VSGAnn2014

My "digestion" took a turn for the better when I started taking a daily probiotic. Also, an apple a day does wonders for me in that department.

Hubby and I did get some estate stuff finalized (we're both far into senior citizen territory), but other than that I didn't leave any letters for anyone. Speaking purely for myself, something about this topic feels pretty drama llama to me. Obviously, others' mileage will vary.

Unsolicited advice here ... There's rational concern about solving a lifelong weight problem with WLS, and then there's irrational fear, self-defeating negative attitudes, and downright paranoia. I see some of those latter emotions and attitudes expressed on this board quite often. They're what I think (hope?) counseling could help. It's a truism that losing weight doesn't fix all our problems. After losing all their excess weight, some WLS patients are disheartened to learn that becoming skinny hasn't changed their abilities to find a relationship, repair a broken marriage, become more successful at work, or cure sibling hostilities. If you're having negative feelings or feeling overwhelmed while losing weight, chances are you will still struggle with those issues after you're through losing weight. So why not look for support NOW for those things that are bringing you down.

1. How long did you go before having your first drink? I had a couple of sips 2 months post-op for a toast. But my first real drinking (wine) happened at 6 months post-op. Went to New Orleans and drank 6 ounces of wine for 3 days. Since then I've drunk 4-6 ounces of wine 4-5 evenings a week. Sometimes instead of wine I'll have a 1.5 ounce shot of single malt scotch. 2. Have you had any MEDICAL complications with your surgery that were attributed to drinking alcohol? Nope. 3. Have you gained back significant weight from drinking alcohol? Nope. 4. Have you developed an alcohol addiction post VSG after having been able to control your drinking before? Nope. My bariatric P.A. calls me a social drinker (women have no more than 7 drinks a week). See http://alcoholrehab.com/alcoholism/social-drinking-defined/ 5. Have your drinking habits changed post-opt? Nope - I drink now just as I did before WLS.

It's a reality show, people. That crap is exaggerated and scripted and about as spontaneous as a Julia Childs dinner party. Good grief.

Preach it, people! I grew up in Mississippi. Say no more.

Everything in its time. Eventually, you'll learn to trust the WLS process and most of you will get rid of your fat clothes. And you really will not ever need them again. I started getting rid of my fat clothes (for the first time in my life) about halfway through my weight loss phases. By the time I hit goal, they were all gone. I swear -- getting rid of those fat clothes felt like another 40 pounds gone. I felt like I'd left something very old and sad and heavy behind.

First, let me be clear that my surgeon is outstanding, and I trust him completely. Since my VSG he has become our "family surgeon" -- although who ever expects to need such a thing! Since VSG surgery 14 months ago he's also removed my gall bladder and operated on my husband for a dicey cancer-related biopsy. He is just an extraordinary surgeon. And he's got a great bedside manner, is available when emergencies happen, schedules surgery fast when needed, and really cares about his patients (per every nurse I've ever talked to who's dealt with him). Lucky me, eh? Nonetheless -- all the decisions made about my type of WLS surgery were all made by me. With his approval, of course. I studied my ass off online for nearly a year before my WLS surgery. Like @@Elode I interviewed him re his complication rates, opinions about everything, and just ran him through the wringer. And he took it like a champ. My husband, who's my #1 support person and gets highest marks for his support rolem had only one requisite: He did not want me to go to Mexico. Fortunately, that option did not become a necessary option, since my BMI (39.9) and three comorbidities qualified me for Medicare and Medicare supplemental insurance coverage for WLS.

jenn1 ... I've found that the 3 nutritionists I've seen who are connected with my surgeon's bariatric program are either ignorant of anything other than advising diabetics how to manage their diets or they're just plain lazy. I've learned so much about nutrition since being sleeved, but none of my new knowledge came from the "bariatric nutritionists" I've met. By way of compensation, my surgeon, his bariatric P.A. (big kudos!), his bariatric nurse, and my shrink are very knowledgeable about all things bariatric, so I'm better served by them than many WLS patients seem to be by their medical teams.

At the moment (14 months post-op and below my weight goal), I'm not "scared" of regain. But I do focus a lot on my weight / food / drink. Frankly, I need to raise the focus on my exercise. I do plan and track my food on MFP most days. My shrink keeps urging me to take some days off from tracking. Clearly, he has issues. It doesn't surprise me that after reaching our weight goals we focus on maintenance. No one who's had WLS was a successful maintainer pre-op. Duh. And it wasn't just once we failed to maintain. Our entire histories have been repeated cycles of weight loss successes after hard work followed by abject failures to maintain. But now I have confidence coupled with commitment to care for my body and myself. I spent most of my life worrying about and caring first for everyone and everything in my life but my body and me. Now, I have finally understood that I deserve my respect, love and self-care as much as everyone else in my life. Magically, those I care most for are also benefitting from my own self-care.

