I Need Advice!

[kkimm22 0]

Hi everyone...

I need some help.. am i doing something wrong.. A quick background... I was sleeved on December 13, 2011. Actually i had my vertical band removed that i had gotten 4 years earlier. I originally lost about 60 pounds with the band but then stopped losing within the first year of the band and gained 10-15 pounds back. Long story short....it wasnt working and causing problems and was advised to get sleeved by my doc. Once insurance approved the date was set.

I have to say that the first week or so after getting sleeved i did question my decision, it was painful in the begining and exhausting. I went back to work 3 weeks after surgery, which was a mistake, but i made it through all that and have been feeling great and back to normal with energy after week 4. I did not have to do a pre-op diet and i moved quickly from liquid to mushy to regular food after surgery. I dont know if it was becuase i knew what to expect becuase of my previous sugery, but i have had no problems at all with any foods. I started at 227 pounds on December 13th, today i weighed in at 210 pounds.. i thought it would be more by now and i feel like 17 pounds in not the right amount of weight loss for 7 weeks... am i doing something wrong. i lost 2 pounds this last week, but for the prevoious 3 weeks i hadnt lost anything.... i think it should be more.... i know my body was already used to eating small amounts. I just need some adivce on how or what others eat throughout the day.. a menu of sorts. I dont think i get enough protien in, but would like to make changes to generate some faster weight loss.... can anyone help. I seriously could go a whole day without eating as i dont feel hungry. example for today... half a hard boilded egg and half an english muffin, cut up italian chicken with salad, and grilled steak and salad for dinner... amounts were small and i have been walking about a mile and a half everyday on the treadmill.

I am very happy with the sleeve though compared to the vertical band.. i feel so much better without it! I know there are some fantastic and experienced people on this site and i would love to chat with you... please help a fellow sleever out if you can

[twoboysandagirl 109]

I have heard that for some people their bodies just flip out on them and try their hardest to figure out what you are doing to them. For some I guess it takes a few weeks for their bodies the to catch up. I have faith that if you follow your surgeon and nutritionists guidelines you will succeed! Please keep us (or at least me) posted on your next few weeks and try not to get down. Oh by the way are you seeing inches come off? How are your clothes fitting?

[Puja 148]

I would imagine that your body metabolism had already slowed down a tad with the band. To me, 17 pounds sounds wonderful!

I never had problems with any foods. eggs were a tad difficult early on, but now I eat them almost every day. Each one of us adapts differently.

Are you keeping a calorie and Protein count? What ranges are you usually in on a daily basis?

[TRSJ2012 0]

Guys, I am going to have my sleeve next Saturday and I can't take the decision till now - My wife is afraid of the issue of cutting most of my stomach away and I started to get frightened too - I need some encouragement and advise - The main problem I decided to look for a surgery is that I am suffering from some illness because of extra weight - My BMI is 38 and I weight now 282 Ib and suffering from sleeping apnea and knee problems.

Please advise am I taking the right decision or should I hold down I am so confused and clock is ticking for my surgery date.

thx

[thinoneday 445]

TRSJ2012, well lets put it this way, I have lost 150 lbs and all of my health problems have disappeared ESPECIALLY the sleep apnea. I'm into my 3rd year post surgery now and maintaining beautifully . . you are the only one who can make the decision of whether you want/need the surgery. . . that is up to you, but you can see for yourself all these folks how good it's been for them and how much happier they really are for it. . . good luck

[LindaS 316]

kkimm, what is your Water intake? When I tend to not lose weight for weeks on in, I found that I wasn't drinking at least 64 ounces of Water a day. When I increased my Fluid intake, I started losing weight again.

Linda

[Helen the Cat 42]

Kkimm22,

I think LindaS has a point. How is your Water intake? I know that for a long time I tried to hold down my Fluid intake, thinking that part of what I was weighing was Water weight. But yesterday someone posted a post telling how their surgeon said you can't butn fat without adequate water intake. So I am making a conscious effort to increase my liquid intake to see if that helps. Give it a try!

Best of luck. And congratulations on your sleeve. Hope you find it works well for you! I am thrilled with mine. Have lost 100 pounds so far in 8 months.

[Lissa 2,631]

TRSJ, I was told to lose weight or die by my doctors, so I had an easy decision to make going into the surgery. I had a laundry list of co-morbidities, including sleep apnea, rheumatoid arthritis, pulmonary embolisms, blood clots, asthma. Almost all have resolved on their own since surgery. I'm 85 pounds down in 5 months, which is phenomenal, IMO. It took me nearly a year pre-op to drop 50 pounds on Atkins, only to regain it all when I had pneumonia.

