vsg4missy

I'm new to this

I was 70 yrs & 5 mos. Glad I had this surgery. My skin sags but I can breathe better & my knees don't hurt. LOL. I wish I had done this a long time ago but this current type of Sleeve surgery wasn't around a long time ago. You really have to be to a point where food is no longer a big concern to you. I woke up one morning & realized I could care less about foods like pizza, ice cream, muffins, etc & that surgery was more important. I was going to have a lapband because I didn't know about the Sleeve. I called my cousin about the lapband (she has one) & she told me about the Sleeve. So glad she did.

Update - okay SO I had a normal bowel movement today- I mean it was nothing huge but it was normal! This really made my day.
What I believe is happening - I had a bad case of hemorrhoids (sorry tmi) and that was causing lots of pressure in my bottom on top of the pressure of gas and I've read never to trust a fart which had me running to the bathroom. Lol. Then thinking I was constipated I did the stuff to help which made my diarrhea worse which made my hemorrhoids worse. So I added soft foods back into my diet the last two days. Also I think a lot of it is anxiety bc yesterday busy all day and I hardly had any issues.

I was sleeved on 1/20/15. To date I have lost some 48 lbs in the 11 weeks since my operation. I hope this will inspire some of you that this operation is not something that will handicap you but will actually free you to a much more enjoyable side of life.
One of the things my wife and I enjoy is cruising. Pre sleeve it was all about the food and the beer. Life has changed now as my 2XL body is just now adjusting to a “lumpy” but comfortable “L” size. My eating habits have become healthier and less the big part of my day. The thing is…. I couldn’t in all fairness to my wife stop vacationing (my wife is not overweight). Veterans of 23 prior cruises over the past 16 years, I had to see if it was possible, and as soon as possible. We booked a cruise on NCL Sun out of Tampa to coincide with my transition into stage 5 (solid foods). I learned a lot this week. And I like what I learned. BTW it was the best cruise ever. No alcohol, small portions…. I had my doubts. But I stuck to the plan. It was easy and doable. Here is what I learned, how I coped, what I did, how I ate and how I did weight wise.
1. I decided on day one that everything I ate would be quality….no bread or Pasta. I ate steak, shrimp, chicken or pork for lunch or dinner, no sandwiches , no sweets… I want to emphasize that there are and to my surprise always were good options on every buffet…..especially for sleevers!
2. Breakfast everyday was eggs, cottage cheese (yes the had it) and if I had room a little yogurt. After which we sent for coffee from room service to enjoy later on the balcony.
3. My day started on deck six everyday with my wife ….which has an open air walking track (on most boats ) for 8 to 10,000 steps….about an hour of leisurely walking. By day 3 I was actually jogging small stretches of the track.
4. Dinner every night was a small bite of an appetizer or a few bites of salad and about half the portion of meat. No dessert, instead I would treat myself to a single espresso after my wife finished her dessert
5. I drank ice Water, skim milk and occasionally made myself an ice coffee in my waterbottle everyday.
6. I drank no….yes zero alcohol!!! It did not bother me a bit. My wife did drink and I got all the exercise going to the bar for her….lol
7. At night we took in as much of the activities and shows as possible.
8. Late night occasionally we would get a small bite at the late night buffet. Most nights.
9. I challenged myself to do a shore tour ( I never liked doing things because of my weight ) We did cave tubing in Belize and snorkeling in Roatan Honduras. Which is “not” like me.
10. I think the toughest thing on the cruise is the looks the waiters give you when you don’t finish your meal….I got a lot of…. “you no like? I bring you something else?” I gave a simple “I’m fine…it was delicious!” which works everytime.
11. I think my smartest idea was though to bring a nice water bottle… it was very handy.
12. I bought a new T-shirt in every port in my new size “L” That was a great feeling.
So what was the end result? I was never hungry, slept great, ate some tasty things, met a goal of at least 10k steps every day and still lost 3.2 lbs. It was the first cruise that I actually fit in the clothes that I came on the boat in. I hope this blog encourages you to get out there……but you have to follow the plan and be strong enough to stick to it. It wasn’t hard at all.
LOVING MY SLEEVED LIFE
John M

Congrats! Aetna here too, my approval took a week, but still sooner than I thought. I started calling Aetna every two days to keep up with the status, making sure my file was moving. Best wishes to all in this year of the new US!

I too was worried about the nausea. Today is day 2 post op, going home shortly. The nurses will stay on top of the nausea meds for you, just tell them. Good luck!

I was sleeved on the 2nd as well. Monday was horrible. Not due to pain or nausea but because all I wanted was to sleep and I was put in a semi private room with someone who LOVED the attention she was getting from all of this. Seriously nurses were constantly in the room for one thing or another. Finally I had a mini meltdown because I could NOT get any rest because of her. The nurses felt sorry for me and found a private room to move me to. From that point on until discharge the next afternoon I was pretty much out of it and slept, I think I walked a total of 4 times. Slept all day Wednesday, felt better Thursday and COMPLETELY overdid it-made hubby a nice dinner, went up and down the stairs several times doing laundry and picking up the house. Paid the price yesterday, felt like crap but was still stubborn and cooked hubby a nice dinner. Once it was done crashed on the couch forgetting my cell phone was on silent......woke up to sheriffs deputies, an ambulance and two paramedics at my door because hubby had been trying to reach me and couldn't.........I was dehydrated so it was a good thing. Now per paramedic and hubby's orders I am banned to the couch for the remainder of my time off work. Learn from my example guys.....take it slow.

