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Howdy. I felt (and feel) the same way. I went into this thinking that a sleeve was what I wanted. Sleeve seemed less obtrusive....full run of piping afterwards.....would be able to absorb all the nutrition that I needed from foods....etc....etc. I was really pretty much decided. Went to the first seminar.....and then to another session where prospective patients could talk to folks who've had WLS and hear their input. I also spoke with the program nurse......who is 2 years out from her sleeve. She said she wished she'd done bypass and gave me a number of reasons....many of which I share the same thoughts about. I changed my opinion firmly. Bypass is the procedure I want. First.....I do have reflux on occasion. Normally I don't have symptoms.....but when I do it sucks outright. I've been warned that it's magnified hugely with the sleeve. The bypass is reversible in the future.....if ever needed for some reason. I'm not going into this with this thought.....but it's nice to know. My sister has lived the last 15 years post-bypass with excellent results. She avoided diabetes, lost her significant weight and has absolutely kept it off this entire time. There are benefits either way.

I guess I'll try their starter pack. Chike Nutrition has been fairly good to me, too.

Great question. I'm 5+ months out and wondering the same. I'm having full throttle freshly ground coffee, stevia & sugar free CoffeeMate creamer. I'll be switching over to regular/decaf blend soon. Figured at 2 months out I'd go 75/25, then at one month it would be 50/50 and then down to full decaf. One thing that did work just fine for me was using a premixed bottle of vanilla Protein shake for creamer. Worked great. The only reason I stopped is I didn't care to leave partial shake bottles in fridge for the time frame it would take to consume in coffee. In the future, I'll use it for creamer and simply down the rest as a protein. Works just fine. I've had some vanilla and chocolate powders work okay.....some clumped up, though.

Dogs are the greatest !!! You'll find they are with you through it all. I've had German Schauzers since I was a little kid. Great dogs. The only thing better than one is two. They keep each other out of trouble and play hard together, sleep together, come and go together. They seem even happier than when we just had one. Our's are both female. Much easier to train than the males we've had. Not that the males were hard to work with......the females were just easier. Very intuitive. The oldest has been through three surgeries with me. Great little sidekick. Looking forward to her getting me through the bypass & hernia repair. You'll love having a dog. Lot of responsibility but they return every bit of the effort 300%. Be very, very selective about finding a proper breeder. Only go with one that can provide documented health history of the parents. Hopefully you'll even be able to speak with their vet. Sounds like a lot of work.....but doing so will go a long way to help you avoid future health issues that will be devastating. Great list item.

Great news. I know you'll do really well. Hope the walking really helps make things more comfortable soon.

I could be wrong.....but I believe the Quest bars use nuts as a component. There are so many flavors of them that I really hope that I can always find a flavor I like when I"m post-op. They are about the best tasting Protein bars I've tried. Hopefully you can get some good suggestions from your nutritionist.

Be successful at whatever I choose to do and have the physical energy and lack of aliments so that it's within my grasp. Too often good intentions or good plans get side-lined due to sudden pains and bullcrap.

Prayers sent. Hoping you are doing great and sipping on something right now.

Prayers sent. Hoping you are doing great and sipping on something right now.

I don't have a specific list, per se, however, I do have things I'd like to do. I'd certainly like to travel more. I hate planes now because of cramped space. Should just only be a problem of legroom in the future. I"ve got a few hobbies that I want to be more active in. Mainly, though, I just want to do everything I do now......but do it much better !!!!

I think this is more unique to the surgeon. I had a thryroidectomy last year and didn't need the shots-- and I was certainly morbidly obese then. Okay. I'll ask my program's nurse and see what the norm is for my surgeon. Not that knowing one way or another will make a difference. I can handle stitches with no problem. Needles in veins are something I whip out on, though. Cool.

I'll be bringing a backpack loaded with the following: *Comfortable sweatpants, shorts, and t-shirts *A pair of New Balance 801 slip-on sneakers (awesome comfortable shoes....just step into them. No need to bend over. More supportive than Crocs. Gonna be doing some laps in them at the hospital *iPad loaded down with a few new novels on iTunes w/ charger *Bose earbuds & iPhone w/ charger *A pillow from home. If it is anything even remotely like the abdominal hernia surgery....it helps to hold a pillow lightly against the area. *Most important items of all......my C-PAP & reading glasses ( I won't be fooling with contact lenses in the hospital) It's going to pass quickly.

