Melodica

Thank you so much, Tigermouse! I just got checked in. Time for the wait.

I'm on for today too. Scheduled for 10am central time,but hoping to get bumped earlier. I'm so scared but this has been a long time coming so I'm excited too. Good luck to all my fellow sleevers today. I wish you great surgery and speedy recovery!

My surgery is around 10am tomorrow so I'm nervous as well! I hope your surgery goes great!

I'd suggest avoiding going off the diet if at all possible. Since we're supposed to cut carbs, if you are going to cheat you'd probably best go low carb. Veggie soup might be pretty high in carbs.

My preop diet is exactly like yours, today is day 3 for me! Mine is also for a week but I started a day early. BEST OF LUCK on your wls journey!!! We can do it! Thank you! Best of luck to you as well! My days are counting down slowly, but surely. I did cheat a bit last night and had a can of white meat chicken and some hot sauce (weird combo, I know). I did chew it very thoroughly and it was all protein, so I guess it could have been worse! I've been strong since then though.

I know exactly how you feel! I'm on day 4 of 7 and yesterday was really bad. I'm supposed to be on liquids only, but I caved and ate a can of white meat chicken with some hot sauce (weird combo, I know). I chewed it until it was almost gone and it IS pure Protein with no carbs, so I guess it wasn't as bad as it could have been. I still feel guilty though. Stay strong! You're so close. Don't jeopardize it now. Think of being slimmer and feeling better - that's the only thing that's been keeping me sane!

I got mine on Amazon. That particular flavor is Prime eligible. There are many other flavors being sold there that aren't, but they're still a good price. A couple of other places are The Vitamin Shoppe and the Syntrax website (though it's more expensive there).

I have Blueshield of California and they do require a 6 month supervised diet. They also require documented weight loss attempts, a psych eval and a nutritional eval. Lots of hoops to jump through. That's why I decided to go self pay. Won't cost that much more and I don't have to deal with all that mess.

I'm feeling your pain right now. My head is hurting so badly that I'm feeling sick to my stomach. I've 'cheated' a bit using peppermint candies to try to calm my stomach. It's either that or be completely useless.

Mine is 7 days liquid only. I just hope it actually makes enough difference in my liver to be worth it!

Another Syntrax nectar flavor that's pretty good for those who are tired of chocolate and vanilla is the strawberry kiwi. I got some of it today and it's probably the best powder based drink that I've had thus far. They have a lot of different fruit flavors. I'm looking forward to trying more of them. Mollz, that vanilla cake batter one sounds really good. I love cake batter flavored stuff, so I'll have to look for that!

I'm one of the 4/16 sleevers. I'm really nervous about it, but right now my mind is mostly occupied with the misery from the liquid diet. I'm on day one of seven and I'm ready to tear my hair out! I sure hope it gets easier after the first couple of days or I'll be a basket case by my surgery date. Good luck to all my fellow April sleevers!

I started my diet today. Thankfully it's only a week, but I'm very restricted. I can only have Protein drinks, flavored Water, sugar free Jello, sugar free popsicles and broth. I'm already starving! I completely feel your pain. I keep wondering how I'm going to make it through the next 6 days.

I know a lot of people fly for surgery. I thought I was going to be able to drive, but now it's looking like a strong possibility that I'll have to fly. I haven't flown for years, and the last time I did, I was somewhat slimmer, so it wasn't as big a deal. I read that Spirit Airlines has a "big front seat" that's 20" instead of 17" and has more leg room as well as more room between the seats. Has anyone used that seat/airline? What other airlines have you used? Which ones are the most "fat friendly"? I just don't want to get there and have to buy a second seat or not be able to get a seat belt extender that's big enough. That's SO embarrassing. I can't wait until I've lost weight and never have to deal with this again! Thanks for any help/suggestions! Melody

I've just heard horror stories about bigger people trying to fly - not to mention comfort level since I'm pretty sure I won't be feeling great on the way back. I appreciate all your suggestions!

