Paul Bahr

There's a real possibility that he has depression over his state and where it's gotten. WLS might help but it likely won't fix all of his problems. Best advice would be to seek counseling just in case the weight loss surgery isn't as successful as he's hoping.

While I'm sure anything's possible in the crazy minds of the insurance company bean counters, you'd think have the VSG surgery would reduce your risk level BECAUSE you're increasing your health level. But like I said, who knows what goes on in their heads. Good luck.

Both my wife and I flew from San Diego (had our surgery in TJ) to Chicago (4 hour flight), and then drove home to Madison, WI (2+ hours). We did quite a bit of walking between surgery and flying so most of the gas was worked out. Buy some water after the security gates and drink while you're in the air. Buy an apple juice on board if you need more. I know it's another couple of hours from Chicago to Connecticut; you might want to get up and hit the lavatory a couple of times to move around a bit. You should be fine.

Weight loss will be what you make it. My band (placed in 2005) was converted to a sleeve on 3/30/2017 and I've lost 85 pounds to date since surgery and nearly 115 since I started the process of getting sleeved. Some of it was my doctor standing at the foot of my hospital bed before surgery saying "you beat the system once, don't do it again!" It kinda put the fear of God in me and has driven me to give this one a hearty effort. What's also driven me is the fact that I've made a permanent, anatomical change to my body as opposed to the band which could be removed so there wasn't as much dedication to it, I guess. Why go through this major change and not give it your all?

You might want to contact poison control. I found this webpage about it, but you might want to call just to be safe.

I've lost 83 pounds since surgery on 3/30/2017 and 117 since I started the process at the beginning of 2017! I'm loving life again!

I had the surgery on a Thursday in TJ, stayed until the following Tuesday morning and then flew to Chicago on a direct flight. Then had a two hour drive home to Madison, WI from Chicago, O'Hare. Everything was fine. Walking around TJ was good once out of the hospital, walking through the airports was fine, no issues on the flight or the drive home.

The pain in my back (like it's on fire or splitting in half) is gone. I walk taller, straighter. I look for opportunities to walk farther instead of circling the parking lot to find the absolutely closest parking spot Libido is through the roof - wife can't keep up Shopping for clothes is exciting rather than drudgery. I'm almost in sizes carried by regular stores (Walmart, Target, etc.) instead of having to go the DXL or other Big & Tall stores. I fit better into things - went to get my hair cut and actually had room in the chair. Fit into booths in restaurants better. I'm more active, riding my bicycle again.

I'm almost two months out from my surgery and doing well. I'm still working through the head games regarding my relationship to food. Overall, I'm doing ok in that realm. Lately, I've realized that I miss eating in volume, especially when what I'm eating is a favorite of mine or just simply tastes good. For example, I love Mexican food. My wife and I were having lunch at a local restaurant and what I was having tasted really good. I got about a third of the way through my food and so badly wanted to eat more but I could already feel that I'd had more than I should have. It was such a struggle to push the food away and out of my reach do that I wouldn't continue to have another bite here and there. I'm happy that I've been able to realize this without finding myself falling off into the deep end. Anyone got any tips on how to better deal with this? VSG: 03/30/2017 - Dr. Kuri - 446/413/377

I used Campbell Chunky soups when I was on the pureed stage. Just blend them super smooth with a bit of added broth. Yum. VSG: 03/30/2017 - Dr. Kuri - 446/413/379

You know, not really. I know in the back of my head that I can eat anything I want. Bread wasn't huge, but pastries (cakes, cookies, sweets) were. I'm still working through some of those things in my head making conscious choices for better health. I'll have a bite or two at some point, but I'm trying hard to remember that those things are the things that kept me from living a happy life with good health and put me in a place of always wondering if I was going to fit in something, or it if was going to hold me, or if I was going to be the "fat guy" in the room or ridiculed. I focus on my protein input with some veggies here and there as I can and I move on.

