blizair09

What an awesome story. Thanks for sharing and best wishes as you continue your journey!

What an awesome line!! :-)

I have lost a lot of weight during my six-month required pre-op diet program, so my friends are all saying the same thing. When I explain to them that I still have another 100+ pounds to lose, and that the surgery is going to be a tool to anchor the second half of the weight loss AND (more importantly) the lifelong maintenance, they usually see the point, and become very encouraging.

As my surgery date approaches (September 28), I have been thinking about carbs a lot myself. The 89 pounds I have lost so far during my six-month insurance-required diet was done with a low carb, high Protein, high healthy-fat diet. I am going to have a one-on-one with the nutritionist before the surgery to talk to her about how I want to continue to restrict carbs. (I haven't had more than 20 carbs since March 21, and 85% of those days, I have had 12 carbs or less.) I have been in ketosis for so long that I am worried what would happen if I have the yogurt, sugar-free pudding, cream of wheat, etc. that they have on the list for the various food stages post-op. There are low/no carb options at each stage, and I am probably going to stick to them. We'll see what she says. Of course, when I had my one required meeting with her during month 2, she was unhappy I was eating eggs every morning instead of egg beaters. But it was the fat in the eggs that jump-started my daily loss, so I told her I wouldn't budge on that. 89 pounds later, I am glad that I stuck to my guns...

Thank you for this detailed description of your experience. My surgery is scheduled for September 28, so hearing about what happened to you gives me a better idea of what will happen to me. Best wishes as you continue your weight loss journey!!

Congratulations! I am scheduled for surgery on September 28, and I have (as of today) lost 89 pounds during my six-month insurance-required diet. I am aiming to hit 100 pounds by the day of surgery. Keep up your amazing work. You have set yourself up for amazing success post-surgery.

Hi everyone, I came across this post and thought I would say hello. I am a 40yo gay guy living in New Orleans with my partner of 7+ years. I have been on this weight loss journey since March, and, as of today, I have lost 88 pounds. My surgery is scheduled for September 28. My story is in this post: http://www.bariatricpal.com/topic/375695-thoughts-after-my-six-month-nutrition-program/ I wrote that last week when I made my first post. Since then, I had my clearance-for-surgery appointment with my PCP (all my labs were in the normal range!!), and she assured me that the surgery is the way to go to finish the job I have started, and that my pre-op weight loss won't affect my post-op weight loss. My surgery was approved and scheduled, and my short-term disability claim for work has been initiated. It has been a busy week! Hearing about everyone else's experiences is making getting ready for my surgery and the second half of this weight loss journey a lot easier! I hope to hear from some of you. Blair

My patient advocate hasn't been much of an advocate for me, either. Now that my surgery has been approved, I am hoping that I don't have much interaction with her going forward. She acted like I was a problem because I INSISTED that my surgery be done at an in-network hospital and because I inquired about the anesthesiologist to insure that he/she is also in-network. Just keep pressing the issue. That's what I have done. My experience is that customer service has been seriously lacking in this endeavor (even though the surgeon himself is really awesome).

I started my journey on March 21, and I've lost 86 pounds as of today. My surgery is scheduled for September 28. That gives me 28 days to lose 14 pounds. I am determined to make it to 100 pounds off by myself before they wheel me into surgery!!

What a message, man. You are awesome. My surgery just got scheduled for September 28. I'm going to read what you wrote every day between now and then to remind me to take a breath and be happy that I have this opportunity to take a massive next step toward a better me. Thanks!

Congratulations! It's awesome that everything is going well so far. My surgery has been scheduled for September 28. Hearing your report helps to calm my nerves a bit. Best wishes as you continue your journey!!

I have lost 83 pounds during my six-month nutrition program, so I sometimes wonder the same thing. Everything was submitted to the insurance company two weeks ago tomorrow, so I am waiting now. By the time of surgery, I will be close to having lost 100 pounds. At that point, I will be about 10 pounds above the BMI threshold. I decided that I am not going to worry about it and just see what happens. I imagine that it will be approved, but we'll see...

Hi everyone, I have been reading posts for a little while now, but this is my first post. I am a 40-year old guy, and I live in New Orleans with my partner of 7.5 years. I have battled my weight for entire life. When I was 21 years old, my parents and I went on Phen-Fen together. That was the first time I lost 100 pounds. I have yo-yo'ed ever since, losing 100 pounds another two times in my life, and 30-50 pounds more times than I can count. Last year, I had to travel a lot more than I have had to in the past many years for work. (I am a Delta Diamond if that means anything to any travelers out there.) All of that travel meant eating for convenience and drinking more wine than I would if I were at home. I was already heavy before (370 pounds), but by December 2015, I weighed 397 pounds. My family had been encouraging me to have weight loss surgery for about a year. (My dad had a gastric bypass many years ago; my mom had the sleeve about 3 years ago, and my brother got the lap band about 2 years ago.) After seeing the nearly-400 pounds looking back up at me from the scale, I agreed that it was time to do something about my weight once and for all. And my partner was ready to deal with his weight as well. (He started at 316 pounds, so he wasn't in quite as bad a place as I was then. For the record, he has lost about 70 pounds himself, so I am super proud of him!) I was finally able to get in to see my PCP in February, and had my first of six consecutive monthly appointments with the surgeon's medical staff that is required by my insurance on March 3. I had two weeks of filming work in California right after (something new for my team and full of stresses), so I didn't begin my weight loss journey until March 21. In the past 5 months, I have lost 83 pounds while going to see the surgeon's staff once per month. This morning I weighed 314 pounds. (In case anyone is interested, I have done low carb/high protein/high healthy fat. I keep carbs below 20 per day -- usually below 12 per day. I have reduced my calories from 2000 to 1800 to 1500 to now 1200 for the past many weeks. I have cut alcohol out completely for now to conserve the calories. I walk 5 days a week, involving inclines and such for a majority of these 45 minute sessions. The surgeon's staff did give me a phentermine prescription, so I have been taking that since early April.) Now, I'll get to the point of my post if anyone is still reading... I had my sixth diet visit, and I am waiting on insurance approval now. It's been about a week so far, but they say it can take up to 30 days, so the surgery will likely be sometime in early October. I have been reading everyone's posts about the surgery itself, the pain (or lack of), the changes, etc., etc., etc. Some days, I wonder if I should really go through with it, or just stay the course with what I am doing. But, then reality sets in -- I still need to lose at least 100 more pounds, and really, I'd like to lose more like 125-135 more pounds, so I need to have the surgery. I am worried that since I have lost so much weight on the front end that I will lose weight slower after the surgery and then be disappointed (especially after putting my body through all of that trauma and altering the way I will have to eat and drink for the rest of my life). Can anyone offer any perspective on this? Specifically, can anyone speak to losing a lot of weight pre-op, and how you transitioned to weight loss after the surgery? The surgeon has already said that I do not have to do a liquid diet before the surgery because of all the weight I have lost. I just have to fast the day before. Please forgive the length of this post, and I hope to hear from some of you soon.

