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I'm in the same place! Twenty gone immediately post op (March 20th), then nothing. Have lost 10 inches, nothing to sneeze at though. BUT I cut out the protein shakes yesterday - dropped a pound today. The first pound in 4 weeks. I have read confliciting reports about OVER-doing protien - your body uses that, not fat stores for energy and to meet BMR. I also gave myself permission to eat like a real person. Healthy protein and veggies, good fats. So, we'll see. I have been feeling like a failure too. Hope that this direction is the right course and good luck!!

Hi all I have not posted in quiet some time... busy... you know... but I am at 9 months and I thought I'd give an update. for all the challenges that this type of surgery can present (in my case pretty minor, a little extra skin, frustration over slow weight loss etc.) I would absolutly, hands down do it again. I was so scared at first. I remember I started crying in the elevator on the way up to surgery... just overwhelmed with the idea of permanantly altering my body. The people on this forum did soooo much to help me stay sane before and after. My biggest challenge has been that I am a slow looser. I "only" had 57 lbs to loose, so I expected to be at goal pretty fast. I think there were two months when I lost more than 10 lbs, but other than that its been pretty slow (relatively speaking, I could have never achieved this without surgery). A couple of months ago I was diagnosed with hypothyridism and have since started on meds. Although I feel better, I still only lost 2 lbs this month. I have 8 to go. It may take me 4 months to get there... but I guess I'll get there. Before surgery I was a binger. I would go on a super restrictive diet until I couldn't stand it... then binge on everything I could get my hands on. Yesterday, after doing my monthly weight in and discovering I had only lost 2lbs I slipped back into "bing" mode and had about 5 chips with queso and two Peanut Butter Cookies. The cookies make me kind of sick (I think I have a little dumping syndrome, which is probably for the best). That was all I was able to eat for the rest of the day. Granted... not the best way to deal with frustration (I'm really working on finding better coping skills and thats the first "binge" since surgery) but, if I'm going to binge 500 calories is a lot better than 5000 (not and exageration). If your considering surgery... don't let this put you off....most of you will loose much faster and if you do happen to be a slow looser, its a little frustrating, but eventually the weight comes off (I was considered low bmi pre-surgery, I think most people with higher bmi's loose at a much quicker pace). Although I am so happy about loosing the weight... I am most pleased with the psychological changes that have taken place. I have a sense of being satisfied most of the time now. Its not that I feel restricted to "only" eating small amounts of food, its that small amounts of food are emensly satisfying, much more so than huge amounts of food used to be. It's allowed me to let go of that constant focus on what I will eat next... what diet I will go on next etc. I feel like I can just live now. Bottom line.... I would do it again in an instant!!!!! I hope you are all doing well on your journey thanks for reading stacey

5 days does seem a little quick for staple removal but then i never even had staples i had the glue closure on mine, when i was nursing we used to leave stitches 10 days before we removed them which is roughly the time it takes for the skin to start knitting together .. u can buy steri strips in chemists/pharmacy nothing to stop u putting more on if the others came off quite quickly

I wasn't on the original thread, but am hitting the 2 year mark. I got down to 120 pounds lost and didn't feel as healthy as I would have liked. Perhaps it was because I was sick and not in a good place. I have put on 10 pounds since then and want to lose at least 5 of it. Then try for the additional 5 and see how I feel. As long as I'm physically and emotionally healthy I should be fine. Food and I continue to have a love hate relationship. Ice cream and I don't mix well, so it helps me avoid it. Carbs, I love them, but need to distance myself more. Heavy carbs and I don't get along so that's a deterant from eating to many. I have plenty of loose excess skin, but don't plan to have it removed. My tummy is loose but I can tolerate it. It's my thighs and arms that suck. It does bum me out from time to time but I do my best to use it as a tool to remind myself of who I don;t want to be again. Same with looking at old pictures. I continue to run and race photos are bad!!!! My knees look like they are melting, lol. They look like a Shar-pae dog with wrinkles.

10/26/11

I have been exploring vsg since march 2012. I only had 10 pounds to lose to qualify for surgery. The process of losing weight dragged on and on and on. When I finally met my goal weight last week, I canceled my weigh in appointment. Since then I have been out in the land of cards. Please don't diagnose me as I do feel crazy and afraid. What surprised me was when canceled my my weigh in, I feel a huge let down and depressed. I m in the uncomfortable feeling of wanting to lose weight but being unsure I am willing to sacrifice and discipline myself. Have I turned my back on a solution to my obesity? Now I feel like there is no way out of this dilemma. I am embarrassed to appear confused on this forum. At first I did not want to eat so much protein everyday. Then I became afraid of being a failure and only losing 50 percent of my e w l, and some of the studies report. I will struggle with not being able to drink liquids at mealtime. And yet when I visualize the scale dropping to 215, 205, 195, 185, 175, 165 I feel happy and giddy. But from what I have read on the maintenance boards, maintaining a low weight is just as difficult as trying to lose weight without w l s. Now you can see how I have talked myself into a corner at least for the time being.

