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carolina c

Gastric Sleeve Patients
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Posts posted by carolina c

  1. Posted

    Fast loser' date=' slow loser ... I guess I just never understood why it matters. It's like a marathon ...there are some people that can get it done in 2.5 hrs, most take 4.5, but they still cheer when somebody walks across the finish at 6 hrs. Just keep running, when you can't run anymore walk ... just finish.[/quote']

    :) : clap clap clap.... <-- that's me right now clapping away!!!!! Couldn't say it any better than you...

    Bluto and Marivdb reacted to this

  2. Posted

    I try not to weigh myself everyday even though its hard

    Hello ladies! I was sleeved on 8/22. I'm 6 weeks post op down 30 pounds... I'm am what u call a slow but steady looser. I'm very happy about it cuz it gives my body time to adjust... One thing I can tell you is that if you don't give ur body the proper nutrients like your Protein Shakes and your Vitamins, ur not going to loos any fat, what you will start to loos is lean muscle which will make your skin sag... You will be weak and your body will ache.... Plus is you don't take your Protein you are doubling your chances of loosing your HAIR.... Now saggy and bold is not a good combination... We are young!!!I encourage you, if you took the big step to health and got sleeved, take full advantage of the opportunity that others wish they could have.... Don't just eat anything. The sleeve is a tool, not a bypass. Eat and drink your Protein it's VITAL for your body.... I hope you find this helpful..... God Bless!!! :*

  5. Posted

    Fantastic! You have no idea how much easier this is going to make your journey doing it together! My husband didnt have the surgery but he got on board with my new lifestyle and has lost 60 pounds and looks like he is in his 20's and HOT! Lucky me!!! It is nice to be able to cook and eat the same way and encourage each other to exercise and to keep on track! So excited for you guys!

    Thank you soooo much!!! He's in pain, but I'm supper exited :)

  8. Posted

    Hmm' date=' I am not sure. I would maybe do a sinus wash with one of those nasal pots and saline solution, they always help me. Hope you feel better soon! Being sick stinks![/quote']

    Tell me about it... My husband is recovering from a big back fusion, have 3 wonderful boys and tow dogs who just had 6 puppies..... I need to kick this cold's butt ASAP....

  9. Posted

    I have a cold and I'm not sure if I can take just anything... I had Theraflu warming liquid because it usually helps me a lot but this time, I literally felt it take over and coat my stomach with a burning feeling... What can I take???? I already feel my sinuses backing up and don't want to get sinus infection.... I have ALL the symptoms of the common cold.... One month post op :(

  12. Posted

    Thank you all so much. :) I'm just under 5 foot tall so according to my "ideal weight" I could still lose a little more but doc would like to see me gain a few lbs and then maintain. (Never thought I would hear that lol) I'm pretty happy where I am. My tummy is very flat but I also have extra skin so it's not very pretty. I feel amazing but still can't totally see it in the mirror. It's kinda crazy. I'm in a small top and size 5 bottoms yet I still find myself grabbing the 12 and 14's. I look at the 5's and think there is no way they'll fit me but they do. Shopping is fun again!! So blessed!!

    God bless u!!! Ur an inspiration... I'm so glad u are sharing your journey :)

  14. Posted

    I just turned one month yesterday.....

    How are you guys doing after one month??

    What are you eating? I still prefer soft stuff.

    Are you able to drink your Protein? Me most of it.

    Are you drinking all your fluids? I can't.

    Are you guys exercising yet? I'm afraid to start.

    How about them Vitamins? I'm taking regular pills

    Any hair issues? I'm also taking Biotin to try to prevent.

    How's your energy? I'm starting to feel much better, feel my energy coming back..

    grateful-1 and meamo reacted to this

  15. Posted

    I use to hate the fact that my weight loss is so slow compared to most people but I think that I'm loving it now because people don't suspect or question me having surgery compared to a lady I know that dropped weight so fast that people are saying that she had surgery even though she denies it. I know it's nobody's business and that people will always gossip' date=' which is why I only told my family and my boss. Another good thing about this is that I have more energy now so I use the stairs more at work and workout more now with my residents that people see my trying to lose weight that surgery is the last thing on their mind. And of course, I tell them my secret when asked: eat your Protein first, then your veggies and if still hungry, other things and exercise. I am not lying, I just don't feel like disclosing all my info. My numbers: SW: 300, CW: 250, surgery date6/5/13 (my birthday). Best decision I have ever made.[/quote']

