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1. what was YOUR pre-op diet/fast like? one doc here does 10 days, one does only 3 days! i'm curious as to WHAT the pre-op diet looks like also I was so geared up for the surgery to happen that I was willing it to happen. I started the pre-op diet the day after my free consultation. So, I was on/off for two weeks and then steady for 2 weeks leading up to the surgery. The "norm" for my doctor is 2 weeks prior to surgery to be on this diet and lose at least 10 lbs. I lost 10 then gained 5 because I stopped, then lost another 7lbs so total preop loss was only 12lbs, but had i done it to the T ... I would have lost more. I am my own worst enemy with following diets. 2. how long were you on liquids, softs, etc post-op? .I too was like the previous poster where it was two days of Protein shakes/clear fluids and then two weeks of liquids (broths, tea, Protein shakes .. what i call the easy stuff) then 1 week of mushy foods (oatmeal, mashed potatoes, yogurt, Jello ... what i call sliders) and then easing in to soft foods. I didn't exactly follow the diet, as I was hungry so I had those campbell Soup at hand once a day 1 1/2 weeks post op. I drank the protein shakes, but it took me a while to find the one that wouldn't make me loathe drinking it and wouldn't make me gag. I am happy with muscle milk or premium protein shakes. 3. do you eat any of the 'regular' foods you ate pre-op or have you overhauled your entire diet? there are truly some things that i can deal with eating very limited portions of, no problem, and even eating just a couple times a year, but a couple of things specifically that i can't imagine having to give up completely. I have cut back on my Dr. Pepper habit. I was a large DP girl. Me and McDonalds were on a first name basis. They knew when I pulled up I was getting a large DP and 2 sausage Breakfast tacos. Now, I can only eat one, and that is eating the inside, not the tortilla. Tortilla is now my foe. I used to be able to eat chicken, but now at 6cc I am unable to eat it successfully because it is just too dry and gets stuck. I haven't tried a hamburger. It scares me since I am to the point now where one of those Chobani Greek yogurt cups fills me up. I used to go to my favorite mexican restaurant and get the #1 and chips and queso. Now that I have braved eating out, I can go and eat a few chips with queso and 1 taco (inside of taco mostly). It is amazing to see all the food you used to eat and how you can't even eat 1/4 of that now! I love it though! 4. how bad will my hair get, really? my hair is one of my very best features (really...i've been a hair model in the past!) and i don't want to lose it all or get so thin that i have to shave it or something! I really think the hair loss thing is based on nutrition. I take Biotin on and off, but I haven't noticed a significant loss in hair volume or weight. I just recently cut my below the shoulders hair to a cute bob and went blondish so I am not a good example since my hair is healthier since getting trimmed up twice now since surgery and I don't notice hair loss like I did with longer hair since I don't have to fuss with it as much. 5. what AREN'T they telling me? i've seen the burp issues, the throwing up (from my friend), the over-fill problems, and an incisional infection. but what else, do i have to worry about (gall stones not an issue, lost that years ago)... I am able to burp like a champ. Not all the time, but my body seems to burp on its own. If I don't burp, I fart. Just giving it to you real. I lost the ability to regurgitate, meaning I really can't throw up anymore. I spit up thick spit. Sometimes I would consider it slime-ing but no food comes back up. Mostly this is due to my eating too fast or drinking while eating and then the pressure pushes the liquid up like a burp. I didn't have incision problems. Honestly, the one thing that they didn't prepare me for was the hunger. It is purely mental. Before I got my first fill, I called them Stomach #1 and Stomach #2. # 2 being below the band, was grumbling and seemingly hungry. #1 wasn't. I thought I was starving. I thought OMG what did I do and how in the world am I supposed to function on just a protein shake when I could down 2 breakfast tacos for breakfast easy! Mind over matter. Take it slow. Reach out to others. Go to a support meeting. You ARE NOT alone. ASK ASK ASK and if you don't get an answer, ask again. Don't give up and most of all, believe in yourself! I agree with the person above. The hardest part is retraining yourself to eat. It is like learning to eat all over again. My biggest struggle is still that I can hear my mom in my head saying "there are kids in africa that are starving. don't get up from the table until you eat everything on that plate" .. solution .. eat from a smaller plate. i eat from my son's kiddie plates now. he thinks it is cool that we use the same dishes now anyway. i haven't gotten the measuring down yet, but it will be helpful to measure your food until you get a good sense of what 4oz of food looks like, because that is essentially what they want you to be eating 3 times a day with no Snacks. Find the protein shake that falls within guidelines and that you like, because otherwise you will hate those things. Take your multi-vitamin. Drink plenty of Water. For some reason I don't get thirsty for water or crystal light, so I didn't drink much, but would be hungry, so I have learned to drink 8-16oz of water before the meal and BAM I really was just thirsty not hungry. Best advice I can give you ... Take it slow. Everyone will experience this journey differently. You CAN do this! Be honest in your answers to the questions they ask you about your eating habits between follow up visits. Voice your concerns to the Nurse Practitioner and ask ask ask. This is your body, your band, your journey. My biggest lesson so far. I needed to own up to my feelings/emotions. I need to stop swallowing my hurt/angst/stress figuratively and physically. Message me any time you want! Good luck and congrats on making the decision to take the step to a new you!

