ShellBear

Thank you all for your great comments. It is so nice to have my VST family to share these things with. :biggrin5:

Welcome Jolie and cogratulations on choosing to get healthy with VSG. I too suffered from constant back pain due to vehicle accident in 1999. I actually had a small break in my back that they didn't find till years later. I am pleased to say that the pain in my back lessened more and more as I shed the extra lbs I was carrying around. I have lost 103 lbs and have 8 more to go till I reach my goal. I can actually stand for long periods of time now, wash dishes, go for long walks, etc. I have my life back and it is such a blessing. That is just my story and everyone is different, but I think you will find that you will start feeling better as soon as the weight starts falling off. Good luck to you! ((Hugs)) Shell

I think this is important to all of us. We need to feel those strong arms around us and feel safe and protected. It's hard to really feel feminine when you weigh more than your hubby. We all just want to melt into those arms. : )

Hi everyone. I weighed in at 138.2 yesterday morning. That means 8.2 pounds till I hit my goal of 130. I lost 45 lbs before surgery and 58 since my sleeve surgery on August 29th. I am amazed every day at this transformation. I feel awesome and I owe it all to Dr. Fisher and my teeny tiny sleeve! Lovin life!!!!!

Good morning all! I weighed in this morning at 140.8. I am thrilled but I can't quite count it yet because it will creep back up to about 143 for several days and then drop back down and hopefully be gone forever. I have come to accept that this is the way that I lose so I don't freak out anymore when the scale is being naughty. I feel great! I have so much energy, it's crazy. I love my sleeve! <3 Shell

Kathy, what is your MFP user name? I will send you a friend request. We can all work through this together. :biggrin5:

Only your friends can see your profile and they can only see your food diary if you change your settings to "friends" instead of "private" I hope that helps. Shell

Most likely there is still some swelling and your tummy still needs time to heal and relax. Don't fret my dear, it will get easier. Just try to relax and not over think this. You will get the hang of all this eventually and it will become part of your every day routine. You are doing evrything right so just give it time. God bless you! (HUGS) Shell

No worries, take deep breath and try to relax! I lose this way as well. I will drop a few pounds then it comes back up for about a week and then it drops back down and is gone forever untill the next time. At first it freaked me out but then I discovered the pattern and have learned to just roll with it. Try to be patient and watch for your own losing pattern. We are all so very different and losing will come when our bodies decide it is ok to let go of the fat. I lived on low cal gatorade for the first couple of months and now I use Mio flavoring because I can't drink plain Water (makes my tummy hurt). You are doing great! Keep up the great work and stay healhy! ((Hugs)) Shell

Hello everyone and Happy New Year! I weighed in at 153.4 this weekend so I am extremely happy. Had a great Christmas with family and now checking in here with my extended VST family. My love to all! God Bless! <3 Shell

Awesome, Congrats! Keep rockin that sleeve!

Honestly, the only excerise I have done is walking. I started with just a few laps around my building while at work and built up to walking around the entire complex during my breaks. Just getting up and moving has increased my physical, emotional, and mental health in so many ways. Just feeling the sun on your face and breathing the fresh air can make you feel so good. Just find what works for you and go with it. Try not to over think it because it will become too much of a chore. Also, please don't worry about exercising right now, you are only 5 days post op and you shouldn't be doing too much right now (just walking). Wait until your Doc releases you before you start exercing more aggresively. Don't worry, your doing great! ((HUGS)) Shell

I am about four months out from surgery and I can eat about two pieces of sushi maybe three if I don't eat as much of the rice, I love the raw fish and the tempura shrimp. Everything settles fine with my sleeve but you might want to take it slow to start because I have read a lot of people have problems with rice because it swells in your sleeve. Eat slow and savor every morsel. I hope you have a blast on your Birthday!

I actually lost 45 pounds before surgery on the meal plan. If you follow the meal plan strictly the weight will begin to fall off. By the time I met with Dr. Fisher I had lost a lot already so he set my goal weight just 10 pounds less than I weighed that day (I can't remember exactly). Any way, on the day of surgery I was well under my goal weight, in fact, I had weighed in at 196! I didn't even realize I was under 200 pound already. I honestly had done so much researching and reading and chatting on VST that I really didn't have many questions for Dr. Fisher. The seminar explained a lot as well. I would suggest that if a question pops in your head go immediately write it down. Make a list and keep it in your binder. Remember that Dr. Baggs is expecting you to be full of questions so try not to be nervous and remember that there is no such thing as a silly or stupid question! This is such a huge decision and should be well informed before moving forward. Expect to be totally addicted to this forum for the next few months. I logged in every day and read all day long LOL. You can search for discussion threads also. I know there are a lot of posts on questions for your surgeon and what you will need to bring to the hospital, etc. Keep reading and educate yourself as much as possible. Don't be frightened by stories of pain and rough recoveries. It is better to be informed and prepared than to be shocked by something later. Take care and keep moving forward, we are all here for you! Shell P.S. I started my journey with Kaiser end of May this year and had my surgery August 29th. About 4 months total. Crazy! You just have to want it really bad and work your a$$ off to get to your goal weight and stay there or get down even lower!

Hi there and welcome. I had my surgery on August 29th with Dr. Paul Fisher at Richmond. Everyone at Richmond Bariatrics is awesome! I have heard wonderful things about Dr. Baggs as well. In fact I think he assisted with my surgery. Everything went exactly how I expected (I did a lot of reading here on VST and researched the surgery like crazy). There were some rough days with weakness and fatigue at first but my incision pain wasn't bad at all and I don't remember much gas pain either. By the way, you will have no drain tube with Kaiser Richmond Bariatric Surgeons. I have five small incisions which healed so fast it was amazing. I can't promise that you will have no pain or that the recovery will be a breeze, but I can say that any bad days that I had then are just a vague memory and when I look in the mirror now or walk around the block with no pain, I am so extremely grateful for my decision. Good luck on your journey and God Bless! ((HUGS)) Shell

I still munch on pork skins when I need some crunch. No carbs and you get a boost of Protein. Nutrition Facts Edit Baken-Ets - Fried Pork Skins Servings: 9 pieces1 pieces1 container (72 pieces ea.) Calories 80 Sodium 310 mg Total Fat 5 g Potassium 0 mg Saturated 3 g Total Carbs 0 g Polyunsaturated 0 g Dietary Fiber 0 g Monounsaturated 0 g Sugars 0 g Trans 0 g Protein 9 g Cholesterol 20 mg

In a couple of months you will have to stop wearing it because it will start to slip right off. I am 4 months out from surgery and have lost a total of about 85 pounds (45 pre surgery). My wedding ring is a size 7 and I am now wearing a size 4 3/4 to 5. I can't believe how little my fingers are now. This is such crazy fun stuff! Congrats my friend! Your doing great! Shell

I always ask for a container when I order my meal. I usually share with my hubby or just order a meal of my own and then take the leftovers to work for lunch or bfast. I always box up the majority of my meal immediately so that it is no longer on my plate. This way I don't have to look at it and the server doesn't really know how much I have eaten. I love Red Lobster and Outback - seafood and prime rib - YUM! Hope I have helped Shell