Colemon70

Me too!

After seeing this pick my mother in law took today of me my son and husband at the beach today i wanted to cry lol she wanted to post it on fb n i said helll no lol i feel like my dream weight goal is far away but afteer looking at yu guys success storys i knw my storys possible too
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Very few women come back afterward - a lot of us that choose to get pregnant are farther out, anyway, and once the baby comes there's even less time (or really, reason) be back here.
I have seen only a handful of regain posts (never once an entire regain, ever, though) and of the women that have posted, a handful did have a pregnancy post sleeve. Just as many did not, however.
I have gained more with my pregnancy than I had wanted to gain, but I also used ART to get pregnant and spent months on hormone shots and suppositories. But I have absolutely no real fear that I won't lose the weight again after this pregnancy is done.
While my appetite and capacity are definitely larger than prior to pregnancy, we're talking about me being able to eat and entire sandwich instead of only half a sandwich. I did not magically develop the ability to gorge on pizzas or eat a Big Mac when I got pregnant.
My sleeve will go back to being tiny after my pregnancy, I have no doubt. I still cannot eat a half cup of salad and a cup of Soup for lunch - I still leave nearly half the food when I'm done. There is nothing keeping me from losing the weight postpartum, except perhaps discipline, should I be lacking.
The same thing I tell people about "magic one year windows" (which don't exist with this surgery) applies here: you've removed (or will shortly) 85% of your stomach and it stays gone forever. The increased capacity at one year out is laughable compared to what we ate on a daily basis prior to surgery. Heck, I'm more than two years out and my increased pregnancy capacity has me eating an egg salad sandwich on thinly sliced bread. And feeling far too full afterward, I'll be honest. And that's a meal when I feel like I'm starving! A small bowl of Soup and a very small salad is a far more likely meal for me.
I will of course be back once I'm done with this pregnancy and report on total gain and loss, but I do not expect any real problems. Every single regain post I have ever, ever seen on VST in more than three years here has had one common theme: poor diet, not being accountable and not adhering to the basic rules of Protein first and counting calories. There are additional concerns now and again like starting a new medication or suffering an injury but first and foremost, poor diet has always been part of the equation. I think a lot of people get burned out because they use their sleeve like a diet, and I think that if you avoid that mentality you'll have no problem with regains in the future.
Best of luck to any of you currently pregnant or trying to conceive,
~Cheri

I took the complete opposite approach and have told everyone who wanted to listen (even managed to bore various shops assistants with my story!) . I probably have been too much of an open book and the responses are varied but to be honest even though there have been some negative comments, I couldn't really care less. I am in the healthy BMI now and feel and look great - not many people say I shouldn't have done it when they see me!

Down 43 pounds so far!!!
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sorry I dont have more after pictures... My current weight,is 229 post op consultant weight 299 day of surgery 276
I no longer have that crease in my back and double chin is almost gone...
I wore size 22-24 now I can squeeze uncomfortably into a 16 but comfortably wearing a 18 in jeans... My scrub bottoms have gone from 2x-3x now to xl & my tops are large
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I had a dream about bacon. And it was delicious:)

Right now nothing "real food" even appeals to me. Hoping that will change eventually!!

Your nutritionist should have informed you of their preferences. My doc and nutritionist had me on Clear Liquids post op for 1 week then I was on full liquids for the 2nd and 3rd week. On the 4th week post op I was able to start puréed and that lasted 3 weeks. I have been recently starting soft diet. The most important thing in my opinion is to stick to liquids for a while and give your sleeve time to heal! You want to avoid a 'leak' which is a terrible thing. Take it easy and talk to your NUT they should have handouts with ideas for what liquids you can have. I recently found a website owned by a gastric bypass patient and she is a member here! "The world according to eggface"! She has so many recipes and great advice! Most importantly talk to your NUT. Good luck to you!!

I'm not going to lie but I was miserable at Easter dinner. Every year my family cooks a big dinner and my sister made homemade keylime pie. I had 2 spoonfuls, then cried. After my self pity party my son and I went walking and that helped. I messed up but I refuse to give up and fail. I am feeling gassy now..

