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I can't imagine being able to stay asleep after being propped up to have my blood pressure taken, but I suppose if you can make that work all the better for you. The only downside to sleeping is that it keeps you in the hospital longer. Discharge is usually based on your capacity to consume 4oz of liquid an hour (so that they can take you off IV fluids). They usually have you 1oz/hr hours 1-4, 2oz 5-8, 3oz 9-12, 4oz 13-16, then home. The only upside I had to being woken at 1am, 2am, 3am, and 5am is I got discharged first thing in the morning.

Congrats on starting your journey!!!

Excess Body Weight is basically your weight minus your ideal body weight. There are a few different formulas for calculating "ideal body weight," but for the most part they rely on some variation of height, gender, and age. Here are some example formulas (sorry its in Kg not pounds). G. J. Hamwi Formula (1964) Male: 48.0 kg + 2.7 kg per inch over 5 feet Female: 45.5 kg + 2.2 kg per inch over 5 feet Invented for medicinal dosage purposes. B. J. Devine Formula (1974) Male: 50.0 + 2.3 kg per inch over 5 feet Female: 45.5 + 2.3 kg per inch over 5 feet Similar to the Hamwi Formula, it was originally intended as a basis for medicinal dosages based on weight and height. Over time, the formula became a universal determinant of IBW. J. D. Robinson Formula (1983) Male: 52 kg + 1.9 kg per inch over 5 feet Female: 49 kg + 1.7 kg per inch over 5 feet Modification of the Devine Formula. D. R. Miller Formula (1983) Male: 56.2 kg + 1.41 kg per inch over 5 feet Female: 53.1 kg + 1.36 kg per inch over 5 feet

I don't know what will be "allowed," but since they will wake you up ever hour or so to take your blood pressure or give you something it may all be for naught.

I guess it depends on why you are having difficulty sleeping. For me it was that I was a stomach sleeper, which I just couldn't make work for the first 4-5 days after surgery. I found that a couple of Tylenol PM helped my sleep in the unusual position.

I really liked bouillon cubes dissolved in water right after surgery, but other than some immediate post surgery foods, you will be up and about after a couple of days and able to go out to the store to get whatever you need. I would avoid stocking up too much especially on food, because your tastes are likely to change a bit immediately after surgery.

I guess you can turn anything into juice. The Cuba Libre diet was more of a joke, a Cuba Libre is also known as a Rum & Coke (usually with a lime).

I'm all for folks trying anything and see if it works, but I'm not sure having a sugary drink, that won't fill you up is likely to be a workable diet plan. Perhaps you will prove me wrong, until then I will stick to the Cuba Libre diet.

Our pleasure, and by all means please stick around. There are certainly also some ESG folks here who can also give you specific advice on their experiences as well.

Ditto, VSG is like having your oil changed. I wanted to verify that they would put the plug back in, but honestly I was more concerned with insurance than anything else. If I need plastic surgery at some point that will be a very different process.

BTW I wasn't suggesting any sort of moral failing on your part (trust me we didn't all have our own food/weight issues we wouldn't be here). I would also point out that while Ghrelin production may be impacted by VSG that isn't necessarily going to result in a significant change in your hunger. You describe your situation in such dire terms. You lost nearly 5% of your body weight (and kept it off) after you ESG, which while not what you wanted is not a failing by any means. The fact that you lost 10 pounds initially indicates that you are certainly capable of losing weight, the foundation of which (regardless of surgery) is by burning off more calories than you consume. To that end you kind of dance around it a little bit, but do you track how many calories you are consuming and do you know how many calories you are burning a day? I don't have any great suggestions for your situation, but I would suggest giving your ESG a chance and build on what is a tool to see if you can make some other adjustments. I know you have said you have dieted before (who hasn't, right), but perhaps you would find some benefit in trying a structured program, whether commercial or with a dietitian to help you maximize the advantage that the ESG is giving you. I don't presume to know what the root of your habits is based in, but you might also benefit by considering therapy of some sort if you find yourself eating for reasons other than genuine hunger. My concern for you in getting a VSG at this point is worry that you will put yourself through that and not have a markedly different result to show for it, which isn't to say that you shouldn't consider it.

