alli.wakefield

My husband and I both had surgery November 15 so we are seven weeks post op. Things have been going smoothly, about as expected. We are both hitting water/protein goals and losing steadily. However, something weird has started and I’m wondering if anyone else has experience with this. My husband (26yr) came home from work yesterday and had an emotional breakdown. Full on ‘crying, doomsday, all hope is lost’ breakdown. My hubby isn’t the crying type, in fact, it’s pretty difficult to get an emotional response out of him at all, ever. So naturally, it kinda freaked me out. I started quizzing him with questions to try and find out where this is coming from but he insists that he isn’t overwhelmed at work, our home life is stable and he isn’t having any other emotional trauma right now. So I’m wondering, is this a side effect of losing extreme amounts of weight quickly? He’s lost 55 pounds since starting the pre-op diet and has lost 70 overall with the supervised diet for insurance requirements. And if anyone has experienced or heard of this, does it level out as the weight loss slows or could this be his natural hormone levels coming out and maybe he should seek medical advice?

Ah, thank you! This gives me some hope for the future! I think a large part of his worry is that he can't control the emotions which just seem to make him more emotional! LOL I am certainly an emotional person, a cute commercial can have me tearing up, but I haven't felt anything out of the ordinary lately... I know my surgeon once mentioned to me that the main reason he wanted me off my birth control pill prior to surgery is because I already had excess estrogen stored in my belly fat and he wanted to lower my levels as much as possible to help prevent blood clots post-op. My husband carries his weight primarily in his belly, so maybe he has excess estrogen that's getting released as he loses the belly?? Haha, I don't know but I hope his emotions level out soon, mostly, because I hate to see him stressed about feeling out of control of his emotions.

We don't meet with the surgeon again until three months post op, so about another month from now. Maybe it's worth the call to the office though and see what the surgeon's medical assistant says about it...

My husband and I both had surgery November 15 so we are seven weeks post op. Things have been going smoothly, about as expected. We are both hitting water/protein goals and losing steadily. However, something weird has started and I’m wondering if anyone else has experience with this. My husband (26yr) came home from work yesterday and had an emotional breakdown. Full on ‘crying, doomsday outlook, all hope is lost’ breakdown. My hubby isn’t the crying type, in fact, it’s pretty difficult to get an emotional response out of him at all, ever. So naturally, it kinda freaked me out. I started quizzing him with questions to try and find out where this is coming from but he insists that he isn’t overwhelmed at work, our home life is stable and he isn’t having any other emotional trauma right now. So I’m wondering, is this just a side effect of losing extreme amounts of weight quickly? He’s lost 55 pounds since starting the pre-op diet and has lost 70 overall with the supervised diet for insurance requirements. And if anyone has experienced or heard of this, does it level out as the weight loss slows or could this be his natural hormone levels coming out and maybe he should seek medical advice?

@marvirga I've had on and off caffeine headaches all week. I've almost given in a few times but I'm holding out. My husband and I are having surgery the same day so having him go through it with me too, has been helpful.

@beckyagain What all does your liver shrinking diet entail? I've found most differ a little from doctor to doctor. I am 8 days into my liver shrinking diet and have another six to go. I can have unlimited protein shakes, white meat (such as chicken, turkey, fish), low-fat cottage cheese and low-fat plain Greek yogurt and sugar free water enhancers and sugar-free popsicles

Yeah, compared to others that have posted mine totally isn't as bad as it could be. It's just that I've always been more of a "side" person. Like my dinner plate before this would only be 10% meat and then 90% sides (mashed potatoes, salad, veggies, whatever) BUT obviously, that is changing with the sleeve surgery so it's good I'm changing my focus now!

Mine is very similar to those above. I'm starting on Wednesday... for surgery day of November 15! Unlimited protein shakes Chicken/Beef/Veggie Broth Low-fat cottage cheese/plain Greek yogurt (1/2 cup limit/day) Skim/unsweetened almond/soy/cow's milk Egg whites Lean meats (white fish/chicken breast/turkey) Sugar free syrups/water flavors Sf jello/pudding/instant carnation breakfast Sf Popsicles NO caffeine, carbonation, coffee or tea Herbs, salt and pepper for the meat (No sauces or oils) I'm already anticipating the caffeine withdrawals that will be kicking my butt for the first couple days.... I'm thinking I will be mainly be eating the protein shakes, 1/2 cup cottage cheese, deli turkey, turkey burgers, egg whites and LOTS of sf jello/pudding and Popsicles

I just started a weight loss specific Instagram for accountability as well. I'm 28 and my husband and I are having surgery the same day, November 15th! Two people from instagram that made me want to make one and who are great to follow are @vsgdeb and @timetodeflate Both are about our age and great examples!! My handle is below. Instagram: @awaketolose

Hi all! My surgery date is November 15th! I start the preop diet on the 1st. My preop diet is unlimited protein shakes, white-meat chicken, turkey breast, low-fat cottage cheese, chicken broth, egg whites, and sugar-free popsicles and jello. No caffiene or carbonation. I'm in the Phoenix, Arizona area. Anyone else?

