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Good morning, peeps! I've been busy this last week, getting things done that I haven't been able to do since having my surgery. I'm now 16 days out and am starting to feel almost normal. The scabs are gone off of the incisions, the shoulder pain is gone, and I've got some good energy going. Finally started on mushies - YAY! Still not drinking enough, so I fill a bottle every night with Special-K Protein Water and carry it with me, plus I'm drinking lots of Zero Vitamin water at home. I'd do anything for a diet Dr Pepper, though. I've worked up to 30 minutes/day on the Treadclimber and I just reactivated my Curves membership - I think the doctor will release me to exercise after my 1/30 appointment and I'm really looking forward to it. If any of you have ever wondered about Curves, I can highly recommend it. 30 minutes, 3 days a week with only women and you really feel good after you're done. Its circuit training (you move from machine to machine) that targets every part of your body, and there are coaches there to help. They also have a combined diet/exercise program. When I was banded, the doctor put 2ccs of saline in my band. I'm thinking that its just about perfect - I'm eating 6-8 oz. per meal (about 800 calories per day) and I have had no problems, except a couple of instances at the beginning when I was so hungry I ate too fast and got too full. I haven't had any problems with taking pills and today I'm feeling like this is one of the best decisions I ever made. How are all of you doing????? I miss talking to you!

So over it---You are so right about the sissys, hypos, and the impatient. you said it best. In March, I was beating myself up over not getting closer to goal in the year after banding. Impatience.... Lately I have been just cruising with my band- not stressing- not really caring much about food and it has been wonderful. I realized I will take the time it takes and that's it. I'm thrilled for all those who can get the weight off quick but I guess it's not going to be me. Cruising feels wonderful and not caring much about food for the last few weeks is a very new feeling. I think this is how normal people are! I feel at peace about food (for once!) and am losing weight naturally. I still have to be sure to get in my exercise every day because my family has Type 2 diabetes but the exercise feels great and natural. So there you go- even after a year, you can discover new things about yourself and where you can go with the band. It's not easy but it's worth the trip. Love and success on your journey everyone Sadie

Dr. R. talked with me today, about seeing a pulmonologist and finding a window to have surgery where my asthma is not so reactive. I totally understood, this is what any good surgeon would recommend. He told me that all of the other M.D.'s that think I can proceed in this condition, do not see what happens when things do not go well... I have also gained another 4 lbs from the asthma meds... time to adjust my stupid weight ticker :drool:

Good Morning, Violets.. Up and showered and ready for Ethan to arrive for the day. Got my bills paid online and am good to go. We are going to go to Great Wolf Lodge tomorrow to meet up with DS Josh and his family. We get to see the grandkids!! We'll spend the day with them and then come back home as the Bobster is preaching at MY church Sunday. He's filling in for the "pastor" who is on vacation. (I use the term pastor loosely.. I really don't think much of the guy.) My fills are painless and quick. We drive 4 hours for a 5 minute appointment with the doctor. We spend more time with the nurses than the doctor, but I know if we had questions or concerns he'd spend more time with us. I hop up on the table, lift my legs up, he feels for the port sticks a little hypo in, pulls it out and we're done with a cotton pad on for a minute. Drink a glass of water and we're good for another month. The hypo in the picture on the home page was HUGE. It looked like it could hold a cup of liquid!! That's why I thought it might be photo shopped. I better go get dressed and get my hair dry and curled before the little guy arrives. Everyone have a great day!!

Oh, don't misunderstand, Heidi--- I'm not regretting my decision at all. I wouldn't even consider the GB surgery and this was my ticket to finding a healthier me. I know others have had different experiences than that but the reality remains the same--if you don't decrease caloric intake, you won't lose weight. It's all in the Math that I refuse to do. :ohmy: I realize that it's simple for "normal" people, but not for us. We're not wired like them--none of us would have gone to this extent if it were that simple! It's about behaviors---nearly 38 years for me to change. It won't happen overnight, but if I can change some of the, even if only for a limited time, then I have a fighting chance. At 315 pounds, I didn't have that chance.... We all have bad days when we think we've made a mistake. We're on this journey for a reason. It's something we have to figure out on our own, for ourselves.... Hope you all enjoyed the long weekend. I had PIZZA for dinner last night with my family. Could only manage one piece and really ended up getting rid of most of that--no milk required! Regardless, I enjoyed it immensely. As a side note---I think we all need to find a way to accept responsibility WITHOUT using it as an excuse to beat ourselves up. Most of us are guilty of doing far too much of that. Truth be told, the way we talk to ourselves can strongly influence how we function. It's easier to put ourselves down for making bad choices than to force ourselves to make good choices. It makes me so sad when I think about all of the negative self talk we do---but it really keeps us in that horrible, non-reactive place and prevents us from progressing. Just for today, I'm going to be better to myself--treating myself the way I'd treat my friends.

