LilMissDiva Irene

Hello Veterans! I'm looking for responses from Veterans about 18 Months + Post Op. The reason for the time frame is because a lot of times (including myself) we can go a long time without feeling hunger. Then one day a long way down the road it just returns. I was around 2 years out when I finally realized I was feeling actual hunger! Growling stomach and wanted to chew my arm off. I feel hunger after about 3-4 hours after no matter how or what I've eaten in my last meal. i.e. high protein/lower carb... etc. Of course the hunger is worse or faster setting if I eat something high in carbs.

I'm open to help, assist, butt kick, pat you on the back... all that. I absolutely believe in this tool with all my heart! It has done for me what I couldn't do for myself nor even the lap band was able to do for me either. It was the best find and I can't say enough how it's given me my life back!!! I won't say I know everything, because I DON'T! But in my career I always say, if I don't know the answer - someone else does. I'd like to open the discussion for anyone who needs someone to listen or to answer those millions of questions that come with this life altering surgery. Blessings to all!!! Your dreams are at your doorstep now with the VSG.

This is the devil's addiction voice. Learn to hear it well, and get to know it's accent. Seriously, even though you aren't really cheating per-se but you are recognizing the chant in your head. It will come in handy to understand this voice when it starts to rationalize foods you should not be eating, most specifically foods that will trigger a downfall.

Spring cleaning from the inside... ahhh nicely said.

I did this and it can be a real morale booster when the scale is being a poopie pants. The scale isn't always as charming as we would like. Incentive clothes were my greatest joy!

Acid reflux feels like: A pain in your chest in the breast plate area Sometimes it radiates to the shoulders Sometimes you feel it in your upper back You constantly "urping" what you ate Sometimes it is more acidy and burning but not always It makes you cough (you will recognize the difference if you're not sick or getting over an illness) You wake up in the middle of night coughing or choking You get the vomit reflex often You can feel nauseated a lot Your throat will become scratchy like you have a cold but you don't You can have a rumbling in your stomach that might resemble hunger. In time I have learned the difference in feeling If I can think of more I will come back and edit this post, but this is pretty much the majority of symptoms.

@@Chelenka I posted this exact thing on FB the other day, if surgeons ever come up with a WLS to fix the brain, I'm sooo there! Ha!

Yes acid reflux is a known (at least it is now) complication of the VSG. Let me preface this with the fact that I loved my sleeve while it worked. Anyhow I had gotten GERD with my lap band and in 2010 when I revised to sleeve GERD was not as well known to be a serious side effect of the VSG. My GERD just gets worse over time. I am taking 40mg Omep in the AM and Ranitidine in the PM before bed because I choke on my acid during the night. It's gotten so bad that now I'm working with my bariatric surgeon to revise me to the Bypass. Don't I wish I knew that already!! I would have just revised to the Bypass without this problem in between. But hindsight is 20/20 - and I didn't know. Good luck to you.

Hello Bariatric Pals! I just wanted to remind you all that the chatroom (down at the bottom of your browser page) is always open. If you like to give support or if you're in need of support please check in and say hi.\ Thank you for always making this site a great place to give and to receive support and advice. Good luck on your journeys!

We should ask this same question about Fast Food restaurants because I have a whole other opinion about entirely!

Hello @@starlight82 - I feel you! I also was banded in 2008 and I had mine removed for nearly the same exact reasons. I was revised to the VSG on 9/15/10 and for the first 3 years I did fantastic. It worked awesome but something happened in the last year that I gained some weight back. My surgery turns out that it morphed into 2 stomachs. I have no idea how that happened but since then my eating stinks because I get literally hungry an hour after eating. Also, I have extremely bad GERD that I have to take medication for it day and night. I am working on a revision to the bypass hopefully soon. My advice is it sounds like you're doing really good. I do agree with your surgeon that you add more Water to your day. How much are you getting? The minimum really is 64 Oz, so if anything try to shoot for that. Also eat low sodium it will help with the water retention you have going on. Good luck to you and I'm interested to follow your progress!

@@nepagirl CONGRATS!! You have your priorities in order, you will do great. How exciting!

It's not something I prefer to do, I like to stay home and cook because I know exactly what ingredients I'm using. Restaurants are notorious for adding extra sodium and sugar to their menus, which is a major reason why their food can be addicting. If we do decide to go out, which is maybe 1-2x per month at the most. When we do go out to eat I usually choose a meal that is more Protein than anything else and choose veggies as my side dishes. If there are any carbs, no matter what it is I will eat a few bites of it. You only live once! Especially since I don't eat like that at home.

@@Dr-Patient my husband always tells me the skin does not bother him at all, and he proves it. For the most part my skin issues are in my head. I do plan to have my skin removed someday. ETA: for me personally some loose skin would be okay on my husband. But if he had a large amount of it from say, losing maybe 200+ Lbs I can see it being a turn off for me. My hubby is an attractive guy and admittedly is what attracted me to him initially. He is a bit overweight by maybe 30 Lbs now as he's losing some weight himself, I doubt he will have little or any skin to worry over.

@@proudgrammy yes non-surgical intervention is great too! I had some Juvederm put into my lips and honestly just that helps with the looking younger believe it or not!