LeaveItToSleever

I couldn't WAIT to come home after surgery to have coffee. It was one of the only things that made me feel better.

Sexy is not something that just happens. It is not caused by weight loss or gain. Sexy is internal, you don't become sexy via attention from other people. By the way, there are millions of thin people who are not sexy and never will be.

Where do you stand? No matter where you are on your journey, could you share some body stats? If not your current stats, then where you started? I sometimes see people becoming discouraged if someone is losing faster, or someone who weighs the same as they do can wear a smaller size. I think it will help to see that everyone is DIFFERENT, we all carry our weight differently, and height makes a difference. Muscle mass and gender make a HUGE difference. Feel free to update as your size changes.

Then don't tell people you are not *able* to eat more; tell them you are watching what you eat, and now you stop eating at a NORMAL portion size. Most people have NO IDEA what a portion size looks like, so this is pretty safe to say. Not that you owe any explanations, but I've used this one. I even act all disappointed that I can't eat more, and groan dramatically as I throw away a slice of pie after eating a forkful, which adds some fun to my otherwise boring secret.

OMG, You're better than me. I'd be furious with my mother. I would have been screaming and paging the nurses station to remove the intruder... then blame your "overreaction" on the pain meds....

I don't struggle with this AT ALL. To me, it's just personal, and not something I discuss conversationally. Eating tiny amounts, weighing, measuring, and keeping to a strict eating schedule are ALL things I did before, every single time I ever lost weight, prior to surgery. Those things don't 'give you away'. Only loose lips will give you away. If you keep the belief that your body and your diet are YOUR business (and yours alone), you'll be fine. If anyone finds out after the fact and asks you why you lied to them, you can give them the blank stare and ask them "What lie?". If they ask why you never TOLD them, then you can say "it never occurred to me that you'd feel so strongly about knowing this, and I'm frankly pretty surprised by your reaction, why?"

I do not discuss my body, and my physique, with the general public or with co-workers. It is personal. NOT up for discussion. WLS is NOT the only way to lose weight fast. Before surgery, I lost 100 lbs in 9 mos. My yo-yos are legendary. So bottom line- if anyone says wow, you look great, what are you doing, I say "thanks, I'm starving myself. How have you been? How's the kids? How's your dog? How's your mom?" etc etc etc. You DON'T have to talk about it if you don't want to. Just change the subject and move on.

The stuff pickles float around in is vinegar and salt water. If that's what you really want, and you don't have blood pressure concerns, and you can keep it down, go ahead.

I'll give you a little more personal perspective, as there are clearly some people on here who had NO pain and probably could have saved big bucks opting out of general anesthesia... I was fairly fit to begin with, well accustomed to regular exercise such as jogging, elliptical and free weights... I was also ambulatory on day one but I could barely bend at the waist for 2 weeks because of that searing, stabbing pain you speak of. It felt like a hot bayonette stabbing into my appendix every time I moved my abs. I had laproscopic surgery.

I am 5'6" and had 2 separate people do body comp analysis on me... I was told by both of them I am good in the mid-low 180s! I am just a very heavy person, apparently my bones are very dense and I am very muscular. My BP is low, resting hear rate very low, I'm very active... I wear size 10 jeans, medium shirt. Look at the WHOLE picture to assess your health, not just weight.

It never seems to get any better? LOL, it's been a WEEK. Yes, we all had that searing pain. Give it time. Soon it will be a distant memory! Congrats on your new sleeve.

Drink flavored water? That'll work, right? Easy.

I'm 50 and a slow loser (I don't care how fast I lose AT ALL). The most important thing to me is preserving/improving my health. I want to stay active in my daily lifestyle. Right now, I am the most physically active non-athlete I know.

I never lost my appetite. I still want to eat and I still feel hungry. But since being sleeved, thank God, I can't eat the way I used to. I don't try to control or portion my food, the sleeve controls my portions.

I have never really paid attention to how water tastes. When I'm thirsty, I DON'T CARE, I just grab and guzzle. I have never counted or measured h much water I drink, or distinguished plain water from flavored water. I don't sip it all day or carry it around. I drink when I get thirsty. I typically drink tea more than anything else, and plain water probably second. After that, coffee, then wine.

If I didn't think the sleeve was a good way to prevent obesity, what would be the point of having it done? I was also one of those once-a-day huge meal eaters. I could still pig out if I wanted to as well, but I don't want to do that any more; I want to PREVENT that type of eating, KWIM? My sleeve hasn't taught me how to eat, it prevents me from eating. I hope to hell it prevents obesity, because it is doing a fantastic job of preventing what caused it.

I have been at goal (give or take) for a few months. I did not do anything different, and I am not doing anything different, to "transition" to maintenance. But for that matter, I didn't "do" anything to lose weight. The ONLY difference is that I can't eat as much. When I came up with my goal weight, I was only guessing where my body would "break even" metabolically and stop losing weight, and apparently, my guess was pretty accurate. Just like you, I don't come to the boards frequently either. I just can't relate. All the posts sound so alike to me, either complaints about problems I never had, or questions that should be discussed with care providers. So mostly my online chatting is about fashion, or with people in my profession. Nothing to do with WLS!

This is a very personal question to me. It is my BODY, and I don't allow my body to become a topic of conversation. When people tell me I look good, I say thank you and immediately change the subject by asking them how they have been, etc. When they ask me what I am doing to lose weight, I say "starving myself" and change the subject. I just don't engage people in conversation about my body.

Yes, people die from this surgery. By law, the information is published and it is your right to know. Risk of death is about 1:500, I think; and risk is higher the worse your health is to begin with. However, it is the people in the worst health who stand to benefit most from the surgery.

I eat and drink together, same as always. I have never heard a compelling reason not to. I met my weight loss goal in a reasonable time and am having no trouble maintaining. Sleeve surgery is NOT malabsorptive, it is restrictive.

I was eating pretty much normally at 6 weeks. I'd order whatever seemed appealing. But because I can only eat a few bites, I take most of it home.

I went this route ONCE- I paid over $100 for custom jeans, filling out an online form with waist, hip, thigh, calf, ankle and inseam measurements. The jeans I got back DID NOT FIT! The jeans were not returnable, my complaints went unanswered! My jeans were about 5 sizes too small. I got to wear them many years later after I lost weight. Now of course, they are too big and too high-waisted (remember the 90s?). Never again.

The most important thing was my CAREGIVER. Could not even roll on my side or sit up by myself for weeks. After that, it was liquid foods, and liquid Tylenol. I didn't need ANYthing else. I bought everything suggested on every list for sleevers, and I used NONE of it. Still have all my Gas-X, unopened.

W sizes always fit me like a potato sack. I never carried much weight in my waist, but my legs are immense. : ( So I had to wear them.

I could have written this. I feel the exact same way. I can eat way more than I thought I'd be able to. I haven't lost any of my appetite, and nothing turns me off as far as food is concerned. I still have to REALLY use self control and discipline to maintain or lose.