happy1957

You made me laugh ..I think you can still take a nice "smell the roses " kind of 30 minute walk 5 days a week. :-)

Hi Shea, pretty name... I'm surprised that you are able to do anything but walk at this point. My DR said no exercise at all but walking for 8-12 weeks. The elliptical is a pretty good aerobic exercise. Not to scare you, but just within the the last few days, I lost a good friend to a leak (gastric bypass) caused by what might have been to aggressive exercise too early. You are still healing for a minimum of six weeks, listen to your body and slow down. I know how badly you want the weight to come off and do things right, but you will lose and you will have plenty of time to work out and get toned. Please, Please take care of yourself. I'm not trying to be morbid, but my friend was only 44, her celebration of life is tomorrow and she was like a race horse out of the gate, wanted to do to much to fast. I wish you the best..

You need to see your Dr. You may have a bowel obstruction or a twist in your bowel, lots of GI stuff can happen that only tests can show. Not to alarm you, but what you're saying is not normal for you, let the Dr figure it out. Feel better soon..

Hello Peacequeen, ThinkIng of you and hoping this note finds you feeling better today and your silence is a sign of restful healing! Let us know that you're ok. Take care!

Congratulations first on doing such a great job losing weight on your own. What a terrific job, be proud. you deserve the date, I' m sure it was a long time coming. The best of luck!

Thank you so much for the kind words and condolences, Saying that she would be proud that I continued on my journey made me feel good. Lots of struggles right now, both physical and emotional with this loss and recent surgery, but it's all part of my life's journey.

I am so sorry to hear of your " bump in the road " but do appreciate you writing to let us know so that we can say a prayer and support you in any way we can. We can also learn from your experience. I personally have questions and when you feel up to it hopefully your answers can help many. What day were you sleeved? Have you been able to take in the required amounts of protein and fluids? Were you in pain and if so where was the pain located? I am 8 days post op, have felt better than expected, take in more than expected, yet woke today feeling sick. Rapid heart rate, blurred vision, exhaustion,dizzy, sort of short of breath and just yucky, but no fever and still able to eat and drink without any tummy issues. I am feeling much better this evening after taking a Tylenol. I will pray for your quick recovery...

Try Jockey "No Lines" they are sized by your waist or pant size. I think a 16- 18 pant would wear a size 8, extremely comfortable and no baggy anything. They are weightless and the good thing, you can buy one pair at a time. I tried my first pair on Kohl's clearance rack. Good luck.

Wow, so happy you asked this question, I was sleeved 7 days ago, have always been a slow loser and knew the thyroid condition may hinder some weight loss, but you guys have done amazing!!! Congrats.. I can't wait to be on your side.

CONGRATULATIONS!!!! Approved was my favorite word....and so long coming.... soon you'll be on the losers bench.

Congratulations! I too am one week today and felt the best when I woke of all days. Keep up the good work....

I am writing this note with a heavy heart to let those who gave me support and comforting words for my friend who was suffering from bypass complications, know that she passed away yesterday afternoon after a courageous battle. Shelly had numerous underlying health issues that brought her to weight loss surgery and those coupled with an undetected leak more than three months post op where more than she could battle. As I had written before, she became sick on Christmas Day and my VSG was scheduled for Dec. 28th. It was a struggle for me to go through with the surgery at that moment, but she was as excited as I was, knowing I had battled the insurance company for so long. So after a long day of crying and careful thought about my health issues which are small in comparison, about my future and avoidance of further health issues, and my feelings that VSG has less complications, I forged ahead . She would have wanted me to. She was a kind soul and will be sadly missed greatly by all those that knew her. Just 45 years old she had so much real life ahead of her, had already lost 75 pounds, was walking and exercising every day and her self esteem had already soared, There are times that justifiable answers are not available. Thanks again for your supoprt. I am at day 7, believe I am doing fantastic and now have another angel to watch over me.

