Shanny

I'm 15 months post-op. I thought having complications was long behind me. But alas, yesterday I found out that I have to have surgery to repair my incisional hyper-umbilical hernia.

Six months ago, I was doing crunches and I felt a pull in my navel. I went to the doctor and we both thought I had pulled a muscle. It didn't bother me for a while. Three months ago when I had an impacted colon, my CAT scan showed that I had a hernia. Recently, the more I exercise, the more my stomach and navel hurt. Two weeks ago, I had the stomach flu from hell. I threw up for 3 days straight. Since then the shape of the top part of my stomach has changed and now I feel something poking out of my stomach, which I cad push back in.

I went back to my surgeon and he did an exam. The hernia that was a few centimeters in January is now from my navel to almost my breastbone. To make things worse, when my surgeon had me cough, he noticed that my intestines are pushing through the hole. Luckily, nothing is strangled, but he wants to do the surgery sooner, rather than later. So, I'm waiting for a date. We trying to do it next week, or the week after. The good news is, he said that he can tighten the muscle above my navel - like a particial Tummy Tuck, and it will be covered by my insurance as a hernia repair. But, because the bottom of my stomach is fine, he can't do that part. I guess beggers can't be chosey.

I really thought that after my sleeve my next surgery would be plastic surgery. Guess that's not the case. I feel fine, for the most part. It only bothers me when I do certain things. I can't work out like I want to because things start pushing through and it's irritating. But jogging and walking don't bother me, so that's what I've been doing. Eating feels weird because I can feel the food moving through my stomach and intestines.

I'll be so glad when I get this fixed!

I know exactly what you're talking about! I wasn't a big sweets eater before, but I'm definitely an emotional eater. I've been stressed lately, it seems to be coming from all places. Since I can't eat Pasta & bread (what I loved before surgery) I've discovered chocolate, brownies, and ice cream! Unfortunately, it doesn't hurt when I eat it.

I'm really trying to get myself together and keep away from the sweets. I exercise regularly, but lately sweets have been my reward for working out. It's hard, but yesterday I looked at myself in the mirror and decided I've come too far and worked too hard. I'm not going back!

Oh, I just found this thread! Thank God for it! I'm addicted to Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, York Pepperment Patties, chocolate ice cream...hell, all chocolate! I never had a sweet tooth before but now it's all I crave. It's easier if I just don't have any chocolate, because I've found out I can't have just 1 piece. Last week, I ate an entire snack size bag of Reese's mini Peanut Butter cups. That's the only food I had the whole day!

I felt worse emotionally than I did physically afterward. I need rehab!

@ Lissa, I know 3 pounds isn't a lot. I'm just afraid that 3 pounds will turn into 10, which will turn into 20 and then me gaining all of my weight back! It's irrational, but I'm so afraid to go back to feeling how I did when I was bigger. I can't let that happen. I want to nip it now before it gets out of hand.

Thanks for the kind words. I feel great and I'm healthy. That's all that really matters.

I try not to stress about my weight. I know what I'm supposed to do and I have it down to a science. However, over the last few weeks, I've realized that i am addicted to chocolate. It's the one thing that I can eat all day long. Reese's Peanut Butter Cups and York Peppermint Patties are my drug of choice. Actually, there were a few bad days where that's all I ate.Granted we were waiting for high school acceptance letters, and then financial aid/scholarship awards. I know that doesn't sound like a good reason to go on a chocolate binge, but if my son didn't get into high school, he would have to go to public school and I swear I will put on clear heels and glitter, change my name to Bubbles, and work a pole before that happens - I was stressed out!

Needless to say, in the last 6 weeks, I've gained 3 pounds. Even though I had my chocolate thing, I still exercised regularly. In fact, I've stepped it up! I walked 14.5 miles yesterday! Go me!!! I belly dancing, Bollywood Dancing, do Crunch Ass & Abs everday, aerobics 2 times a week, and walk at least 20 miles a week! I'm in great shape. I can't get these damn 3 pounds off though!

