WASaBubbleButt

I was just wondering why this link at the bottom of the page "

This Fourm is Part of

WLSBoards.com " is directly linked to explicit porn with no caution or warning at all lol

I forwarded this to Alex, the software God. ;o) He can fix it!

Those ads are done by robots, not real people. It's basically a software program that spams all message boards with that stuff. He's the software guru, he can fix it!

Welcome to the forum! Most of all, Congrats on your surgery!

Farrah Fawcett and Michael Jackson both died today. Farrah's battle with anal cancer has been well documented and reports of her declining health made it clear that she would die soon. Michael Jackson's death came as a shock.

I have my own opinions on what type of person he was and firmly believe the abuses he suffered as a child molded the adult he became. What can't be denied is his talent and the influence he had on pop culture. I feel very sorry for his 3 children.

I heard about Jackson in the car this afternoon. If he was ill I hadn't heard. Farrah I felt very sorry for, she had a long haul with her illness. :biggrin0:(

On Monday, I had to work the day shift to teach a few topics at an all day conference where I work. Normally, I wear regular clothes and a lab coat. For the conference, I wore dressy clothes and no lab coat. I saw many people I had not seen for months (170 people attended). MANY people came up to me to tell me it's quite apparent that I have lost weight, etc. It's nice that the loss is showing.

For lunch, 50 pizzas were delivered. I had brought a Protein bar with me so I took my 2 pieces of pizza to my skinny secretary and had lunch in the office with him. It felt great to have control over the food. Prior to the surgery, I could have easily devoured 4 pieces.

Congrats! You earned it, you deserve it! You've been working your butt off exercising and watching your diet. You deserve every great compliment that comes your way!

I've been taking two of these little Gummy vit D 3's for about a month now. I am at my daughter's at the moment so I can't look on the bottle to see how much is in there.

Should I stop it until I take the test or just keep taking two

since I've been doing it for a month now?

If you have been doing it for a month keep doing it and test. If you are high or low you'll need to adjust, if you are in normal range, kewl beans!

It's funny, I read this thread this morning and just got a call from the doctor saying the results of my blood test show me to be low in Vitamin D. He has prescribed a 50,000 IU tablet/capsule every week for 12 weeks. Then he will retest. Does this dose sound right?

I do crave chocolate and eat it daily. I never cared much about chocolate before. Could this be because of the low D?

History: Had a revision from band to sleeve in October 2008. My weight is 110, height 5' 4".

Usually about 10,000IU daily for WLS patients bypass and DS excluded) who are deficient. So that would be 70,000IUs weekly. Your doc is suggesting 50,000IUs weekly, close enough!

The only thing, your levels will spike one day a week and drop the rest of the week. (I'm speaking from experience) It's not a big deal but when you get to maintenance I'd be looking for a lower dose on a daily basis.

I just ordered my kit today to retest... again. First I was too low, then I was way to high, hopefully I have it figured out this time. ;o)

I have been reading all posts since April and I have finally came across a negative comment about Dr Aceves (his location) and I wanted to get some feedback. On another board a lady said that she lives in Mexico and her husband is Mexican and he forbid her to go to a boarder town so that ruled out Aceves for her. I researched violence in Mexicali, but didn't come up with anything.

What are your thoughts? Any border crime statistics on Mexicali?

I don't know stats but I can tell you that the US gov't is warning people about specific cities and crime, Mexicali is not on that list.

Mexico

SAFETY AND SECURITY: Violence by criminal elements affects many parts of the country, urban and rural. Visitors to the U.S.-Mexico border region, including cities such as Tijuana, Ciudad Juarez, Nuevo Laredo, Nogales, Matamoros, and Monterrey should remain alert and be aware of their surroundings at all times.

I do not meet with the nutritionist until July 6, but noticed in the binder I received from the office that I should begin a "high Protein, low carbohydrate" diet now. It calls for getting in 70 grams of Protein and limiting carbohydrates to 30 grams. Over my numerous years of dieting--Jenny Craig, Weight Watchers, diet pills, etc.--I've never done a strictly high protein diet.

I'm feeling a little overwhelmed. I'm not too concerned about lunches (I know I can do salads), but for Breakfast I like eggs when I eat with a muffin or toast (not really by themselves). I know that I will be changing my eating habits and am excited about doing this to feel better/healthier, but I'm just not sure where to start. Do you think I should wait until I meet with the nutritionist, or are there some good (simple) resources on the web that can help me plan out my days/grocery lists? Should I just focus on upping the protein and lowering the carbs at one meal each day for now?

Thank you for any advice you might have and just letting me get this off my chest.

If they want you to start a low carb diet now I would do as they suggest instead of waiting to meet with the nutritionist.

