Lissa

Seraphina, You have my good wishes for an easy surgery, uneventful recovery, and a warm spot on the loser's bench just waiting for you. Wait a minute, I have to push someone over a little bit to make room ::::::push:::::: There you go! Your spot is all ready for you now!! Good luck tomorrow! Can't wait to read your update that everything went well!!

whataloser, What a Loser you are!!! It sounds like you're doing an awesome job of working that sleeve!! Congrats and good luck on your journey!!

I've been drinking decaf coffee since right after surgery. IIRC, it is allowed on my list. I actually was allowed to switch to regular coffee at 4 or 5 weeks out, but I've just continued with the decaf. I do use Splenda and artificial liquid cream in mine and have had no problems with it. Well, actually, it does keep things regular in the bathroom for me. I normally have 1 or 2 cups if I'm drinking it at home, or I'll get a large McD's decaf if I'm heading somewhere early in the morning. After about 11 am, though, I won't drink decaf anywhere unless I made it because I'm afraid it will have been sitting for hours.

Cathy, If you search for "ticker tutorial", you'll pull up a great post by LilMissDiva about adding the ticker to your profile. It sounds like you're having the same experience I did post-op, which is great! I was so worried before that I think I walked around in a haze of relief after surgery! I was, and still am, ecstatic at the results I'm seeing. So far, the best prices I've seen on Vitamins are the B1G1 at CVS and Walgreens around here. Since they are always across the street from each other in Florida, it's easy to compare and see who has what you need at the best price! Good luck on your journey!!

Yeah, the pre-op diet is torture, for sure! If you were a caffeine addict (like me) and/or a sugar addict (also like me), then the initial cravings can be pretty intense. By day 4 or 5, though, you'll already be noticing weight loss and, for me, that gave me the motivation to keep going. Dropping 13 pounds in two weeks was a huge motivator. As Longer Life said, after surgery, you won't be hungry and you'll be pushing yourself to get in your fluids and Protein. "Diet" is going to be your focus for a while to come, although this is really a life change. By the time I got back to solid foods I was definitely over wanting anything sweet, or fat, or slider consistency. Try to find some Protein shakes you LOVE while you're pre-op, because post-op they might be barely tolerable. My tastes changed immediately after surgery AND I am now lactose intolerant. I can do cheese fairly well, but milk, cottage cheese and yogurt disagree with me. If you're having a hard time with the diet because of all the sweet stuff, try some warm broth. After surgery, I found that warm went down better than cold for quite some time. And, all in all, this is a VERY short time period compared to the rest of your life! Easy for me to say now that I'm past it, right? But, it is a short time and soon you'll be back to eating regular food, although not in the quantities you're used to eating. But, you'll be watching the scale zoom downwards, and that's worth a LOT, IMO. Good luck with your journeys!!

No. Your weight loss isn't too slow! You are losing weight and working your sleeve! I think the inches are as important as the pounds anyway. The fact that we are shrinking is phenomenal...and you've dropped several sizes already. Good job!

I went through and wrote down all my questions for my check up. Should I be limiting calories/carbs at this point? How much exercise do you recommend I do at this weight and considering any meds I am taking? What should my heart rate be during that exercise? Am I taking enough/correct Vitamins and supplements? Do/Will you do a test to verify my Vitamin, Iron and cholesterol levels? I have strange pain in this area. Can you check that to see if it is surgery related? Is my weight loss in the expected range at this point? Those are a few of the questions I asked at my visit. You may wish to use some of them, none of them or make up your own list. I just jotted mine down in the notebook app on my phone and went right through them. Good luck at your visit!

Ladonna, I am LOL here, not At you, but With you. I had a pain between my drain incision and my belly button about 10 weeks out. I asked the doc about it when I went in because I was afraid it was a hernia, too! He felt and prodded and pushed, then finally told me that it's a fibroid! I have had a fibroid dx for about 10 years, but they had never hurt before. Now I can feel it all the time. Why? Because there's no freaking padding over the darn thing now!!! Ask your doc to check it out, but hopefully it will be something mild like mine!

