthy, have a strong libido, a good sex life, and I *like* what I see when I look in the mirror. I would NEVER have believed it possible two years ago if you'd asked me. NEVER.
And, while I'll take credit for eating right and going to the gym/doing other physical activities regularly, the weight loss and health I owe completely, 100% to the sleeve.
THANK YOU, SLEEVE. Getting the surgery was the single best decision I've ever made. It saved my life, literally -- it's given me a whole new me, one that I never would have believed I could be.
Thank you, sleeve.

Honestly, Protein powder is an individual thing. I had several that I enjoyed prior to surgery that I can no longer stand the sight/smell/taste of. I've not had an easy time with the pre-mixed liquids either. Perform a search and you will find many threads about Protein with people providing reviews of their favorites. I am trying Jay Robb next as he has an unflavored powder that I hope to mix into Soups.
Good luck!

So sorry to hear this. Tell you what, we both need to post in a month or two and report back on how much our feelings have changed!

Not to sound rude but when did a psychologist become qualified to say what is best for you? That seems a bit out of line in my opinion. I always thought the point of the psychologist was to recommend to the doctor that you were mentally stable enough for the surgery, not which he thinks you should do. Me personally, I would go with what the actual doctors thinks is best and what you feel is best for you. There is a lot to weigh when it comes to Bypass. I have a few girlfriends who have had the bypass and they have been through a lot and deal with a range of different issues. I say all of this to say, make sure you do your research, weigh the pro's and con's for both, and then ultimately do what you and your doctor feel is best for you and your situation.

I went to my first support group meeting today. Absolutely WORTHLESS. It was basically an excuse for the presiding doctor (not my doctor) to talk about himself. It made me incredibly grateful for VST, the people here, and the help I'm getting. I don't believe I'd be confident AT ALL in this journey if I only had the "support" group to go on.

^^^I agree with that. I don't know why a doctor's office would give a patient a date without knowing if they have the approval of the insurance company. I think it can be a set-up for a let-down.

If you can get your doctor (even a pcp) to write a note stating it's medically necessary it couldn't hurt.

My close friends and family members were very supportive when I told them of my plans, too supportive and it was actually a little off putting. Now that I am post op, I sort of wish someone would have told me what your friend said. Look at it this way, at least she cares enough to try and help instead of just jumping on the bandwagon for a serious life altering surgery. Give her a little slack, if she has never been seriously overweight then she has no idea what you are going through. Maybe when all is said and done, she will jump on board with the support that you want from her.

was just thinking it's easier to discuss religion or politics with people than it is to discuss WLS hahahahaha

Congrats! Any positive food achievements are worth celebrating.

I was told we could eat if it was toasted. Regular bread expands in the stomach.

Be honest, it does no one any favors not to be. I had a two week pre-op liquid diet and ate chicken almost every night for dinner except the last night. I was honest with my surgeon and it posed no problems. At the hospital they were most concerned that I was compliant with no food after midnight, which I was.
It was explained to me that the main reason for the lenghty diet is to give the system a rest and also try and reduce fatty liver (if you have that, i did).

Be honest, it does no one any favors not to be. I had a two week pre-op liquid diet and ate chicken almost every night for dinner except the last night. I was honest with my surgeon and it posed no problems. At the hospital they were most concerned that I was compliant with no food after midnight, which I was.
It was explained to me that the main reason for the lenghty diet is to give the system a rest and also try and reduce fatty liver (if you have that, i did).

I, too, am curious about the name of the surgeon. I also have been turned down by two surgeons because of prior surgery (my spleen was removed 30 years ago !). With that said, these two surgeons are ones who advertise on TV and/or Internet sites such as this. Once I started researching surgeons via their reputations with their peers, those who aren't so flush with "best case scenario" patients and advertising dollars, I found a very well regarded surgeon who said there is absolutely no reason other than "reputation concerns" that a surgeon would refuse to do my surgery because of my spleen was removed. In fact, he said that having no spleen would make the procedure easier for him since it offers a less crowded area in which to work. The surgeons who refused are more interested in the "easy money" patients who require the least amount of time and effort possible. Also, as a self pay person, they don't make as much money off me as they do an insurance company. It's one flat fee, no nickel and diming an insurance company to death for this and that... IMHO, surgeons who advertise on TV/Internet are kinda like lawyers who chase an ambulance to the hospital after they've seen a bad car accident.... No offense to anyone intended, just my personal opinion...

You must concentrate on liquids right now so you do not end up dehydrated. Most everyone has been in your shoes so do not feel alone!

Great site, thanks for sharing it!