Ms Lady in NC

I am a solid 307 lbs, 24w, and stand a solid 6 feet tall without shoes. I know we all lose weight differently and our clothes sizes will drop with different weight loss amounts. But I tried on a pair of capris from last year and even after a 30 pound loss during pre-op, they still fit like they did last summer. So my question is what is the most you have to lose before you see a difference in clothing sizes?

As long as I am losing I don't care what it is. Hopefully I will see some looseness in my pants as well soon. Thanks everyone!

Almost 30 pounds down and I am still wearing the 24s but looks like from most people's replies, I have 10-20 pounds more before I see a difference. So basically, I may only drop a size every 3 months if I lose 10 pounds a month? God, this is really gonna be a long ride. I thought I could at least be a size 18 by the end of summer

I thought there were just a few things I couldn't wait for but reading everyone else's posts have me redoing my list! 1. Be in better health and come off heart and blood pressure meds 2. Get out of these size 24 jeans and into some "skinny" ones 3. Have room in the seat on the amusement park rides 4. Not be the girl everyone says has a "cute face though" 5. Sex is good but I can't wait to see what i'm like after! 6. Walk into Victoria Secret and have the sales[erson ask if I need help finding my size and not favorite fragrance 7. Coming back home and seeing my family so they can see I am okay

Girl, you are NOT alone! I am going in on Friday and have the same questions and more going through my head. But that can't stop us now. We will not fail because we have researched and studied and planned for the day to come. So once it is here, we will follow behind our fellow sleevesters and do the dang thang!!!

I am gonna be heading out this week to Tj as well. APRIL 8th is the day I begin my new life and I can't wait!

Great story and hope you continue to feel better and better each day

I have to take nitro as needed for my problems but my doc is more worried about me losing the weight than not. He said if I don't I will die from the weight putting the extra stress on my heart anyway. He too is not a major fan of having it done in Mexico and I will be his 1st patient that did it but he is supportive. I do know that as long as your docs all clear you it is fine. Hubby had a heart attack a few years ago and he is prob healthier than me now even at 400+ but his doc said the weight isn't coming down fast enough and referred him for surgery. So that should tell you there are docs that believe it will help more than hurt.

You look great! Keep up the good work girl

I know the feeling and wish you all the best!

Please don't take this post wrong. I am not saying Optifast is not good, I am just telling you what a Optifast dotor told me yesterday that kinda has me smiling. I went to an authorized doctor for Optifast who is also an internal med doc. I am a researcher and already knew the nutritional facts but still had to ask. I pulled out one of my pre-mixed cartons of Atkins shakes and told him that for a pre-op of my own, I have been taking this (Atkins) and wondered how that (Optifast) was any different. He said let's see...read the info side by side and the only difference was Atkins had 2 carbs and Optifast had 20. Also Atkins had 9 grams of fat and Optifast had 3-6 I think. But the most shocking part was to hear him tell me that he had never seen nor heard of them and asked where I got them and how much did they cost? When I told him about 6$ for 4 he said, "Wow, really? Then why are you here wanting to spend $15 for the same thing?" Hubbylooked at me as if to say wtf? The doctor went on to say that with a 18 pound loss in less than 20 days while eating a meal a day and fruit snack was a lot cheaper than his shakes and that there are probably others that do the same as his and Atkins but people would rather have a tested product than not. But he said he had read that Atkins was in the long term better for those who were carb sensitive like myself and the Optifast shakes would not work as good for people like me. He ended the consultation by saying he could put me on them anyway for a month to see for about $15 a day and $55 per week office visit but of course I said no thanks. That made me wonder if some people who can't lose on shakes or diets like myself and go to doctors for supervision and guidance are really getting personalized service. But that is why I always research and make my decision on what I need instead of what others say. If I had not, a $120+ dollars would have been spent for nothing because if I eat more than 20 carbs a day, I may not lose so I know 100 carbs a day would have had me gaining back what I worked to get off. By the way, woke up this morning and down another pound....so idk about others but for me, a cheap low carb shake is better than the really expensive ones like that and I am soooo glad cause, I can't afford that and my surgery too.

