makemyownluck

pre-op here, but I'm pretty jealous of your most awesome surgery date ever! how are you feeling? are you back to work yet?

I'm still preop - but I've watched some of the youtube vids of people after surgery talking about how it's very uncomfortable for things to go down, that they can feel it very distinctly going down and it's not pleasant. Then those same people a week or so later are back on talking about how that subsided and it's back to normal now. It could be hard to take because of all the internal swelling of your stomach and the healing process, so just focus on getting in what you can and take your time. (easy for a pre-op'er to say, huh?) GOOD LUCK!!!

I agree that complications are frightening - we'd be fools not to be worried about that to some extent. But I'm choosing sleeve because it has the lowest long term risk of complication. Lapband and RNY patients have a whole set of complications they could face at any point in their lives, whereas sleevers typically don't once they are healed from the initial surgery. Congrats on having a date set! It's right around the corner, lucky you!!

I know others have started in the 400+ range, so what do we call it when we reach the 300s?

omelets are a good suggestion, you can put any cheese or veggies you like in them. you can change up the chicken by splitting a breast and stuffing it with ham, cheese and spinach, make stir fry with light sauce and don't eat rice with it. I also like boca burgers. and if you want sausage on the side of an omelet, I happen to love the Morningstar brand meatless sausage (and I'm not a vegetarian, these just have wayyy less fat and 10g Protein per patty and taste really good). As far as free exercising: if weather permits, take a long walk! Take the family with, or the dog, or the ipod... whatever you like. Go to a local park with a trail if you have one, or just start by walking around your block. If you're not used to exercising, start by walking to the corner. Just increase your distance slightly every day. At home, you can do squats (as far down as you can go, it will get easier with practice). You can get weights for a couple bucks a piece at walmart, get some 3lbs and start doing curls and lifting above your arms. Do any of these you can: crunches, leg lifts (lie on your side with legs straight and lift the top one as high as you can, do 3 reps of 10 then switch sides), push ups (start against the wall if you need to, or a table or chair), and jumping jacks. With anything, start small and work your way up. You can also get excellent work out plans on youtube! Good luck!

Still in pre-opVILLE - I go to my seminar on Monday. I really hope to learn more about the time frame for everything soon!! I'm a list maker by nature. Since all I can think about lately is my weight loss plan, I've made a list of NSVs I hope to achieve, and made some rewards to go along with them for motivation. I also made a list of scale related victories and rewards for that. Not sure if everyone does this, or just makes one list or the other, or doesn't make a list of rewards - but I'm a lifelong spoiled only-child, and I like rewards. And I need to start thinking about rewards that have absolutely NOTHING TO DO WITH FOOD. Anyway, thought I'd share. Hope you enjoy! Feel free to steal any of these. NSV achievement/reward: see my toes - pedicure touch my toes while seated on the floor - new gym shoes lose my double chin - buy a new necklace see my collarbones - buy a new top to show them off run a mile w/o walking - new gym clothes walk up 5 flights of stairs - new shoes (of any kind) *5 flights because I park in a garage 5 flights up. I hate waiting for the dang elevator anyway!! get on an actual bike - go on a bike ride with my Daddy! sit Indian style comfortably - go to a yoga class cross my legs at the knee - buy a dress (for the first time in yearssss) Weight loss achievement/reward: *yes, I have a lot to lose! -50lbs - facial -100lbs - massage -150lbs - Road Trip! (no idea where!) -200lbs - new mattress, new couch and chairs in living room -250lbs - bathing suit and a passport! @ GOAL -------- I'M GOING TO JAMAICA!!! And it will be my first plane ride. I would love to hear any suggestions that anyone has as well! I really can't wait to start checking some of these off!

I go to a seminar on Monday, I'm really hoping they have a scale there. I realize that I could BUY a high capacity scale, but I just don't want to! I'd really prefer not to have a scale in my house at all... too stressful! I hope I can also find out what other steps are needed and when I can schedule a surgery date!! Best of luck to you on your surgery. Your pre-op diet doesn't sound too terrible! And if you're already a few days in, hopefully the worst of it is over and you'll be smooth sailing to surgery day!! I can't wait to hear from you post-op!