What they are basically asking you to do is Atkins. You can do lots of web searches for Atkins.

I would call the office and ask if they mean carbs or net carbs because it makes a difference. I know my doctor does not want net carbs, he wants a maximum of 30gms of carbs daily.

As a general rule, if it has flour or sugar, don't eat it. Potatoes are very high in carbs. Many veggies have lots of carbs, more than you'd realize. Peas and corn are out. Most fruits are very high in carbs. salad dressings, sauces, Pasta, rice...

You can look up carb content here:

Nutrition facts, calories in food, labels, nutritional information and analysis – NutritionData.com

You can even search by low carb foods.

Do little things such as use a lettuce leaf in place of a bun for burgers. For steaks instead of A1 sauce or something similar coat your steak with a thin layer of olive oil (very thin) and put lots of spices on instead. Marinate and either grill or broil.

Lots of people assume healthy foods are low in carbs and this is not true, there are good carbs too but for the sake of pre op diet even good carbs are out. It helps shrink your liver.

My Sleeve doctor quoted me 4 weeks off after surgery? Wonder why? Is it because it's in the States?

Do you do a lot of hard labor for your employment? If so I could see it then but most people go back in a few days.

I feel the same way as you. I just got my date of August 4, and I find I'm very excited one moment and then nervous the next. This really is a life changing operation. Good luck!

Congrats on your date!

Hi all.

First, the nerves and prep. I know worry is normal, but, wow. The idea of a life changing procedure makes me smile one minute, and be full of dread the next. How do others deal with it? And when it comes to the prep, anything that would be "Just do it, dammit!" even though it might seem silly or have no real purpose?

My second question is more a matter of why. Why do so many on here seem to be going to Mexico? I went through all the preliminary stuff, (and, yes, the six months of doctor visits even though I had years of records) and was approved. My doctor is close and the follow ups easier. Is it the money? Just curious.

August 3 is coming fast...

Sounds like your insurance is paying for your surgery? Lots of people to not have WLS benefits and they are self pay. In my case mine was a revision and while insurance would have paid for it I would have had to jump through a lot of hoops, beg, plead, and appeal. I was just too ill to do it, I needed to get my band out quickly.

I wanted the best of the best for revision surgeons so I self paid with Dr. Aceves. Revisions are a lot riskier than if someone has never had surgery. I wanted the best so I paid for the best.

I could have self paid in the US and eventually I would have been reimbursed by my ins but I trust Dr. Aceves.

For the average person (revision or not) if you were self paying would you prefer to go to someone in the US who is not very experienced for over $20K or go to a surgeon that is more experienced than most US doctors and has a better track record than any doctor you can find in the US or MX with leaks for $8750? Which would you choose? ;o)

This is my proudest moment. Maybe I couldn't have a sleeve, but I can still be a sleeve brother!!!!!!!

I'm at 6 months. The honeymoon is over. But, I have to make this band work until they start approving sleeves. Then I WILL be revised.

My wife ony has two more days until we get to Mexico!!!! She is getting excited now.

I really think people like Jachut aren't likely to develop problems, or are much less likely. She works out a lot and keeps the band at a reasonable restriction. She has also had it long enough, that if her body didn't react well to it, it probably would have showed up already.

My biggest problem with my band is morning is very very tight, lunch is a little too tight, and dinner is a little to loose. I overcome, by eating slim fast for breakfast or yogurt with Protein added, lunch is softer things like cheese and Protein Bars, and dinner I can eat just about anything. It works, and I'm happy, but long term....I don't kid myself.

You know, I could change that to honorary sleeve Jaf-FA if you want! HA!

I feel for you with a band. I realize you are doing okay now but the restriction issues get old. I sure don't miss having to deal with it.

Hi everyone,

I have just been reading through the recent posts and found it all really interesting.

I have just got home after having emergency surgery on Monday night on a strangulated hernia and am even more convinced than I was last year, when I had the original hernia surgery (it's all a really long story), that they are absolutely useless when it comes to proper dietary advice.

I am still having my sleeve op on July 13th, thankfully, and cannot wait to get my slipped band out. I just don't think that the surgeon or the nurses really appreciate the problems I have had with this slipped band. I was retching and vomiting so much last week and over the weekend on an empty stomach (the indigestion would come from nowhere regardless of whether or not I had eaten or drank) that I ruptured myself and ended up with this strangulated hernia. Directly after the op they were wanting to administer me various tablets despite me repeatedly telling them that taking anything could cause me to start retching again. So they brought me a bowl to be sick in!!! That was what ruptured my stomach so eh??? I ended up getting quite panicky and then they toook notice and did administer my medication intravenously in the end.