    Hi! I am one month post op... I'm also a slow looser,I've only list 20 pounds. On the contrary I tell everyone about my sleeve, I've only list 20 pounds and people can already see how much happier,healthier and mobile I am... This surgery has been a lifesaver for me. So if my testimony can help someone else, why not share the news and help others???? Of course I've gotten some ignorant people who don't know how to act but I don't care about them... I care about the ones that will be impacted by me and because of that decided to do something about themselves.... I'm also glad to be a slow looser because it gives time for my body and SKIN to adjust as I loose.... Many blessings to all... :)

  18. Posted

    I've drunk coffee for 35 years. Been off of it this past month since surgery. Tried Decaf three times over the past week and each time I ended up not drinking it because it tasted nasty to me. This was at three different places' date=' too. What things have you lost your taste for?[/quote']

    I'm 3 weeks post op. I've been so addicted to coffee that the mornings I didn't get my cup first thing, I would get a massive migraine... Haven't had coffee since the surgery... No migraine!!!

    #EXITED !!!!

    NMJG reacted to this

  19. Posted

    Should you feel bad about wanting him to be healthy and live a long' date=' and much more happier life, no you should not. But wanting to leave him already and you, yourself haven't even fully committed to the lifestyle yet uuummm maybe you should feel a little bad. I mean I'm not in your relationship so I don't know what type of relationship you guys have. But he is your HUSBAND and you should honor your vows, if he's not mentally, physically, or verbally abusing you or children(if any) or cheating on you, I believe this is something that can be dealt with. Even if he don't get on board at first, there's a good chance that once he see you committing and being successful on your journey he might hop on board and join you, and if not you guys need to try hard to figure out another way to make each other happy without food. Just set an example and be that inspiration that he probably needs. Take this six months and try to work on building a better relationship with your husband w/o food. And after the surgery like I said be his inspiration he needs you.[/quote']

    You couldn't have said it any better than that!!!!

  20. Posted

    Should you feel bad about wanting him to be healthy and live a long' date=' and much more happier life, no you should not. But wanting to leave him already and you, yourself haven't even fully committed to the lifestyle yet uuummm maybe you should feel a little bad. I mean I'm not in your relationship so I don't know what type of relationship you guys have. But he is your HUSBAND and you should honor your vows, if he's not mentally, physically, or verbally abusing you or children(if any) or cheating on you, I believe this is something that can be dealt with. Even if he don't get on board at first, there's a good chance that once he see you committing and being successful on your journey he might hop on board and join you, and if not you guys need to try hard to figure out another way to make each other happy without food. Just set an example and be that inspiration that he probably needs. Take this six months and try to work on building a better relationship with your husband w/o food. And after the surgery like I said be his inspiration he needs you.[/quote']

    You couldn't have said it any better than that!!!!

    Sofficial reacted to this

  21. Posted

    Don't worry so much about the sodium unless you specifically have issues' date=' or at least I should say you probably aren't going to need to worry about it much.

    I liked to make my own, and it isn't hard to do - take chicken broth or beef broth (lamb is OMG) and make "trinity" combos - like chicken, celery, carrots, onion and then take the chicken out, blend it, strain it, and then food process the chicken, adding the blended veggies in that. If you have a vitamix or know someone who does that will make a pure out of a tire Iron if you were so inclined, they are EXPENSIVE but make amazing Soups and smoothies and such.

    Also try things like she-crab Soup and canned oysters, pureed with lemon...good, good, good!

    Also you can take squash, mint, canned chicken, and currey and almond milk and make an amazing thai 'cheat'.

    Be careful with your protien powders, over 130 degrees and you denature the protien.[/quote']

    I wish I had the ability to make my soups.... I cook for my family but when it comes time for me,,,, there isn't much of me left...

  22. Posted

    I loved (and still love) campbells beefy mushroom...minus the small chunks of beef. Added Isopure unflavored Protein powder' date=' tossed it in a blender and was good to go! Cream of potato to...cream of all most anything really. Campbells has a good selection of 98% fat free[/quote']

    Thank u soooo much!!!!! I'm going to search for the Campbells fat free..... I'm still recovering and have 3 kids 2 dongs and a husband who is recovering from a very big back surgery, not much time to make stuff for my self and don't want my sleeve not to work.... So thanks

