iggychic

I'm sorry to read that you are still going through all of this Sannah. It's been too long of a road! I'm also glad to read you're going to talk to your doc, but please don't hesitate if she does not change immediately to change docs. Changing docs saved my life. I don't know how much longer I could have made it given the care I was getting from my first doc. Fresh eyes aren't a bad thing, especially given all of the complications you've gone through. The fact that anyone would tell you that a question you ask is stupid concerns me. Arrogance has no place in medical care and yet so many doctors and nurses are full of it! You have a right to ask stupid questions all day long if you feel the need And your doc should shut up and answer them with a smile on her face. I got so beat down when I was at my worst and I know that I wasn't an easy patient to deal with. I was SOOOOOO worn out and so worried about dying far from my son and husband that every time the poor docs would come to my room and ask how I was I'd start bawling This from a girl who is well known to have a heart of steel. I never cry! But a body can only take so much before you give in. I told my girlfriends I'd kind of lost "myself" during the process which was entirely true. It wasn't until they finally fixed my leak that I found me again. BTW my docs prefer not to use stents because of the pain they cause a patient. Instead they use a devise called the "claw" which is literally not felt in your body and in early cases is really successful. In late leaks (like mine) it's much less so, but they decided to go ahead because they felt that the risks of a stent and all of the continued care required might cause me even more difficulty (ie your heart issue etc). I love that little claw It worked for me and saved my life. I went from being horrifically sick to being well in a couple of days, though like you my energy was literally gone. I could barely walk when I came home but every day got better. My son suffered due to my complications. He's still scared I will "go away" again for a long time so when I travel he asks me not to go to the doctors because they might keep me far away from him I'm glad your little one is smaller than that so she won't remember this and have that worry. I know it must break your heart, as it did mine, to not be able to care for her. WHen I was going through all of this I posted on VSG almost daily. I found great support from many people here (and the standard, you must have made this up crap as well, but not too much of that). I wasn't always strong enough to post, but I'd sit in my hospital bed at night and read the kind comments from these strangers across the nation and they helped me, more than I can say. I'm glad you're reaching out, and maybe hun you could do that as well...just keep this thread going with your daily updates until you feel you've found Sannah again Whine, ask stupid questions, scream, yell and cry here and we'll do our best to help you. I had a loving family at home and many dear friends and they did help, but I also felt I had to be strong for them and here, I could just say what I felt without judgement. It helps hun. You're in my thoughts! Now go drink a Protein shake

Sounded like the same place We loved it and got similarly wonderful reactions from our team as well. They had a charred octopus special that night that was beyond devine. I had the wild boar bolonase (sp?) hold the Pasta (as I was more recently out of surgery than you were). I only tasted wine that night but they had a great menu! That was our third day out with the retreat and I must admit I was almost too tired to enjoy it. I'm looking forward to going back now that I have a much more expanded diet.

You'll do fine susie. If we were talking cigarettes or pizza or chocolate or any other vise that you can easily continue AFTER surgery, I'd say stop NOW don't wait a day, but with the soda thing...honestly you can't drink the stuff after surgery for quite some while without having a lot of pain with it, so really there is no question, you will stop. You have no option, so waiting makes sense. I for one drank champagne every day the week prior to surgery I have it now again on rare occasions, just a glass and only on an empty stomach, (because then the carbonation flows through you without getting stuck behind food and blowing up your tummy) but my other bubbly obsession is completely gone. I bet yours will be too The great thing is you are thinking about this now. So many people go into this thinking they'll be the one case who does not have to give up their vice, no matter how bad it is. You're going to do great

I'm with Cheri on the "I eat what I want in moderation" so I don't have a guilty pleasure really. But if I had to pick one thing...a lovely glass of wine at the end of the day is hard to beat

Fiddle, what was the restaurant. I think I know it We had a management retreat in Seattle not long after I got out of hospital and I loved the joint. I had that little chocolate ice cream with no issues For your next dining safari try RN74 downtown. It's a perfect sleeve joint as they are a tasting menu and they pace the meal well if you have more than one course. I've had no issues with anything they have served me in three trips there. Lark is also great for their small portions (tasting menu size). And I forget who asked but red wine and white wine don't differ as to how they effect your tummy. I drink both with no problem. I can drink a couple of glasses of wine without tipping over, though I'm much slower than I used to be! I've become the queen of the half glass request LOL I drink mostly white since my sleeve because the TPN really threw my palate off wack and good reds are still kind of wasted on me. I used to be able to pick out the most subtle flavors and now I just don't get them But...it's great to keep practicing LOL Some people have issues with the tannins in wines, which you'll find more of in red than white. I do find that they bother me more now than they ever did. Three glasses of red wine during a day will ensure a pounding headache the next day, but with whites I'm fine. (people say thats sulfates which is a myth...it's the tannins that are an issue). I don't know why tannins effect me now more. I should ask a wine chemist....I wonder if the high Protein diet makes a difference? We collect pinot noir so it kind of sucks! White and red wines have very low carb counts and the calories aren't bad either as long as you aren't drinking fortified wines or cheaper sparkling (where they add actual sugar to the wine). It's like 120 to 150 cals and 2 to 5 carbs per glass. I make sure to log it into my daily food intake and still don't ever go over my 800 limit. I never have gotten the instant drunk thing though. I wonder if it's because you went so long without alcohol and if that will go away?

Oh totally. By cheap I mean overly thin fabrics that are stretched, not draped. They pucker at seams, and look like they'd all apart in a washer in five seconds. Inexpensive cloths don't have to look "cheap". It's like they throw this crap on a Chinese conveyer belt and just attempt to get a seam near the arse...no real effort to have it lay where it should.

