MrsSugarbabe

Congratulations on your progress!!! Keep up the great work! You're doing a lot better than I am at this point considering our surgeries were a month apart. Everyone's journey is different, yet very similar. I've got lots of jiggly going on, too, along with some significant bat wing arms. Yes, muscle definition is more evident with a lot less fat to camouflage it. I need to have my good rings resized, but not read to do that until I lose more weight and get closer to goal. Until that time, I'll tolerate my rings slipping around my fingers, or I'll buy a couple of ring guards (scotch tape works, too lol!).

I love it in salads and California rolls, but still prefer it the simplest of ways - cut in half, remove stone, place in a bowl (with the skin still on), in the center add just a tad of oil and a little cider vinegar, salt and pepper and scoop out with a spoon. Instead of plain oil and vinegar, I will use Wishbone's Red Wine Vinaigrette dressing.

Had my sleeve done just after my 59th birthday. Wish I'd done it years ago, but pride got in the way....felt like I should have been able to do it on my own, but the older I got, the harder it got to lose weight and to stay committed to an exercise routine. The sleeve has changed my life for the better! I say go for it!!! (Not to discourage you, but I did develop some complications several days post-surgery, but would still do it again today (minus the complications.)

I live with chronic back and hip pain (lots of osteoarthritis, facet joint issues and other joint inflammation), but still continue to exercise - walking on my lunch break for 25-30 minutes most days, gym workouts 2-4 times per week varying between elliptical, circuit training, stair climber, other machine assisted exercises, etc. There are days that I sometimes overdo it and will take the next day off, or just walk, to give my body the rest it needs. My job keeps me confined to a desk all day so every hour or so I make it a point to get up and walk around my desk or around the office area for a few minutes. I take pain meds at night so that the chronic pain doesn't keep me awake and rob me of much needed rest, but also have to manage the pain with some early in the day. Have to stay awake to do my job LOL! Something to consider - Could your hip pain be referred pain from something going on in your back? Because my hip pain would sometimes shift sides, or one side would be more intense than the other, I had my rheumatologist xray my hips for any arthritis - there wasn't any. The pain I was experiencing was mostly referred back pain, although I do sometimes deal with bursitis in my hips @@CowgirlJane made some excellent suggestions; the only thing I would add is to be sure your shoes have excellent arch support. Years ago when going through some physical therapy, my therapist and I talked about my crosstrainer shoes (I will buy ONLY New Balance). Even though the shoes worked well for me, she recommended that I remove the sole liner and replace it with another liner with better arch support. That one small change made a HUGE difference in how my back and hips felt while doing my lunchtime laps and any other standing type of exercises. One thing that my rheumatologist told me is that my weight loss will only help the knee pain, which it has - they no longer ache!!! So far "they" have not been able to prove that significant weight loss will help with back pain, other than to help with overall inflammation in the body. My back pain is the same today as it was prior to surgery despite losing 60 lbs. Some things we will just have to learn to live with. Surgery is not a miracle worker for everything.

Great thread @@Kindle! Everyone who has already posted have pretty much covered anything I miss and don't miss. The one biggie for me that I do miss is my very thick wonderful head of hair with lots of body. Lost a lot of it starting at week 13. It is growing back, but it's coming in quite curly and too slowly to suit me. I don't miss having to buy hip friendly tops/blouses and slacks. Now XL in most any brand works for hips and shoulders. This will get even easier/better as I continue to lose more of my weight on my way to goal.

Welcome to the stall club I'm still about 40 lbs. from my goal, a little more than a year out from surgery, and have been stuck just above 200 for about 5-6 months now. Don't give up. Just because we have smaller tummies now, weight loss still takes a lot of work every day, every meal. I, too, have mixed things up over these months in an effort to jump start losing again. I believe what will work best for me is to go back to drinking more @@unjury shakes to ramp up my Protein intact, even though most days I get the recommended amount. I do get plenty of exercise. Just keep plugging along and doing all that you can.

Welcome to the losers club!!! One of my favorites to mix my vanilla @@unjury Protein Powder in is a combination of sugar-free orange sunrise drink mix and a little bit of sugar-free pineapple drink mix. This works well with the Water base, or skim milk when your able. It's like an orange pineapple dreamsicle or Orange Julius. I also like to use the sugar-free Black Cherry #Torani syrup (1-2 pumps). I also mix the vanilla Protein Powder and chocolate @@UNJURY with skim milk and about 2-3 oz. brewed coffee for a mocha shake. I've used banana extract with the vanilla. The key is to experiment with flavors that taste good to you. @@UNJURY has a chicken flavor that's good whenever you get tired of the sweet flavored shakes. I keep it at work and will drink it for lunch or a snack some days.