My Credit Karma score is 693. My Equifax/Experian/Transunion scores range from around there to 730. I was able to get approved through Care Credit for $8,000. That was the maximum I could get, but I didn't have any issues getting it and they are apparently a reputable company. Hope this helps!

I was diagnosed with mild apnea back in October. I got a machine and an over the nose mask and I can't stand it. I've tried and felt worse in the morning every time I've used it. I even went back and got a different pressure and different masks and nothing has helped. A few of the other doctors required a letter of compliance (which means wearing it at least 4 hours for 70% of the time). Thankfully the doctor I'm using for my surgery now does not require compliance, just that I bring the machine with me to use in the hospital. I can deal with it for a couple of days. I've heard that some people love it and adapt quickly. I'm the exact opposite. Hopefully you'll be able to get used to it and have improved sleep!

I was diagnosed with very mild apnea in October of last year. I was given a machine with the mask that covers the nose only. My pressure was set at 14. I felt claustrophobic and had awful headaches after using it. Barely able to keep it on 4 hours before yanking it off. Went back to the doctor and got an auto titration. Pressure went down to 8. I STILL hate the thing and feel claustrophobic. I've tried every mask except the pillows (which I'm going to try soon) and none of them help. I'm a nose breather, but I still feel like I can't breathe out. I also don't like the heated air. I've tried it with that turned off, but I actually need the humidity and from what I can tell, they can't be separated. Paid way too much money for the silly machine that just sits there doing nothing most of the time because I can't tolerate it. Hopefully you're one who really loves it. Unfortunately I'm not. I sleep worse with it on.

Wowza! You are looking great! I love to see all the success stories. Keep up the great work!

Congratulations! You're going to be sleeved on my birthday, haha. My surgeon is Dr. Stowers too. I just had my phone consultation with him yesterday. He seems great. Definitely keep us updated on how it goes!

You might consider calling and checking that out. There are several private surgical centers in Texas, which are doctor-owned facilities rather than full-blown hospitals -- this is one of the main reasons that the prices are so much lower than most other states. Another benefit is the fact that there are not a bunch of sick people in them like you get with a regular hospital... I actually did call Dr. Singh and the lady told me that the doctor's price was 7k - the rest depends on the hospital you choose.

Seems that a few of those prices are off. The SURGEON'S price might be ~7k, but the hospitals are a lot more. Ridiculous that the majority of the cost is the hospital!

Woo woo, do you happen to know which doc is $7500? I'm looking at options anywhere within an 11 hour drive of Birmingham, AL. Best two I've found so far are $9800 in Louisiana and $10500 in Florida. If there's cheaper in Houston, I'd definitely be interested.

Wow, that site is great! Thanks for putting that together. Definitely helpful for those of us who don't have insurance (or like me who don't want to go through all the BS associated with the approval process). Looks like Texas has the lowest cost. Wish it wasn't so darn far away.

I think people believe that when we go for surgery, we're taking the "easy" way out. They don't realize that we've been trying different diets for years. I was 240lbs when I was 15 years old. I've been trying diets ever since then. Everything from pills (which had awful side effects) to Weight Watchers (which actually helped until they went to this 'points plus' model) to the grapefruit diet, to Slim Fast, to low calorie and on and on. Every time I've dieted, I've gained even more weight afterward. I actually lost 45lbs on WW back in 2010, but then they changed and I had some stress in my life and got way off the wagon. Now I'm 35lbs heavier than I was when I started on WW. I think people also believe we're doing it so we can look better, that it's not for our health. Yeah, looking better is a great side effect, but it's not my reason. I want to be able to walk through a store without having back/knee pain, walk up stairs without feeling like I'm going to die, ride a roller coaster, fit into a booth at a restaurant, fly on a plane without having to be embarrassed. There are so many things that my weight restricts me from doing. I can't wait to have all those things back. If someone in my life doesn't like the method I'm using to achieve it, too bad for them.