Lissa

TRSJ, I was told to lose weight or die by my doctors, so I had an easy decision to make going into the surgery. I had a laundry list of co-morbidities, including sleep apnea, rheumatoid arthritis, pulmonary embolisms, blood clots, asthma. Almost all have resolved on their own since surgery. I'm 85 pounds down in 5 months, which is phenomenal, IMO. It took me nearly a year pre-op to drop 50 pounds on Atkins, only to regain it all when I had pneumonia. You've only listed 2 problems for now, but the excess weight WILL cause future problems. Only you can decide if WLS is the right way to go, but I know that it was the perfect choice for me!

I have contact dermatitis to nickel, so that's one of the questions I asked. The staples used inside your body are surgical staples, made of a different material. Your stomach tissue will grow over the staples, so no risk of setting off the alarms at the airport and I didn't find any reports of anyone having allergies to the surgical staples. I've read every link I can find, both before and after surgery, to see what the reaction rate is, and I cannot find it mentioned in any study.

Eylish, I do believe you will rock your sleeve!! Good luck and don't let other people get you down. I know that I have at least 20 people watching my progress with a jaundiced eye, because I have a huge family. I just can't let those people be my reason for either getting to goal or not getting to goal. It ALL has to come from withn! That's why VST is so great. I can tell people here anything about my weight progress and SOMEONE here has done it too, from weighing too often, to eating too much and sliming, to fitting into a dress I never thought would go over my butt!

I had one of those. It was actually a tiny piece of the internal stitch that worked up to the surface of the scar. I used a tweezer and pulled the piece out, thinking it was a hair. Unless there is infection or redness around it, it should be fine to pull or wash off that spot. Who knows, you may have a freckle there!

Bionic Broad, I feel almost completely opposite of that, and I've been heavy since I was 23 (to 45 now). I feel like I'm finally appearing. People notice me more now and seem to not have that automatic "She's stupid because she's fat" reaction that I've been so used to seeing. Of course, I meet total strangers all day every day because of my job. It might be my perception, but I often felt like I'd walk into a room and the customer would assume I was stupid or uninformed because I was big. So, I've always worked twice as hard to do my job exceptionally well and blow them away with my knowledge. I'm starting to relax a little now about it. I have a HUGE personality, which doesn't come through in pics or message boards, but I wonder now if part of that isn't reaction to feeling like I was invisible because I was SO big for so long.

Congrats to you!! Isn't it amazing how quickly you start feeling like a new person!?! Your 45th birthday was a great day to get a new lease on life!

I have no clue what size I wear usually, so I go in every 20-30 pounds and ask them to re-measure me. There's an outlet store near me that carries a variety of brands and the girls are really good about doing the measurements. I had it done about 2 months ago at Lane Bryant and the girl measured me WAY wrong. If it's not TMI, my "girls" are about between a C-D cup and she came up with DDD. Which might be right if I had a 28 inch torso!

What is the most embarrassing non-weight related thing that has happened to you? In HS, a boy was following me down the hall calling me a nasty name because of my birthmark. Without thinking, I turned around and kicked him. He never called me a name again. Over 10 YEARS later, I was standing in a bar and he walked up to my group. The first words out of his mouth were "I won't be calling you (nasty name) tonight!" I kicked him again. He's never spoken to me since. I wonder why? Question for the next person: How many years of education do you have and are you working at the job you thought you'd have as a kid?

Yay!! Those clothes NSVs are terrific, aren't they???

Well, I couldn't walk a mile in my fat suit, so there! LOL I think you just need to tell your mom that it's too late to change it and she can either get on board and encourage you, or get out of your way. As for not having more kids... SEVERAL gals here have had healthy pregnancies.

I'm confused. Your doctor wants to put a band over your sleeved stomach? What good would that do? :::::::: puzzled::::::

ReeseMae, Congrats on making a life-changing decision for yourself! Research ,research, research. That's the key to being comfortable with your surgeon and your surgery. It's wonderful that you don't have a six month pre-op. I see lots of folks who DO have to jump through those hoops, so you're very lucky. Good luck and please let us know how things go.

Wow! Some great quotes in there! Thanks!

Congrats, AJA!!! Welcome to the loser's bench and keep on rocking that sleeve!

I chose the sleeve over the band for all of the reasons listed above, and then some. My late mother-in-law had stomach cancer and had a stomach gastrectomy for that. She was left with even less capacity than I have, yet she still managed to eat and to take medications with it. I also have a sister in law who has had THREE Gastric Bypass surgeries, and we had a very frank, involved discussion of her complications and revisions. Not for me. Lastly, a former co-worker had the early stomach stapling surgery. Watching her eating habits and problems convinced me I'd rather be fat than have those issues. When I finally went for the seminar, I was initially going for the LB, but the doctor said one thing that convinced me completely. He said that those with the sleeve can only eat so much, period. Even for someone whose main problem was sweet addiction (like me), the sleeve is a better choice because it restricts how much of any food one can eat. I was sold, right then and there. 5 months and 81 pounds later, I'm very happy with my sleeve! Good luck with your decision.

