MissKay

Stalls definitely happen! I just got through a 2-2.5 month one. It can be aggravating, but they happen. At your point in time, the transition back to more normal foods typically cause a small stall because your body is going from all the liquids to adding back in the solids. This is normal. Trust the process and keep going. It is unlikely you're eating too much as you're physically restricted from doing so. It's possible, but unlikely.

Things do happen, and of course with any surgery there is risk. I think what severed the ties between BP and them was their lack of preparedness in the situation, their lack of bedside manner, their lack of stepping up and realizing that they did wrong by their patient. I went with Dr. Illan and every 30 minutes for the first couple hours I was checked on. They actually told my boyfriend not to help me up if I needed to stand up or move around, to get them right away if I needed to do so. I had monitors hooked up, and they were all very attentive and took vitals often. I honestly got annoyed with how often because it prevented me from sleeping a lot of the time. But I'm glad they did because it did make me feel at ease and knowing that they had my best interest at heart. I'm not going to say, "no, don't use him, you're stupid if you do", because to each their own. I just urge that you dig, do lots of research. Not just him, but other surgeons as well. Prices may vary, but sometimes you get what you pay for, and this is your health and your life in the hands of the surgeon and their team that you choose. You want to make sure and have faith that they're great and able to return you without part of your stomach and that's it. If you do look into others, my personal recommendation is Dr. Illan, he was my surgeon, and his entire team is fantastic. They're even at a better hospital now than when I had my surgery, so you'd be getting a bit of a treat. I've heard great things about Dr. Jaime Ponce as well.

Just keep in mind, cheaper doesn't always mean better. Sometimes you get what you pay for. Not trying to dissuade or be rude, simply urging to make sure you do due diligence with research online as well. If you can't find anything, especially no reviews, etc. that's a red flag. It's your health and not reversible, better safe than sorry, right?

Hey there! I am a patient of Dr. Illan's and I actually used him before they started their partnership with the Oasis of Hope hospital. Which honestly... I'm jealous of. In the Facebook group when they announced the partnership a couple months after my surgery, I was like WHAT? WHY? Ugh! Because the hospital is brand new, amazing looking, and just a great facility. I had researched it before even landing on Dr. Illan as a surgeon. When I used him he was with the florence hospital, and even though I'm envious of the Oasis Hospital, it was still a great place. Dr. Illan is wonderful, kind, patient, and you can really tell he cares about his patients. His colleagues are just as wonderful. The valets, Bill and Stacy are also shining stars. They will bend over backwards to make the trip easy peasy. I flew from Seattle, so not as far as you, but close. I think flight wise it's a 2-3 hour difference. It's really not so bad. From Seattle it was about a 2 hour flight, and everything went great. Stacy picked us up to take us to the hospital the next day (we flew in the day before my surgery), and it was all a breeze from there. I was also worried about the flight home with discomfort, or pain, or anything like that, but I had none. I think the only thing was that I didn't get the chance to have broth or anything before we left, and the airport didn't have a place with broth that I could stomach so I went without all the way until we got home, and after our flight we had a 4 hour drive as well. So that was rough, but as long as you prepare before going to the airport to head home, you should be good!

@@rickm for some, carbs matter a whole lot. They are what I've found to cause me to gain if I take in too many in a day. However, I agree. With a 500 calorie a day diet, the carbs and high fat are going to be necessary to keep your body functioning. I'm honestly wondering if that's even healthy? While it may be hard to hit 1000-1200 calories, especially if you're fresh out of surgery, you still want to consume as close to that as possible, especially if you're being or looking to be active. The common misconception is to be low cal, low fat, low carb... but your body NEEDS these things. If you deprive it of all three for a long time, you're going to become malnourished very quickly. If you low carb, higher fat is okay (it's what I do). And again, calories with having the sleeve... it's very hard to reach 1000-1200 on a good day. But I feel 500 is low. Is this something your NUT put you on or is it something you've set on your own? If on your own, I urge you to talk to your NUT to consult with them. To stay in ketosis, 50g of carbs or lower a day. 20 is extremely low, and nearly impossible. Everything has carbs. Even things you don't think have them, has them. I tend to stay between 50g to 70g and carbs are my enemies. This is still a pretty good balance for a wls patient. Most 'regular' people get between 90g to 120g a day.

