MegInNOLA

Congratulations, Crosswind!! And I understand exactly how you feel--I never in a million years thought I would really hit goal, and I'm definitely not ready to stop yet, although I have no idea at all where I'm going to end up. I'll look forward to your future posts and watching the next steps!!

What a traumatic experience for your family! Of course you're falling back into old habits after that--makes perfect sense to want some semblance of normal or the feeling of familiarity and comfort. But you know that food isn't really going to change anything about what's happened. Sometimes I actually say out loud: Eating this food won't change ______ (fill in the blank). It helps my brain disconnect from my emotions a bit. Eating this food won't change that ugly thing someone said. Eating this won't change that my significant other is seriously ill. Eating this won't change that my son was hurt by our dog. Whatever the situation is, eating food that isn't right for you isn't going to change it. Bear with me here, because I'm definitely not a psychologist and I don't know you, but I know about feelings of second-hand guilt. Part of what you may be feeling is a sense of guilt and responsibility, even though you weren't there, even though you didn't do it--because you're a mom and this is your precious son, and he was hurt. Making poor food choices now might be a subtle means of self-punishment, a way to say, "I should have ___, and I didn't ____, so I don't deserve ___." Seems like a lot of us set unreasonable expectations of ourselves--somehow we feel we should be "super people" and that we are responsible for all sorts of things that we really aren't responsible for--but boy, do we love to punish ourselves for them! If that might be part of the picture, you may want to see a counselor--this might not be the only thing that you're thinking of in this way. It's 100% understandable that you would seek comfort and familiarity and the sense of "how things used to be" through food, but the happy news is you don't have to. Maybe check your cabinets and ditch some of the more potent trigger foods--I actually threw out some stuff yesterday that I realized was "calling" me--and substitute with things you really do enjoy that are also healthy. Hugs to you and prayers for your family!! Hang in there, though--you're going through some big changes! Focus on your goals--for your benefit and for your family's long-term benefit.

Hey GT: YES. Off spray (they make a new kind that doesn't have any sort of scent) and hydration--take some of those packets of Crystal Light or Gatorade that you can mix into your Water bottle. I was just at a crawfish boil last night--YUM, by the way--and got my first mosquito bites of the season; then I found the can of Off and no more skeeters, so it definitely works. More importantly, be sure you take some sunscreen that won't sweat off. I don't know what sorts of activities you'll be doing, but if you're going to be outside, sunscreen is a MUST. I like the Neutrogena "dry spray" stuff--I don't really even know I have it on after I apply it, but it works. I get the highest SPF I can find, as I have very fair skin, and I go through the "burn and peel" cycle without really tanning--dang it! But yeah, hydration--last summer, I was still in losing mode, and I noticed that I definitely needed to be more mindful of drinking when it was hot. I also really love mixing in a little bit of fruit juice into my water--not enough to be like lemonade or orange ade or whatever, just enough to sort of flavor the water. You might try squishing up some herbs (mint, fresh basil, or fresh lemon thyme) along with a piece of citrus into your water for added flavor punch and incentive to slurp. :-) I have found that just keeping a cup of ice water next to me here at my computer means I drink a lot more water--so proximity is part of the solution for me.

It used to bother me, but seriously--anyone who says that out loud in front of me isn't someone whose opinions I'm going to worry too much about. I prefer to surround myself with intelligent, positive, supportive people. :-) I did have one lady tell me she had lost weight "the hard way," and I said, "Congratulations!" Who needs negativity??

Y'all are cracking me up. Coops, "maintenance" is fine; there's almost no difference between now and before, except that now I don't hop on the scale every single day. I'm doing what I call "the bounce," as per usual--still hovering right around my goal weight, some days 1 pound less, some days 1 pound more--I don't sweat it, since I know what I'm eating. I have switched around a bit, sort of stealthily, to a diet that has more sugar in it than I would like. My sleeve used to outright reject baked goods and sweets; unfortunately, it doesn't reject them any more, so I have to avoid them. I haven't been doing such a great job at avoiding them, but at least most of the time they haven't been fatty sweet things--for instance, I'll eat a few jelly Beans. But I don't really need/want/like jelly beans, so what's that about? LOL Now I have to eat like all the other grownups, sleeve or no sleeve. :-) I'm still having trouble with the shortness of breath issue, especially when singing, which I do on a regular basis; I have some tests scheduled for later this month that hopefully will be the start to a thorough checkup about it. I had thought the symptoms were due to low Iron, but my doctor said that was really unlikely (even though I felt better on the iron tablets--?), so more tests are coming and we are definitely going to figure it out. She is still worried about some kind of diaphragmatic paralysis or damage from the surgery, although she feels it's highly unlikely, since my surgeon is meticulous, but we're in the "rule out" phase for now. Anyway, we've been on spring break this week (I work for a Catholic university, and we get Holy Week off)--going to enjoy this weekend to the fullest, since the next few weekends are nonstop!! But summer is coming!!!

