PatrickG

I talked with a surgeon yesterday. I am having my gall bladder removed on March 27.

The ultrasound this morning showed that I do have gall stones, but the technician said there was no "emergent condition". I am wating for the doctor to review the ultrasound and blood tests.

I have not had any acute pain until this week but I have had a dull back ache off and on for years. I just assumed it was regular back pain but it could have been my gall bladder.

Both times were after my afternoon snack. The first time it was yougurt and tea. The second time it was coffee and Cookies. My insides were probably irritated from the chilli I had for lunch both days and the cocktails I had the weekend before. The pain did start in the upper right abdomin but was a dull ache. The intense pain was in my back just below my shoulder blades. I had blood tests today and my liver enzymes were elevated. I am going for an ultrasound Saturday morning.

I tried getting an appointment with the gastro specialist but the earliest appointment was not until April 30!

I really have to thank my primary care physician for stepping up and ordering the tests and ultrasound after I called this morning.

For the second time this week I had sever pain in my back just below my shoulder blades on both sides. The pain was intense at first but faded after an hour. Both times I had eaten something within the last 1/2 hour. The first time I burped and the pain decreased immediately. The second time I took gas-x thinking it was gas again. It did not help. I told my boss I was headed to urgent care. He offered to drive me, but I drove myself. By the time I got checked in and saw the doctor the pain was mostly gone. I am going to see a gastroenterologist ASAP.

My wife got the band and I got the VSG. She has a lot more trouble eating solid meat than I do. In fact she avoids it most of the time. We have both lost approximately the same % of excess weight.

Girl Scout Cookies.< /p>

Girl Scout Cookies. Need I say more.

I wish my 13 year old son could get it done. I am sure insurance will not cover it at his age.

Right after surgery my LDL levels dropped to normal range. Now at a year past surgery my LDL levels have come back to just above normal. It is most likely hereditary causes. I am back on simvastatin at a lower dose than pre-surgery. Good news is that my HDL and triglycerides remain in the normal range and I am no longer type 2 diabetic.

Present

It wasn't even a compliment that prompted the original posting. It was a smile from a woman I passed every day while walking on my lunch break. I have since got over it. As my wife said when I first mentioned it "OMG, now you think you're hot and she is probably just being nice."

Hey! I resemble that remark!

I have not checked my posts in a while. Didn't realize this thread was still alive.

On a side note, my wife got me a new wedding band for Christmas since the old one was getting loose. She was totally understanding about the whole thing when I mentioned it, but she does not want any misunderstandings either .

Have you thought about taking Caffeine pills? As a way to slowly reduce the amount you are taking? I found some "Tension Headache" pills the other day and they are acetaminophen and caffeine. They help! (or do you really want the sugar??)

I am happy to say that I have kicked the sugar monkey off my back for a week now. As for caffeine I get that from iced tea. Before I started the sublingual B12 and the walks at lunch, the caffeine was not enough. Now it is.

Hi Patrick, your getting back on track and your almost to your goal and that's great. Honestly I have a couple cups of coffee a day without sugar, I don't think anything is wrong with a little caffine.

I also think I have a sugar addiction, it has really slowed my weight loss. I don't have much interest in regular food, so its easy to stick to the Protein first. But I need chocolate every day, its like the only thing that I really enjoy eating. I haven't had any sweets for a few day and I'm really craving it. I'm wondering about the B12, does that really help? I know I won't have any self control after Holloween.

Good luck

I certainly have not kicked the caffeine habit. I drink two quarts (64 oz) of iced tea per day. Falling back on Mt Dew to get the extra sugar kick.

The extra energy might just be from the walking. However I switched from B12 in a pill form to one that dissolves in your mouth. Since our stomachs have been reduced we can't absorb as much B12 in the stomach and need to absorb as much as possible in the mouth.

I have been stuck at 200 for over a month now. I tried rationalizing the my %body fat was in the healthy range at 25%. But I have to face up to facts: the carb monkey is back on my back.

It started a few months ago. I was so tired at work and iced tea was not helping. So I went to my standby diet Mt. Dew which is akin to drinking piss. I finally caved and started buying 20oz regular Mt. Dew to get me though the afternoon. And one per day led to two per day. I was buying them at work at twice the cost of getting a six-pack of 24oz bottles. You see where this is going. I am back to a two a day habit even on weekends. This and overeating are what made me morbidly obese in the first place.

So I have tried budging the weight down by walking at least 30 minutes per day on my lunch hour. I also started taking sublingual B12 tables after I finished out the non disolvable ones. It seems to help. I don't feel like I need to extra kick of sugar and caffeine to get me through the afternoon.

So starting today I am kicking this money off my back and getting back on track to goal!

Go ahead and tell me what a backslider I have been.

I guess I better start wearing my wedding ring so no one gets the wrong idea.

PS I probably sound like a ****** for even starting this topic, but once a topic is started you cannot remove it.

http://upload.wikime...S_1994_Data.PNG

The attached chart says it all for me. I am at 30 BMI but about 25% body fat. So according to BMI I am borderline obese, but according to %body fat I am at the top end of normal.

PatrickG, the 20lbs really makes a differrence. The "hang over" belly is gone. I always hate how my gut hangs over my pants.

The difference was about 50 lbs at 20 weeks.

I haven't done one recently but here is the comparison of the night before surgery and about 20 weeks.

The pad does shrink but the extra skin is still there. That said there is more "usable" length; just be careful not to hurt your partner with your enthusiasm for the extra length.

I had surgery on February 4. For the last month I have been stuck at 205-210. Like you I think my body is done losing. Getting to my goal of below 200 will apparently require something more than I am already doing.

thanks so much for the reply I was beginning to think that I was the only one on here with gout. I hope the surgery helps my gout and where do you get black tart cherry extract? Thanks again for the reply.

I have purchased them at GNC and The Vitamin Shoppe.

I was wondering if there was anyone out there who had gout before surgery and wondering if the surgery helped them with gout or did it just stay the same? Thank you in advance. Gout is a form of artritis that is really painful. Would be totally relieved if it went away I really hope it does.

I had an episode 1 week before surgery! I had another episode a few weeks after surgery which was probably because of rapid weight loss. I have gone a few months without an episode. I have been taking black (tart) cherry extract to ward them off.

Well done you... you look taller!! Congrats on a job well done... so far so good eh?!

No. Just the distance from the camera. That's why I take the pictures in front of the door for scale.