gmanbat

Slow and deliberate is the key. Visualize your meal before you start. Keep your mind on what you are doing: small portions, time between small bites. Think about how you feel after a few bites and give the feeling time to set in. You will learn to stop before the slimes and discomfort. This tool will work for you but don't expect big pain with it. That comes when we eat way too fast and too much. Gone are the days when we eat with mind disengaged. Talk to your tablemates but return to your main task quickly.

Congratulations!!!!

Exercise?

Your throat was swollen because of the tubes irritating it? Did you get another leak test later? Congratulations to both of you youngun's from a 64 year old.

Way to tough it out, Candyapple!

up, up, down, up, down, up, up, down, same, same, up, down, down, up, same, up, same, down, down...etc. Post surgery weight loss is not a ski slope down, it's more like a roller coaster except you end up more down than up.

My starting weight and loss is almost identical to yours. I'm 6'2" and a 64 year old feller. I'm down to 2 pounds from my goal and have been for 2 months. I still think I will exceed my goal. I have been exercising more and putting on muscle. Though the scale stays the same I am losing my belly. My stalls were frequent. It's like my body was exhausted from losing and took a break for awhile and then started down again. Keep doing the right thing. The odds are in your favor.

Apologies for the descriptive title. After a long day of being jostled at an obscenely crowded outlet maxi-mall my relatives and I settled down for a nice meal at P.F. Chang's. I made the unwise decision to see if my aversion to szechuan was still operational after 11 months out. "It's still here", was the reply from "The Bouncer" as he directed me to the bathroom to unload the contents of my experiment. Try again next year? Probably. I love szechuan. :ph34r:

Your butterflies are about to get a smaller home. You can do it!!!

As I write this there have been over 1,000 people on this forum in the last 20 minutes. If you want to see for yourself click on the logo on the top left and then scroll all the way down. Of those people, the majority are guests, unregistered inquirers. We have to decide for their sake what we are all about here. If our main priority is to be a fun and kind forum, sweetness and tact should be our rule. If this was a model train forum I would be all for that. This forum is about life and death. If we are here to present the gravity of this decision as well as it's benefits, clarity and un-pulled punches should be the rule. If you have ever dealt with the public in general you know that it takes a lot to get through to them. Any Teflon on the blade dulls the effect and gives the wrong impression. I think every potential sleever should watch a video of the operation. Not ever seeing our stomach puts us at a distance from the consequences of our abuse. If it were a visual wound we would take much more care. http://www.orlive.com/halifaxhealth/videos/weighing-the-options-gastric-sleeve-surgery? Above is a video of the operation with explanation. I think it makes clearer why post-op diet discipline is necessary.

I like visual examples. You were out in the first snow of the year and like the Peanuts characters you decided to taste the snow as it fell. Your tongue was fully extended when a sharp piece of wing sheeting from a passing Extreme Budget airliner splits your tongue lengthwise. You rush your serpentine tongue to Ready Care and emerge later, unintelligible, in Loritab subdued pain. Your doctor strictly forbade you to eat anything that would aggravate the stitched wound, put you on a liquid diet, and gave you instructions and a timetable for diet change. But, wouldn't you know it, the annual Habanero Eating Contest is 2 days away and you need to defend your title! What a dilemma! Should you give up the trophy or risk joining the ranks of the eunuchs of old who, among other operations, were rendered tongueless to assure they wouldn't talk about their master's activities? We were given brains that were designed to operate our bodies, not the other way around.

I am praying for you, latice19! Hang in there!

As far as I'm concerned, Iggychic has earned the right to set folks straight by virtue of the hell that she went through. Her words have a heavy weight and deserve to be heard. I am grateful that she is on the forum and speaks up in threads like this. It is very kind of her.

After surgery you have freedom of choice but not freedom of consequence. Before surgery improper eating was slow death. After surgery early on it can be immediately lethal. This is a serious operation. There is no kindness in sugar coating when it gives the impression of casualness. Merciless clarity is kindness and responsibilty. OP, see the doctor and NUT. The posters on this forum cannot predict what will happen or know what has happened to you.