YAY YAY YAY!!! Congratulations, Lila--maybe that whole "avoiding sugar" thing is the key. I have to second (or third, or fourth) everyone's great comments to GT regarding treating yourself the way you would treat someone else. Why is it that we feel perfectly comfortable being so horrid to ourselves, and we would never in a million years treat anyone else that way? My own interior monologue is always so negative, in the guise of being "realistic." My husband has been pointing out to me lately that I never, ever accept a compliment or a nice comment from him--I always "correct" him or say something like "I'm really glad you think so," instead of just saying, "Thank you." I am SO much more supportive of others than I am of myself--and so much more negative to myself than I am to others. It's so strange.... We are more than enough. I can "know" it with my head but not "feel" it with my heart. Very frustrating!

I have a "car pack" that travels with me. It has a small pack of almonds, some Peanut Butter crackers (I don't low-carb), a Protein bar--careful if your car gets super warm--and some spoons so I can run into a store and grab a yogurt or some Soup, since lots of places now carry ready-to-eat soup. I have experienced that frazzled, really-not-myself feeling many times, and they are ALWAYS tied to times when I don't eat properly. Having a sleeve sometimes means you don't feel hunger, or you don't feel it in the same way, so definitely stock your purse or your car (I also have a couple of things in a desk drawer at work) to avoid having the crash. Don't forget that good old vending machine peanuts will work in a crunch (ha!), as will a cheese stick or beef Jerky from a convenience store if your sleeve tolerates them (cheese yes, jerky no for me). Glad you're feeling better, and now you know!!

They gave me coffee in the hospital during my recuperation, so... :-) I'm a caffeine hound, I freely admit it, and I've been enjoying it all along. No rule against it from my surgeon, but you should follow your doc's rules!

Another option is Beanitos chips--made of pinto Beans or black beans, so super high in Protein. They are definitely not low-carb, but they're a good option if you can get them. Whole Foods and a local chain stock them here, or you can check out their website, beanitos.com for stores. I'm not a rep, LOL, I just like the chips! Yet another option is my personal favorite, cucumber slices. I decided the additional cost of purchasing the English cucumbers (the ones with a very small seed tunnel, and very small seeds) was worth the price, and I use cucumber slices instead of chips routinely for dipping even warm foods like taco meat or cheese dip or whatever. I love making a cup of "dip" and using the cucumber slices to dunk. Love the lettuce cup idea above, too!

I'm a fan of the Yoplait high-protein coconut flavor. I like to dunk my BelVita Breakfast Cookies in there--tastes like cheesecake and is healthy! I usually eat 1/2 a container of the yogurt and 2 of the 4 cookies as a "mini-meal," and it's yummy! Also you can doctor your own yogurt--either sweet or savory. For sweet, get some of those syrups from Monin or Torani (both have lots of sugar-free flavors if you prefer sugar-free--you can order on Amazon or get them at some groceries, World Market, or coffee shops) and/or Jello or pudding packets--just use a spoonful of the powder, stir in, and yum! You can use drink mix powder for this, too--or instant coffee. For savory, stir in a couple of spoons of dip mix (ranch or onion), some instant Soup powder, salsa with or without extra herbs (cilantro, chives, chopped roasted garlic), or sriracha--makes a delicious dip for veggies (cucumber slices make good chips!), meat/chicken bites, crackers, whatever. Use it like sour cream. One of my favs is worchestershire sauce (just a couple drops!), some dehydrated onion flakes, a little salt, and a clove of smashed-up roasted garlic--voila! onion dip that reminds me of my childhood favorite but oh so much better!!

