JDD713

Hi everyone just a little update and some other random stuff. just want to start by saying i am about 3 1/2 months post op and 5 lbs from my goal weight i have lost about 33 lbs so far. I COULDNT BE HAPPIER AND I COULDNT BE HEALTHIER!! SO GLAD I GOT SLEEVED! i feel back to normal now because i felt like someone else in a diff body for the past 4 years! anyway, everything has gone well i followed all my post op instructions and my recent bloodwork shows all Vitamin levels normal. i have been eating healthy and i feel good. i can eat whatever i wish but i do notice that the unhealthy stuff i just plain ol DONT LIKE anymore. normally i eat "my fit foods" meals and a small is actually 2 meals for me. LET ME TELL U HOW MUCH MONEY I HAVE SAVED POST OP! i never realized how much $$ i was spending on food and Snacks now i spend about $25 and that is Breakfast, lunch and dinner for the whole week. weird thing i noticed: i am very particular about my drink. i have to have ice, i like to drink from a cup and straw and i am hooked on brewed ice tea and fresh squeezed lemonade.
food just isnt the same to sum it up i used to LIVE TO EAT, now I EAT TO LIVE.
My surgeon is Dr. Darido at 1st choice weight loss, i love my surgeon he is the best and his staff is GREAT!

Wow same here i have become the pickiest person i know LOL…and am now back to TEA TEA TEA….and even though they said straws are not good i just have to have my straw…congrats on the weight loss!!!!

hi, my pre-op bmi is 32, i have 50 lbs to lose. my surgeon says low bmi = less risk of complications, greater sucess rate, less excess skin issues vs someone with higher bmi. why wait when i know where im headed if i do not have this surgery. diet and exercise alone cannot change genetics.

I have one from my last csection so I am packing mine. surgery in the morning!!!

I have one from my last csection so I am packing mine. surgery in the morning!!!

I have one from my last csection so I am packing mine. surgery in the morning!!!

I have one from my last csection so I am packing mine. surgery in the morning!!!

thanks, im having surgery Monday feels like your talking to me lol

I read so many posts and blogs about Weightloss surgery before I had my own(09/30/14). Reading these post scared the HELL out of me. First the dreaded pain, sagging skin,hair loss,&this or that made me run for the hills. I'm here to tell those who will come after me, after my surgery I asked my dr why didn't he do my surgery? He laughed and said you had the surgery. The next day I had a pain level of 6 and that was my worst. I walked the same day if my surgery. I was able to eat my broths on the third day and now it's my fourth day I ate almost a whole can of cream of chicken broth. I have no pain and although I haven't lost weight (I don't think) I am one to say that every experience is different but my experience has been painless and I'm ready to workout. Maybe ill be cleared by my surgeon by next Friday. God bless and overlook those who may dramatize their surgery stories and surgery outcomes. We all had great surgeons and depending on age, weight,& health overall is how your story will turnout.

I'll start off by saying, I am a nurse and I obviously work with nurses. Nurses are really judgmental at times, especially to one of their own. It just in most of our natures to have the "suck it up buttercup and quit feeling sorry for yourself. You did this to yourself" attitude. Anyway, for this reason I was trying not to tell anyone other than one close friend/coworker and my nurse manager. Well my nurse manager forced my hand, for reasons I won't bore you with, and I felt the need to own my situation and tell my unit. It's a small 13 person unit and we love/bicker like sisters. Most have been supportive but some keep saying "you're not that big", "you don't have that much to lose, you shouldn't need it". Well let me tell ya ladies, if it was that easy I would have done it when I was 13 and battling it, or all of the other failed attempts, most of which involved weight loss meds. I know I'm "only" 190, but when I have 70lbs to lose it is a lot to me. My joints are wearing from the weight due to my rheumatoid arthritis and I am in a lot of pain. They don't see it because I don't broadcast it. They don't see me fret over my LDL of 186. I just don't need people being flippant and judgmental right now. It was a very difficult decision and I feeling a bit vulnerable.

I am also getting sleeved on Monday the 6th. I am SUPER excited but today i do kind of feel selfish at the same time. kinda like wow i could do a million other things with this money but in reality i shouldnt feel like this because my family isnt going to be without something because i decided to spend this money on myself sooooooo.... i just want to be happy and healthy for myself AND my family.

