JerzyTomato74

I never got emotional with my NUT but almost did with the Psych. Whenever I get talking about my weight issues and what got me to where I am, I get emotional so don't feel bad. We all have those days! I'm not a Breakfast person either. Breakfast for me is coffee. On a good day I might eat a yogurt or piece of fruit but I'm just never hungry in the morning. This is why I tend to overeat later in the day. Since I know I have to have breakfast, the Protein shakes are perfect for getting something in my stomach without being that hungry. Coffee really isn't that hard for me to switch to decaf but I always have to have flavored creamer in it. I can't do fat free creamers, yuck! So for me, I will most likely just give up coffee altogether. It will be hard at first but if I can't have regular creamer in it, it's going to suck so I'd rather do without! LOL

The GNC Puredge in chocolate is pretty good. It's sweetened with Stevia. Normally I find powders sweetened with Stevia to be too sweet but the Puredge wasn't.

Check with your surgeon. My instructions from both my NUT and surgeon are to not add chewables until the third week post-op.

That's awesome! I can't wait to be where you are now! Keep up the great work!

I haven't tried the liquid Isopure but another suggestion I read is to dilute it with water and add a packet of Crystal Light in the same flavor as the Isopure. Then just tweak it a bit by adding more water if needed to get it down.

I think the changes you made are in the right direction. I too have weighed in later in the day after having a couple meals and liquids so the loss isn't going to be the same as it was when you weighed yourself first thing in the morning before putting anything in your stomach. I know it's frustrating but don't get discouraged! Good luck on Friday!

That's excellent! Forget the people who can't be supportive and positive about this. No place for negativity when you are getting yourself healthy and feeling better! Keep up the great work!

I'm from Jersey! I don't have a date for my surgery yet but it will be in October. Just waiting on my NUT to send over my reports from my last two consults to my surgeon so they can turn everything in to my insurance.

That's so awesome! I can't wait to do the same!

My surgeon told me a minimum of 1 year.

For me it was a no-brainer. My step-dad and my husband both had procedures done by him in the past and couldn't rave about him enough. His bedside manner was impeccable and he has a great sense of humor and makes you feel at ease. He has been a surgeon in our area for the past 30 years and has done a ton of WLS's. Another surgeon in our area boasts that he has the fastest surgery time at 23 minutes. That is not a selling point, IMO! You want someone who takes their time and is thorough. I think you also want someone who makes you instantly feel comfortable and doesn't make you feel rushed and takes the time to explain everything. You want someone who specializes in bariatric surgeries, not a surgeon who does a WLS on occasion. Also, word of mouth. Ask around about different surgeons to get reviews. Good luck!

No one can force you to take any kind of medication. They can suggest it if you are going to be sexually active but they can't force you to. I asked my surgeon how long to wait before trying to conceive and he said minimum one year. So we'll just have to take proper precautions.

It's not saying that's all you'll lose but I think they take what the average person loses after surgery. They also say the average weight loss per week is 2 lbs. I know people who've lost more than that each week. It really all depends on the person. Some people go back to eating all the foods that made them fat to begin with while those who are serious about getting healthy work at it and make the commitment. Just remember, every person's body reacts differently and all those numbers they kick out are averages.

You sound just like me! I love food and no matter how many diets I've tried, I always have a weak moment and feel defeated. For far too long I gave up the idea of losing weight because I resigned myself to being this way. I changed my mind when a friend of mine had the surgery last summer. Now I tell myself that as good as my favorite foods are, they are the reason I am fat, miserable, unhealthy and hate leaving my house! Do you want to feel that way again after you put yourself through something as drastic as surgery? I know I don't! Your stomach will not be able to handle the amount of food you can currently eat so think of it as a fresh start to only put healthy foods back into your body! You can do it!

I know exactly what you mean. I wasn't always obese but I was always bigger than other girls my age in school so I never felt thin. I was 189 on my wedding day in 2001 and I blame DH for all the weight I've gained (jokingly, of course). I got comfortable and let myself go and now I'm half way to 400 lbs. I'm mortified that I let myself get that far and I don't know if I'm going to know how to act when I get back down there. BTW, I will also be an October sleever! Would love to stay in touch!

