clk

The first thing to point out is that Tricare does not cover VSG. They will not cover it in the next year, either, according to the half a dozen folks I talked to within Tricare.

However, several MTFs, independently of Tricare, will perform the procedure on a wait list basis. They typically have you meet the same requirements for them to do the sleeve as they do for their other bariatric surgeries.

It's important to keep the issues separate, because it confuses people. Availability of surgery in your area is purely based on whether or not your local MTF is doing the sleeve at this point.

The military docs aren't as experienced because it's so new and it's not a covered procedure yet. However, every surgeon that does the procedure was new at some point. You'll have to decide your comfort level on this one. If everyone avoids the new surgeons, they can't become experienced surgeons. I'd be more comfortable if the surgeon had a ton of RNY experience, though. I know there are a handful of people on this forum that had the surgery done at a MTF, so you should search them out.

I'm a military dependent. I'm overseas and since Tricare does not cover the sleeve and we have no local MTF that will perform the procedure, I opted to self pay. I can't help you out with the military procedure because I went no farther than the metabolic testing and nutrition class before I was told it wouldn't be covered unless I chose the band or RNY.

You'll need to decide what your worries are, but I'd definitely ask about acid reducers, since I couldn't live without mine. I'd also ask about supplements, post op diet, and aftercare (like the upper GI at 3 months post op).

Good luck,

~Cheri

If you haven't yet, see here:

Does VSG Cure Diabetes?

I'm a type 2 that developed gestational diabetes in 2007 that stayed after the pregnancy. I wasn't very advanced yet, and was on 500 mg of Metformin twice daily. My fasting blood sugar was never below 130 and was most often in the 160s, even on a very low carb diet.

I'm 3 months out now and off all diabetes meds. My postprandial numbers are high normal and my fasting blood sugar is usually in the 90s, though sometimes it's a bit higher. I noticed an immediate change in my blood sugars. I did need insulin several times within 48 hours of surgery, but I have not taken a single pill to control my blood sugar since the day before surgery.

I'm sure as I continue to lose weight, I'll continue to see an improvement. I will say that I am still incredibly sensitive to carbohydrates and if I eat a few bites of rice or Pasta it does make my blood sugar rise.

~Cheri

Yes, Tiffy's answer pretty much says it all. I also agree with Stacy - if you don't have as much weight to lose, why risk the lifelong nutritional deficiencies of the bypass?

The portion of the stomach they leave behind is the least stretchy part of the stomach and is far less likely to stretch than the bypass pouch. It will stretch a little over time, but not anywhere near what it was prior to surgery.

If you wouldn't mind posting information about your potential surgeons on a new thread, it would be very helpful to some of us living overseas. I'm currently in Germany and flew all the way to Mexico for my surgery because I couldn't find a surgeon very experienced with VSG in my area. If you're in contact with a few that do VSG in Europe, you should post their names and information so that other folks can have them as an option as well.

Best of luck to you,

~Cheri

You won't know until you try it. Some things I can drink a few sips and be fine, but I had a sip of Dr. Pepper the other day and had to run to spit it out. It was super carbonated and it hit the bottom of my tummy and came right back up again. If I do take sips of soda, I'm super gassy and belch like mad, since the carbonation doesn't have as much room.

I would be cautious around any food that triggers head hunger, though. For me, soda used to trigger cravings for more soda and also for the foods that go with soft drinks (in my mind) - pizza, chips, popcorn, etc.

It doesn't do that to me now, though I admit that it sometimes takes me an entire day to drink half a can of diet soda. I've opened maybe four cans of soda since surgery and had to dump most of three of those cans.

It's just not something I want anymore. Knowing that you CAN have it is a big deal, because then it's easier to say no. But be careful introducing a food that can cause you problems. Some people never have any problems with it, but you won't know until you try.