Congratulations!!!

Always check with your surgeon's office when you experience something that's not considered "normal" for you. Are you getting enough fluids during the day? Hydration can also be a factor. Were/Are you diabetic? I found several months after surgery, I started experiencing some hypoglycemic episodes; nothing huge, but enough to make me feel lightheaded and shakey so I keep a regular check on my glucose level (as I was before surgery). Also, it could be blood pressure related. This is why it is always good to check in with your surgeon's office or his/her PA. Good luck to you on your journey!!

I've not used chewables anything before or after surgery; however, I did not restart my multivitamin or calcium citrate (they're the biggest pills) until a week or two after surgery per my surgeon (plus I was back in the hospital with complications so I was see him and the bariatric fellow MD working with him) every day. That being said, even at more than a year out, I do NOT take all my supplements and medications at the same time, I space them out so everything doesn't hit my tiny tummy all at once.

sip, sip sip walk, walk, walk talk, talk talk Always good things to do Get you some unjury chicken Soup Protein powder and enjoy a cup of soup during the meal. Add just a pinch of chicken bouillon. It's delicious and a nice change from sweet shakes. @InnerSurferGirl's suggestions are great!

Based on my reading and personal experience, my preference is whey Protein ISOLATE and the unjury brand. Whey protein concentrates have way too many carbs, usually. One thing I did before I actually committed to having the sleeve surgery was to replace my Breakfast and lunch with an Unjury Protein powder shake or the Unjury chicken Soup powder. After doing that for about 2 weeks I noticed that I did not crave carbs like I did prior to starting with the Unjury. It's a great product and I recommend it highly!! I order it online directly from Unjury so I can get free shipping. Because the sleeve is restrictive in nature, the only way I can get the recommended grams of protein each day (100) is to have at least one serving of Unjury either as a Meal Replacement or snack. You may want to give it a try. Unjury also has a dietitian available to talk to any time. (No I don't get paid to endorse their product I just think it's that good.)

Before my sleeve surgery, my A1C was 5.8, managed my BS with Metformin 3xday, exercise and food choices. I also had HBP, fatty liver, sleep apnea/hypopnea (the hypopnea being the bigger problem for me). Weight loss goal was to lose 100 lbs. after surgery. My PCP and surgeon both strongly recommended bypass, but after much consideration, research and conversation with others I know who have had WLS, I decided that the sleeve made the most sense to me for me. I have been very pleased with my decision. Pre-surgery I had to stop several medications in preparation for the surgery. After surgery I never went back on the Metformin or BP medication. Besides supplements, the only medication added after 9 mos. post-surgery has been for triglycerides. Even with the weight loss, much increased physical activity, and changes in food choices, etc., my triglycerides remained just barely above the recommended maximum. Medication has improved that considerably. One year post-surgery my A1C is 5.2, BP is in a more normal range and I did not restart BP meds post-surgery; and after meeting with a liver specialist, he told me he felt the fatty liver issue would resolve with continued weight loss. The liver biopsy showed no cirrhosis and other markers he looked at did not cause him concern. Having the sleeve did help me be more successful with all the lifestyle changes needed to lose weight and keep it off because my new tummy just doesn't hold much food - about 2/3 of a cup; anything more than that and I can become pretty miserable very quickly. However, it still takes a lot of work to lose weight and to avoid letting old bad habits creep back in. I have been on a plateau for about 5 months now and am still about 40 lbs. from goal. I am not discouraged or frustrated at this point. I just keep doing what I know I'm supposed to be doing although I do make the occasional poor choice in either food or quantity. I'm very glad I had the surgery. There's nothing magic about it; you still have to do the work; it is an excellent tool for making some great weight loss progress quickly. One thing I did before I actually committed to having the surgery was to replace my Breakfast and lunch with an unjury Protein powder shake or the Unjury chicken Soup powder. After doing that for about 2 weeks I noticed that I did not crave carbs like I did prior to starting with the Unjury. It's a great product and I recommend it highly!! I ordered it online directly from Unjury so I could get free shipping. Because the sleeve is restrictive in nature, the only way I can get the recommended grams of protein each day (100) is to have at least one serving of Unjury either as a Meal Replacement or snack. You may want to give it a try. Unjury also has a dietitian available to talk to any time. (No I don't get paid to endorse their product I just think it's that good.) Good luck on your journey!!!

Some lessons are harder to learn than others. What you experienced is very scary and miserable. I've had some similar experiences over the past year and have learned that I, too, cannot eat a meal or snack within 2 hours of going to bed; too much and I wake up the next morning with reflux. That includes spacing out my nighttime medications so that I'm not taking all of them at the same time just before getting horizontal.

