Kindle

Good for you. I was thrilled that I never got sick either. No pain, no nausea. 2 1/2 years out and I've never puked. be thankful.

Good for you. I was thrilled that I never got sick either. No pain, no nausea. 2 1/2 years out and I've never puked. be thankful.

Good for you. I was thrilled that I never got sick either. No pain, no nausea. 2 1/2 years out and I've never puked. be thankful.

Good for you. I was thrilled that I never got sick either. No pain, no nausea. 2 1/2 years out and I've never puked. be thankful.

My goal weight puts me at a BMI of 26.4. I have been there before. I looked fantastic and was the picture of health.
The only surgeon who would operate on someone your size would be the back door shady type just out to take anyone's money and damn the consequences. I wouldn't trust any surgeon who would say yes to you. I really think you should seek some mental/emotional help for whatever issue it is you are really having.
If you are dead set on having WLS, come back when you are 80-100 pounds overweight.

I LOVE those kinds of weekends....the best ever! And kudos to you for spending it on a young Arab. "Peppy Spooky Idiots" should be their actual breed name
We ran into a cinnamon colored black bear last weekend. The horses and dogs and us and him all just had a stare down about 50ft apart on the trail before he finally sauntered off. It's always nice when moments like that don't turn into a sh it show!

Well I guarantee your weight gain is from Coke and wine and whatever other empty calories you are consuming, not from the steroids.
Once I was maintaining below goal I have stopped any regains immediately if I pop even 1 pound above my bounce range. 2 things have worked for me....
1) full on preop Liquid Protein "preop" diet. Three Protein shakes/day and unlimited leafy green veggies. At least 80g protein and 100oz Water. Usually only takes a few days of this to drop several pounds and to curb any carb cravings that have taken hold.
Or 2) go back to just protein and veggies. Still the same protein/water goals but my overall calories are higher and it may take a couple weeks to drop a few pounds.
If you cut out all refined carbs (including Coke, alcohol, Pasta, bread, rice, etc) and just go back to the same basics that helped you lose during those first 6-12 months you WILL lose those 40 pounds. It may take several months, but isnt that why we had surgery? To lose weight and keep it off? And remember You've got your sleeve forever. Let your sleeve do what it does (portion control) and you do what you need to do (make smart choices) and it will work.

If you've got the savings then I say use it. I used all my savings for my surgery and put my plane tickets on a 0% credit card I paid off in two months with my tax return. This was the cheapest way to do it...no interest or fees. If other expenses came up later I could have used credit at that point, but why pay interest if you don't have to?
JFYI, that savings was earmarked for a down payment on a new truck but I have no regrets with using it for surgery. Driving my skinny butt around in my 17 year old rust bucket is totally worth it!

My horse is 25 (old) so I am borrowing a young Arab who has quite a bit of pep and is spooky and frankly often an idiot. I am a confident rider, but my friends worried about me taking this little loon on our 3 day riding adventure last weekend.
Kudos to both of us - together we encountered:
- a bear
- elk
- flushed a bunch of pheasants who flew up in a most alarming manner
- many close encounters with mule deer
- save a golden retriever who "messed" with the wrong does. Those mammas had that dog pinned to the ground and we had to rescue him on horse back!
Because my horse was younger and energetic, i did alot of riding off from the group and doing some "faster" riding and then rejoining them. The spooky little horse really did good!
oh, and hanging out with my pals for 3 days was epic all by itself!

Probably not. He doesn't have to run out and pass the SATs or anything. The owner has a lot of experience raising Australian shepherds so she'll be able to pick up on anything unusual.
Besides, I think I had the worlds dumbest dog at one time (a Pointer) and if I had to guess he could have been oxygen deprived at birth for several hours I loved him just the same.

Got a call at 4am this morning from a client who's dog was having problems whelping. We kind of expected it as X-rays taken earlier this week showed only 1 pup. ( 1 pup = big pup = c section ). So we went and picked up the dog and took her to surgery. My vet got the pup out and I went to work on him while she proceeded to spay the mother (She's six and owner decided not to breed her anymore)
Unfortunately he wasn't breathing but I found a slow, faint heartbeat. I kept stimulating him, swung him upside down to clear his airway, even did a little mouth to mouth. His muzzle, nose, tongue and pads were totally blue. After a few minutes he finally took a breath. Then nothing. More stimulation, more mouth to mouth. Heartbeat became a little stronger. He'd take one gasping breath about once every 1-2 minutes, his tongue would pink up for a couple seconds then go blue again. Finally, after 20 minutes he started breathing more regularly and his tongue and muzzle and pads slowly turned a nice pink. It was another 20 minutes before he started crying and moving around.
By the time mom was out of surgery and waking up, he was acting like a normal puppy. He nuzzled into her belly, looking for food and as groggy as she was, mom licked and licked and licked him. We were able to take them home by 8am, I ran home to feed my dog and horses and headed back to start our regular appointments. Not a bad way to begin the day.