  25. Posted

    9 months ago (Sept 4' date=' 2012) I went in to have my surgery. This was my last attempt to get back the life I loved and missed so much and little did I know at the time that it would be the best decision I'd ever made for myself. I want to share this because I remember looking to these boards trying to find out what to expect and how to know if I was making the right choice. Only you can decide what's right for you, but after everything I'd do it again 100x without hesitation. I had a few small hurdles to overcome after my surgery, but they were small in comparison to the reward I feel now. I will be forever grateful for the decision I made. I couldn't walk without feeling miserable, going out made me feel terrible because I never felt good about the way I looked after gaining the weight and I just wasn't living life to the fullest. I wish I'd had the surgery years ago, but what's important is that I had it. 9 months ago I was in a tight size 20 jeans and XXL tops. Today I'm wearing a 9 in jeans which are super loose so I’ll probably be going down another size within the next couple of weeks and a small or medium in tops. Knowing I can walk into any store and buy clothes makes me jump for joy. Every time I pass Lane Bryant I say a quiet thank you that they were there when I needed them and then smile because I know I'll never need them again. I can go into any store I want and try on and wear nearly anything I want. Don't get me wrong, there are still things I see that I love and I'm not able to wear just yet, but I'm almost there and I could not say that a year ago. I'm going to touch on some of the things I had so many questions and curiosities about so that maybe I can help someone else with the same concerns.

    First of all, my BIGGEST concern throughout this process was the possibility of hair loss. I had very fine hair to begin with and it has never been extremely thick. It was perfect for me, but I didn’t feel like I had any to spare. At pretty much exactly 3 months out the dreaded Hair loss started and my heart broke. I was terrified that this was happening to me. I was finally having success at losing weight and now I had to deal with something else that would make me feel bad. I was losing hair with a vengeance and I remember saying to myself, “it’s going to be okay, just roll with the punches and it’s going to stop before it gets too bad” until one day I realized I had thinned enough on top that it was noticeable and I broke down and cried. Listen up ladies; this is about 98% likely to happen to you so mentally prepare for it so when it comes you don’t lose your mind. I wasn’t happy, but I was prepared as much as I could be because I’d done the research. I had beautiful and long straight blonde hair. It was my staple and always had been. I held on for as long as I could and started getting weekly salon treatments to help with regrowth (which if you can afford worked AMAZING), but I did finally have to cut my long locks into a cute and sexy short style. I have NEVER had short hair and I was terrified, but because I was no longer “fat” it looked amazing on me and gave my hair the volume it was lacking since it was so long. It is still short (I have since cut it again bc I loved the way it looks so much) and all of the hair I lost is coming back in thanks to my treatments and the hair loss coming to a stop. I think it stopped falling out after about 3-4 months so it was a while before I noticed I was no longer losing fist fulls of hair. I kept my long hair in a cute braid to the side or French braided for a few months before I finally cut it because it was thin enough at that point that leaving it down just wasn’t an option anymore or everyone would have noticed.

    Another concern I had was “what is my body going to look like after this surgery if I lose a lot of weight?” Well, I needed to lose a little over 100lbs and have lost 92 so far. I feel very lucky because it isn’t too bad. My arms underneath are a little flappy, but I also haven’t worked out like I should and am currently working on that and can tell it’s getting better. My tummy is pretty much what I expected. I do not have any loose skin there at this point (and don’t think I will), but it’s not my favorite to look at for a few reasons. I have a ton of stretch marks, particularly on my lower tummy area) and since losing weight they definitely make it hard for my lower tummy to not hang a little. Now, I have seen some bad pics of bellies and mine isn’t horrible at all, but I don’t love it. I also hate my surgery scars because I want to be able to eventually show my stomach in a swimsuit and they will keep me from feeling comfortable doing that. I want to get a Tummy Tuck, but that will have to wait for now. I did do a consult and the doctor wants me to wait until a year out and then of course I have to figure out financing. She did say, however, that I won’t need a full tuck because my muscles underneath are in great shape so technically I’ll only need the panniculectomy done. She is trying to get insurance to approve that, but I don’t think it will happen because it doesn’t look horrible or hang much at all and I can’t imagine they will cover it, but we’ll see. My breasts are another area that has been significantly affected. They are much smaller than they were (although still considered large and well-proportioned for my body size) and they are hanging down lower than they should now. This again seems to be because of the stretching (stretch marks). They could use a lift and the doctor thinks around 350cc’s implant to fill in where the skin is loose. I’m hoping to have this done at the same time as the tummy tuck. All that said about the surgeries I’m looking at, I could never do the surgery and I would still look great guys. So, if you’re concerned about not having the money for surgery later on, don’t let that be a deterrent. I still look pretty fabulous naked compared to a year ago. I have had a thousand compliments on my change in appearance since my surgery and the men I’m around are falling all over themselves and not just any men, but the hot and fit ones, so don’t let something like a few imperfections keep you from following through with your surgery because if I never get plastics done I will still be more than okay with the way my body looks and I have done virtually no physical exercise up until recently. I saved this for last because it is for me the one place I do have some loose skin. It is very little, but trust me, I hate it and it’s something I can’t help but notice and it’s my inner thighs. I’m very short so for me my fat distributed more to my backside and thighs than anywhere else. I was fat all over, don’t get me wrong, but this area took a lot of what the rest of my body couldn’t hold so when I lost weight, that area became very flabby because it’s such a fatty area. Again, I have not worked out like I should so I KNOW I can improve this by leaps and bounds which is what I’m working on now. I will try to update you on that progress later on for those who are interested. I am hoping to eventually get it to a point where it’s virtually unnoticeable and think it’s possible aside from the stretch marks which I could care less about for the most part since even the skinniest people I know have those.

