Mrs Sasaki

I thought that it was because liquid would take up space that was needed for food too. I specifically asked my doctor this, and he said no. What he said was that liquid would push food out of the stomach, and I think, but can't remember, it was because that would cause us to eat more. If this is true and one doesn't eat more, then drinking should be okay. Seems reasonable. But, I haven't been able to find much info about the issue in general. Just that we shouldn't do it. Tiffykins - yes, chewing begins the process of digestion and stomach acids continue it, but I don't think if a person drinks while eating, that will cause insufficient nutrients to be absorbed. If that was true, I think it would be true whether or not one had surgery.

Sorry, this is misinformation I think. 80% of nutrients are absorbed in the small intestine not the stomach. Did your doctor tell you this?

Why actually is it bad to drink within an hour of eating? Is there a physical danger - ie stomach stretching? Thanks.

Also, Lan2K I don't think you are such the odd ball out. I would venture to say nearly everyone has had to deal with some form of psychological ramification as a result of their surgery.

Lan2k: It would be very helpful if you could start a thread about the negative emotional effects of the surgery. I am very curious. Before I had surgery I was a real foodie (also a glutton). Now, i just don't enjoy food as much. It's not just the amount I can eat, but also nothing excites me anymore. While I understand this is a good thing, I am mourning the loss of one of the activities that I found most enjoyable. Don't forget, it's never too late to obtain therapy. Hopefully, you are in a position to get the help you need now. One thing I would have done differently is be more diligent taking antacids, Vitamins and monitoring my Protein. I have had some hair loss - and I will never know whether or not I could have prevented it.

Yes, I tell them how many dress sizes I have gone down. I would tell them how much weight I have lost, it's just that I don't know. What's difficult is their reaction - they seem to NEED to know and ask, and ask, and ask.* I haven't gone up a size. To the contrary, I have consistently gone down. But, I just didn't want to - after spending the money, recovering, changing my body - obsess over fluctuations on the scale. When I said worry about gaining, I meant like if I gained a pound or something because I ate something salty. I just don't care how much I weigh, I just care how I look and feel. *I am convinced that overweight people are accorded some of the lowest amounts of respect possible. When I think about the things that people (family, friends, coworkers and strangers) have felt it is acceptable to say to me - it is shocking. You would certainly never ask someone who say had breast implants - how big are they. Or, say to someone who going bald - you should really take care of that.

I just wanted to say, it's not willpower really. I don't own a scale - which led to my being about 22 lbs off in my original "estimation" of my weight on my application to Dr. Aceves. Ha. That was a day. More, that I would feel like I was failing if I didn't keep up with somebody else's loss or if - GOD FORBID - I gained (which I may have since August). I just feel like maybe after a year or so, when I am stablized, I will see what I should be. It's not hard to not look. It's harder to explain to people why I am not looking.

I thought people here might be interested in this little tidbit. I was sleeved by Dr. Aceves (The best. The. Best.) on August 4, 2009 AND I have not weighed myself since. Even at the Dr.'s I don't look. I started out pushing a size 24. Now I am around a size 12 or so. People are constantly asking me how much weight I have lost, but I'm not really interested. It's just one more thing to obsess over. In fact, when I come on the board when I read about people's stalls etc. I get anxious. So I just don't do it.

I went from New York to Mexico (Dr. Aceves, the best. Really. THE BEST.) and back, alone, to have my sleeve surgery. I recommend it. Here's why: I was alone and could sleep, wake, walk around and convalesce on my own schedule. This allowed me to have a pretty quick recovery. First of all, there was no one to do anything for me so I had to do it myself, but also I was bored and was more inclined, I think to walk around and explore, take a shower etc. which pushed my recovery. I could sleep when I wanted, watch TV when I wanted. Do everything at my own pace. I didn't have to speak to if I did not want to - kind of a wonderful, luxurious, QUIET vacation. Additionally, all I had to focus on was my recovery. I didn't have to worry if another person was bored, had eaten or wanted to go back to the hotel etc. Although the hospital is comfortable enough for another person, it is really boring. A couple of the pairs of support people I saw there got into squabbles over little things - even though the friends and relatives meant well it's hard when you are feeling cranky after a surgery. The only difficult part was the travel. If I had to do it over again, I would not have brought heavy things like my computer and books. Other than that, the plane and taxi trip was not a big deal really.

This is my first post, I usually just lurk and try to learn things, but I had to respond to this thread. I have never had better medical care than I got from Dr. Aceves and Dr. Campos. I am a New Yorker and a professional and have always had high quality medical care, however, I don't think I could afford the kind of top notch care I got in Mexico. Everyone from the hospital staff to the nurses to the attending physicians to Dr. Aceves - fantastic really. The facility was spotless and the rooms were much cheerier, cleaner and more comfortable than most of the hospitals I have been in here in NYC. The surgery went exactly as they had described. My recovery was quick, and when I back on the plane going home I kind of was feeling: Did I really just have surgery? I've lost 80 lbs or so since August and look fondly back on the SURGERY. Can you imagine? There is nothing to be afraid of. I know how you are feeling. When I got into the car with the driver (Ernesto? I forget his name), I said to myself: WTF are you doing driving into a boarder town in Mexico (during these DRUG WARS) with a strange man. But everyone could not have been nicer and as efficient as could be. I should also mention I found the anesthesiologist - Dr. Garcia - very good looking. Best of luck. This will be the best thing you have ever done for yourself.

I am sure some surgeons are gentler than others. I think with mastery comes gentleness. In addition, I think that for certain doctors like Dr. Aceves it is kind of a methodological philosophy. That's a wise approach. I imagine people heal more quickly because of it. As to anesthesia, my anesthesiologist, Dr. Andreas Garcia, was spectacular. He essentially offered me a choice between traditional sedation versus an epidural numbing. As a consequence of my choice -epi- wooziness, nausea, head-ache, things that are associated with sedative anesthesia, were absent.