SKCUNNINGHAM

I had this side effect. I was low on iron, I was low on B-12, and I had to cut my blood pressure medicine in half.

For those of you who think my loss has not been fast - I have not been exercising like some people do with the sleeve. I did light walking daily, and a weekly Zumba class, and some sessions on my elliptical. But not a daily strenuous workout - and I have done NO exercise since I blew out my ankle about two months ago. Even with that, I have lost 96 pounds in 7+ months. I agree with Norman, if you exercise more, your metabolism will be higher and you will lose faster. I also agree with forensikchic that this is a tool (the best I have ever had) to lose weight. My goal was never to see how fast I could get to goal - my goal is to get to my goal weight and stay there. I know I can lose the weight I want - this is the FIFTH time I will have lost 100 pounds. Obviously, my problem is keeping the d**n weight off for longer than 18 months at a time. I am now rehabbing my ankle and am starting to be able to exercise. I will be adding more exercise sessions to my weekly routine, which will help in my push to lose the last 21 pounds more quickly. Then maintenance comes. That's the hard part for me.

Doug - congratulations - on achieving your weight loss and on beating your demons. I wish you continued success in whatever you set your formidable mind to - I have NO DOUBT WHATSOEVER you will achieve it. You are an amazing man. And I second the previous comment, you have a flare for storytelling - you might consider looking for an outlet for that gift - maybe as a motivational speaker? I bet you would be great at that. Take care Sharon

My type is INTJIntrovertedIntuitiveThinkingJudgingStrength of the preferences % 1125144I am a: slightly expressed introvert moderately expressed intuitive personality slightly expressed thinking personality moderately expressed judging personality One of the career choices they recommend is engineer - nice - since I've been a practicing engineer for 30+ years.

I think it is different for different people. If the group of people who you spend time with socially only socialize based on eating food to excess, you may want to change the people you socialize with. It would be like alcoholics who give up drinking or drug addicts who give up the drugs not socializing with their previous drinking / drugging buddies. Other than that - I don't think your best friend and sister should be concerned. Good Luck with the journey! I have never been happier.

I would be hesitant with much raw celery. I made myself really uncomfortable with too much raw celery chopped into a chicken salad. I chop my salad greens and the other veggies pretty small. I put in a lot of other veggies and relatively not a lot of lettuce / spinach / etc. I didn't start eating lettuce until about 3 months out. I also do not eat lots of raw broccoli or cauliflower, but I do eat them both.

I inadvertently bought some fruity no caloric beverages that were carbonated, and didn't notice until I was drinking on in my car (opened it on the trip). It was uncomfortable for me to drink the bubbly stuff. No matter what my surgeon said (yes or no) I am going to leave the stuff alone.

I inadvertently bought some fruity no caloric beverages that were carbonated, and didn't notice until I was drinking on in my car (opened it on the trip). It was uncomfortable for me to drink the bubbly stuff. No matter what my surgeon said (yes or no) I am going to leave the stuff alone.

No one ever checked on me to see if I was actually using the machine. I was diagnosed as needing the machine - got it - and put it on the floor of my closet. Shortly after surgery, when the first 30 or so pounds were gone, my husband said I was sleeping like a baby and had no more signs of apnea. Ask your surgeon what he would reccomend you do.

I recommend staying with your doctor's plan. Your sleeve is still swollen and you don't want to progress too fast and break through your stitch line. When I was at your stage, I started my anti acid medicine and would use warm broth to combat that feeling (which for me was acid, not hunger). Talk to your surgeon or nutritionist. Good Luck.

Bayarea - you have identified the "hard part" of the sleeve journey for me. I think the things pointed out by lsereno are the way to go - professional help- for the underlying issues and developing alternate activities. The tough thing for me was I used to use food to "check out" of my emotions. Now, I stay in the moment and deal with what is bothering me. Not easy to do at all times - particularly since it was a lifetime (50+ year) habit. Like a book I have on my self says "Food is easy - life is hard". Good luck with the journey.

I am very proud of you, and thrilled for your success!

I am slightly over 7 months post surgery. For the entire time period, I am losing about 2.8 pounds per week - much faster at first, and slower now that I am getting closer to my goal. I have lost over 80% of my "excess weight" and I think the rate slows down about then. I keep a spreadsheet that tracks this, and along with the line that shows my actual weight loss, I have two lines showing a 2 lb and a 3 lb per week line. You can see I crossed from > 3/ week to < 3/week a few weeks ago. I sprained my ankle really badly about then (you can see the stall - when the slope of the weight loss line changed) and wasn't able to exercise for around 2 months. I am just now getting back into exercising. The separate dots at the end of the actual weight loss line are when I project I will hit certain goal weights. The important thing is not how fast you lose, but how well you work your sleeve. Good Luck!

