devine.adon

I am interested in hearing from patients of Dr. Alvarez, I'd like to hear about your experiences before, durning and after... Also anything else you might think would be helpful.. I am scheduled for 7/13 and also wonder if the other patient scheduled for the same day as me happens to be on here from my understanding he only does two sleeves per day.. TIA

I do not believe I was talking about you, I was talking about the pasta eater who also dabbled in some cake and cheat or slider foods.. I was looking at my emails reading posts and did not realize there are 3 different threads labeled "July 2013 sleevers" again I was not being a "blank blank blank" I was trying to point out that things need to change or a person can gain it all back plus some! I was also ranting a tad because I'm doing everything I'm told to do except I'm exercising more than what my dr said. I am starting to assume my dr is way more strict on what foods he wants his patients to eat! Also he never talked about slow losers, all he talked about to me was how fast I should loose! I guess he's had a high success rate of fast losers! December will be my 5 month mark and he had said I should have 100 or more lbs off by then easily! I guess my dr along with myself have gotten too high of hopes but its not totally 100% me, I was listening to the man who operated on me as well!!

And Yes this is a support board, that's why I'm here! I have not shared my procedure with many people and I do not have a support system at home. We just do not talk about it. I am here for the fact that this is a support board, I need to rant sometimes, for one its good for a person to get things out in the open and when it comes to my sleeve this board is my "out in the open" place to go!

I was told carbs and fat are bad by my dr! I have a list of foods that I should always avoid, crackers, pasta and several other items people are talking about eating are all on the No list.. Maybe my dr has a different diet but I've even read it online about these foods. I'm not bitter toward people who are loosing weight, I've never been bitter in my life. I don't have a NUT I talk to my Dr who preformed my surgery, I usually talk to him twice a week. I was told that I should be able to drop weight pretty fast, I guess my dr has high expectations of his patients. I don't need to go to counseling, I deal with that on a daily basis considering that is my profession. I am a child psychologist and I know all about human behavior lol I'm not trying to win a pissing contest, I'm trying to help people understand why the nut or dr would get upset with them, I was told not to eat those things, I've asked many questions and my dr has answered them all! The last email I sent him he said I've lost a lot in such little time, I don't agree but maybe I'm expecting too much from myself. I workout everyday for an hour total, usually two 30 min sessions. I use a treadmill, Elliptical, bowflex, total gym and free weights. Yes I'm a tad irritated that I'm busting my guts doing everything right plus some and yet I see people complaining about their dr or nut getting upset with them.. And I just noticed some of what I'm referring to is on another July 2013 sleevers post not just this one, there are three different ones labeled almost or exactly the same. And I did Apologize in my previous post!!

I'm sorry if this offends anyone but this makes me want to cry!! I do not cheat, I am not eating over 800 calories a day, I get in all my protein, I stay as far away from carbs as I can and fat is the devil!! But yet I'm only down now 31 lbs!!! I was down 38 lbs but it went up and now I've stopped loosing completely! I was 333 lbs day of surgery and was told people over 300 lbs loose really fast the first 3-6 months, evidently not me! I have no clue what to do, I can't even eat 3 oz at any meal time! I I have to repeat I never cheat and this is just horrible! My surgery date was July 13, 2013 As of September 13th it will be two months!!! I should be down 60 lbs by then but it sure doesn't look good! What's my point of all this your probably asking?? Well it really upsets me severely when I read about people eating slider foods, and high carb foods and complaining about their NUT going crazy! See there's a reason, you must learn to eat differently in order for this to work!! You MUST change your lifestyle and eating habits FOREVER!! If not you will end up like the lady that goes to church with my aunt... All weight gained back plus some!! Yep it can happen, she started gaining it back within a year of her surgery!! PLEASE THINK BEFORE YOU EAT!! I mean some people may not care but if not why have the surgery to begin with?? I paid for my surgery completely 100% out of my pocket and I'm certainly not rich, really I couldn't afford it but I needed this for myself and my kids!!! Anyway now that I've probably made everyone mad on here I guess I will apologize, I rally am only trying to help but yes I had to rant too! I guess what bothers me most is the fact that I was told I'd loose fast bc I needed to loose more and I took it literally! I was hoping to be down 100+ lbs before Christmas this year maybe something will turn around for me and I'll suddenly see the major loss I'm waiting for!

My Dr says only three meals per day and maybe a light snack if needed but lots of liquid! I am never hungry so I know it's working as far as the hunger it's just the weight isn't coming off like expected. Today marked exactly one month since day of surgery and I've lost 32 lbs since day of surgery!!!! So the scale went down again finally!!!

I went to GNC and talked to the lady working there and she's a big fitness buff!! I bought some quest bars (the white chocolate raspberry is Devine) these are only for a meal replacement at breakfast for me. I also purchased some RTD protein shakes that she the recommended they are higher in protein and lower in carbs and calories than the muscle milk, They are called total Lean, Lean shake. I sure hope my weight starts dropping again soon!!! I know I shouldn't complain but this was a major surgery and I had it for one reason and that was to loose weigh and to lose it quicker than normal... Cause that's what I was told will happen!

That is about all I can eat/drink or I start regurgitating everything... I'm not sure how or what to do?? I know I need the Protein and I realize there will be calories but I'm not even hitting near 800 calories a day but I can't because if I do happen to take in 3 to 3 1/2 ozs of something I will start regurgitating it.. I feel helpless! I am going to email the dr and see if he can give me some advice, he's been excellent so far at answering questions and keeping in touch!

