Tiffykins

Try some Gas X Strips. I still have some days when my restriction is more or less. The humidity here is treacherous today, and my first drink of coffee this morning after my Prilosec hit my stomach like a brick. I'll probably have to stick with mushy stuff today until the humidity settles. I don't know how to explain it, but you'll find that your sleeve can be cantankerous. Maybe try something warm before your Protein drink, the cold may be too much for you today. Of course, if it persists, or you get a fever, do not hesitate to seek medical attention.

Woohoo Nanna, such a fabulous accomplishment ! ! ! Many congrats on your success.

I sent you a message with my email and Facebook information. We're here for you, and don't hesitate to shoot me a message.

Symptoms of a leak vary, but most commonly are excruciating, radiating pain across abdomen, fever, rapid heart rate, vomiting, nausea, abdominal cramping, fatigue.

I don't mind at all.

I've missed you around here, and wasn't sure what was going on, but didn't want to impose. You've done amazing through your journey, and I'm so glad to see you posting again.

I had ignored my symptoms for so long, and let my gb get so inflamed that I couldn't eat anything except full liquid stuff and crackers right before surgery. Once I got home, I decided to stay on a pretty bland diet until I felt better. I stuck with chicken noodle Soup, crackers, yogurt, and other easily tolerated foods. Now, that it's been 3 months since having my gb removed, I can no longer eat full fat salad dressing, cheeses or red marinara, spaghetti, or pizza sauce. I have residual pain in my shoulder, or I get a bit of diarrhea with these options. I wasn't able to eat avocados until just recently. It's not too bad considering I've been able to identify what triggers the pain, and diarrhea. But, I hate fat free stuff because it's chalked full of more sugar/carbs/sodium just to make it taste better. My recovery was pretty easy. I was also scoped at the same time. I was discharged a couple of hours after surgery, and was drinking grape juice and eating some Teddy Graham crackers upon waking up in recovery. I felt pretty rough the next day, but my surgeon also snooped around in my abdomen, and took down a lot of scar tissue/adhesions. So, he did a bit more than just remove my gallbladder. I can tell you that I felt immediately better once I woke up in recovery, and had no pain when I ate/drank. I only had to take pain meds for a couple of days post op, and it was when I would overdo it. I was on restricted activity for 6 weeks because of the extra stuff he did during the surgery. Good luck on the surgery, and hope it goes smoothly for you.

Best wishes for an uneventful surgery and smooth recovery. Walk, sip, rest then repeat often. Post once you are home and can update us.

Have you tried a heating pad? Several people have used a heating pad on the areas that are painful, and say it helps tremendously. I used Gas X strips. It does get better. Hang in there, and talk to your doctor tomorrow if they have any other suggestions.

I had the option of RNY or VSG for my revision. Here's some of the reasons why I chose VSG over RNY. 1) RNY malabsorption for calories/fat only lasts 18-24 months, but the malabsorption of Vitamins and micronutrients last a lifetime. 2) I didn't want the remnant stomach left behind which is not easily scoped, but can still develop ulcers. 3) Only 30% of RNY patients dump so for me it wasn't worth it either way. I don't feel like punishing myself for a bad choice is truly going to keep me from eating something that makes me very sick. 4) I had a pouch/stoma combo with the band. It sucks, it's not natural. I was still hungry all the time. 5) The regain stats and RNY patients that seek revisions due to pouch/stoma stretching, or needing malabsorption again, was just down right scary. 6) No rerouting with VSG, and I get to keep my pyloric valve intact. 7) I needed portion control, and to have my ravenous hunger somewhat subdued. The sleeve gave me both. 8) I wanted to eat and live as close to a naturally thin person as I could. I wanted to have the option to eat a balanced, well rounded diet. The food restrictions with RNY weren't for me. I have lost just as much if not more than some RNY patients that started around the same time and with the same pre-op stats. For me, I knew that I didn't need malabsorption to be successful. It's a very personal decision, but for me it was really a no-brainer when I looked at all the pros and cons of both surgeries. Best wishes on your research and decision.

Hi Richard, and welcome. I am excited to follow your journey with the sleeve. This surgery has given me a very fulfilling and rewarding life. Keep posting, and best wishes on losing that 10%. I know you can do it, and update when your surgery date is scheduled. We'll all be scooting over for you on the loser's bench.

I can't believe your date is so close already ! ! ! Good job on the pre-op diet. That's just 10lbs closer to your ultimate goal.

