Ignatius

@@Sirmikael I wholeheartedly agree--excellent thread. Best of luck with your surgery in June. The validation of other guys having the same seating, restaurant, airplane, etc. issues has really helped me realize it's not in my head. It's a problem, and I'm taking steps to address it.

@@VDB Sleeve. The surgeon I'm using won't perform a gastric bypass on someone my size. Which is fine as I wanted the sleeve from the get-go. Best of luck reaching your goal and maintaining a weight you're happy at.

Anyone else have that feeling before surgery that the imposter syndrome was sneaking up on you? Today the doctor who performed my psych eval dropped me a line to let me know the eval is complete and ready for my review. She mentioned I was an "ideal candidate" who is prepared for the road ahead. When I read those words, I had a "fooled you!" reaction. While I've done my research, started the pre-op diet two days a week (dietitian's instructions), and have completed a number of the eval steps, I sometimes feel like "How can they let someone as fat as me have this surgery? Don't they know I'll gain it all back?" That is not at all my intention, but let's face it: Most of us have lost weight before only to regain it, plus a bit more. How have you dealt with doubts? With feelings like you won't be able to break the cycle a few years post op?

Best of luck. Hope things are going well a few weeks out.

My dietitian has recommended I eat non-fat Greek yogurt. I know this is a popular food among bariatric patients, but, for the life of me, I just can't get it down. Right now I'm trying Fage Total 0% plain yogurt with a little vanilla extract and cinnamon (her suggestion.) It's far too sour. Is this just a particularly bad brand? Any suggestions for helping those of us who don't care for sour tolerate nonfat Greek yogurt?

Everyone, I really appreciate your input and thoughts. Means a lot. I'd say "more than you'd ever know," but you've been there, so you definitely know. I've tried a number of things in earnest over the last few years to lose weight, including seeing a therapist to help me with a binge-eating compulsion, which is now much better, though I haven't lost. (The therapy did result in bringing an end to a period of rapid gaining, and my weight has been relatively stable over the last two years.) A couple years ago, I thought surgery was the easy way out. Now when I consider the risks of continuing like at my current weight (~490), I think it's the responsible choice. And having started the evaluation process, I know now it's definitely not easy. The program's dietitian has me eating the "liquids only" diet two days a week now. I'm not sure if I'll need to observe the pre-op diet for two or four weeks prior to surgery, but this is helping me acclimate to the heavy restrictions. One other area I was thinking about... I know everyone says you'll want loose clothing, especially around your stomach. I plan on wearing gym shorts and/or warm-up pants. While I normally wear pants under my gut, I wear gym shorts and sweats above my belly button as it's the only way they won't constantly fall down. Do you think this will be an issue? Should I stock up on a few pairs at a larger size so it's less restrictive around my stomach? And with the bloating, did you wish you had any T-shirts one size larger?

Hi, I'm new to the forums and in the starting stages of obtaining a VSG. Just looking to see if there are any other men who were above 400 (or even close to 500) pounds before starting this journey and how life after surgery has been. Did you suffer any complications from surgery due to your size? Did your doctor make you do anything extra or warn you of any possible issues? Did you lose more rapidly than average patients? Did you lose any motivation when you had lost enough weight to lead a fairly "normal" life, even though you might still have a good amount of excess weight? A little background...I'm 31, 5'10", and honestly can't bear how difficult my weight has made my life. Just this weekend my wife went alone to her sister's engagement dinner at a restaurant due to my fear the chairs wouldn't be supportive enough. (I typically avoid restaurant situations unless there's a booth with a table I can adjust, ideally half booth/half chairs.) I've avoided flying for a couple years, will only attend theatre or sporting events where I can be guaranteed an aisle seat, etc. It seems like in the last 60 or so pounds many social situations involving sitting have escalated from very uncomfortable to more or less unbearable. Healthwise, I have hypertension and am very likely will be diagnosed with sleep apnea once the results of my sleep study last week come in. Look forward to hearing from any of you have started in similar situations.

I live in Brigeport and am hoping to have a gastric sleeve operation with Dr. Nagle at Northwestern Memorial downtown. Still in the early stages of the process.

Curious if anyone has chosen NW Memorial in Chicago for their bariatric surgery? So far I'm impressed with the quality of the staff and the facilities, but I'm finding the sheer size of the program and the hospital a little overwhelming. I've completed my initial evals with the nurse practitioner and nutritionist. Tomorrow I'll receive the psych eval from a third party. I was hoping each patient would have some type of case manager to help guide through the process, but it looks like that's unlikely. Does it get any easier to follow once all the evals are complete? Anything else I should know?