Oak Park Lorena

Oh, no you can style your hair just the same way you always do, you just shouldn't pull really hard on the hair the way some stylist do when they do blow outs. I actually did some wig shopping, but they are very hot and like you, I could not imagine walking around with that on my head in the middle of a Chicago summer! And, I'm single, so I also imagined how awkward it could be to say, "let me slip into something more comfortable, oh, and take off my hair, too!"

I had two different types of extensions, keratin bond extensions and what are called tape-in extensions. The keratin bond extensions are where they take a small bundle of hairs and attach it using a bond made of keratin to one strand of your hair right at the scalp. It takes a couple of hours to get them installed. I have long hair so I opted for longer extensions. It was about $1200 to have them put in and they lasted 5-6 months with no need to visit the stylist until the next set. Generally, you cannot re-use the keratin extensions, so you have to have a new set put in. I also tried the tape-in extensions. They are 1/2 wide bits of hair that they attach to your hair with special tape. It takes only about 20 minutes to get them installed. Those can stay in about 6-8 weeks and then they have to be removed and replaced. You can remove and replace the same set of extensions three times. The cost to put them in was $600 with going in at 6 week intervals and paying about $100 for her to remove them and put them back in. The cost of the two types of extensions are really the same because you'll need a full new set of tape-ins probably 3 times a year plus the upkeep.

I never considered a weave. That is where they create a braid and then sew in extensions to the braid. I just don't have the right hair for it and I already had enough of my own hair that it wasn't necessary. I've also heard and read that the scalp under the braid can get very itchy! I also did not like the idea of the micro beads because you can feel them against your scalp and you cannot get your hair colored when you have them in (you can color your hair with the keratin and tape ins).

Both types of extensions looked completely natural on me and no one ever knew I had them. Even hairdressers were surprised to see that wasn't all me! The tape ins I would say are a bit easier to wear and you can't feel them when you touch your hair (or someone else does!), the bonds, however, you can feel as little bumps if you touched that area. With any kind of extension, you cannot run your fingers through your hair from scalp to end. The tape in extensions are definitely "lighter" feeling than the keratin bonds and generally speaking, they probably do the least amount of damage to your natural hair.

As far as taking care of them, you have to be gentle with brushing and have to avoid putting any conditioners or oils or slippery things on the bonds or tape that might loosen them. You have to be very careful when you're drying your hair or styling not to heat the bonds or tug too hard. You also have to keep out tangles and sleep in a braid or pony tail to avoid tangles.

Finding a good stylist to put them in and to cut your hair so they blend in is key. Improperly placed extensions can pull on your hair and potentially cause Hair loss. Also, it's not just knowing how to put them in, but take them out--whatever kind of extension is used, they must be gently removed so as to avoid pulling out or damaging your natural hair. I found my person on Yelp and she's terrific. I live in the Chicago area so there were many choices, I'm not sure about where you live, but extensions are become more and more popular, so more people are doing it. There are also many, many different companies making extensions and you'll want to make sure that you pick someone who uses a good product. You can also google the makers of the extensions and then see if they have a way to locate a stylist who uses their products near you. I used Great Lengths.

Beware though, extensions look so great, it can be hard to give them up!

On 2/20/2017 at 9:07 AM, Crafty-in-Carolina said:

I really hate to sound vain, but wow, this is difficult to deal with. If I were a man, I would just shave the head and grow a goatee and be sexy as hell!!! But that doesn't work for the ladies does it? Just as I start feeling good about myself again, this. My hair has always been very fine and since the huge shedding that happened after the birth of my son 10 years ago, I have not had much to lose. For now, I'm disguising a huge part and mucho scalp with keratin fibers and root touch-up, but I may have to resort to some sort of a topper or something. I really worry that it won't grow back. My mother's hair thinned out so much as she aged and I'm guessing I've inherited that from her.

Still wouldn't change course now even if I could. I did this for my health and I'm feeling really good, but damn!!!! This is what I lost when I washed my hair. Yes, I gathered it up from the drain and took a picture. I do not wash my hair every day, more like twice per week. Thinking of switching to a nioxin Shampoo? ?? Do you think it would help?

And just for the record, I get 80 - 100 grams of Protein daily, plenty of Water (70 oz min), I take my multi-Vitamin, plus a Biotin supplement. I know it's not the end of the world, but it sure makes it more difficult and time consuming to get out the door. Someone please tell me it will grow back!!! Also, any ideas for disguising this thinned out mess until it does?

If you experienced Hair loss, when did you notice thickness return? I'm 4 months out, so I'm guessing this is just the beginning. I will be bald very soon.

Hello! First of all, there is nothing "vain" in being distressed when you start losing hair at such a fast rate, so give yourself a break there!