@@Grateful_Love - No some people just need to hit that purees/soft foods stage before they feel full. Some people never feel full. My advice is follow you doctor/nutritionist serving size suggestion and stop. Don't depend on that full sensation, especially early on.

I'm nervous too! ???? My surgery is Thursday 3/5. I'm worried about being nauseous all the time after. And lots of other things!!! ????

I'm nervous too! ???? My surgery is Thursday 3/5. I'm worried about being nauseous all the time after. And lots of other things!!! ????

String cheese definitely helped me. I was allowed one a day in between Breakfast and lunch. I ate that string cheese like it owed me money!!!!! I'm getting sleeved at 5:45 AM on Tuesday. And today I could not eat or drink because I'm so nervous I actually cannot eat. Like I'm getting terrified actually. Even when I drink some Water I think about the surgery and it doesn't go down easy. ...anyone else nervous?

Hi All,
I just had my surgery on Thursday 2/26. I was just released from the hospital. The biggest problem for me was awful nausea right after surgery on Thursday and thru Friday morning but, thankfully, that got better. I had the swallowing study in the hospital and was able to drink liquids after that. In the hospital I had Water, a Protein Shake and some pureed vegetable Soup. Good luck to everyone getting their procedures soon.

I'm a March 5th-er too!

March 5th here!

As to why people go to Mexico. What I've seen posted is the top reasons
1- I don't have insurance
2- my insurance specifically excludes it.
3- I don't want to be bothered with 6 or 12 or more months of nutritional counseling.
4- I got denied a couple times - or once- and don't want to go through hoops

Hi, I too was concerned about my BMI. The pre-op diet worked well, maybe too well! It turned out that my insurer only wanted to know the BMI
From the first analysis, they looked at the pre-op diet loss as part of the process. My advocate was a big help easing my BMI fears.

Your weight at this point should not matter. You probably had to have a bmi of 40 without comorbidities for surgery approval. If you have a surgery date they approved you so you have nothing to worry about.

I had it too, and YES, it can affect surgery! Most insurance companies are requiring a negative follow up result. As you know h pylori is bacteria. You don't want surgery on your stomach while you have high levels of BAD bacteria in there. I'll warn you, the treatment can make you feel nauseated the first few days. It's well worth it though. My stomach started flattening out. In hindsight I always had an upset stomach but I figured it was because I was fat and could eat better. Good luck!

I've found that a lot of people who are against what you're doing are either 1) ignorant to what it is you're actually doing. 2) afraid for you. 3) afraid to "lose" you.
I have a few friends I know I'm going to have to keep my distance from because they are big social eaters and for years I've been their fat friend who's down and willing to go to buffets or get ice cream etc. I have to simply tell them I can't be that friend anymore and if they care for me at all they will understand and respect that. It's dangerous if they don't.

It's sometimes very hard for the people around us to accept, especially in the beginning , ANY big change we make because the possibility exists that we will change. I have been very open with my friends and family about my surgery and I got mixed reactions in the beginning . Some people were creeped out at the idea of removing most of my stomach, some people thought I would end up regretting it and some people were just straight up scared about me having an "elective" surgery. I tried to make sure they all understood my reasons for choosing it and every single one has come around now(I'm 3 months out), even my grandmother who was very much against it. Have the discussions, tell them how much you want/need their support and if they really care about you, they will want you to be happy . And if not, then they shouldn't be in your life anyway.

Unfortunately we loose friends in this journey of ours. I'm NOT saying this lightly as my best friend of 15+ years and I are a bit distant right now due to the subject. Of my three closet friends she was the one I was worried about telling and I was right to worry. She doesn't ask questions about the process. My other friends wanted to know everything. You do what's right for YOU!!! Us bariatric patients KNOW this is NOT the easy way out! It is hard work! ????????????

I posted a familiar topic in Dec about my BFF. I got lots of helpful suggestions from BP. I ended up having a heart to heart conversation with her. She agreed to support my decision. She was afraid for me. Now she is going with me to my last appointment with surgeon. Also, she coming with me & my husband for my surgery. Talk to her, you may be pleasantly surprised:-)

It is not the "easy way out". But it is definitely easier than the yo-yo life we've been leading. Tell her you've made your decision and you'd like her support. But if she is going to criticize your decision, you'll just need to spend some time apart. Sometimes, like any addiction, we need to separate ourselves from those who are toxic to our success.
Good luck to you!!!

Must be even harder for you. I've been fat my whole life except for a two year period. Happy that you are taking this journey with us!
I happen to believe that we overweight, could fill a library with our knowledge of nutrition, exercise and fad diets. Some of us obsess about it. I can't speak to why we all haven't been successful longterm. For me it's an addiction to food. I have to break the bond and reform our relationship and make fitness my lifestyle. So far on my preop diet, I've lost 12 pounds doing Atkins for 14 days. Low carb works for me.
You.probably have a lot of muscle, being an instructor...you'll have great success! What day in March? 23rd here.