Rootman

So I assume the forum got an upgrade, the new look is cool and pretty fresh looking. One thing I hate is the MARK AS READ choice is now at the very BOTTOM of the screen, kind of unhandy. I for one click the UNREAD button, scroll through and open the posts I want to read in additional tabs and then mark the entire forum read. That keep the message count fresh for the next time I visit.

Congrats! Good work and keep up the efforts to stay at your goal.

Same as above, appetizer as an entree, split and entree with the wifey and even take what's left after sharing if close to home - that's how big portions are now days. If we can't agree on an entree together we'll each take one and take the rest home. For traveling unless you've got an RV with a fridge I would suspect the sharing / appetizer method is the best. If hubby wants more than his portion then I guess you'll have to just eat what you can and toss the rest, maybe after seeing 3/4 of a $15 entree get tossed he'll wise up and split with you. My wife has lost a few pounds since *I* got the surgery too - she shares with me and we both eat less. If a wait staffer asks about it I just tell them I've had stomach surgery and can't eat much, occasionally we'll continue the conversation and I'll tell them about my WLS but usually they just accept the surgical explanation and leave it at that.

So, I've been VERY fortunate on the excess skin issue, sure I sag a little here and there but my fears that I'd end up looking like a circus freak proved false. I actually have more of an issue when I lie down then stand, I sort of look like I am melting a bit as I sag onto the bed One thing I have noticed is when I give myself an injection every 10 days for Testosterone replacement, it seems that the skin on my thigh is now a lot thicker and I have to push quite hard to "pop" through the outer layer into the muscle. Can this be that my skin has actually gotten THICKER instead of just looser? Anyone from , say a dermatologist office in the know about this?

Congrats! Keep it up!

Thanks for the comment. Yes, truth be told we all CAN do it on our own, but the FACT is that we WON'T. I just had to face it that I needed something more than a diet to get results. BP, blood sugar, cholesterol, heart rate, blood ox levels and weight - all are in acceptable levels today. Keep after hubby, let him know you want him around for a while longer. I know it's tough for a guy to accept the fact he needs help.

The only one that can answer this is your doctor. They should of taken an x-ray with barium contrast before releasing you, this will show the actual size and shape of the reduced stomach. Perhaps you're just lucky and the effects have just not hit you, as long as you eventually feel SOME restriction you should be OK. If no restriction then it's back to the doc to have him explain why it's not working for you. Personally I could hardly eat or drink for weeks afterward, I actually got dehydrated and formed kidney stones. I had to force myself to eat and drink and eventually I developed a tiny bit of appetite.

Prior to the surgery the only one that knew was my wife, I didn't even tell my family. After I came back I told everyone and my family was pissed at me for not letting them know before hand. I simply didn't want to hear their "horror stories" of friends and acquaintances who failed or had complications. Since then I tell anyone who asks about my weight or if the subject about weight loss comes up. Immediately they assume it's a bypass or band. I carefully explain how it's not like them and how they remove the pedulate or bottom part of the stomach.

It's all in the genes, some have a LOT of hair loss, some do not. I am of the personal opinion that there is NO supplement that helps and the ones out there are basically just snake oil - but goes with what floats yer boat. If you DO experience hair loss then it SHOULD remedy itself in about 6 months to a year. Hair naturally enters a "sleep" stage and stops growing and eventually falls out - ALL your hair does this, when you're fat, well fed and healthy it staggers and you never really notice it. Go under anesthetic and change your caloric intake by a massive amount and the rules change. Suddenly the body isn't so concerned about such spurious activities such as hair or nail growth and is reacting to the shock you just sent it. It's burning the fat it so carefully packed away for years and experiencing a NET LOSS of calories, it doesn't like it and stops stuff like hair and nails from growing. Give it time, if it happens it most certainly will reverse itself.

I personally waited about 4 months, I just didn't feel up to till then, by that time my weight had dropped a good bit and I was ready to go.

Dang, my wife went out and bought 2 giant bags of bite sized chocolate bars for the trick or treaters and we only had 9 of them show up at the door. Despite handing each of them a fistful of the things we ended up with over a bag left. Dang nab it! I've eaten over a dozen of these things since last night! AARRRGGGHHH! I took them to work and placed them out of my sight in the break room. Must .... resist ... urge ... to .... go ... to .... break ... room. :cry_smile:

There was one floating around the forum a while back - you'll have to search for it. It basically carries NO weight and is not really an "official" card as you simply printed it out and got it laminated if you wanted it fancy. I would just ask the restaurant kindly, I simply state that I've had stomach surgery and can't eat much, may I order a child's or senior's portion please? Only ONE place turned me down so I just ordered something small and gave a bit to my wife and the rest got left. We often avoid this by splitting an entree and / or taking home some for another meal - it is surprising that we can SHARE an entree and STILL take some home, portions are THAT huge now. No wonder we are all so fat.

