twoolley

Thank you for sharing you story. You went through an awful experience but it's good for people to know that these surgeries do have complications and they are very real. Nobody should ever go into WLS thinking it's an easy fix. It's serious business. Congratulations on surviving such a big ordeal and finally achieving a new you, even if at great cost!

Hemp protein I am not familiar with. Is it a different flavor from whey based proteins? To me the whey proteins always end up giving a milky flavor.

The horror of loose skin is what kept me from doing this a long time ago. I did the same as you and said "one thing at a time!" and I am 2 weeks post op now. I can't wait for loose skin to be my biggest problem. I'm going to cover it up with all new clothes!

If you read around the forums there are a lot of posts where guys go out and eat normal foods, just much smaller portions. There's also a thread about straws. It looks like our surgeons usually say no straws but people use them anyways without ill effects, just a bit of air goes down with it. I personally have used a straw once so far, and i get more air eating soup for lunch than through using the straw.

Wednesday I will be 2 weeks past my surgery. Eating normal food right now seems so impossible!! I ate some thick potato soup last night and felt like it would never get through LOL

I live in Texas, and this is the first I have ever heard of a "split fee". I don't blame you for being annoyed - it's rude and I agree with other posters that it's just another way of being greedy. If I see a "split fee" I would expect that the meal portion be plated perfectly on 2 plates and served to us that way. Basically you're paying to have the same meal put nicely on 2 plates. However they didn't even do that. I would inform the manager how insulting it was and that you would never go back... because that would be my last visit to their establishment.

Good luck to you!!

My surgeon went in with a scope to inspect the staple line before he closed up. They also fully submerged my sleeve in Water and put air into my stomach to look for gas escaping. Afterwards they did the leak test where you stand in front of the x-ray unit and drink. I too am concerned about leaks as I would be with any complication that can follow surgery. You're right to ask these questions and the fact that your doctor is doing a leak test before they finish means he's being thorough too. Don't feel afraid to ask what his record on leaks is. My doctor's was less than 1%.

Don't minimize the accomplishment you have made!!!!! How many inches did you lose before the sleeve??? So you're body isn't dropping pounds, it's dropping inches. Be proud of how your body is changing even if it's changing in a different way than someone else!

I think most of us have been there. I had reached a point in my life where we had stopped taking professional portraits around the holidays and my son's birthday because I couldn't stand being the majority of the picture anymore. Every year it just looked worse and worse. I was sleeved on the 10th of this month and my journey is just starting... there is hope for you, for all of us. In the meantime... take that picture, because one day you can use it to show everyone what you've accomplished. Use these moments to motivate you to move forward with a new you!

I got sleeved October 10th!

My doctor or nutritionist have said nothing about tomatos causing ulcers. I have been drinking tomato Soup during my "full liquids" phase. It's blowing my mind how many different recovery diets we are all on. Where do they come up with these guidelines?! -Tom

Hey BKZ3, I think we all feel your pain on the loss of celebratory dinners. My support group had a discussion about this last night and this is a great opportunity for you and your husband to learn to Celebrate an occasion without food! My wife and I are learning to do the same. In fact, we have found that date night is more enjoyable when we go see a movie, walk a park at dusk, visit a museum, go to an art opening, etc... Before, we would be sitting down to a huge dinner & feel to full to even do anything afterwards. I hope that helps a little bit. food was THE focus of all our celebrations!!!

A lot of people who refer to energy pills are also talking about their Vitamin B12 they take daily.

I'm going in for surgery Wednesday and I told my buddies about 3 weeks ago. They asked me why I was doing this, will it for sure help, is it dangerous, and when can I start drinking again. They were supportive. I can't even imagine having the above conversation you just scripted with my friends. If I could imagine it, I don't think they would be my friends. -Tom

Congratulations, you look fantastic!!

Hi everyone, I have been lurking on the forums as a guest for a few weeks now. I went ahead and signed up and thought I would introduce myself. I'm 29 years old. Married with 1 child, 5 yr old boy. I am scheduled to have my sleeve done on October 10th in The Woodlands, TX. I am pretty nervous but I am extremely excited. You see... I have never been thin. From childhood I have always struggled with my weight and it's something that has haunted me my entire life. I am 6' 6" and I weigh 441 pounds right now. I have definitely hit bottom. Many of you have already been an inspiration to me, even though you don't know it. Thank you for the vast collection of knowledge you have all posted here. I have been pouring over the threads for hours and I feel so much more prepared now to go through this. I do invite any interested to read my blog I started today. It's part of my healing process from the "eat anything you want when you want" mentality I grew up with. I also struggle with the fact that my parents aren't really on board with this idea. I wasn't going to tell them, but decided that I would. When I told my parents together... my father said nothing. Not a single word about it. I invite you to comment or just read. I have been taking a lot of comfort in the fact that I am not alone and that if so many of you can endure and thrive through this, so will I! Back to reading forums. Thank you all again! http://twicethemanis...e.blogspot.com/ -Tom

Thanks everyone, I've made it through the week so far. I'm working a lot to clear my workload for the week off. I'm an accountant and the first few days of the month are crazy. I'm really excited about my surgery next week. I know it's going to be hard, but I can't wait to start losing this weight!