survivingsleever

I'm looking forward to it!!

I started this process with my first visit with my surgeon 6/24/14. Got my surgery date today, it's 3/14/14. My insurance required 6 months. I waited till 2014 to meet my deductibles. So now I'm covered at 100% with both of my insurances.
I found out from my sleep study I had sleep apnea. That pushed it back a little. I had to get fitted for a cpap. So my process will be 9 months. I could of had it next week, but I planned a mini vaykay with my kids to enjoy my last weekend of carefree eating.

This is a first for me! Your only 6 months, you have several months before you completely stop. Let us know your outcome after your meeting good luck!

So here goes nothing! highest weight/surg weight 265 as of today 197.2. Surg date aug 5 2013 so I am 9 months out. I am a slow loser but am pleased as punch with where I am at. My goal is 175 and from there who knows!
My before pics are the first 2 I am the one all the way to the right in both.
the 3rd is me 4 days ago after a new hair do! lol
I don't have many full length pics, still finding myself avoiding the camera a bit like I used to. Hard habit to break!

2 months I lost about 33 lbs. I had 3 stalls in the process.

2 months I lost about 33 lbs. I had 3 stalls in the process.

Ok.. When I first saw a dr put on my med chart " obese stomach" ..I was in shock. This was about 12 years ago. This comment stayed stuck I'm my mind for years to come at the meantime getting larger year to year. Of course..I would lose tons of weight between that time I saw this term and prior to sleeve surgery. For some reason that word "obese" pierced my heart. I had to talk through myself that it is only a word that the med profession uses for excess weight. But what I was really doing to myself ..I was in denial about my excess weight.. Only when I saw pics of myself ..I looked "obese". When I started having high blood pressure, high cholesterol ..it was a sign of my health condition..but even with these bad symptoms. I was still in denial about my excess weight. food was my best friend that I could not conceivably ever give up. I could not even fathom this concept and certainly did believe I could in myself to even consider this option. Flashback to Sept , 2013.. I heard that a friend of mine lost tons of weight with the sleeve..and finally keeping off her excess weight reheat she struggled to do for years. I was a classic replica,of her weight loss journey. Lose, gain, lose gain. After losing 65 pounds two years ago, just to gain it back immediately, I was literally exhausted with getting on diets.just to gain it all back. I had liposuction twice, I had the lapband, and went on too many diets to count . I was still no better in Sept 2013 ..improbably spend over $75,000
On weight loss efforts. (Could of used that money for a world cruise). I never , ever considered invasive weight loss surgery till Sept 2013. The gastric by pass, in my opinion, was too extreme,
I researched the sleeve, spoke to my friend who had the surgery, and went to a consult with my dr.
I vacillated whether to have the surgery. Changed my mind several times. I was also seeing a psychologist at that time for my "emotional" eating. This turned out to be invaluable and a real added plus to my current success. I still see my psychologist every two weeks.
I knew deep down that getting on another "diet" of food deprivation was no longer a solution to my weight problem. I was completely exhausted to deal with my weight ..on to dec, 2013'. I had the surgery. I remember that 7 days after surgery, my reality that food can and will no longer be my friend was very humbling to me. I knew that my life changed forever with my relationship with food.
I cried, I mourned..but I prevailed. To me that day was a turning point.. I could now accept that food was no longer my best friend. I cannot explain how profound that day was for me. Sadness , mixed with hope ..5 month later, today, I am living such an energetic life, with great joy. I don't obsess on food.. My tool, the gastric sleeve, has helped my in curving my hunger, big time. Head hunger still appears in my life.. But through my psychological sessions, I have more tools to deal with this. I now have connection between my head and my stomach..I had lost,that for years.. Never, ever checked,with my stomach to see,if I was truly hungry ..I would just eat and
eat and eat and never felt full.
Even though I had years of struggle with my weight..I have to accept that my struggles has brought me to where I am today. Getting healthier, and seizing what life has to offer. Eating to live not living to eat. I have greatly reduced the "all or nothing attitude " I do enjoy on occasion my favorite foods..but he difference now..the guilt feeling nah as dismissed. I don't binge because I had one bite of a "bad stuff". Eating in moderation what I do now. No more deprivation.
To those who are considering wls..I would suggest to get help if you are an emotional eater. You need the tool of the sleeve or by pass to help you get to your healthy goal, but just as important, you need to deal with your relationship with food. I am now considered overweight.. I accept this term without harsh judgement on me. I accept the weight I am today.. I know I will slowly reach my goal ..I decided to set a goal of 150 pounds at 5'2". 60'years old. I am in a size 8 .. Which I am very proud of. 13 more pounds to go. I am grateful where I am today.

