LilMissDiva Irene

Hey hope!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!! And of course CONGRATS on your weight loss and your mental fortitude to *not* indulge. Next, what your sister in law did was very insensitive... though I don't think she did it in a vindictive way. I think you have every right to feel upset by this. But just keep in mind she has no idea what you are *really* going through so she just went with the cake idea, even though your daughter advised her against it. Also, it's very true that certain foods can make us feel physically upset, especially if you aren't used to eating it. I've noticed for myself anything with a high fat content usually makes me feel nauseous. High sugar will have my heart racing, and I'll crash big time an hour after eating it. This is even worse if I haven't had anything like that in as many weeks. Hang in there, and next time don't be shy to tell her you really appreciate her effort but you would prefer to stay as far away from junk food as you possibly can. Nothing wrong with that I don't think!!

Hi Neanie, I'm so sorry your BP wants to act up right now!! Gah!! I didn't necessarily have an issue with it, but my BP was right around what yours is now when I had surgery. Sometimes when you are going through stressful times, (like surgery) our BP can go up. I'm surprised they haven't taken that into account. Regardless I'm sure they are just looking out for you. I really hope for your sake that you can get your BP controlled in time for them to give you the surgery. It's a catch 22 for you if not... you can't lose weight so it raises your blood pressure and you cant exercise properly due to the joint pain... and because you can't exercise you can't lose weight. It's awful! I can tell you this, my surgery saved my life. I used to be on 4 max doses of HBP medications for years. I got off 2 of them with my band and just recently I have been released from ALL!! Also, my joint pain has been non existent. I've been able to RUN on my treadmill... what a blessing!!

Sometimes that's our only option. Hang in there, as long as you're not gaining then I say stay the course. Hugs!!!

Wow, news to me... do you have anything to back that up? Just curious. I've seen many WLS television shows and they've showed the difference between having the surgery with a fatty liver and a healthy one. From what I've seen it's clearly easier to work around a non fatty liver.

Whoops forgot to add this from your ticker question - we have a tutorial: http://www.verticalsleevetalk.com/topic/13516-ticker-tutorial-for-vst-lbt-with-pictures/

What you are feeling right now is sooo normal. Don't feel bad about questioning yourself either. I do believe many more people feel this way out of surgery than don't. I did!!! I'll be the first to tell you that... I thought I had made such a terrible mistake. I even took over a year to come to this decision, so I can't say it wasn't from doing research and taking my time. This feeling can happen to anyone. That being said, I'm thinking those feelings are simply because when you're lying in bed feeling miserable and in my case feeling severe nausea and even vomiting it's easy to wonder if I'd made the right decision. That was six months ago now though, and today I don't question my decision for one second!!! I'm incredibly happy and I can do so very much more today than I could 65 Lbs ago. My knees so longer hurt and lock up on me, I can run, I feel empowered to do anything, and I'm loving all the compliments I get when people see me. I can shop in normal size clothes and I love dressing cute. I love the bug eyes I get back when I tell someone I need to lose 45 more pounds, as most think I'd be ok not to lose anymore weight. I know better though... LOL I'm absolutely content and happy!!! You will be here too someday. It's going to take time and patience from you. I know I can be the biggest cheerleader for the sleeve sometimes, and its all genuine. I really AM glad I had my sleeve done now, and someday you will too.

No way you are not too small. I think majority of the world thinks you have to be bedridden fat to consider WLS as an option. Some wait that long, others don't. You are good to go, and lucky you decided to do it now. You don't have a lot to lose, so your skin issues will be minimal at best. You will likely have better results than those who need to lose 200+ Lbs, and you will make your goal really quickly and you can be about your business and living your life. I always did wish I would've had this option when I was smaller and not wasted 20 years of my life being so big... Good luck to you!! I'm glad you have decided not to allow anyone else's decisions for you affect your decision for yourself.

Rock it!!!!!!!!!! Congrats!!!!!!!!!

Sounds exactly like my experience... pretty spot on. How are you feeling now?

Taking your time eating early out is super important. It's hard I know, I was so used to eating fast and furious. I never made myself vomit after eating but I would get uncomfortable sometimes... but since I was previously banded for years I knew when I got my STOP NOW signal. It's still good to see your Dr., its never something to be taken lightly. I hope all goes well, and please let us know how it turns out. In the mean time, continue to take tiny sips and go slow. For me, it actually took me a full month of eating tiny portions of solids while still having liquids here and there. Nothing wrong with taking your time.

Hey Paronella, CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!!!! You're doing excellent!!!!!