It's not all bad. My body shape has shifted again, and I have a butt and hips again! Thank God. The remaining fat shifted and I'm curvy again(I hated the way I was shaped once I started losing weight - I'm not used to not having a butt!) My measurements are smaller than they were before my chocolate indisgression, yet my weight is up. I'm even in a smaller pants size now. I'm down from an 8 and firmly into a 6. But, I weigh more. I don't understand it.

I try not to live my life by the scale, but I can't help but to weigh myself everyday. I love the way I look, I love the way my clothes fit. I'm in the best shape of my life, so why are those damn numbers so important to me? I know I have to maintain my weight for 6 months before I can have plastic surgery. Maybe that's why. I want a Tummy Tuck and my thighs and arms done. But at this rate it's not going to happen as long as I'm gaining weight.

I haven't been through one of these upward swings in a hot minute, so I'm slightly freaking out about it. I know that I have just wait and one day I'll wake up and have lost 5 pounds. But, until then I remain slightly frustrated!

NSV = Non-scale victory!

So, went shopping, and the pair of pants I wanted they didn't have in my size. In fact, they didn't have it the next two sizes down from me, either. So, for the hell of it, I picked up a size 5 just to see if I could squeeze a thigh in it. Guess what? I bought them! HA!!!!! I am NOT a size 5, but I can wear these pants! I can't pull them up on my hips as far as I can my other pants, but I can button and zip them, sit in them, and bend over in them.

I HAVE A PAIR OF SIZE 5 PANTS!!!!!

I am still smiling about it! I'm going to wear them this weekend on date night - make myself feel extra special!

Love my sleeve!!!!

I know what the scale says I weigh, but sometimes it doesn't seem real.

I have worn a size 2x pantyhose, and Queen sized knee highs for years. Yesterday I decided to buy some hose, and I was lost in the store. After buying several things and them not fitting, I found out, I'm a size A hose, and now "One Size Fits All" applies to me!

I love my sleeve!

I'm 5'1.5".

Surgery Date: 2/9/11

Highest Weight: 247

Date of Surgery Weight: 225

1 month post surgery weight: 191

6 months post surgery weight: 158

9 months post surgery weight: 153

11 months post surgery weight: 147

Total weight loss, thus far: 100 pounds

I posted a few weeks ago that I was having some stomach issues. I had posted that I can't poop, and that I was having a pulling pain in my stomach. Well, this week, I have been to 5 different doctors, including my surgeon, primary care doctor, emergency room twice, and the gastro doctor. I finally got some answers and feel much better, but here's what they think went wrong...

Okay, here's the whole story. In December I went on a cruise to the Bahamas. I'm one of those sleevers that have a very temperamental stomach. I can't digest a lot of foods, so I have to be pretty picky when it comes to what I eat. On the cruise, I ate Protein bars, cheese, baked chicken (when they had it available), and salad - for 7 days. Unfortunately when I did try to eat other things, I spent a lot of time throwing up. FYI Curried chicken does NOT love my sleeve. Anyway, I got really constipated while on vacation, for about a week. When we got home I took a laxative and was able to go the bathroom. A few days later, I was constipated again, so I took another laxative. A week after that, I was constipated again, so I took another one. I thought it was just because it was the holidays and I was eating differently.

Two weeks ago, I was really constipated - 6 days with no output, so I took another laxative. It didn't work, so I took another one. Basically I only passed Water. The bloating and inability to go to the bathroom continued. Since then my stomach had become really distended, and I went from being 149 pounds to 156. I could no longer wear pants because I couldn't button them. I had stopped eating food, and went on all liquids because eating was so uncomfortable. Then the vomiting started. As of last night it had been 18 days since I went to the bathroom.

