MiaThinBody

I'm on Day 20 and have cheated because I wanted to be able to chew on REAL food. But, I felt awful after even one bite. Not guilty-awful. SICK-awful! So, now, if I think I HAVE to chew, I do... I chew.... Then spit it out. I satisfy my urge, and enjoy the flavor, but I refuse to feel the burning in my chest two minutes after I swallow it. And, the emotional roller coaster! I had a couple of days of crying and ranting about how much I'm sacrificing. Then, I thought about my goal to feel better.... Get my health back... And, I read posts here... And, I know I can do it.
Not meaning ANY disrespect towards amputees and what they endure, but I think this is a little like Phantom-Limb Syndrome. Psychologically, we think we are hungry when we see a sizzling steak blown up on the 60" TV screen. But, marketing experts already understand about what happens subconsciously when our eyes send the signal to the brain. When I find myself falling for their hypnosis, I jolt myself back and say, "the BRAIN being hungry doesn't mean the body really IS hungry."
We have to re-BRAINWASH ourselves...reprogram... Even give our brains a "warm boot" to change the subconscious paths we automatically go to. No one said this would be easy. But, everyone here is saying it GETS easier. And I can tell you today is a LOT easier than a week ago was for me! Just hold on.... Ride it out. And, buzz me if you need to chat! I'm on a lot in the evenings.
YOU CAN DO THIS! And, you are going to be happier. I promise.

I will be 2 weeks post-op tomorrow too and proir to surgery I don't think I knew what it really felt like be hungry since I ate all the time for other reasons! Bored? Make something to eat. Mad about work? Eat something good. Sad or depressed? Eat something. I would eat for entertainment and pleasure even when there wasn't something wrong. I guess what I am getting at is that you need to recognize what triggers your cravings and why you choose food as your fix-all. There are support groups and sites available to help you develop ideas for how to change the role that food plays in your life. A big thing that helped me was to think of better ways of finding pleasure besides eating. Hobbies, or other things like treating yourself to a new book can become your new reward vs. food. Talk to your doctor too about support groups in your area, and good luck!

I have to agree w Laure and Vix the person that telling me to stop has made some jokey jokes about me that I don't take seriously because I feel like she's jealous the reason for me asking is because I feel great I'm getting all these compliments and I see a difference in my clothes but I some how feel I could be thinner and my mind has not caught up I got here so fast it's only been 14 weeks too loose what felt like could have taken a lifetime but thanks everyone imma stick to the plan you only live twice in my case ( joke) and I'm living for the second time but imma get it rt for the first time

I think you look beautiful, and I think that the goals that you set sound great! You have to do what's best and healthiest for you. Friends? you gotta love em... But they say lots of things!

You should have said well I don't date stupid people!

I posted here a while back, saying how happy and thrilled I am with my sleeve. After reading page after page of dialogue regarding regrets, depression, marital issues, complications, etc., I realized one thing about myself. This journey is a roller coaster ride. I have had quite a few "bad" days...days I do not come on to VST or seek help, advise, or anything. As a food "addict"-I can say that the weight loss part of this journey is the easy part. Its the addiction to food, the stuffing, the hiding...for whatever reason, that is the hardest part of this journey for those of us who have not experienced any discernible complication (leaks, etc.). If I were to respond on one of the days where I wanted to stuff -- and couldn't -- my response would be so different! Just like in life and in relationships - there are good and bad days. If people who are looking into having WLS don't address the addiction, they are bound to be miserable! Food and worrying about what I was going to eat next took up too much time in my life - now there are gaping holes in my days. Gaps that are allowing me to be outside more, spend more time doing things with my family, spend more time with God.