I call bullshit on the bolded, underlined part. How in the world could any surgeon predict what a WLS patient's "ideal" rate of weight loss would / should be. I've never, ever, ever seen anywhere from anyone a weight loss rate chart that describes "success." I've read thousands of WLS patients' descriptions / tickers that reveal how fast they lose. And the variation is huge! Yet many of them still reach their weight loss goal and maintain their weight long-term. You sound like exercise is doing you a world of good -- physically, mentally, emotionally. And yes, I'd choose fruit instead of juice. But as long as you know that's something to keep your eye on, go ahead and do now what works for you for now. One thing I have accepted for myself is that what's working well for me now may not be what works well for me long-term. I'm willing to be responsible for changing things up if things change. I think you're doing awesome!

Months ago I started this thread and am so gratified that it's attracted such thoughtful, detailed, awesome responses. I invite others who are maintaining their weight losses to continue to post here. The common (and different) behaviors people are using to maintain their weight long-term are wonderfully instructive. Thanks in advance to all who post here.

@@CrimsonCarousel ... wonderful post. Just wonderful. And some great analogies.

I don't recall being this pissy early on. I just remember Lipstick Lady telling me I'd lose the most weight during the first six months so I should buckle down.

I predict that some flouncing is about to commence!

It's hard to believe it right now, but this is not the end of your food life. You'll get it back -- just healthier and more in sync with what "normal" people do. Last night I had pizza. Tonight for dessert I had chocolate ice cream. I don't do that every day. But I can do it several times a week.

I'm using ring guards at this point on all my rings. On my second surgiversary (if I'm still at mainteanance weight) I'll get them all resized. It just seems like a little extra goal for me.

There's a wonderful feature on this message board called IGNORE. If reading someone's posts gets your panties in a twist every time you see their posts, use the IGNORE function. You'll never have to see their posts again. I think this feature would do a couple of you guys a lot of good.

Just a personal comment re increasing calories and maintenance ... It wasn't easy for me to start eating enough calories to stop losing either. It was hard mentally, and it was hard physically. You don't just go from 1200 calories/day to 1700 calories/day overnight. You really do have to work up to it. And it now seems that my metabolism is much higher than it was when I was obese and moving very little due to pain and depression. Heck, I'm moving so much more these days than I was nearly 100 pounds ago. I probably fidget more, too. But I'm not even close to the "gym rat" activity level (teasing @@bellabloom with that term) that it sounds like she is exercising at. This month (Month 14 post-op) I lost 2 pounds, compared to last month's 0.6 pound loss. I attribute that to the fact that, as the weather has cooled off, I've been walking more outside for both pleasure and exercise. Therefore, it seems that at my current exercise level 1900 calories/day is closer to what I need to be eating to remain stable. Who the f**k would have ever thought we would have *this* problem. LOL!

There's this thing called "positive thinking." Have you heard of it?

Jeez, if you can walk 10 miles a day for a week in NYC in boots with a heel at 240 pounds at 5'1" I think you would probably be able to FLY after you reach your weight loss goal (no matter what you determine that will be).

My surgeon used a 36 on me -- he said he uses 36s on most of his patients. I honestly never heard of a bougie sized 28. As others have said above, the research doesn't show any correlation between amount of weight lost or weight loss maintained with bougie size used during surgery. I have no idea why there are so many different bougie sizes. But here's the deal -- so many other things will affect the size of your new sleeve than the bougie size your surgeon used, including: * Your surgeon's surgical technique, e.g., how tightly / closely to the bougie she/he places the staples, whether she/he oversews the staple line and how tightly that is done, etc. * How long your stomach is -- often related (but not always) to how tall you are * How experienced your surgeon is doing VSG surgeries * Whether your surgeon simply screws up your VSG surgery (one patient posted here that her sleeve's "top half is shaped like a banana, and the bottom half is shaped like a melon") * How the surgeon shapes your sleeve at the top (near the hiatal valve) and at the bottom (by the pyloric valve) Finally, some advice: Don't be disdainful of people who bother to respond to your requests for information.

You are bad! Bad!

Good on you for being so proactive about your insurance coverage and making the surgery happen in 2015. Very, very impressive!

From what I've heard from others, getting to the point post-op of "feeling great, full of energy" takes varying amounts of time for people -- depending on their starting health level, age, beginning weight, nutrition, exercise level, issues with depression and other mental health challenges, work/job stresses, etc. I felt noticeably better by the end of Month One, and my energy levels have just kept rising ever since. Interestingly, my goal weight was 150, which I reached about 8.5 months post-op. Over the last 5.5 months I've slowly lost another 10 pounds. I can't tell you how much difference this last 10 pounds has made in raising my energy level even more. It's been quite interesting.