Hi CC, First, welcome. second please except my apology in advance for being the world's worst typist. I was sleeved on. Dec 28th and know that I must weigh more since leaving the hospital. They took away my HCTZ and pumped me full of fluids. I also had some blood sugar issues while in the hospital and was given insulin. I could barely bend my fingers they looked like little sausages. I vowed not to weigh myself until my first Dr's appointment on the 11th. Give your scale to a friend to hold on to and don' t drive yourself crazy. Right now you need to heal, learn your new eating and drinking regiments and don't need the added stress of worrying about your weight. It will come off, I've been lurking in here a long time and haven't seen a single complaint of the weight not coming off. There are complaints of stalls, but that happens with regular dieting. I only lost 5.8 lbs on my pre-op liquid diet. I read that some lose 15-20 lbs, but it was significant for me, a typical dieting and exercise program of 2 hours a day working out only brought me a 2 lb a week reward. This is the rest of our healthier lives and we are a little older than most here, that changes the playing field. Wishing you the best of luck!

CONGRATULATIONS! The approval process took 11 months for me, but on Dec 16th I received my approval and had my uneventful surgery on Dec 28th. I can sincerely feel your excitement... What a great way to start your New Year!

Honeydew, I'm sorry that you're not feeling good. I am only sleeved as of the 28th. I have been reading in here for a long time and also know two people that have had the sleeve, yet don't know what is " normal" for me . I have had diarrhea all day and a very gassy stomach, but thought that was normal, when did you decide that it wasn't normal and got checked for c-diff? I thought the liquid diet was doing it and thought maybe adding benefiber to my diet which may firm things up. Has this been suggest by your Dr?

I am day four post op. I am feeling what I'm sure each and every one of you have felt. A little sick to my stomach, gas pains, a little diarrhea, not myself and even dizzy. I did great getting in Protein and Water yesterday, but today my first Protein Drink is going down very slow. I have very little energy and desire to even eat today. My gas pains are lower abdominal, just a little bit in the upper abdomen where you would think they should be. I will continue to sip, sip, sip all day. My real question here is that I planned to go back to work on the 9th. I am afraid if there isn't a drastic change there is no way I can even think about work. Is there a certain time frame when things start to "feel better". I am not feeling the buyers remorse since I have been looking forward to this for so long. Just curious about the different stages and when things begin to feel somewhat normal again.

I do take a PPI, I usually take it at night, maybe I should take it in the am. As I had said before, I don't think my issues are out of the norm, but was hoping to jump right back into regular life immediately. I just needed reminding that this is major surgery and I am NOT young :-) In the hospital you have constant pain meds and IV fluids that I think make you feel so good that when you come home it's just a big difference. I have felt better as the day went on. Fluids and movement have helped a lot ... I've never wanted to pass gas so much in my life, just the opposite of what we 're brought up to do or NOT do. As I had said, my gas is all lower abdomen , very little burping going on. I feel like a Macy's Thanksgiving Day balloon . I'm sure part of that is the swelling in my new baby little tummy. I am home alone and this site gives me a place to talk it out since I have not shared this with everyone. Thanks for listening

Thank you ! I guess I just need to hear this is normal. It's ok not to feel like I should be cleaning house and getting ready for a marathon. As I said, I typically want to be stoic and be the best at whatever I do, but I want to lay low today. I am so encouraged by the people in here who have done so well. I know I have a wonderful Dr and my current health issues should be resolved and my biggest fear of future diabetes should be non existent. I truly want a healthier next 25-30 years with my husband. Again, thank you for the encouragement. Happy New Year to you all.