~Cheri

My stomach makes gurgling noises all the time. Especially at night, when my acid reducers are wearing off and the acid is going nuts. For me, it's definitely acid but it sounds like a rumbling stomach from hunger. It even feels like hunger - almost. It's like the physical hungry symptoms without the urge to eat. It's weird and completely unladylike. It's kind of embarrassing.

But in my case, it's definitely acid. Are you on an acid reducer? Could this be your issue, or could it be that something you ate aggravated your stomach? Tomatoes or raw green veggies are something my tummy is just now getting ready to eat, and if I ate them just a few weeks ago my stomach would go nuts for hours.

~Cheri

Yes they are excellent ideas. My favorite is the sludge idea. I've been doing Protein powders for many years now so I really don't have an issue with them at all. In fact I kind of like them. I have so many too, at least 4 months worth!

Anyway, even with that - thisis the first time I've heard of the sludge. Really! You learn something new every day.

Diva, you can google Protein sludge and threads on other boards and even videos on how to make sludge will come up. My DH is in the Army and one of the guys he works with is a serious bodybuilder, which is the only reason I even know about it.

There are a ton of different ways to do it, too - vanilla or chocolate protein plus Peanut Butter, some people add in nuts or fresh fruit, some people freeze it like frozen yogurt, some people eat it with SF maple Syrup. It's nuts. Just remember to scale down the recipes since your goal is different than their goals. They're trying to get in lots of calories and carbs because of their intense workouts, and we just want a protein fix.

~Cheri

Thanks for the ideas.

I'm so sick of tuna now since it's one of the foods that goes down pretty easily for me. I don't know why it didn't occur to me to simply try fish filets, but I'll try that tomorrow and see how it goes. I am not so good with vegetables unless they're mush. I want to eat them, I just can't eat that much and it seems somehow wrong to fill up on vegetables instead of Protein. Maybe a nice stew would do the trick.

Tiffykins, thanks for the great ideas. I hadn't considered that I might need to spice things differently or more heavily. I used to stick to mostly garlic, onion, salt and pepper but maybe switching things up will help me out. Come to think of it, I've enjoyed only one meal post op - and it was a restaurant taco, with several shakes of hot sauce on top. I did try a soy Protein shake but all I could think about was how much it smelled like baby formula, so I won't be doing that again. I like greek yogurt, and you're right - it doesn't bother me as much as regular yogurt or cottage cheese. I've always considered the varieties here too high in carbs and calories but since I'm hardly eating it can't hurt to boost those numbers anyway. There is no Oikos or Fage here, just a German packaged brand called Elina's, and only the fruit or honey varieties. It's delicious though, even if it is mostly fat.

Honestly, I was half hoping someone would have a miracle solution for the dairy thing. Hopefully the dairy issue won't be so bad if I can stimulate my appetite again.

~Cheri

I use Allmax IsoFlex - I have the chocolate mint, Peanut Butter chocolate and vanilla. I would never drink the vanilla as just a shake, because they don't taste good to me, but it's perfect for making drinks with coffee, tea or fresh berries. If you want to try it without buying a tub online, I got my samples from Vitalady's site. I think the numbers on the PB and mint ones are a tiny bit different - still 27 g Protein but two grams of carbs instead of less than one.

I don't know about everyone else's cottage cheese, but this local German brand I buy has 19 grams of Protein in 1/4 cup of cottage cheese. Who knew there was such a difference?

There are differing opinions on protein. When I'm not having issues eating, I aim high - at least 75 grams a day, preferably close to 100 grams a day. Some studies show that we should have that much post weight loss, especially once we start working out. However, on the flip side there are studies that say going too high in protein isn't good, either, particularly if you're keeping carbs very low. I think the number most people aim for is at least 60 grams of protein. You'll get to a point where that's not really that hard to hit. In fact, if you liked the IsoFlex, you could have that for breakfast. Two scoops of protein plus one cup of skim milk (mixed in with coffee or tea) will get you 67 grams of protein.

Protein is the most important thing that you can eat post op. You need it not only for your hair, but to keep your body from devouring all of your muscle instead of the fat. We starve without protein. Hair loss is just one part of the problem.

