thesuse2000

I'd tell me that everything is going to be okay. That the sleeve will actually help manage my/her out of control hunger and cravings. I'd tell her to make a strong commitment to thinking about food in a new way and redefining her relationship with food. (Actually I told myself that last part back then and I really did shake things up). I was a band-to-sleeve revision, so having had one weight loss surgery fail I was so much more scared of failure the 2nd time. I assume you're pre-op? I recommend reading a lot on this site and getting yourself as prepared as you can for the way you'll be eating post sleeve - and for what to expect before/after surgery.

Agree with points above as well. I didn't share my surgery widely when I did it. And I debated sharing it at all. But once people started asking me what I was doing I just wanted to be honest. I thought about the people I work with or associate with who struggle so hard and can't keep weight off. I felt like it would be cruel to make them think that I just found more strength than they had. And sharing has led to lots of conversations with people who've considered it, or have a loved one thinking about it. It's nice to feel like my sharing might help someone else - and help reduce the stigma associated with it.

I agree! I understand that some people would rather avoid the negativity, but it generally does a disservice to those who suffer from obesity to project a false image of someone who's successfully lost a significant amount of weight without surgery. It just perpetuates the myth that with just a little more will power anyone can lose that weight.

The best kind of exercise is the one you'll actually do! So if you will work out at home, and it's more convenient and you're set up - I say go for that. As for weights - you can get yourself some weights - but there are lots of things you can do at home without any equipment - like push ups, crunches, squats, leg lifts, etc. I just started working out at a gym with a personal trainer - and that's what he's got me doing for now. I hope to build up to weights, but for now this stuff is plenty intense for me!

I agree that you should confirm with your surgeon's office, but "net" refers to the final amount - as in net salary after all taxes are removed. I imagine that means that your final weight can't be higher than your start weight. But again - confirm with the experts!

My husband was against it too, but didn't try to stop me. He's naturally thin and I think it just seemed unnatural and unnecessarily risky to him. I think he doesn't understand how risky obesity is. And like yours, he thought if I try harder I can do it without surgery. But that is just not realistic for 99% of us! Maybe if you educate your husband on the realities of longterm weight loss success for morbidly obese people - and the risks of remaining there he might better understand that the risks associated with surgery are much lower than the risks associated with not doing it. This page has a nice comparison of diets and WLS: http://www.realize.com/education And here are some educational videos about obesity risks and WLS:http://www.realize.com/education/online-seminar I hope that you choose what's best for you even if he never truly approves of it. I'm so glad I did!

Congrats on getting a plan that will cover WLS! Yes - most surgeons require a pre-op diet. Diets vary, but most common is 2 weeks of high Protein, low calorie shakes. It's meant to shrink your liver which allows for a safer surgery (because the stomach sits under the liver, and so a smaller less fatty liver will allow the surgeon to more safely lift it out of the way). I've never heard anything about pre-op colonoscopies. In some cases an endoscopy is done - but that's more for people who formerly had a band or have other stomach issues. I was told no fingernail polish for surgery (for reasons you mentioned) but toe polish was okay.

Yeah - I find I become much more interesting as I lose weight. Alas, I fear that I may be guilty of doing the same. We humans are imperfect and we generally just prefer interacting with prettier, slimmer people. It's something for all of us to try to stay conscious of.

I would recommend against flying to west africa now, unless you have an important reason to do so. Otherwise, no, I don't think it's a bad time to fly. I'm pretty sure the risk of a plane crash (very low) is still higher than the risk of catching ebola on your flight. And your risk of dying in a car crash on the way to the airport is way higher than either of the above. This outbreak is a huge tragedy and emergency in west africa right now, but it is not anywhere near as threatening for Americans as some news channels are making it out to be. How many Americans die each day from guns? About 30 How many die in car crashes every day? A little over 3000 How many Americans have contracted Ebola in this country? I've only heard about two. And I'm guessing they'll both survive as well since their symptoms were caught early. Here's a good article: http://www.forbes.com/sites/dandiamond/2014/10/16/ebolas-very-contagious-ebolas-also-hard-to-catch-confused-heres-how-to-understand/

194. Down 1 pound. (now entering stallville)

I agree on the clothes. Another thing to try is ebay - I've bought a few things there for cheap. About the stall - maybe think about whether you might have let little Snacks and meal additions work their way into your diet over time. If not - and you're still eating pretty clean and under 1200 calories of so - then the scale is bound to move in time. Your body may just be adjusting to where you are.

gastric bypass is a bigger surgery, that involves rerouting of intestines. It has been done for much longer than the sleeve and so is a more proven method, but is more likely (from early comparisons) to lead to longterm complications than the sleeve. The "bypass" of intestines leads to not all of your calories being and nutrients being absorbed, so this is an additional way that it supports weight loss and maintenance vs the sleeve, but this can also lead to problems associated with malabsorption of nutrients. One other benefit of the sleeve is that more of the part of your stomach that secretes ghrelin is removed. This is a hunger hormone, so removing it helps manage hunger. I'm very happy with the sleeve. I would also ask your doctor to explain the relative risks and benefits of both. There may be reasons specific to your health/body that make the sleeve a better option for you.

in search of

They just check a few things and ask questions. They're mostly concerned about your throat - how easily they can access your windpipe once you're out. For some people they need to put in a breathing tube before they put you out, so that's something they need to check for. (that's very uncommon, so not something for you to worry about, just saying it's something they need to check and plan for).

