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Had my consult at Banner University Medical center in Tucson. The team seems really nice and eager for you to succeed. My first appt with the dietician is Jan 29th and is supposed to be about 90 minutes. Lots of tests I need to have completed asap; sleep study, cardiology clearance, endoscopy, barium swallow, psych eval, chest X-ray, and a ton of labs. Gotta complete the 6 month supervised diet and lose 10% of my weight throughout the 6 months. They want to see a little each month and not a lot at real quick. I weighed 344 yesterday and they want me at 310 before surgery. I shared this in a Facebook forum and the 1st comment was, "Really, how do they figure you can lose that much in 6 mos? Wow. Good luck with that!" (Nothing like a little encouragement right off the bat! 😬 ) I replied that it's only 34 lbs & I need to lose 6 lbs a month. She said if she could lose 6 lbs a month she wouldn't need surgical help! I looked at her profile & it turns out she's a failed ESG from September because 'she likes food too much'. BUT now it's in my head that maybe I can't lose the 34 lbs in time. I'm definitely ready to get this going! I have studied this for so many years! I'm super excited to have finally taken this step & have saved money for the last several months to cover my deductible & most of my Out of Pocket max. The fat girl in me decided I needed a food funeral, so I had my last ever buffet yesterday. I hope this 6 months goes by quickly! I'm ready to feel better & move better. My knees & back need a break LOL! If y'all have any tips for losing the 34 lbs in 6 months, please share them. I know low carb/sugar free & keto..... but I've obviously never been successful with them or I wouldn't be this big.

Hello everyone! Question on weight stall. I had my surgery in May of 2024. I have not lost weight quickly but steadily and I am down 63 lbs. I have seem to stall for months 9 and 10 and then all of a sudden I lost .80 lbs in the last week. Has anyone gotten to month 8-10 and stalled and then started losing weight again? I have another 30 to go and I am hoping this is not where my body is comfortable. Also I have lost significant weight all across my body but still have a belly and abdomen. Of course it is smaller than it was but it just seem anything has budged from there for the longest time. I do have lymphodema in my from breast cancer so I am hoping it is not a solidifying of any lymphatic fluid (I have the massage machine and do manual massages). So I am hope it is just being stubborn. Thank you for any comments and personal stories with your journey you have regarding this.

Hi everyone! I’m looking for an accountability partner who understands the journey of a 200+ pound weight loss—whether you’ve already achieved it or are working toward it now. I had gastric bypass 10 years ago and initially lost 200 pounds, but I’ve since regained it. I’m starting to lose my mobility, but I refuse to give up. I know I need to use my tool and get this weight off (again). I’ve found that having an accountability partner makes a big difference, and I tend to stay much more consistent. Plus, I’ll admit I’m a little competitive! I run a business, so my work life can get busy, but I’m committed to making myself a priority this year. Weekly check-ins (or more often, if that works for you) would be great. Ideally, we’d both be committed to our goals and help keep each other accountable. 😊

I had my surgery 19 months ago, I've been regaining weight for the past 4 months and I feel completely out of control. Are there any tips or tricks to reset myself and get that feeling of not wanting to eat back?

