BlackBerryJuice

No, my mother (who's the same size I was before the surgery) already got dibs on all my fat clothes....lol. Plus all I really wore at my biggest were yoga pants/capris and skirts with stretchy waistbands! I can still wear most of these 40 lbs down, although I think 10 lbs from now, they'll be way too loose.

ROFL! There's no history of breast cancer in my family, so I'm not terribly worried. The doc thinks it's most likely a fibroadenoma. The only issue would be if it decided to grow bigger and turn into a tennis ball-sized thing.

I have, actually! However, I'm also approaching 26, and your skin starts to age and lose elasticity around 25, so I don't know how much of it is from VSG and how much from just normal aging. I'm mostly getting a lot of fine lines under my eyes and on my forehead.

Have any of you noticed changes in your breast tissue after the surgery (other than loss of size, obviously)? My breasts became super-nodular, almost like a bag of grain or something. I went to get this lump checked out today and the doc actually decided to order an ultrasound, and she also said she felt that my breasts were very nodular. I was thinking maybe it's something to do with hormonal changes due to rapid fat loss, since fat makes a form of estrogen?

Sweet! The new format was also slowing down my computer, now it's back to normal!

Some commentary and follow-up from the magazine on Jezebel: http://jezebel.com/5674577/marie-claire-responds-to-fatties-controversy

Great message! I knew I'd get some good proactive response once I linked that article here.

BTW, gotta love her response to Peffermintchili...."I really do not hate fat people." (*I just call them fatties and cringe when I see them walk around and do not want to ever see them*) URGH.

Quick thoughts before this fatty dashes off to ballet class (although fat people shouldn't be allowed to do ballet, right?): 1) I agree that this article went through several reviewers before it was published and even though there's always the "the author's opinion does not represent the views of *insert media outlet*," the simple fact that they opted to print it showed that they thought it was NOT in terrible taste. I pointed this out in my e-mail to the editor. 2) We are not even the minority anymore! Isn't 70% of America overweight or obese at this point? 3) There are definitely people there who lack education and do not believe in WLS, etc. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion and we need to do our part to educate them. However, there's a line between not agreeing with WLS and speculating that fat people can lose weight with diet and exercise VS being vocal and offensive. One of the comments on the article called her a bully, and I think it's a very accurate description. Honestly, when I saw the word "fatty," I couldn't believe my eyes. Is this elementary school? I like to use the word "fat" in relation to myself to make people uncomfortable with the definition of the word and to take away the social stigma, but it's very much maligning coming out of her mouth.

An exact quote, no less. Was said the day I flew to Mexicali...good thing Dr. Aceves' staff gives you Ativan the night before, I certainly needed one.

It's still a challenge, but it's a lot easier. I spend lots of time studying on the computer, and in the past I'd munch on something every 2 hours. I just try to drink lots of tea and snack on healthy things. Apple slices are my favorites right now, as it's apple season. It's pretty hard to eat a LOT mindlessly - you'll be full fast - so unless you are going for slider foods, it probably won't do much damage. I just consciously choose things that I know will fill me up and aren't too high in calories (which means avoiding nuts in front of the computer, for example). It requires paying some attention to things, but like I said, it's much easier than it was before the surgery.

http://www.marieclaire.com/sex-love/dating-blog/overweight-couples-on-television It's actually titled "Should Fatties Get a Room?" (yes, you read that right!) It was linked on a medical obesity blog I follow regularly. The physician referred to it as "the most vile article about the obese I have ever read." Please peruse the comments, too, there's quite a few. I've already sent an e-mail to the editor (JoannaColes at hearst com), so if you are as riled up as I was, do that - and post a comment, as well, as the author's been offering half-assed apologies after the backlash.

Laptop with cord (install Skype or some other voice chat to save $ on phone calls!), books, magazines, stuffed animal, some sort of crafts (e.g. knitting), Spanish dictionary if you're heading to Mexico - might not be necessary, but why not improve your Spanish while there?

Haha, I didn't actually buy them - my boyfriend got them as a gag gift when he left his previous job. He's not overweight, but is a major junk food lover, so I confiscated them from him and am keeping them in my house and doling out one candy bar at a time. I did buy myself some dark chocolate and have been enjoying it responsibly - 2 squares a day once every few days. I find milk chocolate too sweet for me these days - and I used to dislike dark chocolate!

Check out a specialty fish store or an Asian supermarket in your area - they will often carry frozen sashimi-grade fish. It's much more affordable than going out to eat and you can cut however many servings you want with a warm knife and put the rest back in the freezer.

....have been in my house, UNTOUCHED, for nearly a month. Odds of this happening before the surgery? ZERO.