I am back.... I tried writing a lengthy reply about my progress and my friend yesterday, but for some reason, it didn't post and I was too tired to repeat it . First let me clarify things about my friend. She went into surgery for her bypass knowing she had fatty liver disease which is not uncommon in the morbidly obese. Once they were in there they discovered that she had cirrhosis of the liver and at that time the cause unknown since she is not a drinker. She went home to recover from her bypass before they could investigate any further into her liver issue. She was doing great, had lost a lot of weight, was walking and exercising, was feeling very good about herself and then starting having some blood in her mouth and pain in her side. So they moved her appointment up with the hematologist. After running several blood tests is when they realized that her liver was starting to fail. She was then set up for an appointment in Boston. Over the last couple weeks her pain had gotten worse, all of her Dr's assumed it was because of her worsening liver issues. The Friday before Christmas she went to Boston to find out that she needed a liver transplant and that the cirrhosis was caused by years of ibuprofen use on top of the fatty liver disease. She continued to take pain meds for the increase in pain, but on Christmas day she could no longer bear it and went to the ER. After some testing they discovered that her pain was caused from a leak and severe peritonitis. She was taken to a larger facility and after a 7.5 hour surgery, she is still in ICU, in a medicated induced coma and hooked up to every machine known to man, including dialysis, life support, some machine doing liver functions etc. . She has complete kidney and liver failure and there has been no change in several days. The leak may have occurred during a trip to the gym. She had reported to a friend that she "hurt " herself at the gym, had heard a pop and was unable to do anything but walk the last couple weeks. I visited her twice while in the hospital and it is very scary. I have never seen so much equipment in my life. We are all praying for her. She has a long road ahead, when she recovers from this leak and it's complications, she will still have to get strong enough for a liver transplant. As for me, it's day four post-op. I am usually very stoic. I got up today feeling under the weather. I'm sure it's natural. I got in all my liquids yesterday, but woke today feeling exhausted, a little dizzy, I'm sipping my protein drink but am not the least bit interested and have had a couple bouts of diarrhea. My pains are not where I think they should be, but more lower abdominal, next to my belly button. I wanted to avoid my pain medication to get stronger, but I just took a half dose in hopes it picks me up out of this funk. My sister had the sleeve four months ago and I can't compare my experience to hers. She had a lot of upper abdominal pains when swallowing . The pain was between her breasts, I have no pain at all swallowing, but feel gas moving around when I do. I have no interest in eating at all. She went back to work on day 5, there is no way I feel like working tomorrow. I will keep plugging along and hope that I feel good by the 9th, that's my official go back to work day. :-) As much as I have read in here, read at obesity help and my sisters experience, nothing prepares you for your own experience. I feel like I have a case of the flu with maybe doing a few to many sit ups. Just a tender tummy like I over exercised. Any suggestions from you experienced folks would be greatly appreciated. Happy New Year to you all.

Hello everyone, congratulations to all of us Dec. Sleevers. I was sleeved on Dec 28 th as many here were and I am here to report how I am doing and to see how others are doing as well. My surgery went textbook perfect according to my surgeon. The only complication was that my blood sugars rose beyond acceptable limits and for the first 12 hours I had my blood sugars checked and was given insulin hourly to bring levels to normal. My Dr explained that this can be common when your body is under stress. She explained that the body recovers quicker if those levels remain normal therefore her reasoning for such a close watch. After 12 hours things were back to normal and the insulin testing and injections seized . I think my hospital stay was again textbook perfect. I was given pain medications when needed and that allowed me to shower, walk and do lots of things for myself. The only requirement before leaving was that be able to drink one ounce of Water every hour on my second day and 4 ounces of carnation instant Breakfast without any complications on the last day. I had no problem with either. I have NOT had any pain in my chest area or trouble swallowing in any way. My pain appears to be all gas related, all to right of my belly button. Just downright gassy. Fortunately I have several months of lurking around in here and reading others experiences so that takes the "unknown" out of the equation. A lot of what I'm feeling I know is normal because of this wonderful site and the folks willing to share their experiences. Today I woke feeling pretty good, drank 4 ounces of an Atkins Protein drink and then started working on my first bottle of water. After drinking about 8 ounces of water I decided to take my chewable Vitamins. They actually went down fine without any pain or issues. Within an hour I was in need of a big nap, I laid down and slept for 45 minutes. When I woke I had the worst gas pains. I have been able to pass some, but decided to take some pain meds . I am much better now and can actually function better, but I so wanted to get on without pain meds. I guess my question here is, is this normal? How long should I plan on being debilitated? I plan to return to work on the 9th. Is this duable? Thanks for listening to me..

