ocean_ophelia

I'm 9 months post-op and have had great success with the sleeve. I've lost 75 pounds and have now maintained it for three months. In fact, I'm 5 pounds below my original goal weight (130 lbs at 5 foot 8 inches) and wear a size 4/6. However, the past few weeks I've noticed that the "honeymoon" period, so to speak, seems to be over. I can eat quite a bit in one sitting and be hungry again an hour later. I feel like I could eat and eat, and my old demons have reared their ugly head. I have cravings. I've been eating too many sweets. I've gained about four pounds, nothing I can't lose again, BUT I'm worried about the pattern. I know what I need to do, and I don't mind the fact that maintaining is daily work (I exercise long and hard every day), but I was really expecting the sleeve to be more assistance long-term than it has been. If I'm still hungry and can eat nearly as much as I could before, then what was the point? Why did I spend thousands of dollars and put myself through major surgery for this? One could argue I've lost the weight (something I probably wouldn't have been able to do without the sleeve initially), but it's long-term maintenance I worry about. I thought the sleeve was a PERMANENT solution - yes, a tool I need to use, but a long-term tool nontheless. I thought I'd rarely be hungry or my hunger would be more manageable, but it sure doesn't feel that way now. It almost feels like I don't even have a sleeve. I'm frustrated and am wondering what the other sleevers who are 6 months + are doing/feeling.

Surgery is a breeze. It's making the lifestyle changes that's hard.

I was not hungry at all for about three months. Then I had very low hunger for months four, five, and six. Around six months, my hunger started retruning and now, nine months out, I am unfortunately, hungry often and eating healthy feels like dieting again. I'm at goal (a little below actually) and maintaining, but I'm not going to lie; it's harder. I was really hoping the ghrelin was gone for good and I wouldn't have the cravings and hunger, but they've returned.

I love this quote. I need to let go of the expectation that I'll be perfect every day and learn to get up, brush off, and MOVE on, even if I have a less than stellar day. This kind of all or nothing thinking is what got me in trouble in the first place.

Thank YOU, ladies, for the helpful comments. To answer the question: What do you eat? Truthfully, not the right things; I've fallen off the wagon. I don't do Protein first, even though I know I should. I've been eating slider foods (ice cream, crackers) and not enough veggies/protein. Cowgirljane, I think your dietician had good advice. I need to go back to the smaller portions. I need to stay away from the binge-trigger foods and start drinking more Water again. I know this; I just need to do it. Supersweetums, two years out and you're maintaining! That's awesome. I love to hear that. Your changes certainly sound livable and probably what most thin people who haven't been sleeved do. We are overfed in our society. I have no doubt that a lot of my hunger is head hunger. I just remember the first few months it was so EASY; I was rarely hungry at all. I was on that losing-weight high. And pre-sleeve I would gain weight so quickly (5 pounds a week was a real possibility), so it's true that the sleeve is keeping the weight gain in check. And I'm probably not eating as much as I was (it's hard to remember) - I just know I'm eating so much more than four or six months ago. It SEEMS like I'm eating so much, but I bet it's still not more than maybe 2400 cals/day (I was eating 1000 a couple months back, however). I am starting the 5-day pouch test tomorrow; I've done it before and it works for bringing me back on track.

Thanks, everyone. I needed to hear that. Water and protein for sure. I'm going to do Miss Diva's Bootcamp also; I've done it before and it helped. Vacations are SOOO hard.

All right, I'm 6 months post-op and 75 pounds lighter, which is 5 pounds below my goal weight. I'm in a size 4/XS, and I feel fabulous. I work out every day. But the last week has been BAD. I've been BAD. I'm back to my old habits, granted on a much smaller scale. It started with vacation, which was always a huge trigger for me, a passport to eat whatever I wanted and however much I wanted. The same thing happened this time, except I simply can't binge like I used to, but I can still do a lot of damage snacking and drinkning high-calorie concoctions (coffee drinks, alcohol). The thing is: I KNOW better. I do. I am informed. I GET that what I'm doing is sabotage. My hunger isn't like it used to be either, but the head hunger is rearing itself. I've gained 3 pounds, which is mostly Water weight, I'm sure, but I need to nip this in the bud NOW. Any words of advice would be much appreciated. I really just need to hear someone tell me to knock it off. I seriously will not forgive myself if I spent so much money and weeks of recovery and not have long-term success. I just can't do this again.

Yes, exactly. Not revealing a personal medical decision is NOT lying. It's PRIVATE information.

That's about the point I was trying to make. Some cancer is preventable, and one can argue obesity is preventable too, although just like some people have a predesposition toward cancer, some have a predesposition toward being obese.

I disagree. Should you have to tell everyone if you have cancer? Or MS? Or depression? These are private medical issues. It's called HIPPA, and it's our right NOT to reveal anything medical, any surgeries we've had, any treatments we've undergone. If you want to tell, fine, but some people are more comfortable dealing with cancer in private. It's not anybody's business what I had done. And I AM eating healthfully and exercising. I'll have to for the rest of my life.