Hair loss is going to happen but at the same time your hair is also getting new growth. You will not lose it forever. Your body will adjust and your hair will replenish itself. Keeping your protein up and taking vitamins will help it to grow back quicker. You will not be skinny and bald lol. I was worried about the same thing because I do not have real thick hair anyway.

My hair started falling out heavily after about 4 months. I got worried and started taking Biotin. I only took it for a few weeks because I noticed my other hair (underarm, leg, down below) was growing back super fast and I hated it! I stopped taking the Biotin, and am just now starting to notice that my hair loss is not as severe anymore. I'm not sure if I can credit the Biotin or not because 1) I only took it for maybe 2 weeks and 2) I heard after 6 months the hair loss starts to slow down or stop and on the 28th I will be at my 6 months. I also heard that it can't be avoided, so that's another reason why I stopped taking the Biotin.

Ok, here's my opinion on that. The first two weeks are horribly restrictive because you are healing. I'm not lecturing you on this but it is important to follow the plan while your at your restrictive best. I stuck to the script for 3 weeks and rocked the plan. Once I "cheated" the plan with a bit of popcorn I was all worried about what I may have done to myself. Thankfully there were no consequences to my health and safety. But it did do something. It made me realize I could cheat and not die. After that day I had to make a decision with the understanding that I can eat what I want...but should I? Fear kept me on plan but my cheat made me bold. Now that I am 4 months out I can eat whatever I want. Those early weeks of necessary self control helped to condition me to stick with it. Many people use that first slip up as a green light to eating. Don't let that happen. Protein is important to your healing, energy, and weight loss so make it a priority. Also, it helps to keep your hair. Take advantage of this time of your best restriction. Take care.

I don’t doubt that - I do t want to be obese anymore. But I’ve known people that have lost weight (sleeve or not) and then obsessed over their new body not being perfect. I know someone who had the skin removed and is still critical of their body but infinitely happier that they aren’t obese anymore. If that makes sense. Perfectionist, I guess. I don’t see that for myself. I am proud of my body that gave me my babies. It worked hard, lol. I’m just trying to get a hold on issues that might pop up. I sew my own clothes - but have stopped so I can save my fabric for when I lose weight - but I wonder sometimes if I wear a dress - will I need spanx? Can you just tuck the extra skin in your drawers? Lol. Is it noticeable to the rest of the world? Things like this. I also worry about hair loss but I know I won’t be able to do much about that should that time come. The other thing I wonder about is what happens after surgery the first few months when your caloric intake is like 500 calories? Do you get that low blood sugar feeling all the time? If go too long without eating I get really shaky and dizzy. Does that happen or does your body somehow adjust? I’m wondering because I will have kids to keep up with after surgery and if I constantly feel shaky that’s not going to work well.

