Butterflyhigh

The FDA has approved gastric sleeve for a bmi of 30 with at least one co-morbidity. Insurance companies will not pay for anyone under 35.

I am making a grocery shopping list to prepare for the post-op diet. I don't want to get burned out on the same three foods and end up eating something I shouldn't. Can you all share what your typical post-op shopping list looks like? Also, I like to juice fresh veggies and fruits and it usually ends up being a little pulpy. Would that be considered appropriate for stage two liquids? If the pulp was strained could it be the stage one Clear Liquids? Thanks!!

Is it slapable? A good ass can be judged by it's slapability. Here's to all of our (soon to be) hot slapable asses!!

Good for you, Mamma! I think that the way our children turn out is about 5% genetic and 95% environmental. It is like I said earlier, I don't think my smoking has anything to do with how my children are maturing but it does have something to do with how I parent them. And frankly, that is probably inaccurate too. The pot does not make me open-minded and sensitive to their needs....it is my open mindedness and sensitivity which draws me to using cannabis. I believe it is only a matter of time before weed is legalized in all of the states. Our laws just need to catch up to the science. I also believe that JessicaAnn has a very valid point. Personal possession and consumption IS still illegal in many states. The desire to obey all laws and regulation is admirable. I think it comes down to risk management, common sense, and personal maturity. I've known people who abuse pot and are not good parents because of it. I know people who have smoked in their cars with their kids or who tell their kids to lie about what they see Mommy and Daddy doing. Those people suck as parents in those cases. However, we all make daily choices about which laws we will follow or disregard. Speeding, seat belt usage, doing home repairs without a permit, reporting all of your cash income, etc... We as individuals pick and choose. I smoke pot at night when my children are tucked in their beds. I do not smoke and drive. I do not carry it on me. I do not "party" anymore. I have a lot of work during the day and I always get my stuff done before relaxing with my bowl. I like the feeling of my mind floating around the heavens. I am more creative when I smoke. Most of my home and garden project planning happens while smoking. I too graduated with my bachelors with a 4.0 while smoking. The worst side affect of pot is my irrational love of the Grateful Dead.

I appreciate your concern. Luckily for me I don't have trashy fights in front of my neighbors or associate with people who do. I am sorry you lost your children for a time to Child Protective Services. I would think that should make you even LESS judgmental of people and their choices. I mean, here you are clean and sober and your children were actually taken away from you. And here I am with a little box full of marijuana and a glass bowl, and my home is the ideal place to raise successful and secure children in. Go figure.

I have two of the most well adjusted, capable, and amazing children who you could ever hope to meet. My eldest child is a gifted violinist, in the top .5% of students in her grade level in the country, has already been offered a scholarship to Duke University's gifted student TIP program, is a leader in her class, is already taking college math prep classes, and is going to be auditioning for the Cincinnat School for Creative and Performing Arts next year for music and creative writing (she has already been published in a tween/teen magazine). In addition she is popular amongst her peers, kind and compassionate, and funny as hell. My youngest is only three years old. She knows all of her colors and numbers in Spanish as well as numerous simple everyday sentences. She is already learning to read and knows all of the phonetic sounds of the alphabet. She is also kind and compassionate, loves nature, plays well with other children, and is showing a strong interest and talent in the piano. I was a single mother for much of my 12 year old's life. While I do not think that smoking pot had anything to do with how my children are, I think that it does have something to do with how I parent them. I am a laid back, open minded, non-judgmental person. I have always and will always nurture their creativity and own personal uniqueness. The fact that I do not judge people on their own chosen lifestyles and I do not make assumption on people that I do not personally know MAY have something to do with my chosen method of relaxation, but most likely the two just go hand and hand. So, as far as your hope that my children are not with me unsupervised while asleep in their beds as I am outside in my garden smoking pot.....well, I cannot help the ignorant and self-rightous. Peace & Love to you.

The only concern I would have about tokin it up after surgery would be the way ANY smoke (weed or other) tends to decrease your blood flow. IMO there is nothing worth jeopardizing the healing of an internal organ. That being said....it ain't gonna be easy. For me there is nothing more relaxing after a long day of work, tucking the kids into bed, straightening the house up one last time, and sitting outside by the fireplace smoking it up, and listening to the nighttime sounds while watching the stars in the sky. Peace & Happiness.

