DeletedMember

As always, I'll start with the stats: HW (2/9/2016): 333 SW (3/21/2016): 287 CW: 219 Total Lost Since Pre-Op: 114lbs Total Lost Since Surgery: 68lbs I am very happy with the overall results of my surgery. I feel great, I'm off all of my high blood pressure medication, I have more energy and the pain from osteoarthritis in my knees is greatly reduced. After having primarily focused on walking on a (near) daily basis, I recently started working out - cardio and weights. My body is in absolute shock! I had settled into losing 2-4 lbs a week the last few weeks, and with the new exercise regime, I dropped about 8 lbs the first week. It all works itself out in the end, but nice to see a little variety in the scale these days!!! On the down side, the pain in my hip from osteoarthritis is no better, and I am planning on having it replaced next January. Even this is not all bad news as I am now a candidate for a Birmingham Hip Resurfacing in lieu of a Total Hip Replacement. Not to mention the surgery and recovery will be easier down 110+ lbs (and hopefully much more by next January!) Eating is still terrible. This is definitely wearing on me. I have another follow-up appointment next month and will be checking in with my doctor, but it does not appear my stricture is getting any better. I have no problem getting in my Protein and fluids, but I still drink the majority of my protein. I can handle soft foods like cottage cheese, and certain seafood like shrimp and scallops. I can handle thinly sliced deli meat as well, but any other sort of chicken, beef, pork, etc is a disaster - even ground up in a Soup is a no god. Causes me almost immediate pain and vomiting. I even tried crab the other day - I ate about 2oz and had massive pain, and vomited it back up for the next 2+ hours. Thank god I'm not ever hungry! I feel like i should be progressing more than I am, and while it's great for my weight loss, I need to be able to derive my nutrition primarily from food at some point. The big shift for me now is starting to think about maintenance. I am still 35 lbs from my original goal, but that seems like nothing at this point! First and foremost, I am no longer sure that is my final goal, I plan on re-evaluating when I get there. When I look in the mirror, 35 lbs doesn't seem like it's going to get me to where I need to be. Secondly, I am afraid of maintenance and what that means. Like many, I've always been able to lose. Keeping it off is the challenge. Losing has been my focus, and I've done well with it, but what happens when I make a conscious decision to stop? Combine that with my issue around eating, and frankly at this point, I would be unable to stop. I just can't consume enough calories/food to stop losing weight. I'm sure I can have a balloon dilation to help the stricture, but I do have a fear that I will be unable to stop losing weight. How freaking ironic, right?!?! It's only been about 4.5 months since I first stepped into my doctors office for a consult. At 333 lbs, it was unfathomable back then that I could ever be under 200 lbs, and here I am, just 19 lbs away from it. It also seems crazy that after just 4.5 months I am even thinking about maintenance. I've never lost enough in any of my million diets that maintenance was an option - I just fell off the wagon and that was the end of that.

I certainly hope so as well! And I almost never encourage a wolverine. :-)

I don't have a NUT either. My surgeon acts as my NUT as he advises his patients on both surgical and non-surgical weight loss. In fact, he has published a book called "Pound of Cure" that is available on Amazon (not bariatric specific, but is the long term diet he recommends). I would also strongly recommend checking out some of his videos on his website: http://drmatthewweiner.com/surgical-weight-loss-video/ He includes videos on his post-op diet plan, etc. Not that I am discouraging you from seeking out a NUT, but it might be worth investing some time in the videos prior to seeing a NUT so you can have one perspective. Just a thought. Good luck with whatever route you chose!

If it makes you feel any better, I don't eat a whole lot more than you right now and my surgeon is also ok with it. My average calorie intake is about 350-500 most days. I do get my recommended Protein and fluids in. You may have somewhat of a stricture, my doc thinks that's my issue, but since I can get all my protein/fluids in he wants to wait and see if it resolves itself. The lack of energy is a bit of a concern and I would wonder if my blood work was all in check if it hasn't been tested. I can assure you it is possible to have normal energy levels without much food as I don't lack energy. I am a little over 2.5 months out from surgery. I am not losing as fast as you, but am down almost 60lbs post-op along with 45 pre-op. Just the last week or so I've been able to eat a little more (eggs, refried Beans, cheese sticks, deli turkey). But my amounts are still so small that even 3 meals a day of just protein heavy foods and I can still only get about 30-35g of protein from food. The rest I have to drink. Anyway, just thought it might help to know you aren't alone in this. And of course, listen to your surgeon. And if you aren't confident in his answers I think checking with your primary care doc is also good advice.

