goodlife

Congratulations! You are doing fabulously.

I honestly can't think of anything....I had researched very thoroughly including reading a million different threads from VSG'ers both here and on OH so I was pretty well prepared. I can't say there have been any surprises. A few suggestions though....take before pics AND measurements. It's fun watching the inches melt away. My hubby took a bunch of before pics of me the night before my surgery and we lost them! Can't figure out or remember if we uploaded them to one of our computers or if they are on a memory card somewhere...I'm pretty upset about that. Hopefully they will turn up one of these days!

Are you tracking your food? How many calories are you eating each day? What does a typical day of eating look like for you?

Congratulations and I love your username! :w00t:

Hi Garv and welcome to VST! Congrats on making the decision to do this....you're going to love it! Your daughter is going to love the "new" you as well! I hope the time between now and your surgery goes by quickly for you! I hated that wait! I was impatient and wanted it done NOW! lol

Congrats diva!

Carrie...let's break it down here. What about your sleeve are you unhappy with? Your surgery went well...you've recovered perhaps a bit slowly but you are recovered/recovering. You should be on to soft foods by now..mushies, and whatnot. Maybe even more than that. That's more than you've been able to do for how long now while you were on a mostly liquid diet? You wanted the band out and you didn't want to regain all the weight you had lost plus some. You now have a tool to keep that from happening and you will lose more weight and become more healthy. What about any of that makes you unhappy? Try to separate the issues...because they are totally different. The how's and why's you ended up having the surgery when you did has nothing to do with the reason why you initially decided on having the revision. I read in another thread where you said if you had been given the option you would have had the plication done instead. Do you think THAT would have given you a different outcome or a different attitude? The post op stuff is all still the same. There are no benefits of having that procedure over the VSG except you're left with a lot of useless (probably dying) stomach tissue in there. Sorry...that just creeps me out. Many of us have suggested to you that you need to see someone professionally to deal with all these different issues you have. You've not responded in any way (that I've seen) to that advice. Why is that? You're mad at your husband, you're mad at the anasthesiologist, you're mad at your body, and that is just not healthy. You HAVE to deal with those issues... I also read how you're on several different medications...some prescribed by a pain management doctor. So basically you're taking narcotics to deal with a pain issue..you didn't say how much you're taking or how that affects you, but perhaps that could be a contributor to your mental state as well...especially coupled with likely out of whack hormones following surgery. How are you spending your days? Are you staying in bed all day feeling angry and sorry for yourself? Are you spending time with your children...taking care of them...taking them outside to play...taking them on outings, whatnot? If you want to leave the boards and take a break...then do it. But support isn't about just saying poor poor Carrie...she's a total victim here. Support and friendship is about saying the tough things that maybe you don't want to hear but NEED to hear. You say you did this for your kids, because you want to be healthy for them and be there for them. Well....what are you waiting for? Deal with your issues so you can move on and BE healthy for your kids. Because you know what? They deserve to have a WHOLE mom. All of us here truly want the best for you....I hope you believe that.

Pamela...lol NSV stands for Non Scale Victory. And hell yes you want some!

That is FABULOUS loss! WOW! You're way ahead of me! Congratulations...your pictures are great!

My sleeve buddy! You are doing GREAT! I'm so happy for you.

YAY!! I love NSV's! You're still trucking right along.....keep up the good work!

Congratulations!! You're doing GREAT!

