cludgie

Yeah, kids are so brutally honest - just before my surgery my then 6 year old daughter kept coming home from school upset because her classmates were telling her how fat I was. It was bad enough being bullied myself at school, I was really hurt when my daughter started to get problems because of my weight too. This too shal pass though - stick with it, it's worth it xx

Well to cut a long story short today (almost 2 years post op) I was admitted to hospital due to abdominal pains (GP was worried it might be vsg complication?!?). It was a long, and inconclusive day, but because I don't have a follow up package with my surgeon today was the first time I have been weighed by a medic since my surgery, which was my silver lining. Last time a doctor weighed me I was deliberately wearing very little and had a BMI of 36, today I wasn't expecting to be weighed, so was wearing jeans, two jumpers and my sturdy shoes I could have kissed the dr when she announced my BMI was 23. I knew that's about what it was, but my official weight on my medical records is now not obese!

Hi iegal, No diagnosis given, no clear explanation for my symptoms, but stats all stable, so they decided whatever it is isn't serious, and sent me home with pain relief. Glad it's nothing worrying, but slightly frustrated that its still a mystery!

That is very kind of you - it's amazing what good underwear can do though!

I totally felt like that, and although I've been at goal almost a year, I still do sometimes! I had over half my life being obese, and thinking about always being the fattest person in any given situation, and leaving my stomach in the surgeon's dustbin sadly didn't fix my mind (you'll hear hat. Lot, but it is very true!). You will get to a point though when the thinner you starts to become more of a habit, and it is great - for instance, it took me months to remember my new size is at the FRONT of the rack, and not tucked away at the back, and there are still times when I see me in a photo, or catch my reflection and do a double take, although conversely there are still a lot of days when I look in the mirror and think bleurgh! Time will prove to you that this works, so try to relax and enjoy the ride x

Before, during and after - this is my last 3 birthdays so age 30 (around 235lb), age 31 (around 210lb), and age 32 (around 150lb).

Interestingly, have been having a few issues more recently, four Vitamin deficiencies (not great, but manageable), plus random episodes of severe shaking, sweating, disorientation etc etc. I was advised that this was almost certainly 'late dumping syndrome', so have really tried to get back on track, and keep everything in check, however it has continued to happen - tonight i got the usual symptoms, and after borrowing a blood sugar monitor ( presuming I was bingeing inadvertently) discovered that this 'dumping syndrome' was a blood sugar level of 2 - ooops! I understand that this is essentially hypoglycaemic, although I have no idea what this means in a wider sense, and I am now really confused, because I am not depriving myself, although something appears to be out of whack - has anyone else has this, and do you have any good advice please? Thanks xx

Thanks again folks, think it is almost certainly a trip to the Gp after the bank holiday, as my glucose has gone from 2 last night, to 4.3 this morning, a Protein heavy day followed, but started to get the shakes about 8pm so checked again, and blood sugar was 3.3 mmol, I then ate some toast to carb load, and within an hour it was up to 9.3. It is now 11.30 and about 1/2 an hour ago the shakes crept back in, so I checked again, and I am back down to 2.9. I have spent 19 months low carb-ing and am struggling to maintain at the moment, so am not keen to go back to a carb heavy diet as I know my weight will suff as a consequence, but at the same time I don't want to risk my health

Thanks for the responses folks, The episode passed before I saw the replies, and I am back up to 4.3 this morning, I tested on two different monitors and both gave that reading, so I guess that at least is indicative that my own monitor isn't too far out. As I said earlier, these episodes have been happening on and off for a while, but I was told it was dumping. Last night's wasn't the worst incidence by far (have had it last over an hour with shaking, sweating blurred vision and full body pins and needles at least a couple of times), but I have a less than helpful GP, and so I am wondering really if this is something I just have to keep an eye on, and be careful to avoid, or if it is something I should take back to the doctor? Thanks again

So I have been AWOL from the forum for months, and to be honest I've been struggling a bit, still under goal, and loving my sleeve, but a few bad old habits have started to creep back, and I just got diagnosed with FOUR Vitamin deficiencies - just lots of little irritations adding up really. Back in January I started running determined to do a 5k in August and to run it, in march I got I'll, and couldn't face getting up most days let alone getting my trainers on! So training stopped, and August crept up on me. Today my boss and I turned up to the 5k, under prepared an intimidated (she was not letting me drop out!!!), I just wanted to get round in 45 mins, I hated pretty much every step of it, until I stumbled wheezing, sweating and red faced across the line in 38 minutes! Yay, we did it, not a great time, but better than I'd hoped, and NEXT TIME WILL BE FASTER!!! I have come to the conclusion that as I have been ill for 5 months with no let up, i need to suck it up, and just crack on. I'm going to atrophy if I continue to give up, so this is another new beginning, and I could never have done this 18 months ago. My surgery was just one step, but I am hoping it will allow me to take many more, and to increase the pace!! ;)

Amen!