Isopure is completely Disgusting!! There's no other way to explain it lol however I love the Banana Cream Muscle Milk!! The nectar is ok but I can only tolerate 1-2 oz of it... I am really having a hard time with my protein, I'm still in the full liquid stage.

I cannot even eat solid foods till like week 6? First week was clear liquid now two weeks of full liquids, then purée and finally I can move into actual food... I guess every Dr is different in the diets they want you to follow.. However I cannot drink more than 2 oz of any cream soups and 3 oz of broth so I certainly couldn't handle a piece of chicken right now. I am actually happy about this bc I was sleeved on July 13th and I've lost 18 lbs since day of surgery.

Ok there must be something wrong with my app, i looked everywhere for an edit.. I'll have to try again.

I was sleeved July 13, I am down 18 lbs from weight day of surgery!!! I am having a hard time with getting protein in and the 64 oz of liquid per day... I cannot drink isopure!!! Oh my it is horrible! I was told about the nectar and my it is great so far! I also drink 2 oz of muscle milk per day if I can. I can tolerate water, ice, Popsicles, and nectar well but broths and any cream soups cause diarrhea and I feel a bit sick to my stomach for a little while so I'm stuck in the clear liquid stage and should be in my full liquid stage.. I am not really complaining about the fact that I can't eat "drink" any foods well without hitting the John shortly after bc heck I've lost 18 lbs in less than two weeks... YAY! I'm just concerned about not being able to tolerate the actual "food" part of my meal plan...

Don't feel bad, I downloaded it but ended up deleting it!! I can't figure out how to use it, it want me to eat 1,700+ calories a day??? How can I Change it to my 600-800... I am using a livestrong app and I can enter in how many calories I want per day and then I log in what I eat throughout the day. That way I don't go over the 800 calories I have set in! It's been very helpful bc it also has a pie chart showing me my % of protein and carbs and etc. I don't know if my fitness pal is just not working correctly on my phone or what...

I had a 21 day liquid diet before surgery, now the first week after is clear liquid then the 2nd and 3rd weeks are still liquid but can move up to cream soups and I'll be able to drink my muscle milk again. So if your tired of a liquid diet of only a week or two you might need to step back and look at the big picture... Also cheating after the surgery is risky and could be life threatening!! This really isn't something to mess with. I will tell you it's very hard when your family is eating right in front of you and you can smell even just a turkey sandwich and wish to bite into it, but you have to eat your ice chips! This is not easy at all, and it's not ever going to be your old normal ever again. You must become someone new, everything must change forever! As I fixed my sons turkey sandwich I sniffed it with my eyes closed bc I am starving, but thank god I have self control that I really never thought I had before! You have to want this with your all, there can be no "one little bites" it just cannot happen if you want this to go the way it's supposed to go! I know one thing, if I ever hear another person say "you took the easy way out" I honestly think I will deck them!! No wait I know I will deck them!! This isn't easy!

Ok I'm only a couple days out but I'm concerned bc every Protein I've tried so far is causing me to vomit as soon as I swallow it.. I can drink my broth, Water and etc but the protein is just not going down. I've tried Isopure, powders?utm_source=BariatricPal&utm_medium=Affiliate&utm_campaign=CommentLink" target="_ad" data-id="1" >unjury, and a protein bullet from Walgreens.com.. Please let me know if there's anything else.. I am on clear liquid only. Thank you

Actually skim milk is in my list for this week, 4 oz portions but I was scared to try it but I guess I'll give it a try in the morning. Thanks so much!

I was just there, left today. The water goes through a purify system inside the hospital. The ice is made from the same water. However I'm not giving a 100% guarantee, this was what my husband told me that one of the nurses told him!! The ice was very good, and I'm not sick from it... I really wouldn't worry about that at all bc I'm sure the water is clean. On another note, everyone there is absolutely wonderful and you will have excellent care! Good luck!

I'm still feeling great!! I started I chips yesterday and then moved to sips of Water, the ice chips don't bother me but sometimes the water is too much!! My nurse Jessica is the best ever!!! We even connected on fb and exchanged numbers! I will miss her greatly! My dr has been in several times to see me and just chatted with us, he's wonderful and so down to earth. The assistant Dr has also been great, frequent stops as well. I feel like I'm being treated like a princess, its truly amazing!! I am having just a tad bit of pain mainly from the bloated belly, I really wish I could pass some gas or a big burp lol sorry for the TMI there but it's the truth!! I haven't been sick at all and I even got my shower last night. My dr actually said I've bounced back greatly, really even better that most!! So my advice to future sleeves-- get that mindset that you are gonna be one to bounce back easily with little to no pain!! I know I did and it worked!! I will tell this, my husband didn't tell me but right after surgery I had said I was in a lot of pain (I do not remember any of this) they have me some meds and my nurse said I scared her bc my oxygen levels started dropping and got below 80 and was going down, my dr was right here by my side within seconds and had it all under control, yes it was scary to hear this but it was a comfort to know he was so quick to fix it!!! I'm fine now and it was just my dose of pain meds didn't suite me. I am so thankful for a wonderful nurse and a superb dr!!! I will suggest him for a lifetime!! Dr Alvarez is the best, I'll stand behind him 100% always!!!! If you plan to go to Mexico this is the man to see!!!! You won't regret it one bit!!