It doesn't sound nasty to me (but it wasn't directed at me). Many people don't like to hear the truth, and I think it's easy to be content by significant weight loss, regardless if you meet your goal, simply because it is already a major accomplishment to have lost so much. To me, that would be settling. Why would you have a major surgery to settle for less than you wanted? Should this person feel bad for not being at goal yet? No, but it would be wise not to ignore the reasons you haven't made it to goal - ignoring things is how I, personally, got to be so fat in the first place! I have over 200lbs to lose, so I find this post enlightening. I had already planned to take advantage of the first 6-12 mo, but this post really put a spotlight on how important it is to take advantage of the tool A S A P --- no "I had surgery a month ago, I can't work out!" excuses for me! (still pre-op for now) So while I'm sure some people are quick to say this was bad or misguided advice, I appreciate it. Personally, I plan to only eat when I'm hungry and continue to use shakes post-op. (I started using them like a month ago to get myself used to them, and I actually LIKE them!) I don't want to have this surgery for nothing - or worse, be told I need to convert it to an RNY simply because I couldn't commit to giving this my all. I'm in an extremely obese body. I need to take extreme measures to fix the problem!

I was JUST thinking the same thing today. I can't WAIT to buy a cute winter coat. Right now I have a bulky hoodie I bought from the men's big and tall section. I hate it, but it fits, it zips and it has a hood. Clothing choices stink when you're a big lady.

If you have insurance, you may be able to get a panniculectomy covered by the insurance. It's a surgery that removes excess skin from the abdominal area. It's not exactly a tummy tuck, because tummy tucks also involve tightening the muscles underneath the skin, so the results aren't AS good as a tummy tuck, but if cost is an issue, it's definitely a decent alternative to hanging skin. It's a good idea to wait until you've been a goal for a year before you consider surgery, though. Your skin needs time to adapt to the weight loss. I'm still pre-op, but I already know that this tool is what YOU make of it. If you exercise, you will see more results, which is true of any weight loss plan, surgery or not. You can't predict how your skin will react, so there really is no point in guessing and stressing over it. Focus on what you can control (your diet, your exercise regime, etc) and stick with it! Good luck to you!

ERMAHGERDDD I LOVE BEEF JERKY. I'm pre-op. and I'm so happy this is something I can still enjoy a few short months out from surgery. I love that it takes so long to chew and all that Protein fills me up NOW at pre-op, so I can only imagine how little I'll need post-op! Woo! Word of caution - too much beef jerky = constipation. I found this out in the worst possible way! AND! For those of you Jack Link's lovers - I am also a fan of their original jerky. I've tried both target pantry brand and walmart great value brand original jerky, and it's comparable. The walmart variety had some bits of fat that I didn't care for, but if you don't mind picking some parts off, then it's worth the savings. I haven't tried Trader Joe's jerky, but I'm definitely interested now! I'll have to check that out soon. Nothing beats the jerky I get from the local meat market by my grandma's house in Wisconsin, tho!! I wish they shipped!!

use the internetz! you can look up anything on youtube. You get an A+ in dedication!! Hope you and yours are safe through the storm.

Good luck on your goal! You are looking great!!!

Thank you so much for your concern! At this point, my mom is just talking about it. She has already said she wants to see how I do with everything before she even considers it. Right now, she's very pro-band because the only person she knows who has had any WLS had the band, and she's been really fortunate and had lots of success with it. But I know once my mom makes the decision to start this path, she'll inform herself as much as possible, and I've become like a freakin' encyclopedia of WLS because I've been studying it like crazy for months! I wouldn't let her have surgery without having a serious conversation about it with her first, that's for sure! I didn't think about referring her to this site, though. Maybe I can find some good posts and send them to her, re: band revisions. I haven't heard any stories about people being unsuccessful with the sleeve - they may have complications or stalls, but they do lose the weight. I can't imagine going through all this and not losing weight!

Mee toooo! I haven't met her yet, but that's who my insurance referred me to. I'm going to the seminar 11/5.

I honestly believe that the band is intended for that - temporary use to lose weight, learn new habits, then get it removed. Like one person said, she had the stomach flu and then it was never the same. Think about it - anytime you get sick and vomit violently (like with a flu or food poisoning), you risk the band slipping and then you've got a basically useless tool. I don't like the idea of an implant in my body, either, because you are almost guaranteed that at SOME POINT IN YOUR LIFE, you will have to have surgery again to remove it. And if you have problems before you lost all the weight you wanted, then you have to choose another type of WLS and start the whole process over again. I wouldn't necessarily push the sleeve to someone over a bypass, but I do think that if you are considering having surgery to lose weight, then you've probably had a weight problem for a long time, if not lifelong, and the best bet is a PERMANENT solution, not a temporary band. As is the case with me, I want something that's going to keep me in check for the rest of my life - something I can heal from surgery, adapt new eating habits, and move on with my life - not going for fills constantly and risking re-operation. I have a similar issue with my mom, who says she wants to get the lapband. I've tried telling her that there are cons to the band and complications, but I don't think she's really listening to me. I know she hasn't really looked into it that much, she just likes the idea because it's outpatient with little downtime. She's not factoring in all the other inconveniences of it. When the time comes, if they ever get motivated to have any surgery, they'll go to the informational seminar and learn about it for themselves! Once they are educated on the subject, then it will be worth discussing further.

you look amazing! and so much younger! keep up the great work.

