Lennyb724

My BMI was like 37. I don't regret my sleeve at all. Good luck to you.

By the grace of my HP I will have 8 years come December 2012. Never thought that I would make it 7 days let alone 7 years. I was sleeved 6/7/12 and took the liquid vicodin / tylenol as needed for my pain management. Did not take more then the prescription stated I could and my husband was great at making sure it was for the physical discomfort and not mental. I took pain meds for 4 days after surgery and switched to tylenol for 3 more days. I had to travel 350 miles from the hospital to home so that had a lot to do with the length of time I took the Rx. Check your motives, talk to your sponsor, pray and TAKE CARE OF YOU! Remember that you are taking a Rx given to you my informed professionals and that you have checked your motives and are not looking for a free high.

Well, personally, I lost 130 lbs doing that, but I couldn't keep to such a strict regime, and I gained it back. I think that's beauty of the sleeve. Finally something to help us KEEP IT OFF!!!

I called my doc the second day of diahrrea and he told me to take Benefiber and a probiotic. It stopped by the end of the day. You might want to ask your surgeon about doing this too. I wouldn't take anything without your doctor's ok.

I'm going to be 8 months out tomorrow (holy cow, 8 months already!?) and so far I have to say EVERY ache, pain, moments of queasiness and tears have been totally worth it.

That being said--I wish I had known:

that the mirror and my new clothing size would show me truth, and yet my brain still lies and sees "fat girl"! that seeing collarbones unveiled from their layer of fat for the first time in two decades could bring me to tears. that my eyes still want much more food than my sleeve can hold, and I STILL need to remind myself to slooooooow down during meals. that drinking (or even sipping) while eating is would be the hardest habit to break!! how much I would miss guzzling a bottle of Water all at once. Three swallows is all I can handle at a time now! how much FUN it is to jog up three flights of stairs at work, without feeling like coughing up my lungs or stopping to rest along the way. Wow...just wow! I LOVE my post-sleeve life!! Going nowhere but up, baby!

This is a tool for us to use to help us not be so hungry all the time. It was never meant to cure all of our emotional problems with food. For that we need some counseling. We will still have head hunger, even though we know we are full. We will still be tempted by the bad foods we used to consume in quantity. The success of our surgeries has more to do with our minds. We have to get them in a "good place" or we will slip right back into the old habits that got us where we were.
Relationships with family and friends may change. As humans we are opposed to change. Whenever any dynamic of a family or friendship changes, so do those relationships. Some people can work through the changes and some can't. People who are overweight may not like the fact that you are getting smaller. It can be jealousy or a reminder of their own shortcomings. Spouses may look at a more attractive "you" and start to worry about losing you. They may all try to sabotage your efforts.
We did not go into this for anyone else but ourselves. We cannot let anyone disuade us from our goals.

I'm only 18 days out but I wished I would have known that because I suffer from motion sickness and had morning sickness I was more likely to experience nausea after surgery. I've had plenty of surgeries before and never had a problem with anaesthesia, so it never crossed my mind that I would be vomiting that white froth stuff on day 2. It hurt a lot but by day 3 I felt so much better and have not had any more nausea!
I wish I would have really believed everyone when they said walking would help with the gas pains, it really did so walk as much as you can after surgery.
I wish I would have known that the common cold I caught would set my recovery back a few days, I thought I would be back to work after 2 weeks, but a few sneezing fits had my abdomen so sore all over again. If you feel the urge to sneeze or cough grab a pillow and brace yourself.
And last, I'm a mom of 4, I rarely do anything just for me. I struggled with this decision thinking it was kind of selfish, but I am so happy and proud of myself for doing it and taking steps to get my weight in check. In the long run, my kids will benefit too!

I learned that if you pack up all your clothes by size in clear boxes so when you loose weight you can go shopping all over again into your own closet. Of course shopping is always fun so enjoy it!
I learned with my lapband there are those who say they support you only to find out what your secret is.
True friends and encouraging friends will stay true the others ya just need to let them go. Life is to short to please everyone!

They need to get over themselves! My dad was horrible to me and said I was going to die! Well guess what, he got the surgery one month after me! Keep your head up. This is not a piece of cake and takes work but it's definitely going to help you! It's a tool and no tool works without all the pieces doing their part

Bandmom, nobody really adequately describes head hunger. When I had to drop coffee, alcohol and food it suddenly struck me that I was an emotional wreck over wrought with unaddressed anxiety. There was a lot of crying, a lot of agnst, a lot of resistance and I had nothing left to comfort it with, in fact I was pretty much stuck in my anger for lack of relief. I obsessed about food, dreamt about jamie oliver and even bought chefs knives. Five months or so out and food still doesn't provide the satiety or sedation that it used too. I have to use yoga, journalling, art & meditation. Daily. Had I known, I would have broken up with food long before surgery, so I could concentrate on healing without the pangs of withdrawal to contend with.

Negatives:
1. I wish I had known that two Fiber chews a day would have stopped all my pain earlier! I'm good to go now. Take fiber!!
2. I wish I had known how tired I would be the first three weeks. Once past that all gets better.
3. I wish I had known that I really needed to work on my mental thoughts about food too. I focused on portions. Now 7 months out I have major head hunger. Not really hungry EVER but my mind thinks I should snack all day. Constant challenge
4. Wish I had known about this surgery sooner. People need to talk more!!
5. I wish I had known how challenging it really is to wait 30 mins before and after eating
Pros
1. I feel amazing
2. I feel sexy
3. Happily married but guys consistently gives me looks and it's awesome! Lol
4. Sex = Amazing TMI sorry, don't want people to miss out on the truth!
5. Buying clothes is so rewarding
6. I've saved three friends by speaking up about the surgery and helping through the process - for the surgery because I told them about my experience
7. My dad is alive and had the surgery after me - he was anti surgery until he saw my success
8. I enjoy healthy foods that I would have never eaten before
9. No more blood pressure issues
10. No more sleep apnea
11. Size 20 to 6
I could literally go on and on!

