CowgirlJane

It is standard post sleeve med. Your tummy is producing acid for a big stomach and you only have a small one. Give it 60-90 days minimum. Some stay on it longer.

I binged yesterday on healthy food. I had multiple servings of a delic fruit bowl covered with greek yogurt and some almond slivers. IT tasted great, and was good food BUT, it was still out of control binging. I think this laying around is starting to make me insane. My day is defined by movies/tv/internet and eating. Well, the shower and redressing is the center of my day, but outside of that, way too much time to be inwardly focused. I am starting stitch removal tomorrow. And hopefully that last drain comes out soon... I have am using that as the end of wallowing. I still must remain inactive for 3 more weeks, but I have paperwork to take care of, professional education classes to do (online), I am just in a mental funk and have decided that i need to give myself a kick in the butt and get motivated to do what needs doing. It;s sunday as I write this - my normal fast days are Tues/thurs - I don't think I am ready to fast Tues but i think I am by Thursday. My thought is to do the one day a week at first and see how my strength and healing holds up. I have been using sleep aids and have slept a ton - like getting caught up from all the sleep deprivation over the last few weeks. That final drain should come out this week, and I think after that i need to be done with the sleep aids and all that - they are making me mentally foggy. I don't need pain pills anymore so not taking those anyway, but i have this feeling of needing to be "living healthy" again on all dimensions for my mental health. I CAN'T exercise but I CAN do these other things. GT and Brown, I read both your posts. I will reply later but I guess we all know how easy it is to get discouraged and give up... but that has never worked well for any situation in life. Keep focusing on the right priorities....

I am telling you - and I know I am not a doc - but i am SO sure about this. You need to be on a PPI this early out from your revision. It may not FEEL like heartburn but I assure you that gnawing hunger is in fact acid.

are you taking an acid inhibitor - PPI drug?Absolutely necessary the first few months post op sinc acide feels like hunger. It is common for revision patients to lose a bit slower expecially if you are low bmi. How much do you need to lose still? As a percentage of your excess weight - are you really doing that badly?

All surgeons have different guidelines, but mine was no lifting more then 5-8# for 6 weeks. Honestly, I would wait 6 weeks and then start easing back into it. I did cross fit some this lat summer and loved it, I had plastics which has much more activity restriction then the sleeve surgery, but I am waiting more like 12 weeks before doing that level of intensity.

So I have had people ask me "how did you do it?" - I mean beyond the WLS, Savvy people know that even post surgery many people don't lose more then 50-75% of their excess weight. For me, just eating normal with the help of the sleeve I could get down to say under 200# but getting to the size I am now took being a little radical - low carbs, exercise, great reduction in consumption. Not saying it is what everyone should do or needs to do - but when high BMI people "hope" to have success similiar to mine I tell what it took for me. That is interpeted as being radical or hardcore -no, it's the truth. I have chosen to re-arrange aspects of my life to be less food centered. Easter we didnt do our usual food orgy Breakfast, we hiked to the top of a ridge with a beautiful view. I simply don't hang out with food oriented people anymore because I cannot spend so much time planning food, cooking food, and I expecially don't want to hang with the food pushers.... it all triggers my desire to overeat. I have alot of "willpower" - I always have - the difference is I am smarter now. I make the decision ONCE (ie don't buy the box of Cookies, tub of ice cream or spend the day with a foodie person) instead of a thousand times - like everytime walking by that open box of cookies would force me to do. Anyway, this weight loss journey is a challenge. None of us vets got to the current "headspace" overnight and along the way, we saw alot of people NOT reach a healthy weight and feel disappointment over that. It is easy to come across very strident about these things we feel passion over and just cringe at all the happy backslapping over all the great stuf that a sleever "can eat". In the end, each person has to make the choice themselves (do I eat it because I CAN or becuase it's what my body needs) and I sometimes wonder if trying to share insights from the school of hard knocks actually helps anybody at all.

;http://www.verticalsleevetalk.com/topic/98688-two-weeks-from-plastics-progress-so-far/page__st__40#entry1053096 final results take months to be known, but I posted some 2 week photos here

It's hard to answer without knowing the specifics but often people's goal weight is higher than a normal/never obese person would be. I think you need to look at the before photos to try to come to conclusions. Plastic surgery goal is to have significant improvement might be disappointing if you seek perfect body. Having said that lower body lifts can sometimes give a boyish shape. I had at least something of a waist before plastics so my after photos still show that waist so I am happy. ..I am just 2 1/2 weeks out now... takes 2 months to see final results.

