LindafromFlorida

There will be no comparison, you and him. And your equipment will continue to work! Probably much better!

I will jump in here Mike. I am sure it took guts to post that question. My husband is 6'2, 67, and weighed 320. He has lost 90 lbs. since November 2013. My response to you is that no one can predict what you will look like. After an entire lifetime of being fat (no need to sugarcoat it), gaining and losing 100 lbs twice on Optifast, and totally starving himself and gorging himself, his body was a mess overweight. After losing 90 lbs. since the sleeve, I am amazed that his belly has flattened. They recommend skin reduction 18 months after surgery, not before, from what I read. You are 30. My husband is 67, and I am so proud of the way he looks now. His veins in his legs are not bulging now. He has loose skin on his arms. but when he recently dressed for a cruise, he looked like a million dollars. Most people won't see you naked. I am the only one who sees him but I was absolutely proud to be with him in a bathing suit on the cruise. You will be so thankful for the new body, and I assure you things cannot be any worse for you when you lose 100 lbs! Hust think of all the possibilities. You will have a new body, maybe a little loose skin, but you might not end up with the diabetes, heart stent, HBP and sleep apnea my husband has. Best of luck Mike.

BTW I was on the Atkins diet 10 years ago and began making crustless quiche. Just use a glass pie dish and it is awesome. I did use a muffin pan at about 2 months to make crustless quiche also. Great!

BTW Weezy I am off Metformin (after a year on it) and asthma inhalers.

LindaThanks. He does not believe in any surgery for weight loss and is overweight himself and diabetic! I do not want to become diabetic! Weezy, my husband has been diabetic almost 40 years. I got tired of calling rescue to him unconscious at 3 am, thinking he would die. When I was diagnosed diabetic and asthmatic, and weighed 220 lbs, I was terrified. I took him to a seminar and thank God they told me I qualified for the sleeve. I led my husband into sleeving and he is one happy man today, 90 lbs. down. Take care of yourself!!!! Linda

My husband and I also had hernias repaired and it did not affect us. I know you will do fine.

Thank you! Please feel free to email me ldav@clearwire.net if you like.

Fantastic! My husband's cardiologist cleared him without any test because they had been discussing it a year or more. I had to have a stress test, and within a few days they had sent the result to the cardiologist, and once that was done, we got a surgery date. Once you have the date, you can focus on the eating plan, and I kept myself busy cleaning out closets so I would not sit around and worry LOL! Keep me posted. I am leaving next week for West Virginia for about a week, but I can still keep up with you!

CowgirlJane, I totally agree. I told our surgeon get me in and out ASAP. I went to the ER and was admitted, out of town, a few moths ago very dehydrated and sick, and within a week I had shingles. In two weeks my son in law had chicken pox. I am 150% convinced it was from the hospital.

Some surgeons use drains. Ours did not.

I would suggest that you eat before you go to any function, or the store, or anywhere else, so that you are not hungry. You see you can eat these foods now, so I am wondering if you will keep doing it. You have gone through so much to get where you are today, so I encourage you to love yourself, keep on track, and make the choice to eat according to your plan. You can do this. My husband and I had broth for Thanksgiving last November, then pureed lowfat chili for Christmas dinner. We started going to functions after that, but steered clear of the food. Remember, there will always be funerals, weddings and parties in our lives, and I plan to go with a full sleeved belly so I tan take a bite or two of something special and enjoy a taste. Good luck, I like that we can always support each other in times like this! Linda

You are such an inspiration here and I am so happy for your success! Since the sleeve 12/2 my husband is down 90 lbs, and instead of adding ANOTHER box to his 20 year collection of every size clothes known to man and woman, he gave them to me to donate. He knows he will never go back, ever. I know you know that too and it is incredible!

I went to the hospital at 1 pm. had surgery a little after 3 pm, and was discharged the next morning after the leak x-ray. I took one pain pill after I got home. I went to the grocery store the second day. I was amazed I was not debilitated lOL, and I sincerely wondered if the doctor pretended to operate on me. I was a little sore. I am 67, and I wish everyone had it so easy. You should be fine. It was nothing like I expected. All we did was eat broth and popsicles for a few days so nothing was hard about it. Good luck!

The headache was hell. We had broth for Thanksgiving. All of us sleevers have gone through this and it is a distant memory. The fun is losing weight after the sleeve. I was at the store 2 days after surgery and in the mall 5 days after surgery You won't be incapacitated that much so just keep your meal planning simple. I took one pain pill at home 24 hours after surgery. It was 10 times easier than my husband and I expected. Good luck!!

You can add protein powder to yogurt, soups, etc. I would relax and keep everything simple. A shake will last a couple hours, you can sip a little at a time. Bouillon was a favorite newly sleeved, and even today. Early out we ate a lot of FF soup. It was very easy to feel full and satisfied. Refried beans, a tablespoon was awesome. Good luck!