I went to my PCP, and surgeon and they ordered a CT scan. There was no obstruction noted so they told me to take Miralax. I started taking the Miralax and it got worse. So much gas, and bloating. I couldn't even drink anything without throwing up. I went to the ER on Tuesday and they made it sound like Constipation was normal and that I would go eventually. Wednesday I was in so much pain - I noticed that I wasn't passing urine either. Yesterday, I went to work and honestly had people at work ask if I was pregnant. I looked like I was 5 months. My stomach was huge. Last night I went back to the ER, I couldn't keep anything in, I had a fever, and I thought I was going to die. My blood pressure was 90/70 and my pulse rate had gone down. I only passed urine 1 time all day, even though I had a cup of coffee, 32 oz of Water, and tea.

They did an x-ray and saw how constipated I was. Then came the examine that revealed I had an impacted colon. They had to manually remove the impaction before giving me an enima. It was so painful, but I felt 100 x better immediately! The doctor told me that I was slowly being poisoned by the toxins that were building up in my body. My blood pressure and pulse being low and not being able to pass urine, was being caused because my systems were shutting down due to the toxins. As soon as I went to the bathroom, my blood pressure went back up to normal, and I felt so much better. I still don't feel 100% but it's damn close. My weight went from 156 yesterday to 147 today.

I don't have an appetite and I have to force myself to drink but at least the worse part is over. They found a lot of pus and blood in my stole, so my intestines are infected. I'm waiting on a date for a colonoscopy to find out if it was caused by the impaction or if there's another reason.

My doctors believe that the impaction came from my sudden change in diet, and vomiting. Then from my frequent use of laxatives. I was just trying to go to bathroom and give myself some relief.

The moral to this story is, when you go on vacation, make sure you have plenty of foods that you can eat with you, if you have a sensative stomach. Make sure you're eating like you're supposed to, and get plenty of exercise. Vomiting and constipation are NOT normal. See your doctor and don't give up if you know there is something wrong. I'm lucky that they were able to figure out what was going on before it was too late. It could have been a lot worse.

You look AWESOME!!!! Congratulations! I love that your whole family can fit in your old belt!

Keep up the great work!

I'm 5'1.5" Don't skimp on the 1/2 inch! I'm down almost 100 pounds!

I have the same problem. I'm almost a year out and I eat around 800-850 calories, and that's when I force myself to eat dessert, too. For a long time I only got about 600 calories a day. I think as long as you're eating foods with the nutrients you need, you'll be okay. 1200 calories is a LOT! I told my doctor that there's no way in hell I can get that much in unless he want me to completely stretch my sleeve out.

I agree with RickM. It's not a race. I'd much rather maintain my weight than lose it all in a hurry. It's murder on your body. You're cold all the time. I used to get random pain in my muscles because of lack of nutrients. I wish I could get up to 1200 calories, like normal people, but I still can't eat that much. Up until 3 months post op I was only eating 3-4 tbsp at a time. Anything more and it was coming back up. Now, at almost a year out if I eat 1 bite over 1/2 cup of food I'm in so much pain because I'm too full. I try not to eat high caloric foods, mainly because that's my weakness. They are the ones that taste the best. But, they're usually the heaviest, too, so I only can eat a couple of bites, and then I don't get enough Protein. When I don't get enough Protein I get deep tissue pain, and my hair starts to shed. So, for me, I have to do what the doc says. Although, he been suggested that I increase my calories from 600 to 800. I make 850, if I eat 1/4 cup of lowfat ice cream.

I also notice that the more I exercise the less I eat. I work up an appetite, but I'm way more satisfied when I do eat then when I don't exercise. I went on vacation and didn't work out. I tried stuffing everything under the sun in my mouth because I was searching for something and nothing would satisfy it. One day I decided to go the gym and that crazy hunger I was trying to fill, went away.