Good luck finding a protein powder you like!

~Cheri

Even now, at three months out, it's not easy for me to drink a whole Protein shake. It takes me most of the morning. What I can do to boost my numbers is add two scoops of my vanilla Protein powder to one cup of skim milk and then I mix it into my chai spiced tea or coffee. It makes a 14-16 ounce drink but has twice the Protein. Unless your Protein Powder already lists two scoops as a serving, or if you can't afford the calories/carbs, this might work for you.

The shots are a small amount but they're not as good as the whey in the powders, anyway. And yes, they are nasty.

If you're cleared for it, a small pouch of tuna has about 20 grams of protein in it, and it was fairly easy for me to get down within a 30 minute timeframe. I mix mine with 2 tsp of mayo and a tsp of dill relish and it goes down pretty easily. Cottage cheese was also an easy food for me at this point, and a 1/4 cup has about 20 grams of protein. Sometimes I needed a warm food because nothing else would go down. That's when I started the hot tea/coffee drinks, because they do go down easier for me. You can also do the unjury chicken Soup protein mix if warm helps things go down easier. There's also the option of making a sludge, like bodybuilders do. You mix one Tbs of Peanut Butter with one scoop of your protein powder (I've used chocolate and Peanut Butter chocolate mixes) and add a tiny bit of Water until it mixes together. I toss in mini chocolate chips, too - just a couple. It's like eating peanut butter off the spoon. I don't like the super sweetness of it, but it's gone in three or four bites, so it's an easy way to knock out 30 grams of protein. Also, I found that super sweet things (like a chocolate peanut butter shake or the sludge) are harder for me to finish so I have to keep the portions small. My sweet tooth is gone, so I'm never able to finish my peanut butter chocolate shakes or my mint chocolate chip ones.

And, as a last resort, consider getting a protein powder that has a better balance of protein/calories/carbs if yours is high in any one of them. My protein has 110 calories, 27 grams of protein and less than one carb per scoop. It's easy to double it up or make it into a sludge and hit protein goals without worrying about too many carbs or calories.

Good luck, I hope it gets easier for you.

~Cheri

What the heck?

I am nearly three months out. I have struggled since surgery to eat. It's not painful, it's just unappealing. I have no hunger, I have no desire to eat and I am generally repulsed by food. Except during PMS, of course. That's the only time I want to eat, and the only time I ever feel anything resembling hunger.

Lately, whenever I drink my chai latte Protein Drink, or have anything else with dairy, I experience very uncomfortable and unpleasant side effects. It happens with milk, cottage cheese and even yogurt. Some things simply make me feel nauseated, but other things make me incredibly sick. I even tried mixing my Protein powder with Water to see if I could avoid the issues, but THAT makes me sick, too. I tried switching my milk to Lactaid, since I had to do that during my pregnancy, but even that makes me feel sick. Speaking of pregnancy, I'd almost believe I was pregnant by the way I feel nauseated all day if I eat dairy in the morning. But I'm not - I swear.

I'm at a point where after eating one small meatball I'm done. I feel disgusted by food and it's incredibly difficult to eat enough calories. I really think that my frequent lapses into the under 500 calorie zone (and I'm often under 400) is partly why I'm such a slow loser. I can make it all the way to dinner time and never eat a single bite or drink a Protein Drink, and I only eat at that point because my sleeve is empty and the acid starts to bother me.

I like string cheese and beef Jerky but I struggle to get a stick of cheese or a few pieces of jerky in, too.

My big help was the protein drink, but now it seems that isn't an option. I'm also about to move to a country where string cheese and beef jerky are not going to be food options. I'm planning to order some cases online and ship them but there will be a period where I'll simply be without. I can hand carry some while we're traveling but I don't know that living on jerky is a great idea.

What am I going to eat now? I really need ideas and advice. Everything makes me feel sick - either physically, or mentally. I'm never going to drop this weight or be healthy if I can't eat.

