Lissa

Welcome to the loser's bench!! Sounds like you're doing great! Congrats!!

I'm glad you're home and sleeved! Welcome to the loser's bench! It will take a while for you to be able to drink larger quantities of liquid. The mantra for now is "sip, sip, sip, walk, walk, walk". When you're tired of that, try sip, walk, sip, walk. Congrats and just take things slow and easy. You will feel much better very quickly!

I'm not to goal yet, but I definitely notice that I take a lot more pictures now than I ever did before... and I don't mind sharing them with others. Before, I'd hide when cameras came out. Now I'm taking pictures of myself...on purpose! What a difference a little surgery makes, hmmm?

Awesome job! Thanks for sharing and being honest!!

Working out builds on itself, I find. If I go regularly, then I want to continue going because I see results. If I let myself get away from it, then I don't want to go. As Nike says, Just do it! It's the only way to go!

Are you just not dropping pounds? You should be looking at other things besides the scale. Take your measurements and see if you're losing inches. Are you able to do more than you could before? How is your energy level? Are you drinking enough Water? Our bodies will stop losing pounds while they adjust our measurements, or if we aren't drinking enough water. Muscle truly weighs more than fat, and, since you're exercising, you may be developing muscle. That's a great thing! Are your clothes looser? I walked out of my first size during a "stall". This last month has been so slow on loss, but I have literally watched my body adjust itself. I now have bicep and thigh muscles and I have the beginnings of a waist! I also lost three pants sizes last month! Don't let the scale rule your life. Use the other NSVs (non scale victories) to tell you if you are truly in a stall or if your body is just doing some internal housekeeping.

I had that problem with a protein shake made with milk. Ive avoided milk since then. Hopefully clear liquids will help tummy feel better today!

Update: I tried on the rest of the clothes from the box last night and almost everything fits perfectly! I won't be wearing the jeans in public for a few days yet. They are just a hair too tight for me to wear them outside!

I self paid. It was worth every penny!

Bumblebee, everyone's mind plays these tricks on us before surgery. I'm starting to believe it's just part of the process of preparing for the drastic step you're about to take. Don't let the mind crap keep you from doing this if you've already decided this is what you should do for yourself. The risks of obesity are too high. Personally, I was given a year to live if I didn't get this weight off me in a hurry, so my mental process was a little easier. But, to paraphrase someone on the lap band boards, they don't sleeve our heads, just our stomachs. The rest is up to us. Good luck!

ourborous, I had to laugh at your description of your hypochondriac nature! It made me think of my Granny, who used to sit around telling us all that "the Arthur-itis has got me!" It took me years to quit hearing Granny saying arthur-itis every time I saw the word! I agree that you could be overtraining. I seriously thought I was UNDERtraining until I read something about how the muscles must heal in between workouts, even doing the low weights and high reps that I do. Two of my uncles were drill instructors back in the day. The one who is still alive has given me some good information about what I should do to keep my cardio at optimal levels without hurting myself. He used to coach me when I ran track in high school, so he knows what I'm capable of doing. You're well advanced from where I am at, but working out as hard as you state is very tough on the body. It's especially tough when you're basically trying to rebuild your fitness level from scratch like most of us are doing. Maybe switch up so that you do weights one day and cardio the next day in order to keep yourself in the routine of working out without actually hurting yourself?

Your grandfather sounds like an amazing man!! And, he's got an amazing granddaughter!! (((Irene)))

