LittleBill

I'm pretty much the same size you are. I am at 364 lbs right now, and I've lost 117 so far. The thing is for me, I am only 40-60 lbs away from where I want to end up. I have a large frame and muscle mass. I would think real long and hard about the DS, and the fact that you have asked about it indicates you are. I think the question becomes, if you were told you would be staying at the weight you are at right now for the rest of your life, would you be happy? Would you be healthy? These are questions only you and your wife can answer. For me, if I did not lose another pound, I would be disappointed, but I am not sure I would be disappointed enough to go with a DS operation and all that would entail.

Not just nude, but for us hairier types, they come in and SHAVE your belly! Mrs. LittleBill teased me for weeks about looking like I was wearing a bra made of hair, since the rest of me was shorn clean. As far as I can tell, nobody messed with my manly parts, but since I was out cold, I could not say for sure. I do look closely at the various workers when I go to the doctor's office or the hospital though, to make sure no one is giggling at me.

@@theantichick @@Sai Okay, you two ladies have given me a lot to think about, and add to what I have learned. I am not above saying I was wrong about something if it turns out I was, and I am always willing to listen to new information. As to that other thing, my problems tend in the other direction. There isn't a .380 out there where I can hit the broad side of a barn - from the inside. My paw is so enormous I carry an N frame revolver when I can, so a .45 is just a natural for me. Mrs. LittleBill has a very nice Kahr 9mm. It conceals very nicely for her. But you can't really go wrong with a Ruger.

I've read the same stuff. They're not claiming that it's the same chemical structure. They're trying to explain in layman's terms how they're changing the chemical structure. They're describing stripping out everything but the protein chain and then binding the protein chain to less stuff but still stabilizing the protein chain and in the process making it more bioavailable. In trying to make it understandable to non scientists they've actually made their description not scientifically accurate. My scientist dad used to get driven crazy by this, he called it "simplification to the point of error". I've read some other documents by the company, and it appears to me they're claiming that their process of refining the Proteins reduces allergens and makes more of the protein bioavailable and that's what they're basing the claim on. I've also read the outcomes from the clinical trial. While I think there are some basic flaws in the study design, my conclusion based on the raw data from the study (available at clinical trials dot gov) is that Genepro is as good as any other protein powder. I have found it to be easier to mix in more foods at more temperatures than other brands, so I'll stick with it. For me, it's like the question of which is better, a .380 or a 9mm? The answer is the one you'll actually carry. My 9mm is a much better weapon, but it's not concealable. My .380 is, so it's the one I'm more likely to actually have at hand. If another protein powder is better, but I won't use it because it's gritty or changes the texture too much, or won't dissolve well in hot liquids, is it really better? You've been paying attention to all my posts, haven't you? If given a choice between 9mm and .380, I always go with .45 ACP. Seriously, I appreciate the way you have laid it out. To continue the analogy, if this is the way they are going about it, they are really shooting themselves in the foot. I am not a scientist, but I am fairly well educated, and I know enough about chemistry and physics that when someone says they are shrinking molecules... I am working real hard at getting my protein from natural food. I realize there will be some Protein shakes and bars in my life, but I am reducing them as much as possible, just because of some of the, uhhh, side effects (especially the bars). I don't gain or lose anything in the Genepro discussion, and that makes it easy to keep an open mind. Thank you.

I was as scared as a little girl contemplating my surgery. It was my first experience with surgery as well, and I had all the worries about things going hideously wrong. I was reasonably confident in the doc and his team, most of whom I never met, but confident because of their track record. I'm a little different than a lot of people though, because I am a Christian. Some will scoff, but I put my faith in God's will for my life. That did not exactly take away my fear, but it allowed me to deal with it and get through it. This is not a post to tell you you need to get saved and all will be fine. This is just telling you how I made it through. But if you do believe in God, this might be a good time to discuss it with him. "Courage is fear holding on a minute longer." George Patton

You look like you are doing great!

I was discussing this with Mrs. LittleBill yesterday. I am just a few weeks ahead of you. I hit a stall shortly after Thanksgiving, and am still there. I have been behaving myself probably 90%, which means I have had a very few Cookies, a small amount of stuffing, all the BAD carbs. Did they contribute to my stall? Am I not exercising enough? Am I a worthless person who deserves to be fat the rest of my life? The answer to all of these is mostly no, with a little maybe for the first part. It doesn't matter, and in a case like this, trying to pin it down and assign blame is as fruitless as a post op liquid diet. What matters is staying the course for the long haul. What matters is looking back and seeing how far you've come already. Stick with your program, tweak it as it needs it, and don't look at the scale so often. If you do things as your are supposed to do, your weight will come off. But it does not come off in a linear fashion.