I had a leak 2 days post-revision. I had zero symptoms, and it was found during my final leak test about 2 hours before I was to be discharged. It was immediately repaired. I did have drains, was on TPN via a pic line in my arm, and was restricted from consuming any food/liquids for 22 days. My sleeve has healed nicely, and have had zero complications other than a hospitalization around 6 weeks post-revision due to abscesses in my abdominal and pelvic cavity. They suspect that microscopic bacteria lingered behind, and the abscesses developed slowly over those 6 weeks even though I came home on antibiotics. My leak was repaired with heavy suturing, and I did not have to have a stent placed. Many well wishes for a full recovery. I know how draining, not only physically, but emotionally complications can be.

It is really overwhelming. I've had the band and now the sleeve. Just from my experience, the sleeve is fabulous. I would say to research the good, bad and ugly of the band. I thought I would be one of the lucky ones and beat the statistics with the band. Unfortunately, I only had my band 8 months, and then revised to the sleeve. I do not regret my band decision because it taught me a lot about myself, and my eating habits. But, it damaged my stomach tissue, it was a horrific experience. My quality of life was in the toilet. Here is some interesting information from the band manufacturers. 1 in 4 band patients will have to have another surgery to repair a band issue, or remove it entirely. It now has the lowest and slowest weight loss results. Also, I have never found one band patient that has had their band for at least 10 years without a slip, or other major complication at some point. I did find one patient on OH that has had her band for 9 years, but she is now seeking a revision because of the chronic issues she's struggled with over those years. She had her band replaced once around the 5 or 6 year mark because the band leaked and she lost restriction.

YAY YAY, I'm so glad that you got insurance approval, and you're on your way ! ! !

Many congrats on getting your sleeve scheduled. It really is a wonderful tool. I hope you keep us updated on your progress, and if you need anything don't hesitate to post your questions or concerns, we are here for you ! ! ! Edit to add: I'm only 5'2" and started off at 270. 150 was my goal as well, but my body wanted to lose more. I'm sitting at 123-124lbs this weekend, and I never thought I'd get to 150 let alone down to the 120's. So, your goal is very attainable. Don't sell yourself or the sleeve short on how successful you can be ! ! !

I had my gallbladder removed at 8 months post-sleeve, but started experiencing symptoms that I simply ignored around 6 months out. My surgeon doesn't remove it with surgery because only 1/4 of his patients require gb removal post-op.

As long as you acknowledge that not every sleeve patient loses their hunger, and you find a doctor that within his ethics would perform this surgery, then I wish nothing but the best for you. I still believe that no surgery will cure this compulsive eating, and habits that you seem to want to minimize because you've tried counseling and it didn't work, counseling doesn't cure the disorder, but it gives you coping skills/mechanisms that you can overcome some of the compulsive behavior. I think my biggest concern is that some people do struggle with maintenance. I am one of those people unfortunately. Since you only 30lbs to lose, if you were to lose 60 would you then technically be underweight? I'm not underweight, but I have bones protruding including my ribs, backbones, shoulderblades, wrists and ankles are nothing but bone/skin. It is not something that I recommend anyone having to go through when they slip down into the "too small" zone. It's emotionally and mentally exhausting. I understand being proactive, but I honestly can not imagine having 85% of my stomach removed to lose 30lbs with zero guarantee that I would lose my hunger. Yes, I am one of the fortunate ones that has lost their hunger, but if you stick around, or do more research, you'll find others do not lose it. Also, mentally, the sleeve definitely does not resolve head hunger at all. I'm not trying to discourage you completely, but I think it's only fair that you have a full "eyes wide open" of this surgery, and life post op. It's not easy, it's not a quick fix. Even though you state that you don't want to eat junk food, or suck down a milkshake, unfortunately, you can not predict your behavior until you are faced with the fact that you can not consume 6lbs of broccoli to soothe the hunger, or compulsive desire. If counseling, dieting, and other attempts haven't stopped you from doing this, you could very well find a way to continue this learned behavior with the sleeve.

I'm glad I read this before making these. The humidity here today has been absolutely ridiculous. I'll wait for a better day to try these out.

The super soft paper tape is now my "go to" tape for bandaging.

