LVikingFan

I used to have a very sensitive outie that has become a nice innie. I guess there is less in me to push outie!

My doctor told me that the actual instruments that they use in the surgery are not able to effectively hold the liver out of the way during the procedure if the liver is too heavy. If they can't hold it up and out of the way they need to open you up and do an open procedure with a big nasty scar and a much longer healing time. I went to him 12 days before my surgery and he started me on the liquid diet that day. (I never had a chance for my "last" meal....something that you aren't supposed to do anyway) He had me come back the day before the surgery to weigh in, if I hadn't lost 10 pounds he would cancel my surgery. Imagine my surprise when I weighed in and found I had lost 23 pounds!

I chose the sleeve because it seems more natural. Now I know it isn't "natural" to only have 1/5 of your stomach, but your digestion works just the same. There isn't a band to slip or erode my stomach and if I chose to have something with sugar I am not going to have to run for the nearest bathroom with dumping syndrome. The sleeve is relatively new, and side-effects might show up later, but for now, this is the best thing I have ever done. I won't lie, it isn't a picnic, the first couple of months are really hard while you get used to the smaller stomach and while the swelling in the part that is left goes down. After the first couple of months you still need to work at it, exercise and being faithful to your protein and fluid intake. But that all being said, I think 98% of those of us here would do it again in a heartbeat.

I think any one of us on this board could have made this post. Everybody feels pretty crummy the first couple of weeks. It seems like sometime in the third week it hits you,"Oh wow, I feel better, my energy is coming back" This truly is major surgery, it takes time for your body to recover from the anesthesia and from the trauma to your body. Just take everything slow and in little pieces. At first my goal was 4 ounces in an hour. I filled up a 4 ounce glass with room temperature water and just sipped and sipped and sipped. It was really an effort to finish that tiny glass, that I used to finish in one gulp. I had trouble with anything hot or cold, it had to be room temperature or just a tiny bit warm. Sugar-free jello was a good thing too. I cold only eat about 2 teaspoons full but it wasn't hard to get down. If you aren't on an acid-reducer I would ask your doctor for one. It really seems to help with the queasyness and once the swelling goes down in the stomach it helps with the hungry feeling. Hang in there, it is going to get better day by day. Take a nice slow walk and sip your water and before long you will forget how miserable you were in the beginnng. My wife said to tell you it is like when you have a baby. Once you hold the baby you hardly remember how awful labor was!

By four or five months out your new diet will seem like second nature. I agree with everyone else to pack some protein bars just to make sure you are getting enough. It might be hard in Thailand to find out the protein content of what you are eating. The worst thing that I have had happen since my surgery is a day that I was really into what I was doing and forgot to drink. I am telling you by the end of that day I was miserable. I can see how that might happen while traveling. Just remember to drink and take in enough protein and you will be fine. Of course don't forget to take lots of pictures and have a lot of fun and don't forget your friends back here. We want to hear all about it when you get home!

One thing that would be concerning is that one of the things they would do in a hospital if you were brought in as a trauma would be to put what is known as a NG tube into your stomach. This is really not a good thing for someone with a sleeve unless it is done by someone acquainted with our changed anatomy. For this reason I would at the very least put a note of some sort in my wallet telling that I had had the surgery or wear a Medic-Alert bracelet. I really wouldn't go for the bracelet because I wouldn't want to advertise "Hey I used to be really fat!" on my wrist. unless there is some other code word or something that would alert rescue or hospital staff.

I have been wearing elastic waist basketball shorts ever since my surgery, and since I live in a hot climate and no longer work it hasn't been a problem. I have one pair of khakis that I wear to church, but my wife is getting tired of my "upper class homeless guy" look. I was fine with it, but a couple of weeks ago I had to go out of town to a funeral and realized that I had nothing to wear. SInce we had no shopping time until I had to go, I dug way in the back of my closet and found a sport coat that I had not been able to wear in 15 years and my trusty khakis. I guess I looked semi-presentable. But it did make me think that I need pants since it is now 40 degrees. My wife took matters into her own hands and went shopping. Not wanting to spend a lot, she went to K-Mart. Well she found the sleeved mans Godsend. Dockers style pants with an adjustable waist. They aren't the funky looking elastic waist things either. The look like a nice pair of slacks with this nifty little adjustable thing inside. You may be acquainted with them from tux pants or from little kids jeans. I found that I can make them go down almost 2 inches! The really cool thing is that they cost less than $20! These should work for around 20 pounds of weight loss.

Well, I am feeling better soon too. It must be some 3 month thing. I was losing 3-5 pounds a week and then boom it stopped. I have lost 3 pounds the last 3 weeks. This started exactly at the three month mark. I have been really trying to up my exercise level and I hope that might help. I had a goal to get to onederland by Christmas, but being a 227 now, I don't think it is going to happen.

58 and I have had Chronic A-Fib for over 15 years. My cardiologist said there would be no problem with the surgery, but it kinda freaked out the anesthesiologist. He put a arterial line in my wrist during the surgery to better monitor my blood pressure. I didn't even know it was there except they told me afterwards why there was a bandage there. Since the surgery I am off some of my cardiac meds and feel so much better.

They put mine in after I was out in the OR and took it out after I was back in my room and would be able to walk to the bathroom. No pain at all, just a strange feeling while they took it out.

I have to figure out how to add the pictures. Heaven knows my wife has taken enough of them.

I chose the weight I weighed when I got married, 165. I am a male 5'7" and my doctor thought it sounds reasonable. My more immediate goal is to weight under 200 by Christmas. I am about 227 now and I really have to start working out, but I think I can do it. You can achieve whatever you want, just pick a goal and aim for it. Good luck and congratulations.

