kczar

I have noticed that the board looks different so there might have been new code uploaded. Your best bet is to let the admins know by going to the Contact Us section at the bottom of the page. Give them an example of a thread you posted to so they can troubleshoot what's going on.

This really is a tough one. If I look at the BMI calculators, my minimum weight should be 165. This is my ultimate goal, but I don't know if I'll get to it or not. I have been overweight since I was six. My lowest weight as an adult was around 190 and that is the goal set by my surgeon. I felt really good at that size and honestly wouldn't mind if I stopped there. I am 5' 7-1/2" and have a pretty large frame though, so 190 on me looks like about 165 on others. So my goal is basically somewhere between 165 and 190. It's a big range but I think I'll be happy if I fall anywhere within it.

So funny story...I'm hooked up to a CPAP doing my second leep study. Its not as awful as I feared. Maybe that's the Valium talking.

At 11:00 they finally gave me an Ambien because they said I was fighting the machine. Every time I felt myself drifting off, I'd start gasping for air. Once that kicked in though, I don't remember anything til I woke up at 6:15. The bummer is that I won't get my machine until my follow up appointment, which isn't for three weeks. The wheels of this process turn very slowly.

Check out the stickied thread in the food and nutrition section. It has a huge amount of recipes that are sleeve friendly. Also check out the World According to Eggface site. Good luck!

My insurance company had their requirements online. However, I called them to double check. Then when I went to my initial surgical consult, I met with the insurance coordinator who confirmed all the requirements. I'm sorry that not all doctor's offices do their jobs so well. But that's why we have to be our own advocate. Believe it or not, the six months go by really fast. Hang in there!

Best of luck. You'll do great!

Congratulations! Time will go by so fast, I know. I'm just under three weeks away and it's getting very real for me. Hope your consult goes well.

I like the chocolate About Time powder but the vanilla tastes pretty bad. I bought a bunch of Torani syrups to give them different flavors. The Syntrax Nectar line is pretty darn yummy. Keep in mind that the fruit flavored ones aren't clear. They have a milky appearance that can be off putting.

Congratulations!

Welcome! It may seem like it will take forever, but you'll have your date before you know it. Stick around, make sure to check out the different forums and soak up as much information as you can.

I would suggest going to GNC or the Vitamin Shoppe. I think it's the only options for samples if you don't want to buy online. You can buy individual packages of powder. However, most of them will be chocolate, vanilla or some variation thereof. There are "fruit" flavors but they're going to be milky. There are some ready to drink options that are fruit flavored. Cytosport and Isopure both have a variety of flavors. They range from okay tasting to pretty nasty so I'd suggest picking up a couple of different ones and giving them a try. You can also pick up some unflavored Protein powder to mix into pudding, yogurt and Soup (the soup can't be too hot, otherwise it will clump up.) You'll definitely want to choose low fat, low sodium options. Salt will make you retain Water and basically isn't good for you (although I love it) In the mean time, try practicing some of the changes you're going to need to make post-op: don't drink 30 minutes before and after eating, cut out any carbonated drinks, take smaller bites, chew thoroughly, etc. Good luck!

I think it's natural to feel some level of panic. You are making a life changing, irreversible decision. You'll have the best chance of being successful if you're very sure that this is the right step for you. It took me about a year to finally make up my mind. Have you gone through any kind of supervised diet plan mandated by your insurance? I found this period a great time to explore all my options and truly figure out if this was right for me. If you have a counselor or clergy member you can talk to (and trust), maybe that would be a good step. Take care and I hope you find peace with whatever decision you make.

If you check the post-op section of the board, there's a stickied thread asking members how much weight (if any) they have regained since reaching goal. There's a lot of great responses there. From what I remember, those that did say they had regained, it was in the 5-10 pound range. I'd encourage you to read through all the posts there. It really helped me feel more confident in my chances for long term success.

Do you not have insurance because you can't get coverage? If so, I would encourage you to look into PCIP. It's the pre-existing health insurance that was put in place in 2010. I was without insurance for ten years since I work for a small company that didn't offer a plan. After a gallbladder attack, I tried to secure individual insurance but was denied because of my weight. You can get this insurance if you live in a participating state, have a pre-existing health condition or have been turned down for insurance and have been without coverage for at least six months. It's age rated. I'm 51 and pay $306 a month. You seem much younger so your premium will reflect that. The plan I chose has a $2,000 deductible and a $4,000 out of pocket maximum and yes, it covers the sleeve. I had my gallbladder removed in February so that and a couple of other procedures met my deductible. I have been able to get my septum corrected and am scheduled to be sleeved in three weeks, all at no additional cost. They do require a six month monitored diet and either a BMI of 40+ or 35 with two co-morbidities. Good luck!

During my first visit with my surgeon, he mentioned that he will sometimes dialate the esophagus during the sleeve procedure if he feels it's necessary. You can ask your surgeon, but it seems to be common.

I've told pretty much everyone in my life. When I focus in on something, I tend to be obsessive. The sleeve has kind of taken over my thoughts and I want to talk about it a lot. I'm also lousy about hiding my emotions and I'm so excited the news spills out almost on its own. I've gotten really positive feedback from everyone, aside from a couple of people telling me I'm "not big enough" to have the surgery. I chalk that up to the fact that they love me so don't see how I truly look. Everyone is different. If you're a private person, you're not going to want to share. If not, or if you get really excited about it, you'll want to shout it from the rooftops. Good luck and I hope you get support from everyone you do choose to tell.

@carlab51 - You'll be in my thoughts and prayers. Perhaps this surgery saved your life before you even had it. My prayer is that they remove the mass, it's non-cancerous and you can move forward with getting sleeved.

Eating meals on a regular basis is really important to weight loss, no matter if you're sleeved or not. It helps regulate your metabolism. If you only eat one regular meal a day, your body may want to hold onto the calories you gave it. Hang in there!

Congratulations!

I've been thinking about getting into counseling or some kind of support group to help work through my obvious food issues. My insurance does cover this, but I also thought about Overeaters Anonymous. Has anyone here gone to their meetings? Did you think it was helpful? How do they view people who have surgery? I like the idea of a support group because it can be a bit uncomfortable just focusing on my for an hour (the curse of being a twin and a mom - you're not used to the spotlight!) Any insight/opinions you guys have would be appreciated.

Thank you all for all the input. Unfortunately, I work for a really small company so there aren't any of those kinds of benefits available. @Pinky Green, I've never heard of TOPS but I might check them out. I'm also going to call my insurance company to see if they have any groups or counselors that specialize in dealing with food issues. It's on my list of questions for my surgeon as well. I see him on the 6th.

Thanks for the info. I did some more checking on their website and I don't know how accepting they would be of sleevers. They have a list of statements to help determine if you're an overeater and one of them asks if you've considered weight loss surgery. Hmmm, have to think about this.

You're special, sr910, but not little yellow bus special. If you're on your phone, those threads are on a different tab labeled "Stickied" rather than at the top of the page as they are on a computer. Here's the link: http://www.verticalsleevetalk.com/topic/10081-the-official-what-you-will-need-for-your-gastric-sleeve-surgery-thread/

Great list. You might want to check out the stickied thread at the top of this page called Everything you need for the hospital checklist. Lil Miss Diva created a Word document that has pretty much all that stuff plus some other things on it. You can download the list (complete with check boxes!) and customize it to make sure you cover everything that's important to you. Good luck!