I think the added fat may be what's helping me lose. I notice everyday that I drink them and add a meal of just regular meat with skin or average fat, I drop weight the next day. But like some people can have the extra carbs and I can't, I guess the extra fat is ok for me. As for clear liquid protien, I think it means no milk only Water. Which is nasty as heck to me! I really don't know why your doc don't allow 1-2% with the protien shakes but good luck on them!

Crazy how I was just thinking the same thing as I drank my shake this morning after seeing th scale move another pound. (Yay!) I too have had problems sticking to my diet because of really early stalls but this time, I am almost 4 weeks in and went from 330 lbs. to 307. I keep waiing for another stall but nothing is happening but weight loss. I was gonna do the WW thing but decided with my schedule, I would do shakes and 1 meal on my own for a month. It is working but yes, I do need the tool because at least once a week I will eat more than I should. I also know that any given moment something could happen to take me back to my usual habits and I feel with the sleeve, it will be less possible. But I do not think it is crazy to wonder if you need surgery. I am sure many people have lost so much during pre-op that they cancelled their surgery and even if only a few out of many went on to lose, they did it. So if you think you can, do it. But if you think like many of us that you may fail, stick to your plan of surgery. No need to work as hard as you have and to be so close only to start over later.

Wow, BOGO?! can you send me some here lol. The cheapest I have caught them is $4. I have not found the powder mix someone told me they had but I like the premixed ones. I have not heard of Premier Shakes but will look them up. All shakes are nasty to me so the taste is not as important as the carbs. Body Fortress is good also but I only use that if I run out of the Atkins. The dark chocolate is okay, I don't seem to tolerate the caramel ones though. Way too sweet for me.

Hello everyone! I am so excited and scared but happy to be soon joining you all as a loser lol. I am from NC and since 2005, I have wanted the surgery. Unfortunately, at that time I was at 34 BMI with no health issues. Fast foward to 2009 I was at 43 but no insurance anymore. Today I am at 41 and as my my says, have cash, will travel lol. I know there are many other docs in Mexico that are better known but the one I chose seems to put me at ease and also is what my budget can afford since aftercare will be self-pay as well. I have been on a low carb diet since the 7th and lost a total of 18 pounds so far but will fluctuate a day or so before the number changes. I don't mind that as long as it goes down sooner or later. But the pre-op diet is coming this Sunday so I am really gonna miss having the option of a meal if I want for about the next couple months though I am sure my heart will love the weight loss! Anyway, just wanted to say hello and though I doubt anyone is, just seeing if anyone else is gonna be using or used Dr. Ponce DeLeon in Tijuana?

I am having surgery April 8th, 2 weeks and 1 day from my 34th bday and am feeling every emotion there is right now. I am thankful that God blessed me with the money to pay for it, happy to begin finally after 2 years of saving, and sad because though I am not a real big eater, I wish I could have lost the weight on my own without needing such a drastic tool. But the main thing I feel is peace. I have been doing a low carb shake diet for 3 weeks and even if I could not have done it, I would still be dieting and eating better. I just feel relieved that finally, I too will be able to get the help so very much needed to help my health. As for who I am, I am and always will be the same wife, mother, daughter, and friend that I always have been just hopefully smaller in size but never spirit! I know many say it's hard on the spouse or mate after wls but I still believe if the patient is doing it for the right reasons, it will never cause one. Sure, there will always be haters, ppl won't like me for whatever reason and like I ignored them when I am fat, I will ignore them when I am not. But that doesn't mean I changed. It just means I can live life without needing to feel accepted or approved in whatever way. I can't lie and say surgery is not scaring me....i'm going to Mexico to have a major surgery so that alone scares me. But I am ok with it because it is just as dangerous to carry this extra weight and have blood pressure and heart problems like I do. So in a week I leave for San Diego and the day after I will be sleeved and finally moving even more towards my goal. I can't wait for my new beginning and who knows, maybe next I really will be able to stop smoking after all this.