This is such good advice; thank you! You and I have a lot in common -- pros at losing weight, and even bigger pros at gaining it back. This is why I need to do the sleeve. Now, I just need to prepare myself to transition from what I have been doing pre-surgery to what I will have to do post-surgery. Thanks again for your thoughts, and I wish you all the best as you continue your weight loss journey!!

Hi everyone, I have been reading posts for a little while now, but this is my first post. I am a 40-year old guy, and I live in New Orleans with my partner of 7.5 years. I have battled my weight for entire life. When I was 21 years old, my parents and I went on Phen-Fen together. That was the first time I lost 100 pounds. I have yo-yo'ed ever since, losing 100 pounds another two times in my life, and 30-50 pounds more times than I can count. Last year, I had to travel a lot more than I have had to in the past many years for work. (I am a Delta Diamond if that means anything to any travelers out there.) All of that travel meant eating for convenience and drinking more wine than I would if I were at home. I was already heavy before (370 pounds), but by December 2015, I weighed 397 pounds. My family had been encouraging me to have weight loss surgery for about a year. (My dad had a gastric bypass many years ago; my mom had the sleeve about 3 years ago, and my brother got the lap band about 2 years ago.) After seeing the nearly-400 pounds looking back up at me from the scale, I agreed that it was time to do something about my weight once and for all. And my partner was ready to deal with his weight as well. (He started at 316 pounds, so he wasn't in quite as bad a place as I was then. For the record, he has lost about 70 pounds himself, so I am super proud of him!) I was finally able to get in to see my PCP in February, and had my first of six consecutive monthly appointments with the surgeon's medical staff that is required by my insurance on March 3. I had two weeks of filming work in California right after (something new for my team and full of stresses), so I didn't begin my weight loss journey until March 21. In the past 5 months, I have lost 83 pounds while going to see the surgeon's staff once per month. This morning I weighed 314 pounds. (In case anyone is interested, I have done low carb/high protein/high healthy fat. I keep carbs below 20 per day -- usually below 12 per day. I have reduced my calories from 2000 to 1800 to 1500 to now 1200 for the past many weeks. I have cut alcohol out completely for now to conserve the calories. I walk 5 days a week, involving inclines and such for a majority of these 45 minute sessions. The surgeon's staff did give me a phentermine prescription, so I have been taking that since early April.) Now, I'll get to the point of my post if anyone is still reading... I had my sixth diet visit, and I am waiting on insurance approval now. It's been about a week so far, but they say it can take up to 30 days, so the surgery will likely be sometime in early October. I have been reading everyone's posts about the surgery itself, the pain (or lack of), the changes, etc., etc., etc. Some days, I wonder if I should really go through with it, or just stay the course with what I am doing. But, then reality sets in -- I still need to lose at least 100 more pounds, and really, I'd like to lose more like 125-135 more pounds, so I need to have the surgery. I am worried that since I have lost so much weight on the front end that I will lose weight slower after the surgery and then be disappointed (especially after putting my body through all of that trauma and altering the way I will have to eat and drink for the rest of my life). Can anyone offer any perspective on this? Specifically, can anyone speak to losing a lot of weight pre-op, and how you transitioned to weight loss after the surgery? The surgeon has already said that I do not have to do a liquid diet before the surgery because of all the weight I have lost. I just have to fast the day before. Please forgive the length of this post, and I hope to hear from some of you soon.

Look at you! Congratulations!! I have set a goal of 100 pounds down by the time of my surgery (which will likely be in early October), so I completely understand where you are. Hearing from people like you is what is going to help me feel so much more at ease as I transition into the next phase of the journey. Keep up your good work and your hard work. You are doing amazing things!

You make very good points. I actually had my Medical Clearance examination with my PCP today and she and I talked about it, and she made many of the same points you are making. She also put my fears to rest about not steadily losing after the surgery since I have lost so much pre-op. She said as long as I do what the surgeon tells me to do, then I will continue losing at the same rate or better than I have been losing the past 6 months. Good luck as you continue your journey!

Congratulations on overcoming your Diet Coke obstacle. I started tapering off of them July 5. Now, I will only have one when we are out of the house or I am traveling for work. I know I will have to give it up completely after the surgery, but in all likelihood, that will just have to happen then and I will have to deal with it. I can give up alcohol; I can give up carbs; I can even give up cable, but giving up Diet Coke is the hardest challenge of all!