I don't know much about metabolisms or anything, but I know that exercise makes me feel better. Especially in the beginning. I had so much energy it was crazy. I felt like I was going to jump out of my skin if I didn't do something. Working out did it for me. Now, I work out, not because I love to exercise, but because I want to maintain what I've started and my muscles start to ache if I don't work out after a few days. I have discovered though, that caffeine and Zumba is the best high in the world! I never drank coffee before, but I recently started. The rush of coffee, topped with a great cardio workout... I finally know what that endorphin rush feels like!

I indulge, when I have a craving. chocolate has been my enemy for about a month now. I never liked the stuff before, but I have these cravings. I'm on a Reece's Peanutbutter Cup kick. I have to have 1 a day or it's not pretty. A few months ago, it was salt. I couldn't have enough Doritos. I think your body tells you when you're missing something. The key is to do it in moderation. This week, I can't shake Butter Toffee Crunch ice cream. I just need like a few spoonfuls and I'm good.

I like the way I look now, even though the chart says I'm overweight for my height. Another 5-10 pounds would okay to lose, but I don't want to be 109 pounds like the chart says I'm supposed to be. I think one of my leg bones weighs that much alone!

Efamcan, I didn't lose weight constantly, like 20 pounds per month. Some months it was like 35 pounds, some it was like 10. My advise, eat PROTEIN!!!!! I didn't eat anything but Protein. Even if I had room for veggies, I just ate the Protein. Drink plenty of Water. No carbs. And no sugar. Those Wyler's drink mixes that you put in Water, that are 5 calories and sugar free...I lived off those things. Protein shakes - have 1 everyday for Breakfast, still. Track your food intake. I use myfitnesspal.com. I do it so that I don't go over my allotted calories - 900 (although I never make it 900; I'm usually around 850), and fats. I do tend to go over on carbs, but everything has carbs in it - even milk for the Protein Shakes.< /p>

My best advice: EXERCISE!!! I walk 10 miles, 2 times a week. I Zumba 2 times a week and water aerobics and/or dance aerobics, and lift weights once a week. I have to. I'm telling you that walking! The pounds just fell off!!!

It's not easy and some days I fall way off the wagon. I ususally end up making myself sick when I do. But, I'm a work in progress.

Don't worry about the stall. They happen and then one day, maybe in a few weeks, it'll stop, by itself. Even if you're not losing pounds, you may still be losing inches. Try measuring yourself with a tape measure. It's not all about the scale!

Contact me anytime with any questions.

Good luck!

Okay, so I'm sure this is TMI. I'm almost a year out, and recently, like in the last month, I've started having some stomach issues.

First, I can't poop. I started using Benefibre because I thought that I wasnt' getting enough Fiber or maybe it was the Iron pills. That stuff just makes me bloated and gassy. So, I stopped taking the Iron pills. Still can't poop. So, now it's like I can't go unless I take a laxative. I don't know why. Just all of a sudden I can't go to the bathroom.

My other problem is I think I've developed a hernia. I blame crunches! I notice when I clinch my stomach, it feels like something in my navel moves up into my stomach. I don't see a buldge or feel one, but I swear I can feel something that feels like it's poking through something. It doesn't really hurt, but it's uncomfortable.

The other thing is, I now eat LESS than I did a month ago. Maybe it's from being bloated. But, after 2 or bites of whatever I'm eating I'm full. Not only that. Whenever I drink something, too, it's like it just sits in my stomach, and it takes a long time to drain. In fact, my stomach is back to making those gurggling noises it used it when I first got sleeved.

None of this is painful, but it's just drastically different. I haven't done anything differently, so I don't know why these things have changed. I guess when I go at the end of the month I'll find out.

I was 8 pounds from goal by 6 months.

Having to alternate butt cheeks when sitting because when you sit too long your but bone starts to hurt because there's no cushion.

Finding yourself shopping at the Aeropostale $3.00 t-shirt sale, and you're the oldest person trying on clothes (my son was mortified because I was shopping at "his" store).

Wearing your 14 year old son's t-shirts and beaters to sleep in because they're baggy enough to make good night clothes.

Packing a week's worth of clothes for vacation in a small suit case because size 6s and 8s don't take up much room.

