Roseib

Yay! Hope you get a quick date and don't have to wait 30 days. I was both luck and unlucky in that insurance didn't pay. Big expense but short wait for surgery date. Still those 30 days will hopefully pass quickly if you do have to wait. Congrats on finishing the 6 month preop.

Hi. Welcome. I had 235 pounds to lose before my preop diet (2 Weeks-19 pounds) and now have less than 100 to go at 10.5 months out. You are obviously a lot younger than I am (was 62 when had surgery June 29). You should do great! Thst 30 pounds will come off more quickly than you might think. Good to have made behavioral changes now re sugar and white flour. I think it helps post-op to have made that change prior to surgery

Just wondering how long you take to eat. I was supposed to take no longer than 20 minutes and then stop. I had to eat slowly too. Had I taken longer I probably could have eaten more. If you take an hour to eat for example thst is probably too long. Also very good advice from Stacy and Tiffykins. At over 10 months out my weight loss is slowing down. Take good advantage of those first 6-8 months out.

Wow! That's great! I can see how you'd be a tad nervous but I can hardly wait to get where you are. It'll be a while for me. Of course we will want all the details. Hope you heal quickly!

I posted this in the surgeons subforum but got no response so trying here. Has anyone had surgery or know anything about Dr. Chae at Sky Ridge Med Ctr in Denver area? My cousin is seriously considering him. His credentials on web look good. Just wondering of someone has more info. Thanks.

Thanks for the feedback. Yes I know what a COE is but thst doesn't tell me about what the doctor is like. Thsnks Dawn for sharing your experience. Ill let .e cousin know.

My mini goal is to weigh 225 by June 29, one year out. I'm only weighing once a month now, so don't now how close to that I am. Hopefully have taken off some weight since the day before Easter. Btw, that will be only 15 pounds away from what my surgeon thought would be a reasonable end weight for me having started at 385.5. I plan to go way beyond that no matter how long it takes.

If I didn't feel comfortable with the doctor, I'd check out another place. Is he the only doctor there? Plus, it sounds like everyone there is not friendly. It's not just the surgery, you know, but also the follow up and how comfortable you feel with follow up appointments and going to support group. You can interview other doctors and then make your choice. He sounds like a jerk. I wouldn't use him unless everyone else seems incompetent. I checked around and selected a doctor who rated high on great bedside manner as well as excellent surgeon. I wouldn't be insulted or discouraged by the weight loss prediction, however. It's just statistical and an average. Doesn't mean individual people won't lose more. Btw, my doctor, who is very nice and kind, also said I'd probably lose to about 210 pounds as end weight if I were typical high end weight loss (ca 70% of excess weight). Well, I definitely plan to lose to 150 and am sure I can do it. Will be one year out on June 29 and goal is 225. Only weighing once a month now. It may take me close to two years to get to goal of 150, but I'm sure I can do it. What happens is a lot of people get tired of limiting food choices and add back in refined carbs, which along with slightly larger capacity of stomach after several months out can add up to permanent plateau (I still restriction going on my 11th month). It's the food choices that slow down or stop the weight loss, not so much the sleeve. However, you should know that people who have been overweight a long time tend to have bigger bone structure and their personal ideal weight might be higher than the actuarial chart ideal weights or so my surgeon said at support group recently. So the ideal weight chart might say 130 but the individual might be at a good weight for him/herself at 150 or so. Finally, I've been stuck with seated execersise DVDs due to work schedule and have just joined a fitness center now that the semester is over and my time is more flexible (I'm in education). I plan to take Water aerobics and anticipate it will help my weight loss a lot! Also the trainer I consulted with has me doing other exercise/work out routines that I can do with end stage osteoarthritis in my knees. Again, that surgeon was a jerk and really not well-informed it seems on the workout routines even people needing knee replacement can do. I'm not diabetic so I can't address that, but there are a lot of successful diabetics on this board who certainly can. Good luck. Again, it it were me, I'd interview some other doctors.

My doctor required that someone stay with me the day I went home (and that night). My friend actually stayed the next day and night as well and then went home. I was having terrible diarrhea problems that first day and part of the second, so it really helped to have someone there. Fine after that. However, doctor insistent about not being alone that first day home. Check with your doctor as to what he/she advises.

Wow. What a great friend! Mine are supportive too and that is a blessing for us given the sad experiences of some people on this board.

Yes perfectly normal. At least I save on A/C bills here in Texas. I used to keep it at 70 in the summer.

