bodycando

Yes, I waited about 18 months after surgery and then got pregnant right away.

Lectured? No. But at my 1-month post-op meeting with the dietician, she did say that over time she wanted me to reduce my reliance on Protein Shakes for my daily Protein intake and to be getting it from other food sources. She never implied that 2 per day was somehow "bad".

Your BMI is 25.5 - why are you scared that "this is it"? You're at a normal weight already.

You're close - 300 - 145 = 155 . 60% of 155 is 93, putting the end weight at 207.
The desired weight is not what is used in this equation though. It is bone and muscle mass. That is determined usually by a special scale at the dr's office. If 145 was the weight of the bone and muscle mass then this equation would be correct.
For example, I weighed 260 at the doctor's at my initial visit - the scale found 130 of that to be bone and muscle and the other 130 to be excess weight. So using the same formula, I'd lose 60% of 130, so 78 lbs, putting my "success" weight at 182.
Does this help?

My doctor and I talked about the lowest weight I had maintained when dieting and exercising and NOT taking appetite suppressants as an adult and came up with 175. That's a 27 BMI, I'm 5'6.5". So that's pretty square in the middle of overweight. When I hit it I thought I could lose more and set a stretch goal of 150.
I also think BMIs are not appropriate for individuals, they were designed to measure populations. And muscle weighs more than fat. So I don't really care about BMI much.
I DO care about fitting into my current clothes (or smaller), being able to run and exercise generally, and feeling good.

I think that's a very important thing to say: "if you want to..." (put the ongoing effort into it forever).
I have decided that I don't want to. Would I like to weigh 3 or 4 kg less? Sure, I'd like to. I'd like my muscles, veins and tendons to show more. But I'm not willing to put the effort into it when I can maintain BMI of 23 without having to go out of my own way to do so. I'm going to take what additional benefit plastics have to offer and then it'll be alright.
On a side note: it's quite interesting how much more effort and vigilance one might have to put into this whole food/diet/exercise/weight thing to maintain a weight that's just a little bit lower. To me it's not worth it but someone else's opinion will for sure vary.

Not me personally, but my sister did. She was actually only about 4 months out from surgery when she got pregnant. She just stopped concentrating on gaining or losing & concentrated on trying to eat good things for baby. If you have questions let me know I can ask her! She also looks amazing lol

Lines = narcotics
Sips= soda

Lots of people do cocaine and don't get addicted. You should seek some help for passing misinformation, Nancy Reagan.

This thread is why I don't frequent this board much. I am 10months post up and am at my goal weight. All my labs are perfect and I work out 5-7 times a week. Oh and I also do recreational drugs on occasion. Try and remember that not everyone is you and every situation is different. Doctors and surgeons are people and give what they consider best practices but are not gods. Not every one is an addict, I've had this success because because I worked the program into my lifestyle and didn't make the surgery my religion.

Wow I had honestly forgotten about this post. Since posting my body has settled down and I'm back to having a drink and a few lines every other Saturday night. Just cos I'm skinny now doesn't mean I should have to give up on my fun times. I understand not everyone will approve of my choices but the way I see it I do it in a safe environment where I'm not harming anyone or throwing it in people's faces

I know this is meant well but I found this painful to read. I’m 11 mo out from my surgery and have lost noticeably a lot of weight (~115 lbs) and people have no problem disparaging my looks from the recent past. I even remember my GP saying before my surgery “let’s hope I won’t recognize you next time I see you!” I just don’t find this a nice sentiment because I loved and accepted myself the way I looked when I was bigger and think that everyone should be taken seriously even when they are very overweight. The idea that you look crazy and shouldn’t be taken seriously as an overweight person, and that you look smarter when you’re thin, goes to show how much society pressures us to intertwine feelings of self-worth that are not related to our weight.

Anyway with that said, congrats on your journey @RussT ! It’s really great to have someone so successful with lifestyle changes check in at the 3-year mark as I’m often hearing that restriction and maintenance are more difficult after 2 years.

I know this is meant well but I found this painful to read. I’m 11 mo out from my surgery and have lost noticeably a lot of weight (~115 lbs) and people have no problem disparaging my looks from the recent past. I even remember my GP saying before my surgery “let’s hope I won’t recognize you next time I see you!” I just don’t find this a nice sentiment because I loved and accepted myself the way I looked when I was bigger and think that everyone should be taken seriously even when they are very overweight. The idea that you look crazy and shouldn’t be taken seriously as an overweight person, and that you look smarter when you’re thin, goes to show how much society pressures us to intertwine feelings of self-worth that are not related to our weight.

Anyway with that said, congrats on your journey @RussT ! It’s really great to have someone so successful with lifestyle changes check in at the 3-year mark as I’m often hearing that restriction and maintenance are more difficult after 2 years.

WOW! I can't believe it's been 3 years since my Gastric Sleeve surgery! It feels like I had it yesterday.
I started out at 470 and I've pretty much maintained at 215 pounds for the bulk of this year. If anyone is on the fence about having this surgery, let me tell you, it's life changing.
I am so happy I did it. Not only is my health great, I've gotten very fit and am more active now than I have been in years.

I just passed my one year anniversary on the 12th.

I scar 2x darker than my normal skin tone (Fitzpatrick IV skin scarring to a VI)
As everyone said (and it's going to be hard to get just now) you *may* care less and less about the small stuff like 5-6 tiny scars.
What you *may* really begin to care about down the line of research is how proficient or skilled your surgeon is at any surgery done to have the best possible post surgical outcomes (that is within your control)
Or you *may* still care...
My bikini pics are in my gallery with all of my unfaded scars for the world to behold and Zero ***** given 😍

It's not the scars you will be trying to hide when you wear a bikini, it is more likely to be the loose skin.

