sharonintx

Welcome! Good for you and hope you continue with a great recovery. The missing food part will lessen after a few more weeks. Keep up the good work!

Very nice!

Just enjoy the ride. There is no right or wrong amount of weight to lose in a given time frame.

You look great!

I'm still putting too much on my plate. Two years out and I cannot seem to judge accurately the amount of food I can eat. I have cut way back on portion sizes but I put more than I can hold every time. Old habits die hard and the desire to eat a lot never dies at all. It's just a matter of accepting it and making the best of this new life.

It blows for sure. The post about just eating a chicken wing instead of wings is dead on lol. Sometimes I can eat 2 but not much more. It'll get much better a few months down the road. It seems like forever now but I promise it's not. There will be a day when you get that chicken wing in your hand and it'll be the best thing ever. I don't think the urge to eat food ever really goes away. When you get past this part of the ordeal you will eat in a new way, but you'll feel lots better just being able to eat some real food. Then you will get full after a few bites and wish you could eat more. It's a vicious cycle. You just kind of reach a level of acceptance with your new lifestyle and make the best of it. Its a hard adjustment and oh how I wish that all of us were born with the type of metabolism that allows some people to eat all they want and not get fat. There have been times that I've seen people eating a lot of food and I wished I was doing the same. Then I secretly hoped they would choke on all that food that I couldn't have. It's worth it. You'll make it through and move on with your new life. And you will look so good that all the big eaters will hide their faces in shame because you outshine them in every way. Then you can go home and smile to yourself while you are eating that one chicken wing:)

Oh goodness. You'll be sorry about asking the smoking question here. Expect some scolding comments to come your way. And really the comments are right and very valid points. I already got scolded a couple years ago so I won't care. Since you already know that smoking is bad for you, I can tell you that my Dr in Mexico did no testing for that issue, in fact some of the patients were smoking outside while waiting for the leak test, and the staff at the recovery center did not like for me to smoke but they didn't hassle any of us very much. I healed up just fine, I had no complications during or after surgery, and all went well.

I got it too. It took maybe 3 weeks for it to disappear. It was miserable! I was told it was from the glue. I never want to be glued together again. It was maddening. i hope yours clears up soon.

It did for me exactly what I wanted it to. I expected to lose 70% of my excess weight. Right now I'm at about 73%. It worked like a charm. I wanted to be able to easily control my food intake and not have to struggle with some stupid diet that worked short term at best. That worked too. There are many days I sit around and wish that for just one day I could eat everything I wanted. But wasn't that the problem to begin with? Yep. Now I don't worry about portion control and self discipline. The sleeve does it for me. I do have to watch the junk food and sweets intake. It's easier to eat more of those things than it is healthier foods. On occasion I gain 3-4 pounds. I make an effort to eat better and the extra pounds go away. I know I say this a lot, but I cannot stress enough the importance of the emotional and psychological implications of WLS. If you can get pre op counseling then do it and take it seriously. If not read up on the subject and prepare yourself the best you can. It's work to adjust to the sleeve itself and even more work to pull yourself together after your security blanket is gone. The security blanket is food. You can do it, you'll be a better person because of it, and somewhere along the road you will lose weight and look better than ever. I hope you get everything you want from the decision you make.

There's a restaurant close to my house that we have gone to over many years. My problem wasn't getting in the booth. It was trying to get out. It's one of those semi circular booths and you have to slide all the way around to get out. This particular table sits on a platform so it's about 10 inches to the ground once you get to the end of the seat and try to put your feet on the floor. I'd have to slide around, kinda turn sideways at the end, then push myself out of there just to hit the floor. I always hoped no one would notice. Now when we go there I slide right around and boom - I'm outta there. It feels so good to not have to bother with stuff like that. Other than the health reasons, all of us want to be thin to feel better about ourselves. To not suffer these indignities due to our size. You can do this....and take it from me and everyone else here - it's worth it.

New clothes, new haircut, or a lot of times no real reward but instead catching a glimpse of myself in the window while walking into a store and wondering whose legs those are attached to my body because my legs have never looked that small. A new pair of high heels because I could sure as heck never balance on them before. Sometimes the reward comes on it's own without me having to think about it. Like when you see someone you haven't seen in a while and your appearance is so different that they can think of nothing to say that will cover up the look of surprise on their face. Or when you see someone who gave you condescending looks and remarks when they learned you were going to have WLS, and now, oddly enough, they cannot think of anything to say because you look so much better than them.

