bookpusher

I'm on day 6 of the clear liquid diet! I will tell you that it does get pretty tricky because of the "head hunger" and cravings, but some of the best advice I was given was to just keep in mind that a craving is only a craving, it's not something you actually need! So if you can hold off long enough to just fight it, it will pass! Every single one! Another important thing is to just keep your hands busy with knitting, coloring, writing, etc. also just keep in mind that you can do this and nothing goes into your body unless you put it there and you are absolutely able to do it! It gets easier after like day 5 good luck!!
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You got this!!!
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I know that's how it's supposed to work, and people keep saying that, but it's so hard to get my head around the idea. I can't even imagine it!
Thanks for the encouragement! This morning really sucks, and I know it will get worse before it gets better, so your kind words really help.
VSG 1/20/17 HW: 325 CW: 305

The good news is that there will be no hunger at all post op! I have to force myself to eat - now that's new!!!
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Finishing my first day pre-op, too. The sugar withdrawal is not fun, but I'm surviving. And I haven't killed anyone else, either, so that's good. I had to go to a staff meeting with a grilled cheese buffet, which was pretty tortuous, but I drank a Protein drink right before and made it through without breaking. 9 days to go!
VSG 1/20/17 HW: 325 CW: 305

My FIL sent us to Paris last summer, and I was miserable the whole time. We walked like 8 miles a day and tried to see everything we could, but it was so painful. I pushed through, though- when am I ever going to get to Paris again? I remember walking back to the hotel along the Seine, on a beautiful evening with my wonderful husband, and just sobbing and limping the whole way. I'm only 42, but it was obvious it's all downhill from here. If I don't do something now, I'll be in a Jazzy in a few years. I don't want to live that way. I have to do something now while I still have a chance to lead a healthier life.
VSG 1/20/17 HW: 325 CW: 305

I have posted in the past about severely regretting this surgery. I am now 5 months out and def am so happy I did it!
I am not controlled by food anymore!!! What a dream! As far as going out and enjoying food-- I get a huge thrill everytime I am out and don't stuff my face like I use too but eat a little amount and am satisfied!!!' I mean I don't sit there and think- " i sure Do wish I could finish off that bowl of queso" - it's more Like- oh my gosh I had three bites and am so satisfied and don't want more!!!!!!! It's what I always wanted to be able to do for myself--- say no to food ---a lot. It's so empowering to me to really not be that interested.
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I had this surgery for weight MAINTENANCE, not weight LOSS. I have been a pro at losing weight my entire adult life. I joke that if weight loss was an Olympic sport, I'd be a multi-gold medal winner. Keeping the weight off is a whole other story. I SUCK at it. Badly! So when I finally decided to have WLS, it was because I wanted to keep the weight off for good and it has!
I was 2 years post-op in September. I have been at goal and maintaining for over 15 months. During that 15 months I have moved twice, gotten divorced, started dating again, and had just ALL SORTS of stress in my life. But when any one of those things might have had me gaining 25 or 50 pounds in the past, I haven't gained any, thanks to my sleeve. And on top of that, I am more physically fit than I have ever been. I ran a full marathon in September!
Definitely have ZERO regrets about my sleeve. I had the same "buyer's remorse" in the first few weeks that everyone goes through, but it soon became clear to me that it was one of the best choices I ever made!

I haven't had my surgery yet so you can discount my opinion if you want to. I am getting this surgery not because I can't lose weight, but because I can't keep it off once I lose it. It's awesome that you've lost 25 pounds, but your chances of keeping it off for 5 years is somewhere between 2-4% without surgery. Bariatric surgery gives the best chance available today to keep the weight off long term because it's the only thing that resets your body's weight set point to a lower level giving you a better chance at keeping it off. Set point is the high weight your body will fight tooth and nail to get back to. It's why it's so hard to maintain weight loss otherwise. You can still gain the weight back if you don't change your habits around food and exercise, but at least you have a chance to keep it off. 2-4% is no chance at all.
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No regrets whatsoever. Had an easy, quick recovery. I can eat decent amounts with restriction, have had no vomiting or anything like that. My skin and hair have never looked better. No Hair loss, and complexion is flawless eating so clean with all this Water. I'm loving going from a 22 to a 16. I have gone down a bra band size, and my booty is shrinking, which I and hubby miss, but I'm at the gym hard now trying to bring it back.