Constantly returning clothes because when something is labeled S, M, or L, you go for the biggest size out of habit when you know damn well it's too big for you...

Having a ton of clothes to choose from and sexy shoes.

I could go on, but as you can see, I'm "struggling" with my sleeve!

I did, My scar is about 1 inch long, but it's through my belly button so you can't see it.

Here is a before pic, and pics of me at goal!

I love my sleeve!

I get it all the time. Now people are saying, "You're getting too skinny." or "You need to stop losing weight." I'm like, can you mind your damn business, please? Keep doing you, girl! You look fabulous!

I haven't posted new pics in awhile. Here's my before and after photos...

I've lost a total of 95 pounds since February.

So, this is my first major holiday since my sleeve. It was so much harder than I thought. I had managed to skate by the 4th of July by staying at home and just going to watch fireworks. But, Thanksgiving wasn't so easy.

We went to my girlfriends' uncle's house, and everyone brought a dish. I made potato salad, hog maws and chitterlings, sweet potato pudding, and red velvet cake. Know what I ate? 1 piece of turkey and 1 spoonfully of mac and cheese. I tried to eat a slither of lasaugna, because it looked so good, but it made me sick (still can't digest beef or pork) and ended up throwing up. It actually got so bad that I ended up going down to the family room and watching football because I didn't want to be around all the food.

I was already anxious about Thanksgiving and being around all the food. I do pretty well on my own, but when confronted with a lot of food I feel really overwhelmed and my head hunger kicks into high gear. God, it was so depressing, or I was just depressed because I couldn't eat anything there. I tried to eat a piece of stuffed salmon, that I brought back with me. I figured it would fine. Nope. Can't do Old Bay Seasoning anymore. I ended up throwing up like 3 times, and since the Salmon incident, I've been eating Soup because my stomach HATES me now. My intestines are in an uproar.

I have no idea how in the hell I am going to make it through my cruise with the buffet and all the food that's around that ship, and at port. And what about Christmas? I'll be so glad when the holidays are over! Hopefully next year I'll get through it and it won't even bother me. As for now, all I can think about is all the yummy Thanksgiving food I couldn't have.

I love my sleeve, but only when it's not Thanksgiving!

Cheri,

Thank you so much for you kind words. I'm going to get the book. I know that I have an emotional attachment to food. It's funny because before the surgery, I had no idea. Boy, do I know now. The problem is that food no longer has that same comfort for me as it did before because I can't eat it like I used to. When my world starts falling apart, I try to, but it doesn't work. I REFUSE to undo all the hard work that I've done for the last 9 months! I REFUSE. I'm working on other coping skills. It's just in the middle of a hard situation, I can't remember any of them, and Cookies are always available.

I've made up for it. I stepped up my exercise plan, and now that I've reintroduced all those delicious sweets into my diet, that's all I want now. So, whenever I want a bag of Cookies, I jump on the treadmill. I am not going to let this beat me.

As for my girl and I, we're in a completely different place now. I like that. Things are going well. I don't talk about my fluxuating 1 or 2 pounds as much and she's open about wanting to exercise with me. I hope that she can deal with it. She's been right there with me every step of this process from the first doctor's appointment, to the surgery, recovery, until now. I'm not sure why now it started to bother her, but it did. All I we can do now is try to move forward.

Shanny,

I'm glad that you and your gal reconciled. Sometimes we don't realize what the people around us are going through and I'm glad you guys were able to talk about this and share openly. My husband was incredibly frustrated and insecure and I had no idea until his little comments annoyed me to the point that I confronted him. He needed to talk about what was bothering him and have his say before he could be more comfortable. It's taking some time but he's slowly accepting that this is my body, even if he liked the old one, and that I'm not going to gain the weight back. It's amazing how the people we love can be so supportive in some ways but so scared and resentful in other ways. I hope you two will continue to talk and keep your feelings about this open so you can avoid problems later.

