TheCurvyJones

I was sleeved in Dec by Dr Alvarez. He and his entire staff are fantastic. You will be in great hands.

So I've been at this for 5 months now. I am the one doing the work and I am the one working hard and eating well and sucking down Water so, pardon me.. I get to to express what I feel because they are my feelings and I won't have them discounted. if VST is not the ONE place a person can speak openly without judgement about their weight loss, then there must not be that place in existence. Not one person said they'd stopped living life and had given up on WLS working for them. if anything, we are extra vigilant and work VERY hard to make sure WE aren't the cause of our slow(er than expected) loss. I am snappy, yep. Cause I am tired of being told how to feel about this. I will freely emote about how I feel because it's either going to come out in words or I am going to shove some chips into my mouth. If that's an issue, then maybe the Slowish losers thread isn't a place to hang out.

Meh. Sleeved 12/21, so I will hit 5 months next Tuesday. Down 39 lbs. I lost two entire pounds in April. TWO. May is not looking much better.

Dr Alvarez uses a loose 32 mostly unless he feels you need a larger or smaller one, based on the size of your original stomach. The difference is miniscule, but I wanted to know what size he used for me and others might, too. I also find the lecturing insulting and demeaning. It's one of the reasons I've not come here very often. So many are focused on looking for people to beat down and not on their own journey.

Heya. I am coming up on 21 weeks post surgery, this Friday. I have lost 39lbs. Averages to fewer than 2lbs/week. My loss has slowed to 1lb a week and I haven't hit 5 months yet. I was 250 day of surgery. I lost very little pre op, about 6 lbs on a 10 day liquid diet. I lost 8 lbs the first week and then settled into a 1-2 lbs loss weekly thereafter. I started at a BMI of 48.4 from my highest weight. Day of surgery 44.3, currently at 211 lbs I have a BMI of 37.4. To be at a normal, healthy BMI I will have to lose 70 more lbs. So in about 5 more lbs I will be halfway there. I started in 20/22 jeans and pants, size 18 dresses, XL tops. Currently in size 16/18 jeans, size 14 pants (mostly, some 14's are small) and size L tops, size XL or 12 dresses. If it wasn't for inch loss and being able to wear smaller clothes I'd be way more depressed about my slow loss.

There isn't much pre op testing, that I know of. Most surgeons have you fill out a questionnaire about general health. If there's nothing that they're averse to dealing with (like multiple abdominal surgeries that would require a full open and not laparoscopic or severe medical issues), they approve and set a date for surgery and let you know their payment guidelines. They will do your labs the day before surgery. They require a deposit to set your date (at least mine did) and payment is required before you go under.

I only told a few people. I wanted support but didn't want to feel like I was on display. If I told you how many times just the few people that know ask me 'so how much weight have you lost' in a day, you'd be so annoyed. Especially since I am a slow loser and lose far more inches than pounds in a given month. Plus, word travels and people gossip and it's MY NEWS to give.

Hang in there, folks! Once you are on solid foods you'll be amazed at how two bites of chicken will have you full for hours. Some people are satisfied by soft foods and liquids, some people need a bit more. Don't discount the surgery just yet......it's too early for that!

I drove on day 4. I had TONS of energy and was in no pain at all.

Sleeved three months ago today. Down 30 lbs.

If you can stomach it, check out youtube for videos of a VSG surgery. You'll see the staple cartridge that they use to create the sleeve. Those suckers are not coming out.

yes this. I WANT IT EAT IT ALL.

I am not going to make my goal. Completely sabotaged myself this week.

I had saltine crackers days out. I thought I was GANGSTA. LOL.

Both are top notch, have highly satisfied patients. I have a few friends who've gone to Dr Aceves and are happy with him. I chose Dr Alvarez and couldn't be happier. At this point it comes down to the fee and where you want to go... California or Texas. I chose Dr Alvarez because I was coming from the East Coast. Travel was easier for me to San Antonio.

Yeah I just couldn't do it when I was heavier. I really hated myself, i was depressed and because I hated me I couldn't understand how anyone else could feel any different, so any issue we had boiled down to 'well its cause I'm fat.' IT really wasn't... it was because I hated myself and I was self conscious and that's hard for a person to take, day in and day out. I stopped dating for a long time. I told my guy that I am kind of neurotic and a little crazy and he would have to just shake his head and hug me, don't try to understand me. LOL.