A lot of temperament associated with diets and weight loss can be laid at the feet of hunger. Once you are sleeved, you won't have to deal with that. Perhaps if you could show your husband that information he would consent to being a little more supportive.

Stand around with an appropriate beverage in your hand. Sip it slowly. Talk and be socially engaged. Don't eat. I used to do that even before I had surgery.

With all the other sub forums here, it should not be hard. It could be called Gastric Sleeve for Millennials who need a Safe Space.

I had all my stuff scheduled, and was on schedule, when the woman in charge of making that schedule called me and tried to talk me into having my surgery two weeks early. I told her no way! She didn't understand, and I reminded her that I would not be able to do my pre-op diet properly, and I was not going to risk my liver for the sake of her scheduling convenience. I understand they have holes to fill sometimes, but she has been through this herself. You'd think she would have known better. I do not know how much the surgeon would have been involved in that kind of decision. I think it is more like he walks in and asks who is on the schedule for that day. I do think he would have backed his staff though.

One thing I have seen in my short time here are lots of posts about eating stuff we shouldn't too early, while our sleeve is still healing. But I HAVEN'T seen posts titled, My surgeon opened me up again because I ate solid food". I suspect people are a little more circumspect about posting that kind of stuff.

Always looking for boobies! Well then, here's a pair for you!

I end up having to eat out with friends or associates on a fairly regular basis. Like @ says, make careful choices, and eat slowly. One other thing I do is to divide up whatever comes on my plate before I start eating. I try to guess on the low side of what I can handle. It is better to be a tiny bit hungry than it is to feel bloated and uncomfortable for an hour or so. Diving it up gives you a definite stopping point.

@ Oh, I can talk just like him, western accent and all. Mrs. LittleBill doesn't know it yet, but I am working on growing out my mustache nice and bushy like his as well. I just have to keep my barber away from it. He is obsessed with trimming it down to a pencil 'stache every time I go there.

That's illegal in most states.

@@theantichick Well said! Or well written anyway. I am quoting one line you wrote: "They are not representative of most people, and should not be used as the example other people follow." Remember, no one is completely useless. At the very least, they can serve as a bad example.

Thank you! I am getting there. I'm 2 1/2 months out from surgery, and haven't quite lost as much post op as I did pre op. I would like to lose about 65 more lbs. I notice I have more energy, but I keep using it up pushing harder every day (or most days). I guess that's a good thing. I notice when I chase Mrs. LittleBill around, it is easier to catch her now.

I have a very deep voice. Think James Earl Jones or Barry White deep. Even when I was (really) fat, women would constantly gush over me and my voice - even if Mrs. LittleBill was present! She is used to it by now, but some of them get pretty demonstrative, and they are always asking me to "say something". The standard thing I say is "Oh baby, oh baby" whenever something like this comes up. I am not sure I am going to tell her you think I look good though, even though I I know it is in the most manly way possible. You know, just in case. At any rate, thank you. I appreciate it.

@@Malin I'm blushing. Again.

Okay, I'll contribute here. I went and found one of the more unflattering pictures of myself. But it is an important one because I am holding my two youngest grandchildren (out of six) from our two older daughters. This is me a year before surgery holding Jonah (2 months old) and Sadie (1 month old). I am pretty much the same weight as I was when I began the program in June 2016 - 481 lbs. The second picture is of me Christmas Day 2016. I am down 117 lbs in this picture. My parents, who are in their 80s, gave ME this book for Christmas. This was one of my favorites as a young boy. We both love to read to our grandchildren, as we did with our children. So Mom and Dad aren't quite senile. They're just ensuring that the traditions can be continued with the same stories.

Lyrics by LittleBill, with apologies to Burl Ives. Have a Holly, Jolly Christmas, And skip drinking egg nog Cause if you do, I'm sure that you, Will have your weight loss bog. Have a Holly Jolly Christmas, Eat your Protein dontcha know? If you eat carbs, and things with lard, You're waistline's bound to grow! Ho, ho, the mistletoe, at least that stuff's fat free! You can indulge in it, without a calorie! So have a Holly Jolly Christmas, And behave yourself this year. Stay on your course, it could be worse, But better things are near!

It does get easier. There will be changes to make mentally and emotionally as well as physically, but as you succeed in making them you will discover a new independence.

I looked at it this way. I wanted to give the surgeon every possible opportunity to not screw something up while carving up my insides. Not only did I follow my dietary restrictions exactly, I even trimmed my beard back to next to nothing because he said it would be easier on the anesthesiologist if they had trouble. It grew back.