Hi everyone! I haven't been on this site in a VERY long time, but I am currently on a new weight loss journey and I thought I would report in with my experience and the hope that some of you newbies can learn from it. I had my VSG surgery on 9/1/2014, so 10 years ago this month. At the time of my surgery, I weighed ~260 pounds and I am 5'6". I have lost and gained weight a million times before that, with my highest weight ever having been 277 pounds. In the first couple of years after my surgery, I was able to get below my goal weight (165) all the way down to 154. During that time I trained for and ran in a half marathon and a full marathon, completing the full marathon in September 2016 (almost exactly two years after my surgery). I separated from my then-husband in May of 2016 and our divorce was final in December 2016. My life took a very different path after that and I did not stick to my healthy diet and exercise. I met my current husband in February of 2017 and while I love him dearly and he is THE BEST, he is a bit of a hedonist and we definitely supported each other in our hedonism. I became a connoisseur of fine craft beers and we have a large friend group who we go out with or have get-togethers with several times a week. I not only stopped running but stopped exercising altogether. Both my current husband and I put on weight in the seven years we have been together, especially during COVID, and I got all the way back up to 234 pounds! Last year, my husband was diagnosed as pre-diabetic, and, in April, we resolved to turn things around together. Since then, I have lost 30 pounds and I am on my way down to my new goal weight of 180. So, here are some things I want to report, trying to lose weight again for the first time since immediately after my surgery: The restriction still works! I cannot eat much more than about 200 grams of food in one sitting. Once I cut out snacking and stopped drinking as many calories (beer), it was easy to rely on my sleeve to restrict my daily caloric intake. My metabolism is still normal. As a 5'6 female weighing 203.2 pounds, I still burn ~2100 calories per day just by living, according to my Garmin watch and it definitely tracks with the calorie differential I am logging and the weight loss I am seeing. I still can't eat and drink at the same time. I usually have to wait about 45 minutes to an hour to drink anything after I eat a full meal. Being overly full is still an unpleasant feeling. Before my surgery, I used to love the sensation of being "stuffed." Since surgery and to this day, it is still uncomfortable for me if I overeat in one sitting. Not a pleasant sensation at all, but not painful like it was in the very beginning. I can still get dumping syndrome if I'm not careful. If eat too much sugar too fast, usually in the form of ice cream or a milkshake, I get dumping syndrome and it is VERY unpleasant, fortunately, it is very rare. Food can still get "stuck." Every once in a while, mostly when I am eating turkey or pork it seems, food can get stuck and it is completely miserable. Be sure to thoroughly chew your food!!! Especially dense meats. My advice to anyone who is post-sleeve and still losing weight or trying to maintain their weight: Snacks are the enemy! It's so easy to get in extra calories by eating smaller amounts between meals. Your sleeve won't help you at all with this. Drinking your calories is easy and dangerous. I haven't given up my precious beer entirely, but I have cut back and I am mindful of the type of beer I am drinking as some types are more caloric than others. You can just as easily drink your calories even if you don't drink alcohol. Be wary of soda, milkshakes, energy drinks, juices, and too much cream/sugar/syrups in your coffee. Keep up with the exercise. It doesn't have to be training for a marathon like I did in the beginning. Currently, my husband and I take a ~mile walk after dinner each night and we try to do one, long, 4-5 mile walk/hike on the weekend. Just that moderate amount of activity can make a big difference. Be mindful of calorically dense foods. Even though I can only eat 200 grams at a time, if it is 200 grams of junk, it can have a LOT of calories! I hope the lesson that all of you take from this post is that the sleeve is a tool and it is all about how you use it. It can work for you, even 10 years out, as long as you use it correctly.

Yep. Happened to me, too. Freakin roller coaster. Have not had a drink since February 2019 and have no plans to resume.

I’ve been gone a while from the forum. life has just been busy and I guess time just gets away from me. It’s like I turned around and I’m old 😂 not really old but you know what I mean. looking at my profile it’s hard to believe I’ve been banded since 2014. I can only imagine where I would be if I never had the surgery. Or if I had done it sooner…. today I’m probably the healthiest I’ve ever been. I’ve got to be the mother and grandmother MY parents and grandparents never were and it’s because I changed. My career my marriage and my family has all flourished! is it all because of the surgery? Maybe not. But I definitely attribute a lot to it! the way I feel, the activities I can do…my overall mental health….i still deal with body image issues….still that chubby woman in the mirror, stuck episodes and bad days. We all probably do. But the good definitely outweigh the bad! I recently went to the dr for a horrible sting and when she took my blood pressure it was 55bpm I said “isn’t that too low?” she said “honey, you are almost 44, sitting cross legged on my table and just told me about your 20 mile mountain bike ride. Just looking at you I would say other than this sting you appear pretty healthy. It’s just fine.” coming from a family tree with tons of health issues, cancer and obesity I felt a huge win! so here’s to hoping the band holds up another 10 years😂 (I see a lot of horror stories) she has been a lifesaver and a huge help. Without her I don’t think I would be where I’m at! cheers to you all! Wishing you all the best of luck on your journey!