MONDAY OCT 6!! Feeling EXCITED, kinda nervous and a little bit selfish or guilty for some reason? Good luck everyone

I have every emotion, that I could possibly feel. I been waiting on the day for so long. I have learned a lot on this journey! I ready to take control of my life. I am blessed to be able to get the help that I'm getting. I'm getting another chance at life! So grateful!
Oct 2, 2014 5:30am
My life will change forever!!!

OK so every time I look for support and share pics and goals I get"no offense but you're not big enough for surgery" or something of that nature. Making me feel like I don't belong or that I'm making a mistake with wls. I went from 218lbs to 140ish to 170 to 211lbs and about 15 years ago was the last time I saw a size 6. I have an unhealthy bmi, had to have my gallbladder out and have problems with my feet. No I don't have blood pressure problems, I'm not diabetic, nor am I 300lbs plus. Do I really need to wait for all of that to happen in order to qualify in some people's eyes to do something about it? So many people on here say their only regret is that they didn't do this sooner before all these health issues arose and yet come down on me for actually not waiting for it to be that far along. In my opinion, we're all in the same boat. Doesn't matter if you're 500 lbs or 200 lbs. If you're at an unhealthy bmi and miserable and need this to be healthy and to help you get and stay on track then we are all the same. I would never go on to someone's post who was heavier than me and say something like"how could you wait till it got this bad" and I feel like that's what they are saying to me in reverse when they come on and challenge my reasons for needing and wanting this procedure. I'm sorry, but my feelings are hurt and I feel like I'm alone in this at times because I'm not as big as some feel I should be to consider this. I've lost and re gained 70- 95lbs on the average over the past 15 years or so. I'm good with my decision even if no one else is. I'm going to be successful and maintain a healthy lifestyle and look and feel fabulous for the rest of my life. That is what I want. Sorry if this feels like a rant. It's not meant to be. Just feeling hurt and alone today.

Hey everyone,
I have my surgery date of Oct 6 for my sleeve. No liquid pre-op before hand either, which I am thinking is not in my favour considering, now, All I think about is food FOOD FOOD! like its a free for all every day, Not just the LAST MEAL, as I know my surgery day is coming and from that day on, It will change forever. Is it just me or does any of you feel this way?

October 6th, 2 day liquid diet.< /p>

Tuesday one year ago I met with my surgeon for the first time. What a wonderful year I have had for health and rediscovering me.
For those of you just starting out, you may feel like I did that your surgery is too far in the future and waiting all those months will be unbearable. When I first started to research WLS in September, I thought I might be able to have surgery before Christmas. Ha ha ha. Not only was it not before Christmas, but it didn't actually happen until March. And you know what? I needed every single day of that time period between September and March to prepare myself for this enormous life change.
First, I met with my clearing psychologist. And I didn't get cleared! Nope. I needed to change my habit of eating in front of the TV. Until I did that, the psychologist was not going to clear me for surgery. He told me that I needed to make lifestyle changes. When I first heard that, of course I said, sure! Everybody knows you need to make lifestyle changes! But when I went back to him the following month for clearance, and I told him I had not been exactly able to give up TV eating, he told me point blank that he didn't think I was ready for WLS. He told me that unless I actually made the lifestyle changes, I was not likely to succeed with the LapBand.
Of course, he was right. I'm glad that my little wake up call was so minor, and not a bigger deal, like if I had been denied surgery at the last minute. His denial made me face facts. How was I going to live in a new way, if I wasn't even willing to change a little bit?
After I gave up TV eating, the next hurdle was the holidays. I grieved my way through Thanksgiving. I was very sad that in my mind, it was going to be my last enjoyable holiday. I sat in the kitchen the night before Thanksgiving, after having roasted the turkey, and binged on the crispy turkey skin. It was the weirdest experience I'd had in a long time. I knew what I was doing, and simultaneously I knew it was the last time I was going to do it. I knew that Thanksgiving 2014 was going to be different. I was going to have lap band surgery and I was going to be eating like a normal person. I was working toward that goal with excitement. So why was I so sad? I was getting ready to pay somebody thousands of dollars to help me recover from binge eating. And I was grieving not being able to binge eat anymore.
Fast forward to February 2014. My personal life took a terrible plunge. My marriage, which was in bad shape before my WLS process began, took a terrible blow. Constant stress became my normal everyday life. I had one anchor in my life. My upcoming surgery.
I was banded mid March 2014. I complied with all of the doctor's orders. My surgery was a breeze, and my weight began to come off right away.
You can see by my ticker that I have had a lot of success this year. I am almost 2/3 of the way to my goal weight. I have not been the weight I am right now since my second child was born 19 years ago.
Through it all, I have received immeasurable help and support from this website. I do not have a supportive spouse. I do have two very supportive daughters. But when it comes right down to it, we must do this for ourselves. Nobody can do this for us.
And more importantly, nobody, nobody, nobody can prevent us from doing this for ourselves once we are ready to reclaim our power.
I'll save my long list of NSV's and great experiences for when I write my 100 pounds lost post soon. And it's almost here.
This post is just a reflection back to that first week when I walked into a WLS orientation meeting, followed by a meeting with my surgeon. The fearful, beaten-down person that I was one year ago no longer exists. In her place is a strong, confident woman who knows that she is worth it.
I've said it before, and I'll say it again. This is about so much more than weight.
Nothing changes until everything changes.

