mdelicia

I self paid with a personal loan. Outside of marrying my husband, it was the best thing I've ever done. There's a bariatric "center of excellence" in Kansas City that is $11k for sleeve. They were amazing. I was far too terrified to travel out of country myself. Lots of people do with great results though.

I'll have to try coconut oil tonight. It's getting ridiculous.

I had my gastric sleeve done January 11th. I weighed 333.1lbs.
I'm 10 months post op now and weigh 144.2lbs.
I've set new goal weights as I've gone along...first was just to get under 200lbs, then I thought I wanted my goal weight to be 180lbs. When I got there, I made the crazy goal of 150lbs never thinking I'd make it....but I did. So then I figured my goal would be 145lbs which puts me at a normal bmi...which I haven't been since I was around 10.
Now that I weight 144lbs, I've decided my final goal will 133lbs, which will mean I will have lost a total of 200lbs....and I'll do it, I know I can.
I never thought when I had surgery that weighing in the 130's would even be possible.
I've gone from wearing sizes 5-6x, and 28-30, now I wear smalls and mediums and am a size 8....I would be around a 6 if it wasn't for the large amount of skin I have around my stomach and thighs....but it's a price I'm more than happy to pay.
I've been extremely disciplined this whole 10 months. I can honestly say I've never put a bad food in my mouth...not once. I follow a very low carb diet still, drink about 85oz of Water every day and get in around 80oz of Protein. I take all my required Vitamins daily.
The gym has become a big part of my life. I workout around 5-6 days per week doing a variety of exercising....spin class, step  class, yoga, cardio machines....I like doing different things so I don't get bored.
Anyway, because I'm so close to goal, I just wanted to share this. And for the people who have a lot of weight to lose like I did....remember, you can do this! I'm living proof!!
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Yep, September 15th in Kansas City!

I told my husband this morning that I can't wait to have a Spanx fire!
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I told my husband this morning that I can't wait to have a Spanx fire!
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Retaking my wedding pictures

My understanding from everything I've read is lower starting BMI's lose at a slower pace. I am at 35 myself, and am fully prepared for this to be a longer haul than some others.
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Woah, I didn't know that. I guess I should find that out ASAP. I'm almost a month out now. Sent from my SM-T550 using the BariatricPal App

This totally boggles my mind and I'm sorry you weren't told these very basic things, nor did you find them in your extensive research.

A couple things really hit home from your original post.
First is that you did a tremendous amount of research pre-op and put a lot of time and effort into making this decision. It certainly was well thought out.
The second thing that really struck a similar chord with me is your comment, "I myself am only 9 weeks post op and have had complications so I can't know what my future holds." I want to really key in on this.
I didn't really feel alive and vibrant until somewhere between my 2nd and 3rd month. Prior to that the diarrhea, rumbling stomach, weird feels overall, dropping blood pressure and baggy clothes had me feeling strange and uncertain. Then....I found my stride. I found that life was normal. I was eating hearty cuts of succulent Protein........and then I was given the go ahead to have coffee.....blessed coffee. Things began getting back to normal....a new normal that was much better than any I'd known in decades. It continues to get better each week, too.
Now....if I want, I can have the diet Dews and diet Cokes that I used to love.....and yes...I can even have them with some mixed nuts & cheese (one of my all time favorite snacks) so long as I stay within my daily calorie goals. I've yet to have the diet sodas simply because I have been without them for the better part of a year and don't miss them. I'm good with Water and coffee and an occasional diet Snapple or similar.
I ask that you trust in your pre-op homework and demonstrated diligence. You put in tremendous thought into this back then. You've been through a major series of changes since and are truly at the infant stages of your post-op living. You are only 9 weeks out.
I'll wager that in a few months you'll resist this thread with an update and I hope that it's one where you've found that things have normalized and everything is falling into place.
Hang in there and thanks for being open, supportive and honest. That's the only way to roll.

Here I am less than 36 hours before I take my seat on the losers bench. Currently on day 12 on my 14 day liquid diet. Pause to knock on wood, I made it with out cheating and no major craving episodes. Hopped on the scale this morning and I'm down 14 lbs since my pre-op visit, 36 since I started this journey in March 2016. Someone today applauded my weight loss and commented, that if I can do this without surgery, why am I having surgery. Well my friend I said with a smile on my face. These 5 months have prepared me for the rest of my life. See, I've lost massive amounts of weight before, once I took phentermine and lost about 50 lbs, of course when I got off the drug I gained about seventy. About 7 years ago I went on a high Protein, low carb diet, joined a gym and exercised 6 days a week. I lost a whopping 90 lbs, of course along came a job change, a new roommate, a change in habits.... and I gained 110, imagine going to bed one night wearing a size 10 and waking up in the morning wearing a size 22. I know it didn't happen like that, but that's what it felt like happened. See yo yo dieting is real, the struggle is real, and the mind and body play tricks on you. Each time you lose and gain your metabolism slows, your mind tricks you into craving the sweet, the fatty, the salty. Your body wants more, and it stores more (fat that is). That's only part of my story, but you get the drift. I've gone through it, and that's why I am going through with it.