Don't use the word "only" in front of how many pounds you have lost. You had surgery just barely over a month ago. How many pounds would you have lost in that time without surgery? 8 or 10 maybe? That is IF you had been able to stick to some extreme diet plan without ghrelin killing your good intentions. Did you take your measurements before surgery? If so, it's time to measure yourself again and marvel at how many inches you have lost. If not, then take them now to help with future hurdles. How about NSVs (non-scale victories)? Are your clothes looser? Are you able to walk further? Work harder/longer without fatigue? Do you FEEL better overall? I know that you are having issues with getting food in, but that will resolve itself as long as there is no underlying issue. It may be time to talk to your doctor or nutritionist about what the next stage in your diet should be, especially if you haven't progressed to soft regular foods yet. Depending on your doctor's plan, that's where it sounds like you should be. Work on getting in a little bit of food every 2-3 hours, even if, as Kelly said, it's just a few nuts. Perhaps have a cup of chicken broth instead of coffee. Don't worry too hard about not getting in veggies this early post-op. You will be able to add them as your new tummy heals. Do make sure that you are taking the recommended Vitamins and supplements to make up for the veggies, though. Your weight loss could be slower than you are expecting for a number of reasons. You could have started with a lower BMI than many here, or lost a good bit of weight pre-op. Both will slow down the weight loss immediately after surgery. It's also possible that you aren't eating enough food...like that's ever been a problem before, right? But, not feeding your body enough food makes it hang onto those pounds. When you are eating enough and providing adequate hydration, it's like the body calms down and says 'okay, I can lose a few of these stored pounds'. Good luck! I hope to hear from you soon saying that you are now losing steadily.

Praying for you as well! Here's hoping it goes textbook perfect!

I know nothing about specific brands, but be sure to get a recumbent bike. It's less stress on your back and groin muscles, not to mention more comfortable for those of us with ample proportions. Probably more comfortable for those without ample proportions as well, come to think of it! Look on Amazon and read the reviews of the different bikes there. Maybe you'll get lucky and find one in your price range that would work well for you!

Welcome, Jersey Girl! So sorry to hear that you have had complications. There are a couple of specific areas here devoted to people who have had complications. You may want to check out those threads. Perhaps their experiences will help you in dealing with your own. Glad that you're here!

Woo Hoo!! Yippee Kay Aye AAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It's not a roadblock, just a stepping stone. And, even if you do end up with a CPAP or BiPap machine, you won't have it for long after surgery. I have an appt with my doctor on March 7 to get rid of my BiPap machine. I'm hoping that the same appointment will end my affair with Coumadin as well. Good luck on your sleep study! Hopefully you'll be getting sleeved quickly!

I'm sorry it's been cancelled. Is that permanent or just until your sinuses clear up?

I'd say this is a question for your doc or nutritionist. Probably is caused by the lack of protein, but better safe than sorry.

I truly thought I'd never lose, but today I'm six months out, 85+ pounds down and feeling like a million dollars. Those stalls really kick us in the butt, though. I look hard for the NSVs or non scale victories because I know how far I have to go...but just look how far I've come already! You will get there too!!

I had to take Lovenox shots, and my co-pays were out of this world. I spent nearly $2k on just the co-pays. Let your doc know they are cost prohibitive and see if there isnt a cheaper option.

Yay! What a great NSV!!

Kim, I think you mean you want an attorney who is going to take the case without charging you to take the case. That's not pro bono; you really want the attorney to take any fees out of whatever amount you possibly win, which is "on contingency". Pro bono means the attorney wouldnt get any fee for taking the case at all. Those types of cases, at least in Florida where I live, are usually done by younger, less experienced attorneys as part of their yearly obligation to the Florida Bar. Also, it is ENTIRELY possible, and probable, that Kim cannot get the 911 tape without a subpoena... and it's very hard for a "pro se" (self-represented) litigant to get a subpoena. Since Louisiana does use a different legal system than many other states, it's even tougher to navigate their legal system for a pro se litigant. I'm a degreed paralegal and pretty well-versed in Florida's laws relating to family, corporations and estate planning and I wouldn't attempt to navigate Louisiana's system for any of the three without an attorney. My area of expertise is NOT litigation, but I could use the statutes and codes for Florida's courts to navigate the civil system if it were necessary. Someone here posted asking why people are suspicious of Kim's story. I think it's because we've all seen the games played by some of the doctors and coordinators who post pretending to be a disgruntled patient in order to make other doctors and coordinators look bad. Personally, I don't think that's what is going on in this instance.