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Just got home from my sleeve surgery. I was in the operating room at 7:30 am yesterday. Turns out I also had a small hiatal hernia so they repaired that while they were in there. The pain in my chest from the gas when I woke up in recovery was excruciating. Most of my stay wasn't too bad but I definitely didn't move much. Getting dressed and getting in the car were quite painful. I am home now and took a pain pill so I am feeling a bit better. All the nurses at Hackensack Medical Center in NJ were amazing! I am a bit congested (I think from the anesthesia) and it really hurts to try and cough. I'll check back in a few days and let you know how it is going.

Thank you! I can’t even count the pounds that were lost and seemed to pile right back on. I’m already feeling relieved to stop that cycle.

Hi everyone! I am new to this site. Is there anyone else who is scheduled in February for gastric sleeve? I am scheduled on February 8.

I'm going to politely disagree with the responses you've received here so far. Since even the initial consultation is a bariatric service, they want to verify that your insurance will cover it prior to scheduling. The initial consultation is a billable service. You either have coverage or you don't. The facility wants to know if insurance will pay or if you will be paying on your own. It is possible after the initial consult, that you choose not to proceed. However, they still want to know that you have coverage for that visit. Example: my insurance policy through my employer specifically excluded any coverage for weight management and/or bariatric services until 2020. In 2019, I was aware that coverage would be added in 2020. I tried to schedule initial consultations and dietician visits to get started but was unable to unless I wanted to pay for them out of pocket. Since I did not want to self-pay. I had to wait until benefits began in 2020. Even having a conversation with my primary care doctor regarding any potential weight management had to be done as a discussion during an appointment coded as something else. Otherwise, I would have had to pay for it. I hope this makes sense.

They probably want to reach out to the insurance to see what the requirements are so they can tell you exactly what to do when you do go in. No need to go in if you don't know what is necessary after that visit.

Well, then call me an expert! I can lose 50 but then I find 75.

I, too, am much in the camp of working on your long term lifestyle rather than a short term weight goal. When I started having to do that six month insurance thing, I looked at what should my diet, and overall lifestyle, be in five or ten years - not six months from now. Basically what an RD would tell anyone they should do to live and feel better and longer - food pyramid, my plate, etc. all represent a basic healthy diet of leaner meats, more fruits and veg, whole grains instead of the overly refined/processed white flour stuff, minimize sugars and in particular - junk foods (high calorie, low nutrition) whether they be high carb or high fat - or frequently both. It was not perfect to any one particular standard, but it was what I could do, and thus, more sustainable than any "book" diet. It was also an evolution (and still is) as I worked to drive my preferences in the right direction. I also started with going to the gym (local Y) and got back into swimming, which I had always liked before, and found I liked playing with the weights. That was fifteen or so years ago, and I am still at it, though in a somewhat evolved form (particularly during Covid!). But the lesson here, much as with diet, is to make it something that you enjoy (or at least tolerate) and make it a habit. It can certainly evolve, as you say with starting out with just walking. Carve out the time to do something, and let the activity evolve with your ability, interests and circimstances. I had no particular weight goal in mind for this phase, but as I noted, it was an exercise in developing better habits for the long term. As it turned out, I dropped around 50 lb, or about a third of my excess, in that six months which caused a rethink on the surgery idea, at least for a while - but that is another story. I suspect that I would not have done as well if I had been aiming fora specific pre op weight goal.

My spellcheck is a nightmare 😩

What about adding chopped mixed nuts onto e.g. yoghurt, porridge, cereal? It adds a lot of calories with not much extra bulk, is easily weighed out and also gives you a bit of protein plus antioxidants, minerals, vitamins & fibre. I'm still trying to lose weight but added some into my diet for omega 3 reasons - my goodness you don't get many for quite a few calories!

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24076675/ Have any of you seen this? My WL surgeon shared it with me. Makes me even more glad I had PS done!