If it helps, we avoid pork and shellfish completely, so those aren't possibilities.

I'd appreciate any ideas. Maybe there's something I can take to make the milk not bother me as much?

~Cheri

For me, this phase never ended. It does for most people, however, so do your best to get through it. Keep trying to find the things you can tolerate, and don't be suprised when those things change daily. I didn't start hitting the low end of my calorie goal until more than two weeks out. Just try to get some Protein in, and make sure you don't get dehydrated.

The one big fear I had when I opted for the sleeve was that I wouldn't lose my hunger, but boy is it ever gone. I'm nearly three months out and I STILL have to force myself to eat. I much prefer to simply drink my meals but I have to force myself to do even that, and I try to make myself eat at least a little "real" food each day. Be careful what you wish for, I guess!

Best of luck to you. I hope by now you're feeling a little better.

~Cheri

Yep, I agree with Tiffykins. Also, track your intake - down to the last crumb - for a full week and see where you're at. Are you eating too much or too little? Do you need to refocus on better food options or eat more calories? Have you started an exercise regimen yet? Why not add in a nice long evening walk to shake things up a bit?

You can overcome this hurdle and continue on towards your goal, but you need to take control of the situation and correct whatever the problem is in order to do so.

Get back on track! Don't settle for less than your goal when it's possible to attain.

~Cheri

I didn't start to feel full until mushies, though some full liquids could get me there. You'll never really feel "full" the same way again. You'll understand what I mean once you get to mushies! Discomfort is what will be your indicator now.

It's probably best to at least track how many times you fill your bottle a day. You really need to avoid dehydration and it can happen in a blink.

If shakes aren't cutting it (and boy, I think we all understand the long hunt for a decent shake) try the powders?utm_source=BariatricPal&utm_medium=Affiliate&utm_campaign=CommentLink" target="_ad" data-id="1" >unjury chicken Soup Protein or get their unflavored Protein that you might be able to tolerate mixed into something else. I think it has 21 grams of protein per serving. You really, really need protein right now. It's going to make you feel less nauseated, it's going to help you heal faster and it's going to help you have more energy.

If you don't want to buy big tubs of protein that you wind up hating anyway, try ordering a bunch of samples online. I use Vitalady's site, but there are others out there. Search the forum; there's a great thread about protein samples somewhere. It took me a couple dozen samples to find shakes I loved and could use daily. Get creative - first of all, make shakes with skim milk and not Water, since they'll taste better. Then, add in flavor syrups or drops, Peanut Butter, sugar free hot cocoa mix - whatever it takes to make the shake more palatable. I mix my vanilla Protein powder with either coffee or chai tea, and it's way better than a traditional shake. Keep trying; it will be a while before you can eat your protein, so you need to do your best to find something you can tolerate for a few more weeks.

Best of luck to you. You'll get past this stage faster than you think.

~Cheri

Wishing you a swift and speedy recovery! Before you know it, you'll be a month out and wearing baggy pants!

~Cheri

Just wanted to say good luck on the big day! Anna is spot on - any people that are negative right now are worried and will likely come around when they see the changes in you. You'll be a happier, healthier person inside and out in a few months, and they won't be able to help responding to that.

Wishing you a swift, smooth recovery!

~Cheri

Dave, best of luck regardless of what you decide.

That said, I agree with the others and think that you should really be certain you're willing to take a lesser option simply because it's easier to do.

I also have Tricare, and being overseas meant that having it done at a MTF isn't an option. Tricare doesn't cover VSG and no MTFs in my area are doing the sleeve. I almost started the process to get the band instead, because I wanted surgery right away. Somehow, being fat for more than half my life became intolerable once I decided on the surgery.

After revisiting LBT for a few months the trend stood out a second time: people love their bands for six months to a year, and then the complications begin. Only a handful of the folks on that board are two or more years out and still happy. There are way too many complications. Too many people can't find their sweet spot, can't keep Water down, have to unfill completely because of issues. That's not even counting the ones with slippage and erosion - the folks that usually find their way to this board and get revisions to the sleeve!