I'm almost a year out, and my advice is do what feels right for your body. At your stage, I couldn't eat much, either--bites, as you say, at a time. I never could get the hang of eating a "meal." My sleeve is too restrictive for that, really. Even now, I eat what I call "mini-meals" through the day. I do not low-carb; I do not calorie count. Because my sleeve is the way it is, that has worked for me--it may not work for a lot of people. And I might have had even better results if I did that kind of thing, but there ya go; my body, my decision. :-) Sample mini-meals (I do NOT eat all of this in one day! I'll have maybe five mini-meals through the course of a day): 1. 1/2 a Protein bar. 2. 1/2 a whole-grain cookie (I'm thiamine deficient and these are physician recommended) 3. 3 or 4 boiled shrimp with cocktail sauce. 4. 1 c. salad--lettuce, tomato, cucumber, whatever, plus a vinaigrette-type dressing (sleeve can't tolerate mayo!) and 1 TBS feta cheese 5. A few bites of gyro meat dipped in hummus--this is a new food for me this month, as prior to this, my sleeve would not tolerate meat very well--and I'm almost a year out!! 6. A couple of crackers with cheese (brie, pimento cheese, cheddar, whatever we have handy) or hummus or Peanut Butter 7. Six corn chips made into nachos with very little cheese and a few jalapeno cubes--I usually put light sour cream on top to help with the moisture factor 8. Veggies! 1/4 c. to 1/2 c. of whatever I have in the fridge--currently roast brussels sprouts, roasted carrots, roasted beets, grilled asparagus, fresh tomatoes, sauteed chard. I tend to roast a batch and eat on them for a few days. 9. Frozen yogurt from Red Mango--I get a small bit, add some flax-seed granola, and enjoy. 10. Couple of tablespoons of nut/cranberry mix. 11. Soup! Still a favorite, especially when we go out. I try to aim for less fattening ones (vegetable beef) or something filling like chili instead of cream-based ones or potato Soup. 12. BelVita breakfast cookies--2 of the pack of 4 Cookies swirled into 1/2 a container of Greek yogurt--tastes like dessert and is actually healthy! 13. Fruit! 1/4 or 1/2 c of whatever I feel like having--usually citrus or melon, since I still have a serious citrus craving! I can't do apples, pineapple, banana, or mango (my sleeve hates them!), and strawberries are a hit or miss--sometimes they're fine, sometimes they're not. 14. 3 slices of bacon. Don't judge. LOL that's a meal. That pretty much sums up my eating. Small, frequent meals of whatever my body is craving. The BIG DEAL is that now, because of my sleeve, I actually do listen to my body, and I cannot physically overeat--I've learned to stop when I'm not hungry any more as opposed to when I'm full--that's a HUGE DIFFERENCE, and it's all due to my sleeve.

I ate grapefruit starting at around 4 months. I craved it--and still do! I still eat citrus almost every day--now I can eat 1/2 an orange, 1/2 a grapefruit (slowly, over about an hour!), or 1/2 c. of melon pretty comfortably. I definitely recommend eating the fruit as opposed to drinking the juice--there's Fiber in the fruit that you miss out on with just the juice, and juice by itself seems to make my sleeve (maybe not everyone's!) unhappy--maybe too much sugar? I don't know. I don't add sugar or sweetener when I eat fruit, I just enjoy it plain. My husband's been getting more fruit, too, since I usually cut up an orange or something and offer him slices, which he can't seem to resist. :-) Sneaky me.

Wow! How pretty are you? Congratulations on your achievements!!

YES. Down to normal body weight for the first time in over 25 years. No way would that have happened without this tool. I'd do it again tomorrow if I needed to.

