Aussiegirl

Welcome Susie. It is pretty normal to have fears going into this procedure, it is permanant and does take alot of committment, you have to be ready for the change to make the most of it. Pre-surgery I had alot of fears and aprehension, prepared my self for the worst etc. Mostly I was worried about who I would be after surgery, especially I have only ever known myself as this morbidly obese person. Now, life seems so normal to me, I am the same me, but better, definitely skinnier ( i worked hard to to loose the 68kgs so far), more confident and just happier. But who I am is still the same. In regards to telling people, it really is your choice who you tell and who you dont. I only told my immediate family, closest friends and my boss before I had surgery. Luckily they were all more than supportive, but aprehensive at the same time. Post surgery I am happy to talk about it and will tell anyone the truth if they ask how I have done it. So far no one has said to my face I cheated (also never heard it said behind my back either). It helps to have people who are supportive of you, especially early on. Good luck on your journey! We are all here to help.

Tablets were hard initially. I had chewable Vitamins and also the nexium which i cut in half and was the hardest. Thankfully I did not need any pain killers for pain while I was recovering. Random fact, since surgery I have barely taken pain killers for anything. Pre-surgery I had constant headaches, joint pain, sporting injuries, basically alot of generalised pain. Since surgery almost nothing, I think I have taken pain medication 3 times in 10 months, and one of those times was due to too much alcohol.

Sorry havent been back for a while. Catching up on this thread...has gone crazy! Love not being the only Aussie on here At 10 months I still struggle eatting out, finding something that I like and is small enough. I often feed my friends and have a couple that I share meals with. Most restaurants dont seem to care if you eat all the food or not I have noticed. During mushy/soft food phase I loved egg salad (boiled egg and mayo) and smoked salmon mixed with a bit of soften cream cheese were my favourites. Good luck to all those upcoming surgery-ers!!

Apparently it is common to suffer from some depression after surgery. Most people will also have the thoughts of what the heck have I done. Thankfully I didnt so I am not sure what I can say to help, other than speak to your doctor, they may be able to help with it. I did suffer from alot of fatigue early on, and allowed myself the time to sleep if that is what I needed. Also getting active helped me alot with feeling better and recovery, just walking early on.

Thank fully I did not have to endure the swallow test. My doctor did have me on nil by mouth for 48 hours tho. Then onto Clear liquids, still in the hospital. I chose the sleeve for a number of reason (even tho the band was the first thing i considered), mainly as I didnt want the constant filling/refilling of the band, having an object in me, and the failure rate of the band and the ability to eat meat. The sleeve really is a set and forget, i can eat anything my body can tolerate.

Thank you all for your kind words. It hasnt always been an easy journey but it is a rewarding one... I wish you all the success on your respective journies.

Just wanted to take a moment to share my journey so far with those of you thinking of this surgery or starting out... 10 months ago, i weighed 150 kgs ( 330 pounds) and waited anxiously to be admitted to hospital, managed to work myself up into a right mess before surgery, much of which I now dont remember. However do remember a really cute male nurse holding my hand and trying to calm me. Next thing I know I am waking up in the ICU (protocol for my doctor) and throwing up blood (not so standard) but otherwise Ok. Spent the night in the ICU and in the morning they moved me out to another room, and got me up and walking., After that everything progressed relatively issue free, thankfully, however I had mentally prepared myself for the worst. My approach was slightly different to others, I wanted to start the way i want to continue my life. That is live my life like I was already in maintenance. I watch what I eat, mainly low fat Protein, lo GI carbs, veggies and fruit. I never have a Protein shake or protein supplements.I have not denied myself any food at any point, as long as my sleeve could handle it. I still dont handle too much sugary things too well, even tho chocolate was one of my favourite things pre-surgery now I really cant handle more than a bite size peice, and now honestly dont even want it now. My body generally craves things that are good for it in the traditional sense. Nowadays my drinking and eatting feel normal to me. Eatting is now a thing I do to fuel myself, and i do need to make a concious effort to make sure I remember to eat. Pre-surgery I enjoyed tasting new things, was a bit of a foodie, still am, just at a smaller capacity. I started a work out routine as soon as I was cleared to do it, before that i would walk as much as I could. Initially I had alot of fatigue and it was a struggle. Now I run and able to keep up with some of the fittest people I know. I did start doing 2 sessions a day for 5 days a week, I have tempered this back some and work harder while I am there and incorporate exercise in most parts of my life. I have PCOS, so loosing weight has always been difficult. But most of my symptoms have tapered off, not completely gone but diminished. I am only now dealing with post op reflux which I did not have before, apparently this should not go on this far out, so working my doctor on this. At the moment I am 84 kgs (185 pounds) and still loosing...now it is a very different experience. The weight loss isnt constant like it was initially, now I will not loose anything for a few weeks and then all of a suddden drop a few more kgs. I am 9 kgs away from where I was wanted to end up in weight. However I am relatively happy with my body, working more on toning that anything. I have alot of excess skin now, that i may eventually try and do something about. I have put some pictures as of this morning and pre-surgery below, please dont be too judgemental, I know that there is still work to be done, i still have the rolls in my middle and i am sure they will be the last to go, but this is where I am today. The last 10 months hasnt always been easy, I have needed to face many of my issues, with eatting, stress, people expectations and learning to live a healthier life. My advise to anyone who is considering the surgery is be ready to face missing food, changing your relationship eatting, ready to not eat like you did before. You need to be ready for change. I am now planning my celebration of the hard work, and a culmination of things have lead to the right timing. Next month I am taking 2.5 months off and am planning a roadtrip around parts of the US, where I plan on doing everything I was previously limited doing cause of weight limits, horse riding, ziplining, hiking, rafiting, riding rollercoasters. I plan a real celebration of life, driving round in my convertible mustang.... Life really is exciting now.. Sorry it was a long post.

