kemo46

Wow Meggie, you look great, what a fantastic job. I love our new tool, it is such a life changer. Keep up the good work.

I try not to eat cereal too often because it just lacks nutritional value. I try to get as much protein as possible in the morning. Bacon and eggs and no bread. When I do have cereal, I eat the Kashi brand, it seems as good as any. The one thing that has stuck with me more than anything is what my NUT told me, do not eat it if it does not have nutritional value. When we are restricted to about 4oz, I want to make it count with protein. Remember what we were told at the beginning, protein first.

There were two in our group that had their driver's license and a certified copy of theri birth certificate, they had no issues. They did not even apply for their passport.

Make a playlist on your mp3 player with music you like. Listen to that when you workout, It really helps the time go by. Start very slow on a stationary bike or elliptical machine. Increase your time on them each day. Once you do this, you will see results and that will be the ultimate motivation.

You cannot feel guilty, you did what was best for your health. Why did your friend back out of her surgery? Does your weight loss inspire her to rethink her decision? Good job with you decision and dedication to getting healthy.

Hey Noel, I know what you mean. I have mixed it up a little bit at the gym as well. I was doing the same routine every day at the gym and a trainer told me to change it up a bit and it has really helped me.I have tried to shock my system with different food as well. I have the scale moving again. I knew the first 3 months were going to be the easiest, I guess we have to work harder the next few months. I think you have the right attitude, the stalls are a part of the process, it is how we handle them is what will dictate the success we have. I did notice when I had my extended stall, I went back and looked at my food journal, my carb numbers were up a little bit. I have them back around 30 a day and the scale is moving again. I got a little lazy with my carb counting because I was still losing but when I went back and reviewed my numbers, they had increased to about 65 a day. Go shock your system with a cheeseburger and fries.

I researched all the different WLS's before deciding on the sleeve. I was very familiar with the RNY, my sister had it over 5 years ago. Her surgery was very sucessful as far as the weight loss, it was the malabsorbption, the dumping and the rearrangement of her plumbing that kept me away from that surgery. There are so many foods that she cannot eat and alot of food still makes her sick. The lapband did not interest me at all due to the failure rate with the errosion on the bands, the slipping issues and all the fills. It was just too much maintainence. So to answer your question, I feel my decision to have the sleeve was the correct one.

This is a great site. I had my surgery almost 4 months ago and I still learn things every day. There is a lot of experience on these boards and it is nice because it helps in motivation and education. I love reading everyone's blogs and seeing how their journey is similar or different than mine.

MrMike, we are very similar, You are going to love having your diabetes under control. You will feel like a different person. Like Kelly said, the energy level alone is amazing. You just do not realize how much diabetes affects everything. I have listed on my blog, my before and after blood numbers, the sleeve is such a wonderful tool. I hope you are doing well, keep us posted.

I think the best way is to get them on the forums and get them involved. Let them ask questions and get their concerns satisfied. There are many of us that have blogs that document our experience through the process( mine is below in my signature), I feel this helps family and friends understand the whole process. It is nice that you will have the support and the education of the process will help them even more. Good luck.

I too have Tanita scales, they are about 8 years old and very accurate. I think they are quality scales for the money and seem to be very durable and last.

I think education is the key here. My wife was the same way. She was just scared, same as your husband. You need to get him on the forums and let him read and educate himself on the surgery, the good ,bad and ugly. Get him involved. Let him ask questions and find out the risks vs. the rewards. You have health issues that will not get better. Have him read my blog from the beginning to end, see what is involved. Everyone is scared of the unknown, be happy that he does care about you. You said that you are pre-diabetic, that can change in a heartbeat for the worst. I was full blown diabetic and now it is controlled with no medication, this surgery has saved my life. Have him PM me if he would like, I would be happy to send him my bloodwork from before my surgery and 3 months post op just to show how much this will improve your health. Good luck, I think once he realizes you are doing this for your health and not vanity, he will come around.

