DanaInNewOrleans

You are undergoing a very routine procedure. For me the risks of not doing it out weigh anything else. I'd rather go through some real but temporary pain, than 45 more years of misery.
If you have picked a good MD and want to, do it.

Well, one step closer. I will be using my taxes to fill in the financial gap. I'll be headed to Mexico with Dr. Kelly 3/28/13. It's a long way off but at least I feel like I have something concrete to look forward to. Loser bench in sight, albiet be through a pair of binoculars. : )

I use the Unjury and I have never tasted it in anything. I add it to low carb chocolate milk for Protein Drinks, to Soups and yogurt. I love the Unjury chicken, chocolate and unflavored. It is high quality medical Protein and so much better than the RTD canned drinks.< /p>

Amy, with two little kids, four months will flash by! I don't fit into this category for your post because I was sleeved in June. I wanted to wish you luck anyway! Looking forward to hearing of your successful surgery! Glad you found a more caring doctor.

I do hope that one day I'll be able to participate in family dinners, holidays, etc. This is New Orleans and EVERYTHING revolves around food ( the best food in the world too!). I'm not worried about portions-- I can handle tiny portions, I just want to be able to "have" it! My entire life I've thought ..if only there could be something that would make me not WANT to eat or COULDN'T eat --well, this is it!
I intend to go to the support group too -- I'm going to start now before surgery.

I learned 'unflavored' doesn't mean no flavor, it just means it isn't choc, strawberry or vanilla!!! LOL

Just a couple of thoughts...One thing I learned is that if I mix my Protein Shake and put it in the fridge for a few hours or overnight it was not frothy, it was smooth and well mixed. Also, after surgery my tastes changed drastically. When I was pre-op trying to loss required weight I used the syntex but after I couldnt stand it...so dont put stock in a company and make sure you buy it from a place you can return unused portion if you dont like it. Also, I am almost 2 years out and I still drink Protein Shakes just about everyday, so I have tried many combos and you dont have to stick to one thing.
Hope that helps.
Also, it was like 4 months before I hit my Protein goal in one day.

i'm just curious. i've read some people say between 700-900
i used to bodybuild & was a competetive athlete.. all my trainers and nutrition people and doctors always said that you have to get in 1500-2000 calories a day.. and that you can damage your body if you go below that.. because of starvation & it causes your body to put on weight & etc.. so if that's the case, how does wls work? lol i mean, that last bit is a rhetorical question.. but for so long it's been drilled into my head that you have to eat xyz amount of calories, Protein and blah blah..
so i'm curious how many calories you have per day, on average, as well as your other nutrients.. like carbs, protein, fat, sugar, etc.. what are your personal limits or guidelines that your doctor wants you to follow?
if you can't put an exact number, that's okay.. can you please guesstimate?
thanks for your time!

Surgery is tomorrow morning at 7:30am. I have never been a morning person, but I think there's going to be all kinds of changes on the horizon. So far, well since May, I have lost 32lbs. I have never been that successful with a food reduction plan. I won't call it a diet because I didn't change what I ate, just the quantities. I am both excited and some what terrified of my anticipated surgery. Finally. Finally I will get this weight off. The weight that has been weighing me down (pun intended) for years. I want to have fun with my daughters instead of always watching from the sidelines. I want to go see Wicked without wondering if my butt will fit in the chair. I guess that really sums it up: I want! I hope to have this changed to: I did! by next summer. Pls send prayers on my behalf!

The best Protein is whey Protein. If that is the first ingredient on the package, it's high quality protein. Somebody made a post just a couple of days ago, maybe yesterday, explaining what to look for, and the differences in Proteins....I think it was Shane Ferris (OTR sleever).
As for getting in the required protein, nobody does it the first couple of weeks. Just try your best. Getting in the Water is more important. But if you can't get in the protein, I wouldn't waste any energy eating anything that is full of carbs and absent protein. For example, I had grits on my list of approved full liquids, but my nut told me not to eat them unless I was getting close to my protein goal. After about a week, I was hitting that goal, so I started enjoying a small bowl of grits about every other day until I hit the soft food stage.