I'm curious, did your doc give you the goal of 130? I'm 5' as well and my goal is 110. My first doc wanted me to shoot for 105.

Oh you can definitely go stupid crazy in a Jrs dept. This store I was in yesterday was full of "old women" but the cloths, while sized JR were actually quite elegant and fun without being bundyish There's a mom at our son's school who obviously shops in a super cheap jr's store at the mall locally (I recognize the crap). She's my age (50) and actually has a super cute figure, but she does it no justice with some of the scraps of fabric she wears. I wouldn't let my Jr wear most of them LOL

Susie, I think you're doing the right thing. You wont be able to drink it after surgery (it would be very painful) so just wait until then and quit cold turkey. I don't drink diet coke but I did like those flavored bubbly waters you get at safeway etc. I drank the sugar free ones right up until surgery and then just quit drinking them and haven't had one since. You have two weeks after the surgery to recoup, so just do it then hun and it will be relatively easy. To this day I sometimes thing that a diet soda might taste good and I've taken a sip of DS's a couple of times but even a sip bothers me. The bubbles are too big and I've lost the taste for the chemicals (ironic since I'm sitting here drinking an atkins Protein drink full of chemicals LOL).

I am a fairly ancient old lady and I just purchased a gorgeous knit shift from a Juniors only store a girlfriend told me about (she's 40 and she shops there too). As long as it's age appropriate who cares what the size is

I remember the presurgery days Of course you aren't supposed to compare to others, but honestly, don't we all? LOL It's fun to imagine where you can be in xyz numbers of months etc. So for fun I was sleeved the first time Aug 23 and then again end of sept (Don't actually know the date because I was so sick). So I gained a lot of weight in that first month (about 40lbs). But since early October I've lost over 50lbs (just over by a few points). 27 to go and I'll be at goal of 110lbs (I'm 5' tall). The first couple of months I lost quickly, like half a pound or more a day, then I had this huge 7lb loss one day and from then on I've been stalling for weeks, then lose a bit, then stall, etc. I'm back into a likely stall myself but I don't mind slow weight loss as it's less likely to cause problems in your body (like gallbladder or kidney issues as well as hair loss and skin issues). My goal is to be at "goal" by May 7th which is my 50th bday. And then my bday treat will be to go to New York and blow a wad of money on a new wardrobe

Awww you're so sweet I'm a shocking 4' 12" and my high was 172 but I gained 40lbs in hospital after that so my profile is a bit miffed up MFP does not like temporary weight gains LOL I bet you've got an itty bitty in you too You just have to flush her out

Here's me with all my new best'ies Kathryn Ireland and Martyn Lawrence Bullard (and some other folks LOL) Back from Hollywood I lost .6 while I was gone, which isn't terrible. Just 4.3 to go to goal...though to be honest, that's a stretch goal given how slowly I lose. We'll see how it goes! Maybe no wine for a week.....Ehhh let's not get drastic LOL Oh I'm the little one in black on the end. Fun to be "the little one" again It's been a few years!

Typically yes. Leak symptoms are extreme weakness (I passed out walking ten feet to the bathroom and was unable to walk without the use of a cane or walker), left shoulder pain, low grade (or higher) fever, some have vomiting, shortness of breath, racing heart etc. The leak is basically sending toxic fluids into your abdominal cavity which poison your organs. As they react, or completely shut down, you have accompanying issues related to whichever organ is effected. For me it was my lungs. I could barely breath on my own because of the fluid buildup, which is painful. The cures are more painful than the leak though! Try to avoid them heh heh

I had the sleeve for vanity reasons. I was otherwise healthy and come from a family of 100 year old fat people who are relatively healthy The hardest part was that I had life threatening complications. Recovery was very slow and painful. I feel relatively normal now and am back in the swing of things generally. I am and was very confident but wanted to look better than I did after years of pregnancies and fertility treatments. They aren't good for the size of your bumm. I suppose some would call my goal "skinny" but it's in the middle of normal for me BMI wise. I have always been amply blessed with T&A even when I weighed 90lbs so I don't expect that will change much, they just might be a bit saggier

Typically for both infection reasons and dehydration issues you will be advised to not get into a hot tub for some time, at minimum until your wounds are healed. Ask your doc about this. I had a time limit but I don't remember what it was because I hate the things

They are not a liquid. Pack them in your carry on in the original container (preferably unopened) and you'll be fine.

Neither he nor the other doctor could confirm this case as it would be a severe violation of HIPPA laws and could lead to a huge lawsuit. Even my original docs office wasn't dumb enough to say I was a patient or discuss my case specifically.

Almost three months. Salmon at maybe ten weeks...

It's not far fetched to think about your son losing his mom. Mine almost lost his due to this surgery. The risks are real and need to be considered carefully in every case to see if this makes sense. For me, it seemed like it was an easy choice, but I do regret it significantly. The torture I underwent was nothing to what I did to my poor son's little security blanket (that would be me lol). I was likely a better candidate for the band, but was sold by a slick doc with great advertising (A center of excellence mind you). It should have been a clue to me that when I had my first appt with the doc they were pushing plastics. They are in the "business" of making money and that was their priority. I looked to be an easy case (no comorbidities, low BMI, low risk) and the danged surgery nearly killed me. I was just having lunch with some girlfriends today and the subject of "crazy" came up. Ya I think for some it's totally nuts to take this step. For others, it's likely very necessary and it is a better option than a bypass (due to malabsorption, etc). What's right for you? I don't know because I don't know your situation, but for me, this was crazy and not very bright. Yes I'm losing weight, but it wasn't worth what I went through.