Hello again everyone!!! It seems that in the few days I missed checking into LBT, everyone has been snowed or iced in, or lost power because of the gas shortages associated with Texas! Wow! Well...anyhoo...I was glad to rediscover this thread as it took me about a half an hour. I haven't been on the site much lately nor since they changed things. So if I seem confused about things...I am! Ok...how to start...well, I became depressed and anxious as a teen and started Prozac which served me well for 2 years. When its effectiveness began to fade, as Rxs often can, I started taking Effexor XR. I started gaining weight very slowly even though I was on my school's and a community softball team, and running around like most teens do. A number of years later, my depression developed into Bipolar II Depressive (meaning I can get really, really depressed but my hypo-manic periods do not cause me to put reality aside in order to partake in high-risk activities. When I am hypo-manic, I am super fun and bubbly, ready to organize and clean my house from top to bottom.) So my psychiatrist moved me from Effexor XR to a different class of medication for Bipolar, and my weight gain stopped. I didn't lose any weight, but it finally stabilized. It wasn't until a few years after stopping the Effexor XR that my Mom asked if I had started my weight gain when I began taking the Effexor XR. We had found our answer. When I started gaining weight, I didn't let anyone help me because I was SO embarrassed. I had always been very happy with the way I looked...nothing special...but I was happy and that was all that mattered to me. And then gaining that weight; seeing family I hadn't seen in years; running into old classmates and dealing with being Bipolar and having Generalized Anxiety Disorder (Dx'd as a teen), I ran away from all help and probably made things worse without knowing it by not watching my food intake. Ok...last and (LOL)...last January, I went to the National Institute of Mental Health in Bethesda, MD for a medicine protocol, which went well, but two of the meds they put me on after the protocol to go home on had a high propensity to make patients gain weight. In a month and a half, while eating a nutritionist planned diet, I gained 25 more pounds! I was inpatient for 4 months with the hospital keeping track of weight and food intake, and up until I started the new meds, I had gained 3 pounds over those 4 months. It was yet another blow. As I began to feel better psychologically on my new medications, I decided I was going to research the LapBand to get the aid I needed to lose 100lbs. I researched and researched, and researched, and decided it was my time to do something to help myself. I have been banded since 8/24/10 and have lost 28lbs! Currently I am in a depressive state which is why it took me so long to get back on here, but it seems to be lifting a bit with the sun we've had the past few days. I usually log my eating although other than Protein and calorie intake, I have no idea how to use the information because my surgeon hasn't been very helpful in that, but I have slacked off on logging for the past month and a half due to my depression. I spent 3 days in bed 2 weeks ago so logging wasn't much a priority. Same with exercise. I did order and get the Jillian Michaels "30 Day Shred" and like it. It is pretty old school, so it isn't hard to keep up with...well, physically it is, but the moves aren't. I wish I had someone to go to a Zumba class with, but with this anxiety of mine, that is a tough thing to do alone. But I am staying positive that February will be my back on track month, and I will start losing again (been stuck at same weight for 3 weeks). I am trying not to beat myself up because I have many issues to deal with, and I knew going in I would have to work doubly hard. I try to give myself a short period to feel badly and then say, "Ok. Now we get to start again." I think my "book" covered what you were kinda asking for. Feel free to ask questions or give advice. The only thing I ask is that if I ask a question about my digestive track, you don't answer me back that "it isn't like you have a piece of PVC pipe from your esophagus to your bowel". Yea...some guy actually told me that. I thanked him for the physiology lesson. LOL Still makes me giggle. Hope it makes you giggle too! Keep warm. Please pray that Spring starts...oh...tomorrow! And be Blessed!

