piercedqt78

I'm almost 5 months post-op and have had rice a number of times without issue. We have a tradition that we eat at Chipotle once a week and I can eat the better part of a single soft chicken taco, with very little rice, their mild salsa, some cheese and I have them go light on the sour cream, I eat most of the filling, and about half the tortilla. Or I have them make it in a side cup, skip the tortilla and have a little more rice. Also one of my favorite lunches is a wheat tortilla with grilled chicken, low fat cheese and avocado. I got that recipe from the doctor's packet. I also like to sprinkle a few black beans over it before grilling. It's like a loaded quesadilla. I don't do bread, but have tried it without any issues, other than after 3 bites I was unable to eat any of my meal. I too am a former bandster and can tell you that I wish I had known about the sleeve when I had my band put in in 2005.

I was about a week. But I had to have a lapband removed, and I would say that 90% of my pain was from my port being cut away from the muscle.

the before pic was June 2012 the after pic was in July. I have lost even more since that pic was taken, but I haven't been able to get updated pics. I tore a rotator cuff in my left arm and it's hard to capture a size change with a big sling in front of your body. I will attempt new pics this week.

Unfortunately I don't have any experience with this other than caring for an elderly woman that struggled with chewing and retaining solid food. She also struggled to get an entire Ensure down. We discovered they make a kids ensure, and it's smaller with the same fats, and calories. It's just more concentrated. She also did a generic Muscle Milk. I am only about 13 pounds from my goal, and I have some fears that I will be in your shoes. I was a band to sleeve revision, and have lost almost 60 pounds since May. My surgeon told me my weight loss would be slower and I would most likely only get to about 160ish. (I'm 5'4) but here I am at 148 already and still losing without even trying. I lost so much so quickly that I feel like my skin didn't bounce back at all, so now I'm looking into plastics as well. I wanted to be healthy, and comfortable in my own skin. The only thing I'm not happy with is that I went from a 38DD down to a 36C. And the plastics doc told me at my consultation that I have somewhere between 8-15 pounds of skin to be removed. So if I lose anymore I will be under a healthy BMI if his predictions of skin removal are accurate. I see my surgeon again in Oct and I will be asking him what he suggests. Please let us know what your doc says. I'm always curious about the different methods by different doctors.

https://www.facebook.com/CrockpotDivas https://www.facebook.com/CrockPot https://www.facebook.com/pages/Crock-Pot-Recipe-Exchange/132953486751094 https://www.facebook.com/fixitandforgetit?hc_location=stream https://www.facebook.com/crockpotgirl?hc_location=stream

I follow a few crockpot pages on facebook. I have made some amazing meals from the crock. Also I discovered "recipe makers" at the store. We LOVED the pot roast, and also the bbq. http://www.kraftrecipes.com/products/kraft-recipe-makers.aspx

I didn't read all the other replies. I had my band removed and was converted to a sleeve May 8th, 4 1/2 months ago. I can eat half a sandwich, I do better if it's toasted. And when I say sandwich I mean on regular wheat or multigrain bread, not on a sub roll. I have had half of a breadstick (like the kind from Olive Garden). I can also eat whole grain pita without issues, but only about a 1/4 of it. And in that 4 1/2 months I have lost 56 pounds. I was told by my doctor that my weight loss would be slower due to the revision from the band. I went from a size 22, and today I was able to put on a size 12 with no problem. I was also told by my doctor that occasionally having a treat or indulgence would not stop my journey. The only thing I can't see to eat is ice cream, and I can't thin my cream soups with milk. I do fine with sour cream, cheese, yogurt etc, but pure milk is not my friend.

If you have a Sonic near you, they can make a diet coke slush, no carbonation, and it tastes really close to the same. I have a serious weakness for Dr. Pepper, and will go at happy hour and get a med diet dr pepper slush, sometimes I add cherry or cherry and vanilla. It's amazing. I have also had them make me a root beer slush and when I get home I stir in a few tablespoons of whipped cream, it taste like a root beer float. They can add vanilla to their orange crush, or root beer slushes, making them taste like a dreamsicle or root beer float. I know their slush mix has some sugar, but it gets you away from the carbonation.

I was told that my weight loss MAY be slower, with a revision. I had my revision May 8th, and today I am only 18 pounds from my goal. I have gone from a size 22 to a 12 in 4 1/2 months.

You look great! I understand the feeling unsure of your style and clothing choices. My cousin is getting married next month, and I am now looking for a dress for the wedding. Thankfully the bridal shower was casual, and I was able to wear a nice sundress. One of the great things about living in the sunshine state, a sundress is always a good choice. Now the wedding is a late afternoon wedding with an evening reception with a cocktail hour in between. I bought 2 dresses from a local thrift store, both in a 12. My mother (very very conservative) says, one needs to be taken in, as it is too baggy and the other needs to be shortened to show off my new figure. I was stunned that she wanted me to show more skin, and not get a coverup since it's sleeveless.