I am so sorry to hear about the passing away of your friend. I lost one of my best friends years ago, right before I put on 50 pounds.
The good news is, you didn't gain this weight back from doing nothing. So it's a good thing that there is a reason; and that reason is when you stopped doing what made you lose the weight in the first place. It's actually not hard to gain 61 pounds in 7 months. I gained 50 pounds in 3 months because of oral steroids for sinus issues, and from the loss of my good friend.
You turned to food for comfort and you stopped working out because the sadness you felt drained the ambition you needed to keep trying.
You are already doing better, so that's great! Keep doing what you're doing. I also think it's a great idea to see a therapist.
I think what you need is support and friendship. You have a friend in me. So if you need any advice, or just someone to talk to, feel free to message me.

You've "only" lost over a pound a day, 5 days post-op when most people have actually GAINED weight due to all the IV fluids and trauma from surgery? Who led you to think you would be losing more than a pound a day?
Whether you needed surgery or not is up to you. It's done now so why worry about it?
My advice is to ratchet down your expectations -- significantly -- on the speed of your weight loss. You are starting out as a very lightweight (for surgery) patient and 5 - 8 lbs per month might be more realistic to think about than over 30 pounds per month.
Good luck.

That's all you should be eating right now anyways. I'm not sure what your surgeon recommended but I had to do liquids for 2 weeks started purees week 3 but when I felt things were a little uncomfortable I scaled back. It's normal advance diet as tolerated the stages are a guideline. If you feel more comfortable eating puddings and Soups then stick with that for a while and introduce puree consistency foods one day at a time.
I'm @5weeks today and in the soft food phase but the majority of my foods are still liquids and purees mostly. It's what I feel most comfortable eating right now. I work on getting my Protein and Fluid needs met, then I find I don't have room for much else. If I do I make sure it has a purpose.
For example if I have a greek yogurt in the morning then that's my Breakfast. 15g of Protein yay. I'll sip Water over the next 2-3 hours until my next meal to work on getting my fluids in then maybe for lunch I'll have Soup or a kale and fruit smoothie I add greek yogurt and a scoop of Protein powder or I make it with a premier shake for a min of 30g of protein. Then back to sipping 30 min later over the next 2-3 hours then dinner might be pureed tuna, or turkey chili if I can handle it. 1/4 cup or 2oz serving over a min of 30 min or else I feel sick. Then back to sipping. If I still have protein to get in, ill have a Protein Shake or yogurt to get it in. Then I'm done for the day. I try to have my last meal no later than 8pm.
So don't sweat it. Stay with where you are comfortable, introduce foods slowly, and don't advance just because you can wait til you're ready. It can't hurt.

Really talk to your doctor bc there are so many different opinions like my doctors office doesn't push Iron Vitamins bc it can slow the bm's
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I use liquid Iron, Calcium and multi Vitamin from Amazon, also D, B12 and multi Patches

GNC makes a pretty palatable gummy Vitamin, I took them for a couple of months pre-op. I tried the chewable bariatric-specific vitamins before I bought the gummys...that chalkiness and the huge size was too much for me. I ordered BariMelts and used those for about a week before surgery and thought I had the vitamin issue under control, but about 2 weeks after surgery, they started making me vomit. Now I'm using PatchMD patches...

A man who is pre-op in my bariatric support group told us his surgeon wants him to do 3 months of bariatric Vitamins before surgery. I thought it couldn't hurt to start on some myself, I'm about a month out from surgery now. I know the fusion chewables are popular but they're the hard chalky type, I can barely eat those now yuk. Can anyone recommend a good Gummy type?
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You had major stomach surgery on 8.1, ate Pasta on 8.3, and wonder why you feel bad and have diarrhea?
You might need to discuss this with your surgeon.

Thanks for all the advice. I talked to my coffee lady today and we're going to do 1 small coffee each day for a few days, then half-caff for a few days and then all Decaf after that.
I wish I wouldn't have even tried that this weekend, oh well live and learn. I really hope to stay off of it for good this time. This is probably TMI but my doc has been telling me for years that quitting caffeine would reduce the cysts in my breast tissue that cause me pain around that time of the month so might as well.
After caffeine it's on to sugar, which I don't think will be quite as bad.

I'm a big coffee drinker. I drink 5 or 6 cups daily easily. Giving up coffee is going to be very hard for me. Some people have comfort food. I find my comfort in coffee. A cup of coffee is magic in a cup. That first sip first thing in the morning of that freshly brewed pipping hot coffee is pure goodness. Yep I have a huge probelm on my hands.

O. M. G. All this time...all this time I haven't known about this! My boobs hurt so much for sometimes up to a week before my period and during and I don't get back to normal sometimes until I'm all done. I never knew it was because of my caffeine intake. I guess I might as well start cutting back.
Good luck kicking the habit. I hope it goes more smoothly now.
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@@mdelicia - When I was in my 20's I had this bright idea about quitting my triggers for cigarettes first, and then quit smoking. #1 caffeine. Oh my goodness did I hurt from that one. Somethings you have to taper.

Being scared is normal......and I suggest not torturing yourself by reading all the horror stories.....yes there are risks but the risks that come along with remaining obese are much worse!!
Now I'll give you a positive story....My surgery was 5/16/16, that was on a Monday, the following Monday I was back at work. I never took any pain medication once I was released from the hospital. The first 4 or 5 days it was difficult to drink enough but everyday got better....you just have to keep sipping.....I feel completely normal now the only difference is I eat a lot less.......and I'm a lot smaller!!
This surgery is the BEST thing I've ever done for myself!!! I am already half way to my goal! I've lost 56 pounds and have 56 more to go....Pictures say more than words...
This is my before photo at 252 pounds

And this one was taken today at 196 pounds