I'm here too. I just got back about half an hour ago from seeing my surgeon. He took some of my fill out. I explained how I hadn't been able to get any food down for about 3 weeks now and that I could only get fluids down in the afternoon. Anything before that or after 9pm would just come straight back out again or have me up all night with reflux problems. So they removed .125ccs. Half of what I got at my last fill. I'm very happy with that. :woot: I'm not really looking forward to any appetite I may get as a result, but I know it's better for me to be able to get proper food and protein into my body. I'm on fluids for the next 2 days, the same procedure as after a fill, and then I can see how mushies go. I'm looking forward to getting back on track. It was wonderful to see the scale go down consistently, but I was miserable a lot of the time. Having the flu on top of it didn't help any. Rashes - thank you everyone for your suggestions. I'm going to try them ALL. I have always have sensitive skin. I use Dove soap and wash my clothes in hypo-allergenic liquids. Even when I'm careful I can still break out in an eczema rash without problem. I have a shelf in my bathroom cabinet dedicated to lotions and potions just for that. I've already tried most of them with my tummy rash, with mixed results. It doesn't hurt to have other methods to attack this with. Part of me wants to get rid of it yesterday, another part of me wants to use this with the insurance company to help with a TT approval. I think I'll time a visit to the doctor's between subsequent outbreaks just to keep things on record in case I need it. Shopping - well I went shopping this weekend. It's not a favorite activity of mine, but I was still excited because I was going to the normal section. :tt1: You were dead right Janet, there are SOOOOOOO many choices there. At least in the BBW section there are only 2 choices; clothes that fit and clothes that don't. When looking for jeans I was given choices of classic rise, low rise, lowest rise, straight, boot cut, flared, long, short, regular :eek: It was daunting! I started with a few different styles of 14s, none of them fit! :sad2: In a good way! They were all too big! :w00t: So I went down to 12s and some of them fit, some of them didn't. I made the insane decision to try on a pair of 10s They fit too! :w00t: I ended up buying 2 pairs of 12s and a pair of 10s. I was on top of the world. :biggrin2: I don't ever remember buying a pair of 10s. Not this century anyway. :cryin: So that's my latest NSV. :Yawn: There were other things I wanted to respond to, but kidzheimers has struck and I can't remember anymore. I need to fix dinner and I'll come back and read through the thread again to jog my forgettory and get back later this evening. Thanks for all they help you guys in getting me to where I am today. Yes, it's your fault as much as mine that I'm feeling this good.

I don't "dump", but I did get reactive hypoglycemia from months 2-5, though it's rare now. (Meaning I eat sugar and then crash hard and feel sick, dizzy and exhausted until it processes.) Now I can have a cookie, or a scoop of ice cream, but I don't realy crave it anymore, and it doesn't taste as good as it used to, and I knwo that if I eat too much, I'll feel ill. I take a bite fromt ime to time, but meh... not my thing anymore.

I had an unfill last Friday... I went in on Thursday for a checkup/fill. I got .5 cc's put in (previously 5.6cc's, thought I could use a little more). It made me swollen so that I couldn't even swallow my spit!! I woke up choking on my saliva in the middle of the night, couldn't even keep down Water. When I went in on Friday they took out 1.6cc's, and even as of today, Wednesday, I still feel restricted. I think stress or something is making me more reactive to my band. I feel ok.. just must have been something going on. I am so happy someone was there to take out some!! I think it is normal though.. up and down depending on what is going on inside... I'm sure i'll get a fill again next month. Rather be safe than sorry!!

Ok so just here to rant about doctors and how ridiculous it is to have to wait so long to see them...It's taken me 7 weeks to just make an appointment with them and now...I don't see them for another 2 full months. Just to see an endocrinologist! My thyroid is out of whack(but is in the normal range, still too high) and I'm not going to lose a single pound for another 2 months...it's already been 6 months since I've seen the scale move... I give up. I'm adjusting my own meds. I know that's dangerous but if there were to be an increase in my meds a doc would do it by 25 mcg and that's all I'm adding. Seriously I'm not losing, my hair is brittle and falling out, my mood swings are bad, sleeping 12 hours and still exhausted, I hate being HYPO!!!! (My regular physcian is a physcian's assistant and quote "Doesn't know what other kind of medicine there is or what kind of dose to do"...the guy hadn't heard of "PCOS" before either...I hate doctors as well...

