BarrySue

Haha, are we the same person? I was 353, had surgery in July, and today I'm 210! I still have 65 lbs to go before I hit a healthy BMI, but I'm hoping a hard push will get me there by labor day!

Thank you. It's not a common occurrence, I just drew a bad lot, I guess! Even though I was very large, I'm young, no mobility issues, incredibly healthy, and while I had no history of surgical/medical procedures, my pain tolerance was so high I routinely refused novocaine at the dentist ("just drill, I'll hold still!"), so I just didn't anticipate needing that kind of support. Ah, youth and inexperience! Of course, some of my support group buddies were sixty year old women who were on treadmills a week after surgery, so it was just a pretty big personal blow. Ouch, my pride!

THIS! Are you and I the same person? Telling people you have WLS is suddenly an invitation for people to ask inappropriate questions and make demands on your private health information. I don't fancy feeling like a pinata for every weird question people want to swing my way, and I also intensely dislike being the center of attention. Plus, if I had a dollar for every "WLS failed so and so" anecdote, I could retire to the Hamptons by now.

I needed help for about three weeks, which is more extreme than most, but then I was very large and carried all my weight on my stomach. Going from sitting/standing or standing/sitting required help, and getting in and out of bed required help as well. On days 3 and 4 at home post-op, I was unable to straighten up due to pain and ended up on the floor. The fire department had to come lift me up. It was a humiliating experience, and not something you want to repeat, OP. I would have a backup plan/support system in place just in case you have serious issues post-op.

I know the "20 minutes to feel full" thing works for most people, but at 9 months out I still wolf down my meals, and that isn't going to change. It hasn't inhibited my progress in any way, and unless it is cheating slider foods (which I avoid), I feel full at the same rate regardless of how fast or slow I eat.

I made the conscious decision to keep this a private matter. My health information is no one's business, and not one person is ENTITLED to my personal medical history.

It happened once or twice to me, and is generally no cause for concern.

I set my weight loss goal at the top .1% of the accepted BMI range, if only because I want the satisfaction of being able to have a "healthy" BMI. However, my end goal is not my only goal, and I have a ton of mini-goals and milestones along the way. I was excited to finally hit under 300 lbs, excited for 250, excited for my BMI to hit 39.9 (because I was no longer "morbidly" obese), excited for 219, now I'm shooting for 203 (150 lbs lost) and 199 (Onederland! Haven't visited since I was 17). A part of me is always terrified of failure, worried I won't be able to wrap my head around a healthy weight since I've always lived in this pudgy body, but screw it. I'm not gonna set mediocre goals because I'm "afraid" of not succeeding. **Edit: Oh yeah! And I decided I wasn't going to settle for less than a healthy BMI when my surgeon warned me against sleeve and strongly pushed for the duodenal switch surgery or at minimum, gastric bypass. He said people with 200+ lbs to lose typically can't succeed on the sleeve. I respect his opinions; he's a doctor, he operates in statistics and calls it like he sees it. But I took it as a personal challenge to prove him wrong.

Thanks for posting this. It's definitely easy for depression, anxiety, and general emotional ickiness to creep in. A part of me will always miss not having a pint of ice cream to cry into.

I traveled through Europe as a young woman with a BMI of 60. I couldn't fit into anything, was exhausted trying to walk around, was in so much pain because 5+ miles a day was hell on my feet, felt incredibly out of place, got stared and giggled at, and was likely the most obese person many of them had ever seen (I saw no one my size in the streets of Belgium and France). I go back to Europe for four months this fall/winter, and I'm excited to finally experience it as a happy, healthy, normal-sized person. Oh! And theme parks. I live in the theme park capitol of the world, and I've never gotten to enjoy most rides because of my weight.

This is NOT something you should be asking us. For severe pain at non-surgical sites more than 3 months after surgery that is so debilitating it disorients you, you need to talk to a medical professional ASAP and get checked out. If you can't get ahold of your PCP, call your surgeon and see what he thinks. If you can't get ahold of either, I'd recommend urgent care or the ER. If this happens while you are driving, walking across a street, getting out of the shower or walking down stairs, you could be hurt. I'm a nurse, and these are red flags that I'm not going to even try and speculate on. You need to see someone ASAP and not worry about what strangers on the internet think. Please take care, be safe, and keep us updated.

Use of inhaled substances (be it nicotine, marijuana, etc) can affect oxygenation. And while it's technically a hallucinogenic drug, its effects are mainly depressant. These two factors are why it's not advised to do so before surgery, because both can have an effect on anesthesia. If you smoke, let your surgeon or anesthesiologist know, even though it may not seem like a big deal. Complications are rare, but when they do arise during surgery, an issue with how anesthesia interacts with the body is very often the culprit. If anxiety is your reason for smoking before surgery, a doctor can prescribe anti-anxiety medication for you. Not because it is superior to weed, but because they know the exact amount/consistency you're getting with a clear understanding of risks/etc, and have long-studied ways of ensuring the medications you receive during and after surgery won't react badly to it. Lastly, I'm just a nurse, so I can't tell you what to do. But I can tell you that your doctor will have a MUCH better understanding of your specific risks and options than us strangers on the internet. Work with them. Be your own advocate and don't be afraid to be brutally honest with the medical team. They are there to help you!