Hello VST gang!! Yay! I've been lurking between 2 and 5 pounds off goal for the last couple of months, and I'm thrilled to report that I'm finally there--and I'm sure about it, since I've been at this number for a few days now with no "bounce" back up! The last coupe of weeks, I've been trying hard to eat more fresh fruits and vegetables, and I think that has made a difference. As you may know from my numerous posts on the subject, I have a really picky sleeve--to this day, I feel like it's pretty tyrannical about what it will and will not allow me to eat, but most of the time, it works out well for my weight loss goals. I do wish I could tolerate certain healthy Proteins (fish and chicken, for instance!), but I now appreciate its inability to tolerate fried foods and sweets, so it all balances out. It was a huge challenge in the beginning to discover what would work--and I still find new foods that my sleeve will or won't tolerate, so I'm still learning. Next steps for me include getting my exercise on--I haven't really gotten into a habit of regular exercise yet, and I fully intend to do that. I am also still experimenting with getting my nutrition optimized and being sure I'm eating as wide a variety of foods as possible, including vegetarian sources of Protein. Now that I'm "at goal," I can see that I want to lose a bit more, although I'm not sure exactly how much; I still have a bit of flab around my middle and on the upper thighs that's not just loose skin--not sure how much of that will go away with exercise! Thanks to all posters on this board who continuously provide support, encouragement, and answers!! I seriously would never have done this if I hadn't been able to read all of your experiences beforehand, and I would have missed out. For me, the sleeve was 100% the right choice. I'm updating my ticker right this second!! Short story: Weight surgery morning 306. Weight today 190. (I'm 6'2", so while 190 looks really high, that's really normal weight.) Size surgery morning 3X-4X, tight 26/28. Size today L, comfortable 12 heading to 10--I pulled off my size 12 Eddie Bauers yesterday without unbuttoning--yay!! Biggest NSV: Being able to work as a conductor without getting all hot and sweaty!! I like that I can now wear elegant concert clothing, work like a fiend, and not end up drenched with sweat. I can hug people after concerts without feeling self-conscious and icky and unfeminine. Oh, and the shoes!!! I can wear cute shoes without my feet hurting!! Worst comment: From a lady at work: Oh, I see you've lost a lot of weight; me, too, but I did it the hard way (followed by me, startled, saying, "Well, congratulations on your success!" and moving quickly away). Best comment: From a female friend/colleague: I was sitting in the audience for your concert, and I was thinking, "Damn, her butt looks great!" (followed by me giving her a big ol' hug).

Good for you! Keep up the great work!

