Tiffykins

I've been reading the same stories, and I had read several before choosing VSG. However, the one common theme I notice is that all of the stories I read all stated that they let life take over, got back into bad habits, and essentially never made the lifestyle change that is necessary to maintain. We can't go back to sucking down milkshakes and ho hos without a regain. I may have some regain, I think I'm mentally prepared for it. If I see a regain, I know how to get back on track. I can say, without a doubt, that at 1 year out making the doing the right thing, making the better choice is a bit harder than what it was 6 months ago. Sometimes life does happen, and people think the sleeve will save them from what they choose to put in their mouths. Unfortunately, it's not going to save us. It'll help us, but we have to save ourselves. Just my 2cents.

Thank you all so very much. This has been an amazing journey, and wish nothing but the very best for all of you. I appreciate all of your sweet comments, and continued support. Cheers to all of us ! ! !

It's because I restrict my pictures and blog to friends only. I'll send you a friend request so you can view my pictures. I'm sorry for that message, but I did it for several different reasons. And, I also wanted to throw out there that I randomly go through my friends list and delete people who are not active on the forum. I don't mind a few lurkers, but when people don't post, or talk to anyone, it creeps me out.

I get a RX for my Prilosec since our insurance covers it, and I get my scripts for free, I don't see any sense in buying OTC. The OTC dose is the same as my RX. 20mg once daily is what I take. I take it first thing in the morning, and my bottle instructions state to wait a minimum of 1 hour before eating. So, I take it first thing in the morning, wait an hour, then eat. I tried taking it at night, but it didn't work the same. It did take 7-10 days for the Prilosec to kick in completely so don't be discouraged is it doesn't immediately work to resolve the hunger you're filling. I couldn't wait an hour to drink. It just cut into my sipping time LOL, so I waited 30 minutes to start sipping again.

When I had hunger, it was acid, and I didn't have it pre-op. It wasn't like the little episodes of heartburn I experienced when I ate hot/spicy foods occasionally. It was a gnawing twinge an hour after I ate. Not saying that is what you are experiencing, but to let ya know that I never had the typical acid reflux issues. Once I got on Prilosec, those issues resolved and at a year out, I still never experience hunger. Right now you still have Ghrelin floating around your system so hunger can still be experienced. Even on mushies/soft foods, I had to wait 30 minutes minimum before drinking or it did flush stuff through. I never experienced hunger, but I could feel it for sure. It does get better. Congrats to your husband, best wishes for a smooth recovery for him as well.

I'm sorry for my delay in response. Those guidelines were just during my losing stage. I did not have fat guidelines. My surgeon figured with my intake fat wasn't a huge concern. You could be losing inches. With your exercising, and caloric intake, you're more than likely burning fat and gaining some muscle. Now that I'm in maintenance, I consume 1500-1800 calories per day, 60-100carb grams, and 60-100gr of protein. It really just depends on what I feel like eating on any given day.

Absolutely amazing results ! ! ! Best wishes on hitting your next goal.

Yes, and it only gets worse. I'm constantly freezing, and I live in Florida as well. My thermostat is on A/C, but it's set at 77. In the winter, it was set at 72. For the first time in my adult life, my electric bill was higher in the winter than in the spring ha ha ha. We live over near Pensacola so it's humid, and icky here since we're right on the Water.

People only treat you the way you allow them to do so. If you allow him to treat you this way, he's going to continue to do it. Stand up for yourself, your life, your health, and your future. You are worth more than a life of misery. You're choosing to be in hell. Choose better, get better. He is not responsible for your happiness, your eating, your choices. Do it for you and no one else. Don't blame him, you need to take control of your life.

SpringerLink Home - Main There's a lot of online collections of research articles and publications. It just takes to digging and geeking it up to find all of it. I'm super geeky, and just absorb this stuff like a sponge.

Pamela, and any others out there reading this one. I just hit my 1 year post-op today, and believe me I thought for a fleeting moment that I was insane for losing 85% of my stomach. But, as that thought left my mind, the scariest thought entered my head. I thought about my life in 10, 15, 25, and 40 years. Where would I really be? Sitting at a solid 300lbs? Probably, and with co-morbidities to boot. I was 32 when I had surgery and was 270ls. I knew that life wasn't going to get easier, and the pounds weren't going to come off and stay off. It's drastic, but for me the alternative is dangerous. My life is so normal now. Do I have bad days? You bet I do, but I don't know one single person on this Earth that doesn't have a bad day here and there. We all have issues, it's how we manage those issues. You know your triggers, work on those, and let the sleeve work on. I promise it works, and you will be successful as long as you believe in yourself. Mini- cleared up the clear liquid questions. And, every surgeon/nutritionist/program is different, just follow your post-op diet to the letter, and remember the post-op diet is only temporary. You will be able to enjoy your favorites at some point, it'll just be in smaller quantities. I promise

I agree some don't have to worry about carbs, but others like me, had to monitor my carb counts during the losing phase. I still have to watch what I eat or I'll see a little gain. Once I started adding them back into my menu, my loss definitely slowed down significantly. I didn't freak out over carbs from Beans, but for me a carb was carb, and I had to compensate for it. Adding carbs was the only way that I was able to stop my loss. Plus, you're a boy, it seems that no matter what the guys do they lose way faster than us girls and experience less stalls. I also didn't have room for carbs if I was eating my Protein grams.

