Hi everyone! New here, just looking for some experiences/ information. Let me start of by telling you my stats. I'm a 24 yr old female. Barely 5'8 and just weighed myself at 251 pounds. So far from what I've read, I REALLY want to get this done. My bmi is just under 40, I've read on here a lot of you had BMI. Of less than 40, what co-morbilities ? Did you have? I don't have any that I know of, would that disqualify me? How long do you have to stay in the hospital for? I have a two year, when post-op would I feel good enough to take care of her. I'm also worried about irritableness after the surgery. Ive heard people have trouble with deficits in nutrition as well as being dehydrated and loosing hair. This again worries me as iam someone who drinks a lot of water and wouldn't loosing your hair be a sign you arent healthy? Sorry for the rambling. I gotta cut this short since I'm on my phone. Thank you in advance for anyone who takes the time to reply, I appreciate it!

Hello! I am 5'8 and had 0 co-morbs. I did have to have and keep a BMI of 40 due to that fact, throughout my 3 month "diet" phase which was a joke because I had to gain 8 lbs to stay qualified..crazy, but I did it and was approved the first go round. I stayed in the hospital for 2 days. As far as the hair yes, I lost hair from month 3-7ish it happens which is the reason for my lovely new short hair. I can't complain I'm down almost 100 lbs and I like my new hair sooooo whatever, small price to pay. As far as water everything is a work in progress and you can't really rely on having any of the same outcomes as me or anyone else for that matter. It's just a journey you have to take for yourself to see what happens. It's a blast! No regrets!!

Hi Amy go for it!!! I am 28 diabetic..asthmatic and just found out I have sleep apnea I was able to lose weight with no problem before but it was hard to keep it off it has been a struggle I decided to take this step because of this silent killer(diabetes) my weight fluctuates badly and my level are not controlled I get major headaches and neckpain and I knew I needed to do something before it gets out of control..2 weeks from today I will be sleeved and it has been almost a year since I started the process and I am so happy and anxious to start my new life style PLEASE dont let no one discouraged you....Good luck and keep me posted!@ sorry if I wrote too much...

Hi! I'm 25, 5"4', and 226 lbs. Hoping to get sleeved Jan 16'. If you have a BMI of 40+ you dont need medical reasons to qualify, if your below 40 you'll need medical reasonings..how many depend on your insurance (mine requires 3). You'll be required to do a lot of testing including an EGD, etc. They pretty much find everything wrong health wise so you can have the surgery. You might be required by your insurance to attend support groups (give/take 3 meetings). You'll be required to meet with a nutritionist (NUT) and be on a supervised diet for 3-6 months (once again, depending on insurance). Some require you to lose 5-10% of your body weight within 6 months to show you can stick to a strict diet plan, since you'll be on one after surgery.

as for your child, I have two boys 5 & 6 yrs old. Make plans for child care cuz you could be discharged the same day or 3-4 days later, everyone's body reacts differently.

hair loss..it happens. I'm scared to death of it because I love my hair BUT it will grow back. It doesn't happen because of this surgery, hair loss happens when ANYTHING traumatic happens to your body, such as a car accident..child birth..etc.

realize this isn't a way to get skinny fast. This is a forever change. Its not easy and there will be times you get frustrated and wanna give up but you literally cant, because your stomach is pretty much gone (they'll take out 85% of your stomach). If u have a strong relationship with food I'd attend food addiction groups because post op is gonna be hell. I LOVE food and after surgery it won't be the same. Especially when you're stuck on liquids.

I'm on this site A LOT because I'm addicted to information. I wanna know as much as possible, good AND bad and wanna be prepared. Everyone here is great and willing to help in any way they can. No question is stupid here (I asked about losing my boobs last week LOL) so don't feel ashamed to ask anything. If you have more questions or want a weight loss buddy, you can always send me a message

@@glitterpockets Bye bye boobies! 40 triple D to a 32 D.

