Shae

I have not had the opportunity to try out a booth yet but I am sooooo looking forward to it. I went out with some co-workers about 3 months before surgery and was mortified when I had to ask the waitress to reseat us because I couldn't breathe in the booth. I was hanging over the table a good four inches!

Please verify this but I remember reading that compression garments can reduce the amount of loose skin by keeping it from bouncing around while moving around a lot. I wear the "gubby" or high waisted girdle thingy that also goes to a few inches above my knees. I have noticed that I am more "squishy" but I don't have any hanging or wrinkling yet. Shae

Thank you all for the eye openers. I am a strong person and I will get through this rough patch. I am going to have my husband hide the scale for a week so I can quit stressing about it not moving. I am also going to try my best to track what I eat (I am consistently inconsistent) so that I can see if there is a problem or not. Thanks again to all of you. Shae

No no, it was a good cry. A "You are so right" cry that I needed desperately. A "thank you" cry.

Thank you all for the encouragement. I will make some phone calls today to see what help is available and either covered under my insurance or affordable. Lissa, you made me cry! You hit the nail on the head. I am always quick to raise up other people but when it comes to me, I ignore my own words. I have always had issues with self esteem and with "loving myself" which is the reason I reached 258 lbs. I sometimes work so hard to disguise what I truly feel that I successfully hide it from myself, LOL! I have decided that tomorrow I will start on a modified liquid diet (Protein shakes all day and a small meal at night) for a few days to see what happens. I will employ the help of my husband and kids to clear out all the "goodies" (or should that be "baddies") from the kitchen and not to let me see them with it. They are supportive and would gladly do this (I think) at least temporarily. Thanks again to all of you for the encouragement and advice. Shae

Ok. I have a box of 1X, 2X, 22 and 24. Most are tops (winter) and there are 4 or 5 pairs of jeans / pants. My husband's ex-wife brought over some of her stuff and most of what is in the box came from her. I have never sent anything heavy before. Do you know what is the cheapest of USPS, UPS or FedEx? You can PM me with your shipping preference and address. I should be able to mail them out on Tuesday. Shae

I have a few 22's mostly gloria vanderbuilt jeans. I will have to look to see how many pairs and such. Unfortunately, I just got rid of all my 24's and some of the 22's. I am 5'2" so they are either short or average length. I will go through them tonight and get back with you tomorrow. Shae

I am nowhere near goal but I have noticed a difference in myelf. I am more confident and I smile more. I have started pulling my hair back and wearing my jewelry. I walk with more of a sway that I did at my heaviest. Before surgery, God forbid I do anything that caused people to look at me! Now, I don't care so much and I don't feel like everyone is seeing the fat rather than me. My husband married me when I was 15 lbs heavier than I am now. He has called me sexy from day one and even at my heaviest, he couldn't keep his hands off me. My concern in that area, and I have asked him this too, is whether he will still be attracted to me when my weight is in the normal range. His response was so simple but moving at the same time. He said that he is attracted to me regardless of the vessel that houses me. I hope this adds a little perspective for you. I am only at the beginning of my journey (week 7) and I'm sure I will have many more examples in the moths ahead. Shae

I was not prepared for the mental challenges I was initially faced with. I mourned food and went through a grieving / withdrawl process. But I went through it and didn't get stuck on it. I am almost 7 weeks out and still crave things and unfortunately, my appetite has returned. My eyes are still too big for my sleeve but I have learned that it's ok to throw it away. I have always been a "gulper" and this has been the hardest thing for me to stop. If given the opportunity, I would go through it all again, gladly! I feel more in control now than I have ever been. I don't plan my day around when I can eat again. I don't finish Breakfast and start thinking about lunch. I don't worry about whether a chair will hold me or if I will be the largest person in the room. So I guess the answer is yes. I have changed since the sleeve, for the better. I am still me, but improved! Shae

Myth or truth, stalling due to not eating enough calories does occur with a lot of people, myself included. What also makes me stall is not getting enough fruits, veggies, and complex carbs. I understand not being hungry so try this. Rather than a Protein shake, have an egg and a piece of fruit. Or some other combination of a lean protein and a fruit, veggie, or complex carb. Eat only a few ounces total but eat it every 2.5 to 3 hours. Do it for a couple of days and recheck your weight. Another issue you may have is Water retention due to too much sodium in your diet. The Premier Nutrition Protein Shake 30g has 340 mg of sodium. Times two for you so 680 mg. Then the ham is crazy in the sodium dept and cheese usually is too, so if you are having enough to equal 200 cals, then you are probably getting about 500mg there. My doc pre-surgery had me on 700 mg or less per day. You are having around 1,200 mg a day. This can cause problems with blood pressure, headaches, energy levels, swelling, and water retention. The myfitness thing tracks sodium if you tell it to. I hope some of this helps in some way. Shae