01/20/12 just 4 days from now!! Do I have any siblings????

Nope, Quads!!!! 12/19/11 !!!!!

I started around 330 and am now 220... I eat about 1200 calories a day and am losing 10+ pounds a month with just a little exercise. This is a pretty close to what the formulas would predict (~2000 calorie resting metabolic rate, so 2000 - 1200 = 800 calorie deficit * 30 days = 24,000 negative calories / 3500 calories per pound = ~7 pounds per month). These are all formulas based on studies of many different types of people averaged out... the reality is that nobody is average and there are error rates for every formula. It's possible that for you 1600 is maintenance reality and you need to go lower to lose weight. I've also experienced times in the past (although not for 12 months) where I have started eating the same foods over and over and my body stalls. Have you tried mixing up your diet (throw in some red meat or liver if you don't normally eat that, change the veggies or fruits you're eating, etc)?

I reached my goal and could not be more satisfied! My sleeve was the best decision of my life. 10 months of learning how to use this tool brought me from a size 20 to a size 6.

Hi!! I am pre-op, considering either bypass or sleeve. I am wondering how strict the rules are about lifting over 10 lbs after surgery? I have sons who are 1, 3, and 5 yrs old. I baby wear a lot because that's how life happens at our house. How quickly after surgery could I conceivably lift my 1 yr old? All of my babes were c-section, and I was lifting a 28lb 2 yr old within days after the last 2. How quickly were mommas or daddies able to baby wear post-op? We have several Tulas, and I worry about how my son would sit on my stomach if I wore him in front or where the straps would sit if I wear him on back. TIA!!

@it's not u it's me. Thank you for your candid response and I do agree with you. I have no intentions of cheating on my husband. I'm just very saddened and disappointed. I went thru hell and back to get this surgery and had a very rough recovery. I even lost my job over it because I was not covered under disability at work. But I am amazed at myself to see in just 10 short weeks the weight I've lost and the transformation has been just awesome and so exciting. When my husband met me 8 years ago I weighed 130 which was my normal weight pretty much my entire adult life, wore a size 6 and never in my wildest dreams would have ever thought that by age 33 I would weigh almost 300 lbs after moving to good old deep fried Texas. But it happened. I watched my husband pull away for 7 years and again at one point told me that if i didn't lose the weight he'd leave, once again he never did physically leave but he checked out long ago. So here I am today wearing a size 14 and only 60 lbs away from my goa weight and what do I get from him....nothing...I don't understand...I am happy again, I'm ready to tackle the world, I'm pursueing my dream and enrolling in nursing school but all I get once in a blue moon is "you look pretty". And he says it with no enthusiasm. I guess I'm just not understanding. I did this for 2 reasons number 1 my health and 2 my marriage, to give not just me but my husband back the women he fell head over heals for. He always used to tell me how beautiful i was and took me places and romanced me, he was so in love with me. He says he still is and wants to be with me and makes things better but those have been just words, no action. So as I feel so sexy and alive again I can't seem to get my husband to respond to me. I'm not arrogant or conceited about the situation, just excited and happy son why isnt he. This is what he wanted....I'm so confused and he's stealing my joy...i just don't know what to do anymore. I feel stuck....

Most surgeons place everyone on some form of diet whether it be full liquid, high protein, low carb. My surgeon does not use any diet other than do not gain, try to lose 5-10 lbs. I am 6 wks from surgery and I am eating high protein, low carb but will also have things I know I will not be allowed to have for quite sometime.

When I was a fat little kid Halloween was the only day I didn't feel embarrassed at eating candy. At 10 or 11 I was too aware of being fat to trick or treat anymore. If I had been given a mean note like that it would have ruined Halloween for me at a younger age. If you are a fat kid you know it, you don't need some old hag pointing it out and it will probably make those little fat kids eat MORE candy out of frustration. Now I always work on Halloween night and so I don't buy candy. My husband will be home tonight but he is Diabetic so I told him he can't buy candy and to just turn off the porch light. If it fell on a night I was home I would have been scouring the stores for healthy treats.