I'll let the other folks more familiar with Mexico weigh in on that aspect. The part of your story that really struck me was that you have already had an ESG performed. My understanding is that the outcomes from ESG and VSG are similar in that they effectively do the same thing in different ways. It's unclear has your ESG "sleeve" failed in some way? Otherwise I'm not sure what you are expecting to gain from having a VSG performed. It sounds like your eating habits have managed to at least partially impact the success of your ESG, though even finding a new equilibrium point lower than you were is a measure of success. I've had the VSG and it isn't magic, its a tool that only works if you are able to address your eating habits as well.

Based on what you've said getting a VSG done at the same time as your hernia repair sounds like a no brainer.

I think everyone can corroborate what you are experiencing to one extent or another, though everyone seems to encounter their bouts of nausea, constipation, diarrhea, gurgling, upset stomach, etc at different stages. That said diarrhea at this stage isn't a bad thing you should be "expunging" fat at this point with your diet so loose stool is common.

Honestly the surgeries today have practically no risk of death (I think the number is like one out of twenty-five hundred), so the fear of death from the surgery didn't even cross my mind. Death as a complication of my obesity on the other hand felt like a time bomb with a count down timer that was ticking down, but that I couldn't actually see.

I guess every stadium has their own rules, at Yankee Stadium you can bring in any food you want. You just can't bring opened beverage containers.

I guess the question isn't about your relative activity level or food intake, but what you are doing. If you know your BMR are eating less calories a day or adding enough activity to ensure that you are operating at a caloric deficit? What sort of exercise does "active" entail? Are you going to the gym? Walking around the neighborhood? More importantly do you have the capacity to increase that activity? On the other side of things, I guess the question is what are you eating the other 6 days of the week?

Siggi's is my favorite brand Mango Jalapeno is my favorite when I can find it, followed by Orange Ginger and Coconut. Skyr is also the name for the style of yogurt. If you are looking to try new kinds of yogurt also look at the Noosa brand, their stuff is really good albeit not quite as protein dense as some others.

I was never a fast food person, but I have to say that I'm eating a better quality of food now. When you are only eating a little it's much easier to justify buying the higher end produce and proteins even when they aren't on sale.

Because insurance companies make more money when they don’t have to pay for things. Their business model revolves around finding any excuse to deny you, sometimes even if it’s not a legitimate excuse.

Did this "stall" by any chance coincide with your transition to solid food?

I guess the next question is who is Steven Assanti, other than someone who looks like they came from central casting for the "serial killer" role?

I'm honestly baffled by this. You ate a small portion of food, that in total probably had 300 calories in it. You are more than two months out and this doesn't sound like it represents any kind of overeating. Just because you are eating healthier doesn't mean that you are limited to only eating healthy things for the rest of your life. The goal is moderation which it sounds like you are doing, don't try to convince yourself that you did anything wrong or that you "cheated." You ate what you wanted and did it in a way that conformed to your weight loss goals, so congrats.

Honestly, I'm a bit younger than you are, but I still feel like this surgery was something I should have done a long time ago. I had many of the same concerns, but I'm about a month out from surgery now and can say that at least for me those concerns were misplaced. I'll try to address your concerns point by point. 1) Honestly post surgery I've found that my hunger has subsided in general. The side effect of removing a portion of your stomach is reduced Ghrelin production, which causes hunger. For me this translates into much less casual grazing. 2) I can't speak to the pigging out, but I enjoyed having my fill of ham and other not healthy things for Easter. Yes you will be eating less, but that doesn't mean you can't enjoy what you eat. I'm not saying that gorge yourself holidays won't be different, but you will find your self more drawn to the good stuff that you like and forgo the canned cranberry sauce (or whatever). 3) I'm a business traveler as well and the general rule for travel is to wait 6-8 weeks (ask your doctor what they recommend) before embarking on a long distance flight to avoid the increased risks of blood clots in that period. Beyond that window there aren't any long term restrictions. 4) I don't thing you need to worry about dehydration, the only real difference long term is that your ability to chug a huge amount of liquid in one go will be limited, but your overall ability to hydrate won't be and by that time you will be more used to the rhythm so to speak. Instead of drinking 32 oz of water in one gulp you will drink 32 oz over the course of an hour (or two or whatever you feel comfortable with), the point being you will still be able stay hydrated. On a completely unrelated note and not as the kids would say to "blow up your spot," but your photo looks so familiar to me.

If they are being done at the same hospital I would see if you could get their offices to talk and see if they can work something out.