All I can say is stay away from the horror stories unless you have a lot of resolve to be successful or get thrills out of being scared. Hey, i like watching horror movies for the same reason everyone does. However, they don't dig at me in a way that keeps me up at night. Those VSG horror stories should be told, but I can see how scary they are making it for the pre ops. If you are not strong in your resolve to have VSG on your own accordance and get easily spooked about the upcoming surgery and post op experience, be careful how much you read into them and how much you personally need to identify or emphasize with them. There is nothing wrong with giving any one who needs empathy some empathy if it helps them get through their rough experience.
with that being said, every complication is part of the 2 % statistic so there is 98% chance you will have zero or minor complications. Minor complications might be trouble eating for first week, diarrhea, Constipation, etc. stuff you can handle because being sleeved is worth so much more then those small issues. I even had a minor complication that put me in ICU fora few days following surgery, but hardly remember it. It is fading fast because my mind is occupied with all the benefits that have come from taking my life back from the clutches or morbid obesity. We all face the possibility of gall bladder, liver or kidney issues in the future. However, we were not really living before surgery were we? A lot of us had numbered days considering our health issues. Taking the brave step to have VSG is an opportunity for all of us to live and experience the wonders and beauties of life. Isn't that worth it?
Keep a positive mindset about the whole experience. That applies to most endeavors in life. Don't let the negativity floor you. Use the information on VST in making your decision. Both good and bad experiences exist with good experiences being 98% and bad experiences being 2 %.
Always keep those statistics in perspective when researching information about your upcoming VSG experience.

Neilsleeve, nail on the head my friend, nail on the head! I feel the exact same way and am approacing the "diet" thing the exact same way. If I want it, I eat it...just WAY LESS! I am 2 months out, eat just about anything I want when I want it. If I am craving something, I will take a bite or two, it satisfies me, then stop eating it because I am not hungry for it anymore. Did I take in 20-30 extra calories, probably....is it going to hurt me, absolutely not, in fact, I will burn off 20 times that when I ride my bike or go play with my daughter, or go do something physical that I couldn't do previously. It is all about using your head, staying diciplined, and living your life, not deprivation. I am not going to spend my life being terrified of food!

I saw this thread the first day it posted.
Had a number of thoughts on this.
I have thought for a while now how nice it would be to have someone that:
Understands what I have gone through and appreciates that
That I can go out to dinner with and not be looked at like "why are you eating so little"
Maybe go out to eat and share a plate.
Im a single dad. Two awesome daughters that have supported me 100% on this. They do get a little chuckle when we go out to eat.
Waitress asks:
What can I get you to drink?
Nothing for me thank you.
What you don't want something to drink, not even Water.
Nope, thank you. Im good.
Funny look and a smile.
My Gals just love that:-)
Well, just my thoughts.
This surgery has been the most wonderful thing I could have done for myself.
Day of first Dr visit back in Aug: 324lbs
Surgery Nov 7: 294lbs
On the scale this morning: 226lbs

Looks delish.. I've been loving a slice of great quality chicken or turkey lunch meat (usually boars head oven roast gold) half a slice of muenster, 1/5 of an avocado and rolling the avocado up in the meat and cheese.. Can't wait until I can eat tomatoes and I can add a nice slice of a Tomato on it.. This has ALWAYS been one of my favorite meals/snacks, but it was so expensive and calorie dense because I'd wind up eating half a pound of meat, four ounces of cheese and the whole avocado.. It's AWESOME to me that I can now enjoy a nice small portion of good quality nutritious food! Dear God, I love my sleeve!

With this particular surgery the grhelin is removed with the part of the stomach that is cut off. This helps us not to have hunger. I believe for the majority of us we still have cravings and head hunger but its up to us to make the right decision on what we eat. With that being said sometimes it is easier for us to make better decision because for some cravings change, taste buds change, if you try something you shouldn't have sometimes it doesn't sit well with you. Our stomachs are smaller so we cannot eat/drink as much as before.
For exercise that's depends on the individual. Some have exercised before having surgery but there are some that do not like to exercise. Some will start to exercise because they are losing weight permanently and they feel like its not the same old diet and exercise routine that didn't work before or that you lost some weight but eventually gained back and possibly more.

For me the surgery was like a reset button. A chance to start fresh, but with built in restrictions that don't allow me to just throw up my hands and have a cheat day that turns into a cheat week and so on. This surgery really seems to change most chemically, in a different way than just dieting would. You don't crave sweets/breads/carbs in the same way that you did before. You feel no hunger to get you off track. These are tools to hopefully get you to significant weight loss, and then I am hoping to keep that ball rolling down hill. So in the beginning your new, small stomach forces you to change your habits - after that, it is really up to you. Make sense?