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Hi Kim, I'm 3/14 and I honestly cheated 2/7 days of my preop diet. Beating myself up of course. However I'm morphing my mindset to be accountable. I would hate to be considered a statistic that failed after 20k+ was invested in attempt to make me healthy.
I woke out of my sleep at 4 am to go shopping and stock my kitchen with food I'm suppose to eat. Today is a new day, in retrospect if I try to justify cheating I'm only hindering my success.
Good luck to you!

75 lbs gone in10 months and only 9 pounds away from goal!!
Dreams really do come true!!!
Cheers????!!

It's been about 2 months since my surgery and I've lost about 32 lbs. It's been slow... but I'm very thankful for my progress... I have about 70-80 more pounds to go and I will be at goal. This is definitely NOT an easy way out... my body has been rearranged...but I still have my daily struggles with making the "right" food choices. I thank God everyday for blessing me with my tool..because there is NO way in the world I could have lost 32 pounds this quickly... any other way. It has not been easy..and I have a loooonnnggg way to go...but I know I will get there!

Hang in there, girie! I had to lose 65 lbs before I went down from 22's and then I just skipped over 18's and 16's and went straight to 14's - now wearing 12's comfortably. Don't know what it is with some of us but it's like the actual fat is hanging on for dear life but you WILL get there. Just stay with the program and keep up the faith - it will happen. I KNOW it's discouraging to hear about how fast some of these other people move through the sizes but it really does feel fantastic when you do finally start going down!!

Hey guys just an update
Hw 294
Preop 277
Sw 265
Cw 185
Gw 170
Im 5'9 28 years old no plastics yet I plan to get some in feb but in the mean time I workout hard do lots of sit ups lots of resistance on my legs I jog at least 30 min a day and at most 50 min my eating habit for the most part r clean but I wont sit here and act like I dont have the occasional snack...but when I do its only th3 serving size ima realist I didnt do this to never have a snack again I did this to be healthy and regain control oh and to look fab doing it lol I wss sleeved june 17th 2013 hoping to be at goal by then

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I hit the 100 lbs down mark yesterday March 30, 2014! I am so happy & excited about it. My surgery date was July 18, 2013 & I weighed 321 lbs when I began my journey & recently found out the day of surgery I was 314 lbs but the day I came home from the hospital I was 321 lbs again so that is what I go by. Yesterday I weighed in at 221 LBS!!!
I had been praying that I would hit my biggest goal by my birthday & I made it a week early! My birthday is next sunday & i will be 34!!! This is the most awesome birthday gift I could ever give to myself!
I feel so much better in all areas of my life. I am healthier & down to a weight I have not seen since I was about 16 yrs old.
This weight loss journey not only changed my weight but my life! I have started going back to school to get my GED & then hoping to start a nursing program or something in the medical field after I accomplish my GED! I am more social & go out of my way to speak to people now as well! I have become more outgoing like I used to be when I was younger!
I have been struggling some mentally & emotionally. I have began to feel like a stranger is looking back at me in the mirror & have been told I am in a way grieving my "fatter" self. I know that it will pass & I have called & made an appointment with a therapist who specializes in the weight loss journey, so I know I will be ok & it will take time just as this whole journey does!
A friend of mine just passed away last week from cancer & her support motto was always one day at a time, one foot in front of the other & she would always say that to me as well when I began my weight loss journey & so I will continue to follow her advice & keep moving forward one step at a time!!!
In the pictures below I was 8 mths & 1 wk po & weighed 228 lbs so I have lost another 7 lbs since last tuesday which makes my total 100 LBS!

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I purchased mine from Sams. Everyday I have a Premier Protein shake for breakfast and a premier Protein bar in the evening when I get the munchies. Combined it equals 58 grams which is close to my minimum goal of 60 grams per day.

This past week a number of claims showed up on my insurance account for pre-op visits and testing. We all know these things are necessary for approval. But it dawned on me today that if insurance hadn't approved my surgery, I would be stuck with $4,000 in medical bills (counting only those that were initially denied) for appointments leading up to insurance submission.
Thankfully approval was a simple process with my generous insurer, but I don't want anyone left with loads of debt just because their insurer is nit-pickingly particular. If you are contemplating surgery and plan to use insurance, PLEASE check your coverage and pre-certification requirements carefully before scheduling your first bariatric center appointment (after the free info session). Make sure you are well enough over the insurer's weight requirement. If your insurance requires that you have been over a certain weight for a X number of years, be certain you can obtain acceptable evidence (some insurers require a four-year history!). If you only qualify on the basis of pre-existing conditions, make sure you have been formally diagnosed and recently evaluated. And so forth.
Wishing everyone the best!

