IncredibleShrinkingMan

Registered for a 5K next month and for once I am excited. Great story, thanks for sharing.

Something I read said they would do their best to take an average of the two readings...thinking that you probably were wearing both by mistake. It's not particularly helpful if you carry one around briefly in a bag and get like 500 steps but you have 10K in the real one you were wearing. It averages you right at 5250 in that case. I think multiple fitbits are nothing but trouble, and funny you should post this today, I am handing one over to my mom today. On a related note, were either of yours given to you by someone else? If so, did you have trouble registering it to your own account?

When I saw this thread I thought you meant you have a hard time tolerating the water. The above advice is good. But are you having an OK time getting the water down in the first place? That is the challenge most of us have at first.

I am all of the above of your first paragraph. I passed it with flying colors and I could tell he was only interviewing me to check off the insurance requirement as well as the hospital's own formal requirement. It is in their best interest to approve you (more business), so unless you have any very worrisome attribute, I would not lose a second of sleep over this. Or the sleep study. Or anything else. Good luck!

Honestly, I have some just because it tends to be a golden rule, but the morning is when the sleeve is least cooperative and will tolerate the least amount of food or drink. Greek yogurt is about the max. However, an additional post-op benefit to having breakfast is that it will have your sleeve warmed up to get your proper mid-day nutrition, as opposed to eating a few bites and then just being ravenous in the later PM, when you are supposed to steer clear of calories.

Depending on what your insurance will cover, I am a big fan of giving the sleeve a shot at any starting weight. With any surgery, your final weight potential is dependent upon where you begin, and it's not like bypass circumvents (I really wanted to say "bypass" two words in a row LOL) that rule. This may even be a situation where you use the sleeve for its original purpose, i.e., the first step of a BPD-DS. But ask yourself if you think your problem is carbs and sugar. If you are like me and just have trouble with quantity and constant hunger, the bypass will probably add little to what you can accomplish with the sleeve. However, if you are sugar crazy, the bypass will do a lot more to knock that out, and will probably offer you substantially more than the sleeve. Please discuss with NUT and MD! This is just a start.

That first number on the left is a powerful thing. I've been thinking for a while, we can add more of these extra motivators by viewing multiple metrics at the same time. For example, another one that will come soon (at least well before onederland) will be the next obesity class...those are set up largely by the tens digit, but they are also given names. It is all sort of arbitrary, and many people criticize, but my view is that if it keeps the ball rolling, it's great.

Most frequent remarks: - "are you sure this is healthy?" - "you can't possibly be eating enough" - "sure you must have already reached your goal" - "how much have you spent on new clothes?" - "are you sure this was a good idea?" - "have you been dating again?"

People are confused not because they are not educating themselves but because they are over-educating themselves. They are reading and listening to their own instructions, and then are going online or talking to friends and reading other people's instructions, which, needless to say, are as different as every surgeon is. The more they try to solve the problem, the worse the problem gets. Most people are asking these questions with an answer in mind and are just looking for a majority out of what they have already heard. Unfortunately, what they receive is usually just more confusion.

If you are looking for a good shake, try Isopure...it is more like apple juice consistency (clear liquid) and has 40g of protein per 20 fl oz bottle.

Wow this is some serious unloading. Way to go, you must feel amazing!

Way to go, nice work so far. Do a week or two of replacing one meal with liquid protein, then two if you can. Also, start walking and exercising as much as you can if you haven't already. You could probably get the remaining 10 to budge without any substantial diet changes, but if you feel you are able to make an adjustment, increase your protein intake and your metabolism will speed up. Let us know what exactly you've done so far that has worked so well!

I started with Diet Coke at about two months out, and I've never had a problem. However, I really can't finish a whole can before it loses the fizz. And those giant movie theater drinks (44-64 fl oz)...forget about it.

Please take care of yourself. I think many people misunderstand the true benefit of the sleeve as a "tool." Yes, the patient needs to do the work to change his/her ways, and yes, it is impossible to completely circumvent the sleeve and make the surgery for naught, but I think this story highlights what is important. Food therapy was what got us here, and it seems like you know that in a difficult time such as when you heard this news about your son, this would've been your go-to solution. Now, this solution is not available, and therefore, you will not jeopardize your health by engaging in these behaviors. I think at two weeks out it is still understandable, under any set of circumstances, that you would not be able to have the allowed portion sizes. But I that is just temporary. Using food as a coping tool is so yesterday, and you should take great pleasure in the fact that despite what you are going through in your family, you have already scored a huge victory with the sleeve.

