youknowit

Me either... and actually, I am starting to look forward to the working out now... which, I NEVER thought I would say. I feel icky when I don't go, maybe this is an "addiction transfer"? Not a bad one, if that's the case... PS... looks like you have kicked some ass with that sleeve, girl! Below goal?! YA!

Oh, I know... but seriously, without the sleeve, we'd never get there with exercise alone. I'm still workin it, for sure! :thumbup:

I'm trying to get my schedule in order, and get down there next month. Thanks for letting us know how it all looked and went... Sounds like everything is great with your sleeve, which is good news. If you don't mind me asking, did you pay out-of-pocket for your tests, and how much did you pay? It's so much more expensive here in the U.S.... so I'm nosey. Thanks for the update, and I'll let you know when I am going.

Dr. Campo told me after 1 month I could take pills whole, and I haven't had any problems. For me, I take a chewable multi-Vitamin, and bought the smaller sized calciums (Citacal Petite), just in case. The biggest pill I take is the Omega, and since it's a gel capsule, I'm pretty sure it dissolved quickly. Hope this helps! Buy Citracal calcium citrate with Vitamin D Petites Online at drugstore.com

I have and do use skim milk almost every single day as part of the Protein shake I get in during the morning. I use a scoop of Jay Robb strawberry and about 6 oz of skim milk (sometimes up to 8 oz). Nonetheless, the only problems I've found are that sometimes the milk bothers my tummy, by nature I'm NOT a milk drinker or heavy eater of ice cream and such. I did switch to Lactaid milk, non-fat, and it seems to help with that "ugh" feeling... I don't want to say go against your nutritionist, but yes, Whey is a milk protein, and so your logic seems reasonable to me... You could always try mixing your protein powders with Water (not too delish) or maybe a half water half low-calorie juice? Anyways, wishing you the best! Went through all the same "what if's" and fears you are stating here. You'll do great, I know it! :smile1:

Yes, I take a Prevacid every morning, and have tried also taking it at night. I'm thinking I might need to step up doing it every night now, that might help me. This is going to sound weird/funny, but the Jerky is a god-send! It really is super-low fat, super-high Protein, and low calories for the amount we can eat. It's a go-to snack/food for me. I love Teriyaki. I know it has a little more in the way of carbs/sugars, but I really don't like the heavy peppered or plain, so I eat Turkey or Beef Teriyaki. Yum. You should pick some up. I like the stuff at costco, and you can buy it in monster big bags, or pre-packaged little bags. The small bags are great for the car or office for a measured amount on the run. :smile1: Hope this helps, and that you're doing great! :sad0:

There's a bit of research on this. There's nothing I've ever found about "physiological response" to surgery causing depression. I have found some interesting data on WLS and Suicide recently... of course, now I cannot find it. If/when I do, I'll post. More research is being done on the issue of depression and WLS, which is coming to the forefront. I believe I found the article on WLS and Depression/Suicide, here (this has been such a wealth of knowledge for me): Clinical Developments and Metabolic Insights in Total Bariatric Patient Care Also, Harvard Health has some research about this, but you have to pay for the newsletter.

I wish I had your problem... nothing sounding good. I'm happy for you! I still get pretty strong hunger sometimes, but it seems to be getting better. Overall, I do still crave the "crap" stuff no one should really be eating, and I'm not going to lie... when out with friends, I've tried a bit of stuff like a fry, etc, but I don't order it, I don't cook it, and I really don't feel like I HAVE to have it, so that's a victory for me. I've resorted to 70 calorie packs of apple slices (w/sugar free mini-caramel), as my current go-to, or turkey Jerky. These two "snacks" are really helping me a lot.

Wondering what, if anything, you are all using to treat your scars? I'm trying these silicone patch things, they seem to help a bit. Anyone else? A couple of my scars are very discolored, and some are even sort of keloids. Best!

For your joint/knee issues, I would recommend Water aerobics... It's really a lot of fun and much easier on your body than the walking/aerobics. Stationary bike might work too. I used to do water aerobics all the time back in college, and it was really cool. You are doing great, having not done any exercise thus far. I say, how amazing will you feel getting out there and moving a bit? I'm really only exercising for stress reduction at the moment. :thumbup:

Oh, the one quote I should not have read: "Exercise by itself is pretty useless for weight loss." -- Kill me now. LOL Weighing the Evidence on Exercise - NYTimes.com

Hi all! I'm doing much better with my exercise "routine" as of now. I am MAKING myself go to the gym at least 3 days a week. I do 30-60 minutes on the eliptical, and I have taken on some weight training. That seems to be helping, and burns off a lot of stress. :thumbup: Hope all are doing great!

