HatheryOnHerWay

My surgeon told me to let them fall off on their own. I'd be hesitant to pull them off before they're ready because you might interrupt the newly forming tissue.

I hope to one day be satisfied with a 6" sub....I used to be able to eat a footlong sub, chips, a cookie, a large soda, and I'm sure I probably could even stuff in another footlong sub if I wanted to. My stomach must have been the size of a soccerball. haha

I just bought the Walgreens brand liquid vitamin. It's about $9 for a 2-week supply and tastes like cherry.

Sounds like things are progressing nicely for you! I hate that head hunger while I'm watching TV. I never noticed how darn many food commercials there were until I had my surgery!!

My advice would be to do Medifast--I was very successful losing weight that way, and it comes off pretty quickly. Worked really well for me since I wasn't capable of making good choices with "regular food". You just eat 5 of their meals (shakes, bars, soups, oatmeal, etc.) and 1 "regular" lo-carb meal per day. I lost about 2-3 pounds per week.

Another thing I feel like saying is....why do I have to be a martyr? I've tried and failed so many times doing it the "hard way". Have I not earned the right to succeed? Why can it only be considered a success if it's done the "hard way"? I think it all boils down to people not understanding obesity as a disease. Thinking we're just lazy people who need to buckle down and pull ourselves up by the bootstraps. What they don't understand is the mental aspect that cannot be overcome quite so easily...the physical part is easy.

I forgot to mention....I did have a horrific bout of diarrhea at the airport (in the bathroom! hehe), and was terrified it would happen again on the plane. Mercifully it did not

See you on the sleeved side!

I told my boss that I am having a weight loss procedure and I didn't want anyone else in the office to know. I told her that I appreciated her discretion, and she's not said a word to anyone. If you're not comfortable disclosing that it's WLS, you could certainly just say you're having a personal medical procedure done and you'd like it kept between you and her.

I never understand this "easy route" business. If you have a choice between doing something the easy way or the hard way, why would you choose the hard way?!?

I flew from New Orleans to Atlanta, then Atlanta to Wisconsin. Honestly, my flight home was no worse than my flight there. I just kept the seatbelt low and tried to sleep as much as I could on the flight.

Any way you look at it, it's STILL a LOT of money. My self-pay was more than that, but so far worth every penny! Too bad insurance companies don't just realize if they covered WLS fully, they could prevent a lot of claims down the road..

Agh, waiting for return phone calls is the worst! Did you tell the staff that she's not returning your calls and you would like to speak to someone else? I imagine you're feeling pretty anxious now that you've been approved!

Holy skinny! You look amazing!

Haha, I saw your Subject line and I thought you had found a really great self-pay price and were excited! :)

And I love your profile photo! Foxy!

I, too, am a bit confused as to what constitutes a "meal"

What a great wedding present to you!

I puked up everything I tried to drink for the first 2 days--unfortunately, it's normal

That's how I felt--I'm turning 30 this year, so it will be a pretty nice 30th birthday present to myself !

When someone I don't care to speak with about the subject asks "How much have you lost", I say "Not enough." That usually gives them the hint I"m not getting into specifics with them.

I had my gallbladder taken out after losing 100 pounds on Medifast. My first attack, I thought I was going to die. Some people are lucky enough to only ever have one attack, but I had them on and off during 2012 until I finally told them to just take the dang thing out!

My extreme nausea lasted about 3 days. Then the next day I woke up and felt fine. You'll be ok

I was just thinking about this last night, and was curious...once your stomach is fully healed, is it still possible to develop strictures or leaks? Since you still have the staples inside of you, I suppose you'd still have some "weak spots" in your stomach.

You could try thinning down your protein shakes a little more. I find they settle better with the new tummy when they're thinner. Don't taste as good, but small price to pay for no tummy ache