Well said! My surgery has been a breeze - very very easy for me. However, it was not an easy decision or an easy few days post surgery LOL! I had many things to consider - surgery like this is something you really have to prepare yourself mentally for, have finances for, etc. I work with people who think I took the easy way out, but I don't care what they think - they don't know how hard I tried to diet, exercise, fail, and repeat that pattern over and over. They don't know how I felt miserable before I had my surgery. They don't know I struggled with every bite of feeling guilty. They don't know how I looked at the scale and cried. I let my weight loss speak for itself - even with the negative people out there, I would do this ten times over! The freedom from food and those ill feelings are worth it.

Agree! I really thought this would be easier than it is but I was sure wrong about that.
And a frozen margarita would make me extremely happy:)

I remember once when Oprah had lost a lot of weight...she heard that people were saying things like "Well, she's rich, it's easy to lose weight when someone cooks all of your food and does everything for you." She was talking about it on her show and basically said...she was the one who had to make healthful dietary choices every day and refuse her beloved Ruffles potato chips. Her wealth didn't do that for her. And she is the one who had to get her butt on the track and walk every day. She couldn't pay someone to do that for her.
I think it is so similar when people say that VSG is "the easy way out." We are the ones who have make sure that every morsel we put in our mouths is good fuel for our bodies and resist head hunger. The surgery doesn't do that for us. We're the ones who make special holiday meals for our families and then don't partake in most of it. The surgery doesn't do that for us. We're the ones who go to the gym even when the weather isn't good or we feel like going to bed early instead. The surgery doesn't do that for us. We're the ones who keep drinking (and drinking and drinking) Water when part of us would rather hang out with our old friend Diet Coke or Frozen Margarita. The surgery doesn't do that for us.
And you know what? I wouldn't have it any other way. Yes, the surgery is a tool, but I still feel that we own and deserve every hard-earned victory we see on the scale and every NSV. If others don't understand that, it's okay. I know that I haven't taken the easy way out, but I also know that what I'm doing is an investment in something very important--me. And that's something that money definitely can't buy.

Hello Everyone.. I have been on this page previously under a similar name LifeBackNye.. I couldn't remember my password so I am here again LifeBackNye7.
I remember stalking the forums when I was at the begining stages of this process. I would go back and forth during my journey and happy to say that I was sleeved yesterday!
The first night was very hard for me. a lot of gas pains! Wow never thought I would be able to live through so much pain. My doctor also removed my gallbladder and fixed a hernia so I have had a lot more pain then others may have had. Passed my leak test, very excited about that. Have been up walking around and boy did thst help.
I was sleeved in NJ by Dr. Noyan.. great doctor.
Just very happy to be here. Thanks for listening!

I have this picture that I hate of myself before surgery... I decided to try on the clothes I was wearing in the pic and what a difference! I'm so happy and excited! I love losing weight!
I've lost 58 pounds in 11 weeks.

Think of it this way. When's the last time you lost 11lbs in 2 weeks?

I'm not saying that this is going to help any but I am going to say that you aren't alone. I was sleeved a week before you and I have not lost any weight since Wednesday a week ago. Infact I have gained about 3 pounds. I am following my diet, I haven't cheated even once (though it has been tempting because of the frustration). I stopped losing about the same time that I added soft foods and I got to do it a little before my two weeks out just like you. The weight will start coming off again for me and for you it will pick back up. I don't know when and I don't know that we even need to do anything different at this point. Our bodies have to catch up. We both were in starvation mode and now that we are actually feeding our bodies they want to hold on to everything that we are giving them because they don't know when the next meal may come. Once your body figures out that it is getting food again regularly and nutrients too it will start losing again. Keep your head up. Trust me, I know just how hard it is. You are doing great and you will continue to do great. Follow your plan and you will be successful!

Today Marks My Fourth Month Since My Life Changed Forever Lost A Total Of 104 Pounds I'm Very Proud Of Myself All The Hard Work & Dedication Paid Off I Love It
Previous Weight 330
Current Weight 226

Well Jen, you are correct that you will still want food. At least for a good while immediately post op. It's awfully hard to make these changes with your dear old friend food. I haven't been enjoying it at all. But what I do enjoy is the numbers on the scale that have gone down since surgery. It takes a little while to resign yourself to a whole new life as far as eating goes. There is good news. You will be able to make the changes even though you don't enjoy it. And you'll be able to eat most anything you want at some point, just not a whole lot of it. The benefits of the sleeve far outweigh the difficulties. The choice is yours. Don't fear the changes in eating though. You will adjust and eventually be glad you did it. The hard part only lasts a while. The benefits will last you the rest of your life.