sirensiren

Dr. Kelly was always my first choice, not due to price but my confidence in hin. I never felt Dr. Kelly or my care was "cheap" in any way, and I'd do it again in a heart beat.

I'm on my third week, and I get "restriction"- I can tell I've had plenty of soup/pudding and I stop..20 minutes later I want more though! Do you get hungry more often with the sleeve, once you're on solids? How long do you stay "full"? Does feeling "full" actually feel like being full did before being sleeved, or is it a new sensation altogether?

Yay!Thats what I want to hear Right now, on soft foods and blended stuff I simply get the "pressure" myself and LadyKanKan described above, I never feel a feeling of "satisfied", but rather pressure: "OK, I guess my stomach is full of that stuff for now"...then the feeling is gone in 1-2 minutes after, and I can consume more, but I tend not to. I now have to gauge whether I should have a Protein shake or some blended stuff by watching the clock, or those feelings of hunger. I do genuinely get grumbles and feelings of lethargy and hunger. It's no where NEAR the fiendish, overwhelming cravings for food I used to get pre-sleeve, but it's apparent during a busy work day or when I'm out. The concept of consuming solid foods only 3x a day in small portions seems amazing to me, because I'm consuming pureed/liquid foods nearly every 2 hours or so.

I get this EXACT same sensation. I'm now on soft/pureed foods at 3.5 weeks, and this is essentially how I still feel. It's an odd sensation of pressure that goes away momentarily, and it makes me stop with caution as I don't want to harm my sleeve. I'm sure that it's normal, and your sleeve is equipped to deal with this "pressure" but likely an indicator to slow down.

I was sleeved by Dr. Kelly at a BMI of just 30- bordering 29! There is a woman surgeon at florence Hospital who came to my room 10 minutes prior to surgery to tell me they would not authorize it. I simply signed a form and dr. Kelly still did my surgery. In the event he could not do your surgery there, he does work with other hospitals that will.

FYI on the champage: I posed the alcohol question, and one woman from France chimed in that they do allow her to have champagne among other wines 4 weeks out. Not to say you should follow other surgeons guidelines because you like them better than yours- but...it begs to stand that perhaps months and months down the road, a glass of champagne may not kill you.

This is my 3rd week. I've been naughty and had coffee 5x since surgery (I'm supposed to wait until a month). Coffee is not as acidic as many things I was allowed to consume, so I just took the risk. I plan to hold out this week and wait until week 4 actually is real.

Mr surgeon encourages exercise. I actually started doing moderate, then intense elliptical running at 10 days out. I'm now 3 weeks out and doing about 45 minutes (3-4 miles for me) 5 days a week. This is on the more intense side, but I was a runner even at my heaviest weight and I'm fairly young (28). I think our bodies know better than anyone could. Though there are guidelines given to us by surgeons, I think your body will tell you when things are enough or if you're willing to keep going. I'm of the opinion that cardio is one of the things that truly keeps you young and healthy, and to me it sounds like you can only benefit from the level of exercise you are doing. I don't personally see how your stomach healing could be hurt by what you are doing- of course it's always good to confirm that with your surgeon. The sooner you adopt healthy habits and enjoy exercise, I think the better time you'll have recovering and being successful.

Fortunately my surgery went fine, and my surgeon confirmed my liver was nice and small. Yay! I am down to a 30 BMI. I do not have health insurance, so I made the informed decision to go with Dr. Kelly who is based out of Mexico (though also is a MD in the USA). Most USA insurance will not cover surgery on a person at a 32 BMI, which is a shame, as 30+ is technically obese. I felt thin at my 32 BMI, but it was still a big struggle to maintain it and I had many health issues present related to my weight.

Congrats! Glad yo hear it went well, I almost used dr. Ortiz and I've seen very positive things about him.

Reason would stand that if you're drinking infrequently after that crucial 1st month, you'd be OK. I think the problem may come for those who make it a daily habit, because I'm sure it's abrasive on the stomach and (obviously) a bad choice for calories. My main fear is just the safety of keeping my sleeve healthy and healing, I know you take a while to "truly" recover, and I don't want to disrupt that. All surgeons seem to have different rules with what you're allowed to put in your stomach. Some restrict certain categories of drugs, some say no carbonated drinks for life, some say it's OK after the first month- I accidentally broke the rules and took a stimulant laxative and was OK yesterday. I'm a little freaked out, but it stands to reason if I had no pain from it I probably didn't do much damage.