Immediately after surgery I started walking around my building, first the little section, then the bigger section, then I graduated to walking around the lake in my complex (maybe 1/4 mile), and now I'm walking on the treadmill at least 3 times a week. When I first started, it was a real struggle to do half a mile, so I'd do half a mile on there, then ride the recumbent bike for the rest of the 30 minutes that I have dedicated to this process. Slowly, over about 3 weeks, I've upped the mileage to 1 mile at a very low speed, about 2.3 mph, on average. Today, I walked my mile, then just kept going. At about 1.3 miles, I noticed that I was no longer sore and I could have continued walking with no problem. My question, then, is this: Should I add more distance to my walking NOW, or should I keep doing the 1.3 miles for a week or so, then add another quarter mile or half mile to the workout? I'm worried that I'm not working hard enough to get "in the zone", or that I'm quitting right before I actually get to the point where the workouts are doing the most good. Don't know if it's relevant, but I am sweating by the time I hit half a mile, but I'm not drenched by any means. I don't want to add speed yet because I have to keep my heartrate below 130 (per my doc) and I'm staying pretty steady at about 125-130 at the speed I'm walking. My goal is to be able to walk a 5k at the end of January, if that information changes the rate at which I should be adding distance or speed. Oh, and lastly, should I be doing more time on the bike along with/instead of the treadmill? I'm not coordinated enough to do the elliptical yet, but I am doing some weight-lifting for toning right now.

I say, don't push your sleeve. As long as you aren't trying to drink the whole cup at one time and are drinking rather than gulping, go ahead and drink. Just try not to drink large amounts really fast. Once you start putting in mushies and then solid food, you will feel the restriction from your sleeve. So don't worry that your sleeve is too big. Good luck with your journey!!

Diva, I've told you this before. You are an inspiration to me. Thanks for the link. I will be checking it out when I get closer to ready to start the C25K. I know I'll get there soon. I'm still going to walk that 5k in January, even if I can't run!

Bad habits: -I drink diet coke. -I have a bag of chocolate Peanut Butter cups on the counter and I have one or two a day, which is a huge improvement because before I could have eaten the whole bag at one sitting. -I smoke and I'm trying to quit, but not doing well at it. (I've quit before and will again, permanently this time.) -I hate exercising. Today was the first time I've gotten into the mental zone that says it COULD be fun if I keep at it. -I'm a perfectionist and have a tendency to be way too hard on myself.

Taking off the fat suit makes us cold. I can live with that!

Pdx, Thank you for the encouragement! I'm looking forward to that 5k, even if I am walking. I hope you manage to run yours. I'll be envious, but I will do it at some point. I figure that I'll be starting a C25K program in about 40 pounds from now. That means I'll be heading into that training program in Feb or March, if my weight loss continues at the current pace. Right now, I'm just going to concentrate on distance and then I'll worry about the speed. Thank you all again for your input!!

I preach (and try to get) 70g of Protein and 64 oz of Water daily, mostly because that's what my nutritionist and doctor preached to me. I've read tons of people who are having problems with low energy and bad hunger problems, but I haven't had much of that. Of course, my hungry days ended when my pulmonologist switched me to Tums for Calcium rather than the chewable calcium I was taking. My WLS doc agreed to the change because of other Rx meds I'm taking. My daily Vitamin regimen is as follows: 1 chewable Centrum per day (was 2 until I started solid food), 2 chewable Tums morning and night, 1 Biotin in the morning, 1 B12 in the morning. I'm considering adding magnesium for joint pain in the next few days, but need to get it approved by the pulm doc first. I started taking biotin at my 2 month surgiversary in order to (hopefully) head off the hair loss, but it's not completely successful for me. I am losing more hair than I am used to losing regularly. I have purchased a couple of hair pieces on the advice of my hairdresser and will probably end up using them later. I've been VERY open about my WLS, even posting a little information on my FB page. I don't announce it to strangers, but I have told several people who have asked about my rapid loss. I don't think it's that noticeable, but others tell me that it is dramatic. Many people don't talk about their WLS, and that's perfectly acceptable. My theory on it is that WLS won't become an accepted solution until others see us losing weight and living healthy lives. I have many aunts and cousins (mom was one of 17 kids) and they are all built like me. They are all watching me to see my results. Once I really lose weight, I have a feeling my doctor is going to have lots more business!! Good luck!

I doubt many of us have NEVER cheated on our liquid diets. And, it doesn't sound like you aren't capable of handling the after surgery requirements. You are hungry now, and you are losing even with the cheats. You need to buckle down and follow the diet from now until surgery so that you get the maximum benefit from the liquid diet. After surgery you won't be hungry and following the diet will be much easier. Good luck on your journey!!