My name is Teresa de Velasco. I recently had WLS in Tijuana, Mexico, at the Obesity Good Bye clinic. I feel compelled to share my story, so that others do not endure the same horrific experience. I was completely confident to travel alone and had no fears of surgery in another country. I believed I had done extensive research, and made a good decision. However, I was sexually assaulted during my stay at the clinic. I wouldn't advise anyone to travel alone. I am not saying, don't travel to Mexico for surgery. Anyone can have a bad employee working for them. I am just asking you to please read the following, which is a copy of the correspondence I sent to the two patient coordinators I had been involved with. ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: JC Urrea <jurrea@bariatricmexico.com> Date: Fri, Sep 18, 2015 at 2:01 PM Subject: RE: Problematic Facts To: Teresa de Velasco Hi Teresa, I apologize for not getting your Facebook message. I’m only working on my business email since I’ve been out of town till Monday. I will immediately inform Obesity Good Bye and forward your message to them to go over it. I will be in touch soon. Regards, JC Urrea From: Teresa de Velasco Sent: Friday, September 18, 2015 7:44 AM To: Laura Padilla; jurrea@bariatricmexico.com Subject: Problematic Facts Laura and/or JC, JC, I sent you a message via facebook this past Saturday on 9/12/15. I chose fb because that had always been the quickest method to reach you. I never got a response, so I am now sending you both this message. As you know, I arrived in Tijuana at the Obesity good bye clinic on August 24th in the morning. They did their pre-op test and prepared me for surgery. I believe his name was, Dr. Rios that asked me a few questions and had me sign 2 consents. Prior to surgery, encountered Dr. Rios briefly a couple times, an internal medicine doctor (I think that's what he told me. He spoke English), the nurse (who spoke NO English, and I NO Spanish), and another man who stated his job was “to assist the physicians”. This man did speak English, but I can not recall his name. However, throughout my time there, I feel I had more interaction with him, than anyone else. On August 25th, I was moved to "another room” which was a different building. August 26th, discharge day, I was allowed to shower. I did not see any body soap, I was able to wash my hair. As I was drying myself off, I noted some old blood (brownish color) as I dried my vaginal area. While I was there, I had what I thought was a dream of someone holding something over my mouth and nose- until I I just don’t remember anything else… just sleep. With my dream/memory and then the vaginal area blood I was startled and concerned that I may have been sexually assaulted while sedated and/or forced to inhale something to sedate me. I was in a Foreign Country and the only person around that spoke English…. Was the person I suspected that could have done this. I was scared, and was definitely NOT going to say I thought I had been raped!! I discharged Aug 26th around 10:30am and finally arriving home just past 11pm. I kept these thoughts and feelings to myself… August 30th I began to feel like I was developing a yeast infection and got an over-the-counter one day treatment. September 1st, I began to develop vaginal lesions, which I hadn’t experienced before. At this point, I did discuss my concerns/thoughts with my husband. I called to set up an appointment with my gynecologist, however he was out of town. I was scheduled to see Melanie Bussie, APRN on September 4th. She offered to contact the authorities and a SANE nurse. (Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner). I had showered more than twice, destroying any possible DNA and couldn’t, imagine what the police could do for something that happened in Mexico, so I declined that. I did have several STD test done. I can NOT express enough to you, how overwhelming everything became at that moment with all the horrible possibilities. I was started on Valacyclovir 1GM 2x's daily for 10 days plus Lidocaine Gel. (So I could apply this to the lesions because the burning when I urinated was horrible!) As suspected, my results showed that I did have Herpes. She had also done a blood test to confirm if the outbreak was possibly from an old exposure. The test confirmed that I had been recently exposed. Thank God, all my other results have come back negative. However, I must be retested at 6 months and then again at one year for some of the other test. So, I still get to worry if any future test may be positive~ like HIV! As far as the Herpes, I was given a choice to take the medication when I have future outbreaks only, or as a daily maintenance. I will be taking it daily so that I can reduce any future outbreaks, and also to protect my husband from becoming infected. I am to begin counseling next week and have been prescribed something for sleep, otherwise I lay in bed and replay my time in Mexico. This will be with me for the rest of my life! You NEVER get rid of this STD~ Herpes! And this is something I will never forget! I was very confident to travel to Tijuana, Mexico, to have my WLS. I was not afraid of having the surgery in a different country, no fears of being butchered, murdered, and not afraid that I had traveled alone. The ONLY concern that entered my mind about being there, was having my money, wedding band, debit card or something else stolen! It never occurred to me that I could be sexually assaulted. I have no doubts, that I was sexually assaulted at Obesity Good Bye Clinic. In my research, it appears that Dr. Verboonen and Dr. Ponce are co-owners of the Obesity Good Bye Clinic?! They need to be notified immediately of this. I would like a response, as to what has been done and how this is being resolved. Nothing less than "him" being fired is acceptable. (I can't remember his name! He took my photo JC, saying you asked him to for the records.) If anyone plans to contact be by phone, I want that done during weekday evening hours or the weekend~ Because he DOES speak Spanish! Records brings me to another thing… I want copies of medical records mailed to me. If you need me to sign a release you may email it and I will return it. The records should be provided to me at NO COST! I paid for a 5 day package, and was barely there for 3. Those other two days should definitely cover ANY cost to send them. My "package" was for Dr. Ponce as a solo surgeon. He was honoring a price of $5800 that I had seen advertised on BariatricPal, with stipulations of one M.D. So, my "package should have included (As booked on Bariatric Mexico) Free Weight loss consultation with your Surgeon~ No member of the surgical team introduced themselves or spoke to me! Mickey Mouse could have done surgery?! Hotel (1 pre-op night)~ Chose not to use Anesthesiologist fees~ done A Dedicated Case Management Team~ NO! All Pre and Post op lab tests~ Only post op test done was leak test Full transportation from the Airport to private hospital~ Done A Nutritionist~ NO!! If told I did, I I would like to see I would like to see their picture and proof of education! Medication~ Done, also paid $100 for my meds and a 1L Gatorade. Meds should have been about $84. Expensive Gatorade in Mexico, I guess. One-year Follow-up Program As a Registered Nurse myself, I could overlook some things such as: Nurses not looking at IV site while I slept and my hand was at LEAST twice normal size, Nurse applying tape only- directly on incisions. You face the potential of ripping open the glued incisions if/when removed. Mexico must have different nursing training and standards! … I knew the facility was not going to be a beautiful, new, top-notch looking facility, etc. I was a little shocked after being transferred to my 2nd room. Walked to a different building (which was cooler) but didn't realize I would be left alone and locked in! That's a bit frightening… I had no intentions of telling many people that I had Mini Gastric Bypass Surgery there at Obesity Good Bye clinic. However, I did nothing wrong… and "Someone" DID sexually assault me. Trust me, I don't want everyone to know that I now have an STD! But this is the result of someone assaulting me and giving me a life-long disease! I AM prepared to basically copy and paste this email and post to my Facebook (and various groups), asking EVERYONE to share~ to spread the word. I believe women planning to travel alone should be warned about their risk! I am at a loss of how else to handle this situation. I know many people travel to Mexico for WLS, and I feel it is up to me try to spread the word…. I am afraid if I don't take some type of action, he will suffer no consequences. But I DO get to suffer from this! I will be looking for my medical records to be mailed to me.