I really hope the urge to eat stays gone after surgery. I have been up since 6am and am just now drinking my shake SMH. I do find that I am more hungry in the eve but think it's out of habit than physical need. But it is not yet to the point that I hate it. I just seem to forget to eat or drink and hubby said that's ridiculous, how can you forget? I told him that I am eating to live now which doesn't require as much as I thought. But I think I do need to come up with a system to keep me on track. We run a biz, just started another this week, and will likely be very busy so eating will be last on my list of things to do. Heck, only reason I am writing here now is because I am taking a break and drinking my late Breakfast. But I just hope I do not go from overeating to undereating. That is just as bad after wls. Well, gotta head out to site but am taking 2 shakes with me just in case.

I see the weight tracker at the bottom and was wondering how do I do that? I would like to show off my 18 pound pre-op loss so far lol I am flying on Delta and was wondering if drinks are allowed outside of the ones they give you? I was thinking more for when I head back home. I know the basics people took with them but is there anything that you took that most don't think about but was glad you had it? For those that had surgery in Mexico, did you use cash or credit if you shopped there? I don't know if I should take $100 cash, less, more, or just my cards. I mean I am going for surgery not a vacation but hear you sometimes go out shopping before or after surgery and also, not sure about how much or if the driver is tipped that takes me in Mexico. Any replies at all would be helpful!

Thanks you guys!

Im almost jealous lol. I would love to have anything but liquids for 2-4 weeks after. I say try it since he is the doc but if you can't do it, just let him know. It is ultimately up to you and how your body feels. Maybe that's why so many fall off the liquid diet post-op. The thought of not having vs. him saying go for it may be what keeps you from early failure. Good luck!

Lara, girl tell me about it! I was actually trying to talk myself out of sending the deposit saying you lost 18 pounds so just keep on but I know this is right. If I can be honest though, I am still worried about losing since I read some people only lose a month or so then nothing after that. But the DS scares me because of the malabsorption so I really hope I am lucky like others with great success. I plan on doing it exactly as told so if I don't lose it will be nothing I did. I was gonna do it the 23rd (my bday) but decided to do it before in fear I would talk myself out of it lol. So it's still a present to me, just a bit early lol. Take care

You know, I actually just filled my prescription this morn for Chantix. I wanna stop but don't wanna go off my diet with cravings or irritability from doing so this close to my surgery. I stopped cold turkey the day I found out I was pregnant all 4 times but started up months after. So I know I can do it it's just hard.

Thanks Felicity for the insight. Yes I know it is major and for me it will probably be not having my weekly cheesecake anymore that brings me to tears first lol but I just have to remind myself the reason why I am here now and have to do this. I am actually self employed so hopefully hubby will let me take some time off the first few weeks or at least let me go easy so it should be okay. I do go to school Tuesday & Thursday eves so I am leaving Thurs and hopefully home Mon to rest and be back in class Tuesday but class is only 2 hours. All my others are online luckily. Thanks for your prayers, I really can use them and congrats on your new loss.

Both doctors are good from what I understand. I am having my surgery next week and will be going by myself. My coordinator is actually going to be there with me since hubby was not able to go with me and nervous about me going alone. She works with Dr. Kelly and gave me him as an option as well. As for Dr. Aceves, I know 2 people who went to him and had only good things to say. I truly think you will be okay with either choice but do your research and ask questions until you are totally satisfied with your choice. It took me 2 years to decide and in the last month I switched 3 times in choosing a doctor and twice in going back and forth with which procedure but I and my coordinator are fine with that. It is a big decision and most will be confused as to what to do. Good luck on your search.