bikrchk

Sounds like head hunger. If you feel like it's physical, have a Tums or 2. If that helps, you may need a change in your PPI. Acid can mimic hunger. As far as gong "absolutely insane on a cheeseburger", I still have those moments, and I'm allowed that now, but I know if I go insane on it that I will mighty regret it! So, I've learned to love sliders. One slider as a treat once in a while and I'm done. If I can't get the tiny burger, I have learned to love leftovers, (something to look forward to again) or just "leave it". It's cool to be in control!

My program provided a form to be filled out at every visit listing weight and challenges, etc. Made the documentation simple (and irrefutable). Turned in 6 forms. Easy Peasy.

None of those things bother me. I tried fruit probably after month 4 but don't really do it much at all these days. When I do, its not a problem. Just chowed a "cutie" orange for a snack and it was fine. Full now, but fine. May be kinda soon for that much fiber for you.

I was obese\overweight from the time I was about 8 years old. Over my 47 years, lost the same 60 pounds multiple times, never reaching a healthy weight and gaining it back with interest. Lost my dad to morbid obesity when he was 52, (I was 13). Some say you have to hit rock bottom, but if this was available to me in my 20's I'd have avoided the damage to my body that 40 years of obesity caused. I don't have kids but would tell anyone considering, who has done their research, if you are ready to change, this procedure can help you change your life forever!

THIS makes my day!

No, it's not so simple.I read somewhere recently that there's evidence that once a body has become obese, it will fight like hell to maintain that weight. Makes sense really as our ancestors grew up in times of feast and famine. Rings true for me having lost the same 60 pounds several times over but never being able to maintain it for more than 6 months. And you're right. Speaking as someone a few years older, I was a pretty healthy fat person in my 30's, but once you hit 40... OMG does the extra weight take its toll! High bp, uncontrolled on 3 meds, high cholesterol, a family trait, breathing issues, pain all over. NOT a good time. ALL of that GONE now with no meds! Then there was the memory of losing my dad to morbid obesity (yep, that was COD on the certificate) when he was 52. This. Disease. Kills. WLS is a way out for some. I'd not call having 80%-90% of one's stomach surgically removed, committing to a lifetime of protein and vitamin supplements, losing hair, barfing as you learn where your limits are and committing to exercise should be EASY, but who am I to judge? It sure was WORTH IT!

Eating more than 4oz at a time will eventually cause my stomach to burst and will lead to needing a revision. Not likely after the 2 month mark. Eating past full is BAD for you no doubt, but to actually use the words, "You're gonna burst your pouch". Errr, No. You should try to never feel restriction. Eh, it can be a good thing to actively try to "under eat" your sleeve to a point, but you need to get an much nutrition as you can too. Depends on what I'm eating I guess. If it's high quality I may try to get a few more bites down. If it's bar food, I may try to stop earlier. We should chew our food for 20 minutes. That's just stupid. We can never eat fruit with skin again, including grapes, apples, etc. Again. Just stupid. Most sleeves digest fruit skins and strawberry seeds just fine after the break in period. I know mine does. Test it out and if yours does, no problemo. If these things don't sit well, avoid them. Simple. Sounds like advice for someone with diverticulitis. The 4 oz we eat MUST include 50% Protein (2oz) and the other 50% must be vegetables, fruit, and starch in that order. Really? It matters HOW we get the protein in? Why? Most of us are told "protein first", yes. Personally, I tend to do protein first, but there are days I wouldn't get the recommended amount without supplementation. I LIKE variety in my diet so I supplement protein. It's rare I don't get at least 80g per day. Sometimes, when I make my favorite pork roast, or roast a chicken, its ALL I eat. About 3-4 oz of it and I'm done. We should only take Flintstone chewables for a Multivitamin, anything else is a waste of money. There's a lot of sugar in chewable Vitamins. That's the recommendation? I used chewables for the first few months until I could take pills easily. Today, (and for life) I take a "petitie" multivit 2x day, extra D3, B12, Calcium and Iron on the schedule prescribed by my doc. Partially educated sounds accurate. You should have all of this stuff (post op care and feeding) documented by your surgical team somewhere. ow does the Nut's advice jive with that?