I think it's normal to be more worried for other people than for yourself! My mother is obese and has changed her views on the VSG 180 degrees since I got it. It went from "YOU ARE GOING TO DIE ON THE OPERATING TABLE IN MEXICO AND YOUR LIFELESS BODY WILL BE DISMEMBERED AND FED TO DOGS" to constant questioning about how much weight I've lost and compliments on my recent photos. She lives far away and this winter will be the first time I travel there and see her in 1.5 years. I'm starting to suspect she might become interested in getting this surgery, and when I imagine that possibility, I also feel quite worried about her. She's also become hypertensive lately, even though she exercises regularly and while she's obese, I venture her BMI is only in the 34-35 range (same as mine before the surgery), so for someone who's not even 50 yet, it's a bit worrisome. But then I think of 2 important things: 1) the sicker the obese or overweight individual, the more they are going to benefit from losing weight 2) my mother's gone through 2 childbirths, mine being very difficult, and did just fine in the end, so I'm sure she'd handle a laproscopic surgery done by an experienced surgeon such as Dr. Aceves at a top-notch facility.

I think I had some about 3 weeks out. Went down very well. It's a great source of protein and healthy fats! I enjoy sashimi and sushi several times a week.

Woah there! Did you have a purging problem before? Of all times, this is probably the worst to be purging - strains your stomach and could result in a leak. Not to mention purging is just horrible for you in every aspect. I battled with bulimia in my teens, so I know where you're coming from. Purging ruins your teeth, makes you bloated, results in popped blood vessels in your face and eyes, and can result in very serious consequences - most notably, esophageal tears (which could result in bleeding to the point of unconsciousness/death within minutes) and cardiac arrest from electrolyte imbalances. And that's for an otherwise healthy person who didn't have 85% of her stomach removed and a staple line running through the rest! I think you need to notify your surgeon ASAP (my surgeon specifically asked about my bulimia history in detail, as he wouldn't operate on someone who hasn't been in recovery for a long time because it's so dangerous for sleeve patients) AND get a counselor; if I were you, I'd even ask for a referral to a psychiatrist who specializes in eating disorders - although they are tough to come by. But you would definitely be considered an emergency case, so you might get in quickly before you ruin your sleeve.

I weigh myself daily. You have to be comfortable with the idea of maybe gaining a pound for a day or two once in a while though (due to water retention or constipation). If you are not, maybe you're better off doing it every couple of days.

It depends. I feel like I have 3 stages of fullness. 1 - I feel satisfied but feel like I could eat another bite or two (learning to stop here - with some hits and misses). 2 - very full and sleepy. 3 - flat out uncomfortable (heart racing, feeling flushed, etc) - this only tends to happen if I eat overly fast. I still find myself at 2 fairly often. The tricky part is each of these stages is literally ONE BITE away from the other. It's a learning process.

I went through the same phase. It was actually nice to get that out of my system. A few days before the surgery, I happened upon a bunch of free KitKat bars and was so sick of sweets, I didn't even want them anymore. I did pack on another 5-8 lbs thanks to my eating in the 2 months preceding the surgery, but that added maybe another week to my weightloss journey, at the most. The first 20 lbs came off extremely fast. I didn't have to do a pre-op diet as I had a lower BMI, so I didn't beat myself up about it too much.

I was only really weak during the first month, when I could eat very little and most of it was liquids. I'm 2.5 months out and have just as much energy as I did before - that is, when I wasn't 200+. I definitely have MORE energy than when I was 200+ and was eating a ton! To give you an idea, my boyfriend and I go to bootcamp 3 days a week and once a week I have 3 hours of dance classes in a row. We also often do something active on the weekend - today we hit the weights and I also ran/walked for 30 minutes. Then we went shopping after, which can also be tiring. Full disclosure - I don't eat 500 calories, I'm more in the 1000-1200 range (doesn't seem to affect my weightloss rate).

I'm a full-time medical student and had the surgery 3 weeks before classes started. The first 2 weeks, I definitely wouldn't have been up to studying, at least not in the amount we have to do. But after 3 weeks I was fine.

I definitely am not hunger-free after my sleeve. I still feel hunger (real hunger, not head hunger) 3-4 hours after I eat, depending on what I had and how much. Yesterday I was at the clinic all day and didn't have time to eat for about 5 hours in a row....I definitely felt it. Even if I didn't have belly hunger, I was definitely starting to get a bit of a headache, probably from low blood sugar, so I would've noticed it either way. I would say, however, that 1) that hunger is less intense than the kind I had before surgery - it's a lot easier for me to make healthy choices when I'm hungry 2) I get satisfied much faster. So yeah, I'll feel hungry, but it's not as bad, and once I've had a protein bar, I'm good to go - whereas before the surgery I would've needed much more food.