I had Lapbad in Oct of 2009 with a starting weight of 316. Getting approved was very easy with BCBS. After surgery there was more pain that I thought there would be but I made it through. The first couple of months I though the lapbad was the best thing in the world, then things changed. Though I lost weight I was throwing up everyday. I had a test done and the Dr said everything was fine and I needed to chew my food better. I took heed and started ensuring my bites were smaller and chewed until it was mush. I was still throwing up every meal. I went back and they would take some Fluid out, then put some back and take some out, put some back. I got to the point I was so tired of being stuck with needles and throwing up I just kind of gave up. I didn't go back for years. Still having the problems, I then got an onset of the worst heartburn I've ever had and started throwing up in my sleep. I went to a new doctor, Dr Turton, last week. He sent me to have another swallow test and found my band had slipped. He removed all the fluid I had in it and talked to me about my options. On Last Friday 1/10/14 my information was sent to Aetna to have my lapbad removed and have the sleeve done at the same time. The surgery was approved on 1/16/14. I'm scheduled to have my surgery in February. Im very excited and cant wait to see the results. Lapband Start Weight - 316 Current Weight - 287

This inspiration is just what I need right now! I'm on day 2 of my pre op diet and I'm sooo hungry. December 10 is coming fast and I'm scared and excited. Everyone questions my decision , and then I read about the problems people are having and it makes me wonder. This story helps. Thank you.

I'm usually a really tough girl... Piercings... A tattoo! I was so worried about the drain. Looking at it made me nauseous. I was afraid I would start heaving or pass out..lol Wasn't bad at all! There was more inside than what I thought. I kinda heard a slurp sound and only felt it for a couple of seconds. Just a weird feeling, not bad! I had some discomfort later on where the tube is on the inside(not where it goes in....further in.) It does make you feel a bit normal afterwards. Jess...Surgiversary 9/19/12

http://nypost.com/2013/09/19/obese-toddler-has-gastric-bypass-surgery/ Sent from my iPhone using VST

You all are doing fantastic with your weight loss, however I am discouraged! Surgery date 9/26/12 270 lb Day after 277lb 10/06/12 today 260 lb Frustrating!

Hello from Ohio, I live about 10 minutes from Xenia, the town that was flattened by an F5 about 36 years ago. Yesterday was the anniversary and it is not that long ago that they have any trouble getting people to do the "I remember when's..." for the news. I prefer the basement, and it is finished so we can sit in comfort while we wait it out. I had the whole back of my fence knocked down by a twister 8 years ago. Snapped 4x4 posts, about 11 of them, like nothing. A tree also hit the powere line across from my fence so they turned the power off- and my sump pump stopped and the basement flooded. sigh I perfer to watch cool storms from a distance...

That would make it more dry and if your asking if I smoked it..at 10 days post op id be pretty stupid to have some reefer lol

Well 2 guys who worked at the site where I had mine done both said they went hog wild the EVENING before their surgery and they lived to tell about it. Nachos, buffalo wings and tequila shots, YIKES! They said they got real sick but didn't define it exactly and I was reluctant to listen to the gory details as my own post-op tummy wasn't up to hearing about it. I would be very concerned about post-op constipation too, having your gut packed with waste when anesthesia sometimes hangs up the colon might be pretty painful. Whatever you do fess up to it and take the consequences. Better safe than sorry. BTW: I was on liquid diet for 10 days, just wanted to make it as easy as possible and wanted to jump start the weight loss.

I am so grateful for this thread. My Uncle died very early Christmas morning after a brave battle with ALS. Christmas was cancelled at our house and we jumped in the car immediately to be with my Aunt. It was a 10 hour drive from home to middle Georgia and I was unprepared and frazzled. I haven't been overeating but my choices have been limited, especially during the drive down(Christmas day;most things closed) I did get to a local grocery to grab a few things, but trying to manage my program away from my own fridge and kitchen has been hard. I've logged my food and managed to stay under 1000 calories but I was really feeling awful about some of the choices I've made over the last week. I'm grateful to see such encouraging posts about getting back on track.

My eval was pretty basic I answered about 1000+ questions about depression,suicide, healthy eating, support and addiction. Then I talked to the Dr. For about 10 mins he asked my highest weight, where my husband worked, if I knew I would look and feel different after the surgery and that's about it. Good luck everyone

I can't wait 10 days until surgery! I'm so excited! I have lost 11 pounds and still going:)