6 months post surgery and at least 100 posts ...

Are these settings enforced? I know this will probably make me sound elitest ... whatever ...

I have seen a few folks who have surgery AND join dates < 6 months posting in here. Also, do you think 100 posts constitutes a veteran? I see A LOT of folks several months pre-sleeve who have hundreds of posts.

Sooo ... I guess my question is, what do you feel constitutes a veteran?

Does a veteran always have to be sunshine, lollypops and rainbows?

Does being rigorously honest mean we aren't supportive? Even if that means calling you on your ****?

Just received a PM from someone who joined 3 years ago, surgery date 2 and a half years ago. Doesn't have > 100 posts, though. Should this person be considered a veteran?

I am offering no opinions on this topic ... just putting it out there for discussion.

I am 3 years out and have lost 130#. I am certainly a veteran, with a great deal to share and a great need for support. I think the group should be closed, but determined individually rather than by a number. I would like to be considered for inclusion. Thanks

I kinda agree with you.. I just hit 100 posts yesterday and though I joined just in January, my 6 month surgiversary was yesterday... that technically qualifies me to participate here however I hardly consider myself a vet...

maybe another term should be used because I do find that I have outgrown the typical newbie questions that are posted 100's of times a week.... not that I mind answering them but I also appreciate having another "safe" place an correspond about the next stages of WL

I think it's more of a guideline than a rule. We see men posting in the "powder room" & women in the guys room. No doubt there will be some crossover in this one as well.

So, there is a certain advantage to US to have an exclusive place to discuss the veteran specific... topics...without having to hand out lollipops to the emotionally fraught newbies (hey I was one of them, this is not a criticism, it is a fact!!). That is not how VST works, and i personally am a big fan of the Man's Room...lol... so I can't really get to excited about rule enforcement. (I am definately not a man, just like their topics)

Oh, and not as many guys post in the powder room, but i swear some of you run daily searches for key words like "sex" "boobs" or whatever... and I am quite sure read them...hahaha

I think it's more of a guideline than a rule. We see men posting in the "powder room" & women in the guys room. No doubt there will be some crossover in this one as well.

Then drop the 100 post requirement ...

I thought the point was to give veterans a place to discuss issues and not have a thread hijacked by a newbie.

Isn't there a way to get a closed forum? I see certain groups here that you need a password to..

That way you guys can have a place (club) with just the people you want and the rest of the VST users don't have to see what sometimes really should be said behind closed doors...

Or via

Private messaging (like I do)

Can we have a so called rainbows and unicorns vet forum and then a so called natzi vet forum?

And then slam the stupid doors on both?

My eyes burn.

Can we have a so called rainbows and unicorns vet forum and then a so called natzi vet forum?

And then slam the stupid doors on both?

LOL... "Preach" sister!

Me??? I like to spread my love around among the masses so I will stay out here! (I promise)

Can we get a newbie forum that can't be hijacked by veterans?

I like rainbows and unicorns a lot!!!!

I like rainbows and unicorns a lot!!!!

Hey kirk... Like the new pic! Wait.. Im not a vet... Retraction!

back to topic now, to me a veteran is someone who has lost his/her excess weight and has been a member on vst for a period of time. I definately don't want to get advice from a newbie when I have lost my weight and am in maintenance. A 100 post does not qualify anyone to be a veteran. It's the person's experience with the sleeve and where they are. I do get frustrated if I'm on the veteran's post here and a newbie wants info. I'm more interested in information from a veteran because they have the experience of it. I don't care if newbies read the posts here, but please don't ask questions that should be asked under question post op. So what is a veteran and who makes the definitions of a veteran?

I think some crossover is to be expected, BUT a majority of the conflict, disagreements and sarcasm here are from people that I wouldn't consider vets at all.

To me, a vet is someone who is experienced here on VST. They're active, they're posting, they may or may not be at goal but they've been sleeved longer than a few months. I dearly love the posts of several posters that have less than one year post op, so I hesitate to say that a time constraint is the boundary. And frankly, I'm not down with the mods having to police and keep people out, either. I'd rather people just steer clear on their own, knowing when something isn't directed at them personally.

The idea behind the vet board was to give us a place to vent and discuss those things that just don't apply when you're newly sleeved or even new to VST. It was to give us a "safe place" to discuss and get ideas on issues we face as people that don't need to be here but choose to come back to help other people.

Our perspective and how we answer questions is different than someone still experiencing the glow of a fresh surgery and feeling eager to help everyone around. It IS different for us and it's actually really annoying and frustrating to see people come here, stir the pot, insult the vets and then distract with silly babble for the next ten pages of a thread.

Almost every other board is a free zone for new people to post and they do it to their heart's desire. As vets we can (and frequently do) choose to only answer the posts we want to answer or help on, and we leave other newbies to answer the ones that are repetitive or for some reason annoying or uninteresting to us.

I've been here a while and will likely be here long after some of these critical newbies are long gone because they've burnt out. I've seen really fantastic vets chased off the forums by burnout and constant criticism of their posts from people that simply don't get it.

Plain and simple, if you're not a vet, try to understand that you just don't understand and keep that in mind when you jump in here and slam everyone.

~Cheri

I want the Vets board so I have a thread that includes topics that interest me now. That way, I don't have to wade through lots of "I can't poop, I can't drink, my surgery is denied" topics to find info on how fellow vets are handling life at goal.

I think 6 months post-op is a fair way to describe a vet.

I do visit the other boards to offer support and find the vet's posts on life at goal and beyond.

Lynda

I like the vet board bc, as stated above, life is totally different for vets than it is for newbies.

Personally, I think a vet should be at least a year out. The majority of the weight has been lost by this time and things are not "new" anymore. At this point, for me at least, is when things were finally becoming normal for me. I was starting to really live my life and not worry so much about what I ate, how much I ate and how I felt when I ate it. I had that under control and could really start living!

I don't post a lot on VSG, I don't even know how many posts I have made, I just don't pay attention to that. I do come on and read posts almost every day. Like other vets have said all of the newbie questions have been asked over and over again and sometimes I don't feel like responding to them so I don't. This isn't a bash towards the newbies. I was there once and was so thankful to be able to ask those same questions and to be able to find answers.

One thing I was thinking about the other day when I noticed a newbie had posted in the vet board is that I think bc the new posts automatically come up on the right hand side that some people just answer and don't even know what group that post was posted in. I know that I have done that plenty of times. The right hand side new posts is what I look at first when I log on.

So I guess I am trying to say that I like having a vet board. It might be nice to have a closed board. Maybe that would make it easier on the ops bc there are so many peopel on this site it has to be incredibly hard to moderate this site plus make sure every single post is from a vet. Especially lately with all of the craziness that has taken place on VSG.

Sarah