I was sleeved in August 2013. I have very long, very thick hair and my surgeon warned me that it was going to thin and fall out, and sure enough, it did. I thought I was prepared for it, but when it happens, is upsetting and even though you're thrilled to see your constantly shrinking self in the mirror, that thin hair is tough to deal with.

I have posted this before, but I will again here: I chose to get hair extensions. They are not inexpensive by any means, but it was an expense that I felt was worth it for me. After two years of a very healthy diet and treating my hair carefully (extensions can be damaging if you aren't very careful), I am happy to say that my hair has made an incredible comeback. It is thick, and shiny and healthy again and I no longer feel I need to augment it with extensions. While hair extensions are very expensive and not something everyone is willing to endure, there are a number of rather inexpensive and very attractive options out there like clip-in extensions and what are called halos. These are things you can easily put in yourself and just wear when you go out and they just give you a bit more hair. You can buy them online or at any beauty store like Ulta or Sephora.

One of the things to which I attribute to my hair's comeback is definitely the addition and regular use of additional Vitamins. Everyone seems to know about Biotin, but Vitamin C , which is an essential building block for the production of collagen, is the unsung hero of Hair growth. I take a C supplement above what is in a Multi-Vitamin. I also take pretty large doses of Vitamin E. I take 15,000 mg of C and 1200 IU of a natural form of E everyday over three doses. These are large amounts, I don't necessarily recommend that for someone else without consulting your doctor.

Good luck with everything! I'm sure you will find a way that works for you to make peace with your temporary "bad hair day"!

I wasn't aware that there was some specific prohibition or restriction on carbs for people who have had a gastric sleeve. Could you please provide some basis for this assertion that people who have been sleeved cannot eat carbs or have to severely restrict their carb intake?

My understanding is that there is a slow introduction of solid foods following the surgery in order to allow your stomach to recover. After that point, what you eat and don't eat is really up to you. Some people might choose a carb restricted diet because that is easier for them to lose weight or keep it off.

The challenge of life post-sleeve is to find a healthier way of eating, never eating carbs again or replacing real food with frankenfood that has fewer calories is not necessarily a long-term or sustainable solution. I think that eating pancakes topped with some butter and real maple Syrup would be a perfectly acceptable once in a while meal for anyone sleeved or otherwise.

Hey, @@pinkbunies! First of all, big kudos for losing over 100 pounds--that's amazing! And good for you for being so dedicated at the gym, it sounds like the lifting is paying off.

I'm not even going to jump into the whole "sleeves stretch v. no they don't" debate. And I'm certainly going to second-guess your Protein intake requirements. I can say, though, that I too have hunger again.

I am nearly three years out and about 6 months ago I suddenly started to experience hunger again or at least a growling tummy. It was weird, it was like someone threw a switch, one day no rumbling, next day rumbling. I noticed, funny enough, watching a food commercial on TV. For years, I had no hunger response to food stimuli, no tummy rumbling when I saw or smelled something appetizing. But, suddenly, while close ups of big gloppy plates of Pasta passed across my TV screen. . .grumble. It actually startled me because I hadn't experienced that sensation in so long. I still don't quite experience "hunger" the way I did pre-sleeve. I am doing a fast day and I don't actually feel hungry even when I don't eat for 24 hours, but if I see something that looks or smells good, I feel "hungry." I do still have pretty significant restriction as well. I do, however, respond again to visuals of food or good food smells again.

There is evidence that the sleeve significantly reduces the body's production of ghrelin, the "hunger" hormone, but as I recall from the research I read at the time of my sleeve, they don't really understand why cutting away part of the stomach reduces or seemingly eliminates the body's ghrelin production. I am assuming that in my case, at least, my body is now producing this hormone again after a 2+ year hiatus.

Building muscle definitely requires a large supply of good quality Protein and muscle burns significantly more calories than fat, so it's possible that your newly muscled body does need both more protein and more calories. However, you may, like me and from what I see anecdotally from my perusals of articles on this subject on line for other sleevers, may be producing the hunger hormone in larger quantities than you were after the sleeve. I've come to accept this and accept that it doesn't necessarily mean weight gain, just makes it a bit harder. I don't know that I have any specific advice other than to say that you should be aware of this and come up with strategies to determine what your body actually needs in terms of fuel v. a renewed desire for food.

I wish you the best of luck!

I just made a "watermelon pizza" for dinner tonight.

It is a round slice of watermelon topped with feta cheese, raw onion rings, fresh basil and cappers---with a spray of basalmic dressing. Cut the watermelon pizza like a regular pizza. It is not only gorgeous to look at but is amazingly good!