Have been discharged though, despite not really being able to eat (although tbh I have tried some Soup today and am ok and not had any indigestion or reflux) and told to follow the milk and yoghurt diet prior to my sleeve surgery. When I told the sister that the m and y diet had really constipated me 2 years ago and that I had been told I could introduce a bit of dry toast, soup etc she told me that was rubbish and that I was to follow it exactly! I told her that I was not going to risk getting Constipation so soon after hernia surgery and that I wold take the surgeon's advice on that! Am going to do the same as I was advised two years ago though as that was good enough advice then.

They have all really annoyed me as they just don't seem to have a clue. I was discharged from hospital yesterday without them giving me any advice on my recovery nor them even inspecting my stitches, so it's just a good job that I am sensible and know that I need to take it easy and keep an eye on wound and keep it clean.

Anyway, I shall be having my band revision two weeks on Monday and will no doubt be back here asking for your advice again as I'm not relying on the hospital to be particularly helpful diet-wise!!!

All the best to everyone

Love Helenxxx

This is going to sound so obvious it's stupid but please do try your best not to vomit AT ALL between now and your surgery date. If you have a slip and a lot of inflammation they may not be able to revise you to a sleeve at the same time as band removal. You need for all the swelling to go down in order to have a safe revision. Risks are already triple for a revision vs. if you never had a band. Swelling makes it much worse.

Milk and yogurt? (eye roll)

I think I will order this kit for me and for my DF -- he craves (and eats) sweets like crazy ... I told him I recently heard he may have a Vitamin D deficiency.

He's considering have the sleeve -- does Dr. Aceves blood tests include a rating on Vitamin D? Any idea of that Wasa?

No, those are not standard pre op labs.

Besides, doctors do not order the right Vit D test typically. There are several ways to test for Vit D and 99% of doctors test for the wrong one according to the experts at the Vit D Council.

The test in this thread is the right one. Also, labs are still showing 30 as normal when it is quite low. You want a lab result of at least 50.

It's like a TSH, most labs are still showing a 12 as being normal when in fact the Endocrinologists know that up to 6 is normal, not 12.

It's hard to get labs to update their "normal ranges" and doctors still go by old information in some cases.

Thanks for posting this. I ordered the kit and I probably would have kept forgetting to ask you about it again.

I'll be poking the finger soon. I've been taking extra Vit. D

so I am really curious how my test will come out.

Denise....

If you are taking extra vit D you won't know what your baseline is or if you need to take extra Vit D. ;o)

You want to test when you are taking your usual dose so you know if you need to increase or not.

the Yucca root sounds like a bad experience before you even start trying to put it in your body! Im funny ha ha funny stranger about that kind of deal!

so....if you see the yucca root in the store again i would be telling him thanks but no thanks. lol tell me they are not like *dates* lmao!

Thankfully the produce manager caught me before I left the produce dept to make sure I knew Yucca root is poison until it's cooked. I usually try stuff raw first.

Now, I'm a bad cook but who knew I could kill myself by eating something I did not yet cook??? ;o)

Steve is our HONORARY sleeve brother.

Yes, but now it is official. We'll see if he can find it and notices. ;o))))))

I spend all evening trying to catch up on the all the new posts ... not time to eat ...

It was so much easier to keep caught up when I wasn't at work ... go figure!

I also intend to get back to counted cross stitching and scrapbooking.

Do you know I have been working on the same counted cross stitch project for almost 20 years now? HA! I guess my heart isn't really in it but it is going to be beautiful someday. ;o)

thanks all for answering back .... i guess really i think i am going to try and find a surgeon that will do the sleeve here in florida... i think i'm just going to cancel my band surgery... my surgeon only does lap band so i guess i need to start all over again ... I really appreciate everyones replies...they really were helpful. The only surgeon that i have come across that does the sleeve here has only done 20 and that makes me uncomfortable... so i guess i need to research... for those of you who have had it done in Mexico what happends after the initial surgery? do u have to go back for rechecks or how does that work? anyone know or heard of any surgeons in central florida? or any ideas of how to find good ones? all info will be greatly appreciated:) thanks all and good luck to everyone:)

Doctors in Mexico have been doing the sleeve and band longer than most US doctors. They have the experience you are looking for.

Please, read my sig link. There is a lot of information there for research purposes.

Have you checked to see if your insurance covers the sleeve? If it does obviously you'll want to stay in the US. But if you are self pay Mexico is a great option!

what kind of last meal should she get down there?

Anything her little heart desires! Mexican, Italian, Chinese, whatever she wants!

Whats the best thing to eat at Lucerne (the hotel before surgery)?

FRENCH ONION SOUP!! FANTASTIC stuff! After I got rid of my band I could eat the pastry thinger on top. Great stuff.