It's gonna depend on how your MD bills the services. If it's billed as something that falls under "weight loss" it could very well be denied by your insurance if it falls under the exclusion. You should be able to ask your insurance company for something in writing regarding what's specifically excluded. Some plans just exclude surgery, others could exclude anything related to weight loss altogether (which is really unfortunate). As far as leaks, those complications usually are detected in the first few days, so by the time you come back to the US, you should be in the clear on that (barring some really unusual circumstance). Hope this helps!

I'm still pre-op, but am taking the advice of practicing post-op habits now. I'm using smaller plates (but not smaller utensils less), not drinking within 30m of or during meals, and I'm trying to practice taking smaller sips of drinks. The problem is, that I've always been a chugger. Honestly, more than missing food, I think I'll miss chugging or gulping (water, I don't drink anything else but protein shakes). I've been trying to get in the habit of sipping, but I find that it makes me quite gassy, whereas chugging never has. Has anyone else had this problem? And post-op former chuggers out there have some advice? I haven't seen anything like this posted on the forums, so I'm wondering if other people just don't have this problem?

thanks for the responses! I'm sure it will work itself out when I have surgery, but this practicing is kinda driving me nuts!

Gastrectomy (removing a portion of the stomach) has been around since the 1800s, actually. Not necessarily the sleeve gastrectomy, but removing part of the stomach to treat cancer and ulcers has been around a very long time. I love a gal who's done her homework!

a sleeve CAN be converted to bypass, but it's not really "the first step" of a bypass. With a bypass, your stomach is still in your body, but it is separated into two parts, with you intestines connected to the smaller sac. You can recreate this with a sleeve, but a normal, first bariatric surgery RNY patient will not be missing most of their stomach like sleevers are. The "second step" of converting a sleeve to a bypass is by rerouting the small intestines. The "bypass" part refers to bypassing the first section of your intestines, which is where your body absorbs fat, calories and most nutrients from the food your stomach has digested. Because of this, you only absorb a small amount of nutrients from the foods you eat. This, combined with the much smaller stomach pouch, is why RNY patients have a much harder time maintaining the right levels of Vitamins and minerals vs. sleeve patients. But it is also why they can tend to lose weight more quickly than a sleeve (tho some sites/surgeons swear the weight loss is comparable between RNY and sleeve). This difference with resectioning the intestines is also why RNY patients come off their diabetes meds faster. They aren't able to absorb sugar as easily AND because of the small sac, if a large amount hits your intestines too quickly, it will make you sick (dumping). Same can happen with fatty foods. In short, I don't want anything that can/will make me violently ill. Dumping sounds like a nightmare, and most RNY patients have it at least a few times before they figure out how to control it. But I am not diabetic (yet), so I'd rather try the sleeve, work hard with it, and then reconsider other options if I'm not successful. However, I truly feel I can be successful with the sleeve. Hope this helps!

I'm in the same boat here. I know I need to lose 250 or more pounds (no MD I've seen yet has a scale higher than 400, and I'm over that) and I just don't know if I should go for the bypass instead. I have an incredible amount to lose! My deciding factor has always been "With the sleeve you don't have malabsorption". However, this doesn't mean we won't need lifelong supplements. Even if you ate the most balanced, perfect diet, you just can't eat enough of anything to get all the nutrients you need in. You will still have to monitor your levels and take supplements, just like RNY patients do. The advantage is that if you need to take medications, you won't have to get a special formula like RNY patients do. With VSG, you can't take NSAIDs, your risk for reflux and ulcers is much higher with the tiny stomach. The other PRO I have is that VSG doesn't cause dumping... but I have a sweet tooth and can't help but think that maybe dumping would be a blessing in disguise, keeping me from eating things I shouldn't. But for me, I'd rather have a tool that allows me to still enjoy my life. If I get married, I want that wedding cake, even if it's just a bite or two. It seems like RNY is much more extreme, sort of whipping you into submission, whereas the sleeve is just a coach, helping me slow down, saving me from my own incessant hunger, and making me more mindful of what goes into my body. But if my period hits and I want chocolate ice cream, I can have it. In moderation, of course! I'm definitely leaning toward VSG, but I do catch myself wondering if it will be enough to get me to goal... goal is like, 270lbs away!