joatsaint

I can whole-heartedly say I'd do it all over again in a minute. Even knowing how much it was going to hurt afterwards, I'd do it again. My rating is a 1. I've had no long term complications. The only real problem I experienced was in the 1st 10 day post-op. The liquid pain medication made me gag so much that I couldn't drink it. So I just lived with the pain. And I went through the whole, "What the Hell did I do to myself?" phase. Would I do it all over again? Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes!

Good luck with your decision. When I made my decision, I mentally prepared myself for people that might try to talk me out of it. I was surprised at the support I got from friends and family. And you can use my standard line when people ask about the weight loss. I just tell them that I've drastically cut back on how much I eat and I get out and walk more. (they don't have to know every detail) :-P And here's a list of excuses to explain the surgery scars: http://www.bariatricpal.com/blog/9018/entry-31422-girl-you-aint-gonna-believe-this-or-how-to-explain-your-vsg-scars/ My personal favorite: "Oh, these?" *embarrassed face* "I know they look horrible, but the sex was INCREDIBLE!"

At 4 weeks, I was allowed full foods, but Frankensleeve didn't like full foods yet - especially anything fibrous like onions. If you haven't tried onions yet, be sure an eat only about 1/2 teaspoon of them to test how your new stomach will tolerate them. 1/2 tsp was enough to cause stomach distress if my sleeve didn't like a food. My sleeve always felt like a garbage disposal grinding rocks when I first started eating vegetables again.

I can't say they all do an EGD, but since so many doctors do perform it as part of the pre-surgery process, I wouldn't want to have a surgeon that didn't perform one.

I was never banned from drinking with a straw, just warned to be careful how much I drank in one swallow. It takes a while to learn how much you can safely swallow and get used to drinking smaller amounts and then make it an unconscious habit.

I pour mine over ice too. The EAS carb control chocolate shakes are a little thinner than Premier, and almost as tasty.

I can only say that the surgery completely turned my life around. It was the best decision I've ever made. Sleep apnea, gone, leg and feet pain gone, mentally I'm in a much better place. Even with all the pain I went through, I wouldn't hesitate to do it all again. I made my decision to have surgery after doing lots and lots of research. But I decided and committed to it before telling my friends and family. I wasn't expecting any support for my decision, so I had prepared for them to try and talk me out of it. But they were very supportive. I wish you luck on your decision.

I've only used Isopure. I mix it into my food after it's cooked. No real flavor, but it does have a little pasty feeling in my mouth.

I know what you mean about going back to old habits. Old habits and cravings can be a real b*tch! When I can't resist a food, I can limit how much I eat. For example, yesterday we had a baby shower at work and I wanted a piece of cake soooo bad. Instead of going without or giving in completely, I got a 6oz styrofoam cup and filled it 1/2 full with cake, ate it and then filled myself up on Protein. That way I did get to taste the the cake, but I didn't go too far off my diet. You might try another method I use. My mom always tries to send food home with me and rather than disappoint her by refusing, I take it, then throw it away. And by throw it away, I mean open the container and dump it in the ditch. I'm too tempted to take it back out of the trash can if I leave the food in the container. I know, TMI. :-P You might try getting back on track by throwing 1/2 the happy meal away. Good luck,

During my soft mushy stage, as long as it was soft it was okay. I was warned against eating hard things like sunflower seeds, even ground up, because there might be a small hard bit that wasn't fully ground up and might get stuck in my staple line. Just make sure the chives are fresh, not dried and I think you would be okay with them.

I didn't try drinking till past the 6 month mark. I had some leftover tequila (about 1oz) and crystal light. I was pleasantly buzzed afterwards. Since then, I've drank a few Mike's Hard Lemonades. Usually 1 can is enough to get me feeling good. I pour it over ice and let the carbonation bubble off a little before drinking. I was really a lightweight about drinking before surgery, now it only takes 1 can. I am now a cheap and happy drunk!

I've only ever drank the chocolate shakes and I can highly recommend Premier Protein chocolate. It is very good. I have only found them at Sam's Club - 12 for $18. I've heard some say they found them a Wal-Mart, but my local one doesn't stock them.

