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It gets better every day. Keep moving and walking. I was walking a few hours after my sleeve surgery Tuesday. I thought they were insane getting me up a few hours after surgery. Turns out it was the best move possible. Up....walking. Seems counterintuitive when you are hurting so bad but it is absolutely the ticket. Best wishes on your healing.

As a dude, there will be no bikini. Just had surgery and have several months before beach season arrives. I'm looking forward to a few beach trips next Summer. Flip flops, swimming trunks and optional t-shirt is how I pan on rolling.

I live in Georgia......work in South Carolina. My employer is going from United Health Care to BCBS South Carolina. They are just the plan administrators and I suspect the actual coverage categories will remain the same as they are stipulated by my employer. I hope it all works favorably with you. I can say that years before, when we were BCBS SC, the administrative part was much easier to deal with than it was with United Healthcare. UHC seemed to be cumbersome and difficult. UHC sure ran me around through the obstacle course leading up to my sleeve surgery. I think you'll be better served by BCBS. Best of luck to you.

Thanks, Babbs. They scared me with the blood clot discussions. I'm up and moving around every couple hours for sure. I went out on the back deck this morning before dawn and the cool air felt great. Deep breaths of fresh air. A gift if ever there was one. My my laps around the house. Chilling out in the recliner now watching some TV. I'm working my way through a 24oz glass of ice Water. My next moving with be going outside to walk to the mailbox and a few laps up and down the driveway. This afternoon I may go up and down the street a little ways. Laughing about this mystery leg muscle soreness.

Outstanding progress. You've done great.

My surgeon came by just before my surgery and said it take an hour of the sleeve and a bit longer for the abdominal hernia repair. I think my surgery started at 7:45am. It was all a blur. I'd asked for a pre-op Valium to chill me out. Great move. I was done with surgery and recovery room and in my hospital room by mid morning. They let me rest for a while and then I was up walking early afternoon.

I gave up, too. I gave up on the insurance company. Never gave up on having the surgery. There are ways to self fund it, you may have to get creative. Have some discussions with the Bariatric Centers in your area and find out what the self-pay cost is. You may be very pleasantly surprised. Please don't give up on the procedure.

Allergies suck. That's as plainly as I can put it. Ear infections ??????? Damn. Those can be painful at a level that renders folks unable to do anything buy lay in bed and moan. I'm sorry to hear that you get symptoms that bad. I feel for you. Somehow, as I've gotten older, my symptoms have lessened over the years. I don't know what to attribute it to. They flare up if I travel. Exposure to different pollens and irritants from new areas will usually set them off again. Allegra & Flonase have been very much appreciated over the years.

I'm only two days post-op so take my advice for what it's worth.....just a dude making through the first stages. I anticipated that my pain would be more from abdominal hernia repairs than the actual sleeve. It proved to be correct. This was my third abdominal hernia repair so I had an idea of what I'd need. I bought a big & tall leather recliner for the surgery. It is much easier to stand up from than getting out of the bed. I have three memory foam body pillows for the bed. They will enable me to stay elevated which makes getting out of bed much easier. I have a lighter body pillow that is resting across my abdomen while sitting in the chair. It is warm and supportive. New Balance slip on athletic shoes have been great. They go on and off as easy as Crocs but offer much greater support. No hands needed but foot comfort is guaranteed. Makes doing those laps much easier. I borrowed my Son's Anker remote battery for easy recharged of my cellphone in the hospital. White one charge it has given my iPhone 3 full charges. Kept my phone within arm's reach and charged. Loose fitting gym clothes. Yeti cup (big one). Keeps your ice Water cold all day, all night. Makes it obvious that you are drinking the right amount of water. A good supply of pre-mixed Protein shakes. You're not going to want to be shaking up powder-ice-water concoctions while you are sore. The pre made type have been easy. Chewable supplements is a no-brainier. As a tall guy, I wished I'd installed tall toilets in my house. Sure would have helped make it easier with this tender hernia. Have someone take you home from the hospital in a tall SUV, van or pickup. Much more comfortable than having to go low in a car. We used a friends Honda Pilot instead of my wife's Maxima. Was a smart move. Made the ride home much better. Pets police. We have active little dogs that will jump into your lap without warning. Keeping the body pillow over my abdomen safeguards against them hitting a sore spot. My wife gathered up all their toys and put them out of reach so I wouldn't be tripping over them. Protein powders for that second week. I have a nice variety to mix up once I feel up to shaking the bottle. I have some of the flavored tuna in foil packets for when I'm able eat real food. I have a set of crutches and I use one for climbing stairs and standing up. YMMV but I need the support right now. Flonase nasal spray. I'm getting a blast in each nostril every 12 hours to prevent sinus draining that could lead to coughing or sneezing. I don't want anything like this to occur while this hernia is healing. Also, I loaded the freezer up with meals that the rest of the family could make with ease. I do a lot of the cooking-grilling and enjoy it, but I'm off duty right now. ????. They can fend for themselves fairly easily. That's all I can think of so far.

