skinnyginny

I was standing in a room the other day and someone, who hasn't seen me for a while, walked in, looked at me and said, "you are scary skinny". My only response to that is "J and E babe, J and E". (jealousy and envy)

I am 5'9" and have weighed between 143-146 for the last 6 months. Love it!

I might be the crazy one here but I weigh myself every day. I guess you could say that I'm kind of obsessed with the scale. I love (with a capital L-O-V-E) seeing how much I weigh now after being overweight for so long. It sometimes makes me giggle.

Wow! You look great!

Yes, I ate all kinds of sugar free Jello during the liquid phase. Those pudding cups were a lifesaver!

Yep, just had my labs done and dr visit. Healthier now than I have been in years.

Hi There -- I had my sleeve done outpatient. I was in by 1pm and home by 7pm that same day. When it was time to go I got up, dressed myself and walked to the car. I had no issues at all and no pain. I had an appointment to go back in the next morning for intravenous hydration. That took about an hour. It was a little uncomfortable sleeping at night for the first few days, not because of pain, but because I couldn't sleep on my side (I'm a side sleeper). I was off all pain meds about 3 days after surgery. My surgeon told me before I got sleeved that the surgery is the easy part. I thought he was crazy at the time but go figure, he knew what he was talking about. I have to say the hardest part was getting the Protein down. I tried all kinds of Protein drinks until I found one that I could get down without gagging. Getting enough Water down was also a challenge... and still is, but I'm working on it. All in all, it was the best decision I've ever made. My surgery was over a year ago and I couldn't be happier! You will do great!

Hang in there... you can do this. The first week is the hardest but you can make it. Just take one day at a time. You will be SO happy once you get past this - and you can!

Congratulations on taking this important step! You will do great!

I have the same problem and I'm 10 months out. I've learned to slow down for the most part but every once in a while I still get into speed mode. My NUT told me to try and figure out what triggers the speed eating, pay attention to what is happening in my life right before. I think, for me, it happens most when I've waited too long in between meals. I typically eat something 6-7 times a day but some days I miss or I forget or get busy with work and skip out. Then my body starts to get that feeling that I NEED to eat something and as soon as food is in front of me the speed eating begins. I haven't figured out yet how to actually stop the speed eating but at least now I know the importance of eating something every 2-3 hours.

My eyesight has gone down hill since the surgery as well... at least it seems that way. I finally went in and had my eyes checked and there was a slight decrease in my vision. I don't have any idea if this is related to the sleeve or just due to the fact that I'm getting older. Could be a bit of both, I guess.

The day that I got the sleeve, I decided to document my journey with pictures. I took a selfie each morning so I could see the changes happening in my face. The link to the video below is my progress report. YIKES! http://youtu.be/BDB0oBqWyto

Thanks! I did some research about tightening skin and have listed a few of them that I think have helped me. 1. Hydrate from the inside (drinking lots of water) and the outside (applying lots of lotion). 2. Don't use soap in the shower because it dries out the skin. Use a body wash instead. 3. Dry brush your skin. This one seemed a little weird but you get one of those back washing brushes at Walmart or wherever. Before you get into the shower, brush your skin with the brush. It is supposed to get rid of all of the dead skin cells. 4. coffee scrub. 3/4 cup coffee grounds, 1/4 cup brown sugar, enough olive oil to make it into a paste. Mix together and use as a scrub in the shower. That's about it! I guess what the above didn't help with, luck filled in the rest. :-)

Thanks! I've lost a total of 97 pounds. I still can't believe that I had that much to lose!

In reflecting on 2013, getting the sleeve was, without a doubt, the best decision I had made in quite some time. Of all the counsel that I have received from my Dr and nutritionist, there are a few things that have really had an impact on me that I thought I would share. SLOW DOWN! Mealtime /= Race time. Chew, chew, chew, chew, chew. Then chew some more. Drink no liquids of any kind with meals. Protein is king. No courtesy eating. Just because someone gives you a heaping spoonful of their (insert homemade dish here) does not mean you have to eat it all. It is okay to leave food on the plate. If those around you are offended by that, get new dinner companions. Best of luck to all who are reading this... especially those who are contemplating getting the sleeve. Whatever you decide is right for you, know this: there are people here who know what you are going through and are here to support and encourage you.

CONGRATULATIONS!!! You look fantastic!

Hi excited! You are so right that everyone is different. I had my surgery as out-patient. I was in by 1pm and home and walking around by 7pm. I was sleeved on Thursday and worked from home the following week. I went back into the office the week after that so technically, I only took 2 days off. But, I was one of the lucky ones... I have had no pain or problems of any kind. The only thing I will say is when I did go back into the office, I could tell that my stamina was shot. By mid-day what little energy I had was completely spent. I overcame this by figuring out how to continually get little bits of Protein in all day long. Once I got my eating/drinking schedule nailed down, my energy was able to last me all day long and I've never looked back. Getting the sleeve was the best decision of my life! Best of luck to you!

You go girl! This is the first day of the new you and you are going to LOVE it! Congrats on making this important decision. For me, getting the sleeve was the best decision of my life.

Okay, for me, Isopure made me gag. I'm 10 months out and I still have unopened Isopure bottles in my fridge. I need to just throw them out. The odd thing is that before surgery, I tried some and thought it tasted good. I bought a whole bunch in prep for surgery and then afterwards, I couldn't even gag it down so I purchased some unjury at the recommendation of my NUT. It was okay, but not great. I found this recipe that has helped get down the vanilla Protein powder: banana Bread shake 1 scoop of vanilla Protein Powder 1/2 cup skim milk 1/2 Water 1/8 teaspoon vanilla 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon 1 tablespoon oats 1/2 large or one small banana (I freeze mine) 6 ice cubes If I had to choose, I would pick Unjury over Isopure. Or even better, I'd choose Syntrax nectar over both of them. I'm to the point now where I am pretty much exclusive to the chocolate Premier Protein shakes from costco. Having said all of that, everyone is different so what I like may make you gag and vice versa. You might want to get a sample of each and try it out for yourself to determine what you like best. It will save you a ton of money if you do that instead of buying a whole bunch of one (like I did), and end up gagging on it. (sorry for using the world gag so much!)

Great to hear! The first time I had broth after surgery I thought I had died and gone to heaven it was so YUMMY! You are so right about giving up food being emotionally hard. I remember at about 1 month out, going through the grocery story and actually mourning the loss of chips and donuts and candy. Mourning! It was the oddest thing. You can do this!

NSV = I can wrap a normal sized bath towel around me without any of my giblets hanging out. w00t.

I know! I can actually cross my legs and not have the top one sticking straight out! So fun...

That is all.

It's been 5 months since going under the knife. Best.Decision.Ever.

Hi christieouchley - My daily diet is focused solely on getting 60+ grams of protein in a day. I don't count the carbs, fat or anything else. A typical day will start with a Premier Protein shake from Costco. Then around 10am I'll eat some pork or turkey jerky or maybe I'll have a hard boiled egg. I usually eat lunch around noon and have whatever seems good from the cafeteria. Around 3pm I'll have a protein bar. For dinner, I'll have whatever leftovers I can find in the fridge. Then at 8pm, I'll have a popsicle or some kind of fruit. I feel like I'm eating all the ding-dong-day. Does that help? I'm not very good about tracking what goes into my mouth. I just eat whatever until my sleeve tells me it is enough. But, I do try to make healthy choices and I ensure I get that protein in!