okay, I will chime in here since I am very worried about my hair as well. I lost half my hair when I had lap band surgery. I can't afford to lose anymore. I have been using all the nioxsin products and it seems like it has slowed down. Plus Dr. Aceves told me to increase my zinc and I am doing that. He said hair loss has to do with low zinc levels. As for recovery from surgery, I have had dental work done that was way more painful than this. I went back to work right away. I was totally bored in the hospital for 3 days. The sleeve surgery itself is the easiest part of all of this. The liquid diet was not fun. It's not that hard, it just gets boring.

Ahoy matey....Ok, not funny. I too have PCOS and worry a great deal about the hair loss. ( already have lost a large amount over the years) But I will deal with it. I will also remember this post and make sure to get in at least a little fruit. Crazy how this all works! Good luck and good health!..

New to being sleeved. Worried about hair loss coming , for those of you who have been through this. How much and when did you lose it and any products you feel helped?

So today is August 19th and I am now over 4 months post VSG. I thought I would write an update on a few things that I regularly see asked on this forum. 1. Hair loss- I am definitely shedding more, and it is pretty annoying, but not alarming. I noticed it start at about 3 months out, and decided to add another protein shake to my daily intake. I figure it will last another month or two, based on what I have seen other people post. Honestly, though, it is not something I am worried about. I am not having huge clumps of hair fall out, and thank goodness for that! I have really fine hair already, LoL. 2. Vitamins and water- I take my vitamins and drink at least 64 oz of water daily. Those are two things I don't mess with. The one supplement that is not included in my vitamin is iron though, and it tends to give me stomach issues. I am able to regularly eat 1200 calories per day, and my blood tests have come out normal, so I am on kind of "wait and see" pattern for that one. 3. Caffeine and soda- The food police will not appreciate my moment of honesty here. I do drink caffeine but it doesn't bother me at all. I drink the grape flavor of crystal light, and the small amount of caffeine helps me get going in the morning. Yes yes, I know that not all doctors approve of it, but I need a boost. And for soda, even before surgery, I had a calorie-free soda at night as a "bedtime snack". It was always my reward for drinking at least 100 ounces of water (I miss being able to chug water, lol). Well, I now have a small glass of sprite zero at night, as long as I hit my water goals beforehand. 4. Portion sizes - I feel like I can eat decent size portions, similar to a kid-sized meal. I see people post that they can only eat 2 or 3 bites of food, and that just is not me. For example, we eat breakfast tacos (with low carb tortillas) often. I can eat just over half of a breakfast taco. If we are eating crispy beef (or turkey) tacos, I can eat one whole one. I can also eat a small chicken breast, turkey patty, fish, etc. Honestly, I eat just about everything, although I make it a habit to make healthy choices most of the time (I am totally eating half of a strawberry shortcake cupcake as I write this, but don't tell anyone, lol). I still don't like rice (nothing new), and definitely can't eat fried foods anymore. I had issues with that after I had my gallbladder removed (5 months before surgery), and it is even worse now. 5. Daily caloric intake - I am eating roughly 1200 calories per day and I am losing weight really quickly. I have lost 45 pounds since the day of my surgery, which is a good amount considering I started with a lower BMI (38). Today I weighed in at 184 and my personal goal is 170. My doctors think I will easily surpass that, but I would be content at just hitting that weight. I worry about that though, because my doctors want me to lose more. At a height of 5'6, they prefer that I weigh 140-150. If and when I get to 160, I will increase my calories to maintenance , and hopefully stay between 160-170. 6. Excess skin- I am doing ok with this right now, although my arms look like wings at this point. Saying that, they have looked this way for years from previous weight loss and weight gaining patterns, so I don't contribute it to my VSG. I may consider having surgery in the future, but not until we are done having kids and I build my muscle back up. As for the rest of my body, I am doing well, no issues to report. I hope that it remains that way, but time will tell. I think at this point though, even losing 20 more pounds will not make enough of a difference to justify plastics (outside of my arms).

