Tiffykins

I was cleared at 4ish months out, I think. My surgeon warned me to avoid red wines (there's actually a member here that explained the tannic acid/pH in red wine can irritate a newer sleeve), and to drink at home first to see how it would affect me. The first time I drank I was passed goal, and I had one glass of a light Riesling. It hit me hard and fast, then I sobered up pretty fast. Now that I'm almost 17 months out, I drink on a more than social occasion, I have a few drinks a month, one to two a week sometimes, in my social circle I'm known as the "afternoon cocktail girl". I lost my taste for red wine completely, drink rum/cokes when I go out to the bars, and for my afternoon cocktails, I prefer strawberry or raspberry mojitos or bellinis. Some people choose to drink sooner, but try to remember, it's just wasted calories for the day. If you're calorie/protein/carb focused, then make sure you track those calories and drink plenty of Water to avoid dehydration. One thing I can say is that my alcohol tolerance has returned to what it was pre-op. I'm not sure that's a great thing, but alcohol no longer hits me hard and fast, I'm able to catch and maintain a decent buzz, and have tied a few one on special occasions. Plus, I haven't had a real hangover since surgery which is a HUGE plus ! ! !

It's not really an acid reflux feeling when we talk about the false hunger. Our stomachs immediately post-op does not realize that it doesn't need to make the same amount of acid for the big stomach that was there pre-VSG. For me, when I hit mushies, I would eat and then this weird twinge, gnawing feeling in my stomach about an hour after I ate, talked to some vets, and they told me it was "false hunger" because of acid. I've been on Prilosec since then and have zero intentions of going off of it anytime soon. I've told myself that I'd wean off of it, but when something isn't broken, why fix it? I'd rather take a Prilosec every day of my life than deal with reflux, or worse, Barrett's Esophagus. I know a couple of people that have been successful weaning off their acid reducer, others aren't so lucky and have to stay on their PPI, then there is those of us out there that aren't willing to deal with any of the symptoms so we still pop our little PPI and go about our happy little lives. I don't think I'll ever go off of it to be honest, maybe I'll try weaning off at my 18 month check up, but I highly doubt it LOL. I'm a little spoiled to my routine, no reflux, no hunger, I'll take the Prilosec every day if that's what I get. The long term side effects are so minimal for my age group, and I make sure to take my Calcium citrate, that I'm not overly concerned about taking a PPI. As for the hormones/depression thing, I didn't get depressed, I got pretty pissy, and grumpy. It was like PMS times 1000, and my poor family caught the brunt of it. I was pissed off at the world, and didn't really have a reason to be mad, but I was. It did get better once I slowed my weight loss down.

Congrats Kathy ! ! ! I'd be finding me a new ob/gyn after those little comments, but you're right, it's only once a year, and if he's a douchebag next year, I'd toot in his face ha ha ha (okay just kidding, t's a little ob/gyn humor) ! ! ! Glad you're labs are so fabulous, I started eating more seafood and my good cholesterol went up too woot woot ! ! !

I promise it won't even seem like an eternity before you can have bits and pieces of your favorites. You're doing something absolutely amazing, and I promise missing out on those fattening, icky meals for a couple of months is totally worth it. One of the most surreal moments during my losing stage was realizing that I was enjoying the experience of a dinner out with my family instead of worrying about what I could order and stuff myself with off the menu, and steal off the kiddos the plate. It was amazing to just sit there, eat until I was satisfied, and enjoy the company and conversation with my family. The other great thing was realizing that I wasn't missing out on anything even during the losing stage because I was so focused on protein, and feeding my body for maximum burn, that food is now fuel, and my body runs better when I feed it good quality foods. You'll love seeing the pounds drop, the inches shrink, and all the perks that come with weight loss to even realize that you can't eat all those foods that us to the point of having surgery.

I really do not feel my "best" when I eat junk food. It tastes great, but it leaves me feeling listless, and just kind of blah. If I eat full fat/sugar ice cream, I pretty much have to sleep it off because it hits me so hard. Fried foods get me too. . . I now know why naturally "fit" and healthy eaters feel so great. It's mainly when I overindulge in something, and I sure do wish things that weren't so great for me tasted horrible still. My tastes buds reverted back to their pre-op food lusting glory! ! !

