Lissa_S

Hi there and welcome to the forum Congrats on your surgery - it's close now. With regards to the worry that it won't be like that for you, I had a similar fear prior to surgery. I was so worried - what if it didn't work for me? This was really the last chance (or so I felt) to lose weight and to literally save my life. The weight was slowly killing me. Oh, I had no other issues - yet. But I was 173kg and 33 years old. How much longer until my body started displaying those issues?
I don't get hungry still - and I am 15 months on. Actually that is not a fair comment - I think I get hungry now but I experience that hunger in such a different way. Before the surgery, hunger was a painful thing, lurking waiting to pounce. It was a horrible experience so I fed it and fed it so I wouldn't experience it. The thing was, because I did this, I was never really hungry or rarely was. I had little tolerance for dealing with this feeling. Now I experience hunger as a physical sign my body requires fuel. I usually feel a little weak or shakey - that is when I know it is time to eat something. Whilst I enjoy food (that first bite is always my favourite), I don't really crave anything. I usually make food choices that will make me feel better - which I know is fruit and veggies and low fat meats. It is amazing how much your food choices change after the surgery with not a lot of conscious effort. Your body will let you know (pretty quickly) what it can and can't tolerate.
Honestly it was the best move I made and I am so glad I had my sleeve.
All the best and please feel free to ask any questions you may have - particularly just after surgery! Nothing is taboo or off limits here and everyone is lovely!
Cheers, Liss

Thank you so much Lissa_S. You described the things I'm feeling exactly, I'm glad that other felt the same things and it's not just me. Ahh getting excited now. Only three more sleeps!! I'm sure I will have lots of questions after the surgery!

Hi everyone,
Sorry I have been a bit absent recently. Work has been really busy and my iPhone app was glitchy so I deleted it (and still haven't gotten around to reinstalling it lol). I have been reading your posts through my email though!
Misty - I hope you have an amazing time away on your work trip! It sounds amazing! You're doing so well, particularly with your exercise. I admit that I have been incredibly slack with exercise for the past month or so. It seems that it is easy still to allow myself excuses not to exercise. The irony is that although I continue to lose weight, I don't feel as well as I have done. Which is really annoying, mostly that I have allowed myself to fall back into the old habits. It's silly and I must do something about it I know...As a "sleever"" that is 15 months post op, I find that it is these things now that are the problem.
Weight wise, as you can see from my ticker, I am getting close to goal. I finally bought new scales (WW digital one's) for home. I had been using the scales at the hospital where I work, but honestly, I was weighing on the carpet on scales given to us by a rep so I should have known they would be out. And they were - by about 3kg. Which was a bummer but it really doesn't matter, as since I got the new scales, I have dropped 3 kg which is my biggest recorded weight loss in a month since August so I am pretty happy about that - particularly given that my exercise routine had dropped right off. I was probably pretty lucky there.
So, my stats are:
Starting weight: 173kg
Current weight: 84kg
Goal weight: 73-75kg
Height: 175cm or 5'9"
Clothes size: tops/skirts/ dresses are 12-14, bottoms are 14-16.
Hope everyone is going well!
Cheers, Liss

Hi there and welcome to the forum Congrats on your surgery - it's close now. With regards to the worry that it won't be like that for you, I had a similar fear prior to surgery. I was so worried - what if it didn't work for me? This was really the last chance (or so I felt) to lose weight and to literally save my life. The weight was slowly killing me. Oh, I had no other issues - yet. But I was 173kg and 33 years old. How much longer until my body started displaying those issues?
I don't get hungry still - and I am 15 months on. Actually that is not a fair comment - I think I get hungry now but I experience that hunger in such a different way. Before the surgery, hunger was a painful thing, lurking waiting to pounce. It was a horrible experience so I fed it and fed it so I wouldn't experience it. The thing was, because I did this, I was never really hungry or rarely was. I had little tolerance for dealing with this feeling. Now I experience hunger as a physical sign my body requires fuel. I usually feel a little weak or shakey - that is when I know it is time to eat something. Whilst I enjoy food (that first bite is always my favourite), I don't really crave anything. I usually make food choices that will make me feel better - which I know is fruit and veggies and low fat meats. It is amazing how much your food choices change after the surgery with not a lot of conscious effort. Your body will let you know (pretty quickly) what it can and can't tolerate.
Honestly it was the best move I made and I am so glad I had my sleeve.
All the best and please feel free to ask any questions you may have - particularly just after surgery! Nothing is taboo or off limits here and everyone is lovely!
Cheers, Liss