I did the Atkin's diet years ago and lost 60lbs. I worked/strived to get into ketosis. That was the whole point, as far as I was concerned, about the diet. I had a metallic taste in my mouth, but no pain, when I was in ketosis. I tried to keep my carbs under 30g a day. Besides the taste in my mouth, the only bad side effect I noticed was some hair loss, not too bad, but I remember worrying about it. I eventually stopped the diet, due to boredom. From what I read, it was ok to be in ketosis for periods of time, but not for long periods, as it was too much stress on kidneys and liver.

The only starchy carbs I've had so far (so carbs not from veggies, fruit or legumes) has been quinoa (in small amounts) and yesterday at my 5th of July party (the 4th wasn't a holiday here, obviously, so I waited til the weekend) where I had three noodles from a friend's Pasta salad to be polite. It's not that I don't think other people can have bites of cake or bread or whatever and keep it at that, it's that I know I can't. Starch is basically my crack. I need to continue using the honeymoon period to detox and "get sober," so to speak. I'm doing well so far. When there's food around I would normally have wanted, I'm doing much better at controlling myself. So far I've always had some healthy alternative, so that's been good. I'm losing slowly, but it's mostly been steady. I haven't had anything that counts as a real stall, so fingers crossed! Now I just gotta worry about that hair loss that's gonna be creeping up...

Thank you so much for the answers! I have been taking the bariatric Vitamins and they are horrible! I didnt know I could take flintstones or another type! Im switching today! The others are not so bad but that multi... gross! I use Myfitness pal already. It always tells me I am not getting enough lol. I seriously try to eat more... God that is such odd to hear myself say!. I didnt know it would tell me about Protein however. I guess i dont have mine set up right. Ill look into adding that to my details. Does anyone know how I do this off the top of their heads? Otherwise Ill just dig in a figure it out. Im so glad to hear about the hair loss. I know its vain and should be the least of my worries but it really bothers me! Ill keep hanging in there and ill try to go easy on my head for now! looking forward to the day it stops! The pain used to happen ALL THE TIME. I did tell my dr but he said it was common as I heal. I just thought it was odd that it comes back sometimes. Ill mention it to him at my next visit Thank you al l again for writing . The support here is awesome. My family tries but they really dont get how hard this can be - emotionally hard too!! (understandably)

@@Martene81, I was crazy with worry until about a month before my procedure. I just knew I would be some new breed of human in which the gastric bypass would not work. In addition, I was going to die from anesthesia so it didn't matter anyway. And if by some stroke of luck I made it out alive, I was going to be permanently paralyzed from hair loss, broken bones due to losing the mineral density in my bones due to the malabsorption!!!! My mind was insane! As I said this process has been great! I hate being nauseous and I told my doc to send me home with strong anti nausea meds! I've used them once, when I *thought* I was getting nauseous. My nose has gotten sensitive so it has pretty much been spot on with what NOT to eat. If it sounds or smells like a bad idea then it probably is. I just go with that now. Many people don't have complications with the sleeve and some do. I've have 3 people with sleeves tell me they wish they had had the bypass. All do to GERD and reflux complications. There are pros and cons and risks to every surgery. The benefits should outweigh risks. Success can be achieved with any surgery. Good Luck!

hair loss can follow any bodily changes, and I experienced it after both of my children were born. I shed like CRAZY for months starting at about the 4th month post-delivery both times. I couldn't believe I wasn't bald, but all that happened was that my hairline receded a tiny bit--I was the only one who noticed. It also happened after I did Optifast back in 1990. It stopped by itself after a while. I think it always looks a lot worse in the bathtub and hairbrush than it really is, and by the time you really start to worry the shedding is ending. I don't have any suggestions about stopping it--nothing really seems to work--but if it's getting to you a sassy new haircut can go a long way toward making you feel better about it.