Read my blog at www.kemo46.blogspot.com. It will explain my Journey to Mexico from the beginning. As you can tell from my ticker below, my surgery is a great success and I feel better than I have in over 20 years. The cost is always a factor but all the red tape and ridiculous hoops you must go through in the states can delay your surgery over a year. My only regret is I did not have this surgery years ago.

You will only be able to sip at first. You will be able to drink more after your stomach swelling goes down. It took me a couple of months before I could gulp a lot of water. I was able to drink normally after about 6 weeks.

I am so sorry for your loss, I will say a prayer for you. You sound very strong and you are right, we have to deal with what comes our way. You will be strong and get through this.

I went to Alamanza in May of 2011. I did my research going in and there were no surprises. I would do it again. Some people want to have the surgery in a hospital instead of a clinic and I understand that. I was treated very well and my surgery has been a great success and I have had no complications. There are risks with all surgeons and hospitals, you have to do your research and make a decision based on how you feel. Most of the people that say negative things about a surgeon has no experience with that surgeon. That is why I do not say ANYTHING negative about any surgeon based on something I have read because I do not know how accurate the information is. If you are researching a surgeon, you should talk to the actual people who had the surgery with that surgeon.

They are putting their lives back together after surgery. So many people including myself, get very consumed pre-surgery with all the research involved. After surgery, we are getting our lives back together, starting an exercise program and getting back to work. It leaves very little time for some people and they have to prioritize their time. I enjoy the forums for support and to track how everyone is doing but I understand that some people just do not have time.

The first 6 weeks, I did nothing but walk per my surgeons instructions. Starting the 7th week, I started light lifting at the gym and doing cardio such as the treadmill and elliptical machines. I started slow and increased my time gradually. I am actually starting to enjoy it. It has been very successful for me because even when my weight loss hit a stall, I was still losing inches and I believe that was because of the exercise.

That is great Kendra, you are doing fantastic. Gear up for that nasty purple drink for your leak test, it is a piece of cake after that. Let me know how you like Servano, he is the male nurse at the recovery house. He will take good care of you. You are on the losers bench now, enjoy.

Go get them kendra, have a great experience. Keep us posted.

Thank you for posting this. When I first read something like this, I always question if it is true or not. I stayed at the recovery house without incident. I did however confirm that the story posted above is indeed true. I confirmed with my coordinator that this did happen. This was the first time in 14 years they have ever had any issues. She assured me that extra precations have been taken to assure it does not happen again. Unfortunately, this can and does happen anywhere. We always talk about border violence but we have to look no further than our own back yard in any major cities and we have the same crime.

Yes, I have a suggestion. Focus on the Positives and the end result. The pre-op diet is not that bad. Look at the success of the people on the forum and that will get you right through it. I was so excited and ready for my surgery. the pre-op diet just flew by. Stay positive and think of the end result and you will not be grouchy.

You will do fine. Remember, RNY is totally different than the sleeve. My sister had RNY over 5 years ago, it was successful surgery and she lost the weight but to see what she goes through compared to me ( I had the sleeve), it is apples to oranges. I have no dumping, I get all of my nutrients, I can eat anything and my plumbing is the same as it was before surgery. I feel better than I have in 20 plus years, wish I would have done this surgery years ago. You will do great, hang in there.

You only have the breathing tube during surgery, it is put in and taken out why you are asleep. I did not have a cath, i think it is better because you get up and walk around when you go to the bathroom which helps you get rid of the gas from the surgery. The drain tube is put in during surgery if your doctor uses one, mine was taken out before I went home and did not feel a thing. I was like you, this was my first time for surgery and I had the same questions. It was a piece of cake, you will do fine.

It is a tough decision and you just have to do your research. I had my surgery with Dr. Almanza on 5-25-2011 and I am very happy. There are positives and negatives about all choices you have to make, you just have to weigh them out. My blog is www.kemo46.blogspot.com , this will tell you about my whole experience with Dr. Almanza. Normally when you hear anything negative about any surgeon on the forums, it is coming from someone that has no experience with that surgeon and is hearsay. Good luck to you on your decision.