HI all so this is my first post ...I have no clue what i'm doing anymore ...I thought i knew what i was doing ...I was going for the lapband...i even have a surgery date in july .... then i start reading about what some of all yall have gone through with the band and how u've changed to the sleeve ...I don't know what to do ...I read about the sleeve and it's like i don't really mind having that part of my stomach taken out .... it's jus the fact of the staples and leaks that freak me out ... anyway i don't look forward to going through what ppl with the band do either ....although i know 2 of my cousins that have the band and they have like no problems have dropped at least 100 pds they are at goal and i just thought that's how it would be for me . so now i'm confused if you don't mind i want to ask a few questions like. I just thought that I would be able to eat normal food in smaller quantities and not eat junk really but like rice and baked potatoes or some Pasta wouldn't be on the No list... although i understand in moderation.

1) How do u know which surgery is best for u ? I mean how do i choose?

2) What types of food do u stay away from with the sleeve? i mean can't tolerate and if u don't what happends?

3) so is there always a chance of leaks I mean after surgery like a a few months post op or after?

4) I read a post on here where someone wrote that if she drank Water then she woudln't be able to eat or soemthing ? is it that small of an amount that u could get down?

5) is it the same as the band where you can't eat and drink at the same time?

6) can someone that has had the sleeve for more than 3 months let me know what a daily amount of food is i mean what u would have for all ur meals ?

sorry , but i really hope i get answeres i don't know what to do anymore..

thanks so much ahead of time

confusedmommy

I have had the band and sleeve and I'd never get another band. Everyone likes their band at first, the scale is moving and life is good. The real problems hit at about the 2 year point. That's when people get to the point that the reflux is horrible, restriction is an issue, band intolerance kicks in, the works.

Consider this, I have been posting on message boards for 3 years now and I have never met anyone that was banded for 10 years or longer. We hear about them, we see studies about them but in three years I have never met one. The longest I have met anyone that had a band was 9 years and she was contacting me for information on a revision to a sleeve. She couldn't take it anymore.

First they had the mesh band, that didn't work. Then they had the non adjustable band, that didn't work. Then they had the small adjustable band, they said all the problems were because it was too small. So now they have the mega adjustable band and not only do they have the same long term problems with that but it's so big many are not getting any real restriction for 6-8 months.

Weight loss is slow and low with a band, it is the hardest procedure to lose weight. It requires a lifetime of after care.

I would suggest finding just 5 people that have been banded for 10 years and talk to them yourself. Not a friend of a friend who knows someone, but YOU talk to them. See how they like their bands now. Inamed has been selling bands to Mexico for 18 years and Mexico has been banding US citizens for 18 years. There should be plenty of them around, right? So where are they? I've never met one. But if you can find 5 people banded 10 years, go for it. I don't think you'll find them.

1) How do you choose the surgery, you read everything you can get your hands on. You ask people that have had their surgery for at least a year how they like it. Everyone likes their surgery the first six months. Talk to those who have had it for a year or longer. Ask if they have any regrets. Know every surgery type out there and know why you want one specific surgery and why you do not want the other surgery types.

2) I can eat anything with my sleeve. Haven't found anything yet that I do not tolerate in the way of food. Calcium tablets... I hate. Food, no problem.

3) Leaks are a risk for the first month for the most part. Until your stomach heals. It is critical that you follow the post op diet.

4) Jut like the band, you don't want to eat and drink at the same time. Your stomach only holds so much food, don't waste that room with Water. I drink up to the point that I will eat and then I wait an hour or so after eating to drink. Eating and drinking together is a learned behavior, we can unlearn it as well. ;o)

5) See #4

6) You really want to ask people 6 months out what they can eat, that is when their stomach is the largest. I can eat less than 1/2 cup of food at a time depending on what it is. About 1/4 cup of solid Protein or up to 3/4 cup of soft foods and I am one year post op.

Hi, All......I always used food as a salve for anxiety/unpleasant emotions. How do you all deal with anxiety/emotion without food as a crutch?

I had to come up with something that wasn't dealing with food and now it is exercise. I never thought I would write those words but it's true. ;o)

We watch an episode almost every night before we go to bed. It is kind of a ritual thing before we Kel Nor Reem.

That is Jaffa for (sleep/meditation).

It helps us to get to sleep Kreeee (now or quickly)

Heh... I knew what Kel Nor Reem is. Kreeee, you had me on that one.

But the band is less invasive.....LOL

Noooo, if you read the band board it's less evasive. ;o)

Sorry, that's one of my pet peeves along with lose/loose or weigh/weight.

Thanks to all for being so welcoming and sharing your knowledge! It is greatly appreciated.

Should i be concerned if a surgeon is fairly new to the sleeve procedure?

Yes, very much so.

I wouldn't go to anyone with less than 250 sleeves and 250 bypass. The staple line is what you want experience with.