I'm 47 and all I can say is I do it ALL as a postop. Most of the time, I eat what I like in very small quantities. Beer with dinner? Errr... no. Can't do that anymore, but get drunk with my friends, ya, occasionally. I almost always REGRET it afterwards and I'm a bit of a "light weight" (literally) now, but alcohol is not a problem in general. I DO have to work it in around food since eating\drinking together are a no no. It makes me uncomfortable, so I just don't anymore. The calories... are a different story and will still catch up with me if I indulge too often. I HAVE made major changes, do get that wrong. I exercise regularly now, make sure I get my 70+g Protein, all supplements and weigh once per week, (no more). I can't over eat anymore period. If I eat too much sugar, (it has to be WAY too much), I'll dump painfully, (just not worth it). My relationship with food is forever changed. So you don't have to change EVERYTHING, but everything will change if you hope to be successful. I'm definitely NOT sorry I did this and wish it was available when I was in MY 20's. Maybe I would't be trying to relive them now!

All very normal. They pump you full of a TON of fluid in the hospital. Then there's swelling etc. My advice for any post op is STAY OFF THE SCALE until your first followup with your doc! The scale is for FEEDBACK on how you're doing on your program, (don't let it be your motivation) and you don't need that before you start eating real food anyway. Once you do begin weighing, do it no more than once per week. Make your goals specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and timely. Things you can CONTROL like frequency of exercise, protein\vitamin intake, a commitment to measuring\logging your intake. Do these things and you will be successful and WAY less crazy about that number on the scale. THAT will follow if you stick to your program. How will you ever stay motivated once you're in maintenance if the scale is your primary motivator during weight loss?

I was 47. All I know is 48 looks and feels WAAAAAYYYYY better than 47 did!

My doc does a 90% sleeve. Not sure what that translates to as far as bougie size, (kind of subjective anyway as it can have as much to do with the doc's technique as the actual bougie). Anyway, that's a bit smaller than the typical 80%-85% I usually hear about. Dunno. I haz zero complications and at a year and 1/2 out I'm maintaining in my goal range, (sometimes with difficulty, and have made the lifestyle changes necessary to maintain for a lifetime so I'm good with it!

I'll repeat what I heard someone else say... "You gotta go through a lottta duds before you find a stud". I think that is SO true. There is a lot of crazy out there, from Mr. Clingy "I don't wanna be alone" guy to, "lets bang on the first date" guy. Meet the ones you find interesting. Learn from them all. Take none seriously until you're ready. Me? I'm a MASTER at the "first date\first meet". Oh. So. Many. At some point one will "click" and you'll want a second or third date and take it from there. We just need to learn to enjoy the entire ride!

Divorced for 3 years before I had my surgery, I started on Match about 4 months post-op, (prolly a bit too soon in hind sight). Anyway, I dated like it was a JOB for many months after. There is A LOT of insanity in the online dating world, but I don't get asked out in bars when having drinks with "the girls" or at the grocery store or whatever. You gotta meet a lot of duds before you find a stud, right? I seemed to do best on POF, which could have to do with the particular market I live in or the fact I'm a biker chickie and won't date men who don't ride. There just seemed to be more bikers on POF. Also a challenge is they have to be physical enough to keep up with me on and off the bike! Fitness is not often a treasured lifestyle of the biker community! Met one I REALLY liked but he turned out to be a ******. You just can't take it too seriously at first or you're going to be very disappointed\hurt and give up on the process. Imagine what you'll miss if you do that though! When do I tell about my history? Within the first few dates usually. I find it's easier just to be up front than have them wondering why I eat\drink so little after a few dates. I actually met another sleeve patient online. He said something about his "thermostat" being broke since a medical procedure and it turned out we had that in common but little else. Kinda funny. Anyway, eventually met someone stable, successful and physical who rides and have been hanging out with him for about 4 months. I've decided I'm not in a hurry to "push" the relationship. Neither is he. I'm doing just fine on my own but love to have someone to hang out with who shares my passion for riding. That this thing could actually develop over the winter riding hiatus in the midwest bodes well for us. So IF you decide to do the online thing, a profile pic of you doing what you love with a big smile is a MUST. Also a must is not an ounce of negativity in your profile. You want positive, you have to BE positive. Anything else will draw "crazy" to you. And don't give up. Each "meet" that doesn't work out is a learning experience. Even\especially "the ******". I learned how to flirt from him, (something I really needed to learn and gawd is it FUN!), and I learned a lot about what I want in a man. For these things, I will be forever grateful.

I don't consider myself "off track" solely by what I'm eating as I'm no longer on a "diet" with those kinds of "rules". I have a protein, vitamin and exercise habit that I don't often deviate from, but occasionally I get a little too sloppy and need to re-focus. Off track, for me happens if I creep outside my healthy weight zone of 135-145 pounds. If that happens, I return to logging food and exercise until I'm comfortably back down where I belong, (typically the next week). So far, that's been enough to do the trick.