Amazing! And judging by your BMI scale, you are about to be in the "overweight" category instead of obese. I know for me, that's going to be a major milestone after I hit onederland. What's your next goal?

I focused on Protein and carbs, not calories. The only times I really ever count calories is when I'm trying to up my level of intake to try and acclimate my body to long-term maintenance levels, but even then, it's more about protein, fat and carbs to me. I think it's helpful in that I focus on the nutrient density and content of food rather than a larger number that can be incredibly misleading. I can eat a 100 calorie snack or a 250 calorie snack. But that shouldn't play into which one I choose. If the first has 15g carbs and 1g protein, I'm not gonna bother. If the higher calorie snack has 20g protein and 15g carbs, I'm going with that one. Don't train yourself to make the right numbers. Train yourself to make the right food choices. Or do whatever Different strokes for different folks.

No regrets. Not when the pain meds didn't work, not when I had to suffer the humiliation of being so large that the fire department had to come pick me up off the floor after a fall 3 days post-op because I was too heavy for my mother to lift, not when I had to stand to suffer through awkward social situations when I couldn't eat at conventions and functions, not when I was hospitalized for complications, not even today, when I hit 140 lbs lost and am STILL obese. Oh, there were plenty of times I shook my fist at the sky, hated how I felt, whined, stomped my feet, cried, etc. But I've never regretted it, not for a single second. No matter how I did mental gymnastics trying to justify not getting the sleeve, it was surgery or die, and that's that.

@lachellove You can find them at Target

I ate them for awhile because the pizza ones had 17g Protein and not really that many carbs, and one little pack ended up as two full meals. Now, I've moved on to Hillshire farms snack packs, because they have lots of protein, even less carbs, and I can throw them in my lunch bag to take to school. I don't cook, I hate salads, and I love that I can still feel like I'm eating "normal people" food without a lot of fuss. They have thin toasted pieces that come with it, it's a small amount but it still gives you that satisfying texture/crunch. Here is the nutrition info for it (and their various flavors/types are pretty much the same): Calories: 300 Carbs: 12g Protein: 17g Sugar: less than 1g

No pics? Come on, give up the goods

I lived on peanut butter and pb flavored things. Reduced fat low sugar is what I used early on, now I just buy PB-flavored protein bars because they mask the taste of whey/protein supplements that keep me away from other things.

Weight loss benefits take time. sleep apnea can still kill you at your current weight. It's not about wanting money, it's about not taking unnecessary risk. I lost someone close to me that was in the process of losing weight and stopped using her CPAP. She was only in her forties, and she died of sleep apnea. Don't roll the dice. Just keep patient and stay the course.

I have had a few brief stalls since July 13th when I got sleeved, but I'm down 136 lbs. Just stick with the diet and do your best to stay active. I don't exercise at a gym, but I walk around campus plenty, take the stairs, walk around malls and random places to keep moving. I spent the last five days in NYC, where I walked around 30 miles.

Strange, my bariatric surgeon brought it up 30 seconds into my pre-op that he would be more than happy to write a letter of necessity. Perhaps it may be the specific rules of your insurance. Ask your surgeon to write a letter to your PCP outlining the reasons for the surgery, the expected benefits, and any other important information. That way, you're not walking in blind and your PCP will be more likely to recommend despite any personal bias they have toward WLS (which can occasionally be an issue as even some docs don't understand the struggles of obesity). When a doctor knows you're already seeing a surgeon who feels you're a good candidate, it helps to know you're not lone-wolfing it. Also make a list of things you have done that haven't worked, your diet history, the support group you're surrounding yourself with, all the info that will let your PCP know you are prepared for what will happen.

Water + stool softener. You've got hemorrhoids. Bring a small stool or step into the bathroom with you and put your legs on it, or squat when you finally decide to go. Don't strain or push; if it won't come out, try again later after drinking a giant glass of water AND taking a stool softener (stool softeners draw water out of your intestines and into your feces, so if you are dehydrated, this won't be able to happen). When you go, assume the pose of a skiier going downhill. It will reduce the pinch/strain on your colon and make the process more natural and efficient. I'm no doctor, but I am a nurse (who unfortunately spends much of her day trying to get people to poop).

134 lbs down, 74 lbs to go in order to hit a healthy BMI. Unfortunately, I'm learning that with my body type (apple-shaped, carry all my weight in my upper body and belly), it's best to get to 21-22 BMI to truly have the health benefits. Women who carry their weight in their butt/hips/thighs may be healthy with a 24.9 BMI, but I'm not one of them A little bummed that the doctor wants me to lose an additional 20 lbs past my original goal weight, but 208 and 228 aren't that far apart. Dirty secret: still no exercise. I just park far from wherever I need to go and walk quite a bit around malls, my college campus, my job, etc. I'm losing 2 lbs/week pretty consistently, but as my weight continues to drop I know I'll need to push myself harder, but I want to stick to a level of diet/activity that I can maintain.

Sounds like a lithotripsy, which is actually a pretty neat procedure where they put you under and blast sound waves at the little bugger to break it up into tiny pieces so you can pass them. Typically in and out the same day, no incisions/surgery.