Every surgeon is different in the requirements but from what I have learned here, you can expect anywhere from one to five nights depending on the surgeon, insurance, how you are doing, etc. My hospital stay was two nights and I was sleeved at a military hospital. Your surgeon should be able to give you a better idea of what he/she requires. I did hear from a friend of a friend that someone they know had it done on an outpatient basis but I don't know if I believe that or not. I know the LapBand can be done outpatient but I don't think the sleeve can be since it is so much more involved. I hope this helps. Shae

I had some recent NSV's that I want to share: 1. My husband and I frequently take a shower together to save time (busy, busy). In the past, he had to hold on to me to switch places. Yesterday, we swapped places and didn't even touch!!! I was so excited because for the first time I didn't have to worry that I would make him fall out of the shower! 2. I can wear my wedding set again. Tearing up on that one because it's been over two years since it started cutting into my finger and I had to take it off (almost had to have it cut off). 3. A co-worker whispered that I have diaper butt in these JEANS and should probably consider not wearing them again. My only complaint is that the scale has not moved since Nov. 28. Still fluxuating between 215.4 and 215.8. At least it's not going up!! I'm sure it will change soon though. Shae

My first stop after leaving the exam room would have been at the front desk demanding to speak with the surgeon. I would have let him know all and I mean ALL of the detrimental things this lowlife jealous piece of crap of a person said to me and tell him that I will not have her speak to me ever again!!!! You employ these people and as such, you do not have to take any of their idiocy! My mother is a nurse and she has fired subordinate nurses for this type of unprofessionalism. This is unacceptable. Ok, done with the anger over what happened to you. Now, you have lost 94 lbs in 5 months??? That is PHENOMINAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I wish I could come close to that average. Do you realize that that equates to 19 lbs per month, 4.4 lbs per week, and 0.6 lbs per day!!

I'm about 6 weeks out and so far my sleeve loves everything except raw carrots (first and only hard raw veggies) and Reese's Peanut butter cups (second candy, M&M's were ok (only had 3)).

I have experienced this too. I am not a big sweets person either but when I want something, I want it. So I decided to have a few bites of a reese peanut butter cup... I was taking my time and about half way through, I started feeling really bad, sweating, nauseated, shaking, and just all around yuck! Lesson Learned!

I am in the same situation here at my office. Every day at lunch people start heating things up. I work with a bunch of guys so they don't really care what they eat because they burn it fast. I have to smell things like lasagna, hamburgers, BBQ, pizza, etc, etc. I hear them crunching ships, popcorn, nuts. I sit here and eat my tuna or chicken and veggies (not ready for raw yet). It's not easy but I try to just think about how their insides must look eating all that junk because I have always been told that "skinny" people get fatty organs when they eat that way. Another trick I like to use is seasoning. You can make chicken taste like just about anything with the right seasoning. Ground beef too. Try out different seasonings and see if you can get the flavors you crave without working against your sleeve. As far as the sweets, I had three (yep, one, two, three) M&M's and was hyper for about two and a half hours. I think I started about 10 projects around the house for no reason and never even got close to finishing them. The next day I had to clean up my project messes. It's not worth it to me. Others say they don't have a taste for things anymore. So maybe you could take a bite to see if it tastes as good as you think it will. My guess is that it won't. Shae

My doc said that if my GERD got worse because of the sleeve then the resolution is the bypass so I would say that yes, they can revise to a bypass. I also thought that the sleeve would be magical in that it would take away my constant physical hunger. It did up until about a week ago. I have days where I can almost finish a whole chicken breast with no issues at all and be hungry an hour and a half later. I am snacking, topping off, and grazing too. I catch myself doing it and stop but it's almost subconsious. My husband will point it out too which makes me mad at the moment but I thank him later. (Thankfully he knows it my food addiction talking at the moment and not me.) I feel hungry again just like I did pre-op and I hate it. GB would not solve this for me because my body just produces too much Ghrelin and too little Leptin (I think that's the one that gives the not hungry signal). I did notice one thing you said in your last post that you may need to rethink. You called beeing sleeved a diet. Diet to me means that I have to deprive myself. It's not a diet, it's a lifestyle change. Change your thinking and this may help. It's sort of like the difference between visiting another town and actually living in that other town. Visiting means you're going back home whereas living there means an adjustment to your lifestyle. I hope this helps. Shae

I am early on in my journey as well but I would say that you havee to look inside and remember what made you want to lose the weight in the first place. Why did you choose to have surgery and remembering how good you felt when you started seeing results in the mirror and on the scale will help snap you back to reality. What some of us lose track of is that we are human. We are prone to failure and more importantly, we are determined to pursue our dreams. You have to realize that your current path is destructive, which you already have. Then you need to resolve to change it. Then you need to take action to change it. Force yourself to do liquids for a preset amount of time. Put a rubber band on your wrist and snap it hard when you catch yourself cheating. (Or something like this.) Then even if you feel like crap, make yourself exercise for at least 30 mins a day (nothing heavy, just walk or something). Get back into a routine. Clean out the cabinets and fridge of your trigger foods and stay away from Starbucks and fast food chains. Buy a pair of jeans two sizes smaller and hang them up somewhere where you can see them daily or even a few times a day. You can do this! You had what it takes to lose 58 lbs, so you have what it takes to lose the rest!! Shae