Durn tootin'! If I were famous I'd be chasing the paparazzi.

I got ready for Christmas eating at the Thanksgiving feast. It is like an athletic endeavor to discipline yourself to take tiny portions of the sumptuous fare. I did better this time, no pain, no slimes, just enjoyment of food and family. And doing it in a slim body.

11 months out and BMs are a concern for me as well. An extenuating circumstance in my case is that I have had external beam radiation for prostate cancer and that sometimes messes with bowel activity. Fiber powder, exercise and proper Water seems to make it better. Especially, early on, don't expect to get a lot out. I would advise not forcing too hard. I have had bouts with diverticulitis, you don't want that. You just have to take a long time on the throne letting the small masses come out on their time. Have patience. This is easier for married men who have been conditioned by the interminable wait they endure while the wife is getting ready for a night on the town.

The numbers on a scale never made anyone healthy. Putting on muscle tissue that helps burn off fat does. Numbers changing downward on a scale does not neccesarily mean you're getting healthier. If that loss is fat, you are. If it is muscle, not. After sleeving some muscle is no doubt lost along with the fat. When you are recovered from the operation putting muscle on should be as high a priority as diet. Larger, toned muscles and the lifelong, regular use of those muscles will help make permanent your victory over fat. If you refuse to exercise, the odds that you will regain the weight go up. If putting on muscle temporarily makes the scale go up, let it go up. Muscle over scale. http://www.medic8.co...exceptions.html Athletes and sportspeople in general tend to have a higher level of muscle compared to fat. Plus muscle is denser than fat and takes up less room. So, if you are building muscle but losing fat then you will probably notice that your weight has increased but you look toned and leaner than usual. These people often follow a prescribed diet and training regime which is based on a higher calorie intake than for normal people. This is particularly noticeable for weightlifters and bodybuilders who are trying to gain lean muscle mass. A BMI calculation for an athlete or a bodybuilder will reflect an increase in weight by pushing them into the ‘overweight’ or ‘obese’ category – even though they are fit and healthy.

It is not weight that makes you unhealthy, nor is It finding yourself categorized on some chart. Having too much fat on your body, not getting the right kind of nourishment, and lack of proper exercise is unhealthy. Scales and charts are not our masters, they are estimators and indicators, just tools. They help us compare ourselves to other people. Your main concern is not how you compare to others but how satisfied you are in your own skin.

Mommyrad, Can you show us the recipe for them or the ingredients? Perhaps some changes can be made to make them sleeve worthy. I eat homemade burritos but they are low carb and low spice, not bad for me.

My BMI was around 43 before starting. I was told by nurses, (not bariatric), that I didn't need surgery, I didn't look that bad. I'm 6'2" and mainly just had a pot gut. What you couldn't see was how bad I felt, how little energy I had, the sleep apnea, high blood pressure, diabetes, and the general misery that goes along with being obese. I could not lose the weight, chemo, steroids, lupron, and blood pressure medicine all set up a pretty good diet killing team. My BMI was considered borderline for eligibility for VSG but the comorbidities put me over the line. I would not go back. My life has been improved immensely and my life expectancy raised. The sleeve may be a temporary chance but I would take the chance again in a heartbeat. I am making it a permanent fix.

I scrub my deflated belly with a loofah-type sponge thing to get off the dead skin and then rub it with moisturizer. I am going for elasticity. I think it is helping but I can't trust me, I've fooled me before.

A huge demographic exists of people who are lusting for a pill that allows you to eat like a hippo but look like a cheetah. There is a large flock of vultures preying upon their naive belief in mythical science. No such pill exists and no operation. Unimplemented, even an effective, expensive, and dangerously acquired tool such as VSG has no value.

I could certainly get back the 100+ pounds I lost if I lived long enough while abusing myself. No exercise and eating crap constantly gets the job done. If I wanted to kill myself I think I'd go out on some righteous drugs rather than digging my grave with my teeth, but that's just the 60's talking.