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I have a best friend. We met in 5th grade & are now 25. We are a match made in best friend heaven, perfectly weird complimenting personalities. Since High School we have been on the journey (among others) of being fat together. We would eat constantly, joke about how fat we are. It was our thing, eating was our best social time, nothing is better than mindlessly stuffing your face while having great conversation. When we weren't eating we'd joke about how fat we were & that "tomorrow we'll get skinny" as we stuff another cheeseburger in our mouth. Sure we had our brief periods of "getting skinny", they never lasted. We'd get bored, so we'd eat. We'd get sad, so we'd eat. We'd get drunk, so we'd eat. We'd be social, so we'd eat. Everything in our life came back to food. In September of this year I came to her with the idea of WLS & doing it together. We talked about how AMAZING it'd be to be skinny, but how scary it was, & what a huge life change. The subject was dropped. December rolled around & it was brought up again. Maybe we could do it, a mutual friend had VSG 8 months prior & is already down 100 pounds! WE could lose a 100 pounds, if we just make the sacrifice. It was decided, WLS was what we needed, both individually & together. In 2013 I will undergo the biggest change of my entire life & be lucky enough to do it WITH my best friend. I can't wait to actually see us skinny. (If you'd like to look her up it's JPSnAZ, she a hoot)

Are you by chance still wearing old clothes that don't show the loss? I know on days that I wear my old clothes (always kept them in hopes I would return one day, and I am woohoo ) that fit more snug, people actually notice, but with baggier clothes (really trying to hold out on buying clothes as I keep going down pretty steadily) no one says a thing. But it may help I work in an environment with a lot of nurses, doctors, and health minded people, so they encourage getting healthier, if that makes sense. Like LovetheNewMe said, they may be jealous or just not know how or what to say. I have one person who is always complementing me, but at the same time, says she is afraid that she does not want to offend me in the same conversation. Like people don't want to make you feel bad about what you used to look like I suppose is what she means.

I could just about say "ditto" to everything everyone else has written about their reasons and that would be my story. Here are my details: 40yrs old Registered Nurse in Northern Virginia 266 was highest weight 262 at start of pre surgery diet 250 day of surgery 12/17/12 Surgeon: Dr. Salameh at Virginia Hospital Center Surgeon/Hospital Choice: I changed both about 3 months prior to surgery because I started working at VHC and was very comfortable with their Bariatric Center of Excellence and processes. It was hard to imagine having surgery and being vulnerable to people I work with in that sense but I did a lot of research and talked to almost everyone who would be caring for me and that made all the difference. A surgery nurse told me, "surgical nurses tell no tales." This comment was huge for me - and made me so much more sure I made the right choice. Pre-op Insurance Issues: I changed jobs and insurance during my journey which was a challenge. My insurance initially denied me because although I had over 8 months of a medically supervised diet - they claimed not enough of an exercise component was included. Having been a clinical case manager myself, I know that this is just a ploy and delaying tactic used by insurance companies. So I had my surgeon do a peer-to-peer review with the medical director of my insurance (Care First Blue Cross PPO). They compromised and insurance said they would approve if I did physical therapy (I have multiple sclerosis as well so this was one of my surgeons selling points). The physical therapy (although annoying and another month delay) was the best thing that could have happened to me. I met with the physical therapist who treats bariatric patients and it was amazing. He set me up with an exercise plan - and more importantly, made me feel good about myself and the journey I am taking. He even visited me post-op and gave me another pep talk. Had I known how helpful his was I would have paid out of pocket for it. I cannot wait to follow up with him in the new year (he's also really nice to look at - I'm not gonna lie)! Surgery 12/17/12 - all went well. I had a significant haitial hernia which needed repair. Post op I had a lot of pain - that was a surprise. I thought I would be getting a PCA (Patient Controlled Analgesics) and did mention in my pre-op surgery appt. that I don't do well with morphine. However post op they ordered IV morphine which didn't tough my pain. Ended up getting switched to dilaudid which I got pretty much every 2-3 hours but I would have probably done better if I could have controlled it myself. Discharge was sort of a mess. My nurse was getting an admission so she did my discharge before I was ready to go. We left all of the post op instructions in the room - luckily I am a nurse and knew what to do. I only had a few hours (maybe 2) on clears before I was discharged and only one dose of oral pain meds. Looking back - this clearly was not enough. I also could not take a deep breath - couldn't get the incentive spirometer (IS) to move at all. I probably needed another night in the hospital. First day home - was HORRIBLE! I had a terrible headache, could not get fluids in without severe pain, was taking pain meds more frequently than prescribed just to be able to breathe. Each breath hurt and stomach spasms on liquids really hurt. I was dehydrated and still could not make the IS move at all. Worse was I couldn't get to the phone in time to get the post-op call from the hospital so was unable to get my post-op instructions e-mailed to me (gonna suggest they ask for preferred phone number at discharge). A nurse friend came over and listened to my chest and was concerned that my breath sounds were extremely diminished on my left side as well as in both bases, She suggested the ER if it didn't improve. I also had a low grade fever:100.8. My second day was much better. I went to the mall for 4 hours and walked and also worked hard on the deep breathing. I coughed up a bunch of blackish/brownish crud and that helped as well. Fever down and no ER visit needed. Day 6 - things are going well. I still hurt but am down to just about 2 doses of pain meds a day. Im getting more fluids down and about 1/3 of a protein shake for breakfast and some cream of chicken soup for dinner. I've tried a few bites of pudding but got a little nauseous - so that is going to have to wait. Overall I'm extremely happy. I stopped all of my meds (except my MS disease modifying injections), and that has been pretty good. I'm very optimistic about the process. I forgot to mention the most important thing - I have an incredible boyfriend (of 15 years) who has been amazing through it all. He has cared for me and loved me unconditionally through the years, through MS, and through weightless surgery. Having this kind of support has ben the best and most important medicine. I've lost 20 lbs since my week prior to surgery diet. Im not gonna lie and say the pounds don't count - they do so very very very much - but the way I feel right now cannot be measured in pounds. I'm trying to keep that in mind when I have what I know will be a battle with the scale in the weeks to come. Cheers to you all!

