So, My name is John, 37 year old father/husband who is now 4 weeks post vertical sleeve. I am doing great, honestly & strangely. I actually reacted very well to the surgery, no pain, no nausea, no discomfort, but yes, SO tiered due to low calorie. It took me two years to finally get approved for the sleeve. I failed the first time around since the clinic I was working with did not

I had my surgery May 13th 2014 at the Valley hospital in Northern New Jersey. I selected them since through Aetna, they are designated as a center of excellence. I was operated on by Dr. Marc Bessler (You can YouTube him). The metabolic clinic handled all of my paper work. My first visit with him was late December, and I opted for the three month approval process which entailed three months of supervised nutrition/Nurse Visits at their office/ and psychological therapy for evaluation. I was also ordered to undergo sleep tests which uncovered Sleep Apeena. I really credit this with being the tipping point for approval.

My height was registered as 5'10" but in truth I am 5'11". My heights weight was 324lbs. Once I was approved, I met with Dr. Bessler and let him know I wanted this operation to occur ASAP, he was able to identify an opening, but that only gave me 1 week to perform a liquid fast in order to drop weight prior to the operation. I was able to drop from 324 lbs - 295 lbs.

Since my operation I have learned many things. First, I am never hungry, but I still feel urges to empty a huge bag of chips into my mouth at night. In order to combat this, I jump on the elliptical and get my work out on. Since I am 4 weeks out, I have been incorporating soft foods, and yea, I eat less then my three year old. The weight is dropping steady. I am now down a total of 55 lbs. My waist has gone down from a 46 to a 38. I am excited, but I am learning that my life will never be the same again. Its summer now, and I am only able to eat about 1/2 of a hot dog with the bun and I feel Thanksgiving stuffed. liquids and foods at the same time equals a speedy trip to the bathroom for the seconding coming of what ever I ingested. I understand it gets easier, but in truth I am not complaining.

Prior to my operation I was unable to sleep in my bed, the body pain was horrible. I was sleeping on the couch which I had tweaked with heavy plywood boards to support my weight. I was using a CPAC machine to ensure I would not stop breathing throughout the night as the thickness of my neck was collapsing my air way. I am now able to sleep next to my beautiful 7 month pregnant wife and I wake feeling refreshed. I am finally popping out of bed full of energy. Yea, I am one of those mentally deranged morning persons. All in all, I feel great.

Anyway folks, since I am always pulling inspiration from these forums, I figured it was only right for me to actually say something.

Thank you all for being open about your journey.

Stay positive

John.

myfitnesspal: garayjoh

Congrats! You will be able to get up with that new baby in the morning and let mommy sleep in!

Without a doubt! I am able to fall right back to sleep after feeding the little ones at night, my wife on the other hands, is never able to get back to bed until she sees the 6 am hours.

Looking forward to being where you are, thanks for sharing!

Talk about inspiring! This brought tears to my eyes! Your wife must be so proud of you. You have worked so hard and sacrificed and look at your life now! So much joy ahead for you! May you continue to grow stronger and have a wonderful new life with your wife and new baby! Love and blessings from Texas.

Oh I am so happy for you that is wonderful progress I wish I had your stamina to jump on the elliptical I'm still walking.

Wonderful!! It is really wonderful to hear about the big changes in life which you are already experiencing. Image all the future moments you have now because of this surgery.

Congratulations! Well done.

I'm having mine on Tuesday, your story helped me ease some of my anxiety. Today is my last day of the liquid diet and I start clear liquids tomorrow. I feel like I know what addicts go through as they overcome their vices as the anxiety I feel is coming from the knowledge that I won't ever be able to stuff myself again. I am so excited for my new life and thank you for the inspiration

Hi jwwood1985

I'm having gastric bypass with Dr bessler on the 4th of august I'm nervous

Good for you, John! So nice to hear of your success so far. Much happiness to you and your family.

Thank you all, Just to provide updates on things, the weight continues to drop, Of course the hunger and urges at times continue but I am realizing that they are not true hunger pangs but restlessness.

Important to note, DEHYDRATION! Trust me when I tell you this, it is the root of ANY issues you will face/feel. Dizzy? Dehydration! Hungry? Dehydration!Stalled out and not dropping a pound? Dehydration!

Get your self a surgical steel Protein shaker and keep it filled with Water, if need be, squeeze a lime/lemon into it daily. Not only will your water taste fresh, it will help you avoid kidney stones as the acid breaks up fat.

For the folks nervous or scared, please don't be. Its a beautiful new world post op. Just stick to the guide lines and you will be fine.

Most people are scared, the ones who are not are probably not wise enough to understand the significance of this surgery and will suffer later mental anguish.

Now as for the eating, this is where I would suggest to stand fast and start to make the commitment to your upcoming lifestyle change. The importance of the pre-op diet is to shrink internal organs so as to lower the probability of potential complications during the surgery. Keep this in mind when you are tempted to cheat. By breaking the pre-op diet, you endanger the success of your pending operation. I had only one week of pre-op to drop 20 lbs. I went for a strip down liquid fast on low carb protine shakes. I dropped 25 lbs in 1 week. It was hard and I don't recommend it. I suggest you stick to the 2 week pre-op. Don't allow your fear to get the best of you.

I have often described the differences in personalities as a person standing on a ledge. Their are souls who fear the edge, and want to recourse to safety! Yet their are others who feel this insane urge to jump! Its time for you to familiarize your self with the urge to jump.

I had my sleeve on the 13th of May 2014. I am now down 79 lbs! I feel incredible. I feel full on minimal amounts of food. Every day is beautiful because I don't worry about not fitting into my cloths. I feel AWESOME! Trust me in a couple of weeks, you will feel the same way too. Let go of the urge to flee to safety and just jump into the new lifestyle, you will not regret it.

You are amazing John. I am so happy to hear that you are coming along so well. I love it that you're finally able to sleep with your wife!!! You are going be to even more awesome when that new baby is born and you will once again realize how much this is all worth it.

Your update is inspirational, and it reassures that what these doctors are doing for us is giving us a golden chance at what we could not have achieved otherwise.

Congratulations John!!!!

VVV