I only wish I had known to do the surgery 10 years ago and not wasted some of the best years of my young life being self-conscious and overweight with esteem issues.

My FIL sent us to Paris last summer, and I was miserable the whole time. We walked like 8 miles a day and tried to see everything we could, but it was so painful. I pushed through, though- when am I ever going to get to Paris again? I remember walking back to the hotel along the Seine, on a beautiful evening with my wonderful husband, and just sobbing and limping the whole way. I'm only 42, but it was obvious it's all downhill from here. If I don't do something now, I'll be in a Jazzy in a few years. I don't want to live that way. I have to do something now while I still have a chance to lead a healthier life.
VSG 1/20/17 HW: 325 CW: 305

Thank you to everyone who shared their thoughts, good and bad, on this thread. It really helps people like me who are in the planning phase of things.
I agree with @@HurricaneU that the weight loss is usually the easier part, but it's the weight maintenance that's difficult. I would see WLS as a tool to help maintain a loss. I do have to admit I would be upset if I lost slowly, though. So I understand why that's so frustrating. I guess that is something I should get prepared for in case it happens to me.
As for people who look "tired" or older after losing a lot of weight... I guess I figure I'm getting this surgery as a way to be fitter and do things I can't do right now. Shovel snow, climb up into the attic, set up/break down during camping, help my friends move, etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. So maybe I will look like a tired, saggy old hag afterward but as long as I get strong enough to live the way I want to live physically I will be OK with that.

Finishing my first day pre-op, too. The sugar withdrawal is not fun, but I'm surviving. And I haven't killed anyone else, either, so that's good. I had to go to a staff meeting with a grilled cheese buffet, which was pretty tortuous, but I drank a Protein drink right before and made it through without breaking. 9 days to go!
VSG 1/20/17 HW: 325 CW: 305

I'm scheduled for the 20th, too, and starting my pre-op diet tomorrow. I'm back and forth between excited and wondering what in the heck I'm doing to myself. Definitely anxious about the whole thing, but determined.
VSG 1/20/17 HW: 325 CW: 305

I am currently drinking two 8-12oz Protein shake Meal Replacements followed by one service of lean Protein and a serving of veggies. They also have me stopping all Vitamins and most medication.
If I'm still hungry I can have some non-fat yogurt or cheese. Then only Clear liquids for two days before surgery.

Abjale..... so far do good ,no cheats I'm hoping I can keep gping
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Day one of liquid pre-op diet down. Went better than expected. Only a couple of temptation moments but I was able to work through them.
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Every day now. I started weighing myself everyday so I could see a pattern and detach my feelings from the scale.
I suggest not weighing at all the first month, then weighing weekly. Then once you are closer to goal or one year, weigh every day.

Hello all, I am a newbie who is still in the research phase of things. I have lost a lot of weight in the past, up to about 80 pounds, but have regained most of it. I am going to a seminar on Jan. 28 at a bariatric Center of Excellence surgeon/hospital to begin the "non-anonymous" learning process.
One of my concerns is that in order to make weight loss work I have to be completely obsessed with it. Not just the normal food prep, weighing/measuring food, meal plans, etc. but even the books I read, the movies/TV I watch, anything I do on the internet... it was all weight-related. Like I would binge-watch Biggest Loser and if I went online it would be to a weight-loss forum to discuss more stuff about eating and weight loss. And if I read a book it would be a diet memoir or a "why sugar is terrible for you" or other science journalism type book. And I joined a support group and took nutrition classes. Basically anything to do with weight/nutrition became my hobby.
And then, any time I found a new interest or had an event in my life - like when I got engaged and started planning a wedding or when I took up a new craft - I would switch my energy to that and lose my focus. It was like as soon as the obsession with weight loss stuff went, so did the eating habits.
In your experience, post-WLS, do you find that you have to maintain that intense focus to the exclusion of all other hobbies? And if so, for how long? Forever? Or have you reached a place where you can (just for example) take up knitting and binge-watch Orange is the New Black without it affecting your meal planning and eating habits?
I have a somewhat addictive/obsessive personality so I know it will likely be unavoidable for the year or two surrounding the WLS if I decide to have it. But, long term, I'd like to live a somewhat normal life - eating small to moderate portions, tracking my food intake, getting in physical activity every day, yes of course to all of that - but also be able to enjoy other hobbies, books, movies, etc. that don't have to do with weight or fitness.
Sorry for the lengthy post; succinct is not a word frequently used to describe me! Thank you in advance for your thoughts.