@@scott72 thank you for the clarification! O just didn't want to assume that's what you meant. I agree, it's more common than people realize. Being overweight and losing the weight changes us mentally just as it does physically. Sometimes the friendships and relationships suffer because you're now a different person (more like you were anyways this person but put on a facade before). I understand the feelings of guilt, but sadly it's a part of changing and life. It doesn't mean you love her any less or that you're a bad person. It just means that you're living your true self now and that true self may not be compatible with her. It's not an easy concept to swallow and what you do about it is up to you. I just urge you to communicate with her because otherwise it'll make things way more difficult.

@@vamping the band size is pretty true fit, but the cups are a little bigger, but not a whole lot

I cringe when people say that you can lose the weight if you are truly committed. While the OP doesn't state it, it's just a cringe-worthy thing to someone like me who literally tried everything for 5 years to lose weight but because of a hormonal imbalance, it took me 3-4 months to lose 25lbs and then I couldn't keep it off. Some conditions make it nearly impossible to lose weight even if you're doing everything right. The sleeve was a tool that further aided me because it forces me to eat the healthy things first, and by that time, I'm full. I've lost my taste for most unhealthy things, thankfully. There are still a few that I've got a weak spot for, but now I severely limit my intake on them, and they're few and far between. Motivation? Got on Instagram, there are many people with WLS accounts (myself included) where you can see the progress and struggles of their journey. I tend to share a lot of my food, sometimes my choice in exercise. I did this because when I was starting out, following those accounts helped me. And even now, when I'm feeling glum or like I'm not doing enough, or like I'm missing... something, they really do inspire and help me out. Everyone is different though. You've got to find things that give you that drive of motivation, and then remind yourself of it daily.

Please don't think I'm trying to be rude, because that's not my intention. However, I fully believe that you set yourself up to fail if you do WLS for anyone or any reason other than yourself and your health. So in that aspect, if you thought it'd improve your relationship or inspire her, then yeah it likely does feel unsuccessful. On the flip side, if you're healthier (congrats on 111lbs gone!), and you're leading a healthier life, then it is a success. What you can't do with or without this surgery is change someone else and their habits. They have to do that for themselves and when/if they're ready to do it. I can relate on every level. My boyfriend and I have been together for 9 years, and while he has made healthier choices when I cook for the both of us because well... he's not going to say no to the food. He still makes terrible choices if left to his own free will, or in some cases he'll even try to get me to eat them with him. It's hard, but it took me months to finally accept that I changed my health and happiness, and I can't do that for him. Only he can. Which... he's older, so it's going to catch up to him eventually. Anyways, I won't lie, I've seen and heard about WLS shining some lights on things they never expected (incompatibilities), but just keep the lines of communication open with her. Express your concern for her health, and that you're ready and willing to help her when she's ready and willing for the help. There's not a whole lot you can do unless you're looking to make serious changes, and that's a whole other ballpark.

I really love the basic Nike ones. As well as Glamorise ones: https://www.amazon.com/Glamorise-Womens-Double-Custom-Control/dp/B00C1Z2GX6/

fruit juice is okay if you're being smart about the selection. Pasteurized, meaning actual fruit juice and not from concentrate, no sugar added, etc. That is a good drink choice for once in a while. The sugar in those kind of juices are natural sugar that is only found in the fruit itself, not added. As long as you're limiting it and not drinking a ton of it every day, it is fine to have. I drink 8oz of it once a day or every two days. If I don't one day, I might add it to a smoothie another day. But I stay away from anything from concentrate or that has sugar added. Those are the ones that offer no nutrition. I have to have something like this. I can't just drink Water all the time, and the things like Crystal Light, etc. are disgusting. The artificial sweeteners are horrible. As for carbs, I don't count them. I will keep track of things with carbs that I can count loosely as a note in my head. So if I have a cup of OJ and it has 26g of carbs, then I tend to keep it super low on anything else for the remainder of that day so I don't go over 50g. Some days I go over, but then other days I hardly have any, and it seems to balance out. I have fruit every so often, not daily. I've mainly been focused on vegetables with lean Protein on the side. That has helped me get out of a 2 month stall, so it's going well. I have a smoothie 1-2 times a week, and it's that that seems to boost everything for me.

