scootergirl

Justinh125 - you are my hero. What a wonderful thing to hear from a guy. I hope there is a special someone in your life who appreciate what a great guy you must be.

I felt amazing within three weeks of surgery. I was back to most of my normal activities - the only reservation was that I tried not to lift anything too heavy for a few more weeks. I suspect you will be fine if your surgery goes smoothly and you have a history of recovering quickly and well from illnesses, etc. Good luck.

I was not 350+ pounds but I did weigh 313 on my surgery day. I am not tall (5'6"), not young (mid fifties), and post-menopausal. Together with being female, having at least 150 pounds to lose and I could not have had a less promising combination of details. Still, as you can see from my ticker, I am 55 pounds down and feeling great. I am hopeful that I am not yet done with my weight loss journey. There are so many success stories from folks of all different sizes and histories. You will do well. I am sure of it. Good luck.

Hang in there. I am confident that your surgeon did not make changes to your anatomy such that your parts are loose enough to "cough up". I had a good laugh at your description though.

My surgeon is beginning to suspect that I now have a hernia in the muscle wall above my belly button. It is tender if I poke at it while I am standing up. Otherwise, I have no problems with it. I have known others who had muscle wall hernias bad enough to require surgery. Does yours hurt all the time or just when you have pressure behind it? Does it "poke out" when you put pressure behind it (like cough or strain to lift something)? If you answer "yes" to either of these questions be sure to ask your doctor about it - soon. If a hernia gets serious enough it can be more of a danger than just a nuisance. Good luck.

Love these photos. Y'all look so gorgeous. What an inspiration to see. Thanks for sharing. It really helps me stay strong when I see amazing success in others. Thank you.

I am ~5 months out. I have lost enough weight that I feel like a new person. I still have lots of weight to lose but the joint pain that kept me a couch potato has left. The fat around my middle that mad it hard to tie my shoes is nearly gone. The cheekbones that were hiding beneath my chunky face are reappearing. I love my sleeve. I only wish I had done this years ago. I have no regrets except that I have not always made the best of everyday since surgery. Take the gift of your tiny tummy very seriously. Don't squander the magnificent early months post-surgery where hunger is nearly non-existent and exercise plus reduced caloric intake can produce amazing weight loss. This rapid weight loss window is not infinite but it is magical. Enjoy it and use it wisely. You will be delighted by your progress and changes. Good luck.

I am nearly 5 months out. I have three major slow downs in my weight loss. The first was the typical one at three weeks post surgery. I had another at ~2-3 months that lasted about a week and a half, I am now in my third one that has gone on for nearly three weeks. I am trying to stay positive. Past experience has shown me that if I stay with the program, the stall will break and there may be a significant drop once I start losing again. While the scale is 'stuck", I try to up my exercise and to not let the discouraging news at the scale tempt me to make poor food choices. This is not easy. Hang in there. These darned slow-downs happen to us all.

This is the best (and funniest) explanation of the honeymoon period I have seen so far. Thanks for posting this.

I am nearly 5 months out from surgery. My recovery has gone very well. I had some (expected and tolerable) discomfort upon eating during the first few weeks after surgery. Once I healed, I have had no pain from eating (unless I made poor choices in quantity or quality of foods). In the past few weeks I have had a new pain arise after taking the first few bites of a previously tolerated meal. It feels like a transient cramp or rebellion by my stomach to the presence of the incoming food. It passes in a few minutes and I can continue with my meal, usually without any additional pain. I happened to run into my surgeon and was able to ask him about it. He said it is likely that the peristalsis in my stomach is returning; that the pain is my stomach sensing the presence of food and squeezing on it, more like in my pre-surgical days. Has anyone else had this pattern of recovery? If so, was the return of your peristalsis also the return of your appetite? I am concerned that the end of my honeymoon period (translation-for me that has meant that I have had nearly no appetite) is coming soon. Boo hoo if I am right as I have only lost 55 of the ~130 pounds I was hoping to lose. I know there are lots of folks who have continued to lose for at least the first year after surgery. I hope to be one of them. If my honeymoon period is about over and my future weight loss will require new skills and effort on my part, I'd rather know about it and be prepared. Hey vets, help me out!

Y'all, thanks for posting the photos. You guys look great. I am truly inspired. I plan to post my own photos once my weight loss is more noticeable. Even though I am down 55 pounds, few folks have said anything about my appearance. It makes me think that I must not look very different yet. I feel really different though.....so much better. My knees don't hurt anymore. My feet are no longer swollen, I can bend over and tie my shoes without passing out from loss of blood to my head!. Small victories to some but they mean the world to me.

Girl, you've got some beautiful curves goin' on. Congrats. Happy Anniversary. Keep up the good work. I look forward to your 2 year sleeversary photos.

