JamieLogical

There really isn't one. Stay well hydrated and moisturize daily, but depending on how much excess skin you have, surgery may be the only real solution.

My nutritionist definitely prefers for us to get all of our protein through "real" food. How many grams of protein are you getting per day without supplementing? If you are in the 80-100 gram range, then I don't think there would be any need to add protein powder back in at this point.

I went to Mexico and had a great experience. I've actually been to Mexico for two different surgeries and both times I received excellent care. If money is tight and time isn't of the essence, then you could try to go through your insurance again now that you have been diagnosed with a comorbidity. If you have the money and would prefer to not have to wait to jump through all the hoops with your insurance, then Mexico is a good option. Just make sure you do your research and choose a surgeon you are comfortable and confident with.

I'm 17 months post-op and still can't do raw veggies, so it may not get better. The good news is, salad is pretty much a waste of sleeve space anyway, so it's better to get your Protein in.

I think the obsession with numbers on a scale comes from years of dieting and the idea that once we reach goal, we will be "done". Once we embrace that WLS is forever and we are changing our lives forever and that there is no "done" then it puts the rate of loss in perspective. It is so true that once you are living your happy, healthy life, the date by which you reached goal becomes completely meaningless.

Quest has all of their recipes (including some for pancakes) on their web site: http://www.questnutrition.com/cookbook

I had the same issue. At about 7-8 months out, my BP was about 90/60. I went to my PCP about it and she did a bunch of tests. She concluded that I needed to "liberally increase my intake of salt". I have worked on that some. Still don't add salt to things, but I don't worry about eating things that are high in sodium anymore. It has improved slightly, but mostly I think I have just adapted to it. I have to pause for a second when I stand up before I take a step. Of course I say that, but just yesterday I fell right over when I went from lying on the couch to walking without the pause I should have taken..... Fell right back onto the couch.

32 pounds and not even two full months out? Sounds pretty darned good to me!

Glad you checked back in. I'm sorry you are still somewhat disappointed with your losses. Can you give us a picture of what you are eating now and what your activity level is like? You mentioned that you got down to 268 and then started regaining. Did anything change in your diet or activity level at that point?

Seem a bit high in carbs for the weight loss phase. Maybe in maintenance.... 25 net carbs is a lot for one meal.

Sounds like you are setting yourself up to be very successful post-op. A good attitude goes a long way.

Raw veggies make me super burpy (cooked veggies are fine) and breads/dough/crust fills me up SUPER fast in an uncomfortable way.

I really had a mourning period right around the time I was allowed back on solid foods and realized I wasn't going to be able to enjoy them the same way I had pre-op nor turn to them for comfort. I think that's pretty normal. The trick is to really evaluate your relationship with food and figure out other ways of coping. If that is not something you think you can handle on your own, don't hesitate to seek some counseling. It can be very helpful at this stage. I would say that period of adjustment, relearning how to eat, figuring out how much to eat, and figuring out how to cope with my emotions lasted from somewhere in my second month until about my forth month. By then I really had a good routine and had a good sense of how much I could eat without making myself sick or overfull. I was also back into exercising regularly by then, which I think helped with handling my stress and emotions.

Good luck! You'll do fine! It'll likely be a rough couple of days, but so worth it in the end.

Don't stress. It's nothing the doctors and nurses haven't seen and dealt with 10,000,000 times before. Just ask one of the nurses at the hospital what their protocol is when they have you change into your gown before the surgery.

As long as you stick to the plan for the remainder of the diet, a tiny amount of carbs/sugar one time probably won't make too much difference.

Some people have a hard time eating, even months out from surgery. Some aren't hungry. Some struggle with constant nausea. Some have emotional/mental issues surrounding food (recently someone posted that they can't even stand to be around other people eating anymore). That's why it is important to follow your surgeon and nutritionist's plan and seek counseling if you are struggling with any aspect of your post-op life.

Probably gas. They fill your abdomen with gas to make more room to work and sometimes some of that gas gets trapped inside you and takes a while to work its way out. That is one of the primary sources of pain in the first few days. Don't be surprised if it migrates to your shoulder, neck, or upper back. That's very common.

As others have said: chicken, turkey, beef, pork, venison, cheese, nuts, beans.... There are many sources of protein still available to you. I'm 17 months out and rarely eat yogurt anymore (though I admit to relying on it heavily in my early food stages). And I only eat eggs if I am out to eat. Don't keep them in the house because they go bad before I get around to eating them. And I have HATED fish my entire life, though I do eat shellfish.

It really is sad. Because plastics can be AMAZING and have amazing long term results. The doctors on that show are just TERRIBLE. If I see one more tummy tuck without a muscle repair, I think I'm just going to have to give up on the show altogether. I feel bad for the patients. I know they are getting extensive plastic surgery for free, but the revisions they will need down the line make it so not worth it. They'd be better off saving up for a couple of years, going to a decent surgeon, and saving themselves additional surgeries in the future.

It's a separate show called Skin Tight. It's about people who have lost a lot of weight having skin removal surgery.

It is definitely possible to lose100% of your excess weight with sleeve. Lot's of people on these forus have managed it.

They've shown him doing lower body lifts, tummy tucks, arm lifts, back lifts, and thigh lifts. And he's been the one actually performing the surgeries. They show him cutting and stitching in the OR.

Yes, I really liked the 12 day aftercare but people had incisions opening up up to 3 months post op or developing seromas that needed to be drained later and while my PCP is great I don't think he would remove my hundreds of stitches for me. I still submitted a consult with Dr. Laura Carmina Cardenas in Tijuana so I have my bases covered but I'm not 100% comfortable with Mexico. I love her results. It's the lack of in-person follow ups I'm worried about.Your stitches aren't removed. Nearly all of your stitches will be subdermal and disolve on their own. You may spit a couple, but you can just pull them out with tweezers. The only stiches I had that needed to be removed were in my belly button, at my drain sites, and where the lipo wand had been inserted. It was a total of maybe 12 stitches? And Dra. Cardenas removed them before I flew home.Thanks for the info! I guess each surgeon is different. I was reading of some having to find another PS here to remove all their stitches and didn't feel comfortable with that. I can't wait to have my consults so I can get a better feel for what is best for me. Are you still thinking about going back to get your legs done? Yep! I sent photos to Fatimeh on Friday night. She said Dra. Cardenas is super busy right now so she's a little backlogged on consults, since she is very paticular and likes to take the time to carefully the photos and all the medical history. So I suspect it will be a couple more days before I hear back from Dra. Cardenas herself. Can't wait though! I had a long talk with my husband over the weekend about financing, scheduling, and recovery, so now we just need the results of the consult before making more concrete plans.

Yes, I really liked the 12 day aftercare but people had incisions opening up up to 3 months post op or developing seromas that needed to be drained later and while my PCP is great I don't think he would remove my hundreds of stitches for me. I still submitted a consult with Dr. Laura Carmina Cardenas in Tijuana so I have my bases covered but I'm not 100% comfortable with Mexico. I love her results. It's the lack of in-person follow ups I'm worried about. Your stitches aren't removed. Nearly all of your stitches will be subdermal and disolve on their own. You may spit a couple, but you can just pull them out with tweezers. The only stiches I had that needed to be removed were in my belly button, at my drain sites, and where the lipo wand had been inserted. It was a total of maybe 12 stitches? And Dra. Cardenas removed them before I flew home.