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First off, congratulations on your excellent weight loss efforts. Maybe keep those junk foods out of the house. If they are for others, maybe put them in an out of the way place, like the basement or in other room outside of the kitchen? It shows that you are 5'2", if necessary, place them on the top shelf so you will need to use a step stool to reach them or put them in a locked cabinet. Make healthy alternatives such as a 10 calorie Jello with low calorie whipped toping and fresh berries, baked kale or sweet potato chips, etc. Find distractions away from the kitchen or television. You are not alone. Don't feel discouraged.

That's why I chose my sleeve with the factory alloy surgical staples, leather interior, anti-lock brakes and cruise control.

Yes, look at the Amazing results of it with Oprah, and she has a (10%?) stake in it. At least she is trying to do something about it. It is too bad they didn't prepare her for a lifetime, realistic, lifestyle. From what people wrote she lost an amazing amount of weight. I hope that drastic yo-yo of weight did not cause strain to her body.

You are talking about cucumbers aged in a brine, right?

I never watched the show. It sounded like the exploitation of obese humans for ratings/advertising revenue to me. Do they work with people, not only in a physical way, but with counseling too? Do they give any long term follow up help after their TV show usefulness is no longer required? I guess people wouldn't want to watch a show where people lose weight slowly and in a way they could realistically maintain for a lifetime. If there is intelligent life in another solar system (I wonder if some of the Earth's lifeforms are intelligent here too sometimes); what would they would think if they received this show's broadcast signals? Probably if they received transmissions of "The Jersey Shore" and other reality shows, they are focusing their antennas elsewhere in the Milky Way, because after receiving those, they probably said "There's no intelligent life there".

Ohhhhhhhhhhhh, you meant gum.............nevermind. Don't get yourself too worked up over this, it will all work out in the end.

There is no guarantee that you won't be one of the few people that can not eat spicy food or bread post surgery. That is a small risk to take vs being obese and all of the potential health issues that can come with it. Look at all of the positive aspects of your life that can happen: better health, living longer, more NSVs than you can shake a stick at, comorbidities that are significantly reduced or go away, etc.. Using straws or drinking carbonated diet beverages is a heated debate. The only time I use a straw is on infrequent occasions when I buy a diet fountain beverage from a convenience store. I do drink diet carbonated beverages without problems. Even my surgeon and his head nurse both think that carbonated diet drinks (when appropriate to drink, post WLS) stretching your sleeve is a myth. But out of fairness, they prefer Water as the beverage of choice. Also, diet sodas can be acidic and may contain caffeine. My hair did thin a little post WLS, but I never had any issues with significant hair loss and don't have a problem now. WLS is only a tool. We need to commit to a lifestyle change to make them very successful.

This is from the ASMBS: Bariatric Surgery Misconceptions Misconception: Most people who have metabolic and bariatric surgery regain their weight. Truth:As many as 50 percent of patients may regain a small amount of weight (approximately 5 percent) two years or more following their surgery. However, longitudinal studies find that most bariatric surgery patients maintain successful weight-loss long-term. ‘Successful’ weight-loss is arbitrarily defined as weight-loss equal to or greater than 50 percent of excess body weight. Often, successful results are determined by the patient, by their perceived improvement in quality of life. In such cases, the total retained weight-loss may be more, or less, than this arbitrary definition. Such massive and sustained weight reduction with surgery is in sharp contrast to the experience most patients have previously had with non-surgical therapies. Old habits and complacency can creep back in. No, your sleeve won't "wear out" in 4 years*. *Your mileage may vary.

In all seriousness, see how much was cropped, then use a picture which has at least that much area above the top of your head in the picture you used.

I guess great (maybe demented?) minds think alike.

It's a guy thing, we are always looking to get some head. Sorry, i digressed.

(loss).

I find it very difficult to believe that half of the VSG patients do not lose any excess weight. Just a quick Google search can show numbers of ~60% excess weight loss on average, post VSG. As Ann said, people being uncompliant is probably the reason for the lower excess weight l

That was a good idea, I thought maybe you threw it away.

He is incorrect. There are reputable published studies that contradict him. You can ask your surgeon's twin brother (who shares the same opinion) that question; but "Two Wong's don't make a right". -I know, that was a bad pun. I'll leave.

That's a tasty looking dinner. Maybe next time only serve 1/2 and put 1/2 away to freeze so you can enjoy it another time as a dinner when you are in a rush.

If you didn't misunderstand what he was saying then, IMHO, the only thing that is 100% is your surgeon is pulling numbers out of his a$$. Google JAMA articles on WLS studies and articles by leading WLS bariatric centers of excellence, they contradict him regarding his percentages of excess weight loss with the VSG. Does everyone reach their goal weight per the BMI charts? The answer is no. But people do reach weights they are comfortable in maintaining Do some people regain part of their excess weight lost? The answer is yes. The gastric bypass isn't 100% effective, but some studies show it more effective than the VSG in excess weight loss in the short term, but longer term studies show they are just about equal. Do your research including maybe seeking another surgeon.

B Can someone send us a "C" (the letter that is). I hope you aren't posting a reply one letter at a time.

There is no right or wrong answer to whether someone should mention they had WLS or not. I told people the truth, in fact I had people tell me they respected my honesty and some people spoke to me about my WLS because they have an obese loved one who they have health concerns about. Should everyone be this open? The answer is no. People need to do what they feel is right for them. We should respect everyone's opinion on this and not criticize them for their personal choice to tell or not to tell differs from ours.

At first I thought I had the wrong font style set. I am glad to see that it is just people posting in the Russian language.

Congratulations! Even though this is the anniversary of D-Day, it will be your beginning of your defeat of the "Battle of The Bulge".

I wonder if he gives advice about drinking, "Drink as many mixed drinks as you want, just don't use a straw".

I spent a few hours watching what I thought was a show about an Alaskan snowstorm on television, but it turned out to be my cable line was disconnected.

Probably because the gas they create (begins in the intestines?) I think the "frowned upon" is by the people around us after we eat those foods and the digestion process causes big gas.