I've just been taking the Bariatric Advantage chewable B12. Seems to be working.

Have you tried Stevia? I've found the packets of this are pretty decent in coffee & tea. There seems to be less aftertaste, too. It's certainly more pricey than generic Splenda or NutraSweet but is works well.

Stick to the outer perimeter of the grocery store when you shop. Don't even go down the aisles. Low carbs are where it's at with the post op diet to maximize weight loss. Get used to that now.

I would not want to be coughing right now as I'm healing up. Most of my pain is from a abdominal hernia repair which was done at the same time. I'm using Flonase to help ensure the sneezes and coughs stay away.

Sounds just like me yesterday. Arrived at 6:30am and was in surgery at 7:45am. Everything went well. stayed in the hospital the remainder of the day, night and was released at 4:30pm today. You'll do great. Make sure you get up and walk frequently. It really helps your healing and it takes care of any residual gas pains, if any, that you may experience. Stay on top of your pain meds and don't let long intervals drift between doses. Take them as scheduled and you'll hardly notice any pain, I'll bet. Best wishes.

@@Graciesmom04 The Pillow of Peace is an awesome thing. i found out about on my last hernia repair. Was released this afternoon at exactly 4:30pm. Grateful for that as we avoided most of the rush hour traffic. By 5:15pm I was walking laps at home and then crashed for a few hours in the recliner. I got up at 11:00pm and walked laps, stood, walked, drank Protein, drank Water and etc. I took a shot of Flonase in each nostril to keep things dry. I want no sneezes or coughing if I can help it. The liquid pain meds he sent me home with are sufficient. I must stress that they are just for the hernia. My sleeve is hardly noticeable at all. I get some discomfort if I take too large a sip. What is ironic is that my father and his father were insanely fast eaters and drinkers, both fit and trim men, too. I always was a fast eater, too. I could gulp down a large Yeti cup of ice water in a couple minutes. That was the old me. The new me is learning to sip in small amounts. I'm glad I don't have to think about eating for the next month......just sip these Protein shakes. They taste the same as they did before. I suspect that is because I did actually sip them and savor the flavor during my 2-week liquid pre-op diet. Sipping drinks allows me to get the full flavor vs gulping. I'm going to stick with water and protein through the weekend. I am so grateful that everything went well. I was sweating the hernia repair, but he was able to do a solid repair that should last. I'm looking forward to tackling the stairs so I can make it to the bedroom and hop on the scales. Just curious where the needle will stop.

Thank you. My wife is bringing one with her to pick me up this afternoon. Hospital was great.......but it's time to roll along back home.

So many unsolicited opinions and so-called experts. I'm glad that the folks in my life have been supportive or chosen to remain silent

Very impressive. Great job on the weightlifting, too.

The smiling beauties just returned with the Surgeon on his morning rounds. He's saying that every time he sees me that I'm laying in bed. He wants me up and sitting in a chair. I'd oblige but the chair is too low. No way I'd be able to stand up. The hernia repair screams when I get up. I've been up four times already and walked laps. He's a pushy cuss. It's 10:20am and I've had 4 ounces of Protein shake and 14 ounces of Water......and urinated three times. I'm eager to get dressed.

I simply did a front facing and side photo in front of the full length bedroom mirror. I posted them in my profile as my "Before " pic. I'll update each month. Looking forward to the 12 month update already.

Awesome progress!!!!!!

Doing really well, thanks. My only pain is from an abdominal hernia that he repaired It's only a problem when I sit up and get out of the bed Been walking a few times Nothing as far as gas pain I feel really good, actually. Just sleepy from the meds and from being woken up every few minutes last night. Toradol injections have helped tremendously with swelling and my herniated disc. Wish I could have this for the trip home later today.

It's somewhat understandable You're going to have to buy new clothes for your new body. I can she where folks can go overboard I'm hoping the gym becomes my obsession

14 days here

That is amazing, Jennifer. I wish and your family the very best.