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As it pertains to the sleeve, there really isn't one. I'm seeing some posts here that say things like, "I really need to make the first six months count because my surgeon told me loss slows after that," or "My surgeon told me I won't lose after a year and will be in maintenance at that point." This causes a panic and pressures patients to lose the weight as quickly as possible. It also causes a lot of people to feel frustrated or like they've made a poor decision with the sleeve if they aren't dropping five pounds a week! With every WLS the patient is going to lose the most weight in the first few months post op. It's purely logical. We go from eating far too many calories a day to eating almost nothing. We go weeks on a liquid diet. Even once we're on solid food, our capacity is so limited that it's laughable. In addition, almost everyone is diligent about diet and exercise at first. OF COURSE we see rapid results when we're in this stage! Many people see a slower loss from months six onward. OF COURSE they do. It doesn't mean the sleeve has stopped working and we need to panic because we're not at goal yet. It means that we're closer to goal and our bodies are losing at a slower pace. It's also our bodies compensating and adjusting because we lost so much in the earlier phase of life post op. Does loss slow from one year onward? OF COURSE it does! At one year out most people are close to or more than one hundred pounds lighter. We have less weight to lose, and yes, once we're at that point it does come off more slowly. If you're a lightweight and had less than 100 pounds to lose, expect this slowing sooner. Again, the closer you are to goal, the harder to get those final pounds off. That does not mean the sleeve works any differently. In fact, it's the same from day one. The sleeve is restrictive and that's what it does: it restricts the quantity of food you can eat in a sitting. It does NOT cause malabsorption which is going to speed up your weight loss. I've seen the study that was posted about dumping with the sleeve, but even that is not going to majorly affect your loss pattern. Your sleeve does not stretch like a bypass pouch, either. Your capacity will vary, but in my case, at about nine months post op I was double what I could fit at first with solids, and at around two years that doubled again. Sounds scary...until you realize that I'm talking about fitting in roughly 6-12 ounces of food at a time, depending on what I'm eating. That's FAR less than a pre-op stomach. So this idea of a "honeymoon" is misleading. In some respects, yes, there is an easier period of loss. But this is not due to the sleeve working more effectively. Our bodies do not look at a calendar and say, "Oh, wow, we're closing in on one year post op and so let's just transition to maintenance and stop losing now." It simply doesn't work that way. Your sleeve will work as long as you work your sleeve. When you give up and slide into maintenance or worse, into bad habits, is when you'll see the loss stop. Outside of your body's own limits on loss, there is nothing stopping anyone from achieving goal at any point post op. I just wanted to post this because we really do see a lot of questions about this and a lot of panicked posts because people aren't losing as rapidly as they want. We put on the weight over the course of many years - we cannot expect it to fall off in less than one year. Some people will fly to goal in a short period of time, but they are the lucky minority. The rest of us need to work at it and it's a longer process than a few short months. Good luck! ~Cheri

I am not here to browbeat you, BUT of the PPIs I see used here on VST, Prevacid is the one that seems to help people the least. I was on Prevacid for a while and it worked okay at controlling heartburn but did not stop the acid from making me feel that emptiness and hunger you're mentioning. The abundance of acid in your sleeve is what lets you feel that emptiness and that triggers "hunger" and our desire to eat. I really, really would try a new PPI for a short time and see if that helps. It sounds like you're eating a good diet and not depriving yourself. I really hope that the easiest thing to try is the solution for you, because having a sleeve and still feeling like you're on a diet is not the way anyone wants to live. Best of luck to you, and in the meantime, an extra Protein shake or some protein sludge or even some SF Jello might help a bit. ~Cheri

My vote is for coffee and jelly bellies. And I can't eat a two egg scramble with two sausage links and I'm 2.5 years out AND pregnant! Each sleeve is not created equally, though my OB would be thrilled if mine had the capacity of Fiddleman's. I remember a study when I was a kid about OJ being bad for us (as in, orange juice, not Simpson) but now it's touted as full of anti-oxidants and as a healthful food in moderation. A study can be performed to show everything is bad for us and a few weeks, months or years down the line we'll see a contradictory study. So hey, do what makes you happy and what you're comfortable with. The argument about cholesterol only affects you if you have a problem with cholesterol and comparing egg yolks to smoking is a ridiculous attempt to stir people up about nothing. I know people that can eat ANYTHING and have no cholesterol problems, while I also know folks that eat a pretty balanced diet and are fit that are on medications to control theirs. It's more up to genetics than anything, if you're not the person eating fast fried foods all day every day. I eat the heck out of eggs AND yolks, because yolks are a great source of many Vitamins and nutrients lacking in my diet. ~Cheri