Y'all know it's tough for me to pass up a photo whoring opportunity LOL We had our 2nd annual Halloween bash with my husband's squadron, and we went as a family of pirates ! ! ! Me and the mister (sorry it's blurry, damn IPHone camera when a 12 yr old is working the camera) That is NOT skin or fat above my belt by my left hand, it's just the shirt material LOL I don't want y'all thinking I'm THAT flabby ! ! ! Me and the kiddo

Sooooooooooooooo, it's been awhile since I've posted. We're still trying to conceive, I'm still living a kickass life, and really everything is going fabulous. My business has taken off, I'm making money, earning free jewelry, enjoying a very active social calendar, and truly just living every day to the fullest ! ! ! Thought I'd share a pic, the quality sucks, thank you iPhone camera without a flash ! ! ! We went to Halloween party last night, I dressed up for the first time in the last decade. I had a blast, John stayed sober to be DD, and I rocked out all night long. Beer pong is not a game for sissies ! ! ! "Why, yes that is a sheer skirt with leggings and fishnets in hooker boots ha ha ha! ! !" That was asked last night because no one had ever seen me dressed like that, least to say, we had a fabulous night ! ! !

SO, I've updated my avatar, profile picture, and some customizations, but none of them are showing up. Is there a delay in the updating now? Thanks ! ! !

It happened to me with my band just randomly. My surgeon's recommendation is to stick with full liquids for a day to allow the swelling to subsides, and allow your stomach to relax after overeating. I agree gas could be the culprit as well so be kind to your sleeve today, and fill it with liquids today. Warm liquids always made me feel better.

I was the same way pre-op, and I think I never realized it because I ate so damn much every day of the month. I get ravenous carb cravings my actual ovulation week, and the week of my period. I've paid for it this month as I've packed on a whole whopping 6 lbs, I dropped 4 of those pounds, but I carb loaded 2 weeks ago, and I felt horrible. Plus, I was super busy and just eating junk on the run. I know these last 2 pounds are essentially water weight, and it'll go away here in a couple of days, but my cravings are pretty crazy during that ovulation week. I don't get them the week before my period starts, but during my cycle, I feel like I'm raiding the fridge like it's my last meal. When I reached goal, I did start allowing myself a treat here and there, I think even in my losing stage around Halloween last year, I did have a few little miniature candies. It was easier back then to just have a couple than it is to just have a few now. I have to have more self-control now than I ever did during the first 6-8 months post-op. Have a piece of chocolate chickee, you deserve it ! ! ! Since you can't get lovin', you need chocolate or you're gonna go crazy. . .

It is a big change, but if you can think of it this way; What is truly more scary? The dietary changes (that are only temporary because after the initial post-op diet, you really can eat your favorites again, just in smaller portions), a little loose skin, an hour long surgery, or stay FAT for the rest of your life. For me, all of the obesity related conditions and diseases were far more frightening than the actual surgery. I didn't want to be on 4-5 different medications to treat hypertension, diabetes and the other long list of conditions that can develop with a BMI of nearly 50. I was scared too, it's normal. If you have access to a therapist through your program, start talking to someone now, work through these issues before you have surgery. I lost 145lbs, and honestly I do not have hoards of loose skin, yeah I'm flabby but I also haven't worked out in almost 7 months. If you're not ready mentally and emotionally, don't schedule the surgery until you are 100% ready. Keep reading, do some soul searching, and if you have questions, ask us. We're here for you! ! ! My favorite new mantra is; "nothing tastes as good as being thin feels".

It's too close to the Rose and Stomaphyx procedure for me to believe that it'll work long term.

FABULOUS RESULTS ! ! ! I can totally see all the inches that have melted off of y'all. . . Many congrats and cheers to your success! ! !

Yep, put the scale away if you logically know you'll lose weight. All the stress over the scale will do nothing positive for you. Focus on your intake, exercise, and don't fret. You'll lose the weight, and you'll be successful, you just have to remember, we didn't get fat overnight and we're not going to get skinny overnight.

I saved an old pair of my fat slacks because I wanted to have this picture for the sake of being able to say I could this: Yep, that's me standing in one pant leg of my old pants ! ! ! I've since donated all my old clothes to the woman's shelter and Goodwill.

