TheGamer

I used nicotine Patches when I quit. I couldn't have done it otherwise. No idea if you've had experience with them before, but be aware that patches can give you the STRANGEST dreams. If it interferes with your sleep, take 'em off before bedtime. Personally, I found the dreams the coolest part of quitting, but I'm strange that way.

I live by teas and tisanes (herbal teas). My sleeve hates plain water and hates anything cold.

I was never given a caloric guide by my surgeon or nutritionist. What I was given were basic guidelines on what I should have (70g protein, 64 oz water, vitamins/minerals) with directions on how to eat healthier. On average I eat about 600-700 calories a day and I don't adjust my caloric intake based on any exercise that I do.

Yes, it's normal. Just do a search for "week 3 stall" and you'll see that it happens to a lot of us. It's also possible that the pain is related to the internal stitches and muscles pulling. I did that myself and it wasn't pleasant =\

I love the classic syrups - hazelnut, vanilla, ones like that. They're very versatile. Another good thing is to get flavoring/extracts like those used to flavor candy that come in flavors like banana nut and coconut. They're generally alcohol based and require very little (a few drops) for a lot of flavor.

I had a similar thing. Doctor said that with the stitching I just pulled a muscle. I took some of my leftover pain meds and took a good nap. It helped.

Silly as it sounds, I stared at my shoulders for a good ten minutes the other day. They're better defined now and it when I wear a shirt it doesn't look like I shoved pillows up my sleeves.

You and I were sleeved at about the same time (I was 10/22). Now that we're further out, we can pretty much eat what we want. It's one of the reasons I chose the sleeve over the band (too much hassle) or RNY (no more chocolate EVER). So yeah, when they bring in pizza, I let myself have a bite. Dessert? Just a little bit. Those moments are the exception, not the rule, though. They haven't made me sick, I didn't feel bad, but I can't let those things become my main source of food, if that makes sense. I *can* eat anything, but that doesn't mean that if I do, I'm making the right choices for me. So many of us come in to this with a lifetime of food issues, from emotional/comfort eating, binging, addiction... and a lot of times it's easy to think that this surgery is going to fix all of that. Truth is, we need to fix ourselves first. I've said a lot of times that food is my enemy. I will always have to fight against it, because I've shown that I'm lousy at making good choices. For me, not eating bread and candy and junk food is my way of fighting that addiction. It's not that I'm not capable of eating it physically, it's just that mentally, it's my drug of choice. The good and the bad is that with this surgery, we have choice. We aren't destined to be anything more than what we make of ourselves. Stick to what you know is right and it will work. Also, gummy Vitamins are amazing, even if they're not the "best" for us.

Healthy doesn't mean bad tasting. Learning how to properly season food makes even things that are good for you taste delicious. Take salmon, which is good for you. A little butter, some dill weed, salt and pepper and baked or steamed is very tasty. Try not to let your food dry out when cooking. So many people overcook food and nothing is worse than trying to choke down some overcooked, dry, rubbery food Also, the less bad food you eat, the better good food tastes. We're hard wired, as humans, to crave food that's heavy in salt, fat, and sugar - things that humans used to not eat a lot of because they were hard to come by. Food is addicting, but it's not like we can stop eating. That's why it all comes down to choice.

I did a little over two weeks on a liquid pre-op. My first few days were terrible. In fact, I took a day off work just so I could give myself time to adjust. I was doing 5 shakes a day with a small (1/2c) serving of vegetables every day. My first two days I actually allowed myself to eat some steamed salmon in order to help me transition, so I was doing 2 shakes and 2 pieces of fish. Then, on the day I was supposed to start, it was nothing but shakes all day. The first few days were the worst, but then I started dropping weight By the time I was one week pre-op, I was finding that I couldn't eat all they wanted me to. I was having trouble getting in 3 shakes a day (the absolute minimum) because my desire to eat (as well as choke down another shake) were both at an absolute minimum. I was glad for my surgery date to get here. It was hard but the whole time I just kept reminding myself that the only person who would lose if I failed to keep with it would be me. I had to take responsibility. In a lot of ways, the pre-op diet is good training. If we can't make it two weeks, how are we ever going to do a lifetime?

Coffee.

That sounds so familiar. I'll get something I really think I like or want, eat a little, and then the rest just goes to waste because I really didn't want it like I thought. The down side to living alone is that there's nobody to eat my leftovers.