You can lose as much as you'd like with the sleeve, as the previous posters have told you. I've seen some over 200 pound losses here, and we have a few active folks right now that wanted to lose around 200 pounds. You will lose as much as you want to lose that your body will allow. Sometimes our bodies set a goal weight a bit higher (or even lower) than our personal goal, so know that going in, but I certainly feel that 200 pounds is achievable if you put in the work it will take to get there. The important things to remember are that weight will always come off faster immediately after surgery, so a slowdown is normal and should not discourage you from trying for your ultimate goal. Additionally, because you want to lose more than 70-120 pounds, your journey will be longer. There's nothing wrong with that! Just expect that, and know that every pound lost, no matter at what pace, is a pound lost forever. Life at goal is the ultimate goal here - and dedicating one to two years of your life towards that is a small price to pay. Congrats on making this decision, and on your new sleeve. Please update the boards as you progress, so that there is more information out there for people in a similar situation. Everything you contribute about your own experience can help others see if this is the right surgery for them. Good luck! ~Cheri

Are you on a PPI and if you are, is it working for you? The signs of acid overproduction aren't limited to the burning in your throat or tightness in your chest or abdomen. One of the biggest indicators is that feeling of hunger - like a growling stomach prior to surgery. It's easy even for vets to miss this - I'm 2.5 years out and when I got pregnant was sure that the pregnancy was making me ravenous around the clock. I was SO hungry, even within a short time of a meal. Well, duh...you'd think time and experience would have made it clear sooner, but the issue was acid production. It didn't even occur to me because the heartburn was so infrequent, and again, I chalked that up to pregnancy. As soon as I was on a PPI again, I was back to forgetting to eat my Snacks between meals. So, first step is ALWAYS to check your PPI. If you're not on one, try one for a week or two and see if it helps. If you are on one, you might need a different one. I had two that worked for short periods of time but eventually stopped. It was only once I was on Prilosec (omeprazole) that I felt real relief that lasted a full 24 hours. Everyone is different, and what you're on might not be working for you. Beyond that, yes, Protein will help. Drinking Water will help. Being 100% certain it's not head hunger or hormonal hunger is important. But there are people that don't lose the hunger for the long haul. They are few and far between but they do exist. It's normal to feel "hungry" on a liquid diet. But once you're on solids it's far more common to feel no hunger and many of us actually start to hate eating because it becomes a chore. Good luck, I hope you find a solution. ~Cheri

A SF Jello won't hurt you. Are you on a PPI? My bigger concern is that you feel "hungry" so quickly after eating a solid meal. Don't get me wrong, there are people here that never lose the hunger. But it's far more common for people to have NO appetite at all. I do not say this to concern you or so you'll start to think something is wrong. But be sure that you're on a PPI like Nexium or Prilosec, because the noisy, gurgling acid does feel like a hungry stomach. Also be sure that you're actually hungry..not just eating at night because it's what you used to do, or because you'd like a snack when you're watching television or something. Curbing head hunger from the very beginning will only help you in the end. But if you're hungry, the biggest thing is to eat! I'd recommend tracking your calories daily. That way if you're hungry or want a snack later in the day you know if you have calories to afford - and if you want a small meal or a small snack. Many days I'd hit the evening and feel like I should eat something, only to realize I was several hundred calories short of my daily goal. That's a meal, not a snack! Oh, and Protein shakes or sludge are always great before bed Snacks because they stave off the hunger, fill the sweet tooth and give you an extra protein boost for the day. I eat about every three to four hours (when I remember to eat!) and to me it's normal to feel a need to eat again a few hours after a meal. While that salmon might have seemed like a substantial meal, especially so newly onto real food, I doubt it was enough to tide you over for twelve hours! Good luck, and congrats on your new sleeve, ~Cheri

Yeah, OTR! I was glad this thing might finally be dead, but hey, now that it's not... The big issue I have with this thread is that it's a panic button for uniformed people that don't bother to read the posts (you know, the handful of sensible ones in here, wedged in between the name calling and arguing) and it has so many words that will come up in frequent searches. It doesn't matter if I unsubscribe because I could care less about the nastiness in this thread and I'm not annoyed that it exists, just at way the thread evolved. What matters to me is that as a vet, every time this thread gets resuscitated (like I'm guilty of doing right now), we can expect to get slammed with questions about stretchy sleeves, rapid regains, etc. when there was no real need for people to get into a tizzy. Very few people have the patience to read through more than 21 pages of posts to find the relevant pieces of information. ~Cheri