Nice! Hey, it's 50 lbs! Love that. I am in the 'slow but steady' group as well. Well, slower than I would prefer. I'm hoping I can say I've lost 30 in 3 months!

Dating is going okay! Lots of head issues to deal with. I met a very nice man that I've been seeing for about a month. i was fat for a long time so it's been hard to wrap my brain around the fact that someone finds me attractive now. I'm down about 50 lbs from my highest, the smallest I have been in years. He didn't know me when I was heavier, but he's dropped a lot of weight recently so he gets it. Thankful for that, because dating makes me CRAZY. Like totally neurotic and vulnerable and in the middle of all of that, I am dropping lbs and inches and it's messing with my MIND. The biggest thing to deal with has been my head because I FELT so fat and unattractive, I really believed that no one would ever like me. He says he would have dated me when I was 273. I told him he was crazy. :wub: The BEST part is that I love what I see in the mirror, and I like having people smile at me instead of walk right past me. I was tired of being invisible, having men look past me to see and talk to my (thinner) friends. I was tired of blending in with the wallpaper. I wanted to sparkle, and now some of that shine is coming out.

It was for me. I was terrified. No big woop. Seriously, after they give you the meds to relax you, you'll be a-ok.

Haha. That's my girl! She has a mind of her own sometimes! I just noticed your first post and yes, my doctor does recommend 3 meals a day with minimal Snacks in general. Like I said, some people can handle that, some people can't. Adjust accordingly, but follow the rules as closely as you can in the beginning. Grazing, to me, is eating though you're not hungry. Picking at this or that, whether it's "healthy and on plan" or not. Those calories (and carbs) do add up eventually so most people, if they see a pause in their weight loss or a gain, are encouraged to look at how much they're REALLY eating because a lot of people don't count the 'here and there' food, only the meals. I learned quickly that I can get in around 1200 calories without paying attention and I really can't eat a lot of food.......at once. Every two hours though? Yup. Keep in mind that as you heal, your capacity for food will increase and that's why you need a PLAN. Know what you're going to eat and how much of it you're going to eat and track it, even if it's 'back of the envelope' math. Just because you CAN eat it all doesn't mean you SHOULD eat it all. As some of the veterans say, don't let your sleeve determine when you're full. You eat a set amount and then be done.

I'm 11 weeks out. I eat 3 meals a day and 1 or two snacks. I can't really go that long without eating.... Jelly just won't have it. Some things you're going to have to change up, depending on your Sleeve's "personality". Jelly likes to have something every few hours and she's grumpy (spits up acid) if I don't. Even in the middle of the night. The further along you're out and the more substantial protein amounts you can eat, the longer the food will 'last' and keep you full. I can honestly eat 3 chicken wings at 6pm on a Friday night and be fine until the next day because the chicken is dense.

-2.6 lbs down this week yay! I probably won't make my goal of 215 but let's see how close I get.

LW: 226.4 CW: 224.4 (-2) Challenge goal: 215

I've been a low carber for forever so counting carbs is second nature to me. Your first count should be your Protein, always. Within the first month or so post op, you should be building your daily protein intake to your surgeon's recommended level for you-- typically between 60 and 80 grams per day. We are always instructed to get our Proteins in first and then add carbs... and by carbs, I assume most doctors mean fibrous carbs-- leafy green vegetables and the like. A lot of people can't handle bread or rice post surgery... it just doesn't seem likely that my doctor wants me to have baked chicken breast and then back fill with buttetry Pasta. The most I indulged in was refried Beans which are starchy but have a lot of protein. As you get further along, you may want to keep your eye on your calories, carbs and fat as they relate to your protein. While I enjoy beef and pork more than chicken, those tend to be higher in calories, which puts me above a calorie level that is optimal for losing for ME. Tracking what you eat is essential for control as well as for seeing what works with your body. You might see a great result from eating 800 to 1000 calories as opposed to 600 to 800 calories. You also might not see any detrimental effect from eating breads, pastas and rice. It's all about finding the sweet spot... and that's going to be different for every person. For right now, through about week 4ish, concentrate on proteins, getting in all your liquids and moving through the post op phases as your surgeon recommends. I didn't worry much about that stuff until i was fully eating solid foods, around 5 or 6 weeks out.