Great job!! You are doing an amazing job of working that sleeve!

Good for you!! You'll have a much happier, healthier life with the sleeve!

DallasMom, I use My Fitness Pal to track and all I worry about is the Protein (70g per day) and Water. The rest of it is irrelevant to me. My doc said that staying under 1000 calories a day was good, but not the primary number to worry about. He has said NOTHING about carbs, for or against. I do try to keep my carbs low, but I don't obsess about them. Some here say that fewer carbs are good, other say that some carbs are necessary to build muscle when you work out. Speaking of working out, "no real exercise to speak of" won't help you lose weight. I've started walking half an hour three times a week, which probably falls into that category! LOL But, maybe you should look into something. However, maybe chasing twins by itself already counts as more exercise than I'm doing daily! Good luck!!

Sophia, First, welcome to VST! You are going to love all the information available here! Second, I am 45 and I was sleeved 3 months ago. At the time of surgery, I was not able to walk from my car to my apartment and forget carrying in groceries. Yesterday, I walked the entire length of the mall and back, with side excursions into all of the big stores and several of the smaller stores! I started at 352 (HW) and weighed 337 on the day of surgery. I'm down 60 pounds from my highest weight and I feel amazing! I can walk and carry in groceries and go to the mailboxes and go in and out of stores...and.. and... You get the picture! I've felt great and more energetic since just a few days after surgery. I know NOTHING about plication, but I adore my sleeve (Rex is his name)! Rex is a PITA about not letting me eat lots of food, or letting me have milk right now, but he's been a Godsend to me. I'd do it again, and again, if I had to do so. And, I had to have two surgeries besides my sleeve (Filter install/removal) in order for my surgeon to agree to do my surgery. I'd do them all again if I had to. Good luck with whatever you decide, but add me to the Endorses the Sleeve column!

I started researching in March and was sleeved Aug 30, 2011. So, I guess about 5 months. I'd have had it done sooner but I had some health issues and hospital stays in there. If you're on the fence at all, let me tell you that it is SO worth it. This changed my life, and the lives of so many others. The rate of complications is very low. Do your research and choose a surgeon who makes you feel comfortable. That's the best advice I can offer. Good luck on your journey!!

Thank you all for your replies! I actually ran track in high school and I remember getting that endorphin high from it. Rootman, Thank you for the example with your swimming workouts. You did what I'm trying to do, build up my endurance because I know I'll lose the weight, but I want to be healthier when I get there. Pdx, You actually stated my philosophy on this exactly! I didn't have surgery just to look better. I actually had a doctor give me the "How quick do you want to meet your maker?" speech. He told me I wouldn't live another year if I didn't get the weight off, and the weight is coming off. However, I know that just losing the weight isnt going to protect me from having bad health issues all by itself. With the 60 pounds I've lost in 3 months, I don't have a good sense of balance yet. I did try the elliptical the other night, but I couldn't balance myself well enough to get on yet. I will try it again in a few weeks and see if that's any better. That's also the reason I'm not attempting to run on the treadmill yet. I can see me flying off the back and falling on the floor! LOL I think I will just start adding more time to my walking for now, maybe 5 minutes more each time until I build up to walking the full 3 miles (that's a 5k, right?). Once I'm at that, then I can work on increasing speed. I'm pretty happy with the results I've had so far, but wanted to make sure I'm doing this right. I'd really like to do the C25K thing, but know I need to lose more weight before I attempt that. Thanks again!

I wowed myself and a friend last night. I needed to go to the mall for walking shoes because my wally world specials were like walking in boxes and were falling off my feet. (NSV right there, hmmm?) Before Rex (my sleeve) I would have parked as close as possible to the entrance nearest my desired store and waddled my way into the store and back out. I hated shopping! Last night, we parked outside one of the big anchor stores and walked through there, looking at shoes, perfume, etc. Then we strolled down the mall, window shopping at all the little stores, walking through several of them, until we came to the sports shoe store, where I tried on and purchased a pair of sale walking shoes in a smaller size! We cruised through the other 2 big anchor stores, then walked the length of the mall back to the one we had entered...and I didn't stop to rest or feel winded at all! I don't mind shopping now! I'm going to make a post in the fitness section as well, with a couple of questions.