This is exactly the right approach. Until you're mentally ready and have shed the emotional eating or habitual eating, incorporating foods that require moderation won't work. Because you aren't ready for moderation yet! But going back to basics and eating Protein first will help you immensely. You'll need to break the carb cycle - for a lot of us, too many poor quality carb choices wake the carb monster. If you've ever seen anything I've posted you know I don't advocate low carbing post op, but I do recognize the very real reactions that processed foods cause in our bodies. Sugar, in particular really hits a trigger with some folks. Do not expect perfection from yourself. None of us are perfect. But do make the little steps you need each day to transition those bad habits into better ones. If you want your morning coffee, indulge - but drink a Tall, not a Grande, or make it a skinny one. I think tracking your calories again if you've stopped will also help you see the big picture. Thank you for posting. People all too often assume the sleeve will do the work for us. And to some extent, that's true. But those ingrained habits and "head" issues that contributed to our obesity do not go away just because our stomach is smaller, and it's important to face them and overcome them if you want long term success. Best of luck and know that you are not alone with this struggle. If you focus on these habits now, you have the chance to reach goal well adjusted and with a healthy, moderate approach to food. That's what you want to live easily at goal for the rest of your life. ~Cheri

Great job. I will chime in as a negative nancy and warn you not to expect the same results every week. Usually a huge drop is followed by a slowdown, so don't feel defeated if that does happen or if you happen to hit a stall earlier because you've lost so much so quickly. Just try to look at the big picture and enjoy this huge drop so soon after surgery. Good luck and congrats on your new sleeve, ~Cheri

It's easy to fall into old habits, even once you're a vet. It's a learning process. No worries, I'm sure you're fine. It's just a matter of needing to go slow and steady. For me, at least, measuring was critical for a very long time. Even now it's all to easy to think I've eaten very little or a lot in a day but it isn't until I track everything that I see I was on target. We forget how many bites we've taken, our memory of what we've eaten is easy blurred if we're distracted. Next time, set aside a nice little portion for yourself and see how it settles before attempting anything more! And if it's any consolation, I was making huge batches of hummus for an event a few weeks ago and did the same darn thing. I didn't feel sick but I ate to the point of being full and uncomfortable because I was snacking on chickpeas as I was making salads and hummus. A handful here, a handful there and it adds up! My problem lies more in getting distracted by what I'm doing and forgetting to eat regular meals and Snacks. We all have our bad habits to overcome, and some of these challenges are with us for the long haul. ~Cheri

You're still on a liquid diet. If you're really concerned, call your surgeon's office, but honestly, I do not really think it makes a difference. Pre op diets are very challenging and it's not as if you're asking for validation to stop at a doughnut shop instead of drinking your shake. Do what you need to do to get through this time, in my opinion. ~Cheri

Sorry, just saw this! I use the King Arthur Flour recipes - I've made both the organic whole wheat and the golden pitas and my family loves both. I'll say that I do think the whole wheat ones make better pita chips...just a texture thing, I think. I make my own because you cannot buy them here and I bake 100% of my bread because we don't care for the local breads. I just make a double batch of the pitas and make half of them into chips. We use the other half for sandwiches. These freeze really well if you're not a regular baker and you decide to freeze the cooled pitas. Just thaw them in the fridge overnight and make chips from there. This also works if you won't be eating a lot of them. Here are links to the two recipes I've used. I don't modify either of them - they work just as written with my oven. To make chips I just heat the oven to 350 degrees and brush the pita with olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt (or if I'm making fruit salsa instead of hummus, maybe I'll sprinkle with some sugar and cinnamon) and then I'll cut each pita into eight wedges. Arrange them on a lined baking sheet and bake for about fifteen minutes. Check to make sure they're crispy - they could need more or less time, depending on your oven and the thickness of your pitas. Best of luck! http://www.kingarthu...it-salsa-recipe (I've never tried the salsa) http://www.kingarthu...ta-bread-recipe ~Cheri