Did my tastes change? Not so much. I like and eat what I did before surgery, just A LOT LESS of it! Diet Coke? Errr. NO. Not good in the tiny tummy. I HAVE kicked the soda habit, and it was quite a habit!! If I binge on sugar\fat, I'll dump in a very painful way, but I REALLY have to over do it for that to happen. Butter on my popcorn, all good, 5 frosted home made sugar Cookies over the course of an afternoon\evening? NEVER again! NOT WORTH IT! And it's exactly what I needed to get control. As for the fear, I finally decided I was more afraid of continuing down the path I was on than I was about having 90% of my stomach removed. That sounds extreme doesn't it? But honestly, it's been FINE. After the initial recovery period, which was uneventful, I learned a new "normal" that included getting my Protein, (yes, I still do supplements), Vitamins, and regular exercise and learning not to over eat. It HURTS to over eat now and it's just not worth it! You won't be successful if you make zero changes. I've just found a way to make the changes I've made "manageable".

Happens to me all the time. My computer doesn't like this site. Sometimes when I hit post it shows up 2x in a row and I don't see an option to delete the extra one, only to edit.

Mine was 6 months of 'dr assisted weight loss", then submission and approval, then EGD and all the pre op testing and surgery scheduled once they had my crap in a pile. It was about 6 weeks between submission and surgery for me. I don't get why they'd schedule before they've done the testing to make sure there are no surprises. Seems like a recipe for a lot of re-schedules.

I was not "restricted" from potatoes, but was told they can be harder to digest early on and have no protein content so they are not a great choice. That said, I really wanted potato soup that first week and happily ate it with a baby spoon in between protein drinks! Things change as you begin to eat foods that are more dense. At 1..5 years out, I'm most comfortable with less than 4 oz of fish, 3 of chicken or beef,, especially if I'm going to have a spoonful of something else with it, but I can do more (up to 3/4 of a c) of like a home made chunky soup or chili or something like that. I have a 90% sleeve which may be slightly smaller than "average". That's just how my doc rolls.

You don't say "where in MO", I'm in the KC area. My plan included working up too 1000-1200 calories with 75-100g of protein, supplements and all the water I could hold, (which wasn't much). I exercised 5xper week. Still do in maintenance. I was allowed crackers once I hit the puree stage, but a couple of rice crackers was all I could fit with a little chicken salad or hummus or whatnot in the beginning. The crunch was awesome after all that mush! Agree, with those who've said get more protein. I had to add snacks to do it or I'd have never topped 800 calories the first few months. I stalled at 3-4 weeks but only a little. My loss the rest of the time was slow, steady and complication free.

I went right in the middle of the healthy zone for BMI which includes a height calculation. BMI is not a perfect tool, but it's a decent starting place for most of us unless we're body builders or competitive athletes. I got close to the original goal and decided to stop and put my self in maintenance a few pounds early as I was in a size 4 and didn't feel like I needed to be smaller at that point. I allow a myslef to float around in a 10 pound range now which is working pretty well.

Mine sure did! Some shoes and boots I was able to put a big insole in to make them work, others, I walked right out of.

Take the bread away. Dump salt, pepper or a little water on whatever is sitting there before it's picked up if you're done. Ask for a box and bag with dinner. Box and bag the left overs before you even get started. Ask for a salad plate up front so you can better "measure" what you do plan to eat Bring a tooth brush and go brush your teeth when you're finished.

I try to look at them in a positive light, from, "What happened to your a$$", to "Wow, you're hot!" And I can totally relate, the first time I heard those kinds of "compliments", and I do see them that way, or got cat called in the the mall parking lot or WHATEVER it is, and I began to see myself as something other than "middle aged frump girl", it WAS very liberating! You just have to LET it be! This life is 90% how you take it, and I'm determined to milk it for all it's worth! I'm also a biker chick, with an attitude sometimes so I have no problem getting in someones face if offended. It just hasn't happened yet. I giggle and MOVE ON!

Sushi=good! Took me a while to tolerate rice well and get full fast but agree, GREAT treat!

Eye drops, cell phone charger, ear plugs, (I had a horrible roommate), extension cord, gasex, chapstick, a robe if you like, but you can put a second hospital gown on backwards to cover ya butt. I also brought yoga pants and cozy socks. The hospital socks are rough! A small pillow to brace your belly for the ride home. Went home in the yoga pants. I was only in the hospital 24 hours. I def overpacked, but that's how I roll!