Surgery date for me is May 19! I’m eager to begin this journey :)

My surgery is set for 01/14!! I’m so excited.

helloooo fellow Torontonian! ❤️ re: specific program inquiry, if you are going through the OBN (Ontario Bariatric Network) your whole plan/program/schedule will be outlined for you. in my opinion, the program and guidelines are very generic and are applied to EVERYONE, so its not the greatest at taking individual needs into account. im a natural DIY-er, so i took what they prescribed and determined for myself what worked for ME and just left the rest. personally i think this is the best M.O., but i get its not in everyone's wheelhouse. my best advice would be: keep doing what works until it doesn't, then find something else that does. re: smoking: i was smoke free for about 10 yrs when i had wls (prior to that i was a pack a day smoker for about 20+ years. one year post wls i started again (i was on vacay and thought "one couldn't hurt", ha!) that ended up with smoking a pack a day again from 2019-2023. been smoke free since (again). as we all know, you will only succeed in quitting if you ACTUALLY, REALLY, WANT to. both times i quit it was cold turkey. both times because i had a minor health scare and i ended up pondering my mortality. hopefully you will find the impetus to quitting...its hard (i know!). do the best you can....you may fall off the wagon a couple (or maybe tonnes!) of times, but so long as you make an honest effort to TRY, you are already better off. good luck! ❤️

To all my people out there who have a passion or knowledge for fitness/strength building - any tips on where to start in terms of pushing yourself? I know I have mentioned on here before about my exercise regime, but I feel that it was more centred around weight loss, and now I want to somewhat shift that in order to maximise some muscle gain & definition. I am not saying I want to be a complete muscle mummy, but I'd definitely like more muscle definition in my arms and legs My current exercise regime: Monday: Legs @ Gym 4 x 10 leg press 100kg 4 x 10 Leg extensions 4 x 10 leg curls 4 x 10 weighted hip thrusts & Les Mills Legs, Bums & Tums class Tuesday: 30 mins on treadmill at a 12% incline, 4.8, 3mph speed Wednesday: Chest @ gym 4 x 10 assisted bench press 4 x 10 tricep pulldowns 4 x 10 face-pulls 4 x 10 bicep curls superset with lateral raises 4 x 10 upright flyes & Les Mills Legs, Bums & Tums class Thursday: 30 mins on treadmill at a 12% incline, 4.8, 3mph speed So far Fri, Sat & Sunday I do nothing...maybe I need to change that 🤣 Anyway...any advice is appreciated! ❤️