I have always enjoyed "eating green" and for a few years was a vegetarian and for two of those, a vegan (as in, no animal products at all--no meat, dairy, honey, Worchestershire sauce, eggs). So I have a sort of fondness for that way of eating--my body did feel fabulous and I did lose weight when vegan; however, as we all know, the trouble really isn't losing it, it's keeping it off! Thus, the sleeve. This time around, at a weight considered "normal" post-surgery, I'm finding that I need to focus on eating for nutrition. Because I have a fairly picky sleeve that doesn't tolerate some big categories of food (grain products, meat/fish--although shrimp, crab, crawfish, and scallops work okay), I have to think about my overall diet in terms of nutrients, and not just Protein. I've been looking for ways to maximize the nutrition in my food while still being able to enjoy it--I do love to eat (don't we all!), and I want my food to taste great AND be the best for my body! Enter our local farmers' markets...there's one here in Covington, where I live, and one close to my job in New Orleans. I have recently started going back to shop, and I have to say, there is NOTHING like fresh-grown, fresh-picked produce and dairy produced at a family farm!! One of the markets has a "box" deal, where you pay a flat fee and go through a line, filling your box with whatever is available (for instance, there might be sweet potatoes, and it says, "Take 2," or for baby turnips, "Take 8," etc.). Sometimes the box deal has produce that I'm not familiar with preparing; I just got some beautiful Swiss chard, and now I get to figure out how to fix it. There are some GREAT resources online for vegetable recipes. Here's a couple of recipes that I made up--they're delicious!!! Last weekend, the box had a bunch of beets in it. I had never made roast beets before, although I had seen chefs on TV do it, but I decided to be brave and try. SCORE! ROAST BEET AND MICROGREENS salad WITH FETA cheese AND ORANGE VINAIGRETTE Preparing the beets: Take your beets and scrub them carefully. Take off the tops, leaving about an inch of stem, and take off the roots, leaving about an inch. Wrap them in foil (they've still got their skins on). Wrap them individually and then put the wrapped beets into a baking pan to avoid any potential seepage during roasting. Roast for an hour at 400 degrees; I just put them in and left them alone, and they did fine. After that hour, pull them out and allow them to cool. Get a pair of plastic gloves or slip your hands into some produce bags for protection--working with beets will stain your hands and no amount of soap will help! Carefully unwrap the cooled beets and pinch off the skins; I was surprised how easily the skins came off. Put the cooled, peeled beets into a bag, secure, and refrigerate until ready to use. This sounds like a bunch of work, but I promise, it's fast and easy! Dressing: Whisk together with a fork: 1/2 c. fresh-squeezed orange juice (I used the juice from one very small orange, and I used the pulp that I could squish out of there, too) 1 teaspoon of prepared Dijon mustard, Creole mustard, or hot/sweet mustard Add 1/8 c. good quality olive oil while mixing with the fork. Serving: Arrange 1/2 c. microgreens or lettuce on a plate along with 1/2 c. sliced or cubed roasted beets. Spoon dressing over the top. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of crumbled feta cheese. RESULT: YUM!!! Gourmet-quality food from the farm to your table. I use the rest of the dressing to pre-marinate more of the beets; sometimes I add a bit of chopped shallot or a squeeze of lime juice or some herb that I'm trying to use up--it's just going to help flavor the beets for next time's enjoyment. SAUTEED SWISS CHARD So much better than cooking it down to a dark green icky mess with a bunch of salty meat--eww. Prepare your vegetables: Take the bunch of chard and wash it thoroughly; it has big leaves and some tough stems. Pat with a paper towel but don't worry about getting it all the way dry. I rolled the leaves together like a cigar shape and trimmed them into long strips, and then I ran my knife through to cut into fairly large pieces. I cut the stems into short lengths and split the especially wide ones so that they would cook faster. I stuck all of this into a bag and refrigerated it--I cooked it a few hours later, but if it was going to be longer before I cooked, I wouldn't wash or cut that early (don't want icky mold or anything). To cook: Heat 1 teaspoon of olive oil in a large pan that has a lid. Add 1 clove of garlic that you minced up really fine--don't burn your garlic--just get it sort of warmish in the pan. It will finish cooking, don't worry. After a minute or so, add your chard. It probably won't all fit, so put some in and stir it around until it wilts; then add more until it's all in the pan. Add 1/2 c. of stock or water--I used vegetable stock--and put a lid on the pan. After a few minutes, stir the chard around--if it seems to be soft, turn up the heat and cook and stir frequently until the stock or Water has reduced to a minimal amount--you have steam-sauteed your greens, which should now be gently salted and removed from the pan and eaten!!! I like a squirt of lemon juice on these, but you might want the traditional spritz of vinegar. Chard is delicious and very good for you!! ROASTED VEGETABLES It's a method more than a recipe. Heat your oven to 400 degrees. Prepare your pan--I like to use a heavy baking pan, sprayed with nonstick spray. Prepare your vegetables--scrub thoroughly, cut into regular-sized pieces (you want everything you're cooking at the same time to be approximately the same size--or do what I do, heat the oven once and put several different pans of veggies in to roast--you can take them out as they are done, leaving the ones in the longest that take the longest to cook). Sprinkle with a LITTLE olive oil--do not over-oil your veggies!!! Sprinkle with a little salt and pepper--I also like to use powdered garlic sometimes. If I have a few sprigs of rosemary, I will add that to the pan. Pop these pans into your hot oven, uncovered. In around 30 minutes, check your veggies and turn them over. If you're roasting asparagus, you'll want to check it after 10-15 minutes because it can easily burn. Other root veggies are pretty forgiving and flexible. I like roasted turnips, roasted cauliflower (like CANDY, I'm telling you), Brussels sprouts--my sprout-hating husband now fights me for these, broccoli, sweet potatoes, eggplant chunks, carrots, peppers--you name it, you can roast it, and there's just not a veggie in the world that doesn't get improved with roasting, in my opinion (well, maybe lettuce). I always make extras and save them in the fridge--you can make a terrific salad out of roasted veggies and vinaigrette, or add them to eggs for a frittata (if you can eat eggs!)--I like them with hummus on top. If you can eat wheat products, tabbouli or couscous with roasted vegetables is fabulous--I'd use a lemon-juice/olive oil dressing for that with plenty of herbs--can't eat wheat, but that's what I'd do if!!

Worst case scenario is your sleeve will reject it--if you get sick from it, no worries, just take it easy. Try it again in a few weeks/months, being sure to eat a couple of small bites and wait to see how it goes. I just had a few bites of steak at dinner, and I can definitely feel it in there--and I'm 11 months out. Sometimes dense protein just isn't the easiest thing in the world for us to digest. Hang in there!