Well, I can vouch that it is possible. I've kept it secret for nearly 6 months now. Only my hubby knows. I didn't even tell my mom (because she has a big mouth). No one at work knows. None of my friends do. And I've lost 80 pounds and gotten down to a BMI 19, size 4/6. So, yes, it's possible, but you have to commit to it. Don't tell even one person. Don't drop hints. Don't beat around the bush. It depends on what kind of person you are. I am very private and don't talk a lot about my life, so it's not shocking for me not to share. When people noticed my weight loss, I just said, thanks, I'm eating healthfully and exercising, which is 100 percent true! Anyway, don't make an issue out of it. Most people notice you and your business far less than you think. You're just not that important - and I don't mean you specifically; I mean, any of us. I mean, really, people have better things to do than monitor what you eat.

I agree. Try Diva's boot camp. I do it every two or three weeks even when I don't stall. It's a great way to get back to the basics. The sleeve is just a tool; YOU still have to do the hard work, and part of that is not eating the junk or eating it only in small, limited quantities. You won't maintain or lose if you keep eating carbs and sugars. Focus on the lean proteins and log your food to make yourself accountable.

That sounds completely within normal range to me. Five pounds in a few days is awesome.

From everything I read, the sleeve is superior the the lapband in every way.

Hilarious about the drinks. The red one looks fabulous, as do you!!!

Worst: nausea from anasthesia, unexplained nausea in subsequent weeks, not being able to binge (hey, food was the live of my life!), sometimes feeling like I'm missing out as others are eating a meal, the too-full sick feeling I get from eating just a little bit too much Best: the quick weight loss, esp at the beginning; not being able to binge (yup, it goes in both categories); shopping in my closet; feeling like I control food instead of vice versa.

Thanks for answering, Diva! This really helped me understand the plan. I've been following it for two days and have lost three pounds, breaking my stall! My menu yesterday was (if you could check and let me know if I could improve): 70 oz of water (I'm 8 weeks out so it's still hard to get in a ton of fluid) breakfast: Protein shake ready-made (Premier from Costco) snack: low-fat cheesestick lunch: 3 oz of tuna with a little mustard, steamed spinach dinner: hardboiled egg "salad" made with a little mustard and low-fat mayo, steamed broccoli snack: sugar-free popsicle

I had a few friends who had horrid experiences with the band. My insurance excludes all WLS, and I was a 30 BMI anyway, so no insurance would approve it. I saw Dr. Kelly in Mexico; it cost $5700. He was excellent, and I recommend him. I didn't care for Mi Doctor Hospital I stayed at, but it was ok.

I still can't find it. Can someone post it for me???

Can you give me an approximate menu of what you eat? I have a shellfish allergy. So it's just fish, turkey, eggs, etc.? All veggies or just green veggies? What about tomatoes, onions, peppers, etc.?

Last night I noticed that both of my ankles were quite swollen; this morning they were more swollen still, to the point that when I press on them the indentation remains (pitting edema). I've only ever had this when I was in the third trimester pregnant with of my children, never at any other time. I am about to start my period, but I've never had this as a PMS symptom before - a feeling of being bloated, yes, but not pitting edema. My nausea has finally waned, and I'm feeling great, and now this. Ugh. I'm drinking quite a bit of Water (around 50 oz, not counting herbal tea and soups). What could it be? Anyone experience this? Perhaps it's not even sleeve related, but it seems a big conicidence.

I doubt it's sodium. I am eating a tiny fraction of what I used to eat pre-op, and most of it is low in sodium. Even when I was eating a LOT of salty foods I never had edema - why all of a sudden now? I haven't travelled recently either.

I'm getting frustrated too. The past two weeks I've lost only 2 pounds a week. I used to lose more than that on standard-issue diets like LA Weight Loss and Weight Watchers. I really expected a faster weight loss seeing's how I cut out most of my stomach.

I'm a little envious. I have a family history of BP and had elevated BP even when I was skinny and running marathons, so I highly doubt I will be able to get off my meds. I'm nearly in the "normal" weight category now, and my BP shows no signs of going down on its own.

I have to be honest. I went to Mexico. No insurance would ever pay for WLS here since I was a 31 BMI, but I knew I needed to do something to lose weight and KEEP it off. The scale just kept going up, and I was a food addict. I was miserable and desperate. In the end, I found out my insurance has restrictions on all WLS anyway. I had surgery with Dr. Kelly. He was great and I had an easy recovery. The hospital/clinic was adequate. I came home feeling great. However, I'm almost six weeks out now, and I've been dealing with constant nausea and diarrhea. I've emailed my surgeon, and he emailed me back; I could call him too. BUT he can't prescribe me anything; he can't see me. I've had to see a general doc. I think I would get MUCH better follow-up care if I'd gone in the States, and I would have had I had the choice. The follow-up care if you go to Mexico is nonexistent; no matter how attentitve the surgeon, he's THERE, and you're HERE, period. Many people don't require any follow-up care. I can certainly do lab work at my general doc's, BUT I so wish I had a bariatric practice to help me through the debilitating nausea. That's just my two cents. You have to weight the pros and cons.