Swanton_Bomb

What goals (besides a specific weight or BMI) have you set for yourself? A while back my husband bought me a Game of Thrones t-shirt that I loved. He bought me, a 2X woman, a medium. God bless him, he said to me, "I dunno, you look kinda medium. I guess I was thinking of men's sizes, I didn't want you to swim in it." A men's 2X was too long, but comfortably loose on me! It was non-returnable and I threw it in a drawer, not sure why I didn't toss it. I am down almost 30lbs., mostly from the pre-surgery weight loss, and today I tried it on. It's skin tight, but I was able to fit into it. Another 30 and it will fit nicely. So that is my first goal, to fit into that shirt. What goals do you have?

Was she just talking about when you were recovering at home? How on earth are you supposed to take sips of water every two minutes? Before the surgery I set an alarm on my FIt Bit to drink every 1/2 hour, and that was bad enough. People have jobs, children to care for, etc.

I'm struggling a lot with this. My NUT told me that Crystal Light or water with added electrolytes seems to settle better in the stomach for a lot of people. I was skeptical because Crystal Light is so acidic (and I don't particularly like it either, I prefer plain water these days) but I tried it today and while I am still having issues I have definitely been able to drink more today. I had good luck with Bariatric protein cocoa last night, win-win, protein+fluid, far too sweet but not as gross as the shakes.

For those of you who have tried both, do you think Colace or Miralax works better? I've used Milk of Magnesia in the past but the pills are giant horsepills and with all the gross liquids I have to choke down since surgery I am not up to the liquid, the dose is huge.

I have not experienced it, but my NUT says sneezing and hiccups are a sign of fullness.

I know lots of very thin, athletic, healthy people with high cholesterol. The genetic component is real and significant.

I am only going to be two weeks out and starting purees, so I am faking the flu and staying home (I have only told two people about my surgery). I posted about this the other day and a lot of people thought that was sad, but honestly, even in a good year I find family get-togethers stressful, and I don't think sitting one out will be too bad. Christmas will be harder because I won't be able to avoid it, but I will be on normal food by then and will be able to eat fish, which is what my family does on Christmas. I hope that by Easter I will have developed good habits and will understand the limits of my sleeve, and will be able to eat small portions and little tastes of what I like, with my focus on the protein. I will really, really, miss all the sweets at Christmas. For Thanksgiving I will miss stuffing the most. Turkey, veggies and even potatoes are ok on my plan, but stuffing is my favorite. More than anything, to be completely honest, I will miss the excess. I will miss the pleasure of being able to just indulge in hours of gorging and mindless eating. I am just a few days post op, so I don't know how this surgery will affect me, but I hope I will have more control over food and that I will be able to conquer these big food holidays, but I also know that it isn't a few days a year that made me obese. It was daily fast food, gallons of sugary liquids and constant snacking.

I am very fortunate to have a supportive husband but I have kept this surgery a secret as far as friends and family goes because I know a lot of people who absolutely would not be supportive. People are under the mistaken impression that surgery is the easy way out. It is NOT EASY. 6 months of appointments, liquid diets, surgical pain, gas pain, loose skin, hair loss, and a slew of other problems are not easy. It isn't easier, it is simply more effective for some people, particularly long-term. People who don't struggle with food are often extremely judgemental of those that do. I've known very few people that don't struggle with something: drinking, smoking, drugs, gambling, shopping, hoarding, etc. The obese wear their addiction on the outside, people know the second they look at you, and for some reason, even though this is a far more common problem than other addictions, the world looks at us with more disdain and disgust. I hope that if you think it will help you that you will have the surgery as scheduled, with or without his support. No, it won't fix emotional eating, but it will give you a weapon to fight it and increase your odds of fighting the battle.

There is a huge difference between sizes in the plus size range, which sadly, is why plus size clothing fits so poorly. I remember when I was considerably younger and thinner, I was a smidge too large for the "regular" size 14 in a bridesmaid's dress, so they ordered the 14W for me. It was like a tent. I measured it against the regular 14 and it was 8 inches bigger! Funny, I thought I was so huge back then, but now at a size 20 I can't wait to be back at a 14!

Your coworkers noticed. People don't want to make such a personal remark, especially since weight loss sometimes happens when people are sick.

It took 2 1/2 weeks for me after my last appointment, but I think that is unusual. The surgery coordinator set my mind at ease a bit, she has submitted a bunch of these and she said she never had an issue with a case similar to mine.

Following. At 5 ft. and 1/2 an inch, I hope to be able to post some progress pics someday!

Wow! That is an amazing result in such a short time. You sound like you have worked very hard. Congrats!

Sleeved last Thursday. I'm shocked at how soon people are returning to work. I'm still in a fair amount of pain, feeling lightheaded now and then and I am struggling with fluids and proteins.

I got a local block, Toradol around the clock and Dilaudid the first night, Percoset after that.

Sadly there are several negative people in my family that are extremely judgemental about obesity and weight loss surgery, and I don't need that sort of negativity right now, that's why I have kept this to myself. They have never struggled with food issues and have no empathy for those that do.

That sounds so good, thanks for the idea!

How are you all handling Thanksgiving? I will be on thin purees and I have decided to fake the flu and not attend. I have not disclosed my surgery to anyone except husband and mom, and faking it is going to be too hard two weeks out. I think I will host Christmas so I can ensure that there is something suitable for me to eat and also be able to keep busy and people won't notice how much I'm eating.

If there was one, which I guess there usually is, they put it in and took it out while I was still under the effects of anesthesia, I was never aware of one. This was a few hours post op in a big recovery room with lots of beds.

Legit dramatic moment: Waking up after in the OR with pain in my chest. I am assuming this was extreme gas pain but I had expected belly pain not chest pain and I panicked so badly. I kept saying, "I'm scared, I'm so scared!" and tried to explain that my pain wasn't in my stomach but my chest and that I must be having a heart attack. They tried to assure me that my heart was being monitored but I kept saying, "But I'm so scared." The anesthesiologist went to my IV and that was the last thing I remembered, he must have given me something to calm down. I'm choking up now thinking about it, I honestly thought I was going to die. Stupid dramatic moment: In recovery, in the anesthesia and pain med stupor, I thought I had peed myself. I was mortified and told the nurse and she pulled back my blanket to see I was completely dry and told me this to my amazement. I guess I was hallucinating or something.

I'm so eager to get to that stage and be able to get at least some of my protein from food and not those vile shakes. Enjoy!

I am recently post op so I have no experience with the surgery, but in my dieting experience in the past success with treats has a lot to do with whether or not they are trigger foods for you. I cannot put a fig newton or an ice cream sandwich in my mouth (not even a sugar-free or Skinny Cow one). It will trigger binging big-time. I would actually be really afraid to eat one after surgery because I would be afraid I would eat myself sick. However, fruit, popsicles or, a Choco-Rite or Choco-Lite candy does not trigger a binge. I have a big problem with soft, carby, chewy foods and I hope that I can kick that habit with the surgery. The good thing about protein is that it rarely triggers a binge. Who binges on chicken?

I think it's normal at the beginning to regret it. I'm just 5 days out and have been having those moments. You're in pain, you're exhausted and you can't eat any of the foods you love...and yet it is too early to see progress, so sure, regret is normal, I think. I have a lot of trouble with water and protein but I'm just gonna have to keep trying a little harder each day. Keep trying different things. Good luck!

Holy cow! You look amazing!

I am only a few days out but oddly enough I noticed a reduction in mucus. Maybe you aren't tolerating all the dairy so well?