With less than 24 hours away from the big surgery, I find myself enthralled in all sorts of emotions. One moment I'm excited. The next I'm a little worried. The next I'm axious to get this over with.. And the next I'm flat out afraid. I've been up since 3am this morning. I just can't sleep.My mind is moving just too fast. I've been going back and forth to some major events in my life and trying to figure out what led me here.. Then 2 events pop in mind.. One when I was about 19 and was having an argument with one of my ex boyfriend's friends. He made a pass at me and I told my boyfriend at the time who addressed him about it. He was so upset with me he yelled "that's why your're a cheeseburger away from obese". I was soooo offended, like could he really have said that to me.. But then again, he was right. I had no come back. Then lastly I remember having an argument with an ex friend of mine at about 21 and boy was it a bad one. Not wanting to be defeated like I had in the previous argument, I was guns loaded. In a tit for tat I blurted out "that's why your ugly and you look like a gorilla". Not one of my proudest moments I'll admit. Very childish.. She responds "that's why your fat". Ouch! Another dagger to the heart about my weight. I replied "well I can fix my problem. But you sure can't fix ugly. All the surgery in the world won't help that face!"... Feeling like I had won that argument, my ego said otherwise and I was deeply saddened. What these two events made me realize is that the person I saw, was what the rest of the world was beginning to see. Someone who was moving fast towards a serious weight problem. My grandmother passed away on December 26, 2003 in her sleep for no apparent reason. She cooked Christmas dinner, played games with us all.. then never woke back up. The doctor's ruled it as congestive heart failure because it was the last pre-existing condition she had. But what I failed to mention was that she was just over 500 pounds and battled with sleep apnea. She use to snore really bad. When I would spend the night with her, the only way I knew she was breathing was when I heard that snoring.. But sometimes there would be long pauses in those snores and she'd begin gasping for breath. The morning of her death I arose to greet her good morning and while combing my hair in her vanity right next to her bed... I noticed, she hadn't been snoring. Then I looked at her arm and it was just hanging off the bed. I knew she had stopped breathing. I honestly believe she suffocated in her sleep and had she been 200-300 pounds lighter, I'd still have her to this very day. She died at only 52. Obesity is a genetic disadvantage in my family and I finally have an opportunity to overcome that. To live life the way it's supposed to be lived. This is something I can't pass on doing. I've prayed to God without ceasing about what I can do to get this weight off and in I stumble across a procedure I didn't even know existed. Literally walked in the clinic to inquire about a lap band and will be walking out tomorrow with a sleeve. God carved a perfectly laid path for me tomorrow. I had no hickups along the way, and have paid nothing out of pocket. Because I have really good health insurance, whatever they cover is all my surgeon says he will be receiving. It can't get any better than that. Aside for paying co pay on my perscriptions, I consider this a free procedure to help me get my life back. This is a gift from God! I am a living witness that if you remain in him and his words remain in you, you can ask for whatever you wish and it will be given unto you (John 15:7). I didn't know how he was gonna do it I just had faith and he did it! I cry as I write this moment because I will never see life through the same set of eyes again. My limits to a happy fulfilled life have just become endless. These are my tears... OF JOY!

I saw some people after a 65 lb. loss and not one word and it hurt me. Next time I see these cousins will be around March or April. What counts is my husband, sons and their wives (one not so much because I now wear her size) and my brother's family. Just smile!

How adorable!

Congratulations on your sleeve! How are you feeling today? I also had to stay an extra night in the hospital due to extreme nausea and not keeping the pain meds down, but I WALKED A LOT! I couldn't imagine doing the liquid diet before surgery; my surgeon only required one day of clear liquids. But you're already down so much! I'm just catching up to you lol. I like to think my liver is shrinking now instead of before surgery. I was also dealing with headaches for a few days, but today I didn't have any. I'm just totally exhausted and felt so weak I wanted to cry. Keep sipping! And I wish you the best of luck as well :]

Thnk you! Don't worry about not losing. Stalls are common and a necessary way for the body to balance things. I have been through MANY of them lol! I know it is not easy to look at them in a positive way, but that's all we can do. I do exercise. I am getting ready for a party, so I have been going everyday. Funny enough I only lost 2 lbs but my clothes are falling off of me!! Keep a positive mind, stay hydrated, keep your protein high and everything else low, stay away from the scale( easier said than done) and be patient:)