Let's get to know each other before our surgery...I'll go first.

My name is Amy (37 years old). I live in central FL with my husband and two kids, 3 yo DS and 4.5 yo DD. I work in IT doing technical writing and operational readiness. I love photography and have a small side business, and when I'm thinner, I really enjoy running and spinning.

I was banded in Nov 2009 at 374 lbs. From my banding until Dec 2011 (2 years), I lost 198 lbs. I was thrilled! Despite the occasional vomit and inability to eat certain foods, I was still 99.9% happy with my band. Right after Christmas this year, however, I got a terrible upper respiratory infection. I coughed and coughed and coughed. I coughed until I puked, which caused a slip.

I got a complete unfill in early January. Once the slip was fixed, I started getting fills. But then my band developed a leak and slipped once again. Since the surgeon I was seeing was less than helpful, I found a new surgeon, Dr. Domkowski, who finally treated me without acting like I was crazy, as my last surgeon did. Based on his recommendations and test results, we decided to do the removal and sleeve in two separate surgeries.

Dr. D removed my band on August 3, 2012. Because of the extent of damage done by the band, including scarring and pulling the fundus through the diaphragm, I am waiting around four months to be sleeved. I'd love to be banded on November 25, which would have been the three year anniversary of my band.

I've gained about 70 lbs since December. Sigh. The good news is my surgeon is not at all concerned about my weight gain. He is 100% convinced that I'll lose it all once I'm sleeved, since I was so successful with the band. I'm a bit of a goody two-shoes, and I followed the rules to a "T", and I intend to do the same with the sleeve.

I hope the next four months fly by!

I'm two days post op still in the hospital. I Go home tomorrow. I Haven't weighed yet can hardly wait to do it. It's hard being in the hospital on Thanksgiving but probably best for me so I don't smell and want to lick spoons lol. I've been walking a lot, Definitely more pain today than Ive had in the past. Looking forward to going home tomorrow and starting My whole new life. And we're off Novembers we're done it's almost over Decembers about to come. Best of luck to all of you stay in touch please

I hope you had a great day! You'll be out soon and loving life! Good luck to you and keep us updated.

Since I couldn't experience Thanksgiving today with my family, I took some turkey and threw it in the food processor and mixed it with some gravy and froze it for when I could have purees. I also wrapped up a piece of stuffing and a little gravy for when I hit soft foods. I figure I could put the gravy on it to make it a little mushier, and still be able to of had some thanksgiving food.

I had a good day today. I enjoyed my shake at the table with my family at my Sisters house. Happy Thanksgiving sleevers!!!!

I'm on liquid loratab...tastes horrible. And I have to take benadrylwith it cuz it makes me itch so badly. I've done a lot of walking today. I just have a lot of gas that is making it feel like a pressure in my chest. I usually just thump my chest and it comes up as a burp or just dissipates. Just muddling through for now. Which is all any of us can do since none of us know for sure how our bodies will react to the process until its our turns. One second at a time.

Liquid Lortab was horrible I was taking it when I first got home i had to . Eventually Ibwas just like forget it because I had to fight my gag reflex every time and I just did plain liquid Tylenol.

Good Morning November sleevers! Today is the first day of my pre op diet.... so far so good, test will come after 4 cause that's when I seem to get hungry. Good luck to all being sleeved today and save me a seat on the losers bench... next Friday the 30th I'll be joining you.

Hello Nov sleevers ...4 days post opt doing well...I had to stay in hospital for 2 days because my white blood cell count was up but better safe then sorry....I didn't even crave any thanksgiving stuff yesterday...my goal today is trying to get more protein in today...probably more broth cause although I am getting it in the isopure has a weird filmy after taste...everything is trial and error right now and I am getting better once I figured it out...my mom took me out for a drive today, I was starting to get cabin fever....

