Marks817

Hello group 4.18.2014 is my sleeve anniversary, I am just shy of one year. I have had reasonable success in that I have lost 140lbs. I started at 400 so I had a bunch to loose. Anyway, I have stalled at this level for the last 45 days or so.....I will loose 2 pounds and gain 2 pounds. Water intake, exercise, calories are all fairly constant. I saw my surgeon last week for a follow up and asked for advice. He explained that the body tries to seek normal. By that he means it wants to maintain a steady state. He advised me to shake things up: either exercise more or eat less. As we talked, he advised me to restrict food intake to 400 calories per day for the next month. I have done that for the last five days and lost 9 pounds. He further stated that I have lost all the easy weight, I am going to have to more actively manage my situation going forward based on results and be prepared to make adjustments as needed. The concept of fighting normal was new to me and as such I thought I would share. Mark

We all wish this surgical tool would correct what for me was a 20 year battle overnight. Why cant I be ahead of the curve? After all, I committed to the process, this is a one way street (assuming you had the sleeve as I did), why for once can't I be the medical marvel? We all have had those thoughts. Especially on the days the scale does not move. This is a marathon followed by two more marathons. My doc, like all medical professionals, talks in terms of statistical averages. Some loose faster than others, some do not loose at all. Stay the course, exercise, eat right and it will come off. In terms of my personal numbers I had surgery 4.18...I weighed in at 400 on the day of surgery, today I weighed 249.....151lbs lost.....Food for me has evolved from a comfort blanket to nourishment. As I think about it, for me, the mental transformation has been much more important than the physical. It is a journey, success will be reaching my goal weight and maintaining. Mark

tfarr I am by no means an expert. I was sleeved on 4.18.2014. I have had great results. Upon waking up and seeing my doc on the day of surgery I was told "man, you had the largest stomach any of us in the OR have ever seen. It is no wonder you struggled with your weight, to achieve that full feeling you had to eat a ton of food." I am not sure if this constitutes an elongated stomach but it has not prevented me from loosing weight. I have lost 140lbs. Stay positive and follow the plan....this procedure works...... Mark

Group I am by far an expert on this subject....I first asked about the surgery in Jan of 2014 and had surgery 4.18.2014. The process is really insurance dependent unless you are self paying of course. My insurance company required six months of documented weight loss efforts. Thankfully, they accepted my PCP appointments to meet this requirement. The insurance company also required two co-morbidities, again my PCP provided the documentation. I also had to attend a bariatric seminar. Finally the insurance company required a physical fitness assessment and psych eval. Once I completed those, I had a surgery date within a week. As far as I am concerned, you can get started on the pre-requisites anytime. As others have said, you need to check with your surgeon and insurance company as requirements are specific per policy and or doc. By the way, I know how you feel about obsessing. This process saved my life.... Hope this helps Mark

Hello Cindy. I am by no means an expert and can only relay my experience. I evaluated both options and in the end decided on the sleeve. Simple, less invasive, seems to be less long term consequences. I was sleeved on 4.18.2014. My starting weight was 400 lbs......I am down 71 pounds as of today. The difference between 400 and 329 can only be described as miraculous. I was taking three BPM.....now I am on 1/2 of one tablet. I had sleep apnea, now gone. Still on thyroid and Cholesterol but may be able to come off the Cholesterol when I have blood work done in July. This was the single greatest decision I have ever made.........It is only a tool, I am still driving the bus but it has changed my life....The diet, the Vitamins, the workouts are amazing. I wish you luck in your journey to concur this thing I call obesity. I am not done and honestly will never be done but I sure feel good about were I am headed.

I have had similar pain. I am 18 days out. My pain was caused from internal stitches my surgeon placed in my abdominal wall. These stitches were necessary because as he put it "you had a very large stomach that required additional room to get out"......I found that wearing my band helped, pain pills helped but honestly it just takes time to heal.

A New Tonya: Sorry to hear you are having trouble to the point that regret has entered your mind. I had surgery on 4.18, I am still on liquids. Liquids are not fun, I so want to be able to eat normal food. But you know, that will come with time. We didn't do this weight thing to ourselves over night and can not expect to wake up from surgery and have it all fixed. In my opinion, the changes have been interesting and fun. No hunger pains, eating by a clock, watching calories and Protein.....We can get through this and use this tool to finally get a handle on this weight situation. We made the hard decision to obtain the tool, now we just have to use it. Mark

Hello April Sleevers. I am on schedule for 4.18. Pre-registered at the hospital, one week of pre-op diet down, one more to go. I started my journey in Jan, insurance approval took three weeks but managed to receive approval on the first pass. Feeling a little anxiety but so ready to have this tool in my weight loss battle. I read something about an April facebook page........I would like to join if possible. Good luck to you all, we are going to be the success stories our surgeons point to as examples for others.....stick to the plan and never forget you are an amazing human...... Mark

I was recently asked and asked and asked again to have a sleep study done by my PCP. Believe me when I tell you that I fought him for months. His persistence finally convinced me to have the test. They told me I woke up over 300 times a night. OMG, you folks are nuts is all I could say. Snake oil salesman, this is the latest way to rip my insurance company off is what I said. That darn PCP kept pushing, finally I agreed to try the machine. Honestly, it is life changing. I wear it nightly and have no problem admitting I was totally wrong. Rested, refreshed and ready to rock and roll daily is how I feel now. I had no clue how poorly I felt. My surgery is now scheduled for 4.18 so I may not need it for much longer but trust me when I say my inclination is to wear it versus not wear it.

I received approval from United Health Care last week. Approval took 13 business days but we received a yes on the first pass. Preop appointment with my doc this week and sleeve surgery on 4.18. I am excited about gaining the tool that may finally allow me to win my weight battle. I have read many of your posts and want to thank you all for sharing your journey. This is my first post, I guess I have been one of those creepy lurkers up until now. Like you all, I was nervous about approval and wanted to ensure all was solid before sharing. United required: psych eval, nut counseling, fitness eval, PCP clearance, cardiologist eval and 6 months supervised weight loss management. PCP sufficed in terms of weight loss management.