Sorry that I had't finished my last message, apparently was interrupted and then fell asleep. I was about to say that for those of you that had read my earlier posting about my friend in ICU who was found to have had a leak 3 months out and underwent a 7.5 hour surgery to repair the leak and drain off as much infection as they could here is an update. I walked down to see her last evening. She is basically unchanged. still in a medicated coma, kidney and liver failure so they have her hooked up to a dialysis machine, another device that does the function of the liver along with 20 plus bottles of blood products, antibiotics etc. and the life support machine which does your breathing for you. there have been some improvements to some of her labs, but nothing significant. They feel today after the dialysis things should show some improvement, so please keep those prayers coming.

Hello everyone.... I was sleeved on the 28th, everything has gone textbook perfect. I did have a very raised blood sugar which at times will happen with trauma and surgery. The therapy included hourly finger sticks testing my levels followed by insulin injection until my body stabilized. I have never been diagnosed as diabetic. My Dr is very proactive, and immediately wanted that under control to avoid any further complicates and stressors so that I can have the best possible recovery . I would say that I'm doing very well.Overall I have NOT had any chest pains, like my sister had reported. My pain is more left side abdominal pain and tiredness. I've been walking a lot, still have not passed any gas . I have no pains from my belly button up. I have finally been disconnected from the oxygen, urinary cath and special insulin IV. I have had about 8 ounces of water today in and it'd the carnation instant breakfast stays down tomorrow, I get rid of the regular I go home. :-) .

I'm writing this morning because I need a place to unload. I have been elated this last 10 days and my surgery is scheduled for tomorrow. I had no fears and even wondered if that was normal as I had posted before. Today all of that has changed. When I started this journey it was by myself, but I was joined by a sister and a friend. The sister had her surgery and found out she had a rare form of stomach cancer called Gist. Fortunately after months of testing, a trip to Dana Farber, she is cancer free and the surgery actually saved her life in more ways than one. She feels and looks great. The friend who was larger had a bypass. She discovered that she had a fatty liver, with cirrhosis from a lifetime of ibuprofen use and that her liver was dying, all this during her surgery. She too is doing well, losing greatly, exercising and last Friday went to Boston to be added to a liver transplant list. Last night I received a call from her sister. She has not been feeling right for a couple weeks, spoke with all of her Dr's, they all assumed it was liver related. Increased her pain meds and she went on with her life. Christmas day she was in too much pain and asked to go to the hospital, they discovered a leak. This is 3 months post-op. She did mention to my sister that she hurt herself at the gym a couple weeks back and heard a pop, and had been taking it easy and just walking since. She went into emergency surgery which lasted 7.5 hours, she is on life support, has kidney failure is septic and the Dr was brutally honest and said she may not make it. This gave me reason to have a melt down last night. Today I'm in a fog. My feelings are all over the place.. I have always known the risks, have read the complication forum and yet, it had never been this close to home. My excitement has turned to fear. This journey has already been such a roller coaster. It was so difficult and took so long to get approved. Is God trying to tell me something? I have been doing this the whole time to get healthier. I'm so confused, frustrated and unsure.

Thank you for your kind words. I can't help think about my friend and what she would say to me. She was so excited for me to have gotten approval after such a long drawn out process. All three of us did this for our health. I will continue my journey. I know the risks, pray that she recovers, as today there have been no changes, but there is hope for tomorrow. I have to continue with the hope of a better future for myself. I am still so full of emotions. I think it is to be expected. Hopefully tomorrow when I wake and feel up to walking, II can see her in ICU and there may be better news. Again, thank you for listening.