Woohoo! Go Sue I still haven't sorted out my gym membership yet- started back to ballet after a few weeks off and wow am I feeling it tonight! Ballerinas are tough lol

Hey Misty - sorry to hear you haven't been well and I hope things get sorted out before you have to travel! What a great job to be able to travel to other countries though I am lucky if I get out of the local area, let alone the state (for work purposes).
Merry- I think just taking care of what hair you have is the best advice. There are a lot of expensive treatments out there and not a lot of evidence to suggest that it's worth the outlay sadly. I lost a lot of hair following the surgeries and though it sucked (and I ended up cutting most of my hair off as a result), it is slowly getting back on track and starting to get a healthy look about it. My best advice is to look after your hair, get regular treatments at the hairdresser (added bonus of a lovely head massage which I love) and just go with it. It does get better after a little while.
Sue - I've had the same problem and have just had to uninstall the app on my iPhone as it wouldn't load. I am going to reinstall it later tonight so I hope that it sorts itself out. It got stuck on the logging in screen since Alex merged my accounts - a small price to pay though to have it all sorted out. It took ages to get the app to subscribe me to this thread but did eventually work so keep at it!
Wore a new dress to work today for a function and had so many lovely comments. It was just nice not to feel self conscious about how I look! I had to speak to a group of about 30 people for a two hour meeting today and it just didn't phase me at all. Not even a little nervous - such a difference. I would have been a wreck doing something like this pre-surgery.
Cheers, Liss

Hey Misty - sorry to hear you haven't been well and I hope things get sorted out before you have to travel! What a great job to be able to travel to other countries though I am lucky if I get out of the local area, let alone the state (for work purposes).
Merry- I think just taking care of what hair you have is the best advice. There are a lot of expensive treatments out there and not a lot of evidence to suggest that it's worth the outlay sadly. I lost a lot of hair following the surgeries and though it sucked (and I ended up cutting most of my hair off as a result), it is slowly getting back on track and starting to get a healthy look about it. My best advice is to look after your hair, get regular treatments at the hairdresser (added bonus of a lovely head massage which I love) and just go with it. It does get better after a little while.
Sue - I've had the same problem and have just had to uninstall the app on my iPhone as it wouldn't load. I am going to reinstall it later tonight so I hope that it sorts itself out. It got stuck on the logging in screen since Alex merged my accounts - a small price to pay though to have it all sorted out. It took ages to get the app to subscribe me to this thread but did eventually work so keep at it!
Wore a new dress to work today for a function and had so many lovely comments. It was just nice not to feel self conscious about how I look! I had to speak to a group of about 30 people for a two hour meeting today and it just didn't phase me at all. Not even a little nervous - such a difference. I would have been a wreck doing something like this pre-surgery.
Cheers, Liss

Woo Hoo! Thanks to Misty (don't know how you managed that but thanks) and Alex, I now have my accounts merged and I am set up So happy! Happy Hump day all

Woo Hoo! Thanks to Misty (don't know how you managed that but thanks) and Alex, I now have my accounts merged and I am set up So happy! Happy Hump day all

Woo Hoo! Thanks to Misty (don't know how you managed that but thanks) and Alex, I now have my accounts merged and I am set up So happy! Happy Hump day all

