LilMissDiva Irene

Hello kimmr... I am a band to sleeve revision too. I'm still alive!! I'm also healthier than I've ever been in my life, smaller than I've been in 2 decades and best of all HAPPIER than I can ever remember being. All the best to you in your journey.

No way! I can eat way more than others who are just sleeved or even 6 months out - but here's what I can indulge in. I can eat one large slice of pizza or 1.5 slices of Medium. I can eat a Jr. Whopper w/cheese and some fries. I can eat about 4 Oz of breast chicken with a little bit of veggies and rice. As you can see I can eat more of a portion of not so good choices, but my good choices get me full faster. One just needs to be careful in these situations. Things like pop-corn I can eat as much as before... so I limit eating this at all. I still to this day never eat and drink at the same time. I do follow the sleever rules most of the time, but some days I do like to eat my carbs first.

I wouldn't say I had an easy go of things. I won't lie to you, I was quite bad off - though not as bad as some. I did have bad nausea and even vomitted one time. It was like coffee grounds and the nurse checked on me, said I was fine. I was quite sedated so the nausea and vomitting felt more like a dream state however I do remember it. Exactly like Doggz I too had lower body numbness and actually had to go pee so bad the nurse ended up having to help me by putting a catheter in for me. It sucked, but hey - I had to go... what are ya gonna do right? After that initial time, I was able to go on my own from there. My pain actually wasn't that bad. The worst parts were what I already mentioned. I'm pretty tough and when I'm sick of laying in bed I force myself up and will myself to get better... lol.. kinda like right now (recovering from the flu). I got through it, and so will you. Jitters are normal, don't worry - what you're feeling is common. I had them too... but yet here I am a year and a half later at goal and thanking GOD daily for my sleeve!!! Here is a thread to help you figure out what you need to take to the hospital: Click this Link

Hi there! Sounds like everything is going great to start I'm looking forward to following your journey!

Hi Ruth I'm also a revision from band to sleeve. I definitely dont regret it at all!! Welcome to the site and I look forward to reading your transition. All the best!!

Anything worth having is twice as worth fighting for. Likewise, anything we see as a trial is a test. Pass it and the rewards will be worth double.

Hugs, I so have been there. I want you to know right now that it IS possible to beat this. I did it, and though I still fight every day, I still got to a good healthy and fit weight for me. You can too!! You CAN DO THIS!!

I've actually gotten sick! I will have to wait until I get better before I start this workout routine. In the mean time there's always the elliptical.

All advice I can give you is that I too was worried about a lot of the same things you were. Not so much losing too much weight, I think I lost to (for me) is perfect, exactly how I wanted. Right now I'm just focusing on bettering my body and getting more tone. I'm not really worried about losing more weight, I just want to continue getting more and more fit. I too had reall bad reflux due from my lap band, and I've got it under control now with the help of Prilosec. I don't think it will ever go away... which is sad but I can't do anything about it, just do my best to control it. My advice to you is continue your research and make the best decision for yourself. I won't say that its the sleeve, because everyone's different. All feedback I can give you for that is my personal experience with it, and living the life I have at this moment FAR OUTWEIGHS (pun? lol) any side effects I am enduring.

Hi Slim, yes my hair did fall out. It started in month 4 and lasted all the way until about a year out. I guess that was around the time I began to eat more balanced meals as I was complete with my hard core weight loss phase. I was also taking Biotin 5,000 mcg from GNC. I've tried other brands and this is the best I've found. It doesn't help with keeping hair from falling out rather helping it to re-grow. My nails are excellent too so bonus!!

New Name: Curvilicious Candace! LOL You look AMAZING Sleeve Sister!!

WOWWWWWEEEE!!!! Girlie you look GRRRRREAT!! LOL That dress is super cute.

As far as myself I wasn't given a print of what my levels were pre-surgery so I'm not sure if they were low or not. No matter though my surgery went along as scheduled. I also have not heard of anyone's surgery being cancelled due to too low Vitamin D. That's not to say it can't happen. Hopefully someone who knows for sure they had low D pre-surgery can chime in.

I was taking about 25,000 IU per week but my levels were borderline, so now I've bumped it up to 35,000 IU per week. If it's still borderline when I have my panels checked again in Six months I'll go up to 42K IU p/w. I use GNC brand which seems to be rather good. I also use them for my Biotin.

Do NOT be discouraged brothers and sisters!! All good things shall come to those who remain steadfast and furious in their efforts. You must FIGHT for anything you see as an importance in your life. Stay positive and keep moving forward!!

It has been my experience during weight loss that if I was not getting enough Water in daily my weight would stall. As soon as I bumped up the intake along with more Protein, the weight would come off quickly again. Hang in there and keep pushing! Getting your fluids in does get a lot easier in time.

You both will be absolutely pleased. Best wishes to both of you!!

Yay Susie!! Tomorrow you will get your place on the Losers Bench, right next to all us skinnies. We always have more room for others because we all lose weight and move right on over. My advice: PATIENCE #1 POSITIVITY #2 PERSEVERENCE #3... AND Sip, sip, sip... Walk, Walk & Walk some more - and be sure to get plenty of rest. You will need it for proper healing. Oh, and don't forget to do your breathing exercises!! Xoxo

I have actually been very fortunate that none of my heavy or overweight friends have abandoned me. They have all been really supportive and constantly wishing they could somehow get the VSG too... LOL

GOD does answer prayer and GOD ALWAYS PROVIDES!! What a fantastic blessing. Well wishes for you in the near future as you jump aboard the losers bench!

Amen, I'll say it again!!!

Welcome back! I think it is ever so important to be sure you're mentally ready for this because it is not easy! It's always best to ponder for awhile before just jumping in cold turkey. You did the right thing. Now it sounds like you are 110% ready to do this... so c'mon in!! The waters fine. Looking forward to all your amazing updates!!

OT: OMGudness BBJ, you look incredible girlie!!! WTG!!!

That may be true for many women, but I am not the norm. I do bulk up a lot! That said it's mostly significant with what I'm eating, which if it's a lot of beef or pork along with lots of weight lifting, I absolutely do build up more than other women do. That said I wouldn't know if actual heaviness would have anything to do with it. I never typically go over 15 Lbs, more it could be the amount of time I'm doing it. I don't really even lift weights at all, and much prefer calisthenics type of workouts to muscle tone (weight resistance). I also only do this about 3x per week and never 2 days in a row. But, as of Monday I will be doing the highly intense Insanity workout routine which calls to be done 6 days per week. We'll see how that fares. Again, I am NOT in the majority though! I just wanted to put that out there, and maybe even find out if I am all alone on that boat. LOL!! Ok... I just read your post again and I realize I'm speaking in FAVOR of your research, not against it. Very good!!!

Oh yes! My incisions are always itchy during the healing phase. It's not much to be concerned about unless you start running a fever or if they become very inflamed or lots of draining occurs. I used Neosporin on mine and it helped a lot with the incision itching and healing quite nicely. Well wishes to you! Congrats on your new tiny tummy!!