I'll apologize ahead of time for this lengthy post. You asked for a bunch of information so I'll just try to give a glimpse of what I've done with my sleeve, and my experiences so far. The hair loss is very temporary, and if you take some extra measures, you can actually help the regrowth in most cases. I chose to use Folicure extra care shampoo instead of taking Biotin or another type of hair/nail/skin supplement. I lost hair for 3 months starting around 3.5 months post-op and it ended around 6.5 months post-op. I had new growth coming in before the shedding actually stopped. As for the nausea, I only experienced nausea when on other meds like antibiotics. I also experienced it when I would try a new food that maybe my body wasn't ready for at that time. I stayed on mushy and soft solid food longer than prescribed because it was easier to eat, and I was able to get in my required Protein for the day. As for getting old, you can do some independent research on gastrectomies for other conditions such as stomach cancer and ulcer patients. There are plenty of personal stories out there that show men and women in their late 50's. 60's and 70's that had gastrectomies many decades before and they are not malnourished or withering away. There are even people that thrive when they go through a complete gastrectomy, or complete removal of the entire stomach and a new stomach is made out of remnant intestinal tissue. It's truly amazing how the human body can adjust and thrive even in the most difficult situations. Acid reflux can occur with any of the surgeries. I have several friends in real life with RNY that have acid reflux. But, I take 1/20 mg Prilosec daily and have zero issues with acid. I have zero dumping episodes and eat all kinds of stuff including ice cream, chocolate candies such as Snickers, Heath and Reese's miniatures. I had cheesecake with strawberry topping with zero issues as well. Obviously, I did NOT eat these things while losing. It's only a possible side effect with VSG, and I've only read a couple people talk about it. It doesn't seem to be something that happens chronically with VSG patients. Currently at 11 months out, I can only eat 4-5oz of dense protein with a few bites of veggies per meal. I can eat about a cup of mushy consistency food such as yogurt, chili, mashed potatoes, etc. Because of where I'm at, below goal, I do eat 6-8 times a day. 4 meals at a minimum with 3-4 Snacks. I did not snack during my losing stage. I did not consume more than 30grams of carbs during my losing stage. Others do not watch their carbs and not everyone decides to do the same exact things as the next person. I wanted to maximize my honeymoon phase. I wanted to get to goal quickly. I know it's not a sprint, but I'm not good at endurance races. I ate 4 meals a day during my losing stage, and that was it. I don't throw up. I only vomited early out and it was not often. In my opinion, those of us that had the band first, kind of have the learning curve of the sleeve beat. It was not difficult for me to listen to my body, and not overeat. I found eating with the sleeve much easier than with the band. Of course, the post-op diet and swelling is a quite a bit different, but for me, I found it easier. I literally have zero food intolerances. I eat salad weekly. I eat super crunchy salad not just super soft lettuce. I do eat Pasta, potatoes, rice without any issue as these foods are now slider foods for me. Same goes for chips, crackers, pretzels, so I still have to make the "best choice" when it comes to eating. If I eat all the "bad" stuff, I'll gain weight. None of the surgeries will change that. You can cheat the sleeve just like you can the band, RNY or even the DS. So, making the conscious effort to choose the best options for your meals is essential to success. I eat anywhere between 1500-1800 calories a day with an average of 100grams of carbs, and 100grams of protein. Some days my carbs are higher because I eat more fruits. Some days I only get in 60 grams of protein. I'm trying to maintain at this point so it's quite different than when I was losing. Truly, I do not miss my big stretchy stomach, and the large quantities of food I used to consume. Tonight, I made a fabulous mexican dinner. chicken quesadillas with homemade mexican rice. I ate 1 wedge of a quesadilla (made on the George Foreman grill, with 2-10" tortillas, chicken, onions, green & red peppers, and loads of cheese), and I ate a 1/2 cup of the rice (made with white rice, corn, red/green peppers, black Beans, green chiles & tons of spices). I was completely satisfied. I will probably eat again in about an hour, and have another wedge of a quesadilla and a little more rice. I also added plain non-fat Greek yogurt in place of sour cream. So as you can see, I do not miss anything in my meals. For lunch today, I had 1/2 of a bagel thin sandwich with cream cheese and thin sliced turkey with 10 cheesy poofs. I ate about 1/4 of a large pancake with butter and syrup for Breakfast, had 1/2 granola bar and a 1oz sharp cheddar cheese wedge for a snack, and enjoyed 1/2 apple with some homemade cream cheese fruit dip. I also had 3 miniature Heath candy bars throughout the day when I was out running errands. I eat more junky type food on the weekends. Plus, I think I'm about to start my period, and I eat more junk the week before. Hope this helps. If you have any specific questions, feel free to post here or shoot me a message and I'll help any possible way I can.

YAY YAY I can't believe it's been a year already since we met over on lbtalk. It's been a great year, and I know I would not have been as strong without you in my corner. Thank you and many congrats on your fabulous success ! ! !

I'm allergic to latex, and bandage adhesives. Benadryl cream works fabulously.