Thanks Misty!! Alex emailed me today and I just responded to it cheers Liss

Sounds fabulous, Kelli!
The party was great. I got so many compliments. I have to say I am getting sick of the attention actually. Some people can be really inappropriate. But I looked good. We left by 10:30 because I was having pain from my incisions.
I think I'm recovering ok from the gallbladder removal. As above, the incisions are still sore and I think I overdid it yesterday. I bought a bicycle and rode it home from the shop (about 5 km but I am so not used to it). Then the party. It was too much. But I think I have lost all the swelling since the surgery and two of my four bandages have come off.
So the bike thing. I feel like I am ready to get a little more exercise on the weekends! I'm running three times a week about 6k per time (Monday, Wednesday, Friday) and don't really want to add more running. I do a lot of incidental walking which I don't really count as exercise. So I figured I would get a bike and I could use it to get to the shops or church or other small errands on the weekends. I might go for a ride on the bike paths too for fun. I don't see myself becoming one of those Lycra-clad "racer" types that you see everywhere around Brisbane. So I got a European style "touring bike" and had a huge wire basket installed on the front of it. The basket unsnaps for shopping too. Because I'm so short it is hard to fit me for a bike, but this one is great (just a tiny bit too tall maybe). I don't actually have a ton of cycling experience especially on the road, so I am going to stick to the easy stuff and have fun and go slow. This bike is a 7 speed and not too fancy.
We went out for a short ride this morning, just 7 km along the bike paths. It felt good even though my bum is a bit tender!
I love my sleeve and the fact that I am seeking out more ways to be active. I also love that I was able to wear heels at the party last night and actually forget I was wearing them, because they did not pinch or hurt a bit!

Well we've moved to the Gold Coast today and friends have offered us their house right on Mermaid Beach for the first few weeks. Sitting here watching the waves roll in and contemplating this new adventure in life. I seriously doubt i would be doing this now if I had not lost the weight. I feel good and confident and excited. Hope everyone else is having a great weekend.

Knowing me, even if I had read more stuff I would have had the 'can't happen to me' attitude And thanks too for the well wishes!

Yay Misty! Hope you're recovery is swift!!
Am going in a 5K run in May 2014 it's a zombie escape run lol and it's on the Gold Coast. Really excited and just the motivation I need to get back to my running
Weight loss is still slow but steadily going down. Considering I haven't really been exercising it's a reasonable result!
I am 2 kg away from my official healthy weight range now which is exciting but it seems like the slowest 2 kg ever... Will see how it goes with the addition of more exercise
Hope you're all going well! Cheers Liss

Yay Misty! Hope you're recovery is swift!!
Am going in a 5K run in May 2014 it's a zombie escape run lol and it's on the Gold Coast. Really excited and just the motivation I need to get back to my running
Weight loss is still slow but steadily going down. Considering I haven't really been exercising it's a reasonable result!
I am 2 kg away from my official healthy weight range now which is exciting but it seems like the slowest 2 kg ever... Will see how it goes with the addition of more exercise
Hope you're all going well! Cheers Liss

OMG OMG, i hit 69 this morning!!! I haven't been in the 60,s for 20 years. I love my sleeve!

It was interesting for me watching this with my thunder cousins who were pro-thin people and argued that the overweight people were overly sensitive and yet, when the tables were turned on the thin people (they literally turned it around and asked the same rude questions they had just asked the obese audience members) not one single person answered. Yet the yelled and demanded the obese people do so. And my cousins, always so thin an pretty felt that the obese people had a chip on their shoulder. I pointed out that as an obese person (well I was until recently) if there was a chip on my shoulder I would have known about it... And probably eaten it but that is irreverent- I mean irrelevant
I don't want to make light of it but geez if you don't laugh you'll cry!!

That's great Susan! You look amazing!

That's great Susan! You look amazing!

It was so nice to finally meet Lissa and Susan and yes .. Just like catching up with old friends! What a great time just chatting and not always about our sleeves but about life! Thanks gals ... Great fun!

On a much brighter note, had Breakfast and endless cups of coffee and tea with Lissa and Sueocco... Nearly 4 hours went in a blink. It was like catching up with old friends, although we'd never met before.
Hopefully next time we can get more Sydneysiders and visitors to join us. I'll try to post a photo, but given all the other problems I'm having don't expect I'll be able to.

Hi all just got back from Newcastle and had a great time but bought a lovely dress for a wedding i have to go to. I was excited as it was a size 12! Just need to work in the arms lol so I can ditch the cardi!!
Cheers Liss

Hi all just got back from Newcastle and had a great time but bought a lovely dress for a wedding i have to go to. I was excited as it was a size 12! Just need to work in the arms lol so I can ditch the cardi!!
Cheers Liss