I totally understand too. I'm 16 mo post op, delighted to be under goal, I love getting on the scale and seeing a normal weight, but just dont see that in the mirror! I too spent a while looking at other women and trying to work out who was my size, invariably I'd ask my DH and the answer would be "you are thinner" to which I'd usually accuse him of lying to flatter me! I had a real eye opener speaking to 2 of my 'skinny' friends recently, I have longed to be their size so many times, both have been on a ton of diets with me, but they both ultimately succeeded where I failed. In my mind I look at them both and think 10 more lb, and I could look like that. Well it turns out that we ARE the same size, but I am 18lb, and 7lb lighter than them respectively. So I clearly am surrounded by evil magic mirrors which stop me seeing what other people see and my promise to myself for 2012 is to be in photos, they seem a little more honest! Well done everyone on your successes, it will sink in slowly, and enjoy every moment of 'wow is that me?' along the way.

Well, I've been at goal a while, and thought nsvs, and indeed svs were a thing of the past, but this sleeve just keeps on giving! 1: On holiday last week my MIL sneakily took a photo of me in a skimpy swimsuit, I saw it, and althouhh I am far from habing a beach body, I wasnt horrified either! Yay! 2: Yesterday a friend posted a pic of a pub we'd been to together on facebook, and I spent ages trying to work out who the people in the pic were only to recognise myself by virtue of the handbag I was carrying! I genuinely have to keep looking at it, and checking that is what I look like now - odd! xx

Hi, Really struggling at the moment, not been 100% well for months, and my GP is clueless about WLS. Basically am going back for a 3rd opinion tomorrow, but the dr has asked me to see if anyone else has had the same symptoms, so ot might help diagnose me. Basically I feel run down, keep getting bouts of anxiety/depression, have a mouth full of sores which wont go, and both hands are covered in small painful Water blisters which wont heal. Dr wont even run blood tests as they dont know what to look for. Feeling a bit peeved about it all tbh!

Thanks for the suggestions everyone, I took them to my gp, who promptly ignored them!! Thankfully I met one of the bariatric nurses from my local unit, who is so outraged by my gp's lack of support that she has agreed to speak to someone senior at the hospital to see if they will pick up my care. I should find out more in the next few days, so fingers x'd.

I think most people will agree that skin sagging is a very individual thing. I am 32, I've lost 87lb, and my abdomen is pretty wrecked. HOWEVER I'm from Irish stock, and have typical celtic skin, which marks and scars badly, I have always had major stretch marks, and a c-section in 04 was pretty much the final nail in the coffin. All that being said, I'd personally rather have the skin than the fat, and given good underwear nobody knows what is hiding beneath my clothes, but me, and I'd do this surgery again in a heartbeat, I have no regrets from it at all. Good luck in your decision x

Weighed myself this morning, and finally broke through the 150lb barrier, unbelievably now sitting at 148lb, which is goal -6lb, AND as I normally weigh naked, I threw caution to the wind, put my clothes (including jeans) jumped back on the scale and was still comfortably below goal! Just had to tell someone, thanks for listening! x

Such a wonderful change, well done!

Me, me, me!! Lol Well done!

Well I started, stopped due to laziness and snow storms, started again, then stopped again due to illness, I have re-started yet again, and tonight did w2 d3, I am still run down, and managed to skip both Breakfast and lunch before my run, so I wasn't in the best place, and it felt very hard work, BUT I did 3.07 miles in 33 mins (which is 4.95 k - sooo close to the 5k mark!!), and in just the last couple of weeks my mile time has gone from 12.50, to 10.45. I have asthma, and have always struggled to recover after exercise, and any serious cardio has made me really chesty for a couple of days afterwards, in the last couple of weeks that seems to have passed, I got very breathless in the last two runs tonight, and sounded like a walrus, but I recovered well afterwards, and no irritation to my chest at all now. I am really surprised at how quickly I am feeling the difference, this is great, and I am determined to rock my first proper 5k by the time it arrives!

That is awesome - well done!

I averaged 11.08 a mile last night, down from 11.50 at the weekend, and 12.50 a couple of weeks back. I'm told slow and steady wins the race - I hope so

I just came back to this, after starting and quitting a couple of times. Just done W2D2 and feel great, my dd came with me and slowed me down a lot, but I was averaging 11.08 per mile, which is slow, but much improved on the 12.50 I was doing a couple of weeks back, and even 40 seconds off my sunday run. I've treated myself to a nike sportband which is really spurring me on. I WILL get good at this even if it kills me!