Hey Lori, Patty & Dave, Thanks fo each of you for the input. Great info. I'll talk to my Dr. today about switching to the liquid Prozac (I bet they don't have a generic for that one!!!) and I'll grab the liquid adult tylenol. I'll also stop the Lipitor for a couple of weeks & then start it up again. And rest assured, I will talk with my family practice MD to ensure this plan is ok. Patty - as for my Lipitor, I have a genetic high C-Reactive Protein that's some type of lovely indicator for the potential of heart disease (besides the high cholesterol). So I may have to cotinue taking the Lipitor even if/when the cholesterol levels drop. Guess I'm just lucky that way!!! Thanks to each of you. You are more help than you can imagine! Judy:)

Yes, I could not tolerate simple sugars. I actually may have reactive hypoglycemia from premier Protein shakes and almost all sugar in the beginning similar to a Diabetic who sugar drops. i still get it but not as bad. i get light headed and sweaty after certain sugars. however i can tolerate artificial sugar but cutting back. i needed to cut back anyway. But yes it get better.

Everyone is correct...the VSG does NOT get rid of Hypo/Hyperthyroidism or Hoshimoto's. In my case the surgery did absolutely nothing to change my medication dosage...I have Hoshimoto's Autoimmune disease.

I just need to vent a little, as I have had a setback in the middle of my pre-op two weeks (diet and the surgery itself) I am a little bummed, Friday night an asthma flare went downhill, so I ended up at Urgent Care at 1 am, and from there, I was sent by ambulance to hospital to be admitted... because I had been started on 5 days of prednisone(steroid) on Thursday morning and had gotten worse instead of better after two days of treatment... Long story short, the two treatments at Urgent Care, and the oxygen in the ambulance must have started to work about the time they loaded me into the ER treatment room... and I ended up being able to leave there at 5 a.m... but then I was home, and trying to sleep, and got a call from the hospital to come back in as a radiologist did not like something on my chest x-ray so they wanted to evaluate me further... I went in, had a CT scan with contrast (Radiologist thought they saw "enlarged veins" around the cardiopulmonary connections apparently, so a lot went through my head while waiting for the scan and the report of NO ABNORMALITIES from the scan with contrast... my thoughts were, was it FenPhen that did this and so on and so forth... But now I am afraid the gain from the steroids (mostly Fluid retention) and the restricted pre-op diet (could this be too severe for someone who is so sick), and will the Surgeon push back my date... I was so afraid of this all winter, as they would not give me a date, would not give me a date, in spite of insurance approval very early on - since the later it gets in Spring, the more likelihood of asthma (this has been a problem for the past year)... I will not know anything, until I have the pre-op eval. with the anesthesiology team at the new pre-op work-up clinic they have. I see the surgeon after that. He will weigh me again, and there there will be all of this flurry of medical activity this weekend for me, to consider. But at least I know my heart, lungs, aorta, etc all looked normal on the CT scan. Anyway, my lungs are still pretty reactive, and I have a feeling my surgery is going to be pushed back at least a week or two... :laugh:

From: http://www.stopafib.org/causes.cfm In addition, atrial fibrillation can also happen to otherwise healthy people, especially when they are stressed or fatigued, have had too much caffeine or alcohol, have smoked, or have exercised too much. Other causes that are frequently mentioned include heart and other medications, recreational drugs, air pollution, chemicals and pesticides, and H. Pylori, which is often associated with ulcers. Another known risk factor is having too much or too little of some minerals in your body, such as Calcium, magnesium, or potassium. It is becoming more and more common at younger ages, including young people in their teens and twenties. Being overweight is often mentioned as a risk factor for afib, but normal and underweight people have it, too. One woman's doctor attributed her atrial fibrillation to weight, and it went away briefly after her gastric bypass surgery, but it soon returned, triggered by a sinus infection. We are now learning from a number of studies about atrial fibrillation in families as recent research has found genetic clues about why afib runs in some families. To learn more, see Mayo Clinic Finds Gene Mutation Responsible for Atrial Fibrillation That Runs in Families and New Genetic Cause of Atrial Fibrillation Found. About half of afib patients have obstructive sleep apnea, a stronger correlation than between afib and any other risk factors. There is also a high correlation between sleep apnea and other heart diseases, as sleep apnea is correlated with high levels of C-reactive Protein (CRP), a marker of inflammation that indicates the possible presence of heart disease. It's also possible that afib may cause sleep apnea as well. Afib, obstructive sleep apnea, and obesity all appear to be related conditions, so as we see a surge in obesity, we can expect to see more afib and obstructive sleep apnea, too.4