You've only listed 2 problems for now, but the excess weight WILL cause future problems. Only you can decide if WLS is the right way to go, but I know that it was the perfect choice for me!

[TRSJ2012 0]

Can I ask u guys some questions - I am going to have my sleeve surgery tomorrow morning and would like to know how it is after the surgery is it very painful or what and what will be the situation for the first 3 weeks after surgery

[mnbsleeve 87]

TRSJ, I know it's such a difficult and personal decision! And everybody is different in terms of how they come to this decision. Similarly, everyone is different how they respond. Some of us do incredibly well from the get go, others have a few challenges and still a few others face serious complications. I think that IN GENERAL, most of us deal with some gas pain in the first few days and the primary struggles center around sipping and getting fluids and Proteins in. There are varying degrees of nausea, some only a bit and other for a few days. You also need to walk and move your body. Most also experience some degree of pain in the incission - generally described as an intense abdominal workout. For some of us we have a "stitch" type pain for as long as a month. But overall nothing too painful - more anoying. A good number of us seem to have issues with getting our Protein in, specifically dealing with the various shakes - whether because of taste or being able to keep them down due to lactose intolerance. Some of us get a bit of the runs with some of the shakes - although there is less of us. This requires a bit of patience and dedication in trying different things and experimenting. Overall I would say that the main focus the first few days, and I do mean FOCUS, is on moving to help with gas pain, not lifting, and sipping your fluids to reach your goal! That's why everyone says "sip, sip, sip, walk, sip, sip..." Also, getting Liquid Protein in if so prescribed by your surgeon. Those are the main challenges.

After the first week or so things really tend to look up and the challenge again is getting Proteins in, and fluids of course which will continue to be the challenge. It's sort of starts again with soft food - the first few bites are scary and can result in a little pain or slim.

This is my general impression from the experiences being posted on the board as well as my own. I had quite an easy journey, not without challenges but most have resolved. I didn't really have any pain and very little nausea for which I was prescribed raglan - only needed it a few days. I felt pretty energentic by the second week. Again, everybody is different. Some people, while only a few, face more serious complications. So I believe we do have to be ready should that occur.

I hope this is helpful in some way. I just remember this very difficult place that you are in right now and hope to be able to offer some support. I've learned it ABSOLUTELY NORMAL to feel completely freaked out right before surgery!!! I wanted to run out of there even as my IV was put in!!!! I had all the supportive words of the good people on this board with me reminding me that they went throught the same fears and it helped calm me.

It is scary and I really think we are an incredibly courageous bunch!!!!! And sometimes in life it just takes that leap of faith to reach our dreams. Best of luck to you!!!! We are all rooting for you!!!!! Please post and let us know how you're doing!!!!

[TRSJ2012 0]

Thank u so much for this encouragement and I really appreciate - Wish me luck all I need it - will keep in touch soon I hope so.

[jhope 11]

Guys, I am going to have my sleeve next Saturday and I can't take the decision till now - My wife is afraid of the issue of cutting most of my stomach away and I started to get frightened too - I need some encouragement and advise - The main problem I decided to look for a surgery is that I am suffering from some illness because of extra weight - My BMI is 38 and I weight now 282 Ib and suffering from sleeping apnea and knee problems.

Please advise am I taking the right decision or should I hold down I am so confused and clock is ticking for my surgery date.

thx

Im going through the same thing, but I keep reminding myself, that Ihave not been able to do it in 3 years now on my own, and my health problems are iintensifying, so why back out. Ya, that glourious salad I age an hour ago, will never be on my plate again after the surgery, since it was the size of the Grand Canyon, but who knew?! :ciappa: Im never going to be able to sit and eat for an hour at lunch with my office buddy, but I wont be having the highlight of my day being the break room anymore! My skinny 13 year old and I wont be laying in bed grazing hour after hour in the evenings anymore, because I will be out and moving around! No longer to be romanticly challenged is enough to get it done and dont look back.! Just Me :Banane56:

[jhope 11]

Hi everyone...

I need some help.. am i doing something wrong.. A quick background... I was sleeved on December 13, 2011. Actually i had my vertical band removed that i had gotten 4 years earlier. I originally lost about 60 pounds with the band but then stopped losing within the first year of the band and gained 10-15 pounds back. Long story short....it wasnt working and causing problems and was advised to get sleeved by my doc. Once insurance approved the date was set.