Are you referring to after photos posted on this forum or from your surgeons page where people look odd?

My skin is thin too and thAt sort of thing draws blood on me so I guess it's good I didn't have the tape.

Congrats feels so good doesn't it?? My own sons don't recognize me from my before pics now.

Near the coast? I GO TO new Harlem Bay every year with group of horse friends

yes but I am no activity for 4 more weeks... then allowed to start working up. No riding for at least 6 more weeks.... this is harder then you might think.

Tiffikins was my inspiration too. She was also a band to sleeve and was so successful... just gave me hope that the sleeve might work for me too. I hope you start getting some answers soon. Keep us updated.

Daisy, I have no words of wisdom, I still get about 2-3 emails a day from POF. I thought i had temporarily suspended my account but did something to reactivate it. Most of them are just so... wildly inappropriate matches for me. I think you get best results initiating contact with men who interest YOU. I sometimes feel like these guys are just casting a net to as many women as possible without even considering if our location, interests and other things even make sense. I also think OKCupid is a better online service, but I DID manage to cancel my account on there. Depending on how things go... if I decide to start dating again next year I am thinking about trying some other ways to meet people like speed dating or something. Somehow, the online thing seems to deliver me a zillion possibilities but so rarely are they actually interesting to me. If I do restart online - it will be OKCupid because I found higher quality matches there over POF or Match.

Costco has a blendtec online special right now.

The emotional changes around food and activity level -true lifestyle changes are the wildcard. Here is the reality for MOST sleevers....first 6 months they lose weight no matter what. As their sleeve "matures" and appetites return, old habits creep up, weight loss slows so they get discouraged, eat sliders, graze all day etc.. This is the cross road - either losses stop/slow and as the 1-2 year mark aporoach regain is a real possibility. Many others stay with it, keep seeking support, keep making positive lifestyle changes, learn how to eat to manage hunger, learn maintenance strategies. Sleeve is a tool to help you get to the crossroads but you have to choose the path. Hard cold reality - formerly obese like me could easily regain just by eating like a " normal" person.

I am so sorry and glad your son was there to catch you! For me, that dose of wine could cause issues if I drank it before eating ..if it had been many hours since previous meal. Sleeve changes ability to handle alcohol, but this sounds like something different to me too. Keep us posted.

I focus on total carbs but dont worry as much about vegetable carbs. not everyone follows the same eating style, but this has worked for me.

I am a Ross Dress For less fan. Best for tops and dresses, not so much jeans are slacks. Fun to keep wardrobe updated with Macys type brands for $10-20 an item

4+ months post op I went to my sisters wedding anniversary party. i had a teeny tiny glass of red wine and couldn't finish it - hurt my tummy. After that, I abstained until I got to goal. I always had this visual in the first months post op is to treat your sleeve like a new born baby, gently.... slowly introducing new experiences. Consider having one sip and calling it good, you will have lots of opportunities when you get to goal to enjoy the occasional drink.

I use a rule of thumb that a Protein snack must have at LEAST 10g of protein for every 100 calories; ideally a better ratio. I really prefer the carbs to be under 10... way under 10, but that is not a hard and fast rule as that eliminates so many good protein sources. Do be careful about carbs on Protein Bars - i had to eliminate Quest bars as part of my "push to get to goal" due to the carbs So a few suggestions: -low carb Protein drinks including the hot cocoa one -natural deli meat (makes a yummy sandwich with cheese all wrapped in lettuce) -Ostrim sticks -shrimp - well not really a snack, but I make many meals with shrimp. I make a shrimp salad with avacados, cukes, tomatoes and newman's own italian dressing that is heavenly -greek yogurt goes way over in carbs, but still a good choice I think. I often buy a low carb yogurt called carb master -eggs are really not that great of a protein bargain compared to alternatives, but i still use them as a meal/snack I am one of those that don't count calories, but I watch portions and keep carbs low and make sure I get at least 80G of protein a day, most days 100g or so.