At 15 months, I can eat between 8 to 12 oz at one meal - depending on how dense the food is. I can hold more of stuff like spaghetti and chicken noodle Soup (processed carbs) vs dense Protein like chicken/pork/beef. I can usually get full on 6 to 8oz of meat. For about the first 6 months, I would eat about 1/4 cup of whatever and be full, then I noticed that I was able to hold a little more. It's almost like my stomach relaxed. I don't really count calories, I'm used to my new way of eating and I weigh daily. If I go up in weight, I just get a little more careful about sticking to my protein/vegetables and cut back on processed carbs/sugar. The majority of my diet revolves around eating lean pork, black Beans, and lentils. But sometimes, like this week, I've had a huge craving for salads. So I've been eating my pork and lentils during the day and having a huge salad a night. My typical day is: Breakfast - Premier Protein Bar Mid morning snack - 1 cup of my pork and lentils lunch - another cup of pork and lentils Afternoon snack - cup of pork and lentils or protein bar dinner - Rotisserie chicken mixed into a big salad Snack - cup of pork and lentils or protein bar or apple or grapes or pineapple or an orange (or 2 pieces of candy - 120 calories)

What you're going through is completely normal. I went through it as well. While you may not be able to chug a bottle of Water, you will still be able to drink plenty, not at first, but a few weeks down the line you'll adjust to the amounts you can safely drink at once. For me, water is a slider food. As long as I haven't eaten beforehand, I can drink 8 to 10 ozs. pretty quickly. The 1st few months, I was real careful about drinking slowly and learning how much I could drink before over doing it. As far as fruit goes, my new stomach didn't like fruit or any fiberous food for about 6 months. That doesn't mean I didn't eat a strawberry here and there or bananas/apples/pinapple/grapes, but I was really limited to only 3 or 4 bites and then Frankensleeve would start growling. It was about 6 months after surgery that I was able to tolerate fruit and salad. The only food I now avoid is Taco Bell taco sauce. Funny that after 15 months, my stomach still cramps up with just the smallest bite of food with the sauce on it.

I'm 15 months post-op and haven't really had a re-lapse to my old eating habits. But, having said that, I did allow myself to over eat during the holidays and I gained about 7 lbs over Nov and Dec. I went back to my old way of eating starting in Jan. I've managed to lose those 7 lbs plus about 5 more since then. Whenever I see that I'm getting offtrack, I go back to my original diet plan (lean Protein and vegetables) and walking.

My best advice is not to let stalls get you down. They will come and go. I went through at least one stall a month for the past 15 months. I've learned that if I just keep on doing what worked before the stall, will start working again. The body just needs to take a timeout once in a while to get use to it's new lower weight.

I had a pulling sensation whenever I lay on my right side, it went on for months. I'm not sure when, but the feeling eventually faded.

I never noticed any difference except the feeling of fullness came on much quicker!

My insurance only had a few approved doctors in my area. I took the list and googled every doctor, and looked at their years of practice and any reviews from patients. I picked my doctor based mainly on his 12 years of experience doing Sleeves and partially on how close his office was.

I've never had a personal trainer, but from what I've read and seen on TV, I'd make sure the trainer I picked was one that didn't try to push me so hard that I got burned out. One trainer I saw interviewed bragged about how he pushed his people to the point where they threw up - that would get old to me fast and I'd dump him in a second. I would try to find a trainer that is able to see where my limits are and push me just beyond. I'd visit the gym your interested in and ask members who the favorite trainer is.

Me too. I felt drained of energy. But I experienced that on the Atkins diet as well. So I think it is the high protein, low carbs that causes the feeling of tiredness. I didn't have those simple sugars pouring into by system and my body was use to having easy access to energy. I've learned that when I'm feeling weak and sleepy that I crave sweets. I think it's my brain trying to get some sugar into my system for some quick energy.

I eat sugar, I just keep in mind the calories I'm taking in and make sure I eat Protein and good carbs the majority of the time. I didn't start eating sugary stuff until I was eating over 1000 calories a day - around the 6 month mark. Up until then, I needed to make every calorie count and get the most nutrition per calorie I could. I don't eat sugar - outside of the sugar in Protein Bars - on a daily basis. And I limit myself to a small portion - 1/2 doughnut or a small piece of birthday cake (enough to fill 1/2 a coffee cup). As long as I keep losing weight and getting enough nutrition, then I say no food is off limits. It's only when I start gaining or stalling that I get more strict on my diet.

I had a very painful 10 days after surgery, but I don't regret any of it. I'm down 140 lbs in 15 months. And I almost feel like a normal person. :-) I would do it all over again in a minute. I just wish I could have had it done at 20 instead of 46. Good luck with your recover. I does get better, it just takes time.

Frankensleeve didn't like anything except for the most puree type foods for about 3 months post-op. I pretty much stuck to Cream of Mushroom Soup, refried Beans, and Premier chocolate Protein drinks. On the occasions that I did try a new food, my stomach felt like a garbage disposal with rocks grinding up in it.

By "open", do you mean a deep hole or just a divot. My biggest incision never opened, but I did have a pretty deep indent that sunk into the skin. It has gotten better over the past 15 months but I can still feel where it sinks in. Even if it doesn't hurt, I would contact my doctor about it. And leaving it unsealed could cause the scaring to be worse.