Thanks for sharing. I'm pregnant and realized the other day how much trouble I was having moving around. Sure, some of it is that pregnancy awkwardness but a big part is that I'm up twenty one pounds. That's not a lot of weight if you think of it in terms of one hundred or more pounds to lose. I mean, I remember being frustrated in the beginning when I'd "only" lost forty pounds. But it impacts my ability to move and it wears me out. To think I used to carry 105 extra pounds on this body at one time, and didn't really even realize the impact. Great post. People get too hung up on scale goals and forget quality of life and long term maintenance goals because they're distracted by the numbers. ~Cheri

I'm so thankful you had routine care that caught this immediately. Positive thoughts and prayers for you. I had preterm labor with my twins but after the steroid shots and with the extra monitoring I was able to carry full term, and never did dilate any more until delivery. Here's hoping you have the same positive outcome. Take it easy, lady! Rest whenever you can, though I'm sure your doc already told you that. ~Cheri

I was absolutely messing with you. I'm just jealous that you can eat a cheeseburger and I can't. They can't make a proper cheeseburger in Central Asia, and I can't really make one myself, limited by the quality of the local beef. And why am I not surprised that Fyre chimed in with "babies?" ~Cheri

Hey! Stay on topic!!! The OP asked a question and you're distracting us all with your talk of delicious, cheesy cheeseburgers... Dang. I wish I could eat a cheeseburger where I live. OP - I don't feel any guilt about anything I eat. I eat what I want, in moderation and by golly, I enjoy it. If I'm only going to eat a few bites at a time of something, they had better be wonderful or I'll get testy. Sometime around 12-15 months out I shed the idea that eating something I enjoy had to be a treat or something to feel guilty about. So, my not-so-guilty pleasure? Being healthy in both body and mind, and enjoying food like a woman that didn't spend half her life obese. ~Cheri

Congrats! Mine is in remission, too, and I couldn't be happier. It was the big medical motivator for me to have the surgery and I am so pleased that it worked for me. It's just one more way the sleeve will improve your life. ~Cheri

Yes, definitely do your research and seek out the negative stories as well as the positive ones. Too many people make this decision - and it IS a drastic one - without educating themselves on all possibilities. Complications are rare but that's no comfort to you or your loved ones if you wind up in the 1 percent. I started by researching the band. Being the cautious planner that I am, I did a solid several months of looking into the procedure and honestly, what I found was upsetting. Too many complications, too many repeat surgeries, too many with damage to the stomach and far too many people not losing the weight. When I saw many were revising to sleeve I started researching it as well. And honestly? The first time I read about the procedure I was horrified and thought it was far too drastic. I did some metabolic testing and saw another nutritionist (sixth or seventh time, I think) and did another dieting attempt. During this period, I kept researching the sleeve, just watching and waiting, without really being sure it was right for me. At some point (perhaps it was the results of the metabolic testing or the failure and regain I suffered on yet another diet) I decided to more seriously consider the sleeve. All told, I did a solid year of research on the sleeve and spent several months researching three different doctors before making my decision. I went in knowing what to expect and I feel I had a smooth recovery and adjustment because of that. Well, as smooth as life can be when you find yourself without your usual emotional crutch and unable to indulge in the overeating you enjoyed so much! But it was the right choice for me. Time and research are all that will tell you if you want this surgery. Being cautious is commendable. Being prepared is imperative. I'm very happy and would do it again in a heartbeat. In fact, I'd love to take my mom and sister to get the surgery done, too! But it's easy for me to say that when I suffered no real complications. Good luck. Ask questions and read everything you can find here. There are some old threads here that are immensely informative and still relevant today. Search out all of the experiences you can find and make a choice once you're fully educated on the pros and cons of this surgery. ~Cheri

I'm pregnant so I eat more than I used to, but my weight gain is normal for a pregnant lady and I figured it can't hurt to contribute. Here's yesterday which includes two meals out with local Kyrgyz people: Breakfast: Protein coffee (2 scoops Syntrax chocolate truffle with 10 oz. coffee and some ice); later on, 1/3 cup of oatmeal with dried blueberries (homemade) Snack: 1 hard boiled egg Lunch: 1 cup of shorpo-a beef broth soup that has carrots, potatoes and beef, but I skipped the actual beef; 1/2 cup choban (tomato, cucumber and dill salad), a few bites of cabbage salad (a vinegar based slaw, almost) Snack: 1/4 cup dried cranberries and 1 oz. Gruyere Swiss Dinner: 1/2 cup chickpea salad; 1/4 cup plov (rice with lamb, veggies)...after about a billion cups of tea while them men did toasts of vodka, I ate about 1/2 cup of roasted eggplant, zucchini and bell pepper, a small piece of lavash and maybe 1/4 cup of hummus with fresh vegetables Normally I'd have a small snack before bed but I was so thankful to be home (even with my vodka-soaked husband, poor guy) that I went straight to bed with just a glass of Water. I have to really guess on a lot of the nutritional info since I didn't make two of my meals, but MFP has me at roughly 1,300 calories (I aim for 1,400-1,600 a day in pregnancy) so that's not terrible, I guess. And I'd venture that my intake really was closer to 1,500 because I didn't make the food. This, honestly, is real life for me these days. We eat out with our counterparts a lot and I can't control what will be served. All I can do is not eat meat...and they think I'm crazy for skipping that! I drank water between meals and countless cups of green tea...which I paid for when I was up and down all night. Pregnancy is so glamorous. Oh, and I'm about 2.5 years post op. ~Cheri

