Oakleygirl

What do you mean "the pressure of the sleeve"? Does having a sleeve exert more pressure on the valve than the normal stomach? Just curious... never heard of this before....

LMAO!!!!! Too many to choose a fave but better prepared now if anyone asks!

Sooooooo excited and not doubting this decision one bit! I made my deposit and booked the flight today! July 8th is the day with Dr. Aceves in Mexicali, MX! I wonder how I will wait?!!! Thank you to everyone who answered my questions as I was doing my research and stressing about this... I'm feeling confident about moving forward!

wishing you both uneventful surgeries and recoveries!

Hey Darcy and Amanda Rae... your posts are helping me immensely! I will be in Mexicali on July 8th and your positive experiences are helping me to know I made a good decision to go with Dr. Aceves! Amanda, so did you have 1, 2, or 3 leak tests now? I saw the blue stuff leak test, now barium... did you get one while under anesthesia?

I am also more scared of them than I was before but you can help yourself to prevent them... walk, walk, walk... not just post op, but get in some cardio before your op if you can; get the compression stockings to wear post op; and be sure to keep your fluids up and be aware of the symptoms of a clot. it's all we can do to be as prepared as possible... oh... and pray, if you are so inclined.

Did you have to drink ALL of those blue cups for the leak test????!!!! OMG! Let's hope the blue stuff passes right out to the other end and not inside! Wishing you well, Amanda!

This was such a "real" post... how brave and honest you are being with us, but most importantly, with yourself. You WILL overcome using food for soothing your emotions because you are making yourself aware that this is a trigger for you. I am not sleeved yet, but worry about this type of eating post-op... thank you for being a role model for those of us to follow... I wish you peace in spirit so that your body and soul can follow.

I could be wrong, but I think I read that there are a few drs who do more than one leak test before you leave hospital, but so far, from people's reports, it always seems to be just one? I thought it was Dr. Aceves who does 3? Is that correct? Also, if your leak test comes back negative post-op, does that mean you won't get a leak or just that there isn't a leak yet? The whole leak thing TERRIFIES me... it is the single factor that makes me second guess doing the surgery at all. Any input here greatly appreciated!

I'm looking through a lot of sleevers' post op diets and seeing that dairy products, such as whey protein, yogurt, cotttage cheese, cheese strings, milk, etc... seem to make up the bulk of the diet. I can do a tiny bit of dairy, but living off of it like that would make me absolutely ill (I'm dairy sensitive, but not allergic... seems to affect my joints/achiness badly if I have too much). I know I can do all kinds of meats, but is there a reason people seem to lean towards the dairy post op? Do meats just not go down well, but the softer dairy products do? I'm just trying to plan ahead, but am worried that the dairy load would be too much!

@ Jesser... my surgery is July 8th with Dr. Aceves... hope it works out for you!

Wheeeeee!!!! How exciting! I'll be watching out and praying for you! Post details when you can as I will be seeing Dr. Aceves in July!

My fave is to add a drained cup of Del Monte diced peaches (no sugar added) to cottage cheese... tastes even better when you let it get to room temp... LOVE this for any snack or meal!

Can you purchase these stockings on your own? I am thinking they would be useful for me on my flight home as it is a 5 hour flight and lots of time in car to/from airport in addition to the flight.

A couple things come to mind... if you are swimming, especially in the ocean, you might want to ask your dr. if your incisions will be healed enough for that. Also, as you will be taking more liquids in than probably ever before, you might want to think about "clean/safe" sources of water whilst away... I would say that to anyone travelling to a tropical place, but even more so for someone fairly post-op. As for the encouraging side of things, a cruise ship with cater to YOU so it doesn't mean you HAVE to do buffets all day/night. Instead, order a la carte and ask for something super yummy as your protein... what an opportunity to have specially prepared filet mignon or fish or baked chicken every day! Good luck in whatever you decide and wishing you "smooth sailing" in EVERY way! lol!

I ordered and read Dr. Alvarez' book about the gastric sleeve... he says two things you can do to prepare for the surgery is 1) do cardio type activities pre-op, even just walking every day will help your heart through surgery; and 2) blow up a balloon 10 to 20 times each day to keep your lungs working well for surgery. Seems pretty easy to do these and could help you alot in your recovery. My surgery is in July so have many of the same questions! Good luck!

Your smile in your after shots says it all!!!!!! You looked so unhappy before and now you are a strikingly beautiful young lady! Congratulations!

I just love these "veteran" stories b/c when all the newness of the sleeve is gone, it still can work for you if you work with it! You have given yourself an amazing gift! I hope I can be as successful! Thanks for sharing!

The "thingy" is called the pyloric valve

Isn't beef jerky really high in sodium? Is there a "natural"/organic version available?

Thought I'd go ahead a post the link to the site I use... check out the extra links at the bottom, too... the avocado fudgesicles are DIVINE... REALLY - they taste like real chocolate pudding pops (for when you can add some pureed foods)! I think the cucumber/watermelon/spearmint pops would be fairly low carb, low sugar, too. http://www.nourishingmeals.com/2011/08/honeydew-cucumber-mint-popsicles.html Enjoy!

What are in the sugar free popsicles you are eating right now? I make all kinds of popsicles for my son who has multiple food sensitivities and I don't use any sugar or sugar "alternatives", BUT they ARE made with fruit so there would be natural sugars in them... so I am curious about the pops you are having now... sugar free with calories OR sugar free, no calories, no carbs? Let me know... if the all natural idea works for you, I can post my recipes... they are GOOD (my kids prefer them to store bought!)!

Did you EVER think you would say those words... "I'm worried because I ate and I drank"!!!! I can feel your anxiety over it, but it just seems so opposite to what you probably never ever even considered as a problem before your sleeve! You will be fine... listen to your body... it didn't hurt, you didn't vomit, and you are here to tell us all about it... sounds like all is well!

Isn't the Paleo Bread something Tosca Reno of the Eat Clean Diet makes... try googling it under Tosca Reno!

I am putting my deposit down for Dr. Aceves today!!!!!!! So excited... July won't come fast enough!