I haven't had issues with diet soda. I started initially about two months out just taking sips and what not. Today I have it a few times a week, but usually don't get through the whole 12 oz can. It hasn't caused me any bloating or any other hardships, although I had a relentless hiccupping spell the other day. I am not thinking your recent onset of symptoms could have much to do with the soda. It would've happened earlier rather than later if it were going to be a problem for you.

If you arrive for surgery on day 1, you will be discharged about the same time on day 3, barring any complications. Day 2 is generally pretty uncomfortable, but by the beginning of day 3 you should be feeling great. Don't know about Mexico.

Hi folks, They will give you everything you need in the hospital, but as far as what you want to have at home, be sure you have tried a few brands of Protein shakes that you enjoy or at least can handle and have a week or two worth of them stocked up. liquid phase may only be a few weeks, depending on your surgeon, but if you start to have trouble with thicker foods, you may be asked to briefly retreat to shakes to get protein before trying to advance again. Other things you should have are cushions and pillows, not just to find a comfortable position to sit in, but to press up against your incision sites when you cough or sneeze...it won't completely eliminate the discomfort but otherwise that will be quite painful for about a week. My one other must-have that I can draw from personal experience is to be sure to have lots of blankets and warm clothes...you will feel your temperature set point drop dramatically right away. I was freezing cold in August, and now it's December. See if you can find some warmer socks, sweat pants, and sweat shirts and have them ready...this is what a severe calorie drop will do...you will start burning fat and that will eventually warm your body back up, but that takes time. Other than that, everyone knows his/her own life the best, and unless stated otherwise, it's fine to do right away!

Read the menu online before going. See if anything offered as an appetizer would suit you as an entrée. Google images of the food posted on yelp or thrillist or something. See if anything you like is being offered as half portions. Anything that can conceivably be ordered on the side, order it on the side! Plan on having the same thing for dinner (or breakfast/lunch) out of your to-go box. As always, stop when you feel fullness and order the to-go box! Don't order dessert. But if you have to have a bite of something sweet, ask somebody to give you a taste of theirs.

Totally. It makes me feel really empowered to be eating hearty food and asking for to-go boxes every time. I feel like I am one of everybody else now...lamenting that the food is too much instead of clearing the whole plate in five minutes. I am not counting or measuring or restricting anything (except for straight carbs) and I am comfortably in the 1 lb/wk phase now. Welcome back from your getaway!

Bring a book or two...if you are lucky enough to wake up quickly not be nauseous, you will want something to do. I get that there's a TV, but that got boring and when you're wired up, it is hard to occupy yourself meaningfully. Also, leave all step-tracking devices at home if you use them...the few steps you miss are not worth losing it for!

@@CheleLynn45, congratulations...and nice to meet you, starting weight twin! You are about to pass me because of this wretched stall, so congrats there too.

How would vodka, tequila, or rum affect somebody three to four months out? I have been at bars in the last month but I have yet to muster the courage to pull the trigger and have that first drink. Any thoughts?

Not only have I not convinced anybody to have the surgery, but I will not even broach the subject with somebody who is of a category to be considering it. I think it is entirely inappropriate to bring up the possibility (I am not a doctor of any kind, but I don't think even surgeons or PCPs should be doing any more than mentioning it as a possibility) other than to make sure somebody is aware of the option (and that is if you are a doc). This is a decision that has to be organically rooted in one's own mind, and undue outside influence is bad even if the person ends up having the surgery and is wildly successful. I would understand disagreement with this particular stance, but I am adamantly against actively prodding somebody in this direction.

Five months to your first stall (thereabouts) is actually exceptionally good. I hit my current stall at the three month mark and have spent the last two weeks fighting it. You don't have much data posted about your journey, but I would say keep positive and if you think you can tweak a few things (add a little exercise, etc...), do it, otherwise, you will hit the road again.

Two things are possible, and one of them was my story as well. First possibility: I lost about 20 lbs during pre-op as well (2 weeks), and that makes it more likely that a stall will occur right away after surgery. It will pick up again, I promise. Second possibility: you may have gotten a lot of Fluid in the hospital from the IV...this initial would cause weight gain that can take up to a week to completely get out of your system. So, you may have lost some fat already, but until you completely lose the excess fluid weight, you will not see a net loss.