CONGRATS! CANT WAIT TO SAY THAT TOO!! i dont know about you all but i just got my sx date and i am scared to even say it out loud for fear that some crazy, odd, unexpected, last min catastophe comes up and i cant get it done. its like im scared to get excited because i dont want to get let down or jinx myself!? weird.

That was a very sneaky title to your post...I was waiting for the "but now....." So glad it had a happy ending!

They are checking me out of the hospital as I write this. I'll say more once I get a little more energy. I certainly do not feel like doing the waltz or going on a shopping spree but I don't fee wretched. And I never once said or thought that I made the wrong choice. This is just the hard part. Now I just need to follow instructions and I will be fierce!

It's not easy to lose weight after kids for everyone. Even with work outs! I barely made the requirements for insurance to cover but I'm so thankful I did!! I too sleep better & feel better all together!! Great job to is all!!

@@JDD713 - I was in the same boat as you. I am actually on my 1 month anniversary today. Exactly 20 lbs lost. Although the day of surgery I was 207, which I was never really at for more than a day or two (perhaps from my "last few meals were "big or go home" festivals".) lol. But today I'm 180 lbs. I'm 5' 7". I've been working out for about a week - I've never had issues with exercise. i actually love it. I was a collegiate athlete... which is why I think I have an issue with food as I used to eat however, whatever, whenever I wanted - and if I gained 10 lbs EVER... I could work it off and drop it in a week.
Fast forward 15 yrs - I'm 35 yro. I have a 2 yro and 5 yro. I could not break 175lbs after my second baby and that was after 21 days of STRICT HCG protocol. The second i went off of the diet... I popped right back to about 185.
That is also with 2x a day workouts.
I paid $17,500 out of pocket as I don't even come close to the "requirements" for insurance to help out. However, I sleep through the night amazingly, my scars are less than a quarter inch, which is amazing. and I hope to have the 50 lbs totally gone by Thanksgiving. :-)
Best of luck! I'm so glad I did this. I'm glad I didn't wait a second more than I did. I'm going to still have at least half of my 30's to rock it out hot and confident. :-)

Yes, we can't change genetics! So true!

Congratulations on your choice to sleeve! You've done great research and I wish you great success!
So much about this surgery is a personal choice. Like you, I was prepared to pay for it myself. After countless hours of research, I knew this surgery was right for me.
I'm only a few months out from surgery, but I can't tell you how glad I am that I made this choice. Wait...yes, I *can* tell you...I LOVE MY SLEEVE! My only regret is that I didn't have this option 20 years ago!
Peace be with you.

Thanks for all the replies! I was not expecting so many, you guys are great! Needless to say I will NOT be going to a wedding in that condition! With all this pre-op excitement I actually forgot I would still be on pain meds duhhhhhhhh what was I thinking?
*i will post pone my surgery till after the wedding because i just cannot miss my dear friends wedding*