My doctor required a protein shake at breakfast and lunch and for dinner a palm sized meal, half lean protein and half veggies plus 64 oz water. That was it. Lost 19 pounds in two weeks but I started at a really high weight. I teach at a university and about all I cam get in the cafeteria is grilled chicken. Occasionally lean beef tips or grilled shrimp. I can take my lunch of course. Good luck.

Meatza! Use lean hamburger or ground turkey as "Crust" and put toppings on it. The recipe is in the recipes section from months ago.

So sorry. Good luck. Will pray for you.

Usually use my cell phone so I rarely look at before and after pics. On computer now though and looking at pics posted. You look fabulous -- and this was back in February. I know you feel discouraged sometimes about getting your last few pounds off, but you look fantastic already! I can hardly wait until I'm that thin. Probably close to another year for me, though. Cynthia

Good luck. The waiting is the worst. Day of once you get to hospital there is so much prep it will go quickly. Will be sending positive thoughts your way!

My surgeon said when questioned at support group on average women lose for 12-14 months, although there is no reason one could not continue to lose indefinitely if one continues to follow the program - protein first, no refined carbs, exercise, etc. Just will come off more slowly. I certainly plan to lose another 100 pounds no matter how long it takes. But the most rapid weight loss occurs in the first 6-8 months or so as Tiffykins said.

I never had a doubt. Ever. Just one brief moment after surgery when 4th of July ads were on TV while I was still in hospital and I thought oh no, I'll never be able to pig out on hot dogs again! Lasted just long enough to think that. Then I had to laugh. That was the point of surgery, not to pig out again. Of course I have had a hot dog since then being 10 months out, but I have no desire to "pig out" on them. The reason I say this is I had to wait until I was 62 to get the money together to have the surgery. Don't let time slip by while you are still young -- I assume you are younger than I am. What I do regret is that I didn't have the money (insurance won't pay for it) when I was younger and had to wait so long to have it. As a cautionary note, it you're not fully committed to it, then maybe you shouldn't have it., although It sounds from your subsequent messages that you are committed now. Good luck.

Seems you could try the sleeve as a stand alone procedure and if you don't lose as much as you'd like you can then do the DS. Wow the people Tiffykins mentioned are an inspiration. I weighed almost 400 myself at age 62 with a Bmi of 60.1 and am 10 months out and have lost 135 pounds including my 2 week preop diet. I think my bmi is 43 now. Still high but lots lower than June 29. From my experience so far I think you can do it. I would hsve lost more I think but severe osteoarthritis in knees has prevented me from exercising AA vigorously as many can. Will start water aerobics on a couple of weeks when school lets out (I teach).

I just started using Nioxin as my hair seems to be falling out at a normal rate now 10 months out. I can tell a difference in just a few days with how my hair feels -- stronger, almost coated but not in a bad way. It's hard to explain. It looks a little fuller, too. I'm hoping it will stimulate growth but too soon to tell. My cousin who is a hair dresser says she heard that Ovation Cell Therapy products stimulate growth for people who've had chemotherapy or other hair loss like us. Supposedly it's a product that really works. I haven't checked the site out yet, but just the name sounds extremely expensive.

Well, my weight loss is slowing down a bit, but plan to join fitness center as soon as finals are over in a week and a half, so I'll be ambitious. My surgery was June 29, so I'd really like to be in the 220s by June 29. Haven't weighed for a while so hopefully a little less than 250 now. SN.................Starting Wt........Current.......Goal.......Lbs to Goal Roseib.............250...................250...............225...........25

Obesity is very hard to treat because it can involve genetics, other biological factors, psychological issues, and environmental factors. Often it is a combination of factors. We are so lucky that bariatric specialists know this now. So many doctors many of us have gone to in the past who moralistically told us it was simply a matter of self-discipline, inadvertently setting us up for continued failure. This is a gift.

It honestly never occurred to me the sleeve would fail or rather my use of it would. Did worry a bit right before surgery about things going wrong but thst is normal I think. I need knee replacement badly too but even with a lot of weight left to lose my pain is not as bad as it was. I can walk farther and stand longer. I find Voltaren gel actually helps the pain now so I don't have to take as much hydrocodone.

Congratulations! Sorry about the kidney stone hear they are extremely painful. But yay for the weight loss!

Was wondering what u discovered about Dr. Chae. My cousin in Denver is thinking about having him do wls.