Even though my surgiversary is December 20, I consider today my 1 year mark since it was December 4 that I started my preop diet. Hey, 16 days of liquids and leafy greens and 22 pounds lost deserve to be counted! I really don't know where to begin to describe how wonderful this past year has been, but here are some highlights... My surgical experience at Obesity Control Center in TJ was better than I could have hoped for. It was more of a fun mini-vacation with my sister than anything. Recovery was nearly painless and I have had no reflux, food intolerances or hair loss. My sincere thanks goes out to everyone there who took such good care of me. I discovered what a wonderful, supportive community I live and work in. I was very ashamed and angry about letting myself get so fat. But despite the initial embarrassment, I chose to be honest about my surgery and talk about it openly. Turns out that was great therapy. I am now proud of my decision rather than feel it's something I need to hide. Literally hundreds of people know I had WLS....friends, family, clients, fellow beauty shop patrons.... and no one has made me feel bad about it. Nobody treats me any differently and turns out people like and respect me whether I'm fat or thin. Everyone is just happy for me that I feel better, both physically and mentally. I see from a lot of posts that not everyone has such accepting, non-judgemental people in their lives so I am incredibly grateful that I do. The first first 3-4 months postop were certainly not without struggles.... Feeling bloated and full all the time that first month, Trying to get in all my Protein and Water despite having no appetite, learning how to chew and eat slow, almost 2 months of diarrhea from a C. diff infection from antibiotics for a tooth infection 6 weeks after VSG, being on medications that made me nauseous, getting IV fluids 3 times for dehydration because I couldn't drink enough water with my tiny sleeve, and needing a fecal transplant to finally cure the C. diff. It was at least 4 months before I felt normal, but I never once regretted surgery and would do it all again. Although I wouldn't particularly care to relive the two excruciatingly painful gall bladder attacks I've had....by far the WORST part of this journey. First NSV....my rings fit! (they have since become too big and I've had to resize them down...even my high school ring) I learned from these forums that stalls are normal, so I never worried about them. In fact, I never even bothered to buy a scale. NSV's are much more satisfying and mean more than numbers on a scale. Went from size 22 relaxed/curvy fit jeans to 6 or 7 slims. XXL tops to mediums. Size 44DD to a very saggy 36B (but I still consider this a good thing). I can shop in regular stores and even online because I know the clothes will fit and look good! I can wear tall boots because they fit over my calves. I can swing up into my saddle without having to find a log or rock to climb on. Even had to buy a new saddle to fit my new skinny butt. And I have no doubt that my horse is at least as thrilled with my weight loss as I am. I am saving hundreds of dollars every month on groceries....good thing since I've had to buy a whole new wardrobe. I can easily cross my legs, kneel, squat and sit "Indian style". I can bound (yes, bound!) up several flights of steps without even breathing hard. My blood pressure is normal and my PCP is thrilled with my bloodwork. I had my first normal PAP and negative HPV test in 7 years....eating healthy has allowed my immune system to finally clear the virus and abnormal cells from my system. My feet and ankles and knees haven't hurt in at least 10 months. I'm on my feet all day and went from daily NSAIDS and occasional tramadol to zero of both. Blew past my surgeon's goal weight at 6 months, passed my personal goal around 7 months and have settled in the middle of a normal BMI range....100 pounds lost forever! More than I ever dreamed possible. I have maintained within a 5 pound bounce range over the last 3 months with very little effort. Getting enough protein and water, taking my Vitamins, eating a well balanced diet of protein, veggies, fruit and whole grains and limiting white carbs seems to work for me. No counting calories, tracking or measuring. The sleeve does its job of portion control and I do my job of making good choices. I live and eat like a normal person and enjoy everything in moderation. And somewhere along the way I've learned how to deal with life's stresses without turning to food and alcohol. I never thought I could feel this good about myself. I am truly blessed and I sincerely wish everyone as much success, confidence and happiness as I have found. (Sorry this was so long, but I just have so much to be grateful for) Before/after pictures taken Dec 4, 2013 and 2014. Competitive Trail Ride Event pictures taken September 2013 and 2014.

Hello guys! My name is Naema, I'm 25 years old, female. I've been obese almost all my life. I've had many problems, and still having problems with acne, hair loss, back pain, irregular menstrual cycle, and all the other problems obese people go through. I've gone to many doctors for my problems and all have told me the only way to cure myself from all my problems is to lose weight. I've tired numerous diets, medications, etc. Nothing seems to work for me. I did follow a diet plan once and lost over 25KG, but had a terrible year that made me gain all the weight Ive lost. I never can stick to one diet plan, and always end up failing. I've done tons of research on Lapband surgery since 2007. I've went to 2 doctors in Malaysia. I feel like it's the perfect solution for me. My cousin went through the Lap Band surgery when she was about 20 years old. She has lost around 55kg in 2 years! Plus she's had a kid in the middle of losing weight. She told me it took her 2 years to lose 55kg, but she had to loosen her band when she was pregnant. I was so inspired by her weight loss that I decided that I want to do the surgery myself. But she's told me more horror stories then good ones! I was shocked because she has lost so much, and look completely different, but yet she says it was a horrible experience. She told me she was in constant pain for 3-4 weeks, vomiting all the time, was on a liquid diet for 3 months..etc. I got scared, because I fear vomiting. I always try to stay away from it. I've read other people share stories about their experiences with the band, and it's 50/50. I'm still worried, because I am paying for the surgery from my own pocket, and I'm afraid I would hate the band after I've got it done. I have no support from family or friends. Everyone is telling NOT to do it. But I know I can do it. Getting the band will just make me stronger, and fight harder. I fear surgery and pain. So I think I will be extra careful and follow all the rules. I can stand the pain [hopefully]. But my cousin talked about the pain like it's worse then anything in the world, and I asked her if she could go back and do it all over again, her answer was NO. I know the Band is a tool, and it helps. If it could help my cousin, why not me? I need support and a lot of encouragement, which I fail to get from those close to me. I hope that you guys can be my support system if I decide to get the surgery done. So bandsters, What should I expect from getting the Lapband surgery?

