abefroman329

I regret that it got to the point where surgery was the only realistic option, but I certainly don’t regret that I was able to stop the train before it ran off the tracks. Insulin injections 5 times a day, dialysis, knee replacement, blood thinners, none of those are fun!

I dunno, it sounded clever.

Pit bull.

And yet OP still found my post worthwhile...

Yes, I did, and knew the direct link between feeling negative emotions and eating junk food. That's why it's been such a struggle for me. My therapist said that what they don't tell you about going to rehab is what it's actually like once you take away the tools of addiction. It's...not fun, I assure you.

Oh they don't care how long you sleep, they care about what you do when you do sleep. My ENT quickly corrected me on that point when I tried to argue my polysomnogram wasn't accurate because I got a terrible night's sleep.

This has been my Bible since surgery: https://www.amazon.com/Fresh-Start-Bariatric-Cookbook-Weight-Loss-ebook/dp/B01N5I6XPN/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?ie=UTF8&qid=1519832189&sr=8-1-spons&keywords=bariatric+cookbook&psc=1

As I’ve mentioned elsewhere, I noticed it a lot more several years ago, when I got down from 335 to 290, and it led to some serious body dysmorphia. I was flying a lot for work at the time and my seat mates were no longer fighting over who had to sit next to me, which was jarring, and not in a good way. I cant say I’ve noticed it this time around. People I know don’t treat me any differently, and strangers treat me about the same. Yesterday I did notice that someone sat next to me on the bus, and it wasn’t the last seat on the bus, and she didn’t have to sit with one butt cheek I’m her seat. That just felt...nice. And while the poor treatment of women because of their body size is far worse than men, I have heard both men and women report that people are nicer to them after substantial weight loss.

I’ve had nausea when I eat too much, or too fast, or don’t wait long enough after eating to drink water.

I do miss food! I can tolerate popcorn just fine. Probably just a kids pack at the movies, though.

I haven't LOST hair (I don't think so, anyway), but it does appear it's growing slower than before. I've noticed that less is coming off when I trim my beard each week, and the last time I got my hair cut, I was asked if it had only been 2-3 weeks since my last one (it had been about 6 weeks). Has anyone had this issue?

Nausea was horrible for me while I was in the hospital and coming down from the general anesthesia (when they wheeled me up from recovery to the room, I had the dry heaves), but that's been it for me. Your program's dietitian will be able to tell you what you can eat and when, it varies widely by program. I was on a general diet six weeks after surgery. That being said, I'm over two months out, and still can't tolerate rice or fast food hamburgers. Your mileage may vary, or YMMV, as they say on the internets.

If you're having trouble maintaining a relationship, at any size, it's probably worth it to look at yourself on the inside, too.

No, but I have a six-year-old niece in England who hasn't seen me since I had the surgery, and I'll be curious as to what she has to say (assuming she can tell via Skype, anyway).

It's been hard for me to get to my water goals lately because it's been so cold out, but once spring arrives and arrives for good, I should be able to get my water goals in just on the train to/from work.

Eating is three meals and two snacks a day, and they want you to eventually get to three meals, so that's a temporary problem. As for water, if you have a long enough commute, you could drink 32 oz on the way to work and 32 oz at home, or 16 oz on the way to work, 16 oz on the way home, and 32 at home.

Oh I, too, feel like a teenager!

I think that telling the surgeon how big to make your stomach is like telling your PCP that you have herpes and need Valtrex because you saw a Caltrex commercial, and if you feel compelled to tell the surgeon how big to make your stomach, you should find another surgeon that you trust.

Down 60 pounds, another 30 or so to goal. Tolerating pretty much any food. Waist is down 4 inches. Down to XL shirts. Stopped 3 prescription meds and down to a really low dose of the fourth (and should be off that one in a few months).

Also, caffeine is a diuretic, which doesn't help when you're already having trouble staying hydrated because you can't drink that much water. At this stage of my plan, I'm allowed 8 oz of coffee or tea a day, and I'm probably going to start drinking it because I've been so tired lately.

It sounds like the diameter gets smaller.

My sides were still touching the armrests. Yes, touching, as opposed to "spilling over" when I last flew coach in September, but still.

I heard something similar to that from my wife, “well, what if you lose a lot of weight on the pre-op diet? Then you could just cancel the surgery!” She was concerned about the risks of the surgery, whether I’d be happy with it long term, whether it would work... She’s been really supportive post-surgery. She talked to the surgeon right after the operation and found it really helpful when he told her that my stomach was larger than normal and that I would have a strong chance of being successful. Having observed my dad’s quality of life rapidly diminish due to being morbidly obese in his 60s...a) you’d be surprised how quickly it happens and it’s not something you’d want for yourself. And if you’re like me, and you’ve tried everything else, and nothing worked, this is really your best hope.

Frankly, that’s why I wouldn’t recommend going out of town for the surgery, at least, so far that you can’t also travel for post-op care from the same surgeon. When I realized I needed to have surgery to repair an anal fissure, I was on the verge of moving from DC to Chicago, and my surgeon in DC recommended moving and having it done in Chicago for continuity of care purposes. And that surgery was much less complicated than weight loss surgery.

I had those on my legs from the time I entered the OR till the following morning. After that I was on blood thinners the rest of the time I was in the hospital. I did not have to take them home with me, no. I guess my risk of a blood clot wasn’t that high.