Well, y'all: It's been too quiet in this forum! :seeya: So I'm posting that I'm officially 2 pounds away from hitting "goal," whatever that means--and I'm sending a shout out to all y'all who are also really close to getting to your goals!! The 190 I set for my goal is based on my remembering that I once weighed that--I'm 6'2", and at 192 currently am at the upper end of "normal" for the BMI scale for my height. I'm wearing sizes 14 and "large" comfortably (loosely, in some, on my way to 12's), down from a tight 26/28 and 3X/4X, so I'm feeling a lot better about how I look. I also don't think I'm going to be stopping at 190, since in the last 10 days, I've dropped 4 pounds, which tells me my body's not entirely slowing down with the weight loss yet. I've had a cold and haven't been eating all that much, either, but I don't think that's had a ton to do with it. We'll see, I guess. So now I have a question. At my height, do you think it's reasonable to aim for being a comfortable size 10/12 in lieu of a specified weight goal? I will never achieve the tiny sizes so many of you petite gals will get to--I'm not "big boned," but I think I am built a bit bigger than the average--I mean, I'm obviously LONGER-boned, but I don't think I have "big bones." Someone posted a link at some point to a site that talked about your "bone size" and showed how to measure using the circumference of your wrist and the gap in the bones of the arm at the elbow, and I actually find I have "medium" sized bones, if anything--not large, certainly. I am built curvy, too--big up top (still in an FF cup as the band has shrunk from a 48 to my current 38) and hips (but my butt is flat!). So do y'all think a 10/12 is a good goal? I should say that my surgeon didn't set a goal for me, weight or size wise, and my nutritionist set one of 212, I think--I honestly can't remember, since it's been almost a year now since our consult. I feel like I probably have 15-20 pounds still to go, but I'm just not sure. Some of the jiggly bits are loose skin, and some is still subcutaneous fat, I bet. Where is everyone in your journey close to goal?? Are you doing anything special as you get close? I'm trying to reward all the small achievements--getting to a normal BMI, for instance, or being able to pull off those size 14's without undoing the button--good stuff!

Woot! Way to go, Lynda!! What a happy post!! I hope everyone in this thread gets their well-deserved jump-start!!

Congratulations!!

I saw a former student for the first time since surgery (and I'm down a total of 147 pounds, 116 since surgery). He smiled and nodded, but I could tell he didn't "get" it--then he did a double take and actually stood open-mouthed, after which he went kind of ballistic with the "oh, my gosh, you look fabulous!" stuff. It was pretty cool. :-) But (and is this just the devil on my shoulder or what??) I really sort of secretly can't wait until my next high school reunion. :-)

Woo-HOO!!! Congratulations!!!!

Hey Kris: My husband and I sell cruises as a sort of sideline business, so we're always excited to go and hear about others' experiences! I'm glad you had a great time! We went on our last one back in August, and I had been sleeved for four months. At that point, my sleeve was still being REALLY snippy about what it would and wouldn't tolerate, but I also managed to enjoy myself thoroughly--plenty of fruit, low-fat yogurt, Soup, etc.--and lots to do other than eat! Plus, I think that was the first cruise I had been on where I didn't feel like I was going to melt from feeling so HOT all the time. We're going again in May with a group from my school and in June with a community choir, and I expect to really enjoy both a LOT--also because now I don't feel so horrible about wearing shorts and cool, comfy clothes, and I can move around without breaking into a sweat. :-) You're right about the stewards, though--ours quickly got to know that I was going to order soup and fruit and maybe a dessert (from which I would take a couple of bites if sleevie allowed)--he finally quit worrying about me, but it made me realize how most Americans probably look to these guys, who are typically from much less economically developed countries. We eat SO MUCH FOOD! We saw numerous people ordering multiple Entrees and multiple Desserts. This whole sleeve experience has really helped me see the tie-in to our marketing system, our industrialization of the food-growing process/economy, our growing (hah) obesity problem, and the continuation of those issues into the pharma/healthcare area. It's all sort of one big circle, and I for one am glad to be breaking the chain of obesity-related illness in my life. Yay sleeve!! (and I'm a normal person, I promise, not a conspiracy theorist, but seriously--I can see such a link between how we're encouraged to eat, our resultant health, and the economy!)

I'm 6'2". I started at a 12W pre-surgery and am now a comfortable 12M, and honestly, 11.5 narrow would probably work a bit better, but they're really hard to find. My feet have definitely gotten smaller and more narrow.