Lacie, I'm so touched by the fact that you could articulate this whole mental process and that you did it here, in public. You know why you wanted to binge and you stopped yourself rather than relying on the sleeve to do it. Yeah, the sleeve told you "Nope", but you could have found a way. Instead, you listened to it. I'm proud of you, not in a condescending way but in a "You go girl" way!!! The head work is the toughest part of this surgery. You sound like you have a good handle on things, but I'm still going to encourage you to see a therapist if you can. As you get further out from surgery, your capacity will increase. A therapist can help you work through the issues before you get to a point where you're having a tough time...or a tougher time. Great job on not giving in to the binge!!!

Mater, Good luck!! Can't wait to see you on the loser's bench!!

Pookey, Your mom knows and is dancing for you in heaven!! Congrats! That's a major HUGE milestone for you!!!

Yay!!!

doggz, I think she's laying to rest her "trigger food". I can pretty much eat anything I want and not have problems with craving it, but crunchy cheetos are my nemesis. I should lay them to rest along with her cheesecake and the pepsi another poster is dumping. I've decided that crunchy cheetos must not come in my house again until I'm way closer to my goal. Perhaps by the time I reach goal, they will just be a distant, but fond, memory.

I really like the mini-babybel cheeses and Frigo string cheese since surgery. My other go-to snacks include pork rinds, almonds and SF pudding. I have never liked beef jerky, so I don't have any opinion on that.

Welcome to the loser's bench!! I'm sorry you've had a rough week, but it sounds like you are moving forward. Just keep trying to sip and worry about protein drinks after you're able to get some water in you. Walk a lot to help with the gas and it will help you recover quickly!

Frumpy, Which you aren't, BTW. Take away the hassle about going to the gym. Buy some cheap 1 to 3 pound weights and start using them at home for biceps and triceps exercises. There is a WHOLE section here about exercise and fitness after the sleeve. I found a link in there to an abdominal routine I'm using every other day to work on my core muscles. It's TOUGH, so I'm doing a very modified version of it, but I'm getting there, plus I'm making sure I get my 30 minutes of walking in every day. Take the little ones for a walk, "hike" around the backyard with them, anything that gets you up and moving. If I remember correctly, there are a bunch of songs that have hand, arm and leg movements to them for little kids. Why not do those with your kids? You could even make it a game for all of you to dance a little each day, doing some jumping jacks or toe touches as part of the dance. Every little bit helps and makes an incredible difference in how you feel and heal. Exercise also pays benefits quickly in increased energy levels, ability to move easier in daily tasks and getting your kids started on a basic routine now will pay big dividends in their lives. I'm not the world's best exerciser, but I have managed to commit and stick to doing my ab routine for the last week, and I've been doing the basic weights since surgery. I am NOT hard-core, mostly because I can't be hard-core yet. My health won't take it, YET. However, I've already seen improvement in my stomach area, despite two c-sections. I also have a bit of muscle in my arms and legs, plus the shelf that used to be my butt is now GONE. You don't have to be a gym rat to get results, although it does help if you can make it happen. I just know how hard it is to make that time when you have little kids at home! Good luck!!

So, when I first started my journey, I met a gal at the support group wearing a super cute dress. A few days later, I ran into her during my post op at the surgeon's office and she was wearing the same dress, so I told her it was cute. She offered me the dress and I said Thanks, but no thanks. I told her it would never fit me, but she told me to have faith that it would! At last week's support group meeting, she told me she had the dress in her car for me. I tried it on today, with absolutely no hope/thought that it would fit today. Well, it does!! LOL I think it's too young for me, and it's definitely too low cut, but I'm posting the picture here, among friends as proof that the dress fits! Nope, I'm not at goal, but I'm crying because I never in a million years thought this dress would fit me and it does. THIS is a true NSV!!! Maybe in another 20 or 30 pounds I'll feel differently, but right now, I will not be wearing this dress in public. I'm pumped, though, to see real, tangible results of all the treadmill, exercise, and recumbent bike time I've put into me! Happy Dancing Today!!

Love it!! You are rocking that sleeve!! AND those shoes! I need to shop my closet and see if I have any shoes that still fit me! I haven't worn heels in years, but it would be nice! Enjoy Vegas and remember, what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas!!