catwoman7

I'm surprised you found a surgeon who would do one for you - most don't anymore. Too many issues with them.

they work well for some, but not for others. I've never tried them - I'm afraid I'd be in the latter category!

at that point I was just walking. At about four weeks out, I could do pretty much anything except weights. I think i had to wait 'til about eight weeks out for those.

when I was where you are, I'd lost 28 lbs (16 lbs the first month,12 lbs the second). I was a slow loser the whole time, but I ended up losing over 200 lbs. Everyone's rate of weight loss is different depending on so many factors (age, gender, starting BMI, metabolic rate, etc). Your commitment to your program is going to have a MUCH greater impact on your eventual success than your rate of weight loss will, though. So just stick to your program, follow the rules, and the weight will come off, either fast or slow.

is your profile current? If so, I'm assuming you're talking about the liquid pre-op diet. In that case, it's the carb withdrawal. The first two or three days was really rough, but then it got a lot better.

if you're sticking to your plan, it'll break on its own. If it goes on & on, it could be your calorie level is too high, and you may need to cut back a little. How long has it been going on? I've had them last 2-3 weeks.

that's up to your insurance company. If you're self-pay, then yes, you might be able to find a surgeon who'll do it without a six-month requirement. My surgeon didn't require it - but my insurance company did. It seems like a lot of them do..

not me - but it wouldn't have worked for me. I had lost 50-60 lbs countless times, and the weight always eventually came back. I had over 200 lbs to lose, and I finally came to the realization that it wasn't gonna happen without intervention. I'm almost 60 years old and have been overweight/obese my whole life. WLS is the only thing that "worked".

do you know how many calories you're eating? Since it's been two months, you may be in maintenance. I had to switch over to calorie counting when I was about that far out, since by then I could eat more. You may need to cut back a bit to get the weight loss started again.

are you on some kind of prescription antacid like omeprazole (prescription Prilosec)? Some people claim that acid can mimic hunger.

you can always just tell them you have a surgery scheduled - you don't have to tell them what kind. I can't imagine an employer responding negatively if the person is having surgery...

does your surgeon forbid caffeine *forever*? A few do, but some let you start up on it after awhile. Mine required me to wait six months (decaf was OK, though). But admittedly, that was a L-O-N-G six months! I like the 30 day thing Alex noted much better!

that's totally up to your insurance company. Some require it, some don't. The only way to know for sure is to call them

also, I don't know what kind of job you have, but I really only needed two weeks off (I had a desk job)

if they really want you, I doubt they'll rescind the offer. When I started my last job (March of 2002), I already had a trip to South Africa planned for the month of August. I told them after I'd gotten the offer but before I said yes, and they were OK with it.

In my case it wouldn't have mattered because my BMI was over 40, so I didn't need to have the two co-morbidities that my insurance required if my BMI was *under* 40. I had mild apnea. Really mild. The sleep center encouraged me to consider a CPAP machine, but the PA at my surgeon's office said the apnea would probably be gone by the time I lost 20 or 30 lbs, so I decided not to do it.

there's no medical reason why you can't use them. Some people don't tolerate artificial sweeteners well - they give them gastric upset - but a lot of us have no problems with them. I've never heard of any issues with salt.

other than checking for sleep apnea, I know of no other purpose. It's a pretty standard requirement for WLS. I had to do the one at a sleep lab, where I basically didn't sleep - I would have preferred the home one!

I've always used Superior Source. They're fine. Although taste is such an individual thing...

it eventually comes back for almost everyone - sometime within the first year. Mine came back at five months out. Take full advantage of this "feature" now and lose as much weight as you can, because things will get A LOT harder when your hunger/appetite comes back!

ah - the "three-week stall", right on schedule! Search for it. Happens to almost everyone.

LOL! Along those same lines, I was going to suggest asking her if she's had a colonoscopy lately, and to fill you in on all the details.

they will. Your hunger and appetite will almost certainly come back sometime within the next few months, and things will get A LOT harder then. Enjoy this period of easy weight loss while you can - it's so much easier when you're never hungry!! p.s. there are a small minority of people whose hunger never comes back, but for the vast majority of us, it does. So take full of advantage of this time and lose as much as you can!!

lots of us have, actually. I had it almost four years ago at age 55.

I was taking everything except those giant calcium pills and ursodiol in pill form as soon as I left the hospital. I had to wait two or three weeks on those two because they were too big to swallow. I think I quartered the calcium pills or took a chewable one during that time - I can't remember.