VSGAnn2014

@@Shrinkingmom ... what a great post! You've come a long way. Congratulations to you.

My psych eval was two sessions -- first one was three pencil / paper tests -- 600 questions. Second session -- the psych shared my test results, including a write-up of any strengths and flags that appeared that might support or threaten my success as a WLS patient. Oddly, he had some concerns based on the test results that I was a control freak. LOL! Then he asked a lot of questions about my weight history, supporters, detractors, challenges, why I thought I'd become obese and fought obesity for so long. I passed.

Thanks, @@jintycb . Shockingly, some people here think I'm an a**hole. But they're probably not sarky gits.

LOL! Those are what we in the State call "day-glow yellow"!

No, I don't think she's a troll. I think she's a bit of a troubled soul who has some serious challenges and probably little formal education. I had a little insomnia last night so I skimmed her earlier posts, too. If you can believe them and can fathom her writing / typing / logic errors, she's on some serious drugs for pain. She said she is bipolar and sees a psychologist and a psychiatrist. During the psychological evaluation with a third mental health professional she said she lied not just about "being fat for only 4 years," but prior suicide attempts ("He didn't need to know that."). I don't interact with people like her to make fun of her. Even responding to these posts is aggravating. But not calling B.S. would let the misinformation stand unquestioned for lurkers and newbies. I MUST stop trying to fix the internet.

And this is why human beings developed language.

The following is my own personal testimony based on my WLS journey. I was sleeved 21 months ago, have lost 100 pounds and have maintained at or below my weight goal for over a year. I now weigh 135 pounds. I agree with Bella that: * WLS is not a magical solution for obesity, much less eating disorders. * Patients with eating disorders should not expect that WLS will solve their eating disorders or resolve any underlying or coincident issues related to those disorders. * Not everyone who becomes obese has an eating disorder. * Most people who are recovering from obesity will benefit enormously from therapy. * Maintaining one's weight after WLS is challenging. It doesn't happen automatically. One person's successful maintenance strategies may not be the same as another person's, ,but maintaining your weight loss is do-able. Still, it's about a 50/50 proposition as to whether WLS patients will maintain the majority of their excess weight lost or gain most or even all of it back. Patients who don't acknowledge this difficulty are fooling themselves. Prior to WLS I didn't have an eating disorder and still don't. Nonetheless, I have been in therapy since two months prior to WLS. There are lots of lifestyle, psychological and emotional changes after WLS, which I've navigated pretty well. But life's stresses have not lessened for me (I'll just leave it at that). But even with all that I'm so much healthier now than I was 3 years ago and am managing much better in life than before. For me (thus far), my sleeve has been a wonderful tool. I've mastered so many other tools too that were necessary to become healthier. I could not recommend it more highly to those seeking to conquer their obesity. But everyone needs to make the most informed decision about WLS they can. Bella, I hope you can find recovery and peace.

They're looking to identify folks with: * Suicide ideation and prior history of hurting themselves or attempts to do so * Current or prior drug, med or other substance abuse (legal or illegal) * Unrealistic expectations of how WLS will resolve all their problems / issues / challenges * No support network at all or a network that will actively sabotage their efforts to become healthier * Needs for therapy that should be identified and provided before and/or after WLS

So many good posts on this thread. Whatever you can do, keep doing it. Do more when you can. And don't hurt yourself! @@Inner Surfer Girl ... you can post pix of Michael Phelps any time you want.

What are we even giving this person the time of day? Probably because it's hard to endure 50-60 drug-addled posts in 24 hours from someone who "was fat for only 4 years."

FYI ... there's another active thread right now where members are discussing GERD and sleeve vs. bypass. Some of you may be interested in hearing WLS patients' post-op experiences with GERD for both surgeries. http://www.bariatricpal.com/topic/367927-help-sleeve-vs-rny/

Since I pretty much felt like s**t pre-op, I may have mistaken not feeling like s**t for a "burst of energy." I second the sentiment that recovering from WLS requires a lot of the body's resources. My recovery was easy, i.e., no complications, incisions healed fast, wasn't in a lot of pain, etc. But I was still very much aware of the fact that I was recovering from major surgery. Make that two major surgeries, since I had my gall bladder removed four weeks post-WLS. I think my sense of feeling so much better within the first few months post-op was partly due to not eating much during that time. I've always felt better when fasting -- and 800 cals/day certainly qualifies (for me) as fasting. I should point out that I was 68 and post-menopausal when I was sleeved. Therefore, I didn't have any monthly hormonal cycles or any old stored-up estrogen or progesterone flooding my system as fat cells were shrinking and releasing waste products and other substances during the rapid weight loss period. Those processes surely must mess around with how you react to WLS initially -- all the physical and mental / emotional changes we are undergoing, which are stressful.