......but under lock and key, of course. It tastes too good to leave unguarded. Sipping on the best iced coffee I've had at the moment. Iced coffee = 2 scoops of Chike Moca Iced Coffee mix + on cup of ice & Water mix. The powdered Peanut Butter is great, too. Their Protein powder makes killer shakes. This will be good stuff to keep around in my desk at work for easy Snacks and Meal Replacements. Warning, though, the coffee mix does have expresso in it so it is caffeinated. I'm generally not an iced coffee fan....but this is going to be welcome stuff for that last snack on night shifts. Their Protein Powder is excellent mixed with water & ice.

Is this something unique to bariatric surgery or any type of surgery that a morbid obese person has ? I would think the quicker we get up and get to walking the shorter the duration we'd have to undero such, no ?????

Pretty much everything I've ever had while staying in a hospital is something I want to avoid. Pretty sure it will be the same once I have my bypass surgery, too. Cool. That is very encouraging to hear.

@@dhrguru Thank you. You're experience really helps. The fact that you are going from not much exercise on to couch-to-5k post op is hugely inspiring. Great story about the family pizza night and then going on to read labels and apply discipline. I've been finding myself doing much more of this since my first appointment with my nutritionist. Having the daily calorie budget keeps me focused on how I "spend" it on every meal & snack. Whats' really funny to me....is that after tracking everything consumed on myfitnesspal for the past two weeks.....I looked at the monthly charts. While I've stayed below goal (on average) on calories......the sodium amount is really high. Gotta work on that aspect......especially if I won't be slugging back 30oz cups of ice Water on a whim. I kept most of the clothes that I bought from when I dropped a large chunk of weight on Atkins a few years ago. Gained most of it back now.....but it will be nice to break out those clothes again as I work my way back down to the weight this bypass surgery, eating plan and exercise takes me to. I'd gone from wearing 6X to 3X shirts. It's even started buying some 2X shirts. My efforts thus far have me back wearing 5X and some 4X now. @@red37 Thanks I'm really looking forward to the $$$$$ savings, too.

Thank you, TXMISSY. I believe that I'll wind up sharing that same regret.....not doing this much sooner.

I think you are doing an awesome job! Keep it up. You should follow what your doctor and nutritionist says not the trainer. I was eating 750 calories and burning 2,000 for the first 7 months. Now I'm eating 1,000 and burning 3,000 a day. I was 280 at surgery date now I'm 180lbs it been 10 months. So you can do it! That is some highly impressive work you two have been doing. Much respect. Funny how some folks just think this is a magic act. You two are getting there through a lot of hard work and discipline. Well done.

Great results !!!!! I can't imagine what your 12 and 18 months pics will look like.

I've been using the generic stevia, splenda and nutra-sweet in my coffee and iced tea. I'll give the Monk fruit stuff a try when I'm in the store again.

Back in 2010 I had surgery on right ankle to repair a torn ligament. Went back to work after 3 months off but it hurt like a beast. Decided then to do something about carrying all this extra weight around. Atkins (induction phase extended) and lots of daily walking for 8 months and I lost 120 pounds. Gained every bit right back within 3 years......but for a while.....a short while......during the lighter weight......there was no knee pain....no back issues.....no ankle pain......everything felt great. Doc took me off the arthritis meds, blood pressure meds.....and every other medication I was on. I am so very grateful for that experience. It allowed me to glimpse.....and enjoy......how good I'm soon going to feel again. The cool part is that I hope to blow by that 120 lb mark and exceed 200 lbs lost. My knees are both going feel brand new again. So is my back. So is everything else. I can't stress how easy it was to spring out of bed.....get moving......stay active on long work days and come home ready for yard work and other fun stuff. Life is better when lived leaner. I have seen it. I know I can kill it on the pre-op diet.....but then the new tool arrives that will really help me get things dialed in. If I do my part I will be able to maintain a good healthy weight forever. I am absolutely convinced that proceeding with bypass is the right thing.

That sounds great. Good deal on finding a nutritionist that you like. I was lucky that way, too. The schedule ahead really sounds like it's going to line up perfectly for you as well. More good news. You are on a roll. Enjoy the smooth sailing. Sure is going to feel good being a few months past the surgery and having trouble finding clothes in the closet that, while baggy, will still work. Gonna be fun.

Amazing 8 months. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Amazing 8 months. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Amazing 8 months. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Amazing 8 months. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Amazing 8 months. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Amazing 8 months. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Here ya go,Jdc, Best tasting & lowest sugar amount bars I've ever had: http://www.questnutrition.com/protein-bars/ Take a close look at their nutritional labels. Unbelievable. Great products.