Hello fellower sleevers and sleevers to be, i am waiting to see the heamatologist but have still not got a date I saw my diabetic specialist last week and it was very encouraging, i am 3kg down since July, my last appointment, my blood sugar readings are good, and even though it is not his field he said that as far as he could tell i am borderline lupus and this shouldn't cause any probs with my op. I was able to ask him questions about when i stop injecting victoza and he reassured me that i won't go hypo after the op because i will have stopped the victoza. I am going to reduce the dosage when i get a date and do the pre op diet again so that i won't have hypo probs on 800 cals a day. I came home much relieved. I got weighed yesterday and was shocked at the scales, good job i was starting to cut cals and eat healthier that day. Hope all are well and loosing or maintaining weight, bye for now, x

I was 199 when I decided to be sleeved. I'm 5'2". I've been fighting my weight battle for more than 10 years. I was extremely depressed and unhappy. My knees hurt, my back hurt, and I was pre-diabetic. I've lost 20-30 and gain 40+ more times than I can count. Both my parents are extremely morbidly obese. I could see my future in them and it wasn't pretty. I could guarantee that my weight would only continue to escalate so I decided to be proactive rather than reactive. Why wait and waste more of my life? I needed a weapon for my weight battle, and the sleeve was it. Today I am 138 and feel like I am living for the first time in more than 10 years. I feel healthy, mentally and physically.

@@bellabloom - I am so sorry you are dealing with this and my response is a bit off topic, but I wanted to mention something. Have you ever been tested for autoimmune diseases? The reason I ask is that many of your symptoms sound like what I had when they discovered I had Graves disease (and likely Hashimotos but long story on that). Graves is when your immune system attacks your thyroid and you become Hyperthyroid (not hypo which is what you hear most people have). it was discovered when I was 44 and still at 320 pounds. The thing is, I had massive hot flashes, sweating, sudden weight loss, tremors, heart palpitations, etc. With Hashimotos, your thyroid will swing wildly back and forth between hyper and hypo and some of your symptoms sound hypo (hair loss, cold, low heart rate). (I too swung back and forth which is why I think mine was also Hashimotos but they had already destroyed my thyroid before testing for Hashis.) Anyway, all to say, is it at all possible there is something else going on in your body? A good rheumatologist can run a lot of tests but if it is thyroid related, they will refer you to endocrinologist. Might be worth checking out.... Best wishes on your recovery.

I have a hypo thyroid. Before I insisted on seeing a Endocrinologist, I was diagnosed with Hypo., then Hyper. ? My opinion at that time was "O sh1t ! ! ! That ain't good !' Response = No it Ain't ! So I seen my Mother-in-Law undergo Parathyroid Cancer surgery "Complete Removal" Even though this is not the same thing,I remember when her surgeon said if the TSH Levels goes up, and down all the time... It's time for Removal. So I said I want to see a specialist. She agreed. I have been on Armour Thyroid, and my Levels are in Normal Range. This is coming from someone that fell asleep behind the Wheel ! Scared me to Death ! Awake/ then out cold/ then waking up almost running off the road. I opened all Windows, Turned up the Radio, and Sang to that Radio. ... I never drove again, until my levels were in a Normal Range. See a specialist, and get a different opinion.