I did an unsecured loan through USAA for a good interest rate. I went to Dr. Aceves in Mexicali and had wonderful, top notch care.

If I were you, I'd make sure that you're willing to face the very real issues of life with a lapband before you make the decision to put one in your body. I'd either start the process with Madigan and see if they're wrong about the time frame, or I'd self pay and get it done either in the states or Mexico.

My sleeve was worth every single penny of the small payment I make to USAA each month, I promise you.

Best of luck to you. You know what you're willing to live with, so only you can make this choice.

~Cheri

WOOHOO!

I'm doing a victory dance, but you guys can't see it.

Not only is the stall finally broken, but it's broken with a vengence. I was bouncing between 204 and 202 for one day shy of two weeks, and today I weighed in at 199 pounds!

I am so freaking happy to finally see the scale move. I'll be honest, nothing I did budged the scale, I think it just happened when my body finally let the weight go.

So, this is a huge milestone for me. I feel like even though I'm less than halfway to goal, it's all an easier slide from here.

Coops: I hope it's all going well for you and that you've also seen a drop on the scale. It's such a misery waiting out these horrible stalls. I'm hoping my skin bounces back, but I know surgery is in my future anyway. It's simply not possible for it all to recover, since I was 285 pounds the day I delivered my twins. That's a lot of tummy stretching. Still, I'm hopeful.

Well, I suppose I should learn a lesson from this about patience and all that, but inevitably I'll be back to gripe next time I stall out for nearly two weeks.

Take care everyone, I hope to see some updates soon!

~Cheri

Wow. Just, wow! I've watched your entire journey, quietly from the sidelines. You've done a tremendous job. Thanks for being such an inspiration.

Definitely keep going if you want! You can do it, all it will take is time.

Huge, HUGE congrats!

~Cheri

For right after surgery why are people drinking sugar free drinks/jello/popcycles? I hate artificial sweetners so I thought I would get some Vitamin Water to drink Post-op but tons of ppl are drinking all this sugar free stuff. Is the sugar upsetting because surely you aren't getting enough calories from it to hurt.

I can't say why most people do it, but I can say that my doctor is a firm believer in low carb as a VSG lifestyle until you're at goal. His dietary guidelines said sugar free, so that's what I did. It was already a way of life for me, because I'm diabetic.

If you eat 5 popsicles a day post op, and they're the regular Popsicle brand ones, that's 55 carbs just from your popsicles. Regular strawberry Jell-O has 19 carbs per serving; sugar free strawberry Jell-O has no carbs. A bottle of Vitamin Water has between 10-32 carbs per bottle, depending on the flavor. A bottle of Isopure (or Isopuke, because that stuff is foul) has no carbs.

So, if your doctor/nutritionist suggests 30 or less carbs per day like my surgeon, it's not as simple, and sometimes just not possible to stay hydrated and feel satisfied with the regular stuff.

~Cheri

And now, I'd like to vent and complain!

I know I tell other people to take it easy, stalls happen, loss is different for everyone, blah blah blah. But right now, I'm pretty frustrated, so I could use some support of my own.

I am down forty pounds since surgery. That's great. I know it is. It's an average of 3.33 pounds a week, which is better than a typical diet.

But I'm frustrated. VERY frustrated!

I've been stalled for twelve days now. I keep gaining and losing the same two pounds over and over again. I put the scale away last week hoping to see the numbers change but nope - after a week I was up four tenths of a pound. I'm between monthly cycles - this is usually the only time of the month that I do lose, and instead I'm stalled. If my cycle affects me like usual, I can expect to be up 1-3 pounds next week and then stalled again.

The first month out I lost 18 pounds. The second month I lost 8 pounds. Now I'm two days from twelve weeks out and I've lost 14 pounds this month.

