BeagleLover

You look awesome!!

@@mnmlst, I hear you. I'm sorry to hear you say you don't enjoy food. Maybe you need better recipes!!!

I can't tell how far out you are from surgery. Keep trying to increase your fluids and you'll get there. Sounds like you're feeling well and losing weight! This does work and you will continue losing. Please don't compare yourself to an "ideal" in your mind or others. Weight loss is very individual.

Sorrry @@Ashy76, I meant to respond to @@Lissapmkn1 . I've never heard of such a high Protein requirement! I've always been told it should be between 60 & 80 grams...closer to 60 for women and 80 for men.

@@Ashy76, I've never heard of such a high Protein requirement! I've always been told it should be between 60 & 80 grams...closer to 60 for women and 80 for men.

@@Miss Mac, just a warning on the carbs... the Splenda brown sugar product is half substitute, half real brown sugar.

Nashua Nutrition has samples of lots of them. I use

I have a friend that was going through the same program, same doctor as I was. Turned out that I got through the process first. Her whole family came to visit me in the hospital. She supported me and now, it's my turn. Since I've been through it, I can answer questions and provide support. Great for both of us!

Emotional First Aid by Cynthia Alexander (the bariatric one) has helped me a lot.

You can arrange for the surgery for $3,500 through Bariatric Pal.

@@BLERDgirl, I had a similar experience. Surgery was very easy. I had trouble getting liquids down, so they kept me 2 nights on IV fluids. I didn't have that feeling of having exercised a lot. By the time the 2 days were over, it felt as though nothing had happened! The pattern of eating everything gradually with no problems and getting fluids in was the same. I feel very fortunate to have had the sleeve surgery.

If you have an Indian ethnic grocery store, or can find this other places, Patak makes a ready-made mixes of spices for Indian cooking. All you have to do is take a small portion of the sauce and marinate the chicken, meat or veggies, then cook it. I really like the Patak mild curry mix. Since the spices are pre-mixed, you can use less or more to your taste.

I suggest getting a recumbent exercise bike (new or used) and parking it in front of the TV. The TV helps with the monotony and it keeps your metabolism going!

Having surgery turns some dieting concepts on their head. For dieting, theoretically at least, the less you eat the more you can lose. After surgery, if you take in less Protein than you need, your weight loss can stop. I've done best when I get at least the minimum of protein and liquids.

I really don't remember. I can't tell you calories now because I only track Protein grams (must = 60 - 80 grams/day) and liquids (>= 64 oz./day). I've lost 40 lbs. since I started this program up to 4 months out from surgery.

I tried Cambridge, Nutrasystem and Medifast. Whatever I lost, which wasn't much, came back. The only thing lighter was my wallet!

Glad to hear you finally have good information, & can now act on it! Sounds like it'll be downhill from here on out.

Right after I had surgery, I felt pretty tired for around the 1st month. I laid down a lot. I found that food came back up if I ate and then laid down for awhile right afterwards.

@@Foreverblessedx3, please don't pay attention to the negativity you've described. Make good choices most of the time like you're doing and everything will fall into place. Everyone loses weight at different rates, so comparisons aren't relevant. You've already made a great choice to get your health back, and I'm confident you will be very happy that you've made the choice to have surgery.

That sounds like a good weight loss! Don't compare yourself to others! If you don't get 60 grams of Protein and 64 ounces of fluids, your weight loss may slow down. I use a spreadsheet that does an auto sum. Good luck!

You look fantastic!

Nah. You get sleepy; then it's done. No problem.

Wow! I'll bet you feel a lot better! Congratulations!

I suggest getting the book "Emotional First Aid" by Cynthia Alexander (the bariatric one).

I applaud your wanting to make this change. I agree with @mrskaje. It's best to let sciatica calm down first before exercising or you risk making it worse. During that time off, you could get things rolling with the surgeon. Once you've been sleeved and lost weight, it's much easier to move around. Sorry to hear that your wife is not supportive. I would continue getting support here, and if you want some more face-to-face support, I suggest checking with other hospitals. Maybe they have a support group with better hours. You very well could be a role model for your wife. Having said that, it would still be her decision whether or not she would want to get surgery.