First, give up the coca-cola.
Second, make an appointment with your NUT.
Third, start tracking your food if you are not doing so already.
Fourth, drink at least 64 oz non-carbonated, non-caffeinated Fluid a day.
Fifth, focus on getting in all of your Protein. What is your Protein target? Mine is 100 grams a day.
Sixth, avoid starches, added sugars (especially high fructose corn syrup), and fried foods.
Seventh, take your Vitamins and supplements as directed.
Eighth, exercise.

So what and how much are you eating compared to when you were losing weight? That's what you really need to look at. steroids don't magically make you gain weight on their own. I've been on both prednisone and methylprednisolone for cervical stenosis and pinched nerves since my VSG 2 1/2 years ago and did not gain any weight because I still made myself eat on plan.
Basically steroids cause weight gain because of
1) Fluid retention, which can partially be controlled with a low sodium/high potassium diet;
2) increased appetite, which you need to still keep in check with mindful eating. Track and measure every bite if you have to.
and 3) decreased activity due to pain or doctor ordered restrictions. But in the end, weight loss and gain has to do what you put in your mouth, not necessarily how much you excercise.
Go back to basics. Lots of Water and Protein. Watch your carb and sodium intake very carefully. Try resetting yourself with a week or two of Protein shakes only or try the 5 day pouch test.

So what and how much are you eating compared to when you were losing weight? That's what you really need to look at. steroids don't magically make you gain weight on their own. I've been on both prednisone and methylprednisolone for cervical stenosis and pinched nerves since my VSG 2 1/2 years ago and did not gain any weight because I still made myself eat on plan.
Basically steroids cause weight gain because of
1) Fluid retention, which can partially be controlled with a low sodium/high potassium diet;
2) increased appetite, which you need to still keep in check with mindful eating. Track and measure every bite if you have to.
and 3) decreased activity due to pain or doctor ordered restrictions. But in the end, weight loss and gain has to do what you put in your mouth, not necessarily how much you excercise.
Go back to basics. Lots of Water and Protein. Watch your carb and sodium intake very carefully. Try resetting yourself with a week or two of Protein shakes only or try the 5 day pouch test.

I love frozen fruit in the summer....blueberries, watermelon, honeydew, oranges and peaches. I keep a good stock in the freezer and grab a handful or couple chunks at least once/day. Don't really give much thought to the calories or sugar and certainly don't feel guilty about eating them or see them as a substitute for something else. It's just something tasty and refreshing.

My stats:
Gender - female
Weight - 5'5"
Highest weight (age 68) - 235.6 pounds
Day of surgery (August 18, 2014):
Age - 68
Weight - 216.0
Quarterly weights during first year post-op:
Q1 - 184.6
Q2 - 162.4
Q3 - 151.8
Q4 - 143.6
Today:
I'm now 70 years old, still 5'5", and this morning at 22.2 months post-op I weighed 135.8 pounds. My lowest weight was 133.0 pounds.
My support groups:
* www.bariatricpal.com
* www. g a s t r i c s l e e v e .com
* For the last two years I have seen a psychologist monthly.
* My surgeon's practice does offer an in-person monthly support group, but I live more than 100 miles from where the group meets so do not attend that.
Warning about non-respondent bias: Respondents who actually collected this kind of information on their own (no bariatric surgeon requires patients to record and store this kind of info) and who will provide it to you are likely to be WLS patients who were more compliant during their weight loss phases and had more success losing weight and maintaining their weight losses than those who didn't collect this information and/or who don't respond to your inquiries.

Like James, I never feel alone because I always have myself. And I'm the coolest person I know. I've been single for almost 20 years and wouldn't have it any other way. I never have to compromise on what to do over holidays (or any other day for that matter). No Inlaws, no office parties, no going places I don't particularly want to go to, etc. I get to do whatever I want to do. Tomorrow I'm going kayaking and hanging out on the river with my dog, Sunday I'll go horseback riding, and Monday I may go to the parade and craft show or I may just hang out at home or I may go horseback riding again. Depends on what I Feel like when I wake up that morning.
For me, being single means freedom, flexibility and lots of self indulgence . As for holidays in general, I don't have fond feelings for too many of them. My brother died on the 4th of July, his birthday was the day before Halloween, my first serious boyfriend broke up with me on Valentine's Day, my grandma died on New Years Eve, two good friends died just before Christmas, Easter was the last holiday I spent with my best friend before his suicide, and one of my dogs was killed on Labor Day. So for me, I don't really make a big deal out of any of the holidays.....there's not many left to Celebrate anyways.