how much did you pay. im considering dr. alamanza in mexicoSent from my SM-G930T using the BariatricPal App $4400 and if you visit the links Bill posted in his first post above it'll give you all the info!

I'm finding very little information on him unfortunately. I went to Mexico for mine but my surgeon was Dr. Jalil Illan and his services were great. I just suggest being extra cautious if you're unable to find much information on the surgeon.

This answer varies by surgeon it seems. Mine was okay with it as long as my incisions were healed. So for me 2.5 weeks I was back in the gym doing low impact cardio on treadmill, cycle, and elliptical. 4 weeks was when I started weights and harder impact things.

I actually have had 2 attacks in my foot that I believe are gout, though it's pending diagnosis. In my research here on the forums it does seem like weightloss can trigger it, so it doesn't surprise me that you may be experiencing it due to that.

It typically takes 30 days but depends on how heavily you used. Second hand contact can also cause the positive reading especially if you're around it a lot.

Oh a fellow Washingtonian! Hi! I'm excited for you! I was self pay, but I went to Tijuana because my insurance wasn't so great with approval and they kept running me in circles for a few months before even starting the 6 month plan so I got impatient. But honestly, I regret nothing. I had an amazing surgeon with a great recovery and no issues at all. I only paid $4399. It sounds like they've got you going in the right direction, and that's great! My suggestion would be to start keeping a food and exercise log now (if you aren't already). This will help when you need to identify something that could impact your weightloss. It's a pain in the ass, but helpful.

The drained energy is normal, I didn't boyne back from that until 3-4 weeks. It was a struggle. A B12 supplement helped a lot. It sounds like you have a sensitive sleeve. Are you getting in your water? Protein drinks? The gas feeling could also just be lingering, have you tried some chewable gas-x?

I'm only nearly 8 months out so I'm not there yet, but I have PCOS and talked to a few women who had it, had wls and then conceived fairly easily (for a woman with PCOS). So it seems to definitely help from what I've heard. The biggest thing I heard was that they just relaxed about it, they didn't stress and constantly worry. It was when they did that that it worked. Good luck to you! I know how heartbreaking and frustrating it is but you've come this far, you can do it!

You may not lose until 2-3 weeks out. You just had a major surgery even if it doesn't feel like it. Your stomach is swollen. It can take time. Some have even gained a bit after surgery but in a couple of weeks it starts coming off. You have to just take a deep breath and trust in the process. Also try to stay off the scale. I know it's hard when you just want to see it go down, but the stress can also add to it not moving.

Where did you find your patch? * Misty * The BariatricPal Store has them or PatchMD.com has a sale going on that ends today

At 2 weeks I was on liquids/purees. Purees was usually 2-3oz.

Hirsutism (excess hair) is typically a sign of PCOS. If you haven't been tested, i'd recommend it. I have it and the excess hair. So far I've seen a slow in growth but it hasn't gone away. Granted it takes some time for hormones to catch up and regulate so it could be a year or two before that changes.

You WILL lose hair. There is no way around it. It just is a process because of the changes that occur in your body. Mine didn't start until 6 months out because I had been taking 5000mg of biotin a day before my surgery for 3 months. Taking your vitamins and getting in your daily protein will severely help limit the loss you experience. In most cases you will be the only one to notice. I only notice in the shower and after when I brush it. Mine's starting to show because I slacked in my biotin but got on the patch MD 7500mg patch and it's starting to help again.

Dear god, the tail bone one. I don't think I'll ever get use to it. Mine is constantly sore, so too much pressure and I jump from the pain. I really hope that fades. But I am enjoying the collar bones and hip bones.