For all those considering the surgery, I'm going to give an honest assessment of my experience thus far...

Immediately after surgery: ugh the gas bloat and pain was pretty bad. The gas didn't hurt my left shoulder like most have experienced...it was killing my back! Lol. I got up and walking as soon as I could and walked on the hour, every hour that I was awake.

Day 1 post op: left hospital and survived a four hour drive home...lol. Gas pain was still pretty bad...that's truly the worst thing I can say about the pain so far---that gas pain is no joke! LOL

Day 2 post op: Gas is def better, but still a lot of discomfort...was able to sip 1 oz at a time, every 20 mins.....hoping to avoid dehydration. Belly is sore like I've done 200+ sit-ups, but ice packs have helped and I'll continue to use them.

Regrets? None so far....looking forward to this interesting journey....and my spouse is even considering having it done.

I had mentally prepared myself for the life change: I won't miss the buffets, or eating loads more than I should. I do look forward to eating food again so that I can have dinner with friends. But it will never be like it was before. My advice? If you don't want to drastically change your life, don't have the surgery. You have to approach this with the mindset that you will change forever. The pain? Temporary. The liquids? Temporary. Not eating with friends? Temporary. Not organizing life around food? Permanent. Not gorging on food anymore at a buffet? Permanent. I wanted a permanent divorce from food controlling my life...I want to eat to live, not live to eat. Please think long and do some soul searching before you have the surgery.

As for me, I've no regrets and look forward to my new paradigm. :-)

I wanted a permanent divorce from food controlling my life...I want to eat to live, not live to eat.

Yes, this. Exactly! Divorce is the word that's been rattling around in my head!

I'm so happy that you're doing OK, and excited about what's ahead. You sound like you're in a really similar head-space to where I am, but my surgery is just over a week away.

I was talking with a friend the other day...she is one of the few people who know my plans. She thinks my wanting a divorce from food is a bit dysfunctional, and is recommending I get counselling. I think I will do that, but I stand firm in wanting a drastic change in the way I live my life. I'm so tired of everything--from family gatherings, to work functions, religious celebrations, and even my book club for goodness sakes--being about food!

I don't think it's too drastic....especially when my previous way of thinking about food was slowly killing me. Lol

You're so right! And according to the Centre for Disease Control, almost 70 per cent of my friends and family with more "healthy" attitudes toward food are either overweight or obese, too!

I had my surgery on June 19th too! I too was tired of constantly worried about food. My Dr. said my stomach was really huge - which makes sense. I could eat a crazy amount and I was always hungry.

The downsides: I get really bad migraines and the only thing that works for me (Excedrin) was the one thing I couldn't take (b/c of the aspirin).

I wanted to change my relationship with food - not just prevent myself from overeating.

Sleeved on the 18th and despite struggling with back and shoulder pain, and getting fluids in... No regrets! I have 4 kids at home and since I've been home, I've had friends and family bringing dishes over so that I can rest and recover. The dishes have consisted of lasagna, Mexican food, pancakes, etc. and not once have I been tempted by the food, or has the food appealed to me. I am simply not hungry. Loving my sleeve so far. Just working on getting those fluids in.

I had my surgery on June 12th and i have to say i feel amazing! I was expecting the typical shoulder pain and bloat that i have experienced with other surgeries that i have had, but i surprisingly didn't have them at all. I left the hospital on day 3 with a drain that had to stay in for a week and i wasn't allowed to leave the hospital until i could get down two 8 oz shakes, which i was able to do by 4:30pm. The next day my husband and i walked through the mall (slowly) and i stayed as active as possible for the entire weekend with a short nap in the middle of the day. By monday i was feeling normal and was virtually pain free. I have only taken the anti inflammatory that i was prescribed once a day since then.

Overall i can say i have had an amazing experience and love the fact that I AM NOT HUNGRY. My relationship with food has changed for the better and i am so happy that i will no longer be controlled by piles of unhealthy choices and lack of will-power. I love the powders?utm_source=BariatricPal&utm_medium=Affiliate&utm_campaign=CommentLink" target="_ad" data-id="1" >unjury shakes and the chicken Soup flavor is nice for something warm and savory.

Down 11 lbs since my surgery date and couldn't be happier to see that my efforts are finally showing up on the scale!

So glad to hear that you guys are doing well!

Day 3 post op: the gas is almost gone and no gas pain today so far! Yay! Lol. And my throat no longer is sore...not sure if it was the hernia they fixed or if they had to jam the breathing tube down hard, but my throat had been sore until today...so I think today is shaping up to be a good day! :-)