I had a totally irrational thought process going. My biggest concern wasn't for the immediate but for maybe 10-20 years out. The scenario that played through my head was that I had some condition that had a treatment that required my whole stomach to be there. Because I didn't have a complete stomach, I couldn't get the treatment and was told I would die if I didn't get the treatment. No details, just fear. Fortunately, it didn't stop me from having the surgery. VSG: 03/30/2017 - Dr. Kuri - 446/413/379

I had a similar mindset. While "some" of that is true (there are going to be certain things that just won't be a part of your food intake in the future), it's largely unwarranted. Remember, this is largely a head game. We'll be able to eat most things again, just in significantly smaller quantities. Keep your eye on the goal, not on all of the stumbling blocks along the way.

I think they removed my heater during my surgery. I'm always cold now. I'm having no complications whatsoever, but I'm always cold. Anyone else have this? VSG: 03/30/2017 - Dr. Kuri - 446/413/379

LOL, my wife is premenopausal and is always hot! It's crazy though being cold - I always used to say is start sweating if I thought too hard. VSG: 03/30/2017 - Dr. Kuri - 446/413/379

Been gurgling since surgery day. I think it's just part of the deal.

This is exactly why I eventually posted it on social media. Starting out at around 450 lbs and being severely overweight all of my life (I like to say "I came out at 10 lbs 1 oz and I never looked back!!"), people are going to see the change. I didn't want to have to explain that I'm not sick with something like cancer and saying "well, I'm eating right and exercising" wasn't going to explain the potentially drastic and rapid weight loss that is common for a lot of sleevers. In the end, I'm hoping to inspire someone who might be feeling trapped and hopeless in their overweight condition...well, that's if I'm as successful as I'm hoping to be.

I lived on Campbell's Chunky Soup, chicken and beef broth, and associated meats for extra protein. For example, bought split pea and ham soup, toss in a half cup or so of ham cubes, some chicken broth to thin it all down, and blend, blend, blend. Didn't look very good but taste was awesome.

That's exactly what I keep saying: this is crazy! I can't believe what in ok with eating now. What used to be an extremely small appetizer-like serving is now my entire meal! I had an egg and a sausage patty for lunch yesterday and that was it! Those two things would have been gone in two, maybe three bites before, along with several pieces of bacon, toast, hashed browns, and two or three pancakes. No wonder we're such an overweight society!

I kept it pretty close telling only those people very close to me. Once I was in the airport (had mine done in Mexico), I posted on Facebook what I was doing. That way I didn't have to hear from a bunch of people all the crap that you're worried about hearing. I heard it from one, but EVERYONE else has been very supportive. Of course, there were and are gobs of questions regarding my choice to go to Mexico.

When I had my lap band installed, the signs we were told to look for were a sigh or a small burp. Without drinking with your meal, both should signal that you're all full up. Since being sleeved and on soft foods, I've had both happen. One of the things I'm trying to work through is not eating until I'm full. This is the old way of thinking. Eat until you're satisfied, or you've eaten what would fit into an 8 oz measuring cup.

It's each doctor's preference. I've been on solid pills (blood pressure) since the day after surgery. I'm now back on daily aspirin therapy and other supplements. 3/30/2017 446/413/384

Sleeve ALL.DAY.LONG!! The idea of purposely handicapping my body's ability to absorb what I put into it is just not appealing. I'd much rather alter my body's capacity to accept such quantities. I also didn't want to have to pop gobs of vitamins to make up for the deficits. 3/30/2017 446/413/384

I've always been told you're good to go when your incisions are completely healed and all of the scabs have fallen off.

I've gone to Mexico twice, first time for my LapBand in 2005 and just last month for my revision to the VSG. Both times, Dr. Pedro Kuri was my surgeon. His price was $5,500 + $1,000 to remove my band. Travel expenses to San Diego Airport are not included. I trust Dr. Kuri and his team implicitly.