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You are right - you may have been off on the reality of this surgery. It is only a tool to help with weight loss it doesn't do it all for you unfortunately! However, if you stick with eating properly, getting your Water, and doing some exercise - the weight will come off. The good news is that unlike the past diets, you don't tend to put everything back on at each holiday and big night out. It took me about 15 months to hit my goal (loss of 146 lbs) and now I am 5 lbs under my original goal for a total loss of 151lbs so far. I had many plateaus, but in the long run, the weight always started coming off again. It's not a magic fix, but use your tool and you'll get where you want to be! Good luck.

I have had 3 surgeries in my lifetime (only one for WLS), but I don't remember a tube going in or out for ANY of them. I had VSG about 16 months ago and it was the best thing I've ever done. Don't let this fear hold you back! I only wish I had been able to do this when I was 21 instead of having to wait until 33!

You're normal! Isn't that nice to hear sometimes? haha Each day will get a little better, but the first few are the hardest. Soon, you'll be drinking/eating more and then you'll be asking "should I be able to eat this much????". Good luck and just follow your doctors guidelines the best you are able to.

At 5 days post-op, I was back to work full-time and I was EXHAUSTED at the end of the day - ok, by lunch. You have had major surgery, you're barely able to get enough calories in to keep a bird alive, and you're body is spending it's energy trying to heal. In a few weeks, you'll be able to drink more, and more importantly, eat more (high protein items that aren't yucky protein drinks). As soon as I started eating solid food, I had a huge jump in my energy level. Do you best to choke down the protein for now and in a few weeks, you'll start feeling like a new person! (I always added the Special K protein drinks to my water, it's only 5g per packet, but it kept me constantly getting hydration and protein and the iced tea isn't sickly sweet like so many of the other flavors.)

Jumping right in and experiencing everything by your mom's side is really the best support you can give. Having a full understanding that her life is going to completely change is very important. Changing along with her and being non-judgmental when she slips will also help a lot. At one point in my life, I was the supportive friend and years later my friend told me that the fact that I was willing to try Proteins, crushed up Vitamins and everything else he was going through still stood out and he has thanked me for that kind of support. Now that I am the one going through all of these life changes, my husband is a little wishy washy in his support. He likes that I've lost weight, but he's jealous and tends to sabotage my efforts (unconsciously, I hope). The biggest struggle is that he still expects us to keep buying the same types of food, drinks, Snacks, etc... He hasn't changed his eating habits hardly at all and having all the junk food has been difficult for me. Even after a year, he still makes a big deal out of how small my portions are and for some strange reason it always makes me feel weird, strange, abnormal, guilty - a bunch of things that I shouldn't feel. Then he complains that he hasn't lost any weight. Uggh! Anyway, I think you are doing an amazing job already of supporting you mom. My mom didn't agree with my decision, but once she knew I had done my research and made up my mind, she stood by me and has supported me throughout my journey. This type of support is the KEY to success and I'm sure your mother loves you very much for standing by her.

Check with your doctor, but likely you don't have to remain off the pill forever. Discuss your PCOS with him and see if you can get the clear to go back on after surgery and some healing has taken place. There are many women on here who use BC. If it's temporary, do it for your health and a safer surgery. Also, you may find that once you start to lose weight, some of your PCOS symptoms may decrease a bit. This may also be a good time to discuss some alternative treatments with your doctor. I will be blunt. My mother almost died of a blood clot in her lung after surgery (not WLS). I was not ready to lose her and luckily she pulled through. However, it meant another surgery to install a filter, she had to go on medication, and she had to change her diet to fit that medication. Her whole life changed, but luckily she still had one. If you're deciding on surgery, make it as safe as possible.

I lost two cup sizes in about the first two weeks! I think all the weight I lost then was directly from my chest. Luckily, they now seem to lose more in proportion with the rest of me and my cup size has stayed pretty stable (although my butt and thighs still having trouble catching up!)

I was at least 8 weeks out before I started feeling almost "normal" again. You have had major surgery, you have cut your calories to probably a third of what you had before, and you are probably not able to get in enough protein or eat a balanced meal yet. That was my experience. As you heal up, and your body starts to adjust to the lower calorie intake, you really will start feeling better. Once I could eat a more balance meal (as was mentioned above, I do make sure to have some carbs as well) I started to revive again.

I don't have much to add to those above except that I am sorry I didn't have surgery sooner. It is the best thing I have ever done for myself. The short period of discomfort and adjustment has been so worthwhile. I researched forever, but the day I made my decision, I was in wholeheartedly. I hope you get the answers you are looking for and good luck!

I actually did not have a period for two months after my surgery. After that, everything got back to normal. Well, normal for me anyway.

BonBon - I went and had my labs done back with Dr. A's staff. I live in Las Vegas, so we just swung by on our way to San Diego and made a weekend of it. I e-mailed Gaby, they set me up with an appointment, we went, and I had all my bloodwork and upper GI done in less than an hour. I had my lab work back within a few days. I'm pretty sure they would help you make any arrangements if needed. The appointment cost me $150, but I felt more comfortable having Dr. Campos tell me everything looked great than going to someone who didn't know jack about the sleeve!

Slow and steady wins! I didn't lose drastic amounts of weight, but a year later, here I am at 120 lbs gone! Everyone comments on how "thin" I am now (still have a ways to go). Those months seem like they will take forever, but they fly by. I also find that I never mourned food the way some people do and now I just feel like I eat normally. So, I feel sort of like you do, that I just needed that smaller stomach. (Although, I do know I have boat load of issues!) Some people comment on how little I eat - but mostly it's just people who knew me before. I don't hide my surgery, but for those who do not know, I haven't had anyone ask if I had surgery. It's funny, nobody notices when you eat normally - haha.

I was terrified to cheat - I was sure my little stomach would rip open! Also, I just wasn't hungry. I kept a water bottle with protein drink mix in it with me all the time, this kept me hydrated and being well hydrated usually keeps phantom hunger away as well. Stick with your doctor's orders, you'll be happy you did!