My doctor told me that if it got worse or didn't resolve itself he would do the dilation. He said it was simple and was extremely confident he would be able to resolve it.

You did nothing to cause your stricture, it's just a side effect that happens in a small amount of people. I have a slight stricture myself. It started around week 4-5. My doctor thought it might just resolve itself. I am now just over 11 weeks and seems to be getting slightly better the last few days. For instance, I can now eat 1oz of turkey deli meat and a cheese stick for a meal. I could have never got that down even a week or so ago. I still drink a lot of my Protein (40g a day through drinks). The other 20g I can now get from food. (60g is my target). For many weeks, the only food I could tolerate was cottage cheese.

Weight at first consultation (Feb 9, 2016) - 333 Surgery Weight (March 21) - 287 (-46) 1 month post-op (April 21) - 262 (-71) 2 month post-op (May 21) - 242 (-91) Today (June 7) - 231 (-102) I am also off all blood pressure meds (110/68 as of this morning's BP reading with no meds).

I am now 10 weeks and 4 days post op and I'm down a grand total of 100lbs. HW: 333 (Feb 9, 2016) SW: 287 (March 21, 2016) CW: 233 It's pretty amazing to have lost 100 lbs in just under 4 months total. I feel good, and obviously look better. The good: I am almost completely off BP meds. I called the doctor this AM to get off the last pill - my reading today was 110/66. I can shop in normal stores. I am wearing 2XL/XL clothing and 40/42 pants Flying - having 4-6 inches of spare seatbelt and the tray table going down easily is awesome I have a near endless ability to walk. Something I never considered is that you should not really tire out after a mile or two (or less!). I don't anymore. It's nice to not worry about that. I hardly ever sweat unless I'm working out. I can sit outside when it is near 90 degrees and I'm fine. The bad: I'm freezing. Almost all the time. They believe I have a slight stricture. This has made eating extremely difficult and unpleasant. If I spend 30-45 min eating a couple of pieces of shrimp or a less than an ounce of fish I can usually keep it down, but not always. I throw up a lot. I pretty much live on Protein drinks and cottage cheese. I look forward to getting past this, it gets me down somedays. I do get my required 60g of protein and 64oz of fluids everyday, so I'm not in danger, but I am really only consuming 350-450 calories a day most days. Never hungry, which is good, but I am anxious to get to a more "normal" existence. I'm still a lot fatter than I thought I'd be at 233 lbs (I'm 5'8"). Don't get me wrong, I'm much smaller, but I still have a very large gut. My body seems bound and determined that I will have stick arms and legs before it touches my abdomen fat. My fingers are like a skeleton, I can feel my breastbone and top ribs protruding, but I have a huge gut! Come on man! If I could just spread this out evenly across my body I would look so much better. This is a minor complaint as it will come off, and my main focus was to get healthy. Still have massive joint pain. I knew going in this would probably be the case as I need 2 knees and a hip replaced. The knees definitely feel better, although they still get very swollen and painful with a lot of activity/standing. My hip is still in agony. The good news is that I am in MUCH better condition for replacement surgery and subsequent recovery (another main driver of the surgery for me). I still have about 50 lbs to go to reach my tentative goal (my body will truly determine my end weight), but it seems so achievable at this point. The positives so outweigh the negatives. I'm really looking forward to the continued healing an improved health over the next few months.

Energy has not been a problem since the first 2 weeks post op. I assume it's because I'm getting energy from the fat I'm burning. I also make sure to get my Protein and fluids everyday, as well as take my Vitamins. They can do a dilation of the stricture. If it doesn't resolve in its own over the next month or two, that will be the next step. It's only mildly frustrating as I never hungry. If I was hungry it would be very hard to deal with I'm sure!

I lost the 100 lbs in just under 4 months. I am 10 weeks post op. But I started my weight loss on February 9. I lost 46 lbs prior to surgery and 54 pounds post surgery. You will get there. Just follow the program and the weight will come off.

I'm not a woman, but my mother has been incredibly supportive (I'm 42). Think it's more of a mother/daughter dynamic?

I think your fine. I've lost 100lbs in a little less than 4 months and my doctors are very pleased with the loss.

I think it all depends on your specific situation. I am 10 weeks out and have no issues with energy. I feel great. However, I have a bit of a stricture, so eating is very challenging for me and that would pose potential difficulty. I would not be able to pick meat off of salad/sandwiches without getting sick. I have to opt for Soups, etc. If you are able to get an apartment setup that should make things much easier. Regardless, you'll figure it out and be fine. In my opinion it's worth the effort to gain that experience.