Hello everyone! I am in the process of converting from my band (2012) to the sleeve. I had minimal success with the band and seemed to have an extremely tiny "green zone" where I could feel restriction but not be overfilled. I'm talking about .5mms! So I spent the majority of my banded time feeling extremely frustrated and like a failure. None the less, I am waiting on my insurance to approve me for removal so I can get sleeved. My doctor submitted everything earlier this week so I'm hoping to hear by early next week! My doctor wants to wait a few months before I get sleeved, which I am okay with. From what he's told me, the recovery from the band removal is easier than getting the band in and I had an extremely easy recovery with getting banded. So, I'm hoping to take a simple Friday off from work, get my band removed and be back at work on Monday. (I have a sedentary desk job.) I don't want to raise flags that I'm getting surgery with the removal because within a few months, I hope to be getting surgery again in order to get sleeved. So I'm anticipating on missing at least a week of work so others are definitely going to notice. But I'm wondering what other's experiences were? How much time did you plan to take off and how much time did you actually end up missing from work? My company is very nice and will allow me to miss as much as I need but I only have so much PTO so I need to plan ahead for budgeting purposes. TIA!

Hello, everyone! I am in the starting phase of the process to revise from my band (2013) to the sleeve. Since getting the band, I've changed jobs so no one here knows that I've had WLS. I didn't have much success with the band and am now heavier than when I got the band so I don't exactly want to announce that I'm looking into WLS to fix what I couldn't make work from my previous WLS. But with the process to revise, I'm meeting with a nutritionist (every two weeks), getting blood work, getting an EGD, meeting with my PCP, and many other doctor's appointments. This month alone I have over 6 appointments. I always try to make them first thing in the morning or the last appointment of the afternoon as to miss as little work as possible but I can see my manager is wanting to ask if something is wrong (she genuinely cares, not just nosy.) but I'm just not comfortable disclosing anything quite yet. I will certainly have an honest conversation with my manager once surgery is definitely happening and is scheduled but until then, I'd rather keep this to only family. Did anyone else run into this? I feel like I need a generalized excuse to give her to explain the abundance of appointments. I know she'll never ask but I feel like I need to give her something. Ideas?

I work Monday-Friday, 8AM-4:30PM with a 1/2 hour lunch. I know I don't need to say anything and she won't ask but she has been a mentor, of sorts, for the last year and a half and everyone jokes at work that she is the Company Mom, she is just the concerned type and I can tell she's worrying. My EGD is the 17th and then we (surgeon, husband and I) should be able to make an official decision and I could fill her in from there.

I am also in Phoenix and I am not sleeved yet but I am working toward that goal with Dr. Richardson out of Weight Loss Institute of Arizona. He is a caring Surgeon and I really appreciated that when i went in for my consult, I got to have a sit down with him for an hour to ask all my questions and he was brutally honest.

Hello, everyone. I am a long time stalker, first time poster of this forum. I got the lap band in 2012 at 302 pounds (my heaviest ever, at the time.) After getting banded, I lost 35 pounds but I had to fight for every ounce to come off. I never felt like I was in the ‘green zone’ that the clinic continually talked about. I went in religiously for fills but never felt like I could eat small portions only three times a day and be satisfied. I even questioned my sanity and if head hunger really had that much control over me. After a year and only 35 pounds lost, when I needed to lose at least 150 pounds, the NP told me that I could not get any more fills. I was experiencing some stuck episodes but the NP said that my band was already at 8cc’s in my 10cc band and it wouldn’t hold any more fluid. So I left bawling. Here I was – a year out from surgery, having paid out of pocket for this device that didn’t do bunk to help with the hunger like it claimed to. So, I quit. I stopped eating healthy, I stopped trying, I stopped caring. I did that for a year and kinda maintained my 35lb loss but that was it. I eventually went to my primary care doctor who wanted me to start Metformin ER, but they are massive horse pills and because I needed the extended release, I couldn’t crush them. So I went back to my clinic and had all the fluid removed to take the Metformin. Well, long story short, I’m now sitting at 325 pounds. So I’ve gained back the 35 I lost in 2012 and have since packed on an additional 25 pounds. Last month, I had family in town and many people taking pictures - full length, unflattering angles, kinds of pictures - and posting them online. I had a coming to Jesus moment when I literally didn’t recognize myself. I’ve never seen myself as big as I am. Last year, I had two friends get the vertical sleeve and both get phenomenal results. I’m finally ready to take care of myself and finish what I thought I started in 2012. I’ve contacted the clinic that both of my friends went through and have a consult set up for next Monday. Does anyone have any advice or a similar story? I am almost frozen in fear when I start thinking that because the band failed for me, the sleeve will too. I cannot pay out of pocket for a second bariatric surgery and not get results. I don’t think I can mentally survive that.

I got the lapband in 2013 and had some mild success but due to other complications I ended up with all my Fluid removed about a year ago. In that year, I've put on some serious weight and am now sitting at 330. I am 28 and recently married so as my husband and I talk about our future and kids, I can't help but panic. Between my PCOS, current weight and only one ovary, I believe that I will have an extremely hard time getting pregnant, let alone being healthy enough to carry the child to the full 40 weeks without complications. I have an appointment with a bariatric surgeon on Monday and they offer both the sleeve and bypass. I am still very undecided about which surgery would be the best option for me. I am terrified that the sleeve won't produce the results that I need to shock me into a healthy lifestyle permanently. I'm also terrified of the dumping syndrome or malnutrition if I do the bypass. But also, from what I've read the dumping syndrome is a good thing? Which just kind of confuses me. Moving forward, I know I don't have the option to fail or 'cheat' post-op with either of these surgeries because it's my future potential family on the line, my world is more than just me now so I can't be selfish or self-destructive with my eating. So what I'd love is all the advice that everyone has to offer. Informative articles, experiences, thoughts and opinions are all welcomed here! Thank you in advance!