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I had a really easy surgery. Everything went much better expected...with the exception of one little hiccup:) I had just gotten to my room, was talking to my husband, feeling really good.....when this extremely worried looking hospital administrator came in and asked me if I was feeling up to talking for a minute. I felt great...so I was like...Of course.. And she asks me..."Are you in the process of having your surgery financed?" And I go...."Uh, no. I have insurance." And she goes...."I was just on the phone with your insurance company and apparently there's been some mistake. Your rider doesn't cover bariatric surgery." I can't overemphasize how grim this woman looks. She knows she's giving me horrible news, and it's her job to protect the hospital financially....she looks like she feels terrible for me. She's trying to be really gentle and says "We could do an 18 month financing plan. We don't usually do this and we're really not sure how this happened. Usually financing is in place." And I go..."Um, can I show you something?" I had my husband get my folder of stuff that I had sense enough to bring to the hospital with me. In it...was a copy of my approval letter from my insurance company. So I give her the copy of the letter....and she looks baffled. I go..."Will that help you?" And she goes..."It just might. Please give me ten minutes. I'll be right back." She comes back in ten minutes...all smiles. "I'm so sorry. You have the same name and birth date as another patient in the system and we were trying to bill the wrong person. You're all set. I really appreciate you bringing this letter with you, it helped immensely. I'm really sorry about worrying you when you're already stressed." And I'm like..."I feel so shockingly good, I'm just grateful the surgical team is top notch. No one's perfect. If mistakes are gonna happen, I'd rather they happen in billing, you know?" She smiled, apologized again, and excused herself. Later that day I got flowers from the hospital with a note from her thanking me for being understanding about the mix up. Moral of the story: Bring a copy of your approval letter to the hospital with you. Other Moral of the story: Give your kid a somewhat unique name. Mine is as generic as John Smith... and this has caused me issues a couple of times.

You did not gain 5 pounds of fat in a day. It's likely water weight. There are going to be ebbs and flows (and stalls, stalls, stalls) throughout the journey. If that's going to frustrate you, try to stay off of the scale. (For instance, maybe only weigh once per week.) Hang in there!

That's wonderful, Joanna! Good work:)

Balanced. I eat carbs and my plan includes them. Typically, I eat low glycemic index carbs because they don't cause sugar/insulin spikes and boomarang hunger. I eat whole grains, beans, oatmeal, etc. I avoid refined sugar, white flour, etc. I also hit my protein targets. About half animal protein, half plant based. But yes...I love the fact that a whole wheat english muffin has 110 calories and 6 grams of protein. I also enjoy pumpernickel and sourdough bread, protein pasta, potatoes, sweet potatoes, and a the occasional black bean brownie:) My preferred maintenance diet is Mediterranean diet or Mayo Clinic diet. I like them because they are associated with more longevity and less cancer risk than high protein diets. They include a lot of whole grains and fruits, veggies, nuts, beans and legumes... and much less meat than the typical american diet. My nutritionist works with me to make this work post sleeve:) I am looking for a Forever Diet that I can live with. Not interested in extremes. I'm really happy with my current diet, and feel like I have good flexibility to keep it fresh, healthy and livable.

I had the lapband in 2014, regretted every single day of it. I was miserable and sick for 2.5 years. I took that out in 2016, and I'm now 3 days out of my new gastric sleeve and am so excited! I feel great 72 hours out and am looking forward to my new life (: Sent from my SM-G930P using BariatricPal mobile app

my doc put me on a diet of 2 protein shakes, a 450 cal meal of protein and a green veg, plus broth and sugar free jello if needed and I've lost about 13 pounds in a month. I haven't been perfect on the diet, but it works. you can definitely do it!!

I lost 20lbs in a month by just cutting back and working out. Anything is possible if you put your mind to it! Sent from my SM-G955U using BariatricPal mobile app

I suggest cutting your carbs to 20 grams per day and get your calories around 1200 per day. That's what I did for six months before my surgery and I lost 100 pounds by surgery day. You can do it, but you have to put food away and make it work for you. Only you can find that strength and perseverance within yourself...

You can do it. Trust me. I seen my Dr and when I seen him in December he told me I had gained 15lbs since I last see him last year well He gave me till Janurey 3rd to lose 5 to 10 pounds and I didn't think I could because of Christmas and New Year's it felt impossible so after Christmas I cut out soda to start and store eating sweets when I went to see him I lost 10lbs and since I started my liquid diet 10 days ago I have lost an additional 15 lbs and I am completely shocked. Anything is possible if you put your mind to it. I have my Surgery Tuesday and I am beyond excited to see how much I have lost. Sent from my SM-N950U using BariatricPal mobile app

I had my Lapband January, 2011 - it was nothing but problems the entire time. I had too much restriction the entire time and the weight gain. The last three, or so, years of that torture device, I was unable to eat and in doubled over pain most of the time. I also developed severe GERD. My gastro referred me to a different Bariatric doctor. Long story short - the Lapband caused multiple problems and I had to have an emergency revision to gastric bypass. Dr. Did not recommend the sleeve for me because a high percentage of patients that already have GERD, it makes it worse. Please see another doctor before your situation gets worse like mine did. I don’t think you will be sorry with a revision to sleeve or bypass. It was a wonderful decision for me - not constantly sick anymore!