Welcome here! "Gumbo is a dish that originated in southern Louisiana during the 18th century. It typically consists primarily of a strongly flavored stock, meat or shellfish, a thickener, and seasoning vegetables, which can include celery, okra, bell peppers and onions." Where do you live? Your food choices (if you are outside the US) are not the same as ours. For Snacks, I try to keep on hand lowfat string cheese, cottage cheese with SF Polaner jam, a few almonds, a boiled egg, chicken salad, egg salad, etc. We do not snack too much but if you have a small cooler you can always take these things with you as you travel. Good luck!

Best wishes - keep the faith and focus on your healthy eating. You cannot change anyone but yourself.

How do you keep track of Protein if you don't measure anything? Just curious... Our surgeon/NUT said eat healthy. Period. At 3 months we were told no more shakes, that I was eating too much protein. We take good Vitamins, lost 60 and 90 lbs each, bloodwork is good, so it is working for us. We eat protein, salads, and add a few things when we want. Keep in mind we are both 67, our only exercise is swimming daily. This regimen would probably not work for younger people but we are making good choices, and have no bread, carbs or sweets in the house because of diabetes. We feel so good!

We were both sleeved. I like chicken and tuna salad, while my husband prefers about 2 oz. smoked salmon. We have a salad most nights, then decide on the protein. I bought a rotisserie chicken this afternoon, added the breast, 1/4 cup crabmeat and 1/2 lb. shrimp to a pot of gumbo. My husband loved it. I will freeze this because I love gumbo. I make small batches of chicken salad (love adding walnuts, pecans or sliced almonds, lots of celery, a little chunk pineapple, nutmeg and lowfat mayo), or tuna salad. In the past 2 months we shared a small filet mignon twice. Even at $17 a lb, two filets were $9.00, so for $4.50 we had a wonderful lean and tender steak. There are Aidells caramelized onion turkey meatballs in the grocery, very good. I have baked them (maybe 10), and we eat two apiece and they can go back in the freezer for quick thaw (a little marinara is great). Fish is wonderful in Florida, so we have that often. Slaw is a favorite side. There are so many quick options that require little cooking. Since we both eat differently, I just keep on hand what my husband likes, and my go to food, so it is like cooking for one in my house also. I am thoroughly loving the fact that meal planning is obsolete in this household. I got tired of throwing out large bags of salad mix (big expense) and now I buy small green salads in Publix, with no waste. Keeping boiled eggs on hand is a must, maybe 3-5 a week. We just drove from Florida to Kansas, relaxed and happy, no fast food, snacking on a few healthy things and a banana. No desire to stop at Cracker Barrel, LOL. Wow has life changed!!!

At first, we would start the hiccups and little burps, and were saying to each other, what the heck!! We learned to slow down and stop eating then. Now, at 7 months, we burp/hiccup just a little. Each stage is a little different, but you will figure out your sleeve. This sounds crazy, but our surgeon cautioned us to not eat 3 meals a day and only eat when we are really hungry. It works for us but it is not for everyone I know. I learned early out I could have about half a protein carton shake and go off all day and never get hungry and have to hunt up food. It was absolutely wonderful, and still is. I would recommend eating a little, definitely use small bowls or a cup, or saucers. Measure out a little of what you might think you can eat, and you can always get more. You might realize you do not want more. I saw everyone was discussing their max/min carbs and proteins and called our NUT, who said our surgeon gave us no guidelines there, just to eat healthy after 6 weeks. You take all the different posts, keep reading and trying out new things, and then you decide what works best for you. Thank the Lord for all the ideas we get here, as we muddle through! Best of luck!

I bought the food scale, waste of money since I eat small amounts anyway. I stocked up on protein powder and shakes, then at 3 months was told don't drink shakes. I bought so much soup, egads! I froze food, and decided I hate leftovers and I don't want to eat what was frozen. What I would do different is relax and understand I could get to the store 2 days after surgery and had no need to stock up. I would know my tastes change constantly and what I wanted last week I do not want this week. LOL.

Post a topic "Surgeon wants to stretch my sleeve" and see if you get some help here. You should be specific when you have a problem James and I hope some replies with some information. IMHO I would be wanting some seriously good X-rays before I let anyone do anything. And take the X-rays for a second opinion. Doctors get nervous when you ask too many questions and talk second opinions so beware. I wish you the best and I hope you find some help here. God Bless. Linda

Congratulations everyone!!!!!! Swimsuits for July 4 everyone?

It sounds like you are eating Bigmomma. I am 7 months out and have not tried a pork chop. I did not try salad until 3 months out, I was afraid to try, but once I did I am eating salad every day. You might want to try less dense food, such as refried beans, cottage cheese, yogurt (I added protein powder), ground turkey, turkey meatballs, and things that are softer. Good luck!

Rest and relax and take your pain med, but make sure when in doubt get to a hospital or doctor!!!