meamo

Just curious how people are doing with their SCARS, I am getting the regular 5-6 incisions and am scared of the SCARS. Just need a little reassurance that its not that bad!? I already bought coco-butter and bio-oil and am looking into Scar away silicone Patches. Any other advice? I really am not looking forward to the scars!!! I relly don't want them holding me back from a possible bikini:)How long until fully faded?

What you're feeling is normal! I had never had surgery before and mine was on 9/9- I was completely freaked out! I also felt miserable after surgery and for about the first week and I was convinced that I had ruined my life. Now 3 weeks post-op, I feel exactly the same as I did before the surgery. Nothing hurts, I don't feel sick, I eat a lot less than I did before but my energy hasn't suffered, and I am very happy that I had the surgery done. You just need to remember that each day it does actually get better and soon enough you will feel great and excited for the future!

Oh honey, you're so not alone - my surgery is Saturday in Mexico and I am thinking the EXACT same things. It's normal - it's natural - we all freak out when it's this close. Just focus on the prize, the end result, your good health for all the years to come. I'll be thinking of you !!

I have my sleeve surgery on Friday morning. That is only 2 days away!!! I can't believe the time has come already. And I am freaking out. I am having the surgery with Dr. Ariel Ortiz at the OCC in TJ, MX. I have only heard fantastic things about their clinic and recovery, but I hate the nagging thought that refuses to leave my head that keeps asking the questions like:
"What if something goes wrong after the surgery and my hospital or doctor don't know how to help me?"
or "I hate throwing up and throwing up directly out of surgery would be awful. Is that going to happen to me?"
or "What if I get there and I end up having an enlarged liver or something and they can't do the surgery?"
So I guess I am just asking for your thoughts and prayers...and if you have answers to those questions to help put my mind at ease, that would be great too. However, thoughts and prayers please...lots of prayers.
Thanks.

I'm day 4 out of surgery an I feel incredible..

Hello everyone I'm Back!! Sorry I had to leave the group for awhile. I was very disappointed when I went for my Final visit before the Surgery and was told I couldn't have the surgery until I had a Genetic test. It's something to do with Protein and me being a silent Carrier of the gene. It could have put my life in danger. Had the test done and Thanks be to God I'm ok. So I Can Have My Sleeve Now!!!!!. Those that believe in Prayer please keep me in your thoughts and prayers.

I was sleeved 8 weeks ago and I'm down 50 lbs. I've been in a stall for almost two weeks now however (I actually hit 50 lbs lost at 6 weeks). Love my sleeve! Here is my pic the day before surgery and my after is from a couple of days ago when we were on the Virgin Islands. I haven't been exercising at all so I need to get on that, however.

Well I never thought I would be doing that again. Rode all the rides I could! Walked all around that place for hours. Before I couldn't do that. Since loosing weight my knee doesn't bother that much started @ 276 now 183 size 12 from size18,20!! I love my sleeve

Was sleeved July 10th . Best decision of my life . Today is my 28th Birthday and I have never felt healthier . I am down 90 lbs from my heaviest , 70 lbs from my surgery. I finally hit a huge milestone ( for me at least ) the other day of dropping below 300 . That is very hard to post for me because I still have a lot to go and admitting what my weight was is difficult . But change is good . I am so glad I took this journey and continue to work hard each day . Congratulations to everyone else , we are all in this together !!
-Ashley

At my heaviest on the left to current

As I was sitting in my chair at work today, I noticed something felt weird about my tummy. It just didn't feel right when I sat. Then I realized it's because my tummy now curves INWARD when I sit, and no longer pooches over my thighs in a lovely half moon. haha

Wow you lost that very quick! I think time will help heal that lousy self image some.
But the fact of matter is we all need to work on self love through this journey.
We need to love our imperfect selves. something I think a lot of us didn't do in the past, and possibly lead us to the weight gain..
Love your imperfect self take joy in moving, breathing easier and Celebrate the journey that you are on

I started off in the 37 BMI range....needed to lose 82 lbs to reach my surgeon's goal and 92 lbs to reach my personal goal. Surgery date was 2/4 and today, I am down 75lbs. Should be at my goal weight by the end of the year. So, I don't feel that it was slow. Also, I have done everything I was instructed to do with diet and exercise. Good luck!

This will probably change some day, but at 4 months out I really hate eating. I get hungry like I used to and then sit down to eat, and within a few bites I feel gross and barfy. I need to learn how to a.) slow down and b.) chew my food. You'd think I would have figured this out by now, but nope! Apparently I am a very slow learner.

Another update with pics. Tomorrow will be 11 months officially and im down 131 pounds. I honestly didnt want to lose this much or think that i would lose this much. I feel that im skinny a little to skinny but i would rather be skinny and healthy then fat and miserable. I wont complain but im in a better place. If your in a rut....remember you will get there. Ive been at the same place that your at now. Man about losing weight so slow, aggravated with the diet, smells from food make you think about eating like you used to.... and the thoughts about the maintaining.....but hey its worth it right? You will get there just as i did even when i didnt think that i could and it was really hard.
Have a great week.

Amen to the starving! Cruel and unusual punishment lol.

That will get better. LOTS of green tea, my friends, LOTS of green tea!