LOL! @@Kindle -- trufax! P.S. You so smart.

That article describes the likelihood of clogging up your shower drain with coffee ground exfoliation treatments. It then recommends doing your coffee scrub in the backyard with a hose. LOL! I don't think so.

Good list, @@JamieLogical , and good discussion. I had a sleeve and had mild reflux pre-op. Twenty-one months post-op, I still have mild reflux that's controlled by an H2 blocker antacid Rx (Ranitidine HCl 150 mg. taken twice a day), which is the same med I took pre-op. I try to follow most eating instructions for those who have GERD, e.g., I stop eating at least two hours before going to bed at night, and minimize eating / drinking acidic foods at night, e.g., tomato sauces, sweet foods, coffee, etc. During the first four months post-op, my surgeon changed my antacid to a PPI (Protonix). Then I went back to Ranitidine. IMHO, there is no generally superior bariatric surgical choice. Your best choice depends on your own medical situation and your comfort with the choices. And don't forget -- for some patients, there are nearly half a dozen other WLS choices besides sleeve or bypass that might be better for you.

That's very cool. Congratulations.

I second @@Kindle 's motion.

Sipping through a straw causes ulcers? WTF? How? And for the record, people choose gastric sleeve surgery for a variety of reasons. Seldom is the decision about which bariatric surgery to have based on their desire to ensure they can keep eating junk food. @@Ele marie -- you assume a lot about WLS and WLS patients that simply isn't true.

Oh, yes. Sugar makes me hungry. In fact, that's sugar's super power.

What wonderful responses you've had on this thread! I'm 21 months post-op, have lost all my excess weight (100 pounds) and now maintaining easily at 135 pounds. Currently (and I emphasize "currently" because things could change, which would mean I'd have to change what I'm doing) ... * I love food! Love the taste of it, the varieties of it, the nutrition of it, the discoveries, the freedom, and the fact that I am no longer afraid of food. Food has become a resource to me, as well as a pleasure. * Since I'm now on maintenance (eating about 1800 cals/day) about 75% of my calories come from nutritious food. The other 25% of my calories come from from good-tasting, but un-nutritious things like alcohol (one drink a day), sugar treats (e.g., 1 biscotti, 2 squares of dark chocolate), or a starchy item (e.g., small biscuit). * I eat a lot of animal and plant Protein, aim for 5 veggies and fruits a day, whole grains, and mostly healthy fats and oils (although I do have a little butter). * I eat full-fat cheese, skim milk, low-fat yogurt -- weird combo, I know, but I like it. * I minimize fast food -- have it rarely. * Only rarely do I eat white bread, white rice, white potatoes, white flour Pasta. Instead, I eat whole grain breads, brown rice, sweet potatoes, whole wheat, protein-enhanced pasta. * I make most of my eating decisions when I make grocery lists and shop for food. If trigger and unnutritious foods are not in the house, I can't eat them. That's a very good piece of advice for you. * I cook a lot more than I used to -- which reflects how rarely I eat "fast food" these days. * I plan my meals and I track all my food and drink intake in My Fitness Pal. I love it. Frankly, for me, it's the second best tool I use to maintain my weight; the first best tool, of course, is my sleeve. * I still (most days) drink a Protein Drink for Breakfast. I just like the taste, and it gives me a great start to the day of 25 grams of protein for only 170 calories. * I take my very few meds (thyroid and H2 blocker antacid) and my Vitamins and other dietary supplements daily and on time. * So far, no food is permanently off limits -- although a lot of foods are on the "only once a week" list or "once in a blue moon" list or "only at X restaurant" list. * I'm still learning a lot about nutrition, metabolism, and eating mindfully. I expect I'll never stop learning. I hope not.

