CzechPleez

Day 3 post-op: Today is much better! I took my (gagging, awful) pain med last night to ensure good sleep. This morning I woke up with minimal pain so I decided I would go as long as possible w/o taking my liquid poison 'er pain med. So far I've not taken any today (knock on wood). I was able to eat a small amount of Cream of Wheat hot Cereal (maple & brown sugar) which made me happy. Everyone talks about the first "real" food they eat after pre-op liquid diet and then surgery. I am sipping on a cold Premier Protein RTD Protein shake this morning with no issues as long as I go slow. I am also better able to tolerate small sips of Water (up until today it HURT to swallow water). As far as my protein shake goes, I am keeping a small lunch cooler nearby with several ice gel packs. After a few sips of shake I seal it up and pop it in the cooler to keep it max cold and close by for the next few sips. I don't like room-temp Protein drinks so cold is key for me. Plus, I assume anything that goes down cold will help with internal swelling. I'm looking forward to "lunch" which could be smooth Greek yogurt or unsweetened apple sauce. Hmmm...decisions. Hope everyone is doing well today! Hang in there #JanSleevers!

I was also sleeved on 1/18. (Fistbump) It's been pretty surreal since. I was able to mange pain really well while on IV. I was walking laps in the post-op ward. My nurses were all impressed. Coughing really hurt! Still does. Now I'm home and I feel like everything is upside down. I HATE my Rx pain relief liquid, makes me gag. I really struggle with not wanting to take it and just deal with pain, it's that bad. :-/ I jab two challenges today; get in enough Fluid w/o help of IV. Shower and change dressings. Ugh. Not looking forward to either. Hang in there. We're here together.

Statistically - The RNY typically sheds ~70% *EXCESS* body weight. The sleeve typically sheds ~60% excess body weight. These are statistics. Many people have realized much more loss with both...and much less. My Dr's clinic research and experience is showing them that the gap in typical excess weight lost is narrowing between the two procedures, Thus the sleeve becomes the obvious choice for a high percentage of Bariatric candidates due to the long term "normalcy." - Less "dumping syndrome" impact. - Less dietary restrictions. - More normal diet. - But NOT reversible for any reason. The RNY is technically reversible, though I've never heard of anyone doing it. If I wanted reversible I'd go with lap band, which does the same thing and less invasive. Most Drs and patients will tell you that your long term success and ultimate excess weight loss will be impacted way more by your decisions AFTER surgery, not the surgery itself. Everyone has equal opportunity to take the surgery and use it as one of many tools towards a healthier life, or totally negate its benefit with poor choices. You really need to speak with your Dr about concerns over a lifetime of "dumping syndrome" and the dietary restrictions necessary to prevent it. I would think both of you would agree the sleeve is the right life-long choice. Best of luck.

I guess I'm fortunate in that my insurance requires no mandatory pre-op controlled diet. (BCBS-Illinois, BTW.) That said, I tired to get the sleeve op approved by insurance 18 mos ago (same ins) and was denied because my "official" weigh-in put me at a BMI = 39. I needed a BMI => 40. With no qualifying co-morbidities I was denied. I decided to wait a year and try again. When I went in for official weigh-in I made sure to have a big lunch and held my bathroom break until AFTER that meeting. My BMI was over 40 and I was approved first try, no supervised diet. Many insurance carriers who mandate pre-op diets do so in order to ultimately disqualify many candidates because the patient winds up losing just enough to be under the BMI guidelines, or drop just enough BP to drop meds. Most everyone on the forum knows all too well about struggling with weight our whole life. Dropping 20 lbs on a restricted *diet* doesn't help us in the yo-yo long run. But it's enough to save the ins companies some $. I won't encourage anyone to cheat or scam insurance, or be dishonest. Just make sure you know what the qualifiers are for your ins to approve the surgery and proceed with restricted diets "carefully." Good luck everyone.

Jan 18th! I sent my request to join the FB group. Hope all goes well for everyone.

Hi everyone! I'm new to this group and discussion, but not new to sleevers. I have several family members and friends who have been sleeved, which prompted me to pursue my own. I will be sleeved on Jan 18, 2016 by Dr. Hoehn. I'm looking forward to getting the party started! Happy New Year to all of you! CJ