    As far as my body, that is all I can think of that were huge concerns of mine going into this last year. I really do look amazing and feel like I’ve won such an amazing prize by getting my life back. It’s been so long since I was smaller I hadn’t realized how much differently I was treated from before I gained the weight. It isn’t right, I will agree, but there is a definite difference and I was even extremely confident for someone who was overweight. I always thought people treated me the same, but now I’m realizing they didn’t. I am called sweetheart and darling all of the time now where I didn’t get that as often before. I’m constantly complimented on my clothing, hair, smile, face, jewelry, etc. I have always been very fashion conscious so I did get compliments when I was bigger, but nothing to the magnitude that I am now. It really does make you feel amazing and I can’t stop smiling. I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of walking into a room or up to someone and having them call me “skinny”. Some people take offense to that from what I’ve read on these boards, but I think everyone is also entitled to their opinion. For me, it makes me feel like all of the effort I’ve put into making healthy eating choices and watching my portions to aid my sleeve are just being complimented every time someone says “Oh my God, you look amazing”.

    And, this post has gone so long that I’m just going to briefly touch on food and stalls because I read a lot about that before and after my surgery too. I think everyone is different and should treat this surgery in such a way that will benefit their weight loss goals. While I was definitely addicted to food for a period of time after gaining weight, I have not always been big so for me, after the surgery, I did not miss food at all and I know everyone isn’t so lucky. So, I have been able to possibly indulge a little more than someone who would never be able to stay on the wagon if they did. My diet is pretty lax compared to most I see on here, but I also do not eat much at all even almost a year out. Up until recently I was still only eating 3-4 bites before becoming full. I think that is different for everyone. I usually do something small in the mornings (egg or oatmeal) and then eat pretty normal the rest of the day. I try to make healthy choices such as choosing a lean Protein, but if I have a bite or two of a side it’s usually what everyone else is having. The beauty for me is that I only eat a bite or two and if you can’t do that then stay away from the carbs because it isn’t worth damaging your weight loss for. I look at it like this, I spent 8 years eating myself to death so I’m going to skip the pie or cake because I ate enough of that for a lifetime. If there is cake, I’ll take a bite of my husbands if I just really want to try it, but usually it doesn’t appeal to me at all. I have stalled a few times throughout, but unlike some, I don’t worry about it because I know I’m eating small portions. I was stuck at the 150 mark for probably longer than any other stall (a complete month with not losing even a pound) so I went back to Protein shakes for Breakfast and then made sure I was only eating lean Protein for lunch and dinner with minimal carbs and I’m now down to 145 so that proves to me that if I’m stalling I can break through with a little effort on my part. Another thing that I know is controversial is sodas. I used to drink Dr. Pepper like crazy and since surgery I will admit that I do have the occasional Dr. Pepper. Now, that said, by occasional I may do this once every three to four weeks and when I do it’s one of the tiny 90 calorie cans. Again, I am not easily persuaded back into old habits so if you are DON’T do it! I just want one occasionally and I don’t deprive myself of it. Some people can’t even tolerate it anyways so it’s not an issue. I tend to be able to tolerate most anything. The only things that have changed pretty drastically are that I don’t like the taste of milk anymore so I don’t drink it at all where I used to drink a glass every couple of days. I can’t stand it now. I also can’t really eat anything super spicy anymore which makes me a little sad. I love jalapenos and used to eat them with everything and I just can’t handle it. It doesn’t hurt my belly, but gives me horrible acid reflux/indigestion so I just don’t go there. I have eaten ice-cream a couple of times and it was bad. I had symptoms similar to dumping and that will make you stay away forever because it’s no fun. I think it was because it was liquid and ran straight through so quickly because if I eat something sweet that’s solid such as a small brownie or cookie (which is rare, but does happen once in a blue moon) it doesn’t have the same affect. Again, I just think everyone is different. I was never one to eat a lot of sweets or snack so it is pretty much a non-issue for me.

    I really hope there is some useful information in this post for those of you who are new or thinking about surgery. I just know I would scour the boards for hours trying to find info and compare notes and find people that were close to me in size and stature. It always gives you something to look forward to. If you have a specific question about something I didn't talk about here, feel free to ask me. I'd be happy to answer it for you.[/quote']

    Thank u!!!! U've given me hope!!! :)

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