Wow, it has been a long time since I spent any "real" time here at VST.
For those who may not know me, I'm almost 2.5 years post-op, with well over 100+ posts (so I think I'm ok to post here ) but I definitely count myself in the 'slow to lose' category. I initially lost 100lbs at just about the 18 month post-op mark, and then spent a good 9 months putting on about +15-20lbs by not tracking what I eat, grazing, and generally sort of letting my guard down.
I never quit exercising but in 2012 I took on a full-time job and that put a crimp in my exercise style which was basically workout every day. I went from working out every day to 2, maybe 3 times a week. So that helped also contribute to my gain.
Now I'm not working, but have decided to go back to school (already have my bachelor's but need updated skills) and I've learned the importance of not letting exercise slide. So even though school is a huge time sucker, I've been very true to my exercise pattern. I don't work out every day anymore, but 4-6 days a week is pretty normal for me.
Since Jan 1, 2013 I've now lost -9lbs so I am working off the regain. Then it will be time to get to goal (I never made goal initally.) Part of my absence was due to work, then school, but also for the a lot of the same reasons that many of the vets don't stay here. Another reason is my preferred browser is VERY slow to load this site as it is bogged down with so much advertising that it will literally time out. Alex is working on that, and I have other browsers that aren't so slow. I also have the phone app which does okay reading but I rarely find time to post, as the reading is usually a quick 5 minutes while waiting to pick up a kid from school, etc.
Anyway, just wanting to say hello and meet some of the newer vets... so GLAD to see a Vet's Forum around here! Also happy to see some old timers still here, like Coops, CLK, PDX, Lsereno, MsSkinniness, and Lissa, etc. Sorry if I'm leaving anyone out.
One of my goals is to be around more often!

Goal weigh for 1st day of summer is my goal weight of 125 BUT I'll be extremely pleased within 10 lbs of that

I think it's been covered, but wanted to chime in about the risks. The risk of complication is low, but if you get one, it could be life threatening. If you are the 1 or 2%, then those statistics mean nothing, because now it's 100% all you living with it. I really think it comes down to a risk/benefit analysis, and deciding what your risk tolerance is. I would NOT do this surgery if I didn't have a significant amount of weight to lose, and if I didn't have health issues that could be resolved from it.
Now, having said all that, I don't regret the decision for me. I was beginning to get health issues from obesity, and as I was getting older, it was quickly gaining on me. I also couldn't seem to lose weiight any more. Another thing to consider...this isn't magic. You still do the work, though it does make it significantly easier. There is no guarantee that it will work, some people have the surgery and still only lose some of the weight. There are others of us who lose it slower than some.
I applaud you for asking this question. It's one form of the research that you should be doing, because reading that the complications are low statistically is way different than hearing from that 1% who actually had a complication and lived to tell about it. I wish all the best as you make this decision.

You look wonderful!

big NSV - me posting these pictures
as DH posted pic - he looked at me and said "I don't remember you looking like that."
Either do i!!!! strange!!!
the times they are a changing
i feel like the happiest person in the world
I'm enjoying life to the fullest
what a great "thing" i did for myself, having WLS
DOS
12/15/11
235 lbs
5'3
3/30/13
130 lbs
GOAL
59 years young
still 5'3

Powerade zero, unsweetened tea, crystal lite, Jello, Popsicles!

Yep I started liquids on the 12th. It's getting better each day! The first few days were rough! I have a pre-op appointment with the coordinator tomorrow. It will be interesting to see what info I get then!

New pact made...we keep doing what we are suppose to and stay off the scales. They aren't the only measure of our success.

I was 190 when I came here prior to my sleeve and NO ONE.. Ever said anything of this sort to me. Fact, I've gotten so much support from everyone from all sizes. We're all in the same boat.. We eat food we love and have to kick the habit. We're all working for the same goal.
I must have missed the boat your riding in or I would have said something

Hi, I was sleeved March 22nd. I am feeling pretty good. Seems like each morning i truly feel stronger and can tolerate everything i eat or drink better. One thing i am having a very hard time with is the chewable vitamins. They are so sickening sweet that it makes me almost gag. Never thought i would say something was too sweet, but i can see how my taste buds have changed. Still having a hard time getting in all the Water. Seems to want to get a bit stuck going down. Looking forward to the scale for the first time. I have started walking. Thank you Spring! This week i will be going to the gym at the medical center to see what i can begin doing. For me, adding daily exercize really made weight loss successful. Watching my family enjoy regular food right now is also hard for me. Love hearing everyone's stories!

Hi, having a great recovery. I had my procedure done at Kaiser. Gained about 8 lbs post op, a little head hunger and minimal pain. Wishing all my sleeved buddies a good journey too.????????????