I have not tried probiotics for my constipation. I have been seriously backed up since surgery ~4 months ago. If I take Miralax (or the cheaper generic) EVERY day then I stay regular. It takes 3-4 daily doses before you get relief. Stay with it. No cramps, no loose stool, not a bit unpleasant to drink, just pricey to buy. Best of all, my nutritionist just wrote me a prescription and it is now covered by insurance.

I was never able to tolerate coffee, pre-sleeve. Oddly, I now drink one to two cups of (caffeinated) coffee each day. I only drink it with regular sugar (one teaspoonful) and 1/2&1/2 (one creamer per cup). I finish sweetening it with the sugar-free flavored syrup. Yum, yum. A cup of coffee is heaven and does not upset my sleeve like it used to upset my full-sized stomach. Go figure!?! My nutritionist was OK with me using regular sugar in my tea/coffee as long as I do not use much of it per day. It has made my life so much more pleasant than sweet-n-low/stevia/equal/etc. I guess the nutritionists OK to drink coffee and one's ability to tolerate it is variable.

I am nearly four months out from surgery. I have had a delightfully problem-free post-surgery experience. I feel I am completely healed and doing well (OK, I'd be happier if my weight loss were faster/better but I am not complaining. I have never been able to lose weight in my past, much less lose 54 pounds!). Recently, I have had an increasing issue with getting too full, too fast. This has not previously been a problem for me (except for the first few days post-surgery). Now, I can barely eat my little 1/2 cup servings before I feel stuffed. This is a new issue for me. Has anyone else had something like this happen to them? The too-full feeling passes fairly soon and I am able to get back to the rest of my meal but each meal now takes me a very long time to complete. If no one else has experienced this, do I need to check in with my doctor?

I know you asked for long term losers to reply but I have to butt in. Very soon after surgery I found I got cold MUCH more easily than I did before (I used to be the person in the room with short sleeves who never complained that it was too cold). The surprise to me is how quickly an exercise session can hold my chills at bay. After a good walk or video workout I am able to feel warm for several hours. This is not a cure to my new chill status but it is such a healthy fix. I have a second reason to "get busy"...weight loss AND getting warm. Hard to beat it.

RJ-you look great. Congrats on your success. Please post a before picture for us so we can share in the full impact of your acheivement. It is hard to appreciate the full magnitude of change with only your current photos.

I am only 4 months out but have had terrible constipation since surgery. Daily Miralax has been a blessing for me. If I miss even a single dose, the constipation returns. Increasing my food fiber also seems to move things along. Good luck. Be sure to contact your surgeon/family doc if things don't improve.

Wow. Is that really you in the before pic? Hard to believe. You look amazing. No evidence that you were ever overweight. BTW, how old are you. My 50 something skin will not snap back like yours has. Just curious about the age of such "well behaved" skin. Congrats on your success

Wow! what beautiful photos. Congrats on your progress. You look wonderful. Thanks for posting and inspiring.

Even if toning doesn't change one single millimeter of bat wing (or other sagging skin) it certainly won't hurt anything. Exercise is great at burning calories and good for everyone. What the heck. Tone away. Can't hurt and may help!

Ha. What a great story. How wonderful to have motivated workout partner right under your own roof

Don't dispair. I am right there with you. Surgery on 7/29. I am still shy of 50 pounds lost (2.5 more pounds to go to 50 total!). It has been a slow process for me. Several stalls and several weight increases along the way. Getting more serious of exercise seems to be the most helpful weight loss assist since my surgery. With the addition of regular, hard exercise I have been on a 1/2 pound loss per day for most of a week. Wow. I'll take it. My sore muscles feel otherwise!

Ha. I am so happy to read this post. My own mother, who lives I my town and sees me several times a month, still hasn't noticed my nearly 50 pound weight loss. Even my everyday coworkers have hardly noticed. Only two have asked if I have lost weight. To both I said "thank you for noticing. Yes, I have. I have been working at it". Seems folks are so often so occupied with their own lives that they have not pressed me for additional info. When someone finally says something about my change in appearance my ego and my wish for privacy are both happy!

First, breath. I know it is frustrating when the scale gets stuck or, worse still, goes up. It happens. I have had several instances of 5 pound weight gain...overnight. Yes, I weigh myself every morning (there are many folks who advise against this but I have my reasons). My practice is dangerous 'cause I catch my short duration weight fluctuations. See a post, from a few weeks ago, by gamergirl. She was similarly disturbed by apparent weight stalls/increases. As she graphed her weight over time her increases/stalls smoothed out and she saw her amazing trend downward. I think her "long view" is wise and wonderful for us all. Too close a look at our moment by moment weight can make us nuts as well as give us a false impression of our overall success.