goirish78

Laura-Ven, lol...you are ALWAYS a help And yes, we'll be getting married on a cruise that departs on June 29 (still trying to nail down the ceremony date), so I've got awhile still before I'll have to order something. Thus far the only real tip I've been able to find online is to order a dress with a corset style back, since you can cinch it up tighter if you need to closer to the date.

My fiance and I got officially engaged last night ( :)!!) We're so excited (this was a long time coming due to several obstacles) and can't wait to get started on the planning. Among the many things swirling about in my head at the moment is the dress. I'm 2.5 months post-op and down 38 lbs., which is enough that I can feel the difference but I'm not yet seeing it in clothes, etc. For those of you who have been through this and gotten married in the process, how did you approach getting your dress? It seems like we need to wait to see how much we lose, but also can't wait too long and risk not being able to get the dress in time. Advice would be much appreciated!! Thanks

I'm 2.5 months out from surgery as of Monday, and I'm down 38 lbs., which is an average of 3.8 lbs. per week (not bad, I'll take it!!) I was initially a little surprised that I wasn't losing faster, but now that it's been a few months I realize that if I keep averaging the weight loss, then it really doesn't matter if I stall for a few weeks here and there. It's the long view that counts. My goal is to be 50 lbs. down by my birthday, which is in a little less than a month; hopefully I'll get there, but if not, life will go on. One day at a time

I'm almost 9 weeks out and have lost 32 lbs as of this morning (I only weigh once a week on Friday mornings). Given how much I have to lose, I've been surprised that I haven't lost more, but I'm happy that the scale is moving in the right direction. I am going to try to up my exercise with more time at the pool, since I am now having problems with my knees (which I never had pre-op...go figure!), plus I think I need to go back to having a Protein shake in the morning (I'm just having a hard time getting those last 20 grams or so of protein in everyday). Hang in there - we're gonna get there!

I'm a little over 2 months out and I've occasionally had Skinny Pop popcorn and it's been fine. I just make sure that I chew really well, plus I like the portion control in the little bags.

As of this morning, I've lost SIX 5 lb bags of sugar (and a 1 lb box of confectioner's sugar)! Life is sweet (even minus all the sugar

As usual, Laura-Ven to the rescue!! Thanks for letting me know I'm not crazy. I seriously felt like my knees were turning to jello earlier today, and my coworkers were laughing at me because I was stopping every few steps to bend and flex my legs. My knees felt like they were going to pop out of place or something...so odd. At any rate, I guess I'll just keep an eye on it and see how it goes

So here's an odd one: I didn't have any issues with my knees or ankles prior to surgery; I could walk, climb stairs, etc. with no problems. I'm 7 weeks out from surgery, and for the last few days or so, I've been having some aches in my knees and ankles and they don't feel very stable when walking long distances, climbing stairs, etc. I'm stumped. Anyone else experience this? Any ideas?

I was sleeved on July 15th...starting weight of 379 and down 10 lbs pre-op and 15 lbs post-op. A little surprised I haven't lost more, but looking forward to upping my exercise this week now that my strength is starting to come back.

Thank you, everyone - the affirmation really helps. As I said, my doctor has generally been great, so this is the first time I've had an issue. However, if it happens again at my next appointment, I will be sure to address it. I think this time I was just taken back by it since that was the first time anything like that had been said. And I do have a follow up appointment with my NUT on 9/17...so it will be interesting to see what her thoughts are. Thanks again!

I had a 5 week follow up appointment with my surgeon (with whom I've had a generally great experience) on Wednesday. I lost 10 lbs on my 2 week pre-op liquid diet, and 15 more lbs since surgery. Granted, I've been a bit surprised that I haven't lost more, given my size, but I'm not unhappy with the loss (especially if slow and steady loss gives me a better chance at not having to have plastic surgery). However, when my surgeon pulled up my chart on his computer, his comment was "Here's the line that shows your weight loss. That line still has a long way to go." Yet there was no mention of anything else I could try to get the weight to come off faster. Needless to say, it was a bit deflating to have what I clearly know and see all day everyday reiterated, when I'm following my post-op instructions faithfully and have very little control over how quickly or slowly the weight comes off. I wish I would lose a bit faster, but it seems my body has it's own timeline in mind. Sigh.

Yeah, I'm also 5 weeks out today and back on "regular" foods (although mostly sticking to soft solids since I have the easiest time with those). I have only lost about 13 lbs since my surgery, and have been meeting my 80-90 grams of protein and at least 64 ounces of water goals with regularity. After reviewing my log, the NUT suggested that I might be eating too few calories, so I've upped my intake to between 800 and 1000 per day in the last few days. It will be interesting to see if there's a different outcome this week. Hang in there!!

2x4, I think you touched on something really important - that what we envision will happen and what will actually happen are sometimes two different things. Like you, I was sleeved in mid-July and while I have lost some, it's not anywhere near where I'd thought I'd be now. Ultimately, though, I realize that in the end I just want the numbers to go down over the long haul (emphasis on the long), and in the meantime I'll focus on how I'm feeling apart from the numbers.I also bought a fancy scale over a year ago when I was on my last attempt at WWers, and when I started this process, I made a deal with myself that the only "tradition" I'd be carrying over from my dieting days would be weighing once a week on Friday mornings. There are times when it is SO hard to keep myself from hopping on it everyday; the question that I keep coming back to, though, is that for almost 35 years I've lived my life entirely defined by numbers - do I really want to live the rest of my life that way? I've decided that I don't. So I'm going to try really hard to stick to Fridays. We'll see. Just know that you're not alone and we're always here whenever you need us. Keep up the good work and we'll eventually get to where we're going

I've been a teacher of the deaf and a sign language interpreter for the past 8 years, as well as a college adjunct. Prior to that I had a career in non-profit management. As wonderful as my kids are, I've realized that college is a better fit for me, so I'll most likely be applying to PhD programs this year.