Haha ive had D boobs since middle school and I'm a DD now, I'd be ok if I was in a C... but nothing smaller! lol

Hmmf...looks like I might have to accidentally gain 13 pounds before my first consult. I'm realize I'm going to have to "break-up" with food, a little worried about that, the whole thing is definitely daughting.but after loosing weight and gaining it back so many times I really feel like this is my last hope. I didn't realize the trauma was the reason for the hair loss- good to know.

I came into this knowing very little and when I found this site I learned SO much. I'm in the same boat as you. My weight is always fluctuating and I get frustrated. I've done low carb, cal, fat diets, fad diets, stupid DVDs, everything under the sun and nothing's worked. I crave to be a runner. I wanna be able to turn to exercise, not food, to comfort me.

@@AmyNLaynie6 Ankle weights are magical

What made you choose sleeve vs bypass RNY? I've been going back & forth. My surgeon and I have talked long & hard on this!! I've been researching like crazy and have to decide soon bc surgery should be in Oct!! I'm exactly the same size as you also!! 5'4"-5'5" approx 226 pounds!!

@@dancingqueene

I personally wanted the sleeve due to the malabsorbtion issues with the RNY. I am a TERRIBLE Vitamin taker, and I knew it was something I was going to have to do for the rest of my life with the RNY. With the sleeve, you don't necessarily have to continue the mega Vitamins prescribed to you at first as you should be able to get most of them from food over time. I just take Vitamin D now at almost a year out.

This is JUST MY OPINION, but I think RNY is better served for people with larger amounts to lose. My husband had one 9 years ago and lost 120 pounds and has kept most of it off. A few issues with B12 as of late, but has had no other problems otherwise.

@ Babbs

I've done a lot of research and I agree w/ you as well, but I'm fearful I won't lose as much and that I will 'hit a wall' so to speak as a lage amount of others I see and have read have hit. I've read more journals, books, meetigs, etc than I care to mention lol I know a deep part of me emotionally wants the weight to come off faster to keep me more motivated and that is what scares me w/ the sleeve- that I won't see the results as much. How has your experience been?

Slower but steady Very happy with the sleeve, but your concerns are valid. I do honestly think people lose faster with the RNY. And because I have GERD, I sometimes wish I would have gone with the RNY. But like I said, the sleeve was the best choice for me because of my aversion to taking vitamins, lol.

Slower but steady Very happy with the sleeve, but your concerns are valid. I do honestly think people lose faster with the RNY. And because I have GERD, I sometimes wish I would have gone with the RNY. But like I said, the sleeve was the best choice for me because of my aversion to taking vitamins,

Slower but steady Very happy with the sleeve, but your concerns are valid. I do honestly think people lose faster with the RNY. And because I have GERD, I sometimes wish I would have gone with the RNY. But like I said, the sleeve was the best choice for me because of my aversion to taking vitamins,

I'm surprised at the vitamin situation. Id be nervous to not take them. How do you manage alcohol? Do you drink anything carbonated?

I have GERD as well and I take meds so thinking RNY might be my best option.

I had GERD pre-sleeve and took Ranitidine 40 mg. twice a day. That was sufficient for me.

Post-op for the first 4.5 months I took a stronger antacid -- a PPI called Protonix. That seemed necessary as my much smaller tummy was healing.

Now, and for many months, I've been back on the Ranitidine 40 mg twice a day regimen. And I'm fine -- if I don't eat a lot of the foods that aggravate GERD in massive quantities at the same time, e.g., wine, chocolate, sugar, caffeine, etc. And no serious sleeve patient would do that anyway.

I also find that drinking a glass of milk after dinner seems to help me a lot.

The most effective lifestyle change to improve GERD is to not eat for two hours prior to lying down to sleep at night.

Finally, I was aiming only for an 85-pound loss with WLS, so I didn't think that warranted RNY. The sleeve has been a great tool for me so far. I'll hit my surgiversary in two weeks. I reached my weight goal 3.5 months ago.