I can tolerate flavours because I have too like the chocolate orange one if you do it cold enough and don’t leave it to sit is fine if you leave it then the orange gets a bit tangy in the back of your throat.
The chocolate cookie one I use hazelnut milk so its got more earthy tones going on there.
I also only ever use 150mls of milk and 1 and half scoops I make them thick and less liquid but still high Protein 35g per shake for my brand in that amount.
I ordered sample packs of the Syntrax nectar not been able to drink one yet super super super sweet.
I did order the juice phd ready to drinks they are these http://www.dolphinfi...ro-rtd-12/28810
They taste ok not sweet at all actually to me have a slight yogurt taste to them I liked orange best so I got a case so I can drink them when I am out or don’t want a heavy shake and would rather a ice filled juice drink and they are 40g of Protein per bottle I sip half of one over ice then a few hours later the other half to break it up and not waste the protein as you can only absorb a certain amount at a time.
If you’re in the us they have way more juice ready to drink options than the uk.
Just sample pack or single bottle anything you find look on ebay or stores or online websites for samples or e-mail them for single serving sample packs beats the heck out of paying for a massive thing and first sip your spitting out because they will not take it back!

My full signal never is consistent. I have gone through burps, hiccups, sneezes, gurgling. It's taken me a while to realize when my body does something unexpected, it's probably time to stop or I'll start feeling like stuff is stuck behind my sternum. I have not had slimies yet, thankfully.
Before surgery I understood you have to sip, but I guess I never realized pre-surgery how much Water 64 oz really is.

try Syntrax Nectar. they are fruity and you can mix them w less Water and take them as shots. Vitamin Shoppe has them in store. a lot of bariatric online places let you order samplers as well, with one of each flavor. i mix 1 scoop w 4 oz. also matrix makes a min cookie oreo one, and nectar flavors i enjoy are the double stuffed cookie, fuzzy navel, and crystal sky (blue sweettart).

You just made me laugh, I'm sure unintentionally, with "the little heffa" ! I am stealing that term!
Congrats on 76lbs lost!!

I'm laughing out loud at your post! As far as I'm concerned they can take my stomach and burn it...hell, I think having a little ceremonial burn right there in the OR would be great. That damn thing has been the bane of my life..
I finally came to the realization that I cannot do it on my own. I have literally tried for 40 years. I just want an opportunity to live a normal life -- not just living physically a normal life but mentally normal too. Every one of my thoughts and decisions is filtered through my FAT. I can't take it anymore...I just want to be normal.

COsleeveDude.. you sound like the lady from The Hunger Games... May the odds be ever in your favor! lol you're right, though.
also.. if you got the sleeve & then got to goal & then moved away.. how cool would that be?.. you'd have a totally new life!

MJS, also don't forget you can "make your own" Protein shakes without any commercial Protein powders--use Greek yogurt, some kind of milk, add extra milk powder or PB2 (freeze-dried Peanut Butter powder, packed with protein), even Egg Beaters, flavorings, and some ice, and you're good to go. It's lower in protein per ounce than a packaged Protein Powder mix, but you can make it with stuff you already have on hand, and it might be a little more tolerable for you. I could never tolerate the protein powders (my sleeve rejected them all rather vehemently), so I had to use homemade smoothies from the beginning. I love the sugar-free Torani syrups, but you can also use a bit of sugar-free pudding powder, Crystal Light or Mio, or tons of other flavoring options for your smoothies, too. As your diet progresses, you can add fruit (fresh or frozen) and nuts (pecans, cashews, almonds--raw nuts in your smoothie will make it creamier if you have a good blender, and kind of chunky and nutty if you have a cheap blender-win/win) and even add veggies (spinach, a little kale, a few rinsed white beans) to up the protein/nutrition factor without changing the taste.
Plus making your own is cheaper. :-) Hang in there--as your diet expands, you'll be able to enjoy a lot more stuff. You're at the hardest part now.

