Tiffykins

Congrats on getting your date scheduled. Best wishes for a smooth surgery and recovery. You'll do fabulous ! ! !

I would be leery of using anything especially when they typically give us anti-coagulants to prevent blood clots. Some surgeons give several injections, some give a couple, and some patients come home on injections as well.

YAY, glad to hear you are doing well, sounds like you are enjoying your sleeve, and some of the victories are already coming your way. Be safe in your travels.

I didn't buy anything special. I ate and still eat off little saucers or small salad plate. My sister-in-law left a couple of baby spoons here when she visited with her infant so I used those for a little bit. I had some old bowls that have measurements on the inside of the bowls. They are plastic and worked wonderfully during the stage when I was on clears and full liquids. I still used them when I hit some mushies, but now I can just eyeball portions. For all my measurements, I used the children's 1oz OTC medication dosing cups especially when I first started mushies/soft solids. This ensured that I didn't eat too much, and was able to monitor my intake.

Here's the actual product label. http://gnc.imageg.net/graphics/product_images/pGNC1-5345713_gnclabel_pdf.pdf Milk Protein, Whey Protein Concentrate, and Calcium Caseinate is listed as the protein blend. While whey isolate is the most preferred, I was cleared to use a similar product with Whey Concentrate as the primary source. This does have excellent carb:protein ratio of 4:32. I like the Oh Yeah Protein Bars. I didn't even know they had a RTD protein.

We're all thinking of you today. Best wishes for a smooth surgery and recovery. Post when you are able to do so.

That's got to be absolutely frustrating. I hope you are able to retain your job. Good thoughts coming your way.

Best wishes, my mother was absolutely against my revision. But, she knew me well enough to know that her "disapproval" was not going to keep me from doing it. Be prepared to give her solid medical info on the sleeve, give her some of the research information you've looked up. If you need links, there posted around here in several places. I can't speak on the Mexico part as I had my surgery here in Florida. I know my husband is absolutely against me traveling to Mexico for my plastics. I'll just wait until he's deployed again to get my boobs. Not really, in all seriousness, I'll stay local for the boob job as well. Good luck and just don't let anyone keep you from doing the very best for your future health.

Today, I had one that is kind of cool. I had to take the ball dress to the tailor for some hemming. After she pinned the hem, she said "you know we really need to take in the sides a bit, this area flares out and I can fix it to fit you better." Okay, huge smile, I was like "okay, do it." I did share with her that I had surgery and had an old shirt that I would like her to look at and see if she could tailor, take it in as I can now wear it as a dress. Literally, it comes down just above the knee now. Anyways, after I put it on, and she kept trying to pin it, to make it look right, she decided that it was just "too much fabric to cut away, and it would not look right after the alterations." She looked at the size (26/28W from Cato), and she said "good lordy, no wonder, 3 of you could fit in that thing." I had another old fat shirt that she was able to alter down for me, and I love it, I'll be able to wear it with a little pair of leggings and heels. I'm super stoked.

Sassie, I'll be thinking about you, and praying for a smooth surgery and recovery. Post when you are able, and take care of yourself.

Is it labeled to be taken with food? I had one multi a few years ago that were higher in Iron than some on the market, and it made me nauseous. I talked to the pharmacist, and she recommended eating right before or right after taking it. I ate right after taking it, and it resolved the nausea.

YAY YAY Rob, I'm so ecstatic for you. I can't wait to read your update, and sending well wishes for a smooth recovery.

Great job on getting through some of the steps to get your surgery scheduled. Best wishes, and keep posting. We'll be here for you.

I didn't throw up early out during that crucial healing period. Throwing up with the sleeve is so different than pre-op puking. For me, it's happened when I've taken that one "last" bit, and that one last bite creeps back up my esophagus, out of my mouth. No retching, gagging, heaving kind of vomiting. Sounds gross, but it's not horrific. I honestly hate to vomit. I would do anything to avoid puking pre-op, and I still do hate to throw up. I also found that if my body wasn't ready for something I'd get nauseated, and a little dry heavey if that makes sense.

I replied on OH as well, but I'll post here too. My surgeon only allows pills no bigger than a regular m&m candy, and absolutely zero extended release meds for the first month. His reasoning for zero extended release or controlled release is the motility of the stomach is different immediately post op, and we not may absorb all of the medication in the proper dosage. He recommended switching to the regular release med with a different dosage just for the first 4 weeks post op.

Hi and welcome to VST. I'm sorry about the denial, but UHC is pretty particular with their requirements on getting approval. Without any co-morbidities, or the BMI requirements, I'm not sure that you could even appeal their decision. Have you discussed the options with the insurance coordinator, or surgeon? They maybe able to give you more solid appeal options.

Nausea, pain and fever seemed to be the common symptoms. It was persistent, and medicated rather than properly diagnosed. It wasn't the discomfort with eating and drinking that is pretty common for the first couple of weeks post-op especially when advancing to a new food stage.

