jamey

Welcome Kim and Congratulations on your decision! I had my surgery in May and have never looked back. You will find anything and everything you need on this board, advise, encouragement, high fives and hugs. Looking forward to hearing about your success!

A true heartfelt thank you! You are all my inspirations every day. I start every morning here at this site, reading about everyone's struggles and triumphs. It puts me in the right frame of mind that I can feel good about whatever comes up. Whether it is food choices, missing my "friend" and choosing a new way to cope and remembering how far I have come from those hard weeks in the beginning. Thank you all for being there with me on this journey!

Thanks Doug! That is something I never thought I would hear again :thumbup:

That is so exciting! Look forward to hearing your updates! Welcome to the best decision of your life!

Wow I can't believe you were shopping on day 3! No wonder you were wiped out on day 4! You are so brave to have gone through with your surgery after your husband's experience, you are gonna do just great. 14 pounds down already! Keep up the good work!

Just wanted to take a moment and say thank you to all who participate on this board. It has helped me more than anything else whenever I needed information or just plain support. I had my surgery on May 4, 2010 and have lost 70 pounds (62 post op). I never imagined this could happen for me. I remember right before I had my surgery I had just resigned myself to a life of obesity after 20 years of failed diets. Then I heard about VSG and came to this board. The rest as they say is history. Well, not quite, yet. I still have 40 pounds to go, but I KNOW I can do it. I have found it to be so easy as long as I follow the cardinal rule: Protein first, veggies second and if there is room for anything else.....haha, like there is ever room for anything else. Well thanks for listening, and thanks for being there! Feel free to look at my before and three months after photos. Wow, now I never thought I would allow anyone to see pictures LOL

I had a transvaginal sleeve gastrectomy (only 2 scars now, plus less pain and risk of infraction with it) on 5/4/2010. I am down 70 pounds (8 was prep). Amazing staff. Waiting room time is excessive, I'm not sure why. They do a lot of surgeries and are in clinic at the hospital I think. But, it was the best thing I ever did. Dr. Horgan is so sweet and I heard from several sources that UCSD really did a lot to bring him there. I am happy to share any info you would like.

I am so happy to hear your one week went well, and I felt liberated when my tube came out. Just showering without it was so much easier. And it seemed that alot of the spasming stopped once it came out. I had trouble getting all my fluids in. I found the best popsicle was Edy's No Sugar Added fruit bars. They are pretty low in calories, carbs and sugar. They are delicious and count toward your fluids. I found they really helped me because drinking (even tiny sips) was difficult for me and the popsicles seemed to go down easier. I keep those suckers stocked now, and Edy owes me a thank you card as I have single handedly been responsible for their profits this year, haha. I am almost 3 1/2 months out now and am just now back to my old energy levels ,plus a bit extra. Of course, I sold a house, bought a house and moved across the country right afterward (glutton for punishment- no pun intended!). Hang in there. As you get more Protein and fluids in your energy will come back. And as you start watching those pounds melt away, it a natural energizer. If you watch American Idol you know that guy who sang that annoying song "Pants on the Ground"? My husband sings that to me every time my pants get too big and hang off me. It is not quite so annoying now, and I am looking forward to the next time he sings it (Just bought size 14, a first in 20 years!).

It hurt when I drank so I lived on Edys No Sugar Added juice bars to help with hydration. I took one a day vitacraves gummies, but I took double the recommended for a while to offset the lack of food.

Next week for your pre-ops, that is great! I am sure everything will go well. Hopefully we can meet before your surgical consult! I wish I had know some people who had done this before my surgery. Isn't this site great?

Yolanda, have you got a date for your pre-op surgical consult yet? I think I recall you are looking at a Sept or Oct date for surgery. I have you in my thoughts for an expeditious scheduling!

Hello notthatgirl! I would love to meet up sometime and compare stories and advice. I was going to go to the Akron General meeting tonight, but forgot my daughter is flying in from San Diego at 6:00 to Cleveland Airport.

I had my minimally invasive surgery done transvaginally at USCD Center for the Treatment of Obesity in San Diego. I know it sounds creepy at first, but most hysterectomy's are done like that. I only had 2 scars I can even notice, one a little less than and inch and one a little less than a half inch (and there is a teensy tiny one under my ribcage where he lifted the liver I believe). I had very very little pain from the incisions, my stomach was another story. But worth it. I am using Mederma, but I am not sure if it is helping or just the healing process.

I forgot to mention fitting comfortably in the airplane seat!

I am going to go back and take riding lessons and then buy a horse. I rode Western as a girl, but always wanted to ride english and do dressage and jumping. I'm over half at there and have already found the stable I am going to use. I am already living "my life" again and every day gets better. Oh yeah, and of course the sex!

Wendy's chilli is good for protein and was one of the first things I could get down comfortably. A small will last you 2-3 meals.

That is fantastic!! Around 3-4 weeks out I stalled on the scale but my clothes showed the reality. The scale began going down again soon enough and I can't believe the results! I am so happy for you! That is an amazing accomplishment, and you will find yourself "yippee-ing" out loud in the dressing room more often! If anyone looks at you weird when you come out, just smile knowing there are many more yipees to come!

I was having that very thought just the other day. I was getting ready to go shopping for some smaller pant (always a fun part of this journey), and I realized that I had not stopped to eat lunch and it was after 2:00. Prior to this I would have in all likelihood been planning my lunch within an hour of breakfast ending. It has only been a little over three months and my lifestyle has already seen signifigant changes. These were changes I knew I should have made before, but for whatever reason could not. I feel energized in general every day, and I think alot of it comes from finally feeling empowered where my body is concerned for the first time in my life!

I am sorry. The nurse should have been more sympathetic when explaining the time frame to you. I am sure she is well aware of the hoops that must be jumped through to get this approval and the emotional rollercoaster people are on. I am not sure what plan you have, but if you don't want more delays and you are confident in your surgeon, I would probably just stick it out. AniO had a great suggestion to contact the scheduler and see if there is a wait list, my doctor's nurse told me that often patients will back out just days before their surgery. That being said, if they do have one you should absolutely stick firmly to your preop diet in case you got called ahead of time (makes the liver less fatty, they have to lift it to get to your stomach).

That is wonderful, I am so happy for you! Good luck and hopefully we will see you asking for some post op tips soon!!

Wow! What a wealth of information. Thank you so much.

Just an aside at this early stage, the BEST popsicles in the world are Edy's (no sugar added) Fruit Bars. With my pain, it was hard for me to get fluids in but popsicles went down great and my doc said they counted toward liquid goals. Each bar is only 25 calories, 1g sugar, and 6 carbs. They saved me during those first 4 weeks.

I had alot more pain than I was prepared for. I had read so many stories of people who had minor pain and I normally tolerate pain pretty good. I was truly surprised at how much it did hurt. I was in quite alot of pain for the first two weeks, the next two weeks was better and by week 5 or 6 it was hardly any. I am 3 months out and still get moments of pain at the incision sites but it's not bad. Trust me though, it is so worth it!! And hang in there, it does get better.

Great, I plan to attend and look forward to meeting you! The time leading up to surgery seems so long I know. If you have any questions please feel free to message me! Jamey

Hi Yolanda, Thank you so very much! I am so excited to have a group to attend. I am very happy with my sleeve and my weight loss has been unlike any I have had before. But now that I can eat a bit more I want to be with others who can provide some direction in staying on course and focusing on getting in that Protein (always a challenge!). Anyway, I hope to see you at one of the meetings!