finediva

I'm not a gum chewer, makes me hungry, but my NUT was very firm...... no gum and no straws. But every program is different. I follow mine. Don't want no problems over here!

Did you have to see a cardiologist as a part of your pre surgery requirements? My PCP required I did before she would write my letter of clearance. Please do whatever you have to, to take very good care of yourself. Best.

Congrats on the surgery and the weight loss. Just curious, when did you first notice you were able to eat a cup of food?

I've dread them for almost 10 years now. Wish I could wake up and it's January 2nd.

yes, decaf for me also. I kicked a serious caffeine, from coffee, addiction during my 2 week pre op diet. I still miss real coffee, but haven't gone back to it.

Look, the pre op diet is hell, and it's hell for a lot of people. You are not alone here. I barely survived it. But what kept me motivated was my surgery date. And now that I'm almost four months out, it's was the worst part of my journey so far. So, drink those shakes, water, low sodium broth, hot tea, whatever you have to do for the next week. Keep the family meals simple and maybe make enough for a few days. Finally, go to bed early. I would of been fine if I was able to sleep the two weeks away. I had to kick a serious caffeine addiction and the thought of getting out of bed, and not drinking my 20 oz mug of coffee depressed me. You can do this my sister!

Interestingly enough I don't snack. I get hungry about every four hours, and it's time for my next meal. I spend the rest of the time trying to drink my water, or waiting to drink my water. I start of with a protein coffee, then three hours later breakfast, then lunch, then dinner. I do have a hot chocolate made with skim mikk and cacao powder at night to up my protein intake. So I guess that counts as a snack.

@@Bubba's Mom. All I hear is a child afraid that she may lose her mom. It's a valid fear and should be validated. From your post I don't get that your child means any malicious content. I do get that she's probably afraid. Honor her concerns and feelings and try to help her educate herself about the risk factors of obesity and WLS. It's your decision either way, and she will have to find a way to find peace with your decision to become healthy. Best.

If your mum is willing, take her to a seminar and to your surgeon so her questions and concerns can be addressed. But her fears and concerns are only natural. I would think she would be concerned about any type of surgery you would be having, but the fact that this is elective surgery is mostly likely causing her distress. And perfectly understandable. It caused me distress that I was choosing to remove 85% of a perfectly healthy organ. In the end she would see that the quality of your life has improved and understand you did a great thing for yourself. Until then, she's a mum worring about her daughter. My daughter is 27, not having surgery, and I'm worried about her. I'm always worried about her safety. Best.

When does it all become too much to handle? When you decide to give up. That's when. You have so much going on right now. The job, wow, much respect! But the first thing I get from your post is your commitment and devotion to your sweet baby. The next is your commitment to yourself. So good for you love. You are handling it. Stay as focused as you seem to be right now, and congrats on the new apt. All that stress.....take some time several times a day to just BREATHE, then keep going. You can so do this thing call life. Best

Hi, just found your post and so enjoyed reading about your journey. So how are you doing? Would love to have an update. I'm still new in the process, so don't have much to impart to the ones who have gone before me.

Not having to ask the sales clerk if the shoe came in wide width.

I've loss some pounds and every one who sees me comments on the change they see. I'm gracious and say thank you to them. When I look in the mirror and try on clothes it's obvious I've lost weight. But staring back at me is the 230lb person still trying to get to the other side. I still feel the same desperation to lose the weight that I did post surgery. I still feel the same threat of failure, even as I see the numbers on the scale move slowly down. Basically, I still see the very fat me trying to conquer this. It sometimes makes me sad.

@bobbyswife. Girl my size 11W didn't leave me many choices. At a 40lb plus loss I no longer need wide width. Yayyy! I used to be a 10, but ever time I had a child ( had three of them) my feet got bigger. Who knew. I don't think I'll go back to a 10, but I'm trilled not to need wide any more.

You may have problems with with a lot of things early on until you learn what is tolerated. I was super excited to eat my first scrambled egg about three weeks after surgery. Well my sleeve wasn't. I was in such distress I had to lay down and will myself not to throw up. I vowed never to eat eggs again, and went back to my soothing Cream of Wheat. Now, I can eat eggs just fine. If something doesn't go down well, just move on.

High end designer shoes and travel to South Africa. Hey, I'm a simple girl.

I wish surgeons would tell patients about stalls. Mine certainly didn't and still didn't refer to stalls when I was in tears during my three month visit, after I told her I had not lost an ounce in 21 days. Of course I had read adout stalls on BP, but still wanted her input. Not a word about it from her.

I have zero support and zero criticism. Why? I told zero people. ZERO. Happy happy joy joy.

I have not had a grain of rice, a bite of pasta or potatoes, a cracker or bread since July 4th. I miss bread. That's it. I miss bread.

July 18th here. I feel your pain sister. I didn't lose one single pound in October. Zero! I was so upset by this situation I embarrassed myself by crying during my three month check up on October 20th. My surgeon's advise was to stop protein supplements, and let my body survive on my fat reserves. Ok..... I'm concerned about hair and muscle loss so I'm not going to do that. Anyways, I loss 4 big pounds during my two week pre op diet. The rest I've lost since surgery. I can't wait to hit the 50lb mark. I just want to see it! I'm a slow looser, and I'm going to have to be ok with that. I just want to reach goal by April of next year. What's interesting to me is, how can you not drop big numbers eating 700-800 calories a day? Let's just hang in there and maybe we'll get to the big 50 together.

Are you pre or post op? Have you had your surgery?

I'm not even close to goal and I'm swimming in my coats, dress pants and jeans. I kinda look like a hobo in my coat, but I can't imagine buying one only for a few months, so I plan to just suffer through it. The jeans thing, I plan to wear yoga and compression pants until winter is over. The dress pants thing, I'm going to have a few skirts taken in and try to get by.

Because this is your journey, not theirs. I live with a 16 yr old teenager boy. There is EVERY KIND OF JUNK FOOD IN MY HOUSE! I also cook him whatever he wants. He is an athlete, and an extremely healthy, again, teenager. Doesn't bother me in the least. I watch him grate cheddar cheese, and make chicken machos and that's cool with me. Even during my two week pre op I continued to cook his meals. So, know that the world, including your family, will not change their eating habits and patterns because you decided to get healthy. Just stay focused on your plan. Food will ALWAYS be around, good, bad, healthy, unhealthy. Decide now how you plan to handle that.

My constant daytime, morning time, moon time, evening time, all the darm time gurgling is driving me insane. What the hell? Why is this hhappening and when will it stop? I have been this way from day one. I take Dexilant already. So basically I have no answers for you as I'm seriously seeking help over here.

@silvertaurus. Wow, I'm humbled by your experience. I feel ashamed of myself now because my stomach is extremely loud, and it irritates me on an hourly basis. But that now pales in comparison to what you are experiencing. So did you have your stomach removed or has that corrected itself? Hoping things get all the way better for you, and soon.