I have lost 100 pounds. I had VSG surgery nearly 21 months ago at age 68. I reached my weight loss goal (150 pounds) and then went on to lose another 15 pounds in the next 8 months. I've been maintaining at 135 pounds for nearly half a year now. And my knee pain (arthritis and pain from various athletic injuries over the years) didn't completely go away until I lost those last 15 pounds. And running (?!) when you're 130 pounds overweight is f**king nutty advice. @@Inner Surfer Girl here has lost several hundred pounds and still has more to go. She (and others here) focused early on via Water exercises for obvious reasons. There's another aspect to this, which is that exercise is necessary for health. You can't get around that. And you have to figure out something you can do that WILL exercise / challenge your body. However ... you will ultimately lose all the weight you need to lose if (and only if) you eat the right foods and right amount of food that promotes the weight loss. There's a saying that goes (something) like this: You will lose your weight in the kitchen, not in the gym. Finally, here is my #1 exercise rule: "Don't hurt yourself!" I know you don't care for your surgeon and that you're limited to him due to your insurance situation and can't change surgeons. I understand that you trust his surgical abilities and plan to put up with him to get your surgery, but that you're (my language, not yours) considering a wider array of post-op advices to maximize your long-term WLS success. I'd say to just nod carefully at his advices about exercise, continue to gather information, and make your own decisions. And for the record, if I were 130 pounds overweight with severe pain in my feet no way in hell would I take up long-distance walking or any kind of running. That may (or may not) come later. I would sure hope you could walk a lot more easily and longer and faster down the line. But not now.

The idea that you were told it was OK to take 3-4 days to drink a single shake (which couldn't have anymore than 30 grams of protein) is ... just totally weird. Perhaps he just meant this was OK for a few days post-op. And if you're only able to get down a single bottle of water (16 ounces?) per day that's going to get you badly dehydrated and back in the hospital for an IV to hydrate your body. That's a very dangerous situation. Because you have had a gastric bypass, you have a "pouch." I have a "sleeve." FYI, I was sleeved 21 months ago, have lost 100 pounds and been maintaining at or below goal for over a year -- I now weigh 135 pounds. Sleeves and pouches aren't the same thing and differ in various ways. But they are both much, much smaller than our stomachs used to be. And here's what else a newly created sleeve and a pouch have in common: For some time after surgery they are both swollen and badly traumatized. And early on neither of them will hold as much as they will a few months hence. Their capacity will increase over time, but only up to a point. But this capacity increase is not due to overeating or overdrinking -- but because it has healed and the post-op inflammation has gone way way down. Now, back to the Protein. You definitely need one helluva lot more protein than 10-20 grams a day. No, you don't have to go from 10 grams to 60 grams in one day. But you should know that I was hitting 60 grams of protein by Day 5 post-op. FYI, many patients are able to manage that much protein fairly soon -- unless they have had a stricture or some other unusual response to surgery. I'm like @@Inner Surfer Girl -- by Month 6 I was eating about 100 grams of protein because by that point I was eating 1,200 calories/day, and the more you eat, the more protein you will eat unless you start eating a lot of "bad carbs," the heavily processed, starchy, sugary carbs none of us should be eating much or any of during the weight loss era. IMHO regarding your surgeon's instructions about regarding protein intake either: (1) you have misunderstood his instrucs or (2) he gave you bad advice. Nothing I have said here is meant to be insulting or rude. This is a message board. We discuss stuff here. And everyone makes their own decisions and reaps the results of their decisions. I've learned so much here. Thanks to all who put forth their stories and experience.

Here's the all-time rudest comment about someone else's weight loss: "I bet your husband / wife / significant other is so happy that you've lost weight!"

First of all, you did good. Smart move to eat with the kids. Second, this is going to get easier and easier. If you eat really, really slowly (as I'm sure you are) what they'll mostly notice (if they're like my companions) is that you're eating for as LONG as they're eating. They honestly won't remember what you have on your plate. Or even what's left when you get "through eating." I certainly never did notice how much others ate or how much was left on their plates at the end.

NOYB ... love it! People. I swear.