Woohoo! I jumped on the scale this morning and was surprised to see it said 206 after sitting at 210+ for over a month. I stepped off and on 2 more times to make sure it wasn't a fluke. I thought my clothes were fitting a little looser lately. I HOPE to make onederland before my one year anniversary of December 6th.

Yes, but the two are the same thing. hair grows for a time, stops growing and enters a rest phase and then falls out. Slow growth precipitates this and getting it growing again so it WON'T fall out is the other side of the same coin. I only mention about the failure of supplements because we here in the "first world" have a tendency to go WAY overboard and start popping supplements, slathering on creams and lotions and what have you at the first sign of an issue. I was reading last week that they are now thinking that overuse of supplements may actually SHORTEN a persons life span. While I whole heartedly support taking a daily Vitamin and whatever calcium and Iron supplements we (especially low cal intake sleevers) need to get full intake of nutritional needs - I am hesitant to recommend additional supplements for the sole reason of something spurious like hair growth. Is it WORTH the risk? Do we know what overloading the body with such things a Biotin really does in the long run? Just be careful, hair loss / slow growth is just a natural reaction, it will stabilize and start up again.

I'm sorry to burst your bubble but (cringe from flying tomatoes) NONE of the supplements, conditioners, etc. will work, or at least work WELL. Your body is reacting to being injured in surgery, being put under anesthetic and a pretty hefty reduction in caloric intake. You are approaching the one year mark and your hair loss SHOULD be leveling out, especially when you adjust your caloric intake upwards to stop weight loss - OR your body mass matches the intake of calories and weight loss stops. Sorry, I just see things realistically, there is no proof that ANY supplement, Vitamin, conditioner, cream or "magic pill" will prevent the hair loss if your genetics determines you for it. I view it the same as sagging skin, some are prone to it and their skin hangs in sheets, for a few the skin bounces back and you hardly notice any loose skin at all. No "spot toning" creams or massages are going to help it either. Sorry

WOW! I would not even guess that the pics are of the same person! You look totally different. Beautiful smile too!

Like MissDiva just after the sleeve we almost always have our doubts, regrets and fears. Now 10+ months out I do not have ANY regrets except for the fact that I didn't do it earlier. As far as "giving up" and "almost dying" I would say that I most certainly did NOT give up, if anything I gave IN, gave in to common sense and the realization that I was slowly killing myself for sure. I had to do SOMETHING and the surgery was IT for me. I've lost 165+ pounds, lowered my blood pressure, stabilized my blood sugar and eliminated a bunch of other issues.

I'm with ya girl, one of my favorite things to do is to flex and feel my "new" muscles, especially my calf muscles in the shower. I sit on the shower seat lean over (which is now possible ) and flex them. So neat to see my body in some other shape than ROUND!

For ever and ever, the are titanium and will be there when you return to the earth. They will cause NO problems unless you are one of the extreme few that is allergic to titanium.

Man, you certainly take the prize for #1 in fastest weight loss! Pretty soon you will LITERALLY be HALF the man you used to be Keep going buddy!

I find that it is typical, and I have to say for nearly ANY business. It's a wonder ANYTHING can get done, what with seemingly a majority of workers just not giving a sh*t and doing only what they need to do to get by. I too have left messages, faxes and emails only to finally call the person later and find that they didn't "get" any of my messages. I had confirmation pages and email receipts to prove otherwise. They just don't want to deal with another form of communication and I suspect they just ignore them. Unfortunatly this is the "norm" for the health care profession.

Some good thoughts here, but some need to be clarified. See below for comments / questions. 1,500 mg of WHAT? Milligrams are never usually expressed as just "vitamins" but as specific amounts of EACH Vitamin. I had always heard that calcium AND iron together was not good that the iron actually kept the calcium from being adsorbed, therefor I take a NON iron / NON calcium multi vitamin and then alternate my calcium and iron supplements by a couple of hours so they don't interfere. Congrats! You are practically there already! Great job!

Should be no issue, I personally prefer tuna and it's fine too.

I had to laugh, it seems that guys are always comparing how big their bellies are - not how much they lost!

Size 13 formerly (and it was TIGHT) , had it resized to a 10 a month or so ago and now it's a bit loose. Prior to resizing it I had it just drop off my finger twice! Luckily I found it both times.