LaTrisha R. Lake

I was 228.8 last week, I'm 226 this week, down 2.8.

I'm cracking up over all the women that are complaining because the cut out for the boobs is too big. I have the HUGEST problem, because most of the time, there was never enough room FOR mine! I'm freakishly endowed though and have always felt that I'd end up getting a reduction one day. Perhaps its coming. I'm losing band size, but NOT cup size. The smaller the band goes the bigger my cup becomes. I hope one day to be able to get a matching underwear set. And I don't like floral prints. Why do I need to look like your grandmother's couch???

Hi! My name is Trish. And I'll tell you about my experience so far. I've been overweight since college. The freshman 15 was more like the freshman 50. I've lost and gained weight multiple times in my life before I made the choice to get the sleeve. I don't regret the decision. I'd gotten up to 275 pounds and my back and joints ached. When I stood up after sitting for a while, it sounded like a bowl of rice crispies with fresh milk. I snored, VERY loudly, I could exercise, but not for long and not without feeling like I'd die soon. I had the sleeve on 3/16/15. I'm just slightly 2 months out. I've dropped 44 pounds so far. Instead of coming home from work, cooking dinner and then sitting on the couch and not moving again until it was time for my son to go to sleep but yesterday I came home from work and worked in my yard. Weeded flower beds and shoveled dirt. The other day, I built a container garden to grow vegetables. I don't pop or creak when I get out of bed and instead of taking 5 minutes to loosen up and be able to move, now its a few steps and my hips seem to go back to the right place so I can walk without a limp. I'm actually a member of a gym and I lift weights now. The first time I had shrimp after surgery, I couldn't finish 4... you'll work up to that. I went on vacation to Mexico and for the first time in a long time, I didn't need a seat belt extender. I look at life differently now and I've tried so many things I might have been scared to do just months ago. I swam with dolphins, I went down multiple flights of stairs to swim in an underground cavern KNOWING I'd have to climb those stairs to get back out. I had two bites of my mother's key lime pie. I took tiny nibbling bites off of the two small forkfuls I had. And was SATISFIED. You will have head hunger sometimes. And you will have to work to figure out if you're really hungry. My suggestion is to make an eating schedule and stick to it. That way you're eating every 3 - 4 hours and don't have to decide if your hunger is real or not. You're going to suddenly realize you're alive and the more active you become, the more you'll want that feeling to last. You will be tired in the beginning, you will have moments where you might be mad at the world. But it's going to pass. The most important thing is always have your Water. Don't leave home without water. I wish you nothing but success and hope you'll keep in touch because this is an amazing journey!

Hi, Does anyone know of a good, reliable app that will help me to time chewing? I got some tiny forks and spoons, but I'm still struggling with eating too fast. I had "eat slower" and it worked for a while, but now is full of bugs and doesn't work very well. Any suggestions would be appreciated. I'm currently on an iPhone but am switching back to Android ASAP since I really hate this phone.

I've had one person decide to take this step. She's in the qualification period and is already doing well. She has a 3 month wait, but has lost 10 pounds already. She's excited for her future, just as I am. We both have small children and wanted to be around for all the many milestones we'll get to see.

I'm in. My goal is 215. I'm at 231.2 right now so with moderate loss, I should hit at least 215 by then!

I was ready to start at 4 weeks, but stuck to walking because rarely, but on occasion, I'd feel a "hitch" in my abdomen at my belly button. As soon as I went weeks without experiencing it, I started weight lifting at the gym. The machines tell you how much and I'm proud to say this morning I lifted 14,526 pounds with my workout routine. You're going to be great. Do what feels best for you!

After about four weeks, I started having a tall skinny caramel latte from Starbucks. I've only done it three times since surgery, 3/16/15. But each time, it was worth it. I needed the caffeine to stay awake! I used to have a standing order for a Grande skinny caramel latte. I've cut back, but I truly miss the caffeine a good cup of coffee offered.

Hi Kimpossible...I would suggest making the psychiatrist aware of your concern. Or getting a new one if you can't talk to your current one. Any doctor you have should be aware of your thoughts, feelings and especially your concerns. Otherwise you won't get the care you deserve. Dont be content to be invisible. By not being an aggressive advocate for your own health, you could be harming yourself. And any time I've realized I wasn't comfortable sharing my thought with a doctor, I had to move on. You should too. I wish you the best of luck AND health!

Honey, save the biggest tent piece of clothing and get rid of the rest. You aren't going back there! You didn't start a diet, you changed your life. Own it and you'll do wonderful things for yourself and your health!

I started here and was completely confused by the app!

Congratulations! I was so excited today, I've worn heels. All day! And haven't been tempted to take them off for more than a minute or two. I haven't worn heels this long since I was carrying my son, four years ago!!!

Hi! I'm new to the sleeve life. I had my surgery on 3/16/15. So far, I'm doing great, I feel good, I'm exercising most days. I'm losing weight and more important, my clothes are fitting better. So, on to the next question for your veterans. I'm an emotional eater. And today, I'm bored. I'm working on something tedious and all of a sudden, I wanted a snack. I wanted to eat something. But, I'm not hungry. I checked the time, and I'm now an hour away from when I need to stop drinking Water so that I can have my afternoon snack. So, 1.5 hours from food. I KNOW I'm not hungry. I KNOW, that its in my head. So, what should I do when this hits me? I jumped on here so that I could talk to others and see how you handled it in your early stages. I'm working from home today, so I guess I could/will walk down the street to pick up my mail, that's a 15 minute break. But, how do you cope when you're emotions are lying to you?

Hi all! Just checking in. So far I'm down about 12 pounds from my weight the date of the surgery. I've been walking almost daily, except the last two days. Got back on the treadmill with a vengeance today. 64 minutes walking plus about 15 minutes of yoga. This is the last weekend before I go back to work. Each day, I learn something a little different about how to be successful. Like organizing my meds and vitamins. Hope everyone is doing great!

Quick follow up question if I can tag onto this post... I keep reading about food tolerance issues and I'm starting to worry. I go back to work next Monday, That's the day I start pureed food and I'm worried about what happens if you are out and find out you can't tolerate something you tried to eat? I'm not planning anything insane, I'll be making and taking food to work. BUT, what "happens" if you can't handle it? Is it going to be pain or is it going to be something embarrassing?