Aussiegirl

Kelli, hoping your friends surgery goes great and she recovers quickly

Lissa VaVaVooooooom!!!! Birdie, might be a bit of a delay but will come around soon enough We will all be waiting for your progress on the other side Dons 2.0 way to keep strong, you are doing awesome, eating out was the hardest part when on the Opti. An update from me, I am now 20 days post my plastics surgery. Things are finally starting to settle down and thought I would take some progress shots. Still have some Fluid accumulating under my right arms and my butt cheeks (not a place I was expecting, was expecting hips but not to get a weird looking bubble butt), the doctor will likely drain these or some of these when I see her for a progress update tomorrow. Here are some progress photos:http://www.verticalsleevetalk.com/gallery/image/23156-me-20-days-post/

Sue..lol...strange how that happens eh. AusSmith, welcome aboard, a few here have been with Dr Taylor and have only heard good things about him. I went with Dr Joseph as his rooms are close to my home for follow ups and he is also a great surgeon. But I did have the surgery at Mater and can not say enough good things about my experience there. Scotty, you really do look good. And really dont look to have too much to fix. I for one do understand the need to finish the journey. My thoughts about plastics after surgery are as follows: 1. Great to finish the journey and really see the changes you have made. 2. Make sure you have a doctor you are comfortable with. You need to have faith that if something does go wrong they will be able to handle it. 3. Recovery is hard. No ifs no butts, it is hard. Most of us here, breezed through the sleeve( yes there are exceptions) so we somewhat think it will all be ok. I personally also had a gall bladder and broken ankle surgery together also a cake walk in comparison. Depending on the surgery there are increased risks, you are out for a longer time. I am now 6 days post op and have not had a shower yet, drains are still in and not likely to have them removed for another 4 days, so no shower til then. Yes the results can already be seen as well, tho I am still not sure how it will all look in the end. Despite. Losing 5 kgs in skin my weight has not changed...yesterday I weighed almost 3 kgs more than before surgery, sooo much swelling, everywhere and that is painful Just my 2c, we will see how time changes my opinion.

Dons, I started at 150 kgs and before the plastics I landed in the 77-79 range, so 80 is definitely doable. I was aiming for 80 at first as well. I did have almost 5 kgs of skin that was removed, so will be interested to see where I land now. Thanks Ali I.caught a glimpse of my arms today in the mirror while changing the compression garment, they are still puffy and bloated, with no bat wings hanging down...they look just normal..yehaaa...I have never had normal arms. I am still carrying a fair bit of Fluid and draining a fair bit of stuff still so will see where my weight lands during the next week. I am getting to go home from hospital today but still have 4 drains to monitor. But better than 4 more days in hospital

That does sound like an awesome event...tho I am not doing a 5 km anytime soon..that would be hilarious

Hello hotty Scotty!!!! Welcome Ali, I think there are some WA peeps out there

Skubidz welcome to the thread or the sleeve family. As the others have said there is a lot of information around and between the lot of us, we have experienced almost everything. I am now 5 days post my tummy tuck and arm lift, and doing well. Still in hospital with 4 drains which is driving me stir crazy, and have had some horrible nausea for the last few days due to pain meds and being backed up, hopefully the backed up part is moving now. Hard to really see my body at the moment, it is all very bruised and swollen but will eventually know how it will look. Tho I do enjoy putting on underwear without my belly over hanging, the thing I have hated the most.

Tash, good luck today, sending lots of healing vibes your way.

scotty, hands up, currently recovering from my tummy tuck and arm lift. Tho I am in Sydney. So far recovery is way harder than the sleeve ever was but hopefully the results will be worth it.

Thank all. Definitely a bit scary but all is looking good now..the body does heal pretty well, thankfully I am young enough. Now biggest struggle is getting enough food in, hospital food is all carb, even when I order veggies I am ending up with pumpkin but I must be doing better if I am complaining about the food hehehe otherwise I am black and blue and numb and stiff and sore but all good signs I am healing

Thanks. Made for a scary few hours, tho everyone on the ward can't believe I am the same person today. After having code blue 3 times, everyone was on edge. The body can heal pretty quickly. I ended up having just under 5 kgs of skin taken off, 3.5 from my stomach, almost a kilo from my back and almost .5 kilo each arm. Plus whatever else was lipo'd out. Once the bruising and swelling goes down, I may have actually got to 50% of my body lost. Th And this afternoon I have a cute nurse...bonus lol. Tho he has been quick to tell me he is working in the ICU tommorow and Doesnt want to see me there lol

Wow you go away for 3 days and it gets busy in here. I am on the flip side of the plastic surgery. Had a rough time of it. Ended up having to go back in for emergency surgery as I had slow bleeder and lost 4ltres of blood, needed 4 blood transfusions. Spent the second night in the ICU. My arms are feeling like they have done a hard work out and a sore bloated. My back and arms are aching but not taking too many painkillers. Didn't need the muscle tightening which is probably helping me feel better....

Thank you all! I am feeling much like I did almost 2 years ago, nervous, excited, scared...will let you all know how I am fairing on the flip side.

7.15am it all starts again...

Yay Dean is back And giving great advise as always!!