I just assumed the OP typed her bmi backwards. She probably meant 35, not 53. She said her bmi was 201 on the day of surgery. Most patients loose some weight before the date of surgery. So if she is 5'6" with a bmi of 35 that would be apx. 220lbs. It is not inconceivable that a person can loose 19lbs before surgery. And she also indicated that she was on HBP medication. In the US, WLS is now approved for anyone with a bmi of 30 or more and at least one co-morbidity. I do not think that your opinion trumps the medical profession's recommended guidelines. (Can we say arrogance?) I don't know why there are some of you who are attacking a person who reached out for help and support. Since I have been on this site I have seen and read many helpful posts from people who seem to be genuine in their concern for others. I have also read posts by a bunch of immature mean girls who stir up drama. Why be so mean and judgmental? This person needs help. I would be afraid and scared if I were in her shoes right now. And I would be feeling dejected, rejected, and alone after reading what some of you people are writing. To the OP, I am sorry this is happening to you. I hope that you get some good information from the veterans on this site. I hope you will update us with your progress. I am a pre-op still and I want to read everyone's experiences...the good, bad, and ugly. Hang in there!

I cannot speak for how smoking affects WLS as I am still a pre-op...BUT, I did have a breast lift done six years ago. The no smoking rule was the same and the reason why is because smoking inhibits blood flow which directly affects the healing of skin. The doctor seriously stressed how important it was to stop smoking before and especially after surgery. Well, I didn't. I cut back but did not stop. There was a spot under my breast along the cut line which would not heal. It absolutely refused to. While all of the other cut lines and stitched areas where knitting together and healing, this one spot stayed open and oozed. Eventually my doc had to place a sterile patch over the area and I had to have an office visit ever two days until it healed which took about two weeks longer than the rest. The scar there is now much more noticeable than the rest of them. My dic said this was all a result of the continued smoking on my part. Now I am a non-smoker. After seeing the problems that my skin had healing on my breast there is NO WAY I would risk an internal wound not healing properly. If you can't stop smoking, try the E-Ciggerett. It is what I use now to curb that occasional urge to hold and inhale a ciggerett. Try anything. The smoking could seriously impact your healing. Good Luck!

I've never read that VSG is not effective for low bmi patients. To the contrary, every study I've found indicates low bmi patients loose a higher percentage of their excess weight than those with bmi over 35. http://www.hindawi.com/journals/jobes/2012/813650/ Here is just one study. This particular one only followed a little over 100 subjects, but there are many other studies with a higher number of participants. I'm on my phone and have a toddler crawling on me demanding Breakfast, otherwise I would find the other studies.

I can totally relate to this. Not only am I afraid of what the higher bmi folks are thinking....I'm reeeealy worried about what my normal bmi friends/family may think. I've pretty much decided to only tell three people. I don't want to deal with the judgment and behind-the-back talk about how I could have just dieted and exercised more, how I'm not THAT fat, or how they would never be making this drastic of a choice if it were them.

Hello All! My doctor seems to be leaning heavily towards wanting me to have Plication instead of the standard sleeve procedure. The benefits of plication is....cheaper (I'm self-pay), almost zero chance of leaks, and an easier healing process. The cons are....limited long term studies, and it does not remove the portion of stomach that produces Ghrelin (which does not concern me). One of the reasons why I am hesitant is the fear that the folded portion of stomach may loose blood flow at some point and turn necrotic. However, I cannot find any information that would indicate that is an actual problem. Anybody here have any insight into the plication surgery? Thanks!!

For me the hunger is not so much the issue as the full feeling is. I don't mind feeling hungry, just so long as the hunger can be satisfied without eating three hugh platefuls of food! lol.

I'm a low BMI'er as well. I haven't had the surgery yet. Currently I am a 31 BMI, 5'8" and 205 lbs. Over the past 12 years I have been as high as 260 and 40 BMI and as low as 160 and 24 BMI. The older I get the harder it is to loose. I feel like I've been living my life constantly fixating and obsessed with food and weight. Always paying attention to the scale, feeling embarrassed by my tummy fat, dreading summer time when I have to ditch my sweaters, loosing weight Yay!, gaining it back Sob!, buying new pants, pulling out my fat jeans again..... I am so ready to just jump off of this crazy cycle. I am scared about the lifestyle changes that will happen, but I know that those changes are necessary and am looking forward to making them. Over the past couple of months I have really been coming to grips with my internal fears and as of today I can not wait for surgery to happen. Right now my last fear to overcome/deal with is HOW to tell my very close family members. Really, I will just be telling my sister and best friend. I know they are going to go through the whole "But your not THAT fat...Why don't you just try and exercise more....Are you suuuure you're doing this for the right reasons??"

Good question. I am in the same boat. I love to cook. I hand knead and bake my own bread, spend 12 hours making homemade chicken stock because no store bought stock can compare, roll out fresh Pasta dough, cook with wine, use exotic cheeses, make rich and decadent sauces....I am in some ways defined by my ability to cook wonderful food. It is one of the things that has kept me on the fence about having surgery. Over the past several weeks I've slowly been coming to grips with the fact that the post-surgery me will STILL be able to cook and create, but I will have to sacrifice the giant platefuls of food I can currently consume. It is one or the other.....stay fat with big portions or get thin with small portions. Still good food, just much less. Reading post's in the veteran's forum has been helpful. Seeing what life will be like in 2,3,4 years after surgery is comforting for me. I know that I will not be able to eat the same way again, but I am confident that I will adjust to a NEW way of eating. A few years from now I will be healthy, thin, and still enjoying good food. I am still having a horrible time with the idea of giving up my glass of wine with dinner though. Not sure I will ever like that.