The second day I had hiccups that would not go away, they hurt, nobody seemed to care (at least in my opinion) I was miserable. I thought why did I do this? I took my pain meds and went to bed. I kept hiccuping for 8 hours. Then they stopped. I had survived! Since then I have not had another second thought. My obesity was so out of control I had been forced to go on disability and no longer work. I was taking 19 different medications a day including over 200 units of insulin. I could not tie my own shoes. I couldn't enjoy my beautiful granddaughter. All I could do was sit in a chair and watch TV, my wife was disgusted with me. I wasn't the husband, employee, father or grandfather that I should be. Fast forward 3 months. Now I am 72 pounds lighter, I take only 9 medications, with the promise from my physician that if my labs come out good at the end of November I will be off 5 more. My blood sugar is normal, and no more insulin. I can play golf again and walk over a mile a day. I am enjoying life again. If I had not had this surgery I probably wouldn't be here in a few years. I have no regrets.

I am 3 months out and still drink a bottle of Isopure a day. I get it at GNC. If you go the GNC route make sure and get their "Gold Card". It gives you a pretty big discount the first week of each month. Experiment with the different flavors, some are better than others and make sure that you get the zero carb ones. They have an Isopure smoothie too, but I found it was pretty high in calories. Good Luck.

First I am shocked that you can even eat that stuff only 10 days after surgery. If I ate more than a quarter a cup of anything at that point it either came right back up or I wished it would. Does your doctor have you on a acid reducer? That can really help with the hunger feelings. You really need to get back on track...fast. Eating that much could cause your sleeve to start leaking this early on. You have to work on getting in the liquids, that is the number one thing at this point. Call your doctor and be honest with him. Your sleeve is just a tool, but you have to let it work with you. Good luck.

Honestly you will forget all this stuff ever happened. Three months out and I can barely remember the first few days. I did have hiccups on days 2 and 3 and they were miserable. My surgeon just said to take the liquid Lortab and wait for them to go away. I did and went to bed and eventually they did go away. Mine didn't seem related to eating or drinking, they would just even start in my sleep. For the nausea I has some suppositories. Not that great of a thought to use, but you won't throw them up and they do help quickly with the nausea. The acid reducer meds are almost always a must. Most of us who have felt hunger have found that the acid reducers really help with that sensation. If the ones you have now don't agree with you call your doc and try a different one. Keeping liquids down is so important. If you are dehydrated you will feel miserable. Good luck, I promise in a month you will hardly remember the rocky start.

I am 3mos out and haven't lost any. Of course, I am pretty bald to start with, but my wife swears I have more hair than before. I am also very anal about getting enough protein too.

I am 3 months out yesterday and my surgeon says it is ok to work out. Up to this time all he allowed is walking. I have been walking and can easily do a mile. (Before my sleeve carrying in the laundry from the garage left me panting in a chair). The doctor recommended hiring a personal trainer to get me on the right exercises, but I really can't afford that at this time. Anyone got any suggestions what to start with at the gym? I know the treadmill, but I need to work on tightening up my abs and rebuilding my strength. Help please? PS I am a 58 year old guy if that makes any difference.

My doc said no gym for 3 months. I am 4 days away from that and I can't wait. I am down 65 pounds and never in my life would I think it was possible. My goal is to be under 200 by Christmas. I am hoping the gym will get the weight loss going faster again. 34 pounds by Christmas, I CAN DO IT!!!

I read somewhere that for every 35 pounds you lost you gain a usable inch.

I can drink pretty much normally too, 2 months out. Living in Las Vegas in the summer if you can't drink you are in big trouble. I know some people here say they drink soda and beer, but I am going to avoid them alltogether, although I do have to say I miss my Diet Mtn Dew more than anything else!

My name is Bill and I had my surgery July 22, 2011 by Dr Francis Teng in Las Vegas, NV. I was in for just 24 hours at Mountainview Hospital. Both my experiences with the doctor and his staff have been fantastic. I have tons of co-morbities and he was very careful that I had clearance from all my other doctors before he even considered the surgery. My wife told me she was ready for lots of complications because everytime I go to the hospital for anything it turns into something else. We were so pleasantly surprised that this entire procedure has gone textbook perfect! Dr. Teng has given me back my life. I have a pretty normal PPO insurance plan and the total cost for the hospital, Dr. and all the pre-op testing was around $3800 out of pocket.

It has been a couple of years since anyone posted on this thread, but I want to add that I also was sleeved by Dr Teng here in Las Vegas and do not have a single bad thing to say about the entire experience. They are meticulous with the pre-op testing and information sessions. The follow up is terrific, the office staff great and the results have been more than I had expected. I could have gone to another program here in V and paid next to nothing with the insurance I have, but I chose Dr. Teng because of his track record and recommendations. He is doing over half of his surgeries as sleeves now, so he is well qualified.

I take 12 different pills a day (down from 19 so things are getting better). My doctor insists that the all be crushed. There are a couple that are really big, so I am cool with those being broken up, but how many of you actually just take pills without the crushing thing?

I think that we need to make up our own minds and go for what we feel is realistic for us. I started at 295 and I am a 5'6" male. When asked I said I wanted to be 170, my doctor said that it was attainable. I had gone to another program and that doctor said that I could "Maybe" get down to 225. I didn't like one thing about that program so I looked around for one that I felt comfortable with. I would suggest for anyone who is pre-op and looking at a surgeon in their area, to go to one of their support group meetings. There you will see real people and real results with that program. A good doctor wouldn't be afraid for you to do that. We had a daughter and dad come last month and the dad asked all of why we did it and would we do it again. 100% of the people said yes. Don't let what others, even doctors, stop you from what you think you can do. What is the doc going to do if you lose more than he thinks you could? Sew your stomach back? Get to the weight that feels right and is healthy for YOU!