Hi all. I was 21 months out on Sept. 14th and went to my doctor for follow-up. I go see him every 3 months. I am still doing great. I have lost 75 lbs. (I really only had 60 to lose all mainly in my abdomen). Those of you who know my story know that most of my stomach had protruded through my diaphragm. I had a Nissen Fundiplication surgery for my reflux in 1999, and this was a result of that. Anyway, my stomach was lodged between my lungs headed for my heart so with my sleeve surgery at the same time he had to repair that which took and additional 2 1/2 hours. My doctor told me that your restrictions change at 18 months post-op so it is important to stay on track. This time when I went, he said I have lost too much muscle mass in the last three months, which will affect my metabolism, so he said I need to start working out with weights on my upper body and get that up before December hen I see him again. I was doing endurance training on the treadmill but I had to have unexpected arthroscopic surgery on my knee to remove a meniscus tear in July, so that slowed down my walking and treadmill, so that contributed to my muscle mass loss since I was not exercising everyday for awhile. So today I will see a personal trainer and start on a weight program for my upper body only (I lost so much I need to tone my biceps so they don't look like crepe paper!). Also I need to increase my RTD Protein Drinks to two per day. He also said that the powdered Protein drinks were not as good as everyone thinks, because people add so much to them, ie, bananas, sugary fruits, yogurt, etc. that they end up having too much sugar and calories in them. I have always used the RTD anyway, because I couldn't stand the aftertaste or consistency of the ones made from powder. So at this point, the surgery is still the best thing I have ever done for myself, went from an 18 jeans to a 2 jeans, and couldn't be happier. Not on any meds anymore whatsoever and healthier than I have ever been my entire adult life. Don't give up or get discouraged. It does not happen over night, but you be stay on track and stay committed. The weight is bound to come off if you are only eating about 8 oz. at a time. I still have a hard time getting in 1,000 calories a day! Good luck to all of you. Also, you will love this forum. You can learn so much from others who have done it before you. Don't be afraid to ask anything on here! I learned so much from this forum.

Can't believe it's finally here. I remember when I made the countdown ticket on my phone. It was 94 days. I'm sitting at work drinking my lunch. In 2.5 hours I will head home to pack up the car.
We are driving to Columbus Ohio tonight to meet up with my mom and then we are flying out tomorrow morning. Woo hoo!!
The hubs and I are both getting surgery Monday. Very much looking forward to being on the other side.

They are Titanium and will stay in your body forever..This will not be an issue as your stomach heals around them..They are light and totally okay with your bodies makeup....Same thing planes are made of..lol...So we can fly too.....And we are in a sense....upward and forward in our new lives....

My husband and I are going to California next weekend for his 50th Birthday. I went shopping yesterday because I have no jeans that fit me as we don't need them here in Texas in the summertime. I actually bought a size 8!!!! I can't believe it!! From a 22 to an 8!!! I'm SO loving my sleeve!

It was neither easy nor automatic. I "gave in" at some point during the pre-op months and started to cut down on my 'not good with the sleeve' habits. coffee (caffinated), all carbonation, simple carbs. Thankfully I was never a smoker. I began tracking foods, I started on this Board to learn what I could from other's experiences. I researched a LOT (and even watched a lot of sleeve surgeries on You Tube.
At some point I realized that the things that I "had to give up" were the things that were killing me. This made it a LOT easier, friend!
Lastly, post sleeve I have had lots of social events, etc. and I participated FULLY. The only difference? food was not the be-all, end-all of the gathering for me. i.e. I was acting more like a normal person (and all in all I am pretty Abnormal)!

Thank you for posting this... Pre-ops like me need this reassurance!!!! My surgery is scheduled for October 15th & I am starting to ask myself the same questions. I'm having nightmares about 2007 when my surgery went awry and then imagine sending my children off on the bus on the morning of October 15th, knowing what happened before. Logically I know that mistakes are rare and my surgeon is going to be extremely careful with my surgery but it's still scary as hell. Logically, I know that if I want to know my grandchildren, I have to do this and I finally got up the courage to tell my oldest son what I am planning to do. I was going to hold off because I didn't want to frighten him but the moment seemed right. He's twelve and knows what happened the last time, but when I shared this with him he was so sweet and supportive- not scared at all and knows that I need the help. In my head, I know this is right, it's my insecurity and fear that is getting in the way of a bright future with my family. Anyone have a fast forward button???

That's fantastic. Very encouraging. I'm getting sleeved in two weeks

Ten years (yes, ten years ago) I started researching weight loss surgery! I finally decided to proceed and was approved in June. In mid-July I started a 4 week pre-op diet where I lost 20 pounds. A few days before surgery I started doubting my decision...was this too drastic?...would I be successful?...would I be able to handle this?...what if something went wrong?...should I give dieting ONE MORE TRY? Thank goodness I did it! I am now 6 weeks post op and am down a total of FIFTY POUNDS!! Am I excited? Heck yes! I set a goal to lose 50 pounds by my birthday in November and reached it 5 weeks early. My next goal is to be down 75 pounds by Christmas. I did not tell my parents about my surgery and can't wait to surprise them when we go to visit. I am so glad that I finally decided to do this and now I keep wondering why I waited so long! What WAS I thinking? Better late than never. Good luck to all sleeevers---your stories are inspiring!