Raine - you look great! I would have guessed your age in your mid 30's - not your 40's! Do you wear a heard hat for work, or were you doing something like Habitat for Humanity when you were wearing it? It is a good look for you - particularly with that wonderful smile you have on under the hard hat! My face has gone from a moon-round face with no wrinkles and multiple chins to a heart shaped face with definate crows feet and smile lines and some lose neck skin under a single chin. I have much more lose skin on the parts of my body covered with clothes.

Tiff - I am so happy for you. You look adorable - with Tatum being front and center. I bet your balance is out of whack with her being this close to delivering. I hope your last month passes quickly and easily. My thoughts and prayers are with you.

Yes I think you will hit your goal - just like I have no doubt I will hit my goal of 135 lb. I am one inch taller than you - 5'4". I have 21 pounds to go to get there. Just like TIffykins says - you have to work your sleeve correctly - but it is doable!

I have lost 97 pounds in slightly over 7 months. This includes the 11 pounds I lost during the 2 week pre-surgery diet. I have 21 pounds more to lose to achieve my goal weight. That will place me in the middle of the normal BMI range. I could actually stop at 10 pounds higher than my goal weight and still be "normal". I will decide when I am going to stop losing once I get there. Take advantage of the first 6 to 9 months after you are sleeved - you will get the most dramatic results then. I encourage you to use the tool (your sleeve) to its utmost advantage. Good Luck! It was a great decision for me, I hope you feel the same way.

Karen - congratulations on losing an amazing amount of weight! Way to go! I am excited for you that you have become a Christian - I can't imagine how hard this was (losing weight, having surgery) without HIM to draw strength from. I have prayed many times for the wisdom to know the right choice to make, and the strength to carry out those choices once I know them. He is a well that never runs dry. I see you are also a patient of Dr. Nick. I am so impressed by him and his staff.

An easy way to make homemade chicken broth is to get a roasted chicken from the store. Put the whole thing (skin, bones, drippings from the container) into a stock pot with a couple of ribs of celery, a couple of green onions and some spices (depending on how spicy the roasted chicken is you may not need much seasoning). Add Water to cover the chicken by about 3". Cook - bring the water to a rolling boil uncovered then lower to a simmer. Once it is barely simmering, cover and cook for 30 minutes to an hour or longer. Put a colander into another stock pot and pour everything from the first pot into the second one. Remove the colander of chicken and veg, and in the first pot you will have broth. I would recover the chicken from the 1st colander - separate the white from the dark and freeze in ziplocks for later use when you can eat chicken - you can even freeze it in 1 ounce servings if you really want to be prepared. With the broth - cool it, put it in the fridge and let the fat rise. When the fat rises to the top, I strain it. I put it back on the stove, heat it and adjust the seasoning. I always put a little soy sauce in my chicken broth - but that's just me. I would put a couple of day's worth of broth in the fridge - the rest I freeze. It is easy to freeze broth in a cupcake tin - spray the pan with a oil substitute spray (PAM) before you fill the indentations. Place in freezer and freeze hard. Once you have them frozen, remove pan from freezer and remove the frozen broth servings. Place in a gallon ziplock and you have indivdual servings easy to defrost. Good luck after surgery. Broth was my go to drink the first month.

50 pounds

I am still surprised at how eating less food than I have ever in my life has made me appreciate the tastes of food so accutely. My husband made me one of the best meals I ever eaten tonight - it was amazing. Simple - a perfectly prepared omelet and some absolutely ripe sliced garden (REAL) tomatoes. The food tastes exploded in my mouth like I was eating pop-rocks. I just closed my eyes and enjoyed the experience of eating. I used to eat until I was numb and the food didn't even taste good at the point I would stop - I was full to the point was miserable and about to gag. The sleeve surgery has given me back the gift of enjoying food. I don't care if I ever eat a white carb again if I can keep this appreciation of a well prepared meal.

Since your goals are to get healthier after WLS, I would ask the trainer to reccomend a program of exercises to do just that - improve your overall health, prevent muscle loss, and promote skin elacticity. I would also ask the trainer how much you should eat depending on your level of exercie (tell him/her what your normal caloric intake is). and when you should eat in relationship to your exercise session (before? aftrer?) Good Luck!

You look great! Congratulations on reaching your goal! Let the celebration begin.

I agree - the WASA crispbread crackers are great! Love them with cheese (cheddar, melted) or laughing cow. I also eat them with tuna salad or chicken salad.