Sw:270 sleeved on 7/8/13
Cw:152
Gw:120
Height 5'1
I'm really trying to tighten up all my skin , although I'm proud of where I came from and what I've been through and what I've achieved , the extra skin may make me more insecure than the fat . My boobs are skin bags don't let the bra fool you , my stomach hangs and sags a lot , my upper thighs and my arms as well . I noticed my butt lifted more but besides that I can't see much progress with the extra skin . Definitely considering cosmetic surgery .

What's up guys. Today makes one year post op. I've lost a total of 137 pounds and I still think getting sleeved was one of the best decisions I've ever made. Alot has changed in this year. I'm in a new relationship I will start music Engineering School in April and I've lost my job of 9 years. All these are good things though even being fired from my job. I can't complain it was good to me for 9 years and it helped me get the Surgery so it was well worth it. I love my new life. I work out 3 to 4 times a week. My weight is between 170 to 175. I'm lifting weights and running mainly. I eat healthy for the most part but I still indulge every once in a while (mostly popcorn....inny). One of the best things about being sleeved is being inspirations for so many people around me. I know 2 people who have watched my progress and who have also gotten sleeved. I'm gonna keep up the good fight. See you on the losers bench.

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PDX has it right. My own thoughts on the topic, based on info from my surgeon plus my own experience:
As your stomach heals, you can't eat much at all - perfect opportunity to lose fast in the early days, so take advantage of it. After 6 months, you are pretty much healed up, so more food is easier to get down (read "easier to screw up"). Your metabolism "reset" that allowed you to lose very fast in the first 6 months may start to slow down. My dr says the "window" closes around 18 months and weight loss stops at that point. I definitely lose at half the rate post-honeymoon than I did early on. One pound a week instead of two (I'm a slow loser to start with). My surgeon's goal was 60% of my excess weight off by 6 months, which I was able to do, even with my slow loss rate. I still have my food issues, but at least I am very aware of them now and I feel like I have more control. I know now that I eat "bad" food for reasons that have nothing to do with hunger. While I am not always successful, I do have some go-to strategies post-6 months to help me get through those times, and they work most of the time. I have the sleeve to thank for that because it never would have worked for me before. The honeymoon was a great period to work through these issues and learn good habits. Bottom line: you can lose after 6 months, however, it will likely be much more difficult than the first 6 months when everything is new. The honeymoon is a wonderful time for loss and not to be wasted. Best of luck to you.

It has been six months since my sleeve. I am down 90 lbs! My goal was 100 lbs but a broken foot sidelined me for a 6 weeks. I'm not going to let that bring me down or stop me. The foot is healed and back on my exercise routine and loving every moment! Everyone have a great day! The first picture is September 2013, day of surgery. The second picture is December 2013, 3 month mark. The last one is March 2014, 6 month mark.

Change your perspective. I'm one week post op today. You should be creative with your liquids. For example, I was craving nachos. I took some nacho cheese added a lil milk to thin it out. Got two tortilla chips and grated in my blender to a cheap of wheat/oatmeal/grits consistency and added it (It was deelish!
Also, took some Wendy's chilli, blended it till all chucks of Tomato and meat were blended. Same thing with Applebee's artichoke dip I added milk and ate like Soup. Campbell's has a cheeseburger chunk Soup, I'm saving it as a head hunger emergency..lol.
Whatever you eat, just blend with milk, broth, Water, etc. good luck....

I also said I was 5'3 instead of 5'4, which favored me. They don't check.

No one is bickering here except a few... It's not a 'bunch; of us.... all we are trying to do is keep it real and give constructive advice and help each other. I personally don't think it's funny that people are so petty to argue when people are trying to help each other. But anytime there is a forum anywhere there are always the few that like to start arguments. some people thrive on that. I am trying to get well and don't need nor like arguments. That's why I unsubcribed to this forum now.....but the messages keep coming in my E mail..... I DON't find it amusing at all..... it's weird what some think is amusing. I don't like conflict myself expecially when i'm still not well as I'm only three weeks out from surgery...... Yes the person that posted this confession was brave and I think she wanted someone to help her.... get back on track. I admire her for that and wish her and everyone here success..... We all need to be kind to each other but not pat someone on the back if we know they are on the wrong path. I think our advice helped her as she said to get back on track so if she is happy then why do people here want to k eep on with the complaining..... you wouldn't complain if the nurses or Doctor told you that non compliance could lead to complications. Most of us have researched this operation well and know the do's and don'ts and the reasons why compliance is so crucial in the healing stage of the game.... Nuff said

Hi Annie, I honestly feel like crap! Lol...the gas is no joke. I know this is the hard part. =)