Wow - congrats!

I would think of it as about a tablespoon - or one swallow. Hang in - it gets easier! You will gulp again! But wait a few weeks...

Congrats on making it through safely! Wishing you the best in your journey from here.

Wishing you the best - with your surgery and recovery - and with your sleeve journey after all that! I had problems with the band too - I love my sleeve though!

I'm with you on this! I wasn't in total denial, but when I took my before pics I remember thinking something along the lines of "I'm sure this won't ever be a dramatic before/after, I'm just curvy, but will be good to do a side by side comparison" I was expecting more people to give me a reaction of "you don't need the surgery" when I told them, and was always surprised when people didn't say that. Just one friend did say this - and got a little annoying about it, acting like I was nuts to have the surgery, but she was the only one. I'm still a ways from goal, but I look at my before and think wow, I really was big. The other thing I've noticed is that everyone else looks bigger to me now too! It's like my perspective has adjusted. I sort of feel the same, so people who are the same size as I used to be now look bigger to me. And some people who looked "normal" to me before, who are about the same size I am now, look a little big to me. It's strange how our minds work...

For me, the cravings are reduced. But I hear a lot of people talk about how they continue. Cravings come from different sources. Some are more physiological and some are more psychological, but all I think are some combo of the two. I think the surgery, because of the metabolic changes that happen, does provide an opportunity to change one's relationship with food. For example, if I'm offered a fresh baked chocolate chip cookie I'm going to have a mental reaction to that - it's a food I've always loved and enjoyed and I have positive emotional associations to it. So my first thought will be yes! I really want that now! In the past if I didn't take that cookie I'd likely obsess about it and end up baking a batch of Cookies and eating a ton or just scarfing down some store bought cookies, so in some ways it often seemed best to just eat the cookie and satisfy the need. But now - if I was to say no to the cookie I'm able to move on. It doesn't take a hold of me like it used to. So, yes, that first moment of saying no is still a little hard, but overall it's SO much easier than it used to be. And I feel like it's worth it to push myself to say no and realize that I can actually do that now. It reinforces that I now have more control over my eating than I used to. And I guess I think the more we exercise that control the stronger that muscle becomes. I've seen that line a bunch of times, that the surgery is on our stomach, not our brains, but in a lot of ways it IS on our brains because of the metabolic changes, and changes in the hunger-stimulating hormones. Those changes really can change our relationship with food, but perhaps we need to work on changing our habits as well to help maximize the impact.

I struggled with this one too. I picked 155 because that's just a few pounds below 159, which gets me into the normal BMI category. But if I stabilize at a higher weight I'm okay with that too. I'm thinking about the longterm - I don't want to push myself to lose more weight if I don't think I'll be able to maintain it longterm, so I'll let my body determine my ultimate weight that I decide to maintain at. This is all perhaps easy to say now though - not sure how I'll feel if my weight stabilizes soon! If I happen to continue to lose and am happy with how I'm looking, then I would be delighted to continue towards an "ideal" BMI of 140 or so. But right now - since I am for sure a forever fluffy - I can't even imagine being anywhere near that. I don't think I've been below 170 or so since I was a tween.

I agree with all the above. I think it should be doable, but you'll really need to plan ahead for meals. Maybe look at the menu in advance to figure out what you can eat. At one month out I started going out for meals - it was a little challenging to find softer foods, but always worked out. But you'll need to take care of all your other meals as well, which could be hard while out of town. Maybe bring some Quest bars or Protein shakes (and shaker) so you can make sure you've got some options. It varies, but by a month out I was feeling mostly normal - just a little more tired than usual. So you should be able to do it if it's important, but again plan ahead and try to schedule down time to make sure you get ample time to rest.

For the first month you'll need to crush them (or open capsules) but after that you should be able to take them normally.

As long as you eat slowly, you should be able to eat a few bites without worry. No more than a half cup at once. Pause between bites and stop at the first sign of pain or full feeling. I ordered chewable Vitamins from celebratevitamins.com. You can also buy chewable or gummy vitamins from the drug store. I was told not to take Vitamin pills/capsules until after a month out. Glad you're feeling well!

I was so ready for this surgery - and had already had lap band surgery plus a revision, but this one felt more major (and it is) so I was freaked out too. I was holding steady until they wheeled me away from family towards the OR and then the tears started flowing. I didn't think about changing my mind, but I was so scared that I'd die in surgery and abandon my disabled husband. Was so happy to wake up when it was over! And so very happy I went through with it. I hope you come to the right decision for you.