You read correctly. When the DS was first started and up until probably the last decade, surgeons used large bougies. When the sleeve was performed as a stand alone procedure early on, they did see more bounce back regain than they have in recent years. Also, with the DS, it seems that patients could consume much quantities of food per day and even though they have the "switch", that doesn't mean they always got to goal, or didn't regain some weight. Not dissecting the fundus completely is where stretching comes into play from everything I've read. None of the WLS beat white carbs, and junk food. There's a few "failed" DS patients that have posted trying to get back on track or to goal. It isn't really failed(in my opinion), it's just battling obesity even with the assistance of the "Platinum" standard of WLS.

I can only answer #2 because I have 2 cases bookmarked on OH for patients that experienced leaks months out. They both had symptoms, but were misdiagnosed, and a leak was not ever suspected. The symptoms were not major symptoms, but some of the symptoms were there, and medicated to relieve the symptoms temporarily. Tylenol3 will take care of a lot pain and fever temporarily until the other issues start worsening.

Wendy's chili is an "ok" option for me. I order the broccoli/cheese baked potato, and a small chili. I can eat quite a bit of the broccoli/cheese with a few bites of potato and 1/4-1/2 of the chili, not a lot of the chunky beef. This may not be a great option, but it works well for me. Taco Bell - Steak quesadilla with extra sauce. I peel off the top part of the tortilla, and can eat 2 wedges if I eat super slowly. Bean Burrito, no onion with sour cream, I peel off the big extra tortilla part, and can only eat 1/4-1/2 of it. Mainly, I focus on the Beans. You could order the combo burrito with beef and beans. Chili's, TGI Fridays, Applebee's all offer carside to go ordering. You may want to check those options in the areas where you'll be traveling. I like a lot of things offered by those places, and a lot of the stuff reheats nicely.

Hi Brian, and welcome to the forum. First off, my deepest condolences for your loss. I can only imagine what you have been through. The sleeve is truly a wonderful tool. It's given me my life back, or actually a life I've always wanted to be living. As for advice, just go into with a positive attitude. There may be some speed bumps along the way, but we have to make sure we don't allow them become roadblocks. I kind of use that mentality in all aspects of my life, but it really came in handy during my sleeve journey. Follow your surgeon's orders and advice, stay within the dietary guidelines, and take care of yourself. Remember, that the victories will outweigh the struggles. You are doing something absolutely fabulous for yourself and your children. You'll be able to be more active, and more involved in their lives. Keep us posted on your progress and as you get more information about a scheduled date for your surgery. We'll all be here for you through the ups and downs.

I didn't have acid issues for nearly 6 weeks post-revision, and never had acid issues pre-op even with my band. I didn't let it get to the point of true acid coming up my throat. It was a funky, twinge in my stomach after eating. It took several days like 7-14 days for the Prilosec to kick in and resolve the issue. I'll definitely discuss this with my surgeon, but I'm such a baby when it comes to how I feel. Any sign of something not being "right" sends me over the edge with anxiety and worry. I thank the Lord above for an amazing surgical/medical team that truly understands why I am so paranoid about getting sick again. They may roll their eyes when I'm not around, but when I need them they are there to get me through it without making my concerns seem trivial.

Soups typically reheat really well. I am not a fan of most reheated meats, but chicken satay seems to reheat well if spritzed with some Water. Nachos from Chili's reheat well. I know we aren't "supposed" eat chips, but I eat them occasionally. The chips get soggy, but the flavor remains. Chinese food reheats fairly well. Like beef/broccoli, I typically ask for extra sauce to ensure the meat doesn't get rubbery. Rib meat reheats pretty nicely. Especially, beef ribs that have a decent sauce on them. For me, steamed veggies suck reheated so I typically share those with the kiddo. Fajita meat, chicken or steak, and refried Beans have all worked well for me when reheated. I love chicken wings. They are a staple in my diet. I can order 10 teriyaki, or honey barbque wings, and they last me 2-3 meals. They reheat nicely when I add a little water to the plate, and cover loosely. I have found anything crusted, floured, or battered all are horrible reheated. It's probably just a personal preference.

I've shared this is a couple of other threads. The pens are NOT the size your stomach will be once it is healed. This is just a comparison. If you haven't seen this, I found this on OH, and think it'll give you an idea of honestly how minimal difference in a 32 and 40 really is. Just a visual to offer more pictures of how minimal the difference is between the sizes your concerned about. Here is a fabulous link for bougies. It physically lists every size of bougies, with the millimeter measurements. Scroll to pages 3 and 5 to see the table of reference for bougie sizes. http://www.medovations.com/pdf/Esoph...Dilatation.pdf You can pull up the PDF file, and scroll to page 5. It shows that the difference between a 32Fr, and a 48Fr is only 6mm. I know it seems huge, but in the grand scheme of things, surgical technique is going to play a bigger role in the actual size of your stomach post-healing. Dissecting all of the fundus is crucial.

Thanks for posting as I am on of those that will not go off my Prilosec in fear of having issues. I think my "anxiety" with going off of it is the sheer fact that it took me months to feel good. I was sick for a long time, and I have been thriving and do not want to regress back to being sick. I have a follow-up with my surgeon for my 1 year later this month or in June. I will discuss some options. I may go to one dose every other day, but I'm just not willing to be "sick" again. I'd be willing to use some natural remedies, but I'm not willing to set myself up for pain and discomfort.