My worst habit is still grazing. I do it almost subconsiously and catch myself sometimes. Like a moth to a flame. Another bad habit I still have is actually the lack thereof. I barely am able to drink a 20 oz Powerade Zero in a day. I do drink coffee in the morning and some days I have a juice box but I just am not thirsty. I eat too fast. I have the small bowls that are 1/2 cup total capacity (liquid) and I only eat out of these so I don't overeat. Sometimes it is hard not to go get more because I still feel hungry. I suck at exercising. I am consistently inconsistent! I will have weeks where I walk at lunch every day and hit the treadmill at night. Then I have weeks where I do nothing. I know I probably have many more but these are all I can think of right now. Shae

Have you tried Flintstones? They are milder and taste just like I remember :biggrin5: . Maybe they would also be easier on your sleeve. There are also gummy Vitamins and I even saw gum that released the vitamins as you chew it (sounds pretty gross to me). A lot of times you can ask manufacturers for a sample of their product and they will mail it to you so that you don't spend a fortune on vitamins you can't take. I hope this helps...

I had my surgery at the hospital on base so it didn't go against my TriCare Prime. As far as I know they have not started covering it. You can also call and ask what type of weight loss surgery they do cover. Be careful how you ask because if you ask if they cover the sleeve, they will say yes. They cover gastric banding and sleeve plic...ation (cant remember what its called). Just let them tell you what they cover. If there is a military treatment facility around you somewhere, you should check to see if they have a general surgery department where they might do the sleeve. Good luck!

Ok, I am getting frustrated by this because I can't seem to find a pattern and correct what's happening. Lately I have been really hungry one day and then the next day I have to practically force myself to eat a few bites. I get the shakes before I even feel hungry. Yesterday was a hungry day. It seemed like I was hungry every hour or so. I tried to just be hungry but my sleeve gets pi$$ed if it is empty for too long. It will double me over (I am on Nexium for the acid). I was able to eat half of a chicken breast plus peas and Edimame Beans (about 1/4 cup). An hour and a half later I was hungry and finished off the chicken. It was like this all day. If I were still tracking I would guess that I had roughly 1,200 calories yesterday easily. Today, not so much. It is 12:30 pm and I have had the following: 1 hard boiled egg, 1 small (finger sized) strip of grilled chicken, and two baby spoons of spinach. I have been up since 4:30 this morning. I had to force myself to eat the egg and then the chicken and spinach. I'm just not hungry and a very small amount fills me up today. Ok, so what the heck? Your sleeve capacity cannot change from day to day can it? How can I go to bed feeling hungry and wake up feeling full? I thought that maybe it was a difference in Water intake. No, I never drink the amount I am supposed to. I am lucky if I finish a single 20 oz Powerade zero on any given day. My urine is almost clear so I guess I am getting enough fluids (I'm also almost never thirsty). I thought it had something to do with whether or not I had a BM that day too. No again. I have one almost every day and still fluctuate my hunger. Any ideas? It's miserable to be hungry all day long one day and anorexic feeling the next. Shae

Hmm, you have your work cut out for you! I do the following: Nexium in the morning with the smallest sip I can take and still get it down. Nothing for an hour or so after. Luckily, I take the Nexium when I get out the shower and then I get to work an hour after that so that is when I take my chewable Flinstones and eat Breakfast. With my mid morning snack, I have a Viactive calcium chew. At lunch I have a chewable Vitamin C. Then with my afternoon snack I have another Viactive. I sip Water between all of those, by the way. I don't take anything at dinner but just before bed, I have a small (2 to 3 bites) snack and take the rest of my pills over the course of about 10 mins. The reason is that all are prescriptions and three of them make me nauseous. One makes me sleepy so that I sleep through the nausea. It works for me this way. The challenge is to find what works for you. It took me three weeks or so to figure out this system. Good luck!

Cottage cheese too is a good source. You can make it taste sweet or savory depending on your tastes (Google some recipes). I agree with the deli meats and cream cheese - those are yummy! Keep us updated. I wish you the best because I know that the first few weeks are tough. I'm just under 6 weeks out and it has gotten easier for me so there is a light at the end of the tunnel...

Do you know what ingredient in the Protein shakes that you are allergic to? There are a lot of protein powders out there that you could try if it is an ingredient only found in the pre-made ones. Can you eat eggs? pureed Soups? Maybe some well cooked red potatoes (complex carbs) or overcooked mushy carrots with a little chicken broth added for flavor? You are only two weeks out so don't worry with the scale right now or you'll drive yoursel batty. Just focus on getting in the Water (fluids) and the protein. If you know what it is that causes the allergic reaction, that would be helpful. What happens when you drink one, if I may ask? Shae