I did. It went well, I had no problems. The doctor and the staff were excellent and took care of everything I needed.

The sleeve is nothing compared to the C section. I would rather have 10 sleeves than 1 C section.

Good for you! Congratulations

Oh yes. But nothing got worse or better from WLS alone. The WLS makes it impossible to use food as a security blanket. Then you are left with a choice. Sink as low as you possibly can and wallow in it some more or you can begin to get a grip on what the underlying problems are in the first place. You know - the ones that we escape from by making food our drug of choice. It's all good though. I think most people choose the 2nd option. Then we go buy new clothes.

That being too fat was the least of my problems. And surprise! I could begin changing all my other flaws as well and live to tell about it.

@@Ernestine Yes it was 2 years in March. I have excellent restriction when I eat decent food. Like just now - I put some steak and vegetables on my plate and started on the steak first. The Protein fills me up quickly. I cannot eat near as much of that as I could some cupcakes or ice cream. Sometimes it is more of an effort to lay off the sweets than it is to eat good stuff. I do find that a few pounds gained is easily corrected if I try just a little.

Yes. I don't lose any more either. Granted I don't try real hard, but the easy weight loss stopped a long time ago. Now I stay within 3-4 pounds one way or another and it is quite manageable to maintain. I would like to lose another 10-15 pounds but it isn't important enough for me to put major effort into it. Maybe it will just drop off by itself one day. If not I am good with what I've lost so far. If I lost more it would just be more saggy skin to deal with. I just don't want to gain it all back. When a few pounds creep up I lay off the candy and they go away in a few days. I could start walking or something to help my cause. I'm going to continue to give it some real thought:)

If I eat too much I get a runny nose.

I had a great experience in Mexico. You'll find some that loved it and some that had a less than enjoyable experience. When I went the Bariatric Pal web site was not as extensive as it is now. There are excellent resources here and a coordinator specifically for Mexico surgeons. Really I am kind of impressed with what this site has turned into as far as the assistance it offers it's members. You'll find plenty of opinions and options from the members themselves too. From my personal standpoint, Mexico is an excellent option. Why would we spend 15K here in the US when we can go right next door to Mexico and spend a third or less for the same exact thing? I certainly would not. Mexican doctors are no different from anywhere else. Some good, some not so much. Whatever you decide do not let the nationality of a physician be deciding factor. I loved Mexico and my Dr did an excellent job. The staff was friendly and professional and they didn't mind my grumpy nature at all.

I think it's great that you are discovering things about yourself that were hidden away. I'm continually amazed at the things I have found out about myself since I decided to come to terms with the aftermath of this surgery. I have spent a lot of time wondering why I never able to confront certain issues before. Why did it take having WLS to begin sorting out things that needed sorting out? I just don't know. I've become very aware that for me, weight loss is secondary to the self awareness I have gained. Truthfully, while I love the weight loss and being smaller it really doesn't matter. I don't care if I never lose another pound. It has taken me my whole life to figure out who I am. If I'd never had this surgery I would still be a stranger to myself. Good for you for taking the steps towards self discovery and best wishes.

I find that I'm more worried now about how I look in a bathing suit or shorts than I was pre WLS. I'm all jiggly and stuff. Not that I was even close to NOT being jiggly before, but everything kinda sags. Arms, thighs, probably my butt too but I'm afraid to look.

Welcome! It is scary thinking about all the changes headed your way. It's no joyride that's for sure. But it's ok and the results you get will put a big smile on your face. Over all I think the benefits of WLS far outweigh any unpleasantness you come across. Don't be scared of the surgery itself. You'll do great. Oh - and there will come a day when you go to buy some new clothes and they don't come from the plus section. It's awesome, almost surreal, and worth every minute of the anxiety you currently feel. Lots of folks will be here to give you support and answer questions. Congratulations on your decision!

The only people I told beforehand were my kids and husband. My mom, brother, and everyone else found out when I came back from having the surgery. Surprise! You can imagine the interesting responses I got. But it was done and over with and none of them had to worry about me and they didn't have a chance to offer any opinions on having WLS. It was finished already.

I did. I had no problems.