I'm laughing out loud at your post! As far as I'm concerned they can take my stomach and burn it...hell, I think having a little ceremonial burn right there in the OR would be great. That damn thing has been the bane of my life..
I finally came to the realization that I cannot do it on my own. I have literally tried for 40 years. I just want an opportunity to live a normal life -- not just living physically a normal life but mentally normal too. Every one of my thoughts and decisions is filtered through my FAT. I can't take it anymore...I just want to be normal.

my bmi is 50 and im more than ready. ive lost weight on my own but its a beautiful thing going through the 6 month requirement (not sure how long your insurance makes you go through this) but you learn alot about your self. you tend to fall into the mentality that surgery is just a tool but if you are dedicated and want to make the LIFE change you will!!! its worth it in the end hopefully i get my surgery date for next month. but i have faith in you!!!

My BMi was 62.4
I was worried that it wouldnt work for me but since surgery about four months ago I've lost 100 lbs. I'm not sure how much I'll lose or if I'll ever be a normal BMi but it's working
Also I've never thrown up or had crazy nausea

lmao @ "make those shakes your b***h" xD butterthebean.. rofl. xD

Its normal, I had all the same thoughts. I went through the Kaiser program back in 2004 for gastric bypass and talked myself out of it. I thought I could do it all on my own, and for a while it worked. I slowly lost weight over the years. Finally I got tired of being hooked up to a CPAP machine, taking medications, and being dependent on food. I decided that the risks of surgery were worth it. I even tried talking myself out of having surgery the day it happened because I was afraid of not waking up or worse, waking up in the middle of the procedure. The nausea afterwards was minimal for me, maybe I was lucky. Make sure this is what you really want.

Hey JGo. Don't worry about the dining out. You can still dine out at the same places. Of course, you may not be able to complete the meal, but that should be the least of your worries. Your focus should now be the conversation anyhow, not the food. And whatever you don't finish, you just take home and finish later. I mean, if it's a really good meal, you get to enjoy it multiple times. As for an all inclusive hotel, again, you may not consume as much at one time, but you will probably be hungry more often than your husband. This may help him incorporate 3-4 small meals as apposed to eating two massive meals like most of us use to do at all inclusive resorts and all you can eat buffets prior to wls.

For example, I love the buffets in Las Vegas. But the best buffets are $20. Of course, I can't eat that much food. But I found something that works for me. They have this deal in Vegas that I just found out about. For one price, you can enter and eat at several of the best buffets in Vegas for 24 hours! So, if I purchase this pass at dinner time, I can come back for Breakfast, lunch and dinner the next day. And if I just want a snack, I can enter for that too! Your all inclusive resorts are very similar. But whatever you do, DO NOT sabotage yourself just to make someone else comfortable with over eating. Seriously, in the past I've gone out to eat with others who didn't eat as much as I did, and that did not stop me from completing my meal. Once they were done, the focus was conversation. Once I was done, they wrapped their food and took it home... or not.

As for the activity, he'll either join you or not. Only if he is not secure in himself will he have a problem with your activity. Again, DO NOT sabotage yourself. And do not worry about it until you cross that bridge. We all have this same concern. But all you can do is reassure them that they have your heart and love, no matter what.

I'm laughing out loud at your post! As far as I'm concerned they can take my stomach and burn it...hell, I think having a little ceremonial burn right there in the OR would be great. That damn thing has been the bane of my life..
I finally came to the realization that I cannot do it on my own. I have literally tried for 40 years. I just want an opportunity to live a normal life -- not just living physically a normal life but mentally normal too. Every one of my thoughts and decisions is filtered through my FAT. I can't take it anymore...I just want to be normal.