Bronxbubbles

The before pic is from the day before surgery and the after pic was a couple months short of a year out. I'm 105lbs down and I'd like to take off 50 more. I'm almost 14 months out.

I was sleeved Dec 3rd as well and I am struggling with getting all my protein in as most if not all food grosses me out. I'm not complaining about having no hunger but I don't want to become malnourished either. I stalled my second week for 10 days, but things picked up again and so far i have lost 31 pounds. I find that my weight loss slows or stops when I'm not getting my protein or fluids all in... But it's so hard sometimes with eating being such a chore. No vomiting yet but that's probably because I'm not eating. I'm sure your weight loss will pick up, if you're following plan then it HAS to. Just remember, slow and steady wins the race! I wish you continued luck on your journey.

Hi everybody! Just a little note to let all my peeps know that at approximately 11:00am yesterday I joined the sleeve ranks! So far so good. Fresh out of surgery I was in extreme pain but as I was wheeled to recovery and given a pain med pump, that began to subside. Definitely the worst hour of my post op life so far. As of right now im feeling sore but good. Just finished my required walk around the unit (every six hours I must do this) and now I want to rest but not before giving everybody on this site a huge cyber hug and "thank you" for being so kind and supportive through this whole process. Cause of you guys I was fully educated and prepared to take the leap. Thank you all so so much!!

I also have UHC Choice Plus PPO. When I reviewed my benefits online, it actually didn't say anything about bariatric surgery, so I called them directly and they were the ones that told me it was covered... Have you tried calling UHC direct (the number on the back of your insurance card)??

I had this same conversation with my NUT at my last appointment and this is what she said to me: The reason the gummy Vitamins taste so much better than other chewable vitamins is because they often leave out the vitamins, or don't put enough of the vitamins that don't taste good. The main one she pointed out to me was Thiamin which allegedly tastes pretty gnarly. Now- I hate to be wrong, so before replying to this I looked up the nutrition information of the Vitacrave gummies, Vitafusion gummies and the Flintstones complete vitamins online, and wouldn't you know- the gummies don't contain Thiamin, while the Flintstone complete contains 107% Thiamin. So that being said, I'm assuming the reason they don't recommend the gummy vitamins is because we're not getting all the vitamins we need. Now of course- I only looked up 3 different brands, and it is quite possible that there is some gummy Vitamin out there that might contain Thiamin... and some chewables that don't... but to make my life easier, I just bought the Flintstones Complete ones. I haven't tasted them yet- as I'm trying to finish the two large containers of gummy vitamins that I bought before clarifying all this info with my NUT. Hope this helped!! -Bubbles

High heels (without my feet and ankles hurting after 5 minutes)

Mine does have the 6 month requirement...

Ok, so I'm gathering all my documentation showing that I've had a BMI over 40 for the past 5 years. This should be easy considering that I've been over 40 BMI since 2005... However, after I received the records from my Dr's office, I realized that I did not have any weights recorded for the years 2009 and 2011. I have official records from 2005, 2007, 2008, 2010, and 1012. I also have pictures of me for the two missing years but the photographs don't have dates. I was thinking maybe I can show screen shots of the pictures on Facebook showing the dates that they were uploaded, but this is far from an "official record". My little sister graduated in 2011 and I have pictures from that too- so I was thinking a photo of me with her in graduation garb plus a copy of her diploma with the graduation date on it might be SOMETHING. I know these ideas are far fetched but I don't know what else to do!! Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

I also just began therapy. As a general rule, I've never been a fan of therapy, but that's my own personal opinion. There is no reason to be scared- the therapist is there to listen and provide an unbiased third party insight- not judge or make you feel bad or weird about the things you may be feeling. As much as I don't like therapy, I have to admit that sometimes it feels good to just let my hair down and curse and cry and just let it all out. My biggest problem is leaving the office with puffy crying eyes after I'm done with a session. It's like I just walk in the office and start bawling, LOL. I say go for it. It will be beneficial after the surgery and for life in general. Good Luck!!

You're very welcome and good luck to you!!

I'm sure you'll be fine. I mean, those of us who suffer from depression always have bouts of it here and there, but if you're taking your meds, and your PCP is monitoring you, I think you'll be ok. I was lucky, I see a psychiatrist monthly who takes care of my medication management so he did my psych eval for me. One thing he did say which made a lot of sense is that part of the reason I'm depressed is BECAUSE of my weight, so he's thinking that surgery might actually help me in the area of depression. Another thing he did say to me is that I MUST go to therapy (I absolutely loathe therapy and have been avoiding it for the past 15 years of my life) because major surgery (no matter what kind) often causes depression on top of the regular depression you're already dealing with. Now add to that the fact that this is life changing weight loss surgery and I can understand how it could send us into a tailspin of emotions. I would recommend seeing a therapist- not forever but maybe for a couple of months leading up to and after the surgery (which is what I am doing)- It would show that you are being proactive in your mental health and it may benefit you in the long run.

