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Great! The first step is always the hardest! :-)

Does bariatricchoice.com ship to Canada? I'd check it out. I get a lot of my Protein products from them. I'm not a huge shake fan, so I do a lot of protein hot chocolate, pudding, Jello, that kind of thing.

Totally agree. The first weeks are just about getting through and getting enough fluids to stay hydrated.

Ahh...I see.

So my insurance fully covered my panni & abdominoplasty, but they denied my brachioplasty. It makes no sense to me because when I sent in the paperwork, I have the same medical documentation for both my stomach (which they covered) and my arms (which they denied). Anyway, I appealed it and it was denied again. Now at the end of October I appealed it a second time and it is being reviewed by "an outside reviewer". I'm just wondering if anyone had any success getting a 2nd-level appeal approved or getting an appeal reviewed by an outside party approved. Waiting the 30 days is killing me. I'm kind of thinking that if they deny it this time, no one is going to approve it since it's not being reviewed by the insurance company. Sigh...... It's not the end of the world. My main concern was the tummy tuck, but this would definitely be icing on the cake. :-)

I'm not sure about a waist trainer.Did you have surgery yet? You may find that after surgery and you heal, that you might not feel the need to use one because you will have the shape you are looking for. I did wear an ab binder for several months post op - probably 5 months. My surgeon told me the longer I can put up with wearing it, the better the results. For several months I couldn't imagine going without it because it just gave me more support. I've considered a waist trainer now that I'm a bit further out, but honestly, with the lipo on my waist that he did with the TT I don't really think there is much of a need for it. You can see the nice curves he gave me in my blog (linked below) if you're interested. He did an awesome job. :-)

My scar is hip-to-hip.

Great results! Congrats!

I lost about 10 pounds after my TT, but it was mainly because I was not able to eat basically at all for a while because of some small complications....I just had no appetite at all. Zero. When I asked the surgeon how much weight was actually because of the skin he said only maybe 2-3 pounds. But as others have said, it completely depends on each person individually. I didn't have a lot of "weight" I was carrying in my stomach; it really was just tissue.

Congrats on your success! That is an awesome loss! I'm 2 years post op (and a couple months) and I've lost 145 pounds and have been maintaining below my goal weight for over a year. It's always good to hear the success stories to remind us that it is indeed possible and possible long-term :-)

Thanks everyone! It was an awesome experience :-)

That's awesome! Congrats!

I was very tired the first couple of months. The b-12 injections helped me a lot. Also, getting a LOT of Protein also helped. But really, it sounds like you're doing everything you can. Your body is probably still adjusting. If it continues though, definitely let your doctor know.

I think just about everyone has a moment of regret or buyer's remorse in the first few days/weeks after surgery. I remember calling my friend who was sleeved a year before me from the hospital saying "I can't believe you talked me into this! Why didn't you tell me it would be like this." She assured me it would get way better very quickly, and she was right. The first days/weeks you are going through sugar withdraw, carb withdraw, caffeine withdraw, plus you just had a relatively major surgery which demands that you completely change the way you've eaten probably all of your life. There's a lot of both physical and emotional change all at once. I promise it will get better and you will look back on it and say that you would do it all over again! ((hugs))

Oh sorry! It's themeiamnow.blogspot.com

So, I posted a couple of weeks about about finally feeling confident enough to get some boudoir photos taken as a surprise for my hubby to thank him for his amazing support through this entire journey that I've been on. He's been amazing. Anyway, never in a MILLION years would I have imagined that I would have enough confidence, courage, whatever you want to call it to (a) get these pictures taken in the first place, and ( share them with complete strangers. But, I figured if someone reads this and sees them and it encourages them to make a change for the better in their health, then why not!!! And you know what?? I'm freaking proud of my hard work!! lol...... SO, I'm not going to post them here.....But......they are on my blog (linked in my signature) if you feel so inclined..... :-)

Thank you! :-)

As far as getting approved, I would say just be clear on what the insurance requirements are. As long as you meet the requirements you will be fine! And if you are denied, appeal, appeal, appeal! Good luck!

I did a combination of both. I set smaller milestone goals (ie. 10% lost, 20 pounds, 50 pounds, onederland, etc.) but I always had a larger goal in mind. I think if I only had the larger goal it would be easy to get discouraged. Reaching those smaller ones kept me motivated. Then there is exercise. I had to set goals for that too. I always have to sign up for a race to keep me motivated to continue training. I guess it just depends what kind of person you are and if you're pretty intrinsically motivated, or if you are more goal-orientated. I'm definitely goal-orientated. I really love the feeling you get from reaching a goal and passing it.

I've been at and around goal since 10 months post op. I dipped down a bit about 6 months ago, but I'm thinking it was primarily because I wasn't able to eat much at all after my tummy tuck. It seems that once I got to a certain weight my body just kind of wants to stay there. Luckily for me it's about 10 pounds under what my initial goal was. I think that eventually your body does kind of settle down into a range that it feels most comfortable at. Or maybe at a certain point you have to perhaps mix things up a bit to continue to push through the plateau. Either way, I could probably lose another 10 pounds if I really stuck to my numbers religiously, but at this point, I'm happy maintaining right around 130. Hope that helps!

Great work! Congrats on your long-term success!

I used to hate exercise, but as the pounds fell off it became super motivating to see all the new things that I could do with ease. I started to really crave exercise. It also helps me to sign up for classes and races so that i have something to work towards.

If you're still pre-op and not on the liquid diet yet, I agree that you don't need to skip the stuffing altogether. Just do a small portion! Now....if you were post-op, I would say something else. :-) I will approach Thanksgiving like I do any other meal. Protein first, then veggies, then if there is any room left I may indulge in a bite or two of mashed potatoes. I am definitely going to steer clear of the desserts and heavy carbs like stuffing.

Welcome! I'm sure you will get lots of info and inspiration here for your journey! :-)

Hmmm there have been so many of them over the past 2 years! To pick a few highlights...... 1. Being able to go to the amusement park and ride all of the roller coasters with my kids. I had an unfortunate event where I couldn't fit into a ride pre-op which was the turning point for me deciding to have surgery, so that was a big one for me. 2. Becoming a runner 3. Having enough confidence to have boudoir photos taken as a thank you for my husband for all of his support 4. Buying and wearing bikinis this past summer 5. Being told on many occasions that I look like my teen daughters' sister not mother 6. Having plenty of room in the middle airplane seat 7. Having to do my laundry separately because I get my clothes confused with my daughters' 8. Being called "thin" or "skinny" on a regular basis 9. I never get over having collar bones and hip bones. It's the little things.... lol 10. Having more energy to be more active with my fam