Anna, I had the same issues with incorporating more whole foods and carbs into my diet. It's really mentally difficult to switch into a different mode about food. I still find myself some days just thinking I better not eat this or that. I just bite the bullet and realize that 1/2 sandwich isn't going to make me gain 10lbs. The trick I found is if I just let myself do it for one meal, I felt better. Then I could work myself up to new foods. Beans are really great. I eat them a lot, and while they are carby, it's not like you're throwing down a super size order of french fries. So, you have to find a balance. Add some low fat cheese, and nonfat greek yogurt to the beans. For veggies, I ate broccoli florets with cheese and green beans. I avoided peas, corn and carrots. 1/2 cup of steamed or boiled broccoli or cauliflower is only 2.5grams of carbs. Mash it up, salt/pepper to taste, a little provolone, and it's divine. I even would throw some sharp cheddar or velveeta on it. If I ate my Protein first, and only ate 2-3 broccoli or cauliflower florets, really how many carbs could that be? Not many at all, same goes for eating 4-5 green beans. Lemon Pepper and Garlic Pepper are seasonings that I use often so I don't get bored. I fell into the same rut, and the only thing I could do is to force myself out of the comfort zone. I'm honestly burnt out on some foods, and it's frustrating. I bought just about every different flavor of cream cheese to use on deli meat rollups just for variety. I wish I had more advice, but I just wanted you to know that it's pretty normal to go through this stage. Get a little adventurous. I told John that I'm willing to try clams, crab and shrimp again soon. Because I love my steaks, but there's only so many different marinades I can conjure up. I am having to branch out as well. If I run across any new yummy recipes I'll pass them on.

The sleeve is going to be severely swollen from the trauma immediately following surgery. Just for comparison, here is an xray of a barium swallow of a normal sized stomach. Here's another one of a normal stomach under fluoroscopy The resulting digital x-ray image from the fluoroscopic GI study depicted above shows a normal stomach It will obviously relax as time passes during the healing period. But, if you'll look up studies through Springerlink that discuss sleeve capacity at 1, 2 and 3 years out, you'll find that there is minimal difference. My surgeon advised me that my sleeve is at maximum capacity for life at this point. I've been able to consume the same amount of food for the last 4-5 months. The swelling greatly decreased around the 5-6 month mark, and I've been eating the same quantities that I did back in January. So compare that 4 year post op of the sleeved stomach to the above picture of a normal stomach.

Hi there and welcome. The sleeve is so different from the band. I started eating out socially around 4 months out once I knew that I was going to be "ok". The band made me cautious to eat in public so I did take some time before venturing to eat out with others. Now, I have zero issue eating out. I eat out 2-4 times weekly, and have not had one single episode of the slimes/pb/getting stuff stuck etc. Since we had the band, I kind of feel like we have the learning curve beat to an extent. My stomach makes zero noises. I've heard others mention this gurgling, but mine is a silent little boogar. I order and eat anything on the menu. I actually usually share a meal with a girlfriend, or my son and I share an entree with some sides. You'll love the sleeve. The recovery is a bit more extensive, but it's so worth it. Best wishes, and keep us posted on your progress.

Very nice ! ! ! My little alarm just says "EAT" "DRINK".

I agree 100% with Anna on the steak being the easiest for me. chicken is good, but I am so burnt out on chicken that I don't want to eat it too often. Steak, beef rib meat, certain ground beef dishes all work so much easier for me and my sleeve. I even grill our steaks on my George Foreman or I broil beef and have zero issues digesting it completely.

I absolutely adore you. Could you send some your motivation my way? I just can't do it today. I know I need to, but I don't want to. But, I'm uber proud of you, and I bet you'll love Hip Hop Abs.

Pack lightly. Chapstick, Robe, Front closure sports bra no underwire(this is a necessity for me, I refuse to walk around the halls without a bra with a bunch of strangers staring at me), non-skid slippers. I took my own shampoo/conditioner, deodorant, and body wash because hospital stuff sucks. I also took Oil of Olay facial wipes. Nothing feels better than a clean, refreshed face after surgery, well a shower is amazing, but it may be a day or two until you can bathe. I took clothes, but decided to stay in the hospital gown because bandage changes, and if there are any accidents, I didn't want to ruin/dirty up my clothes. Bring comfy, loose, drawstring pants to wear home.

Super sleeve and gastric imbrication are 2 different surgeries. Gastrectomies and imbrication are no where near the same procedure. Please make sure you are getting the surgery of your choice. Gastrectomy (super sleeve) with the description you posted is not imbrication. Gastrectomy means removal of part of all of the stomach.

It's pretty normal for the weight loss to slow down once we hit mushies. Don't panic. I eat 2% milk cheese by Cracker Barrel, and can you mix your Protein in greek yogurt that is non-fat so you're pumping up the protein without the fat and carbs? Just trying to toss out some ideas here.

You sure as heck should be and can be proud of your success. I firmly believe that having the sleeve is only part of the equation. The majority of this journey relies on US, and our determination. Many cheers to you DeeDee ! ! !