Really you do need to focus on that, there is a light at the end of the tunnel. I remember the ketosis taste in my mouth like was yesterday and it really was like 10 and 1/2 months ago. But believe me there is light at the end of the tunnell and all most good things dont come without some hard work..thats how you enjoy them more. I would occasionally have steamed green veggies while I was on opti fast which was a nice change. I had one cheat when I was out and had fresh seafood (prawns, smoked salmon), which made me so ill after the detoxing my body was done...

The Opti-fast phase was the worst experience of all. Once you get through that (assuming no complications) so much easier. I only ate the bars and the desserts as I do not like the shakes, actually they make me gag. Once you get onto clear liquids and mushies etc, you can atleast have flavour in your food. Good luck with that..I dont have much advise other than it is just a phase to get through, and you will and from there it gets easier.

You are not alone, atleast from my part. I now only really loose weight around my time of month, pretty much only loose then nowadays, but loose 4 kgs/8 pounds over a few days.

Another Aussie here. Sleeved 10 months ago by Dr Joseph in the Mater hospital Sydney. I cant say enough good things about how the surgery has gone for me. Most the surgery was covered under my health fund, including private hospital but still out of pocket around $5k. I have lost 66kgs in the last 10 months and am happier and healthier than I could have imagined! Happy to answer any questions anyone has. Good luck to you all on your journey.

Way to go PDXMan!! You look so much younger. I completely agree with not avoiding carbs, they give me energy and it is a tactic I have undertaken since early on, good carbs - means more energy... Thanks for being an inspiration, i love the 1 yr stories, especially as I close in on it.

Thanks Lissa!!

I am about 2 months away. Tho I am off on a 2.5 month vacation, roadtripping around the US. I am not sure exactly where I will be or who I will be with but I plan for the whole vacation to be a celebration of what I have achieved, now being a normal weight and not being too heavy to do things. I plan on horse riding, rafting, hiking, zip lining...lots fun stuff...a true celebration of life. I am very lucky that a lot of things have aligned to allow this.

To date I have lost 147 pounds...in almost 10 months (well 10 months tommorow). It is definitely do-able and attainable. I started at 330. I have included exercise atleast 5 days a week, early on I was doing 2 gym sessions a day, i am down to mostly one a day now....I have incorporated additional exercise into my life, by walking 2 and from work and when I need to go places. I eat pretty much as I wish nowadays, and still follow alot of the rules, Protein, low carb and veggies. I do now allow myself Snacks which are less healthy. It is possible however it does require a lot of HARD work on my part.

I was told 6 weeks for more strenous exercise by then the stitching is pretty much healed. Before that was just walking and easy exercise.

I struggled with most dairy except for cheese for almost 5 months. Now I am ok with yoghurt. Ice cream still causes me some issues. However I have not been able to drink milk since i was 17..so not sure about milk.

Thanks Parkers Dad

I have these thoughts now and then. It is really easy to go there in your mind, especially if you dont see the scales move. At first my scales moved almost every day, but now coming up to 10 months (and 147 pounds) the losses are alot slower. I will see the same number range for a couple of weeks and then suddenly my body just goes, ok I can survive at this weight and I loose some more. There will come a point where your body will slow down or stop, it is really important that you are comfortable and happy in what you have achieved. I am now 9kgs (20 pounds) from my goal weight but I am comfortable and confident in my body, the work I have done to get here and how I have lost the almost 150 pounds.

Isnt it great!! I flew for work yesterday for the first time since actually feeling small...was surprised at how the seatbelt went on. Even flying home in that horrible middle seat (cause we were late to flights) was not uncomfortable, no squeezing my arms in trying to remain in the space, my arms all fit within the seat. I love to travel so these are the funnest NSV's!!1

I don't think my shape has changed significantly, I probably looked like an apple before as I carried most the weight around my middle. Now I am starting to see an hourglass, which is what I have always wanted. I still carry weight in my boobs( woot woot happy for it to stay there) and in my lower belly...which I can't seem to move.

I think this in the not looking to hook up sense is fine. There is nothing wrong with a platonic friendship with females, often helps with a different perspective when dealing with your loved ones. Also women are great, who wouldn't want to hang around us:) All good as long as all understand the boundaries.

Congratulations! You look amazing, whether you are at a numeric goal or not. What you are saying totally resonates with me, even coming up to 10 months out and being a relatively quick loser. Thank you for sharing your story!

I had a significant amount of hair loss. This started around the 4th month and nothing really seemed to help with stopping it. Thankfully I have alot of hair before surgery so it doesnt look too bad. I am now 9.5 months and my hair is growing back and has stopped falling out(other than a standard amount i would have lost pre-surgery). Now it is growing back I am more subdued about it, it was a process my body needed to go through, just one more thing to recover from the surgery from, and my once thick hair is so much easier to control now.