Haha...we actually have been talking about trying to move back to NorCal someday. Mike's family is in Redding, and our friends are in Davis/Sac. One of my reasons for wanting to go back is farmers markets all year round!!

Yes, Laura...we spent a lot of time at the farmers market, too, when we lived in NorCal, but sadly not everywhere has accessible markets. Hoping that changes now that more folks are looking into markets and CSA

Just curious if anyone else is eating paleo/primal since they've been sleeved? We were making a concerted effort to cut out all the processed stuff we could prior to my sleeve, and hope to continue following a primal plan as closely as we can.

I was just sleeved on 7/15 and the biggest issues I had post-op were a large hematoma under one of my incisions (it looked really bad but was just tender and sore, not painful) and some discomfort from where my drain was sitting on my diaphragm (it went away once it was removed). I did have some gas pains from the gas used during surgery, and walked my little tail off in the hospital, but it didn't help as much as I hoped and ended up taking about a week for me to get rid of that gas. Other than that, I have done fine; I'm 3.5 weeks out from surgery and am able to eat small amounts of soft solids and am drinking between 48 and 64 oz. of water per day (although for the first few weeks I needed to add some Crystal Light liquid drops to the water to get it down). You will do just fine and have a smooth, safe surgery!

My fiance actually works at Whole Foods, so I'm there all the time (since we get a decent employee discount). However, I shopped there even before he worked there, and use the following rules to keep the prices down: 1) I only buy fresh organic veggies IF they don't have the frozen organic equivalent (or if I'm making a recipe that calls for fresh). Their organic frozen 365 (their store brand) stuff is great quality and comparable in price to regular supermarket brands. I'll usually get my spinach, kale, collards, berries, and a few other frozen fruits and veggies this way. 2) Stick with the 365 store brand on everything you can - dairy (the usually have both regular and organic in store brand), meats, etc. It's important to know your prices because sometimes the store brand will be comparable to supermarket prices and sometimes it won't. Then it becomes a decision of how much is organic, etc. really worth to you. 3) Be sure to check out coupons on the Whole Foods website and the flyers in store (usually near customer service). Also, if you check the website for your store before you go and can go on a Friday, you can find out what the Friday One Day Deal is (usually it's for something good, like salmon fillets, beef, or chicken...i.e. things that are normally very pricey). 3) Try and stay away from the middle aisles of the store (where most of the expensive, specialty stuff is); personally I think the hot bar and salad bars are overpriced, but ok in a pinch if you need Protein quickly (especially since you're eating so little of it). Prior to surgery, I could easily eat a giant plate of food from the hot bar that would run $15-17! (at $8.99 lb!) Now, I can barely eat enough for $3, if that. Hope you enjoy your trip and good luck!!

Some surgeons (mine included) prescribe ursodiol to protect the gallbladder for the first 6 months after surgery, since that seems to the be the period of most rapid weight loss. However, I think some do take the gallbladder out as a preventative measure. My sister had the lap band and also needed to have her gallbladder removed. At the very least, I would hope that the surgeons would be open to addressing it.

I'm with ya, Serendipity. I was just saying to my fiance yesterday that I'm not really bothered by not being able to eat a lot, because I'm enjoying what I can eat and knowing that the weight will come off (however slowly ) as long as I keep doing what I need to. Keep up your great work - you are an inspiration!!

Thanks!!

Well, this morning was my second official weigh-in since surgery on July 15th. I've decided that the only tradition I'm carrying over from my dieting days is weighing in on Friday mornings. I'm down 21 lbs. total for this here wild ride (pre-op liquid loss included) and that means that I'm officially under the 200 lbs. to lose mark - "only" 198 left to go!!! I have a feeling I may end up being a slower loser, but I'm ok with that just as long as it comes off eventually. Happy Friday/weekend to you all!!

As another person who hasn't been around very long, I completely understand what you're talking about. While i appreciate the support and kind sentiments offered on these forums, I have been absolutely floored by the invective, judgemental, and immature responses to some people's innocent questions. Unfortunately, I think there are some folks who are forgetting where they come from (i.e. if you've been overweight for any length of time, then no doubt you've been on the receiving end of some pretty cruel stuff at times), and use their "experience" as a platform to be "more-sleeved-than-thou", so to speak; rather than being sensitive to the fact that there are others at different points of their journey and showing some compassion (or at the very least just refraining from comment), they feel they have license to zing people and otherwise react in a sarcastic and belittling manner. I'm sorry that you were on the receiving end of that today - you don't deserve it and NO ONE does. I'm with Luckysmomma...just start paying attention to screennames and if there are things said that upset you, feel free to skip those folks from now on. Life is too short to waste your energy on those who don't deserve it. Keep up the good work and hang in there!!

I asked my surgeon during my post-op appointment the other day why sometimes there are big losses and other times there aren't. His response was "as much as we'd love weight loss to be a purely mathematical formula, it's not. Your metabolism and the conditions in your body are constantly changing, which is why some weeks you see big losses and others you don't, even if you're doing everything the same week to week. The important thing is that the scale continues a downward trend over time." While I know we all have moments when it would be great to see big losses at the scale, I'm happier now that I know not to expect the weight loss to be a constant from week to week. Just happy knowing that whatever's lost is gone for good