I also suffer from major depression since the age of 15 and my Psych noted that I was stable enough for surgery. As long as your depression is well managed- you should be ok... especially if you see a psychiatrist or psychologist/therapist on a regular basis.

But you're only 3 weeks out from surgery (I thought it was 2 months but then I looked at your title again). Was all of that weight lost post-op or was some of it lost pre-op? Because 34lbs in 3 weeks is amazing!!!

Can I ask why you regret the surgery so much? All you listed in your post was that you can't enjoy yourself socially and that you haven't lost the weight you wanted to, but isn't 2 months too soon to measure anything? Doesn't your sleeve need time to adjust? I'm asking because I'm pre-op. I'm sorry you feel the way you do and I hope things get better.

So I'm still pre-op, and I was at a support group meeting last night at my hospital. At the end of the meeting, the leader allows all the pre-ops to ask the post-ops any questions they may have regarding the surgery. I asked a question but I didn't get a clear answer, so I'll ask my question here... I understand that after we get sleeved our stomachs are about 85% smaller than they were pre-op... But my question is this, when you are very hungry, and you eat something (and fill up very quickly because your stomach is so small) do you feel full and satisfied, or full and still hungry? I ask this because I have a big appetite, and while I know the sleeve is a tool to help me eat less, I'm afraid of being full AND hungry (if it's possible). And just to be clear I'm talking about real hunger, not head hunger. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated, Thanks!!

Im definitely not a doctor, as contacting a dr would be my advice to you but i understand about not having insurance... So i suggest getting some butterfly closures at your local pharmacy. Theyre a bit better than band aids cause they hold the wound together a bit tighter. Good alternative to stitches. But like i said at first, if there is any way you can talk to a doctor, please do!

I can totally see a difference!! Absolutely gorgeous!

OMG, so do you have a web site or an order form or something like that?? I'd be interested in seeing the rest of your work!! And I think I might want to purchase a "get sleeved" shirt!!!

Well Linda, let me be the first to welcome you to the forum!! You'll find a lot of great information here and answers to all of your questions. I'll answer the few I know about, but I'm currently pre-op so I won't have them all. You can use the search function at the top right hand side of the screen (if you're using a PC) to search for different threads that have answers to your questions- and the ones you can't find, just ask!! Regarding the required tests- my insurance only requires that I see a NUT (nutritionist) for 6 months, but that was the only physical appointment that was required of them. My surgeon, on the other hand, required a sleep study to check for sleep apnea, a psych evaluation, an upper endoscopy to check for h pylori, medical clearance from my PCP and a blood panel- but that's just so far. Once I get cleared by insurance, I'll then need to have pulmonary and cardiology clearance and maybe some other stuff... As far as risks are concerned, yes- there are risks of a leak. Many surgeons do a leak test AS they are operating to make sure there are none- and then after the surgery you do a swallow test to make sure that there are none. Again- I'm pre-op so any post-op people who want to chime in, please do!! The reason I'm personally choosing to do the sleeve is because it's actually less invasive than the DS or RNY but i have the option of doing either of those as a two-step surgery should I choose. (Personally, I'd rather not as I've seen many people that are super successful with the sleeve alone). The Bypass and DS actually require more cutting and the re-arrangement of your intestines so it's not really for me. Regarding your question about the staples, it is my understanding that the staples stay in... I hope I was at least a little bit helpful with your questions- and again, if there is something you need more clarification on, please ask. Everybody here is really helpful and friendly. Good luck with everything!!

When I got my blood test results I found out that I, too was low on vitamin D. My NUT said that heavier people for some reason can't synthesize that vitamin from the sun- something about the cells not being able to when you're overweight. So now I take 2000IU of vitamin D daily. Now I don't know if there is a correlation, but for the longest time I had terrible pain in my legs every morning when I woke up- some days I'd be so stiff and uncomfortable I couldn't walk. Ever since starting on the vitamin D regimen, I feel so much better! And the improvement was almost overnight. It was like 3 days after starting the vit. D that I noticed a difference. So I guess my point in posting this is that once you get on the vitamins you're supposed to be on, you do start feeling better! Good luck with everything!

Just-A-Gem, How tall are you? You and I are starting off around the same weight...

You look flipping amazing!!! I'm so jealous but in a happy, "I want that too..." kind of way. Keep up the good work- I can't wait till I get my sleeve!!