RJ'S/beginning

Will quote from Fifth Element.."What doesn't kill you makes you stronger"...I laugh every time he says that..I really believe it..There are only a small percentage of people in this world that find life a bowl of cherries...Most of us only get to deal with the pits.... You should be very proud of yourself...Not only have you made a good life for your kids..But you are a survivor.....And now you are looking after you...that will make you even stronger....

It is all about protein....once your system gets over the surgery you have to start upping your protein intake....Protein is the body builder....60gms a day.....Lots of water as well..Then once your body catches up it will slow down and stop

You have done fantastic.....I have not hammered down a diet either and have not thought about it much....Really want to keep all this simple if I can.....I stand out enough by how much I eat....So eating extremely healthy like health nuts is not my thing....I am sure the weight loss will slow down for me as well and probably has...But I know it will happen this year or next.....Just moving at my own speed.....what ever that speed is....lol Great difference in your photos...You deserve this...

There was never even a question about blood before or after my surgery.....The surgeon said that they cannot ask your faith.....I talked to him before and he waved me on and said that is not an issue here...Don't even think about it... So I didn't! I'm 10 months out now and working it.....All the best ladies!!!!

Love your outlook, remember this when you get a stall and look back and see how far you have come.....go girl go!!!!!!!!!!

Get some G2 Gatorade and mix it half and half with water.....It will help with hydration.....You surgery is just a couple of weeks out..Of course your going to feel terrible, tired and weak....just drink as much as you can..sip, sip, sip...It will get better I promise you!

Yes I do...I was on a IV for 5 months and did not eat any food....No one showed me a mirror so I had no idea it was that bad...I had 10 surgeries and was very sick...My hair was very long before and thick but fine....I loved my hair....anyway.....I also lost it due to knotting up..They decided to cut the knots out instead of combing them out....Everyone was warned not to tell me how bad it was.....It wasn't until I got home that I looked in the mirror and saw it for the first time....My hairdresser came over to my house and cut the strands off.....When I woke up from a 19 day coma..my back of my hair was matted into a giant ball which they could not get out...So they cut it out and so it began...It won't happen like this for you.....My situation turned out different from anyone's on here that I have read.....

So far I have gone from a size 8 to a size 5..All my rings are falling off...Some can't be sized because of the design.....I am hoping that I can size a few at a time....maybe!!! It bothers me a lot especially my wedding sets...

I was not worried at all..Unlike all of you..I figured it would be a snap..I had surgeries before and they were no big deal..... Well was I wrong.....i spent 5 months in the hospital due to complications with the surgery...MAYBE if I had like you I would not have been that .001 % that everything goes wrong.....

.After I had the sleeve I got a leak....i went septic four days later and had to have emergency surgery...I almost died...They put me in a coma and I was in it for 19 days....I had a temperature of 104 and it would not break.. 2 done...While I was in the coma they discovered that I had sleep apnea and that scared the living daylights out of them so they gave me a trakia ( spelled wrong) 3 done. After that i woke up and was moved to another floor out of ICU and they put a stent in my stomach to see if they could close the leak... 4 done. Six weeks went by and it did not work. So they put another stent in on top of the other stent 5 done. Another six weeks went by they did not take so they decided to put clamps in to try to close the leak....6 done. I got abscesses in my stomach and had to go under to get them cleaned out and they put a tube inside to drain it 7 done...Crap..I had 9 surgeries.....They decided the only option left was to give me a by-pass sleeve combination and it worked... 8 done! I was in the hospital a total of 5 months and did not eat any food for 5 1/2 months....When I was in ICU in critical condition and on life support..i got an ulcer on my rear end..category 5 which is the worst you can get... So they hooked me up to a vac and after I learned to walk again, write and talk again...I came home...The ulcer would not heal so I ended up going for another surgery to see why...they operated and pulled out a sponge and packing that some nurse left in my butt and it started to heal over but couldn't because of the stuff left there 9 done. Now after 10 months I still have a nurse that comes every day to change my dressings.... The ? is..Would I do it all again? YES! I am a new person and now that I am recovering I am getting healthier by the day.....I can do so much more then I could before the sleeve....I am excited about this wonderful opportunity to get my life back....NO regrets here! I also had to have the pick line removed and replaced in my arm 4 times because it clogged up too much...That was done in a special place in the hosp. So even though they did not put me out for those...I was scared to death for 5 months! I lost most of my hair too....Came home with only 2 strans left at the front of my head..That really bothered me! TheOldMeAgain, mtexei, Wags and 3 others like this

Try some juice....Vegetable juice.....skim milk if you can stand it.....flavored Water as well. I ate Jello too when I was on liquids.....Try that only a bit though....some debate whether it is liquid or solid..i decided it was liquid.....lol G2 Gatorade as well so that you don't get dehydrated K.....I mix mine half and half with water..... My daughter made me so much broth when I came out of the hospital and I only drank it a couple of times..The thought of it makes me sick, same with Protein drinks....But you still need them to help you heal..... Don't forget your body just went through trauma and it will take a while for you to feel better and heal....give yourself a break!