After my pre-op diet of low carb low calorie, I lost 10 pounds (yay!)...then came th clear fluids, mostly consisting of Gatorade, and the 10 pounds just stayed there... Fast forward: I'm 7 days post-surgery, still living on basically Gatorade and broth, and still no weight loss (this is 10 days of staying at this weight). So I switched it up, no more Gatorade, did pure vegetable (no sugars) juice instead, skim milk (I'm allowed now), and the only sugar I get is in my chewable Vitamin. I'm still at this stall.... One theory my friend proposed is that the extreme low calorie, all sugar diet of Gatorade sent my metabolism into "starvation mode", and it was keeping the weight on due to the sugar. Thoughts? I know that there a lot of people that stall right in the beginning, what do you guys think? I'm just 3 days in to my no sugar liquid adjustment, and we shall see how it goes- still at a stall 3 days in. :/

I've only lost 2 lbs since surgery and it's been 2 weeks, I don't get "full" from my Protein shakes unless I make them really thick (more powder, less water), anyone else experience this? I've been completely by-the-book on my instructions- no messing up! But..as the days wear on, I have more actual physical hunger. I imagine this is part of recovery, but I'm fearful it will lead to things being difficult in the long-term. I'm disappointed that though I'm following instructions I'm experiencing this very slow weight loss. I am hoping the future does not entail me forcing myself to not graze though my stomach wants to.

Thanks to the beautiful work of Dr. Kelly. at 2 weeks my incisions are nearly invisible, yay! But....those surgery site lumps are pretty prominent. Anyone been given any tips to help break them up or flatten them? I assume time will just help, but I know in the case of cosmetic surgeries where the tissue is hard and traumatized from surgery, massage is encouraged once soreness goes away. Thoughts?

Thank you! I didn't realize that I wouldn't really feel restriction until I was on solid protein- each day Im able to take bigger an bigger sips of Fluid, and this naturally makes me feel like my stomach is capable of holding more than it actually will be when it comes to solids. I am trying to be positive and realize that normal healthy weight loss truly is around 2 lbs a week, and maybe on the bright side it's best for my system and skin to not lose massive amounts all at once.

Bump...no one?

I know certain drugs can trigger ulcers or be irritating to the stomach, but has anyone been forbidden to take certain supplements or medications that would be an issue long-term? There are none on my list from my surgeon, but I would hate to get a headache and take the wrong thing, or be prescribed something that would be an issue.

My dr has a strict "clears the first week" rule, and says not to worry about Protein until day10 (tomorrow for me! I've never been so excited to have a Protein shake ) I suspect it may be the sugar. I've managed to get 40 oz of Water a day (not quite enough!) I imagine some of the skim milk and veggie juice is helping too.

I just spoke to me one of his coordinators at A Lighter Me and she told me Dr. Kelly was moving to a better, more supportive hospital within 30 days. I do not know which one, but I can imagine he is not too excited about patients being harassed moments prior to surgery, after they've travelled all this way and had their heart set on this life changing surgery with him. She (the coordinator from ALM) apologized, but it's not their fault or Dr. Kelly's. I was an exact 30 BMI when Dr. Kelly did my surgery (I've actually only lost a pound in these first 10 days ...) and he happily did my surgery.

He told me this as well in person. I think perhaps she no longer works for him personally, but is still a coordinator for him as well as other doctors? Just like Alighterme and other patient coordinators who are more like agents. I was introduced to Sara (in person) as his new personal coordinator.

I'm having this too! Just over one week one and 1 pound lost! Grrr! BUT...keep in mind, you metabolism slows down to accommodate a deficit in calories, when you're on fluids on your pre-op diet and then continuing on them our first week after surgery, you're getting very few calories. Protein plays a huge factor too.

A Lighter Me has been GREAT- my surgery has come and gone, and I received a lovely e-mail from Linda (whom wasn't even my personal coordinator) following up, and apologizing for any confusion on which hotel we had (everything went smooth, no complaints!). In the end, it's all about your surgeon, but it's great to have your questions answered thoroughly and promptly on your journey, and rather than waiting for one person to call me back- they all return calls for each other at A Lighter Me. I met Dr. Kelly's new coordinator Sara (I believe that's her name) who seemed quite sweet the night after my surgery, she along with Dr. Kelly and his wife dropped off my medication at my hotel. I believe she is his personal "there in person" coordinator, which some may find more comforting as she works more directly with him. I never felt like Sandy at A Lighter Me was ill equipped because she was asking my questions to Dr. Kelly via a phone vs. in person, and they certainly do more than just "take your deposit"- I had my every concern addressed promptly, even silly questions like "is red Jell-O OK?".

I ultimately had the surgery at my 30 BMI- Dr. Kelly was supportive and willing to do my surgery every step of the way, it was the woman who represented florence Hospital/Oasis of Hope that came in 10 minutes prior to surgery to coldly tell me "I do not authorize this surgery". I had my surgery. It saddens me that someone could do this, and this person is also talking to terminal cancer patients (it's primarily a cancer treatment hospital). Dr. Kelly is great, no problems! I am apparently allergic to the antibiotic I'm on, but that's no fault of his.

All encouraging and great things to hear! Europe does have a different culture around alcohol, my parents believed that if a wine was very high quality, it was perfectly fine to serve a 12 year old! In the states that's child abuse. I intend to cautiouslyreintroduce wine at week 6 or so, I don't think alcohol is great on a fresh healing stomach so better to wait til I'm on solids.

I feel the same way! I unfortunately have had a nasssty allergic reaction to the surgical glue, so most of my pain right now is my skin trying to recover. I've had 0 problems tolerating liquids, and I try to drink small sips at a time- sometimes I likely drink more than I should and still have virtually no discomfort. I can't wait to get on my protein!