Excellent idea! I don't really post what I eat every day, but I can tell you I can eat about 3 oz of meat, about 2-3 bites of good carbs and about 1/4 cup of veggies right now. I'm usually done at that point, and I'm finish eating in about 20-30 minutes. Of course if I take longer to eat I can fit more in. I try never to do that. I am six months post op.

LOL!! Sorry I had to chuckle at the highlighted... I seriously doubt anyone with the sleeve will ever be able to polish off an entire Whopper... ever again. TG, right?? LOL Anyway, the good answer Shanny is that NO you did not stretch your sleeve to obscene amounts. The information I received from Dr. Cirangle is that your sleeve will stretch usually from about 2-3 oz. up to about 6 oz. That's not even a cup of volume. No worries. Regarding pork, I totally agree with. It's super dense, I even had to stop eating it. It kept making me feel not so good when I'd eat it, that and beef. Then I come to find out that beef and pork can keep some folks to holding on to excess weight. True or not true, I'm not sure. But ever since I've stopped eating them I've been losing at a really good pace. I have no desires to eat them again at this time. I've never been a beef fan anyway really but I did used to love pork!!! I'm kinda over it now, as I haven't had any in about 2 months now. Don't really miss it. Good luck to you, though I really think you are ok - hugs!!!

Every Doctor pre op diets/guidelines are different, but the majority of them are low carb. The reason is as the OP mentioned above, it will shrink the liver to help with easier access to your stomach. A fatty liver is really hard to maneuver and get around. I believe I have mentioned this here many times, the pre op diet must be followed - or running the risk of having your surgery cancelled. It has everything to do with a safe surgery, and losing weight is but a side effect. I hope this time you can stick to your pre op diet, I'm very sad for you. I know anyone can, it's only a few weeks. If someone wants the surgery bad enough, it's best to bite the bullet and do what our surgeons tell us. They only have our best interests in mind...

@Leslie - WTG!!! @Becca - Sooo close, get er done!!!

!!!!!!!!!!AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!! CONGRATS TIFFY & HUBBY AND BIG BROTHER AND OF COURSE LITTLE SPROUT!!!!!! I'll definitely keep you in my prayers!!!!!!!! :D

Hi jasaz, Wow that's quite a story there! Your weight stats are very similar to mine starting and whatnot. I was 330 Lbs at my heaviest, however I was 272 on surgery day. I also had my surgery in Mexico, and really it went smooth and uneventful save for the nausea, etc... but that's normal apparently. Good luck and keep us posted on your progress!!

Heya Lyn, Well the hardes of those two weeks are going to be the first 3-5 days when your body is coming down from sugars and carbs. You'll probably get headaches and some pretty terrible head hunger, as well as REAL hunger. All I can suggest is to do the absolute very best that you can. It is *really* difficult pre surgery with all the hunger pangs and whatnot. Come here for support, we'll always be here to pick you up!! Keep focused on your destination. Good luck to you, and certainly April will be here super quick.

I couldn't agree more... not to mention that statement is completely false. NO WLS is *completely* reversible. I've even heard of some that couldn't have all of the band removed due to the extensive scar tissue. All I know is that my sleeve is everything I ever wanted out of my band, but I never got.

Excellent points Tiffy... and I can say for myself I definitely can fit more in my stomach now than I could at 2 months out. Especially since I've been taking my antibiotics (H Pylori) which I believe is bringing down a lot of swelling I had in there. I have to keep an eye on my portions, 3 oz of meat, a nice portion of green veggies and a couple bites of healthier carbs and I'm done. No sense in continuing to eat if I know that's a normal portion and I'm no longer physically hungry. Now, head hunger, that's a beast of a different color!!!

The first I ever tried was teh Oikos plain and it was so terrible, it kept me from eating it for months!! Then I tried the Chobani with fruit and I totally loved it. Going to get me some more as soon as I find time to hit the grocery store. I will also try adding Protein powder in too, as someone suggested, that's a really great idea.

SUFFRIN SUCCATASH!!! LOL It just cracks me up when one sees the word "Smoothie" it is instantly thought of as healthy. They are not healthy, they are full of sugar. Personally I'd rather have one PBC and be happy with 1/20th of the amount of sugar than what that smoothie king drink has... blechh!!!! In regards to McDonalds, its safe to say just about zero things there is going to be healthy for me. Yes, even their newest invention, the oatmeal. I'm sure they have hacked it up so with so much fat and sugar it should be considered a sin, as oatmeal is generally a healthy wise choice. Even many restaurants ADD SUGAR to their garden salads!! It's best to stay home and prepare everything myself so I'll know exactly whats going into it.