I have a couple bottles of the complete bariatric Vitamin where you just chew 2x2 a day. They just became so gross I’ve switched to Patches until my blood work says they aren’t working. My D is low but that’s normal for me so I do a weekly pill and folate low because I started methotrexate so I take folic acid pills. The patches are just so much easier. Praying they continue to work. 🤞🏼

Gallbladder was a million times easier than this! This surgery knocked me on my butt and I've had 2c sections lol.

And not every "open" gall bladder is a Right Subcostal incision. Mine was a Right Paramedian, 4 inches above, 3 inches below the naval and just a finger- breath to the Right. See my Father ( Rest in PEACE, Daddy) had an arteriovenous anomaly in his colon , an area where there was no intervention of capillaries between, lost 2.5 feet at Grant Hospital in Columbus. Well I guess. while he was also removing my appendix, he wanted to see if there were any signs I could have inherited it.
And yes, not Too Much fun healing from it, although I did okay , I was 30- some years younger and took it as a just a matter- of- fact THING.
True STORY on ME: When I went to meet Dr Needleman at OSU, I told him I would rather an OPEN surgery if he couldn't do it laproscopically. He kind of drew BACK and Said " Do YOU realize how HARD it is to heal an Open Incision?" I smiled and flipped up my T-Shirt tail and showed him my scar and it is about a 1/4 inch wide, even after all these years. He Grinned and Said " Point taken and I WILL Keep That in Mind!"
The detriment for ME? Every since. I have had borderline malabsorption of fats and have golden yellow stool instead of the usual medium to dark brown. And I do have occasional or I used to before RNY, bright yellow colonic mucus. But those are special into ME, most people go blissfully on with little or no impairment to their digestion and I'm sure YOU'LL be in the later catagory.
MY mama had hers out 6-8 mobths before ME, accused me of wanting SURGERY out of envy. The Joke was on Her, I had many more stones than he, my. g.b. was in worse shape than hers and I even went jaundiced the weekend before my SURGERY. Had to wait 5-6 days before mine, surgeon only operated once weekly. Bet if I had been at OSU instead of Doo-Dag Central here, they would have whipped that " rotten critter" out quickly instead of making ME wait. When you're Jaundiced , I Feel, you go from Elective to Mandatory operation, but This was back in the Early 80s- so things are Much Better Now!

I had mine out 3 years before my gastric bypass and that surgery was rough, I would even venture to say it was probably the worst surgery I had. I felt like crap for a solid two weeks after the surgery but one day felt totally fine. It was a rough surgery for me, my gastric bypass was easier. I experienced mild dumping after having it out and haven't had that yet with my wls. My surgeon kept me out of work for a full 6 weeks (I was working full time as a paramedic back then) but felt well enough to go back after 3. I was back to work after my gastric bypass after a week as a nurse.

Get it out! A gall bladder can get infected just like an appendix. You can get very, very sick and toxic from an infected GB, which makes surgery more difficult, risky, and emergent, possibly even resulting in an open surgery vs laproscopic. You really do not want to go there. Open GB surgery used to be one of the most painful surgeries there was, with complications like pneumonia because of the long incision under the ribs which made breathing difficult. Laproscopy changed GB surgery like night and day. If you have already had multiple attacks, it is time for it to go bye-bye.

I had mine out 8 weeks after my RNY surgery. It was a super easy recovery and I felt 1000000% better right away. It had messed with me for years. I only wish I had done it sooner!
Get that sucker outta there!

OMGosh pls just get it taken out soon. Clearly it’s necessary and best to do it sooner than later. I had mine taken out at the ER as the absolute worse pain ever, bent over writhing type pain, must have been hilarious as I drove myself, ran into the ER threw myself on my knees begging for relief! It was far prior to my VSG and laparoscopic and recovery was so easy for they removed a diseased organ opposed to stitching one up (your stomach). They only alterations to your diet will be how you tolerate dairy and fats and at least for me my body still likes to mess with me because some days I can drink heavy cream in my coffee with no intestinal distress, other days I get mild cramps to a dash to the loo. Definitely a balancing game many days but far better to deal with than the almost daily pain I was having and the final explosion of absolute abdominal misery! And since you’ve had the sleeve you already know how to recover only this will be far, far easier! Just do it. No need to wait it out any longer, your body doesn’t need the added stress of an infected or burst gall bladder. You’ll be fine. Best of luck.

Well, my experience is by no means normal, but it's certainly an interesting read:
About 6 weeks after my lap band surgery, I started getting severe pains in my upper abdomen (kind of at the lower end of the rib cage/center) and often accompanied by vomiting mucous/foam. My doctor kept passing it off as getting something stuck, esophageal spasms or my fave: psychological problems. It was happening nearly daily. I felt miserable and progressively felt sicker. I lived on soda crackers and tea for about 6 months until I decided to see a different doctor and DEMAND they check my gall bladder. Testing showed I had sludge in there and the surgeon later told me that my bile duct was stretched out from passing so many large stones. Well DUH!
The gall bladder surgery itself was a breeze. I had some gas pains, but they were very minor compared with the lap band (and gastric sleeve, for that matter) surgeries. I felt better IMMEDIATELY in terms of the gall bladder issues. No more gut-wrenching pains or vomiting. I didn't have that sick taste in my mouth all the time and I could actually eat again. Here's the kicker: they dislocated my hip during the gall bladder surgery! Yes, you heard that right. Somehow, they dislocated my left up and I woke up in EXCRUCIATING hip pain and needed a few weeks off of work to recover from THAT.
Moral of the story: if you know you have gall bladder issues, these won't go away on their own. The surgery for gall bladder removal was a much easier recovery than bariatric surgery and you will feel 100% better afterward.