If anything, I love smells more than ever. They seem to hit those areas in my brain that have fond memories of these things and what (in my head) they tasted like. In my head, at least, I'm still all for the salt-fat-sugar laden foods, even though I don't really have a physical desire to eat them now, just mental. My sense of taste is more sensitive to things than they were before. I had a teaspoon of cheesecake the other day and found that I really noticed how butter heavy the crust was. The bread basket smelled delicious, but the bread itself was flat and unappetizing to me and it tasted dull. I was glad I'd only taken a little 1" piece of it.

Every story is different. For every horror story there's a "things went perfect" story, or even a "things went okay with a few stumbling blocks" (like mine). My first couple months weren't easy, but even then I was still having great luck with weight loss and so I never really questioned my decision (it's not like that would have undone it anyway ). I knew that the issues would eventually resolve, but the weight loss assistance would be there for a long time It's perfectly normal to get worked up prior to a major surgical procedure, especially one that's 1) voluntary and 2) a major life change and 3) removing most of a major organ! Just look at your history and ask yourself if there is, realistically, any other option. For me, who spent my entire life on one diet or another only to watch my weight go up and down like a rollercoaster, there wasn't. I had exhausted all my other options and I literally couldn't handle another round of extreme self-deprivation as I tried to starve myself skinny. I needed the tool that the sleeve provided in order to make it.

Wow, completely amazing If I can ask a personal question, how much, if at all, was loose skin a problem?

It sounds to me like he either misunderstands the nature of your surgery, isn't supportive, or is trying to sabotage your success. I'm lucky to be around supportive (at least to my face!) people. They skip my cubicle when sweets are brought in, if I'm in a group and they offer something I can't have, they apologize, and when we go out for lunch, we go to places that I can easily get a meal from. It would be really difficult for me to deal with sabotage at work, so having it at home would be a real nightmare. Have you tried to have a sit down talk with your husband? It sounds like for some reason he's just not working in your best interests and might be scared that he's losing (not just physically ) you.

The type of yogurt you get has a *lot* to do with the taste. Out of all the greek yogurts, Fage is by far my favorite. Normally Fage isn't in with the yogurts in the dairy case around here, often you have to go to the tree hugging section of the store to find it. It's very smooth, not gritty and has a nice tang. Try mixing in sugar free syrup like Torani or Archer Farms. Archer Farms had a pumpkin spice one during the holidays that was delicious.

I wasn't given much in the way of guidelines. 70g protein, less than 100g carbs, and 64 oz of water - those are my only rules.

It depends. Shoulders carry less fat as a general rule, which is one reason they're nice for inking. Also relevant is how/if your weight has fluctuated since getting it done. If it's stretched out at all, it's not going to to back quite the same way, as ink tends to spread over time, even if carefully tended to. You can see that in older tattoos and tattoos in high-traffic (waist, feet, hands, bra strap) areas. All artwork should be taken care of in order to look as good as it can for as long as it can

I started out with walking several times a week, only to take a nasty fall when we had some snow. As a result I twisted something in my knee and walking more than short distances became impossible. My doctor told me to keep off it and rest it for a month, so I've not done any exercise since and can't tell any difference in the amount of weight I'm losing. Caloric deficit from exercise, unless you're doing some really brutal working out, is generally not a lot.

Sounds about right to me. The week before I started my pre-op diet, I had a food funeral. Every day I ate out, sometimes ate all my meals out, always somewhere different and always something that I knew I wouldn't be eating for a long time... if ever again. Food, which my life used to revolve around, is now just kind of this thing I do. I could go and eat the things I ate that week, but I choose not to because that all consuming hunger that used to be there no matter what I did... is gone. I don't want to risk going back and becoming the person I used to be. I didn't go through this to go back to eating what I ate. Yeah, I've had a bite of pizza (it was delicious!) and I had some some really good deserts (just a teaspoon or two) but my fear of failing is greater than my love of food.

I gurgle like a fountain when I drink. I hope it's not as loud as I feel it is >.>

Ha, I was putting sriracha in my chicken broth the day after I got home! It didn't bother me in the least. Love spicy things

Always allow time for the unexpected to happen. I know a lot of people are able to bounce right back in to things, but I ended up with some minor complications about a month after that interfered with my recovery. Overall, I found that I had much more energy after surgery, even on reduced caloric intake. I did feel a little deprived when I had to go back on all liquid about a month out because of esophageal constriction. Now that everything is healed, though, things are great. I'm very watchful of getting my Protein, Water, and Vitamins, though.