I will encourage you to talk to a counselor about overeating. I am no professional but it sounds like you have classic overeater habits and use food for consolation and to numb painful emotions. Talk to someone, or at the least join an online forum with overeaters that use the same coping skills.

A big part of having the surgery is to lose weight. It's to be all those things we weren't before - thinner, happier, healthier. But another thing this surgery gives us is the chance to work through all of the emotional garbage, bad coping skills and ugly life events that helped us get fat in the first place. You will be a much happier person overall if you work on these things, slowly but surely.

I recently read a short book - a quick and easy read - called "Hungry" by Allen Zadoff. He's not pro-surgery at all, but it talks about the emotional attachments we have to food and how he dealt with them. You might like it if you pick it up at your local library. He doesn't prescribe a diet plan or a way to live your life, though. He just shares his experiences. I related to parts of the book and disagreed with others, but I think that overall there is something useful to be gained from this book if you try to eat past your emotions, something I'm guilty of, too.

Best of luck to you guys. Really. Relationships take a lot of work and a lot of communication and if you guys just keep communicating the good and the bad I'm sure you'll be just fine.

~Cheri

Well, this weekend me and my girl went away to the ocean. It was a weekend filled with crying and yelling (mostly on my part) - long story short, we got back together. She missed me as much as I missed her. She apologized for her behavior, but admitted that now everyone finds me more attractive and she started to feel like she needed to do something to keep me looking at her and not everyone else. I explained to her that I didn't have weight loss surgery to jump start her to make any changes. She's perfect to me. She an average size and average weight. I was always short, and fat. Before my surgery she was a 12 and I was a 22. Now, she's still a 12 and I'm a 6-8. There's nothing wrong with her. She's beautiful, and she carries herself like she's the best thing since sliced bread. That's how I see her, too. But, my new body has brought out her own insecurities that she never talked to me about before. I didn't know that she was unhappy with her weight, and that she now feels selfconcious because she feels like she has to compete with people who now approach me and outwardly show that they are attracted to me. Let me say this, I am by NO means some sexy beast now! But going from no one approaching me to random people approaching me when we go out really did a number on her. I don't pay any attention to it because I know where my heart is. Apparently, she did.

I think we've reached an understanding. We got back together.

As wonderful as I feel right now, I have to admit that I took this weekend to indulge in every self destructive behavior I know. I ate nothing but Oreo Cookies and potato chips, literally, all day Saturday. In fact I ate Oreos so much that I started throwing up. As soon as I threw up, I'd start eating them again. I just wanted the comfort that food used to give me, and it wasn't there. No matter how many Cookies or chips I tried to stuff into my face it didn't make me feel any better. It didn't even soothe the pain at all. I ended up getting pissed after she took the bag of cookies from me and threw them in the trash. Then I started drinking. Can't drink carbinated beverages, so after I tried to drink beer and thought I was going to die from hiccups and belching, I tried Vodka. After a few sips and it went straight to my head! I used to be able to hold my liquor.

Damn this sleeve! I swear it's like anti every self distructive trick I know. God, it's so frustrating! It's great because it won't let me damage myself, but until I learn when to employ the coping skills that my therapist talked to me about I don't know what to do with myself when I feel out of control. It's funny that I couldn't remember a single coping skill that I worked with my therapist on in the middle of feeling this body wrenching pain from a broken heart. It was just easier to go back to what I always used to do. But, this damn sleeve wouldn't cooperate!

In all honesty, I'm so glad it didn't! But yesterday, during the height of me acting like Sybil, I really just wanted it to give in so I could feel better.

All in all, with every negative that has come as a result of my sleeve, I wouldn't change it for the world! I would have the surgery again in a heartbeat! It's really put a lot of things in perspective for me. It's torn some relationships apart, and hopefully has just brought me and girl closer together.

I still think it's odd how my weight loss journey has changed the lives of those around me, when I haven't changed on the inside at all!