I suppose the good news is that I lost more in month three than month two. I'm still pretty aggravated with the slow loss. Slow loss would be A-OK (or at least less gripe-worthy) if it was accompanied by skin that wasn't sagging, but unfortunately, my skin is sagging horribly. I expected bad things from the stomach, since I've had twins. The stomach was bad to begin with. But my breasts? Already? And my thighs? And my butt even droops! I can lift up part of my butt and jiggle it like a saggy breast. Yes, that's probably TMI. I don't care, I'm complaining!

Maybe I wouldn't be as frustrated if I wasn't so incredibly close to 199 pounds. For whatever reason, that's this huge success to me - to be out of the 200s again.

Anyway, I just wanted to complain. I know nobody has advice because there's no good answer. Since I still hate eating (I never thought I'd be so unhappy to never be hungry, but eating is still a total chore for me) I'm backtracking to full liquids for three days. I hope that will kick start the weight loss again. Anything to change it up, right?

So, thanks for giving me a place to gripe. Once I lose a few pounds I'll be cheery again, I promise. And yes, plastic surgery is in my future, but I'll battle that saggy skin with weight lifting and squats in the meantime to do my part to help it along. I expected some sag, but really - these 70 year old breasts are not improving my grumpy disposition.

Hope everyone else is having a better time of it than me!

~Cheri

Brian,

I'm wondering how your appointment went. I have never buried a spouse, but I did bury a child. There are a few losses that are different than others because they're so unexpected, and these are two of the big ones.

I understand the depression. You've made a major life change after experiencing a major life upheaval. I'll be 11 years out from my daughter's death in December. I can tell you that right around the four/five year mark I was wondering, "Why the hell don't I feel normal again yet?"

It takes time. A long, long time. It gets easier year by year, as I'm sure you already know, but the loss is still there. Losing someone you care about deeply, who you thought would be with you the rest of your life, is a terrible shock. It takes us a long time to cope and move forward. In my experience, you aren't the same person on the other side, but it is possible to be happy again and to live a good life.

I noticed that only a few people chimed in after your post. It's not because nobody cares - it's because it's hard to talk about. It makes people uncomfortable. I'm sure you've experienced the loss of friendships because people don't know how to treat you afterward, or the awkward conversations because people just don't know what to say. That's better than the people that mean to comfort you but instead say something totally thoughtless or inconsiderate. Nobody wants to think about losing people they love. Bereaved people are big reminders of our mortality. It's also hard to know what to say. It's far too easy to say the wrong thing, so often people won't say anything at all. Besides, what could anyone say that would really be adequate?

If you haven't already, my recommendation is that you find a support group. While a counselor is a great tool to use in healing, what helps the most is talking to people that have experienced the same thing. It's all to easy to dismiss a counselor or therapist that says, "It will get better with time" when they have a living spouse and healthy children. Talk to people that understand. If you don't want to do it in person, do it online with a bereavement message board. Talking about everything will make you feel better.

I'm no doctor and I don't know you personally. But if you're anything like me, you shelved the work of grieving and now that you're "fixing" your outward appearance your emotional needs are begging for attention. I hope that like I did, you'll find support and comfort talking to others with your experience. I needed support for about eight months. After that, I noticed that I was attending not because I needed to talk about my child, but because I wanted to comfort and reassure other bereaved parents. It truly was a rewarding and healing experience, and I don't think I'd be as "together" as I am today if I hadn't put in the time to grieve that way.

Best of everything to you. Congrats on making a decision to better your own life and to make the most of living. Just don't forget that once all the weight comes off, you'll still be who you are inside. Work on both things, and make this a new you, fresh start, life makeover.

~Cheri

I'm all for keeping the surgery private from coworkers, friends and family that you don't see or who won't be supportive. However, I think there's a line between not telling the whole truth and deliberately misleading people that are important to you.

I expected more negativity than I got from the small handful of people that know about my surgery. My mom was 100% supportive, which was a huge surprise. I couldn't NOT tell my husband, and even though he likes his women short and chunky, he knew it was important to me and jumped on board. The three friends I've told have all been very supportive; again, this was very surprising to me, because I expected them to be negative.