I use summer fruit and diet soda in my Quest Protein shakes instead of milk. I also add 3-4 ice cubes. It is soo refreshing and so full of Protein. win/win.

Watermelon pizza! That sounds absolutely delicious! When am I invited for dinner? I'm free tomorrow, not being pushy, or anything

I am here to sing the praises of watermelon! Yes, @@catwoman7, watermelon, like all fruits has fairly high sugar content, however, unlike some fruits, watermelon is very low in calories. In order to consume 500 calories of watermelon, you would have to eat over four pounds of it, even the biggest binger in the world could hardly manage that! The "water" part of the Water melon also makes it a great food for sleevers, all that Water will make you feel very full and satisfied very quickly.

I buy a whole watermelon and cut it up into small chunks and keep in the the fridge in ziplock bags. I have a piece as a snack, after a work out, and a few pieces for desert, even my dog loves it as a treat! I would say over the course of the day I might consume the equilvalent of a cup to a cup and a half of watermelon--for a whopping total of 46 to 69 calories! It's juicy, sweet and delicious and it is definitely something that makes me feel full, satisfied and not at all like I'm missing out on summer treats!

@@christiR This forum is a great place to get general information and suppot from fellow sleevers, but it is NOT where you should turn for specific medical advice! Blood clots are potentially life-threatening post-surgical complications. I had a DVT that turned into a pulmonary embolism following knee surgery some years ago. The symptoms of a DVT ("blood clot") can be vague. No, @@Lindsey Skinner Abbott, there is not necessarily any pain associated with either the DVT or a PVT (and clot in a portal) or even once the clot has broken off and become an embolism.

If you have ANY concern that you might have a blood clot, PLEASE contact your surgical team immediately. You will not be bothering them, they want you to have a complication-free recover as much as you do!

Congratulations and good for you! I'm impressed that you have the heart to post at this point. If I'd posted on the day after my surgery it would have looked like this: BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!

Happy healing!

Beer! One of my favorite topics! I'm a huge fan of craft beer and I'm a homebrewer. I had very specific and lengthy discussions with my surgeon about drinking beer with a sleeve. I told him point blank that if I couldn't drink beer ever again, no sleeve for me. He said that that carbonated beverages can cause stomach distress (duh, because it's gassy!), but that beer has significantly less carb than soda (this is true!) and so if I could tolerate the pressure the carb might cause, I could certainly enjoy beer in moderation without fears of "stretching," "explosions" or liver damage.

I started adding beer to my diet around month 4 and it was okay! I was downed with a bum foot and had to have surgery earlier this year, so I was on my behind on the sofa for a few months and had not really been able to do much cardio before that, so that inactivity + a house full of high calories BA RIS's (if you're a beer dork, you're following my abbreviations, if you're not you don't care anyway!) =a fatter me. So, my only caution with the beer, is look out for the calories, so many craft beers these days pack a whallop in ways other than ABV! I'm a big fan of the shower beer AFTER a run or work out! Cheers and remember: beer is proof that god loves us

@@waterwoman thanks! I've noticed that typing lots of posts makes it harder to eat!

@@AchieveGoals yes, there is a better than even chance that you'll experience some hair loss regardless of what you might do to prevent it. I experienced rather dramatic Hair loss around months 3-6.

The important thing is to remember that the loss is temporary! Don't focus on worrying about it happening or trying to prevent it, think about strategies for dealing with the period where it might be thin and focus on making sure you give your body what it needs to grow new, healthy hair. Biotin is great for reducing the loss of hair, but, in my anectodal experience, taking Vitamins C and E and eating a diet rich in Omega 3s really helped my hair grown back thick and shiny. Moreoever, I'm not embarassed to say, I got extensions to help me get over the thin- hair hump. That may not be a good choice for you if you already have thin hair, but there are many things out there you could use temporarily to ease you through.

@@AvaFern Good for you, congrats on the admissions! I loved every minute of law school, would be happy to be a student forever if that actually paid something! I think there is a big difference between be "alone" and being "lonely." I was married at one point in my life and though I was rarely "alone," I was often lonely. I've also been completely alone in the middle of the desert in the middle of the night and didn't feel lonely at all. I think it is all just where we are in our lives and what it is that we have v. what we want.

First, kudos to you for being so self-aware. Not everyone who embarks on this crazy WLS journey is, so you've already got a leg up there! Second, sometimes our biological families drop the ball in the support department and we have to lean on our chosen families, and that's okay. I don't know that you have to keep it entirely secret from your family, maybe just let them know very close to your surgical date that you're having surgery, but make it clear that it's an FYI only, not that you're asking for them to come to your bedside. Mind you, I don't think you "owe" them that, just think you might feel more comfortable letting them know and not feeling the burden of having to keep a secret. Good luck with whatever you decide!