Congratulations on your success and continued progress!!! It's all very encouraging! I'm a little over a year out from my surgery; have lost about 62 lbs. and have been maintaining within about 3 pounds for about 5 months now. My goal was to lose 100 lbs. Had hoped I would have lost it by the one year mark, but alas it was not meant to be. I continue to do what I know I'm supposed to do, but I do struggle with some old bad habits wanting to creep back in. Still weighing/measuring and tracking my food and exercising consistently regularly. It will come off when it's good and ready.

My PCP had me keeping a BP log over a period of time which meant I bought a home BP kit which was easy to use. The readings may not be exactly the same as when I go to my PCP, but it's still a tracking tool; kind of like the scale. I still have the occasional slightly high BP and sometime slightly low BP, but most often it's in a reasonable range. I, too, would rather you be on meds for a short time than to stroke out or have a heart attack. Medications aren't necessarily a bad thing. I also came off my diabetic medication prior to surgery and have not needed them again, but the trade off besides having a great A1C is that now I have to be careful about hypoglycemic episodes. Needless to say, I always try to stay prepared. Dealing with these two things is better than still being 62 lbs. heavier than I am now (even if I'm not at goal yet). Good luck to you!

I was on BP medication for a couple years prior to my surgery; came off of it just before surgery and have not restarted it because my BP has stabilized to a relatively normal range. The surgery and subsequent weight loss should help with your BP issue. It's frustrating for you, but don't give up!! There is light at the end of the BP tunnel.

Thanks for reinforcing what I already know, but don't always think about now that hypoglycemia is an occasional issue. Now that I'm a little more than 1 year post-op, I think I'd rather deal with the occasional hypoglycemic episode than to be on diabetic meds. Last A1C was 5.6.

One of my favorites is to mix some sugar-free orange drink mix and some sugar-free pineapple drink mix to taste, add one serving of vanilla unjury to make a orange pineapple dreamsicle type shake. I also keep sugar-free black cherry flavored Torani syrup and will add a pump or two to a vanilla (or unflavored) shake made with skim milk. Another regular is 4 oz. brewed coffee, chilled or room temp, 8 oz. skim milk, 1 serving Unjury split between the vanilla and chocolate, depending on how chocolatey you want your mocha shake. I also love the Unjury chicken flavored Protein powder - be careful to keep the Water no hotter than 140 deg. or the protein will clump (looks and feels weird, but doesn't change the taste. I use a little more than 8 oz. of water and do add a pinch of chicken bouillon. Make for a tasty lunch at work. It's a life saver when I get tired of drinking sweet shakes and eating sweet Protein Bars.

The mental aspect of weight loss is sometimes the most difficult. I've been extremely encouraged often by posts on BariatricPal and also at Beck Diet Solution. Beck is a cognitive behavior site (available online and via Facebook) that helps with our relationship toward food and how we handle situations and our thought processes. Please check it out sometime. http://www.beckdietsolution.com/daily-diet-solutions/ We all have done what you've done so you're in great company. Just because you didn't make the best choices yesterday does not mean you are a bad person. Love yourself. Now start again because today is a new day.

The most noticeable for me was from the top down, and people commented on my face getting thinner initially; then everyone started commenting on how big my slacks were through the seat and that it was time for me to go shopping. A lot of loss was through my back; bra size, but not cup size, changed after a few months. Cup size has caught up egs also got skinny which is bizarre to me, because even at my lowest weight as a adult (140), I've never had skinny legs. I've been in a weight loss holding pattern now for at least 4 months, with about 40 lbs. to go to goal. I'm a year+ out from surgery and the complications that followed. Just happy I've made it this far and am getting through the holidays with minimal struggle (at least at this point).

Awesome news, Jenifer & Dave!!! @CanyonBaby Thank you, Lord!!! For your mercies never end!!! I've been offline for a while and was finally able to check in on you this afternoon. I haven't read all the posts following this your original one, but will in time until I'm caught up with what's going on in your life. Have a fabulous weekend!!

I prefer mixing my unjury with skim milk most of the time, but will occasionally make a shake using a blend of orange and pineapple sugar-free drink mix and a serving of either unflavored or vanilla Protein powder. Using the vanilla makes it like an orange/pineapple dreamsicle I also enjoy the Unjury chicken Soup Protein Powder.....a nice change from sweet shakes. Another option is a mocha shake using half and half of vanilla and chocolate powder, skim milk, and a little chilled brewed coffee. I've never mixed the vanilla, chocolate, or unflavored powder with just plain Water and drank it. It doesn't sound appealing at all.

I consider it a food rather than a liquid. I also use the unjury chicken Soup Protein powder and don't worry about it.