Ultimately, it's your choice. However, it may not be possible to hide the scars from your boyfriend. I'm almost three months out and still have bright pink, shiny scars where my five incisions were made. It's painfully obvious that I had surgery done recently. If having privacy about your surgery will be more important than telling the truth to your boyfriend about why you have new scars, it's definitely an indicator. No offense meant, I'm just telling you what I think.

I think that it would be great if you could find one person to help you through this journey. You don't have to tell your work anything but that you're taking vacation. Just don't expect them to be sympathetic when you come back to work sore and tired!

Good luck whatever you decide,

~Cheri

Hi Dawn! Welcome!

I found my way here through LBT, too. My husband is active duty Army and we also have Tricare Prime.

Here's the deal: Tricare does not cover VSG. They don't plan to start covering it for at least another year, and unfortunately that healthcare overhaul might help other people out but it's shafting military, VA and medicare coverage. So, don't plan on the VSG being Tricare covered any time soon.

However, several MTFs are doing the procedure. I'd contact your local MTF and see if they do the procedure. If they don't see if any of the facilities within driving distance do the surgery and see if you can get it done there instead. There are a handful of folks here that had the VSG done at a MTF, but that isn't the same as Tricare covering the procedure. It's done at the MTF free of charge but it doesn't get filed through Tricare, which is how they can cover the procedure. Usually there is a wait list for this type of thing, but to have it done for free it's probably worth the wait and hassle.

I'm overseas so having it done at a MTF wasn't an option. Once we found out that our next assignment is also overseas and that it's remote, I opted to self-pay. I financed through USAA at a great rate and had my surgery done in Mexico by Dr. Aceves. I've had no troubles with Tricare covering my aftercare, acid reducer prescription, etc. I did have to draw a diagram of my new stomach for my PCM, however, as she'd never even heard of VSG!

I almost got the band instead because it's covered, but I am SO glad I didn't. Honestly - read a little more on this board and search out the term "revision" and see what you find. It really is true that there are problems with the band. On LBT you'll find a lot of short timers thrilled with their band, but very few folks more than a year out still loving banded life. I'd never in a million years get a band, not after the stories I've read. I have no regrets about financing my surgery and choosing a better option.

Good luck whatever you decide. If you have questions that you think I might be able to answer, feel free to PM me anytime. Tiffykins is also a military spouse and she's a fantastic resource. I highly recommend you search out her story here on this forum because she's also a band to sleeve revision.

~Cheri

I'll echo what everyone else said: you absolutely need to find a Protein supplement of some sort. Until you can eat your Protein you need to drink it. Protein will help you feel energetic and it will help you heal. Without it, you're going to feel tired and ill.

It's not uncommon to have trouble hitting your protein goals early out from surgery. I don't think I hit my goals at all until the second week post op, and I certainly didn't hit my goals regularly until more than two weeks out. Just keep trying, and it should get easier day by day.

If you eat a food that makes you ill, stay away from it for a while before trying it again. I had a lot of trouble with eggs at first so I had to wait until my body was ready. If you find that moving up to mushies makes you sick most of the time, I'd back down a stage for a few days and let your tummy heal a bit more. If it's just the one food giving you a problem, just avoid that one food and take comfort in the fact that you'll be able to eat it again someday. I would say that potatoes aren't the best choice, but only because for me feeding the carb monster makes it hungrier, so I try to avoid foods like potatoes and Pasta. This early out the calories and carbs won't hurt you, but it's a great time to start choosing better food options. It will definitely make the first several months post op easier on you.

If you haven't yet found a protein you can tolerate, try some samples. Do the Protein Shots if they go down better. It really is very important to get your protein in, and you're not at a point where you can do it with only food.

Good luck, I hope you get to feeling better soon!

~Cheri

You look so great! It really is a tremendous change. Thanks for being brave and sharing.

~Cheri