orionburn

I started my 2 week on Jan 11 and am down at least 12 pounds now. What used to be my comfy jeans (weren't too tight on the waist) are now getting way too big. The stress/fears of the pre-op diet aren't near as bad now after seeing the results. It's got me excited now and am feeling the difference.

Day #10 here. Still doing good. I have come to hate the Protein fruit drink mixes I got from my clinic. Luckily the Soups are good for the most part, and the shakes are really good considering there's nothing added in. I go in this morning for my last blood work test prior to surgery next week. Trying to keep myself busy this weekend so I don't think about food too much. It's easier during the week being at work.

My pysch test wasn't that bad. Was only about 10 minutes of talking with him then the rest was a nearly half hour survey. And the survey is one of those that are clear cut on how to answer. I wouldn't worry about it too much, but I would say that it's better to be honest if you struggle with depression eating. I battled serious depression for years as a late teenager and through my early 20s. Going through counseling was the best thing that I did to put things to the past and look to a future without all the baggage. I was honest my with my pysch guy - told him of things that had happened but it was Water under the bridge. He was kind of taken aback that it didn't bother me and pretty much said I have my crap together...lol. Maybe don't look at it as so much as matter of saying the right things to get approved for surgery as it is another step in doing the things to be successful. Isn't that uncommon for people to have struggled with depression at some point, but if you're in a better place then that's something to be proud of.

Pretty much had to do the same thing. The support group/class was optional, but it made it easier to get insurance approval and saved some money on other tests that had to be done.

Mine was the exact same thing.

Congrats! I got caught up in the end of year rush so the insurance company was slow to approve mine. I felt the exact same way. Excited to get the call along with a big "oh crap!" moment when that meant this was really happening!

Thanks all for the words of encouragement. I know it doesn't mean life comes to a screeching halt afterwards. It's a good thing I've become a beer snob because I enjoy making a drink last, so I know eventually I'll be able to periodically enjoy a good ol' Hefeweizen in due course @@JamieLogical - the "slider" food helps explain that a bit more. For the past few months I've heard so many stories of people having surgery and gaining the weight back and I had a hard time understanding how, but that makes more sense. Deep down that's probably a fear in everybody, especially since I have been so back and forth all my life. This is something I'm set on doing. For the past three years I've debated it but the weight has got to come off. The arthritis in my back causes terrible sciatica, so this is my last hope before being forced into back surgery, and even then the doc said the weight has to come off before they would even consider it. I managed to get myself up to nearly 400 lbs in my 20s, became a gym rat and got down to 265, then the weight came back after I quit smoking and the arthritis killed my working out. My doc said that he's always more concerned with the people that don't have any fears going into this so I suppose he'd be happy with me getting the jitters...lol.

I'm going to say sorry from the get go that this has probably been posted a thousand times before by others. I know I am not a beautiful or unique snowflake I suppose it's just a matter of needing a place to vent my final thoughts/concerns going into this. My surgery is next Wednesday, January 25th. I've been on this road since May 2016 so it's not as if I haven't had time to ponder these things, but after meeting with my surgeon yesterday to do the final consent forms I'm mildly freaking out a bit. I've been lurking for some time and I share in many of the struggles that others have. It's not that I'm a fast food maniac and I really don't have a sweet tooth. My main issue since I was young has always been volume. So while I don't eat terrible it's just that I always could eat a lot of whatever it was, thus even healthy meals aren't so great when you're going back for another plate. I am having a seriously hard time wrapping my head around how small of portions I'm going to be eating in the weeks following my surgery. Knowing that I also have a hard time understanding how people can gain weight back after having a sleeve. While I can see it happening if you're drinking sugary drinks, milk shakes, or whatever, I guess I can't fathom how you can gain weight when you're essentially eating a cup of food at a time. Is it because of eating nonstop through the day? And if you're so full after a cup of food how the heck do you get more down even an hour later? This probably sounds silly, but one of the main things I'm going to miss is doing beer festivals. Both my wife and I are big craft beer people, but in truth I only drink a beer maybe once a month outside of the festivals. I know there are adjustments that I can eventually make to still go (like wine - just taste but don't actually drink it). I'll deal with that later. It's a social side of things that I worry about and will miss, but I felt that way when I gave up smoking years ago. I used to think there was no way life could possibly go on if I couldn't smoke doing X, Y, and Z. Obviously it has 5 years on now and while it's something I do still miss from time to time I certainly don't obsess over it. Actually registering and posting today has already helped deal with some of the fears. I'm sure I will be second guessing all of this all the way up until next week. This wasn't something I rushed to do and I do want to do it, but I know it's natural to get cold feet. Thanks for listening to the FNG

I started the same way. Thought lap band would be what I wanted but that was short lived and opted for sleeve. I went to my first seminar in May of last year. Both the clinic I am going to and my insurance required a 6 month program. To be honest I'm happier for the delay to get mentally prepared for it. My surgery is next Wednesday but really should have happened in December. My paperwork got caught up in the end of year rush and by the time it was approved there were no more dates available in December. The length of time might seem discouraging, but it goes by quick and it was good preparation for the road ahead. Good luck to you!

Thanks for the welcome I go in on the 25th. I know it's an entirely different journey on the other side, but will be glad when this part is finally over with. There will be ups & downs, but hang in there. I honestly am used to it now and while I miss the act of eating I'm not "mourning" like I was this past weekend. There were some nights where it was like screw it I'm going to bed because I didn't want to think about it anymore...lol

Figured another new guy would join in. I'm on Day #9. First few days were rough. I think days 3 & 4 were the hardest, but once I got over that hump it hasn't been near as bad as I thought it would be. For the past couple of weeks (when I was eating regular food) I would substitute some meals with chicken bullion and a couple of saltine crackers. Personally that helped me mentally prepare a bit more for it. I'm down almost 10 pounds since I started last week so it's paying off. Less than a week to go until my surgery.

Been lurking a bit and finally decided to post as I'm going through the pre-op jitters. I'm on day #9 of the liquid diet and scheduled for the 25th as well. Went to may first information meeting on surgery back in May of last year so ready to finally cross this bridge. Good luck to all!