Thanks like I said, I'm not girly at all, and the thought of thongs just weirds me out completely. I avoid that area of the store all together. My husband says I have a phobia of thongs, and he thinks it's very funny to offer to buy them for me when people are within ear shot.

http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/20/living/parents-2-year-old-weight-loss-surgery/index.html For those that didn't see the article. I sat reading it with my mouth hanging open. I was just amazed that the parents, doctors and hospital thought this was ok to do to a child that is still young enough to be taught proper eating habits.

What are Tanga panties?

Spanxs are thick spandex panties that work like a body shaper. They help smooth out the rolls of skin, and can even make you look a few sizes smaller. They are like girdle panties. I wear them with summer dresses and I can wear a Large. without them I look pregnant in an XL. They help conceal the access skin I am dealing with until I reach my goal and get plastics done.

My grocery and AC are both cheaper now post-op. I'm in Jacksonville FL, and it's not cold here at all. One evening last week it dipped into the upper 70's and I wore a sweater.

I also LOVE going to Ross, TJ Maxx, and Marshall's for designer panties at super discounts.

I love the Gilligan and O'Mally from Target. They have a knock off of spanks too, I can't remember if they are from Target or Walmart. I'm not a girly girl, so I don't do lace, or satiny material, but the Target panties come in several materials and I have always liked the feel and quality of them.

My rings are in my jewelry box. I have a very petite custom engagement ring. I talked my now husband into something smaller, but custom that we worked with the jeweler to design. I have to have him size it, as it is a pressure set ring, so unless I want to have a big gob of white gold added to the interior of my ring making it heavy and uncomfortable, I will just wait to have it sized. I am going down nearly 3 sizes. But I want to be at goal 6 months, and know for sure that my weight is stable, the jeweler told us sizing is really only a one time thing with this ring. So I didn't wear it while pregnant, and now that it's huge on me, I have it in a locked jewelry box.

I started my sleeve journey on May 8th, that was the day my band to sleeve revision was done. Today I put on a pair of size 12 jeans from the Disney Store, from years ago. My husband and daughter bought them for me for Christmas, I was doing the yo-yo dieting back then, and they bought the largest size available to encourage me to keep up the diet exercise I was doing. Well today I put them on and they FIT. And if I do say do they looked amazing!!!

http://www.amazon.com/Before-After-Living-Eating-Surgery/dp/0060567228 I love this book. I bought it for my best friend when he has his bypass, and then he bought me a copy when I had my band. There are some great recipes, and helpful info in the original book, and now there is a 2nd edition.

I had one, but I was also a lapband removal and spent 3 days in hospital. My surgeon's office went over all that before surgery.

I recently bought some clothing that was super cheap in smaller sizes at a thrift store. I figured what my daughter didn't end up taking I would wash, and put away for when I lost more weight. I thought for the hell of it I would try on the med, from Kohls and see how far I had to go to get into those tops. I was floored when it fit, a Med fit. The bottoms are all still too small, I bought 8's and 10's. I know I have a way to go for those sizes, as I'm in a 14 now. But I don't see a med body in the mirror, I still see a plus sized woman. My mom will meet me somewhere and comment on how my clothes are hanging off me, and I have dressed myself convinced that I still need the XL, or the 16-18 tops. I finally had her come over and tell me what looked good and what was too large to pull off anymore. My local domestic violence shelter got a ton of clothing, and I don't have to second guess myself any longer when I'm getting dressed.

I know my local salvation army has a half price day once a week, and ALL clothing is half price. I have found some really cute things there for just a few dollars. My daughter got a beautiful formal dress for her 6th grade dance last summer for less than $10, and it was new with tags, and priced at nearly $200. We also have a local domestic violence shelter that has a thrift store, all clothing is $1, and some weeks it's only $.50. I bought 10 pair of Ambercrombie, and American Eagle jeans there in sizes 8/10 for this winter. I'm already down to a 12, and the 8/10 is my final goal. So for $5 I was able to get a nice little start to my winter clothes. Oh and I also bought some shirts in a med, thinking they would be great for when I get to goal, and guess what? I'm wearing one of those med shirts today. I thought for sure I would have to be at least another 15 or so pounds down before they fit, and they are already fitting and looking great on me. When I tried it on, just to see how far I needed to go to wear it, I started crying. My husband was soooo confused that I was crying because it fit. He thought I was crying because it didn't fit. LOL then he saw it and was amazed. He tells me all the time how great I look, but sometimes it takes something like an NSV to make me realize how far I've come. I saw my reflection in a store window and didn't recognize myself at first, it was crazy.

Have you considered getting a pair second hand? Ebay? or craigslist? I had an entire closet of torrid clothing, that no longer fit me, and I will tell you that my local domestic violence shelter residents were more than happy to have them. I felt good passing on my stuff to someone that could really use them, even though I was sad that some things were "faves". I knew they would make someone else really happy. And I will NEVER need stuff in those sizes again.

Basically when you eat something that doesn't agree with you, it will cause some esophagus upset. You will get a mouth full of "slime" it's a mucus that the body produces to coat and protect the esophagus, and help prevent damage. They are more common with the lapband, I'm a former band patient. I have only had the "slimes" once since my sleeve. I ate 3 French fries, and I thought it was going to kill me. I was sick, with slimes, and throwing up for several hours. I will NEVER eat fries again.