1. I wish I had broken up with food before surgery so that I didn't have to add it to the first month's difficult adjustments. Emotional basket case and food will NOT comfort.
2. I wish I knew that the 1st month would be a physical and mental challenge. I was tired, stupid and emotional. I had previously believed I was the special snowflake who would recover like a rock star. I am not a special snowflake.
3. I wish I knew that planning was ludicrous. My stomach is no longer a familiar beast. The shakes I liked would be gross on the flip side and my guts relentlessly reject my insistence that it behave as I expect it to.
4. Post first week Constipation nearly killed me. I was entirely unprepared for this.
That said, best decision I ever made.

Frothing: aka Sliming: This may be a symptom of sialorrhea, or “sliming,” vs. true vomitus. Sliming is a term sometimes used by the lay public to describe the white foamy discharge resulting from eating too quickly or consuming too much. This typically subsides or disappears when the patient begins to consume moist foods, eats slowly, and avoids drinking with meals.
Head Hunger: Not really hungry but want food anyway. The main culprit of being overweight. Usually created by boredom, emotional situations, stress, and habit.
I have no idea what the "losing the baby face" means, but I assume it's losing the round, pudgy cheeks that weigh our face down. Weight will age you much faster than this surgery ever could IF IT DID... which it doesn't.

I just thought "I can't wait til my butt fits on the toilet seat".... Made me laugh so hard!!!

I wish I knew that I would have diarrhea for the whole time since surgery because my gall bladder was dysfunctional and that I would still have it even after gall bladder removal .. Still dealing with this but would have done it anyway.
I wish I knew that I have a deformity that makes my hiatus hernia impossible to repair 100% and that I will be on the lowest dose of nexium forever .. But I would have done it anyway.
I wish I knew how much better I would look and feel just 7 months out because I would have done it sooner.
I wish I knew how awesome running and riding my bike would be after losing this weight, I would have done it sooner.
I researched the hell out of this surgery and went into it with my eyes wide open and I don't regret a thing. I haven't had any deal breakers. If I didn't lose any more weight in my life I would still be over the moon.

I wish I would have known how good I would feel six weeks out. I would have done it long ago. All the trauma of the first few weeks is all worthwhile.

Wow, the second comment on this.....I think I'm REALLY going to focus on this now that all the "legwork" is done (I hope).
I have Geneen Roth's book on Breaking the Emotional Ties to eating.
I've got it in my hand right now and I'm going to read and read till I "get it".....
Thank you, thank you, THANK you all for sharing all of this GREAT information for the those of us in the on deck circle!!
Hugs,
Rosie

I wish I had done it sooner.
I wish I had known that the bad taste would soon go away
I wish I had known about Primier Protein sooner
I wish I had known it would be easier than I thought it would be! So happy I did this for myself!!!

I agree with what others had posted.
I wish I had known how emotionally difficult the first couple of weeks would be, just so that I could have been better prepared.
I also wish I had known that breaking the emotional ties to food would be so hard. There is LITTLE talk of that in the surgery prep classes, etc.
And I also wish I had known about the surgery as an option many years ago, because despite how hard it can be at times, it is the best thing I have ever done "for myself"

i am 11 months post op, and frequently get asked what i wished i had known pre op. here are 4 things:
I wish i would've known that i would still get hungry.- i was told my hunger would be gone.
I wish i would've known that the 1st 5 days of recovery could be difficult- i was told i would just be a "little sore"
I wish i would've known that my weight loss would be slow- i compare myself to others
I wish i would've known how yucky the Protein Shakes would get to be--they suck now.
Please chime in! What do you wish you would've known pre op? Our honesty could help those who are still pre op.
Dont be scared-- im not complaining. i love my sleeve and the results i have gotten so far.

I'm not sure how soon after surgery I started drinking regular coffee again, but currently I drink 4 to 6 cups a day with no problems.

I love beef curry! I make a "skinny" version in my crockpot and it is delicious. I hated beef before surgery (especially steak), and now I crave it!
Here is my lunch. I picked off the onions and roasted red peppers. I ate about half, and I also used no dressing. Another weird thing since surgery: I don't like dressing on my salads. I added a little extra feta cheese instead. I'm about 11 months out.

I just wanted to clarify something regarding what I said above about having sex even when you're not in the mood. I never once "faked it" with my hubby. At that time in my life, I didn't care if I EVER had sex again. My husband was aware of my libido issues, so he knew that when I did it, it was because I loved him and wanted him to feel that fulfillment, even if I wasn't "into it" so to speak. This was something I told him I was doing to try and help save our marriage. I also believe it's kind of like when people say if you smile more often you'll eventually feel happy for real. If I had just stopped having sex at that point in our relationship then I feel the marriage would have been over many years ago. I know I wouldn't have put up with it if I had been him. That's just one way to block someone out of your life, which eventually leads to no communication.
I was 47 when I started on the testosterone cream, so I would ask your doc about it for sure. It's so amazing I took my doc a bouquet of flowers the next time I saw her just to thank her for giving me back such an important part of my life. Now I'm about ready for the last rugrat (he's almost 19 and not in college) to move out of the house so we can have it all to ourselves and not worry about getting "caught"...

Everything about your post makes me happy. It must be wonderful to do this with your best friend!

Such an awesome Journey with my husband! Any other couples sleeved together?