Becca

Couple of weeks after my surgery, a friend's mom literally verbally lashed out at me at a dinner at their house. I simply mentioned I had weightloss surgery done in Mexico, and she was extremely rude with comments such as "One of my friends had weightloss surgery and she DIED within a year! DIED!!!" I don't remember the other ones, but that's the one that stuck with me as extremely inappropriate. It was literally a barrage of insults. I didn't have to respond to any of it as she stormed out of the room. TBH, I think she has a drinking problem and she was super-cranky that day, so I suspect she wasn't all there mentally. But still, how outrageously rude!
P.S. Saw her about a month ago, having lost >60 lbs - not a WORD about how I look, btw.

Amen BlackBerry!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Kelly

One of the ladies I work with was trying to convince me this is the wrong surgery for me (she was for the lapband but nothing else). So she says "Dawn, The stomach is a vital organ!" and I replied "Actually you can live without it entirely". And she replied "But it's important to digestion." and I said "I agree, that's why I"m not getting a bypass".
It was funny and she meant well. Several people were uncomfortable with the idea of me having surgery but it all came from concern for my well being. For the most part everyone's been supportive. (less than 48 hours til surgery!)

Yay! We really need to get a Houston support group going! You will love the sleeve.

SN............Starting Wt....Current...........Goal.....Lbs to Goal
Becca.........215..............194................195................0...

I made it to my goal this time! One-derland is a great place to be.

I LOVE my sleeve and this great forum for all of the support!

Happy Easter Everyone!

Hi Everyone!
I just wanted to share my progress so far with my sleeve. I started my weight loss journey with a lapband at 286 pounds. My band leaked, slipped, and broke apart in my body. No fun and it never really worked. I had my revision to the sleeve on December 27, 2010. One of the best days of my life! So far, I am down 47 pounds in three and a half months. I feel amazing and I am so happy! A few recent NSVs. I made it to ONE-DERLAND! I went to a wedding, was gone for a weekend with no calorie or carb counting, and I LOST two pounds. I have to shop in the "normal" section of the store and I still can't believe it! Sleeve life is great! Don't hesitate if you are thinking of having the surgery. I LOVE the sleeve and you will too. I can't wait to finish my journey and make it to my goal. Here is a before and after pic.

I had the same issues with food. With the sleeve, it really does change how you feel towards food. I was addicted to food before VSG (even the lapband couldn't change this). With the ghrelin reduced, I just don't feel controlled by food anymore. My tastes have changed as well and I don't really want "bad" foods. If I go out to eat, I share or just order something small. I sip my Water while everyone else finishes. I am happy about this. I love not stuffing myself with food! You will do great, so no worries. Good luck!

Good luck! I am not too far (Houston). You will do great.

Thanks everyone for the nice and supportive comments! Just a note on the pain, I was a revision and the doctor did say that causes more pain that a straight VSG. If you think about it, they did have to cut a plastic device off of my stomach, plus fix a hernia. Anyway, once you get the medicine, you will be fine. I hope I didn't scare anyone. When I said I was screaming, I should have said I was screaming "Give me medicine! I can't take it!" LOL Well, I am home now and doing great. I am so happy to have the surgery behind me so that I can work on the next part- losing weight!

I was just curious at how people reached their decision to switch. I am feeling a little bummed (and judged) because of the failure of my lapband. I am freaking out about another surgery, but I can't live with the pain of my band anymore. I always feel lifted when I hear others journeys.

I am in the same situation, except my band never really worked. I was hoping to get it fixed. My doctor gave some great perspective on the sleeve. He asked me if I wanted to be dealing with fills the rest of my life and said that most with a band will have a complication at some point that requires surgery. The statistics prove it as the long term studies are coming out. I am scared to have surgery again, but I am not happy living with a broken band anymore. I am sick of drinking barium and being poked with a needle!

I made a HUGE mistake telling co-workers about my surgery. I kind of had to because my doctor requires three weeks off for a revision in most cases. I am just a little sick of thin people telling me that I can just lose weight with exercise and diet. Ummm....no. I was working out at one point EVERY DAY taking spinning class, yoga, etc. and hit a plateau. I have had weight problems since I was young, too. I just tell them now that I am having my lapband taken out and that is it. I don't mention the sleeve and refuse to talk about it. It's just not worth the frustration!