Ouch, sorry to hear this. Yep, I think that you're probably going to want to reward yourself with some coverup work once you're at goal. None of mine really had a huge impact with my weight gain so they look just fine with my loss. The only one I worried about was the one on my neck...I thought it might get saggy with the loss since my face was so bloated before. But I didn't have an issue so there you go. Good luck and I say worry about it later. If you decide on plastics after that will also impact any tattoos placed in certain areas so wait until you're sure you're done with your body before you get new ones or start coverups. ~Cheri

I did Miralax until about nine/ten months post op and it helped immensely. I've already had...erm...issues in the past and didn't want to cause a new problem due to the irregularity. Every other day I'd do some Miralax in my morning drink and I was fine. After that point, I started incorporating more grains and fibrous veggies and that took care of the problem naturally. You don't want to rely on any OTC remedy for too long, but from everything I've read and from what my own doc told me, the Miralax (and generic) are safe and won't cause an issue. And if you like them, prunes (or the aforementioned prune juice) work, too. In fact, if you have a Vitamix or similar, any juice made with fruit or veggies with peels will take care of the issue for you, too. ~Cheri

Congrats on your new sleeve! The gas-x helped one of the other gals that was sleeved the same day as me, but it just caused me discomfort. Try it and see if it helps. What worked best for me was walking every single chance I got. I did laps and laps of the hospital and by the time I left the hospital the gas was no longer an issue. For a day or two, ouch! The gas loves to settle in my left shoulder whenever I have a lap surgery and it's no fun. Wishing you a speedy recovery! ~Cheri

Sounds pretty normal. I do recommend an inexpensive food scale, though. Then you'll know for sure what you're eating. It really helps, because much like our brains see our bodies as larger while we're losing, they're also unused to seeing our portions of food as what they really are. It takes a lot of practice. I'd weigh everything for several months, until you're absolutely sure you can eyeball it...and even then? I still weigh every now and again just to double check myself! Don't fret. It's hard to eat but if you eat too much, you're going to know it because you'll feel discomfort and that last bite will come back up. All sleeves are not created equal, so you might tolerate more of a dense Protein than someone else - but that doesn't mean you're eating too much, it just means you tolerate more than another person! Good luck, and congrats on your new sleeve, ~Cheri

Just do what you can. I remember going from a pre-sleeve love of eating and obsession with food to post op, feeling like eating was a chore and hating the fact that I always had food or drink in my hand so I could meet my goals! It certainly helped me break some of the food addiction, though. Just focus on hydration first post op (dehydration is the most common issue you could encounter and prevent on your own) and Protein second. You'll eventually find a schedule for eating that's best for you, and sorry to say, it's not likely to be the one you've got there. That's a full time job! Good luck, ~Cheri

Ha! No, I have five stepkids. One is married and already has a son and one is out on her own exploring the world. The other three from his first marriage still live with their mom. Eh, my hubs was snipped and clipped but then he met me and we decided to have bonus babies. Clearly, our situation was exceptional. I mean, you just can't keep awesome genes like that to yourself. You've got to share them with the world. The world isn't as appreciative as I thought it'd be, though. Especially when we've got the whole crew together in a restaurant or store at the same time. Actually, the comments all make me laugh. Except the ones that try to ask me what religion I am, as if wanting a large family requires a religious affiliation. Oh, and one time I was mistaken for my husband's oldest daughter. That was kind of creepy/flattering...I mean, she's 22 and it would be nice to believe I could pass for less than thirty. But as his daughter? Ugh, heebie jeebies. ~Cheri