You're amazing ! ! ! I remember when you first joined, and started your journey. . . I'm super proud of your progress, and love hearing all of your successes! ! !

In all honesty, I attribute 90% of my success to not making excuses well and losing my hunger really helped ha ha ha. Yes, the post-op diet sucks royally, but you know what, it's just a temporary phase. I stuck to the dietary guidelines per my surgeon. 600-800 calories, no more than 30gr of carbs, lots of fluids, 60+grams of Protein, NO SNACKING. 4 meals that consisted of a minimum of 15gr of protein per meal was my guideline and I stuck to it. No alcohol until I was close to goal. No soda until I was at goal. No b.s.'ing my way through it. I couldn't work out for nearly 4 months post-op due to complications, but of course I walked as much as I could. The one thing I really think you have to do is set your goal, find what works for you, follow your surgeon's guidelines, and don't be negative. There will be struggles and challenges, but the victories and successes will outweigh them 10 fold.

There are tons of recipes on the net that you can find with specific foods, and ingredients. I use www.allrecipes.com for all of my recipes. Anything that calls for sour cream, I use non-fat plain greek yogurt to cut calories, and fat, and up Protein. I changed our entire menu/family dinners/meals when I had surgery. My husband is the furthest thing from picky, and my son is halfway picky, but they both learned real quick "eat what is prepared and be grateful, or eat a Peanut Butter jelly sandwich and shut up." It's funny what happens when you stop giving options/choices, and tell them this is dinner, enjoy or make your own. Rough, I know, but I wasn't going to cater to anyone. You can cook shepherds pie, cut the recipe in half, and you eat the meat mixture. If you have a crock pot, there are tons of recipes on allrecipes for delish crock pot meals, and you can put in there what both of you like, he can pick out what he doesn't like, and you eat the parts you can. Best thing with crock pots, you can toss frozen chicken in there and it comes out perfect every time. I love making shredded barbque (from a roast) in the crock pot. The guys can eat barbque sandwiches on Kaiser rolls, I can eat the meat, I can make them some baked fries, and I can make me some baked sweet potato fries. I've posted tons of recipes in the recipe forum that you can adjust to your preferences. Tell him to eat some veggies, his colon will thank him immensely ! ! !

Protein bars typically have a lot of carbs as well which in my opinion isn't worth it. You can find a few out there, but if the protein count wasn't 3-5 times that of the carb count, I thought it was wasted space in my sleeve that I could eat some meat. My surgeon is not an advocate of using protein drinks/supplements/bars at all. Of course, during the liquid post-op period it's needed, but once we get to food, he wants all protein to be from food sources. Don't fret, increase your Fluid intake, change things up, increase your activity, and things will shift. Even in maintenance, I bounce up and down 2-4lbs every couple of days. It's Water weight, and it will go away.

I know a lot of women that have had surgery (some type not VSG) during pregnancy, even early on before a test could pick it up and they all delivered healthy, thriving babies.. For us, getting out of ketosis is essential so eat carbs, get in your vitamins and fluids. Ketosis can cause fetal brain damage, and you just aren't going to be able to worry about weight loss right now. The baby will take what it needs from your body so you need to feed your body so it can sustain itself during the pregnancy. Best wishes, and congratulations ! ! !

It's the WINE margarita I had today at lunch LOL ! ! ! Seriously, a wine based margarita, I thought I was going to dry hump the bartender, and he wasn't even good-looking. I don't think I've ever had a more yummy drink. Plus, the rim of the glass was SUGARED, not salted.

I'm being totally careless this holiday season. I was heavy into my losing stage this time last year, and fought to get to goal before Jan 1. This year, I'm going to indulge in all the yummies at least 1 day for each holiday. I'm not going to avoid any foods this holiday season, but I'm not going to eat way off my normal plan. I figure I'll give myself one day for Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and the cocktails on NYE will be enough.

With the changes to Tricare (Prime) for fertility, and other "elective" procedures due to Obamacare that went into effect 10 September 2010, I'm not holding my breath for Tricare to pick it up this fiscal year.

YAY YAY Chickee, I never doubted for a moment that you wouldn't make it ! ! !

That is EFFIN' A M A Z I N G ! ! !