Miss Mac

I had a bunch of GasX strips left over, so I used them for cat litter breath, too.

Next day. Two days later I was approved. Gotta love BCBS Federal Employee. I payed a total of $200 for everything.

Well, I am in my grandma years, but one thing I do know is that your little nugget will definitely benefit from your outstanding high Protein nutrition. So, already you have a head start. Even you you gain some pregnancy weight, you will still be ahead of the game from this time last year. There are several post-op mommies on the forum who I am sure will share their PCOS and post-op stories. I wish you the best of all possible outcomes. Hugs from Chicago.

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At least it was protein instead of Oreos.

My sleeve helps me to avoid over-eating in one sitting, otherwise Miss Tummy will punish me for hours. It's on me to decide what Miss Tummy gets to work with. It's on me to not graze all day. It's a forever deal, but the weight loss is worth it. No regrets.

Oh, I forgot. I used them for a while to get through a bout of constipation. The pay-off was intestinal cramps, but it cleared up my problem. Wouldn't professionally recommend them, but just sayin'

If you can't stand your co-workers, put a jar of Haribo SF Gummy Bears at your work station. Bwah ha ha!

My surgeon developed the bariatric programs for both the Cleveland Clinic and the Loyola University Medical Center where I got my sleeve on 12/2/3/2013. He teaches bariatric and robotic surgery at Loyola. He had me on full liquids when I came home on day three. I went to purees at one week, and graduated to soft foods at two weeks. I stayed on soft foods until the end of one month, which was 4 1/2 weeks. I started regular cooked foods then and had no problems. I think you will feel that restriction more, once you start eating solid food. Your doctor has a reason for his plan, so that is the one you should follow.

At your place in time (4 1/2 weeks) I was just starting regular cooked foods. Except for cauliflower and extremely spicy things like jalepeno, I could eat any moist meat or non-starchy veg I wanted, although in a far reduced quantity from the old me. At the soft stage, I was already eating the same variety, but broken down in the blender. Hopefully you will be on regular foods soon. It will help you to get to a more normal schedule of eating. It helped me to make casseroles and crockpot dishes, because they could cook up pretty soft.

My initial consultation was in mid-August 2013. My three months of appointments and tests started in September. My approval came the Monday after Thanksgiving. I had my surgery 12/23/2013. So, about four months start to finish.

Tell her to call your doctor and let him know that she disagrees with his diagnosis.

Maybe I can put this in perspective since I am a retired housekeeping manager for hospital, hotels, residential and industrial settings. The first visit is absolutely going to take longer because the housekeeping has to become familiar with the surroundings, your furnishings, and your expectations and your standards. You could pay by the task instead of the hour....that would speed up the process. Hospital housekeepers are expected to clean a bathroom, wash down a bed with the mattress, maybe even remake the bed, pull trash and soiled linen, dust horizontal surfaces, sweep and mop - all in about 30-45 minutes. However, these are rooms that are cleaned every day without accumulation of soil. Same thing goes for hotel housekeepers. For a normal sized hotel room with two beds, they are expected to clean a bathroom, strip and remake the beds, remove soiled linen and trash, dust horizontal surfaces, and vacuum in about thirty minutes. A suite with a kitchenette would take about an hour. Again, this is a room that is cleaned every day without accumulation. These people are sorely underpaid for the job they do. Please tip your hotel housekeeper $2 a day for a budget hotel, maybe $5 a day for mid-range hotel. You will make their day. Realistically, once a week in a residence that is moderately uncluttered, a bathroom might take 30 minutes. With a jacuzzi tub, double that. In a kitchen, cleaning the stove, sink, outside surfaces of the fridge, sweep and mop, probably an hour. Allow more if you are asking for the oven to be cleaned, or windows, or inside the fridge. If I asked someone to clean my bedroom, it would take them maybe 15-20 minutes to dust horizontal surface, dust the ceiling fan, and vacuum. If I wanted the housekeeper to change the bedsheets and refresh the bed linens, I would double that. In our living room, we have stairs with wrought Iron rails that would need dusted, high vaulted ceilings that would need cobwebs removed with a special extended tool, dusting of horizontal surfaces, vacuum carpet, and sweep and mop entry tile. I seriously would allow a couple of hours for the living room because we have collections on display, which need special handling. Windows would take extra time. If you ask for anything that requires ladder work, expect to pay more. Now you are asking for maintenance skills above housekeeping requirements. If you have an agreement and then add on this, that, and the other thing, expect to pay more. It may take two or three attempts to get someone you are comfortable with. Expect to pay no less than $20 an hour for someone you are happy with. You will pay Merry Maids wayyyyy more than that. I hope this helps.