I know that for me things are changing a little since my weight loss. I still love my husband the same as I always have. But I am starting to think he is tired of hearing about me, my weight loss, new clothes, plastic surgery and my band. I have worried about ever body else for so long and avoided thinking about my self because I have not been happy. Now that I am I think he feels like I am being selfish because I am now taking time for myself. I get my hair done every 3 months and I go shopping with friends every once and a while. I have never been able to feel good about myself untill now. And sometimes I do feel guilty. But I also think I deserve this. We have been married for almost 10 years. But we have been together since I was 16. I really think he just got used to me always putting him and every body else first and now I put myself first sometimes. I guess what I am trying to say is I dont think that people divorce because one person changes. I think it has a lot to do with a spouse not being supportive of these changes. I know this has been an issue lately in my house. I would love for my hubby to look at me one time and say wow you look beautiful. It does not matter to me what other people think. I really want him to be happy with me now that I am happy with myself. Man I love this web site. I can just let it all out and not have to have an argument. Thanks for listening every body.

Hi Kim, I will look out for Regaine when I am next in Costcos. It is good to hear that that has helped you. My hair is ok at the moment but it will happen very soon I am sure and I am more than a little worried about that. If you are all losing yours now then it is only a matter of time for me too. I was wondering about Kerastase Densifique because I saw something on TV about it helping with hair loss but it is rather expensive. I have put in a question to the company to see if it is for this sort of hair loss though. Regaine might be a better bet all round. Thanks Kim Claire

I've only told a few close girlfriends and my family (which is small). Work knows I had a hiatal hernia repaired and I said I had some acid damage repaired in my stomach. I was able to use the GI surgery to explain my post-op eating. I too, didn't want to deal with the catty remarks and judgement. I had a co-worker tell me she thought I'd had lap-band or gastric-bypass and I just said no, I hadn't had either of those procedures and left it at that. People can think what they want. I feel pretty private about this so I'm not broadcasting it. I did tell the gal who cuts my hair because she was getting a little worried about my sudden hair loss. The one good thing she said is she sees quite a bit of regrowth! Thank goodness!

Well tomorow is 14 days after my last fill, so that is when they said that I should see a difference, I will call the nurse tomorow. I didn't have the heartburn today, Thank God, but tonight I had stomach pains which I had before being banded, it was from an ulcer which was found prior to banding and I was put on prilosec, I haven't had a problem with that in a while, but tonight I could tell it was that same pain. I ate very carefully today, and I guess my band area was ok, it is really hard to tell what is the discomfort because again, I have a constant ache in the chest area which I suppose is the tightness of the band, I dont really know. I ate very healthy making sure to get the protien in, I kind of blew it tonight and had some chips. I wish I didn't have the ablity to eat the junk, I didn't have many, but I thought the band would take away some of my appetite and keep me full. Anyway, I like what you said about soon we will forget what all the worrying was about, I really hope so. As a matter of fact I was reading about what you said about how your port was so sore and felt so funny when rolling in bed and bending over, I had that same experience!! And I remember being so concerned by it, and now it is barely a memory, so I pray that all this misery with discomfort and fills/unfills and heartburn and no wieght loss, and hair falling out will be the same deal. What keeps me going is hearing form others that they have gone through the same things and came out fine, or even those who are having great success and say that the Love their band, that gives me hope too, that the band has to work eventually. Thanks for all your suggestions and input. I live in Rowley on the North Shore, I am not sure where Tauten is in relationship, is it south or north of Boston?? Janet

It will stop. I started having dramatic hair loss at 2.5 months post op. I am now 5.5 months out and it is starting to grow back in and hair loss is decreasing. This is exactly what my surgeon said would happen. He said hair loss would start around month 3 and should stop by post op month 6. He said there is absolutely nothing you can take or do to prevent it, but I still tried everything. He said hair loss past 6 months out could indicate a deficiency of sorts, but it doesn't look like I will have to worry about that. It will grow back.