I was just talking to DH about this. I was telling him that after a support group meeting, nutrition consult or appt with my surgeon, I am really pumped up about doing this. Then over the next couple days after, the worry sets back in again. I know that I'm going to go through with it but it's a vicious cycle! Now that all my insurance requirements are done it's even scarier to think about because now I'm going to be getting all the things I need post-surgery. Even though I've elected to do it in October, that's only two months away. When I started this process it was March and it seemed like forever ago. The months have flown by!

My surgeon's assistant was telling me yesterday that there's a coffee flavored Protein powder and she said it tastes really, really good. The brand is Isofusion. I know it's not coffee but it might help to get the flavor of it while drinking a Protein shake.

Whey Factors is another brand that sells unflavored. I found this brand at a local health food store but I also found it on Amazon much cheaper.

I can tolerate Stevia if I have control over how much is added. It leaves a very strong after taste. The powders I've tried with Stevia have been too sweet to me. Looks like I'm resigned to unflavored. At least I can add that to anything! LOL

I had my third appt with my surgeon today. Turns out Aetna changed their requirements for WLS so instead of 4 Nutrition consults, I only need 3 which I've already done. So, because of that change, I have officially completed all of my insurance requirements! Now the nerves are really kicking in! I also asked about the 2 week pre-surgery diet. I've been reading from a lot of people on these forums that they were put on a liquid only diet for that time period. Mine will consist of 2 Protein shakes per day and a 300 calorie meal. Anyone else have a pre-surgery diet like that? Protein powders.....is anyone else trying to stay away from artificial sweeteners? Seems like no company makes a flavored powder that doesn't have some type of sweetener in it. The issue is not only can I not stand the after taste but I get several of the side effects associated with them; headaches being the worst one! So far, it looks like I'm going to be stuck with unflavored powder. Anyone else going through this?

Way to go!!! The dress looks great and so do you!

I can't handle artificial sweeteners either. Stevia is a little better for me and that's what's in the powder I currently use but I want to find one with no sweeteners. Make sure you look out for "acesulfame potassium" in the ingredients list. Many people don't know this but this is a sweetener that is related to aspartame! The choices are way too limited in trying to keep that artificial junk out of our post-op diet! Your best bet is to stick to unflavored powders and the huge benefit of that is you can add it to any food or drink to get your Protein in! Good luck!

My husband was a little iffy about it but fully supports my decision to do it. He is overweight also and he jokes that he wants me to guinea pig it first. Needless to say he has attended all the support groups with me and has decided to have the surgery a few months after me. We have two little ones at home so we both can't be out of commission at the same time. I agree with another poster who said to turn the tables on your husband a little bit. Tell him you have made the decision to do this to better your health so that you can be around a lot longer and you'd like him to get on board. Tell him if he objects to it so strongly, you want him to research it on his own and come to you with his informed opinion and then you two can have a conversation about it. I personally didn't start to feel better about it until I really dove into researching VSG and it didn't hurt that I have two friends who went through it already.

I'm towards the end of my insurance requirements. I did three months of support group meetings and I have two more nutritional consults left which will take me into September. I've seen my surgeon twice in the past 3 months and will be seeing him for the third time next week. One thing I've learned is to write down any questions you want to ask your surgeon or NUT. I find that in the weeks between visits I come up with questions or things I need clarified but by the time the appointment rolls around I forget what I wanted to ask so now I write down anything that comes up in between.

Yes, I feel all of those feelings as well. I turned 40 this year and my husband and I have been trying to adopt a baby for the past three years. I know our weight has probably turned some birth mothers away from us but I've been so scared about surgery. Last year, two friends of mine had the sleeve done so that has helped to build my confidence up about doing it. I just finally said I don't want to be the fat mom or have our weight be an issue for any potential baby adoption. I've completed the support group meeting requirements so now I just have two more nutritional consults left before everything gets submitted to my insurance. I have a size 16 skirt that I probably wore 20 years ago still hanging in my closet. I am determined to wear it again! What I found was the support group meetings really pumped me up for the surgery but within a couple days after, I get back to the worry part of it. Tons of mixed emotions here so you're definitely not alone in that!