Definitely a keeper The saddest thing is that he bats for the other team but is the closest thing I have found to a "soul mate"

Great news Nikki!!! Sounds like you will be well prepared. Thank you all for the well wishes, 4 more days and then I will be under the knife again...I will keep you all up to date with the recovery. I posted on Facebook that I was doing this and one of my friends said the sweetest thing and also the most true and I wanted to share with you all: "Well Beautiful, there is nothing to fear. You aren't transforming anything but the most superficial part of you and you're only doing that because you want it to better match the real you that has and always will be, borderline perfect." I am hoping at the end of this I finally see in the mirror what I know on the inside.

Hey Liss, yep 1 week today. Am getting pretty scared now...had to pay all the money today so my bank account looks pretty sad right now. But atleast no more lumps and bumps are around the corner eh I missed seeing that you and Kelly met up in Melbourne, how funny:) You both looked great.

So not unusual...it is called food porn...we seem to get more attracted to it when we loose our stomach. I sometimes wonder whether it is part of a mourning process and finding a new way to deal with food or our relationship to food. Post op I watched sooo many food cooking shows, read the magazines etc it was not funny. I cook all the time, most of it gets given away or frozen for a later date.

Woohoo!! It is an awesome feeling eh I never seem to get over that one nowadays...I always look how much room there is on the seatbelt.

Hi All, I have been AWOL for a bit, have been incredibly busy with work (avg a 13 hour day) and getting ready for my next and final surgery on the 23rd of August. I wanted to share some before shots. I will be having an extended tummy tuck and extended arm lift. Below are some very honest photos of my body as it is, even with my 80 yo look alike arms out My struggle since being in what I guess is maintenance is that even tho I wear a 12/14 I still see a larger person in the mirror, I can usually dress to hide the lumps and bumps from the world but I am still aware that they are there. I am glad to see you are all recovering well and doing so well on your journeys, everyone is looking freaking amazing.

Misty, Agile development sounds fun:) Being a BA myself, we are having a great "uh-hum" time transitioning to Agile requirement documentation and development. Enjoy your reading, what are you reading? I tend to agree, Sue, you are onto something with the 3 week stall. I can barely think of anyone who hasnt had the 3 week stall Carmella, stay strong it will pass soon, and you will be back on a loosing streak. Lessismore...good luck, think I am a bit late but hope the surgery went well. Lissa, day 1 and I am failing...last minute travel put a spanner in my works, seeing as I am on a 7 am flight and wont be on a flight home til 7pm, wont get the work out in today and am eatting on the run...eeeek

Sure Liss I will join you. I may make mine 8kgs in 10 weeks (tho I think I may have an upper hand on that, as the surgery will remove about 5 kgs of skin). So in the next 5 weeks (pre-surgery) I will: - Exercise atleast 5 times a week (been hard lately as have been working really long hours) - Eat atleast one piece of fruit a day - I will have 2 days a week that I dont eat meat (to try get my nutrients up and best be able to recover from my plastics surgery) - Separate to the work outs will do 10 minutes of ab/core workouts a day (so that am even less likely to need muscle tightening) - Give up alcohol post 31/7 til post 1/9

Liss, that list is so like mine. I can now go shopping and walk around without feeling like I need a break or a nap afterwards....Ditto, even better I actually enjoy when I do go clothes shopping, rather than just choosing what would cover me that didnt look like a mu-mu I fit into my bathtub- again it now seems huge....how awesome is that, i slip all over mine now...so bizarre I can shop in pretty much any store of my choosing ...Yep, including designer brands (of course I am still a cheapskate and buy designers from outlets or the US lol) Professionally, I have had a promotion. I would never have even applied pre-surgery. ... well you do need more money to pay for all the new clothes and activities I can sleep comfortably in a bed- I didn't sleep in a bed for years- slept in a recliner cause of back discomfort and breathing issues. I can come away for work or on holiday and sleep in the bed- not have to ensure there was a couch so I could sleep sitting up. I am no longer invisible. Pre-surgery people would "accidentally" run into me all the time like they couldn't see me. Honestly can't remember the last time it happened- certainly not since the surgery. ...Its funny how you mention the "invisible" things and people running into you....I so relate to that. I said that on my video and so many people (lifetime skinny people) could not understand it. I thought maybe it was just me that experienced that stuff I am more flexible and feel strong for the first time in my adult memory.....Super Liss!!!!! I am, for the first time in years, considering the possibility of a relationship. I had written this off in my own head I think and didn't realise I had done it. I can wear heels again.....super sexy legs..wait to summer, those men will be circiling you. I can slide down a slide with my 8 year old nephew.....And dont forget the swing sets..lol I can go on rides at theme parks etc without worrying they'll bounce me for being over the weight limit ....Add adventure activties here, apparently I am a thrill seeker now I can fly... Without an extension belt....and sit in the seat and not touch anyone on either side I have so much more energy!! Amen sista Feeling sexy, weird feeling for me, but I feel curvy (atleast clothed...the plastics surgery will fix the unclothed part lol) Looking forward to summer...I may even try a bikini (post plastics)...not sure the world or I am even ready for that TMI...sex is better *embarassed look*...if I was in a relationship I would so be taking more advantage of that lol I have more respect for myself, i expect more from myself and for myself.