Let me just say first and foremost that I respect every vet on here who doesn't sugar coat anything and doesn't coddle and baby people who come here seeking validation for their poor choices. I'm waiting for approval from my insurance company to be sleeved, but I have learned soooooo much from reading these threads and will forever be grateful for the people who have had success but still stick around to help others with their journeys. That being said, I find it quite amusing when someone come here seeking validation and kind words for something they know they shouldn't have done and get upset when they get the cold, hard truth from someone who's already been there and done that. I haven't even been sleeved yet but I know better than to come here asking if tacos and steak is ok to be eating 1 week post op. Let's be serious. I would rather have my feelings hurt by the truth than to be comforted by a lie.

My husband assures me that guys by and large (no pun intended) don't care about any of the stuff women care about. They are getting laid, and that makes it all good in their book. LOL.
I have given a lot of thought to the hanging skin. I know I'd rather have that than the fat, but I don't know that I'll ever really come to love it.
However, I am damned good at costuming. LOL. Quality lingerie can hide a multitude of sins, rolls, and whatnot. And there's nothing like french lace to make you feel pretty, IMNSHO. I will be finding what lingerie styles camouflage the stuff I don't like seeing, and having fun collecting pieces for my "naughty" wardrobe. I can even whip up a little arm sleeve thing similar to some belly dance costume pieces I used to make, with spandex lace if the batwings get too flappy.
I think it's a matter of finding what will help *you* be OK with (or maybe even love) the way you look, and the right guy will love it. You'll have a whole new body to dress and play with, enjoy it!!

Not everyone has a bunch of issues post op. I could drink and eat no problem, no pain. 2.5 years post op and haven't thrown up once.
One thing people don't realize is all the nerves have been comprmised and cut when the stomach was cut and stapled back up. That makes feeling wonky for a while, and why some don't get the "full" sensation right away. It's always best to measure out your amounts so you don't inadvertently over eat because your feeling isn't quite there yet.

When I question myself, I remember that recent study saying only 1 out of 677 morbidly obese women can get to and maintain a healthy weight for at least 10 years without surgery. I'm not that special, and I've been trying to do it for 30 years now. If it was possible for me to lose the weight through meds, diet, or exercise, I would have done it already.
VSG 1/20/17 HW: 325 CW: 305

Not at all. What's to regret? I now wear a size 8 jeans, I've been at a healthy weight because of surgery for 3.5 years and have regained my life. I can run, dance all night, climb sand dunes with my family, do mud runs, shop in any store I please, wear high heels without pain...

Why would I stuff my face one last time, only to add to the weight I wanted to turn around and lose? I ate enough food in my 40 years to fill MORE than my lifetime share. Now I can still eat whatever I want, whenever I want, I just eat a small portion and enjoy each bite instead of just shoveling it in mindlessly.

Life is great. No food funeral needed. Besides, food isn't dead, no reason to mourn it and definitely no reason to Celebrate it.

@ - thanks for sharing. I have been trying to find a way to let people know that WLS is not the same as wiring your jaw shut. Too many think it succeeds by being a restrictive mechanism. This fact was new to me:
Dr. Kaplan reports that (weight loss) surgery immediately alters the activity of more than 5,000 of the 22,000 genes in the human body.