She told me to consume ALOT of protien its called reactive hypoglycemia i went to an endocrinologist eating carbs causes your sugars to rise and then drop so I significantly dropped my carb intake also I drink alot of gatorade it helps with staying hydrated just makes sure protien protein protien. I started consuming protien bars but you have to watch the carbs on them try to stay below 30g per bar. This is my experience but everyone is different so i would always let your doctor know. my complications included an abscess on my spleen and a hole in my stomuch and the infection went into my blood almost didn't make it but im happy to say im 1 year post surgury and down 100 pounds so no more regrets Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G935A using BariatricPal mobile app

Hi everyone, it has been a couple months since I posted last and everything is going pretty good. I am now 15 months post op. I lost about 65-69 lbs total and still have about 18 lbs to lose. However, things have completely stalled out and i haven't lost anything in many months. my stress level is sky high with grad school two kids, a new job, and life in general. i have noticed over the past few months that my stomach fat is much more noticeable and although the scale hadn't changed (THEN, but haven't weighed in 1 month) things just are sitting differently. i actually FEEL very similar to how my stomach felt pre op, but i'm still wearing the same size pants, it's just very bothersome to me. my main issue right now is i just started a new night nursing job which i really love, but not being a night owl, i find myself eating small Protein, fruit, snack and drink portions (not all together) through the night to stay awake and functional. although it is a VERY busy unit, we get very quiet and sit down around 1AM and don't do much for a few hours (this time is the hardest for me). i have found i got reactive hypoglycemia a few times when i tried to go without eating and then started my morning rush. i try to NOT eat much during the days before work, knowing that i'll eat a few small meals when i'm there, but i AM getting plenty of calories each 24 hr period. further, we aren't allowed to leave the floor regularly on night shift, so going for a walk or something isn't really an option, we eat our meal and hang out in the break room area. Anybody who works nights, especially those in healthcare who only work 3 shifts a week may be able to relate. there is no 'regular' schedule anymore. however, i enjoy my team and prefer nights for my graduate school demands. but i don't know when is the best time to weigh, how to count meals anymore, etc! i am also trying to help my hubs lose some pounds as he has put on about 20 lbs in the past year. i can eat mostly everything. i only get dumping issues when i eat something REALLY packed with sugar (tried a small scoop of ice cream once-never again!) i eat around 1200 cals per day. i only exercise by walking a few times a week. Here is my plan: 1. Go back to including a Protein shake DAILY maybe as a smoothie for 'breakfast' on non-work nights and take with me as a meal supplement when i do work. 2. try to fit in a walk every 24 hour period 3. can't abate the stress much, but MAYBE trying some basic yoga or stretching regularly 4. start logging on here every day and seeking the same level of support and involvement i did pre op and immediately post op ( my area support group meets while i am working, and the nutritionist that works with my surgeon now is very specific to meeting only with people who have gained more than 20 lbs back OR are still pre op!) anybody have any other suggestions or support for me? i really need to lose these final pounds. i also need to get in to see my surgeon and wanted to in the next 8 weeks, and DO NOT want to be the same weight i was the last time he saw me!

I also developed Reactive Hypoglycemia about a year ago (I probably had it longer, just didn't realize) I wear a Libre CGM and have discovered it reads a bit lower than my one touch meter. I have been following The Glucose Godess for tips on how to eat without creating a huge spike and a deep drop. I feel like so much food is out of my reach now as almost everything causes a spike. I see an endo for this issue and strive to keep my spikes under 150. I have heard this can be reversable, but not sure if this is true.

So, I was laying in bed the other night trying to drift off to sleep when my formerly obese cat JD jumped up on the bed and then slowly walked up my leg, onto my belly and then stood on my chest, purring like mad while staring at me and purring some more. It was then that I thought two things...1...I was quite thankful that he had lost so much weight, though still a bit jealous (why can't I have hyperthyroidism instead of hypo-?) and 2...wow...this is gonna suck after I have surgery. How on earth am I gonna sleep at night? So, how do you sleep at night? My eventual sleeping position is my stomach. I'm gonna go out on a limb here and suggest that laying on your stomach right after surgery is probably not the best idea...just a hunch. But what about on your side? My cats still crawl on me when I'm on my side, but the belly is a bit more protected. If I lay on my back, the belly is less protected. There are no doors or spare rooms to lock my cats away into (or me into) so that's out. What have you done, my fellow cat people?

I have hypothyroidism/hashimoto as well as anemia and hypoglycemia. I was sleeved in December and really have to work on not bottoming out from the hypo and anemia. I am also allergic to iron tablets so I have to get my iron through foods. It is a struggle. Sent from my SM-J327T1 using BariatricPal mobile app