Not to hi-jack this thread, but if you are up in that area I highly recommend tubing down the Platte River. Very inexpensive and really fun. You can check it out at canoemichigan.com.

My 3 week stall lasted about 14 days. You'll get there, just keep following your plan. It's frustrating, but your body is working hard.

It's really funny you mention this. Sometime, maybe 10-15 years ago,mosquitos just stopped biting me. It's awesome. I spend a lot of time outside in an area that has quite a few mosquitos, yet never get bitten. Literally never. I was actually wondering as the mosquitos pick up if that will change since having this surgery. I always assumed it was something to do with hormones/diet, etc. That all changes so much after surgery, I hope I still have my anti-mosquito superpowers. I had my surgery 1 days before yours, so this is my first mosquito season since surgery!

I second what @@sleevergirl2015 said. I would also add that simple things (getting up from a chair) are FAR less painful than before, so I'm more willing to get up and let the dog out, etc. My wife thinks I have a lot more energy based on this, but I attribute it to more of a lack of pain than additional energy. I've never been a high energy guy. Even back in high school when I played sports and was in good shape.

I travel for work about every 6 weeks to one of our facilities in another state. Due to my surgery, I haven't been here for about 12 weeks I'm down about 65lbs since the last time I was here (about 95 lbs overall). Obviously here has been a pretty big reaction for many of my co-workers, but the best one happened yesterday. As I was headed out for the day, the cleaning lady, who speaks only Spanish (but who I always see and exchange he occasional friendly "Hola") stopped me in the hallways rather excitedly to comment on my "mucho" weight loss, entirely in Spanish, with lots of fun gestures showing how thin she thought I had become. I thought is was very sweet.

I actually had a positive mirror experience today! I generally stand in front of my bathroom mirror and only see myself from the waist up. My belly is the LAST place to lose weight (and of course the part that needs it the most). I am currently traveling for work. There is a large full length mirror in the bedroom of my hotel. I got dressed this AM and as I was buttoning up my shirt, I sort of slid sideways in front of this mirror and thought "holy crap, where is the rest of me". Kind of surprised myself.

I am 2 months post op and have this issue all the time. For me there is just this fairly sharp pain right underneath my rib cage (my pouch). Once it starts there is no going back. And it's unpredictable. What is good one day is bad the next. And it can happen with just a few bites of food (happened the other day from like 4 tiny bites of fresh mozzarella). Doc says I have a minor structure most likely, but wants to just give it some time as he thinks it will most likely work itself out. If not, I'll have a dilation. For me though, vomiting is easy. When I have this issue I just literally bend over at about a 90 degree angle and up it comes, no retching, just kinda easy (sorry about the TMI). At least it makes me feel instantly better. Then I just try again another day.

My BCBS did even require "authorization". If you met the criteria, you're qualified. Then there were certain things I needed to do like a recommendation/clearance from my PCP, psych visit, EGD. But never had to presubmit any of that.

I have BCBS of Michigan. I was worried about this as well. My starting BMI was like 50.2 and I lost quite a bit of weight. I called BCBS and they actually aren't that specific in their policy coverage. I had them send me the coverage and it just says you if your BMI is over 50 the 6 month diet is weighed. Nothing more specific. The rep at BCBS even put me on hold while she checked with her manager. They agreed the policy isn't specific and felt as long as it was at 50 when you were recommended for insurance you would be fine. I figured it was vague enough to fight if they denied it. I just got my first insurance statement post-surgery (it was for the surgical anesthetic) and they paid everything but my $20 co-pay. Sorry I have nothing more definitive, but I think you should be ok. You might want to call them yourself to see if your answer matches the one I got.

Tell that to my sore bum. If it's not the staples, then what is it?? Your move, know it all. Last week it was your knees that hurt. Your husband is a lucky guy. OH! Drop the mic! Man that was good. Well played @@LipstickLady, well played.

My doc allows fruit, both in its original form and in smoothies (he discourages straight fruit smoothies but allows them early on with Protein powder and long term as green smoothies). fruit juice is forbidden. The reasoning is that fruit contains fiber which slows the absorption of the sugar, thereby preventing sugar highs and lows like refined sugars. Juice strips out the fiber. Smoothies leave it in. Still he prefers long term you don't have straight fruit smoothies, it's just too easy to consume too much sugar/calories. But he's fine if you throw in a bunch of spinach or kale with the fruit. I find strawberry, banana, mango spinach smoothie is excellent.

Go White!