If anyone else finds themselves in this situation, definitely double check with the business office before dishing out money. If the expense is overwhelming, drag your payments out in small bits. They shouldn't put you in collections if you are making regular payments. In a couple of years, when they are getting desperate they will be ready to compromise your bill down to something smaller. Don't go with a loan consolidation. What those people do is take an unsecured obligation - like a medical bill or credit card balance - and turn it into a secured loan with your house as collateral. Bad deal. Most are sponsored by the credit card companies anyway. If eventually you file for bankruptcy, medical bills are one category of debt you can discharge. I don't know if this stall tactic works internationally. Just sayin'.........

I miss that ice cream, too, but can't afford the calories. My NUT still wants me to have two servings of dairy every day, so what I do is drink a glass of milk with vanilla and sweetener in it. Bedtime is when I could eat a pint of ice cream by myself, so I drink the vanilla milk as my bedtime snack. Also, as soon as I lost that first thirty pounds, I began to sleep much better.

For me, it's a matter of timing. My man has the typical male morning uhhhh "enhancement" and I have found that in the wee hours, I am in my prime, too. I am rested, not sick to my stomach from eating, and have no distractions. He is 65 and I am pushing 64 in a few weeks. Since I am way lighter, I have more energy and am more flexible. I feel less inhibited, too. We are both firm believers in teasing and foreplay - getting ourselves in the mood in order to make that intimate connection with enthusiasm. We are playful and grab and smooch all day long. Find out what it will take for you to get your "flirt" on. Sex starts in the head. It also helped me to drop seven medications post-op. They were slowing my roll. I had no idea in my twenties that I would be having the best sex of my life in my sixties. Who knew?

I hate to admit it, but I majorly slacked back on my exercise routine because any day that I get intense with exercise, I have gained weight overnight, and am way hungrier than if I just leave it alone. I heard from MarksDailyApple.com ( a primal/paleo community) that instead of "eat less / exercise more" the formula should be "eat more / exercise more" or "eat less / exercise less". Just something else to confuse me.

At my 18 month follow-up in June, I was told to knock it off with the Protein drinks and get my protein from real food. I have a tendency to add fruit to my shakes to make them palatable. My instructions were to quit drinking my fruit, too. It is for sure important to keep in touch with your team. As long as I stay honest with them, they can continue to help keep me on course. I was also told to keep weighing, measuring, and logging since I have a bad case of portion distortion. It only takes me three days of going rogue to start gaining back. My sleeve has definitely forced me to be more aware of what I eat, when I eat, and how I eat.

Welcome to the forum. As you scan through the posts, you will find that opinions and tact will vary. That's ok. That's how we give each other support and reality checks. It is understandable that your hubby is skeptical. Taking him with you to information sessions and appointments is the best way to get him educated on the subject of bariatric intervention. Ultimately your healthcare decisions are for you to decide. Although support of friends and family is a precious commodity, some folks have to plow on through this process on determination alone. It is no secret here that bariatric surgery will expose the raw dynamics of our relationships and instigate power struggles. Just be prepared for anything. It's a wild ride. Since being sleeved in December of 2013, I have been taken off of seven on my nine medications. I was told that I may be on blood pressure meds forever since I had a stroke in 2010. The first med to go was Metformin, and that was immediately post-op. No regrets here.

I am 21 months out and have seen my surgeon once since my operation. I see a bariatrician for my follow-ups every three months. My last one will be in December for my two year anniversary. When it was time for my six week check-up we had blizzard conditions in Chicago, and they cancelled my appointment. So, a week later I went to my primary for a post-op check-up. No problem.

I was totally exhausted for a full month after surgery. Once I started on regular food and got rid of 7 medications, my energy picked up a bit. I definitely move around more easily and joint pain is manageable.

I think my taste buds missed flavor more than my new tummy missed food. Maybe I should invent a new line of bariatric Protein drinks starting with spaghetti and meatball flavored! Some of us were not on Clear liquids as long as you, but your surgeon has his reasons. You will be on full liquids soon. You will think that cream of chicken Soup is the best food ever!

Welcome! You will find great support and acceptance here. By the way, if you have any guy issues that are a little personal, we have a "Guys Forum'" where you can post on topics that you would really just have bariatric brothers respond too. I am 21 months out and always appreciate bariatric veterans who have their experience to share.

One month pre-op, I was in the hospital for 8 days with ischemic colitis. I was so sick. My primary told me later that he thought he was going to lose me or that I was at best going to lose some bowel through surgery. However, I recovered well enough that I was allowed to proceed with my sleeve surgery a month later! So, I get it how absolutely miserable you are right now. The sleeve surgery was my 12th operation, and frankly one of the easiest recoveries I ever had. For sure, the inconvenience and nausea were aggravating, but well worth the effort. Here's hoping that you recover quickly from your current malady. Hang on to your resolve and join us on the other side of the losers' bench. Hugs from Chicago.

A supportive mate is a gift from God. Come here any time. Some of us are up at night, thinkin' when we ought to be sleepin'. Please give your wife a hug from a Scottish lassie in Chicago. (Descended from that murderin' horse thief Sir Godfrey McCulloch - I have spent a lifetime trying to undo his bad Karma on the family). You will find a lot of support here on the forum.