Yes, I would take it. Our bodies can't get enough of the Vitamins and minerals we need from our food, because we are eating such small amounts... Here's what I take everyday: 1 - Chewable Multi 1 - Iron 1 - Calcium Citrate 1 - Magnesium 1 - Omega 3 1 - Biotin 1 - sublingual B12 1 (or 2) - Prevacid Hope this might be helpful!

I take iron every single day of my life, had to take up to three pills a day last year when my hemoglobin dropped to SIX. It was a very scary time. I did have tummy troubles with the three pills a day, but one a day, never had a problem. The only recommendation I can give on this is to take it with food. Even just a little sip of Water and a cracker. This should eliminate any "iron burps" as I call them, or irritation to your tummy. Beyond my having had severe/chronic anemia in the past, my surgeon (Dr. Aceves) states in his post-surgical instructions that all women should plan to take an iron pill everyday for the rest of their child-bearing years (as long as you still have a period). I'll still do so forever, as my problem isn't periods or anything, it is absorption issues in my stomach. Hope this helps. -

While I was still in the hospital, they gave me anti-nausea medications in my IV, and once I was off the IV, they gave me a shot in the butt a couple of times. By the day I left (about four days after surgery) I was totally fine in terms of the nausea. Actually, I was pretty ok by the end of day three, and day four I was feeling pretty good all-around. There are these anti-nausea meds you can get for sea-sickness that are chewable... also comes in liquid. You might want to look for those if you're continuing to have nauseas. drugstore.com - online pharmacy & drugstore, prescriptions filled Hope this helps! :thumbup1:

It's not just an upper-GI/leak test. They do the bloodwork to check your Protein, Iron, etc. Vitamin deficiency is a well-known problem with many bariatric patients, and some people do have problems (I did in the past with vitamin deficiencies, especially Iron). Anyone else want to share their thoughts or their doctors thoughts on this? Best! :confused:

Brenda, Do you mean Thursday, May 20? If so, that's (literally) the only weekend I can't do this... as I am in a friends wedding here in town. :confused: If you mean the weekend before, that's doable. Let me know. This would be a fun, and great adventure! Are you driving from PA to Reno? Ah! :drool:

I didn't have many problems drinking, after the first week (when I was in the hospital I had a lot of nausea, so that was a problem, but once we fixed that up, all was pretty good). I can now drink as much as I want of anything for the most part, and I'm not even at 3 months yet. It worried me at first too, but now I just consider it normal and part of my journey. If you feel ok, that's great. Here's to your sleeve! :confused:

Do you think you might go in May? If so, let me know what day(s) you might be thinking. Gaby told me that May 15 is the one day a month they do two trips to the airport - for both pickup and then to drop back off that evening. She also gave me some other days I could come down, if I chose to drive... I'm thinking about it. It's only 5-6 hours from my house to Calexico, so it wouldn't be too bad. :001_huh:

That is so true, and it's really nice to be on this journey with others... Because I didn't tell family or friends (minus my brother), having all of you here is my ROCK of support and help! :smile: And you are doing great too, Mini! :smile::biggrin0:

Girl, you're right! We're all doing this at our own speed and in our own time. :smile: Being that I went through the weightloss and regain once before (with the band), this makes things a little different for me... I "know" in my head to be patient, but I also know what it feels like to be at 150 lbs, so I'm anxious! :wink: Can't wait, and truly hoping for 120(ish) :smile: Here's to us!

It's recommended for everyone, and it's $150. That includes bloodwork and the upper GI xray. They don't charge for seeing the doc. Many have gone back to Dr. A for this followup, but, a lot of people get it done back home as well... You can email Gaby and she'll give you all the info on it. Hope this helps! :smile:

Wondering if any of Dr. Aceves January or February patients will be heading down for the 3(ish) month followup? I am hoping to head down in May, and Gaby told me that they do their one day a month of pickup and drop back off at the airport on May 15. Anyone else down for this? It'd be nice to meet some of my sleeve sisters and brothers, if you'll be there. If not, I would also consider driving down on another day in May, if anyone else might be there at another time? Do let me know, and maybe we can coordinate this together! Best!

I'm sorry to hear that people have been rude, and I certainly hope that this isn't intentional on anyone's part. I have noticed from time to time that people get a bit jumpy, especially about their choice in how/when/where to have surgery, and by which doctor... Hang in there, and hope whomever is bugging you will chill out. :thumbup: :smile:

3-9% of U.S. citizens in the most recent data are either Atheist/agnostic/ Nonbeliever in God. Much higher numbers in this regard worldwide... I'm glad someone started this thread! Here's some great, very thorough academic research on the topic: http://www.pitzer.edu/academics/faculty/zuckerman/Ath-Chap-under-7000.pdf