@@Valentina said: "I'm too old to have to remember what I told to whom.

I think I like you

@@OKCPirate well, yes, though the grass is always greener. I'm single, no kids, so "me time" is not much of an issue. I guess we all covet what we don't have!

@@gowalking thanks for the kind advice, you're totally right and it's good to remember that there are loads of non-food things we can reward ourselves with!

@@Valentina Chinese Cresteds are so adorable! I have a Frenchton, he's 3/4 French bulldog and 1/4 Boston Terrier. He's white with big spots on his butt like a cow! He's still just a puppy, 7 months old. Had him since he was 8 weeks old. Best decision I ever made!

Woman: I finally had an orgasm, and my doctor said it was the wrong kind.

Unlike most people in the U.S. who are rushing around getting ready to enjoy this long weekend, I'm kind of dreading it. This weekend marks the 3rd un-anniversary of me ending my last relationship. We weren't married, but we were together seven years, lived together for 6. It was not a pretty break up. It just so happens that all of my friends are out of town this weekend or off doing things with their families, I'm struggling with my new business, so I can't really afford to travel right now and I have no family anywhere remotely nearby.

So, being solitary this long holiday weekend is going to be a bit rough for me. It's particularly tough being a sleever at times like this because I don't want to use food to help ease the pain of the loneliness, which is something I did my whole life and is part of what landed me on the surgical table to begin with. I have some things planned to keep me distracted, the weather is lovely here now, so I'll probably just take my puppy out for some nice long walks and maybe take my bike out. I think holidays are the toughest on us singletons and I think being lonely is one of the hardest things to overcome without resorting to the comfort of food, anyone else feeling that too?

I used Medifast for Breakfast, lunch and a snack and then 4 oz lean protien and a veggie for dinner for my pre-op diet. Medifast is low fat, low carb, high Protein and been around for decades for weight loss. It actually does not taste terrible. I actually like the pudding and the teas, the shakes are kind of the usual Protein shake experience. I did Medifast for weight loss in the late 80s (yes, I am so old!) it's not a great solution for long term because you gain the weight back rapidly once you start eating food again, but it works well I think for the pre-op diet. Remember, the surgeon wants you on the pre-op diet to shrink your liver, not necessarily to lose weight, so find something you can stick to!

I am not a huge Spanx or any Shapewear fan, in the summer months. Generally, all that shapewear in addition to making me hot (I'm always on the hot side) just squishes your fat down around your knees so if you're wearing something at or above the knee, it looks worse than if you're wearing nothing.

I have quite a bit of saggy, loose skin on my upper thighs and above then knee. I have used the product Skinnies Instant Lifts, linked below, and can recommend them. It's basically like a big piece of sticky silicon that you put on your upper thigh and it lifts up a lot of the crepy skin. I wore them a lot last summer and have to say, they are a bit odd and take some getting used to, but they really do smooth your leg above the knee out very nicely. Takes a bit of practice to get on right, but I wore them with shorter skirts, dresses, even wore it playing tennis!

https://www.amazon.com/Skinnies-Instant-THIGHS-Adhesive-Instantly/dp/B00CA7VAX2

@@jess9395 @ I do pilates reformer classes. This is on the equipment with all the pullies that look like a medieval torture device! The "pilates mat" classes do generally seem to be favored by the blue-haired set. They are very different than the reformer classes, though. The classes on the equipment are very rigourous, it's not cardio, it's just very intense. The mat classes I think are just kind of like some stretching and maybe a plank or two, it's not really"pilates," I don't think Joseph Pilates would approve! I brought my mother, who has done her ladies mat pilates for about 10 years now to my reformer class when she was visiting, she's in great shape, but she kept saying, "oh my, this is much more difficult" for the whole hour!

I take a group class, it's not too bad, about $25 a class, the privates at my gym are around $60 depending on the instructor. It is expensive, but I really think it has helped me a great deal. Other than the obvious benefits to your core, although I don't have back issues, my back has always been weak, pilates has helped tremendously with that.

I had my first pilates class since my surgery last night and I am so incredibly sore! It's a good reminder of how much I get out of those classes!

@@ML573663 It was almost 3 months for me.

It's not just the surgical clearance and scheduling, some WLS centers have a specific program that you have to complete even before they will schedule you for a procedure. I had my surgery at the University of Chicago and there were several classes I had to attend as well as getting a psych eval prior to scheduling a date.

Also, I don't know if you've already had your procedure pre-certified with your insurer, but they may have hoops for you to jump through as well.

Finally, your surgeon is going to want you to do a pre-op diet of at least two weeks that is more about surgical safety--shrinking your liver--than losing weight, so you have to build in time for that as well.