I have to say that the first week or so after getting sleeved i did question my decision, it was painful in the begining and exhausting. I went back to work 3 weeks after surgery, which was a mistake, but i made it through all that and have been feeling great and back to normal with energy after week 4. I did not have to do a pre-op diet and i moved quickly from liquid to mushy to regular food after surgery. I dont know if it was becuase i knew what to expect becuase of my previous sugery, but i have had no problems at all with any foods. I started at 227 pounds on December 13th, today i weighed in at 210 pounds.. i thought it would be more by now and i feel like 17 pounds in not the right amount of weight loss for 7 weeks... am i doing something wrong. i lost 2 pounds this last week, but for the prevoious 3 weeks i hadnt lost anything.... i think it should be more.... i know my body was already used to eating small amounts. I just need some adivce on how or what others eat throughout the day.. a menu of sorts. I dont think i get enough protien in, but would like to make changes to generate some faster weight loss.... can anyone help. I seriously could go a whole day without eating as i dont feel hungry. example for today... half a hard boilded egg and half an english muffin, cut up italian chicken with salad, and grilled steak and salad for dinner... amounts were small and i have been walking about a mile and a half everyday on the treadmill.

I am very happy with the sleeve though compared to the vertical band.. i feel so much better without it! :smile1: I know there are some fantastic and experienced people on this site and i would love to chat with you... please help a fellow sleever out if you can :smile1:

Just a little something-something for your tray of remidies....There is a whole lot of the normal you left after all these surgical cures still left. Now according to Dr. Oz, (Gods favorite son, next to Jesus), he says that there are fat multiplyers waiting for the average totally exhausted person, called "Metabalism Booster". You can go to his site and check out a bunch of them, or you could try what I cant go a day without, and that is Kelp pills. They pack a punch to lethargy in the body and to the metabolism, because all weight loss is controlled by the thyroid, it puts the jump back in start! I take two 150 mg tablets, they drop a natural source of iodine into my starving nucleous for preparing my fat to burn!.. Also, and this makes a big difference, cooking with the only low cal fat on earth, Coconut oil. This two chain oil gets your body to burn fat insted of sugar, and it regulates the insulin production. Check out the coconut oil sites online, it just might break your stalled out rut. :boxing_smiley:

[kkimm22 0]

Kkimm22,

I think LindaS has a point. How is your Water intake? I know that for a long time I tried to hold down my Fluid intake, thinking that part of what I was weighing was Water weight. But yesterday someone posted a post telling how their surgeon said you can't butn fat without adequate water intake. So I am making a conscious effort to increase my liquid intake to see if that helps. Give it a try!

Best of luck. And congratulations on your sleeve. Hope you find it works well for you! I am thrilled with mine. Have lost 100 pounds so far in 8 months.

Kkimm22,

I think LindaS has a point. How is your water intake? I know that for a long time I tried to hold down my Fluid intake, thinking that part of what I was weighing was water weight. But yesterday someone posted a post telling how their surgeon said you can't butn fat without adequate water intake. So I am making a conscious effort to increase my liquid intake to see if that helps. Give it a try!

Best of luck. And congratulations on your sleeve. Hope you find it works well for you! I am thrilled with mine. Have lost 100 pounds so far in 8 months.

Hi Helen ... and all... I am not sure if i am replying correctly on this site... (this is my second attempt) I had the whole thing typed out and it disappeared!!! I think i need instructions or something.. ha... we will see what happens.. I was very excited that there were responses and people trying to help...... anyway.. today i weigh exactly the same to the tenth of a pound as i did the day i posted my "advice" post... i know it has only been a few days but it has been coming off so slowly i was hoping for a pound of something! I think it is the WATER or liquid intake.. when i thought about it.. i dont drink that much almost all day... 2 cups of coffee and maybe 16 oz of water... my busy day goes by and that is it... i also sadly NEVER meausred myself.. why, i dont know but i should have.. i do feel "smaller" i guess in some areas but nothing shows on the scale.. and my metabolism is shot i know that.. i do need to boost that big time... well i am going to start with the water intake first.. i am filling up a pitcher of water and making sure that it is gone and then some by the end of the day. Please keep the advice coming.. I would love to be "friends" and keep in contact with others.. just not quite sure how to do that on this site.. i am too new i guess and will have to do some investigating Please keep in touch with me and have a GREAT day. My sister sent me this quote the other day and i thought i would share it with others who might need a lift today.

"Worrying does not empty tomorrow of its troubles, it empties today of its strength."

[LindaS 316]

kkimm, it is never too late to get those measurements. Measure now, and you will see progress. I measured myself in the following locations: calves, thighs, hips, waist, bustline, upper arms and neck. I also measured my "butt/hips," which is my widest area.

I wrote it down on a small notebook that I keep in my underwear drawer. I update it about every month or so. I then keep track of the inches I've lost overall.