I had my post-op appointment today at the surgeons office. Everything is going great! They said my incisions looked great. I asked them quite a few questions, and I thought I would share there thoughts. Sodium - I was worried about how closely I should watch it. Broth really packs in the sodium (even the reduced sodium kind so I was a little worried!). They told me not to worry about it right now since I am having such few calories. Biotin - she said that some people see that it yeps with hair loss and that it doesn't really do much for others. She said that there make dissolvable biotin that I can start taking morning and night if I want to. Exercise - I'm an over-doer, so I was really worried that my daily walk totals have been between 2-4 miles. I still am having pain in my big incision, and I wanted to make sure that I wasn't delaying my healing. They said that there is basically no way to walk too much. As long as I wasn't pushing or pulling weight that I was fine. Yay! Also, she said that I could do any exercises I want starting at 6 weeks (all restrictions are off then). I can't wait to start my C25K program! Diet - I've been having the same diet for the last 6 days and I wanted to make sure that was okay. She said I was completely fine doing that right now. I am on full liquids until next Tuesday, so I plan on continuing 3 shakes plus a cup of broth with added protein until then! Starting next Monday, I switch to pureed foods, where my calorie intake should increase to around 800. Basically, I will have to keep taking in all of the protein drinks I currently am, but I need to start adding in the extra calories from the pureed veggies/cottage cheese that I'll be consuming. I have to do pureed foods for a solid month. After that, I can switch to soft normal foods and onto completely normal foods as my stomach allows. The main message is ONLY 5 MORE DAYS UNTIL I CAN EAT COTTAGE CHEESE! Yay!

Hello Buddies! I have been reading this board continuously but haven't posted much as I've been busy busy, but I just wanted to jump in and relay some of my experiences post surgery if it might be helpful to those currently going through it or about to. I had my sleeve on Nov 9th. The one thing that I found that really helped me out of the gate is walking. From day 1 I made sure to make myself walk. Each day I increased my distance by an additional driveway until I was able to walk all the way around the block and then added even more. By 2 weeks post surgery I felt like I was 100% again. A friend of mine who had the same surgery 5 years ago by the same surgeon couldn't believe how quickly I recovered. I attribute it to the walking. So that's my advice on recovery. Unfortunately I did make some major mistakes because I was feeling good and due to a family emergency, 1 week post op I had to fly home to help care for my mother. I didn't want my parents burdened by worrying about my surgery so I kept the entire thing hidden from them. As such, I completely skipped the pureed food stage and just ate soft foods while chewing oh probably a hundred times before swallowing. I do not recommend skipping any food stages but I had to do what I had to do. I had a bad experience with solid food. I was running around and wasn't paying much attention to the fact that I hadn't eaten all day and when I got home I was ravenous. I cooked up some tofu chicken fingers (my vegan go to for a quick and dirty meal pre surgery). Well, um... lets just say it didn't go well. I had that lump in my chest that felt like the food was stuck. The saliva continued to pour up into my mouth. There was nothing I could do to make the pain in my chest go away or the saliva stop flowing. I literally thought I was going to die. I decided to go for a walk. The amount of spit that continued to flow from my mouth could probably keep a whale wet for a decade... it was awful! After about 20 minutes, the pain finally subsided and the constant flow of saliva finally dried up. It was an experience and a hard learned lesson to remember to chew chew chew! and wait wait wait before taking another bite! Rice, my favourite pre surgery meal is now a no go for me. It just doesn't sit well at all. Sad but I can deal with it, bigger picture and all that. Sugar. I was a sugar addict pre surgery, I'm a mostly plant based eater, I attribute all my weight gain to my sugar addiction. I have found that although I am still addicted to sugar, I can have that '1' piece of whatever it is and be satisfied instead of that '1 whole bag' and still not be satisfied as I was in the past. If I go past that '1' piece threshold not because I'm not satisfied but because I'm still a glutton I find myself in the washroom with a mild case of dumping syndrome. Another welcome reminder that '1 is enough'. I feel like I am losing weight fairly quickly but I'm not noticing any adverse side effects like hair loss or sagging skin but I do take collagen everyday so I'm thinking that might be helping with that. Today will be my first day back to the gym in 3 months. I am looking forward to getting back into running again without all that additional weight holding me back I hope you all are enjoying success and keep going! Happy Holidays!

For starters, I'm 52 and have a full head of very thick hair. My last real haircut was last year in April. I got it cut very short, similar to my profile photo. I had surgery in May and again in August and just never felt like worrying about my hair. I've been letting it grow ever since and now it is down past my shoulders when it is wet and it bunches up at my collar when it is dry. (see the photos in my gallery for current photos) It is so thick that I have to "glue" it down with hair gel. The more weight I lose, the more comes out. It is not like what AshAsh shows in her photo from the shower drain, but it is steadily getting worse. I plan to get a buzz-cut before I go in for surgery. I know it is easier for men to go short or even bald, but hair loss is hair loss. I like my hair longer. But, I hate how much I have to clean up now after showering, and you are all saying it gets worse after a few months post-op! I do not want to buy draino every week to clean out the shower drain. I'll have the stylist/barber take before and after photos when I get it cut off. Who knows, I may even go blond again when I do it!