Thanks I feel so much better now.....Look I went through hell for this surgery...had 10 surgeries and almost died. Spent 5 months in the hospital and kept it together...I was also in a coma for 19 days...And a coma messes with your head....So..I had one thing that I obsessed about...Not bad considering the horror I endured for this!

Honestly folks this is the way our journey goes. notice in the beginning it looks like it is all going to work out smoothly...But look at all the struggles we will go through on our way....At the end we will be successful......

That left incision hurts so much because that is the one that they pull your stomach out of.....So it is put under strain a bit..That is why it is sore... Happy you had an uneventful clean experience....You are now on your was...Congrats!!!!!!!!

after I came home from the surgery I watched American Pickers and they showed a picture of jumbo the elephant that dies in the 50 because it was hit by a train.... I could not get it out of my head...i would break down in tears and ask my husband all kinds of questions about him..Like why didn't they just wait until the train past them before leading him out there....Why didn't the train see him...for Pete's sake he was the biggest Elephant at the time... My Husband kept asking me if I was okay...I did not know why I was obsessed with this particular situation but it took weeks for me to go through a day without thinking about what happened to Jumbo! Weird eh!!!!!

Listen to your sleeve.....but you must drink a little so that you can build up the acids in your stomach to help to break down the food....Eating a little at first is not going to hurt you...Although if you don't you will start to lose your hair...Biotin will help.....Sip, sip and sip some more.....And if you don't remember to eat because your stomach hurts...Set a timer for every 2 hours and try that for now......Don't take in anything too hot or cold right now your stomach will revolt.....tepid okay.... It will get better I know...I was 5 months in the hospital due to complications with my surgery and I thought I would never ever feel better again....10 months out..I am doing really well...You will too!!!!!

Everyone loses at different rates...it totally depends on your body how much you lose and where you stall and start again... Giving in to the urge to over eat is taking you back where you started....Would that be worth it....NO! 50 lb.s is 50 lbs. you must have worked hard to get that off.....If you slide which I am not saying that we don't all have ups and downs...But I think you have a good idea what will happen if you do abuse food again... Get in touch with your Dr. and explain your situation...They have a dietitian on hand that can help you reboot the sleeve.... Never go back...You are among a great crowd of losers....lol

You being scared to death is something that happens to just about everyone who makes this life changing decision. you are on your way and things are going as you planned them.... think of why you are getting the surgery and what your goals are...Think of everything you have went through to get here..... Is it all worth it.....You would not have gone this far if you were not sure! Stay calm and let the fear ride through you.....It will pass once you are on your way.... All the best..See you on the losing side.....

Hi; No doubt your doctor is right.....They do use a bigger tube for your throat....I had this done to me except that was one of the only issues that went away fairly quickly.....The second last surgery I had I could not swallow or drink and it even felt horrible to breath deep...I too was bringing up blood ..Took about a week or so to recover....65% of your stomach is not bad....My Doc. removed 70%.... Your going to be sore for a while as the sleeve and incisions heal..And you will not eat or drink very much even when you start on solids....It is a new sleeve and it takes time to adjust to it all...Just try to sip liquid slowly and do not drink anything unless it is tepid. Not hot and not cold..Easier on the tummy....

LOL..your a hoot!

You can drive when you are not dizzy, nauseous or tired......each individual is different..Start out with a short distance and see how it goes...That's what I did...Now I drive everywhere!!!!!

The whole reason for the pre op diet is to like TwinsMama says is to shrink your liver.....there was a time that someone held your liver in place while they work on your stomach ....Now it is a tool they use to clamp the liver in place away from your stomach so that they can easily do the surgery....if the liver is too big..Most Doctors will not do the surgery.....The risk becomes high..... Pull yourself together and rethink of why you are having this done.....What is your objective.....And think of those things if you become tempted again to eat a cheese burger... Carry with you a Protein drink or something else at all times that you are allowed to eat on your pre-op diet...K

What is your pre-op diet anyway?

Seems to me that you are already dealing with your emotional eating....You chose a Protein shake..Who does that unless you are ready for the change....All the stuff you are dealing with is difficult but I think you know what you are doing and that you have made the decision to go forward......... Since I have had my surgery 4 times I have paced the floor wanting to clean out the frig because of some thing that went terribly wrong....Each time I walked away without opening the frig door.....You are already doing that! Don't be so hard on yourself......K

I was in the hospital for 5 months due to complications with my sleeve surgery...they had to put me in a coma. I was in it for 19 days..When I woke up I had a category 5 bed sore....which is the worst you can get!