Thank you for sharing your experience. These are the posts that are so helpful to folks like me who want to be completely prepared for any post-op issues that may arise. I sincerely hope you are feeling better and that things are now "moving along nicely".

I have read a lot of posts about how to sip sip sip on Water post-op. I know that that will be hard to adjust to, especially in the heat of the Summer when nothing but a cool glass of water sounds good. But, what about long term, like one year+ post-op. Will the sip sip sip always be the only way to drink beverages? Or at some point will I be able to...not chug, but drink more than just sips of water? I don't drink anything except water (or wine with dinner) and I just can't imagine not being able to enjoy cold water on a hot day.

Mystigal, I can totally relate to the fearful kid issue. I have two daughters, 12 and 3. Obviously the 3 yo isn't aware of anything, but my 12 yo would be terrified too! When I had a minor cosmetic surgery six years ago my Dr. had to give me valium the night before AND the day of surgery because I was such a scared mess. My thoughts will be with you and your little girl tomorrow around noon. I am sure you will wake up from surgery just fine and be hugging your daughter shortly thereafter. Good Luck, mamma!!

Oh thank goodness! I don't know why, but I am really stressing out over drinking Water. It was SO HOT yesterday and I was working in the yard and flowerbeds all day. During my breaks I would drink cold water and it is just so soothing on a day like yesterday. I kept thinking about how miserable I would be if I could not enjoy ice water like that ever again. That is the type of thing that still has me on the fence about sleeve surgery.....the long-term changes. I pretty well understand all of the post-op healing challenges, but not so much on the long-term. Things like, will I ever be able to have a glass of wine with dinner....will I be able to eat fruit and veggies before getting 60g's of Protein in first....will I be able to digest red meat??? I think it's these last few fears I need to face before committing myself to this surgery.

Oh, thank you for posting this. That was very nice of her to do such a thorough walk-through of her surgery experience. I am actually pretty well read up on things to expect immediately post-op. What I am so worried about is how I will handle the long-term changes....like will I ever be able to drink a entire glass of Water again? Will I be able to enjoy the taste of steak, not a whole cut of steak, just 1/4 of it? Will I at some point be able to have one glass of wine with dinner? I know I need a lifestyle change, and I am actually desperately craving a lifestyle change! I am just very afraid of loosing the ability to enjoy food in a healthy way. For instance, yesterday I worked outside in the flowerbeds and heat all day. All I could think about was how wonderful it would be to sit down for dinner on the patio and enjoy a cold ripe watermelon for dinner. After all of the post-op healing is done, like a year later, will I be able to munch on a cold watermelon or will that just get in the way of my Protein intake??

Hello All! My name is Jennifer..Butterflyhigh...and I have been creeping on this forum for weeks. Only now am I ready to start posting questions and comments. I am a 35 yo mother to two daughters. I live in the Cincinnati area. I love to garden, play the guitar and piano, and cook. Actually, cooking is a big part of who I am. I LOVE to cook fine cuisine and pair dishes with the perfect wine, discover new recipes and put a new spin on old favorites, and make from-scratch breads, cheeses, and pastas. I am VERY worried about how a sleeve will change this aspect of who I am and if I will still be able to enjoy cooking. I have been struggling with my weight since 8 years old. I remember very clearly at that age when my parents divorced and I went from an outgoing active child to one who found comfort and self-soothing by overeating. I felt good when I felt full. That feeling of comfort has persisted into my adulthood. I have a current BMI of 31. Yes, I do realize how low that is, but I have fluctuated between a 30 and 40 BMI for years. I am so sick and tired of loosing and gaining the same 60 pounds over and over again. I am at a low BMI now because I spent one year on Phentermine, but now that I'm not taking that horrible mind altering drug anymore I've gained back 30lbs and am well on my way back UP the BMI chart. It's been a constant roller coster of dieting, exercising, feeling good about myself, loosing the momentum, gaining the weight back, crash dieting again, never fitting in my clothes, refusing to buy larger sizes, sweat pants, sweaters to hide behind, hating the summertime, wanting SO BAD to just fit into a pair of shorts and a tank top....I think I am ready to step off of this emotional and physical circus ride and into a new lifestyle and way of being and living. I have a lot of fears and concerns about something as drastic as removing part of a major organ, and that is why I am here at Vertical Sleeve Talk. I really need to know the good, bad, and ugly of making a decision of this magnitude. It's already been so helpful reading other people's stories. I look forward to learning more.