So this past weekend all of our kids had plans so my hubby and I decided at the last minute to go away for the long weekend. We hopped on a plane Friday morning and went to Belize. We went snorkeling twice for a couple of hours at a time. We took the resort's sailboat out one morning. We had massages at the spa. But the big NSV comes from our cave tubing trip. We had to take a boat back to the mainlands and then an hour van ride to the tubing place. Once there we had to HIKE for 45 minutes through the jungle to get there while carrying our tubes. Six months ago I never would have been able to make that hike. My back would have been killing me, I would have been completely out of breath and downright miserable. The anxiety of just THINKING about having to make that trek would have stressed me out. Guess what? It was EASY! It was FUN! I never got winded and while I could certainly feel it in my back it wasn't intolerable...my back issues aren't going to disappear with weight loss but the loss sure relieves alot of the pressure! My husband even said how proud of me he was when we finished the hike...and he commented on how I wasn't even breathing hard. I think he was amazed! Also with snorkeling...in the past I was usually the first one to peter out and head back to the boat. Not this time...I had energy to spare! It was so very nice to take a spontaneous trip like that and not have to deal with all the usual anxieties...the seats in the plane...whether I would be physically able to participate in whatever activities were planned. I LOVE my sleeve!

Carrie....I urge you to do some soul searching and try to find the real root of your problem. I just can't help but have the feeling it's not really the surgery you're having a problem with. I think that's a scapegoat. I sense a resentment towards your husband and I'm wondering if that might be the real issue here. I think maybe you should see a therapist...someone who can help you work through these feelings. Please though, for the sake of your children who need their mommy...don't be afraid to eat. Please make sure you're staying nourished and healthy. I wish you all the best.

Look at you go girl!! Awesome! I'm glad you're loving your sleeve now...:001_rolleyes:

Hi Carrie...just checking in on you. How are you feeling today? Are you drinking your fluids?

You will be there before you know it! Onederland is my next goal...first was to lose half of my excess weight. Did that a few days ago. 13 lbs to go to onederland! I'm packing up all my stuff and taking it with me cause I don't ever plan to come back to THIS place!

That's wonderful news...how many calories are you having to eat now to maintain?

I'd be interested in knowing what sites you found that information on...I find it to be inaccurate and quite outdated. As others have already stated, the first part of the Duodenal Switch is a VSG. This is typically only done nowadays for the super morbidly obese who need the malabsorption factor in addition to the restriction. Early on when they first started doing the VSG as a stand alone procedure or as the first part of a DS, they used a much larger bougie size leaving a larger portion of the fundus intact. The fundus is the stretchy part of the stomach. Leaving that much in there allowed for the stomach to stretch out and thus allowing regain. They have refined the surgery over the last several years and now use a much smaller bougie and removing the whole stretchy part of the stomach. What is left is likened to shoe leather. It will stretch and give a little bit, but not much. Those who have had regain with the VSG did not do so because their stomach stretched out but because they reverted back to bad eating habits and grazing. It is COMPLETELY different than the stomach "pouch" made with the RNY. That is totally and completely false. (no. 2 above). They also refer to the sleeve as a "pouch". We do NOT have a pouch. We have a fully functional stomach, albeit a smaller one. I'd take that list and throw it in the garbage where it belongs.

Thanks coreyandbrett and welcome to the boards! These boards were an absolute pleasure to dig through when I was pre-op. I just couldn't get enough information. It really helped as I felt I knew exactly what to expect post-op. There were no surprises....except I really WAS surprised at how easy my recovery was.

I can't say I've ever heard of that particular hormone reaction post surgery. I know that I've been much moodier since surgery and I figure that's due to my hormones. I'm thinking about doing a full hormone workup on myself just to see where I am. Were you on some hormone therapy before surgery?

I can almost guarantee you in a few months you will be singing a whole new tune. I think what you're feeling is normal...it seems a lot of people feel that way in the first few days/weeks post op. But once those lbs start dropping off and you're feeling more yourself, you're going to be very happy. Just take it one day at a time and before you know it, you'll be feeling much better. Hang in there girl...

The two week liquid diet is the absolute hardest and worst part about this entire process, IMO. If you can get through that, you'll breeze through post-op!! lol

Thanks Maddie! Any word from the doc's office yet?

Welcome to the boards! I found these boards when I was researching my surgery and what a lifesaver. I hope you stick around and post with us...good luck and I hope the time between now and your surgery passes quickly!