I was 330 lbs in 10/2019 had the sleevectomy. Since day one massive pain in my stomach. Never healed. Kaiser Dr. Edward Zane Southbay medical center. Was in hospital 2 days went home with a bottle of hydromorphone. I’m 56 years old, 6’1 and weigh 195. In 2021 I was as high as 220 but taking daily opioids and now I’m weaning myself off of them switching to cannabis gummies. Even on cannabis with the munchies I can’t eat anything. I never healed and I’ve struggled for 5 years. I was prescribed hydromorphone since 2019 and I need it at every meal or drink. If I drink water I cramp and bowl over in pain. I eat anything cold or hot I bend over in pain. I had ultrasounds endoscopies etc. I have serious GERD and been on proton pump inhibitors for 2 years. I can’t eat protein of any type without massive pain and opioids from a hamburger white fish pork steak chicken turkey it all hurts all of the time. Carbs and minor fat also hurt but not as much as protein. I switched to BCBS the new bariatric Dr says I either have a stricture or I need the bypass surgery now. current weight is 195and I’ve been losing weight this past year and really hate all food. It doesn’t matter if it’s carbs fat or protein it hurts my stomach. I also get nauseous and throw up if I eat too much regardless and have massive cramping 5years later. Also have burning sensation with bowel movements but was tested negative for crohns/ulcerative colitis. after 5 years addicted to opioids I went to BCBS and they said Cedars Sinai surgeons can look at stricture correction surgery or just go for the bypass. They want me to eat nuclear egg salad and barium drink during an mri to see what is wrong. Last endoscopy was 10/24 and my esophageal ulcer was 90% healed. I had an untreated ulcer since 2019 that also contributed. Current medication metoprolol 100 mg x a day lisinopril20 mg 2 x a day, Amlodipine 5mg 2 x a day, omeprazole 2x a day, gummies and Vicodin daily with every meal. I can stop opioids once the pain stops. after 5 years of losing weight and my quality of life has deteriorated I’m leaning towards bypass surgery. please help group. I also have massive starvation and nutrition issues and take vitamins but still can’t get even 2k of calories in my body and have low energy all of the time. sincerely, Mark

Hey guys! I also had my op (MGB) on 27/01/2025. I think for me, now 3 weeks po I’m doing ok. My tolerance appears to differ day to day. I’m not hitting my fluid levels either. I guess I t’s all a learning curve isn’t it and I’m struggling with the not eating and drinking at the same time which isn’t really helping.

I have similar experience. I had the sleeve in 2019. Last 5 years have been memorable with a ton of gerd and pain. Tomorrow I’m having the Rouen y bypass and looking forward to it. I’ve been struggling with massive daily cramping for years and lots of dumping. I was 339 6’1 before sleeve. I was 190 until this year when I gained 10 pounds back. I’m doing the bypass because of severe gerd and want my life back. I’ve been on cannabis gummy’s and opioids for the past 5 years and it’s been miserable. I’m hoping it goes well and I can get back to a normal life. I also started liquid diet again and Italian no sugar added frozen ice and Campbells chicken noodle broth only have been my two go tos which I hope my new bypass stomach will tolerate and quality of life will improve and I can stop the cannabis and stop using opioids. Using both for pain mgmt is a blessing and a curse but I’m ready to get off of both become “normal “ I haven’t been able to eat anything less than 2 bites causes pain at a level 10 like I have a kidney stone in my stomach and I’ve had kidney stones before.

Hi all, I had bypass on Feb 19 and my BP really seemed to correct itself and even go a little low for a couple months but now, out of nowhere, it is super high again. I'm still losing so not sure what is causing it but I started taking my pre-surgery bp meds again. I don't need a stroke at 45.

Just another update to my measurements! Starting weight: 281lbs Bust = 53", Waist = 45", Hips = 56", Stomach = 56" 26/08/24 216 lbs Bust = 45", Waist = 36.5", Hips = 49", Stomach = 47.5" 13/11/24 196.2 lbs Bust = 43", Waist = 35", Hips = 46", Stomach = 46" 19/05/25 150lbs Bust = 35", Waist = 28", Hips = 39.5", Stomach = 35"

Hey y’all! I was sleeved on 04/28 so I’m one week out, however, I’ve been having some dark brown discharge (not super heavy) but it started 2-3 days post op. I’m wondering if it’s surgery related which would be weird right ? But I had my period 4/19 so wondering if it’s just delayed discharge from that. Pretty much wondering if this has happened to anyone else?

(Taps the mic...) is this thing on? We are headed to Costa Rica for surgery! We leave on the 16th and have a surgery date of 2-19-25. Who else is rocking this month??

I had bypass 10 years ago. It cured my GERD. For most people, bypass improves if not cures it.

yea I had buyer's remorse the first couple of weeks - but that ended quickly. I had my 10 years ago and it was the best decision I've ever made.