Kayaking on Saturday. Fireworks Saturday night. Horseback riding on Sunday. Craft fair, Parade, tubing and more fireworks on Monday (if I can stay awake that long).

Like James, I never feel alone because I always have myself. And I'm the coolest person I know. I've been single for almost 20 years and wouldn't have it any other way. I never have to compromise on what to do over holidays (or any other day for that matter). No Inlaws, no office parties, no going places I don't particularly want to go to, etc. I get to do whatever I want to do. Tomorrow I'm going kayaking and hanging out on the river with my dog, Sunday I'll go horseback riding, and Monday I may go to the parade and craft show or I may just hang out at home or I may go horseback riding again. Depends on what I Feel like when I wake up that morning.
For me, being single means freedom, flexibility and lots of self indulgence . As for holidays in general, I don't have fond feelings for too many of them. My brother died on the 4th of July, his birthday was the day before Halloween, my first serious boyfriend broke up with me on Valentine's Day, my grandma died on New Years Eve, two good friends died just before Christmas, Easter was the last holiday I spent with my best friend before his suicide, and one of my dogs was killed on Labor Day. So for me, I don't really make a big deal out of any of the holidays.....there's not many left to Celebrate anyways.

Like James, I never feel alone because I always have myself. And I'm the coolest person I know. I've been single for almost 20 years and wouldn't have it any other way. I never have to compromise on what to do over holidays (or any other day for that matter). No Inlaws, no office parties, no going places I don't particularly want to go to, etc. I get to do whatever I want to do. Tomorrow I'm going kayaking and hanging out on the river with my dog, Sunday I'll go horseback riding, and Monday I may go to the parade and craft show or I may just hang out at home or I may go horseback riding again. Depends on what I Feel like when I wake up that morning.
For me, being single means freedom, flexibility and lots of self indulgence . As for holidays in general, I don't have fond feelings for too many of them. My brother died on the 4th of July, his birthday was the day before Halloween, my first serious boyfriend broke up with me on Valentine's Day, my grandma died on New Years Eve, two good friends died just before Christmas, Easter was the last holiday I spent with my best friend before his suicide, and one of my dogs was killed on Labor Day. So for me, I don't really make a big deal out of any of the holidays.....there's not many left to Celebrate anyways.

Like James, I never feel alone because I always have myself. And I'm the coolest person I know. I've been single for almost 20 years and wouldn't have it any other way. I never have to compromise on what to do over holidays (or any other day for that matter). No Inlaws, no office parties, no going places I don't particularly want to go to, etc. I get to do whatever I want to do. Tomorrow I'm going kayaking and hanging out on the river with my dog, Sunday I'll go horseback riding, and Monday I may go to the parade and craft show or I may just hang out at home or I may go horseback riding again. Depends on what I Feel like when I wake up that morning.
For me, being single means freedom, flexibility and lots of self indulgence . As for holidays in general, I don't have fond feelings for too many of them. My brother died on the 4th of July, his birthday was the day before Halloween, my first serious boyfriend broke up with me on Valentine's Day, my grandma died on New Years Eve, two good friends died just before Christmas, Easter was the last holiday I spent with my best friend before his suicide, and one of my dogs was killed on Labor Day. So for me, I don't really make a big deal out of any of the holidays.....there's not many left to Celebrate anyways.

I couldn't tolerate artificial sweeteners at all postop. I just used real sugar, Monk Fruit, and honey. Also drank diluted fruit juices and regular sports drinks. Used regular Torani syrups to flavor plain Greek yogurt and Protein Shakes. None of this impeded my weight loss, but of course I wasn't going gangbusters on high calorie Starbucks drinks or fruit smoothies, either. Besides the real thing, I will use stevia when cooking, and some of my Protein supplements do contain stevia and/or erythritol.

I want to have @@Kindle plans!! I have to work on the fourth so I am going on a hike on Saturday and depending on the weather maybe the beach on Sunday!

5'5"
Started preop diet December 4, 2013 and had VSG December 20, 2013.
December 2013 - 238#
March 2014 - 199#
June 2014 - 160#
September 2014 - 140#
December 2014 - 138#
No support group other than online forums.

I guess I never feel alone because I have myself. And my self keeps me pretty occupied. I am putting together an off grid solar array system this week. I put all the parts on the table and stare at them, read the instruction manuals, slowly like osmosis all the pieces seem to come together in my mind, and then I put it together and see if it works.