.btw warning for all pre opts the worse time of this experience for me was the the liquid you have to drink with the leak test...I have no words to describe the awfulness of this liquid...I had difficulty holding it down but I did until the test was over and it all came up...worse experience ever

Hello Nov sleevers ...4 days post opt doing well...I had to stay in hospital for 2 days because my white blood cell count was up but better safe then sorry....I didn't even crave any thanksgiving stuff yesterday...my goal today is trying to get more protein in today...probably more broth cause although I am getting it in the isopure has a weird filmy after taste...everything is trial and error right now and I am getting better once I figured it out...my mom took me out for a drive today' date=' I was starting to get cabin fever....

.btw warning for all pre opts the worse time of this experience for me was the the liquid you have to drink with the leak test...I have no words to describe the awfulness of this liquid...I had difficulty holding it down but I did until the test was over and it all came up...worse experience ever[/quote']

I had the same problem with the drink. I was still in my wheel chair after the X-ray so my chest was a re

Whoops was red orange. When they gave me something to throw up in I swear there's was a piece of red stringy tissue

!!!!!!! The day after Thanksgiving and I am down 3 pounds! I must have been transported to an alternate reality. Where ever I am, I like it here.

My extended family never even noticed that I pushed arund food on my plate and didn't eat it. I nibbled on mashed potatoes. I was in charge of sweet potatoes so I made the regular marshmallow kind and a whipped sweet potatoe dish, very soft and mushy and oh, so good. It had 1/4 cup sugar in the whole dish, made with 6 organic potatoes, some milk and eggs(protein!). Yum.

I still have several days of liquid diet but my NUT said just go easy, small bites, slowly. Chew, chew chew. (OK, chew, chew, chew reminds me of the little engine that could.)

I am rambling, but giddy with happiness and just fine with life.

I'm on liquid loratab...tastes horrible. And I have to take benadrylwith it cuz it makes me itch so badly. I've done a lot of walking today. I just have a lot of gas that is making it feel like a pressure in my chest. I usually just thump my chest and it comes up as a burp or just dissipates. Just muddling through for now. Which is all any of us can do since none of us know for sure how our bodies will react to the process until its our turns. One second at a time.

Hang in there. It gets better. Day 8 for me. No pain but learning to use tool is interesting.

Ugh! Tried eating half of a scrambled egg for dinner and it came right back up....ugh!

Ugh! Tried eating half of a scrambled egg for dinner and it came right back up....ugh!

Sorry to hear that :-( Greek yogurt has been the easiest thing for me to handle. Chobani, green mountain, or trader joes brand. Their loaded with protein and taste pretty good. I know it's probably the last thing you wanna eat after the liquid stage. Hope your able to tolerate more soon :-)

Lol...pardon my french...but this sh*t sucks...im grinding thru watching everyone else eat Thanksgiving dinner...im holdin out...and im surprised how easy it is actually...but everything smells great...stay tuff everybody...my surgery is this tuesday the 27th...

I had the same problem! My surgery is also the 27. I opted to work a 12 hour shift on thanksgiving thinking it would make it easier. Everyone was bringing in pies cookies all kinds of junk. I drank my shakes and maintained, but it was HARD! Only four more days to go!!!!

To all you newly sleeved hang in there! Things will get better' date=' the pain will go away. I'm 8 days out, had a rough time in the beginning but I feel awesome now! Just a little soreness left in my middle incision but I'm back to my old self and you'll get there too. It will get easier when you get to full liquids and then puréed (only a few more days for me! Yay) And when you step on the scale you'll realize this has ALL been worth it! Hang in there, we're all pulling for you![/quote']

This gives me so much hope! I am 5 days post op and still am feeling miserable. I'm up all hours of the night walking trying to make the gas pain stop. I also have gained 4 pounds???? here's to hoping day 8 is the magic day!

This gives me so much hope! I am 5 days post op and still am feeling miserable. I'm up all hours of the night walking trying to make the gas pain stop. I also have gained 4 poundsdde1e here's to hoping day 8 is the magic day!

Don't worry! I gained 10 lbs when I got out of the hospital! I got sleeved on the 5 th and have lost 25 lbs already! This will all be worth it;)