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Two days before surgery I had to do clear liquid diet. This included sugar free jello and popsicles, but not protein drinks (at least the kind I was using). I would call the surgeon's office in the morning to double check or maybe look back through any handouts they gave you. You are so close now:-)

Sorry, no experience really, I have one tattoo on my back (upper shoulder actually, so not really fatty) and I do not have any lose skin in that area so after 71 lb. loss it's fine. I guess it would depend on your lose skin issues on your arms and the locations of the tattoos. Good luck and I hope more people can chime in.

That's great! You are doing such a wonderful job and should feel very proud. I'm actually quite surprised that over the last couple of weeks a couple of different people actually commented that they were really proud of what I've accomplished so far because they see how hard I have been working at it. I'm loving the positive feedback as well!

...a bottle of water. Pre-surgery, McDonald's was one of my daily stops. I LOVED salt and grease. Even during my pre-op diet (July) I would stop by for breakfast and get a breakfast sandwich and take off all of the bread. Well, before I was sleeved I decided that McDonalds would be off limits to me. I knew this was possible because in the 4 years I've been with my husband he has never once eaten there (or any fast food) that was always something I did with friends or alone. He always said how the smell made him sick, although he does admit to eating there a couple of times during college. Well tonight I left Jazzercise without filling up my water bottle for the ride home (about 25 minutes) and I was so thirsty. I turned to stop at a gas station not realizing that they had a barrier on that side and had to continue to a different road and turned around in the McDonalds' parking lot. While there I thought I'd run in and grab a water there. I couldn't believe it, as I stood in line nothing smelled good. I did not have any cravings! I got my water and left. This was so amazing to me because I was such an addict before. Now, I'm still not perfect with food, but I feel so much better knowing that this tool is such a help in keeping really bad foods at bay.

Good luck Tracy, Tiff, and Carolyn on making your goals! My goal by Christmas is to have successfully added in a consistent gym workout to my exercise routine (at least 3 days per week).

Great job! I'm hoping to pull off similar feats at the round of holiday get togethers. It seems that when I'm socializing, I don't always remember to chew well enough and/or eat too fast because I'm not focused.

Congratulations on your decision and good luck with your pre-op journey!

Yay Judy! I'm so very excited for you...that is great news.

CONGRATULATIONS! That is such a great accomplishment.

I had a physical this morning with my PCP. I saw him about two weeks before my surgery and briefly explained what I was having done and he hadn't seen me since. At the time he seemed a little skeptical, but was of course professional. Today I was shocked with how supportive he was. We talked for a long time and I told him the lab work I wanted for sure and that my surgeon wanted (vitamin D level was low below surgery) and he actually left for a few minutes to research what else he might want to order due to me having bariatric surgery. This was great because I was self-pay so if he didn't order everything I would have had to pay to get the additional labs done. Another great thing is that on their scale I weighed 164 lbs. I know it doesn't count because it's not the scale I weigh on all the time, but it was great to see that number fully clothed. The nurse who weighed me kept looking at my chart and then back to the scale and then finally I realized that she must be comparing my weight from the end of July (around 230 lbs) with this weight. I smiled and told her I had wls, she chuckled and said "oh." Then she told me how well I've done with it and asked questions about the procedure. I love my sleeve! Lastly, I decided to join the same gym as my husband as a way to do more things together. I only signed up for a month to see how much I actually am able to attend. Right now I can squeeze in a workout before tap class on Mondays, and Fridays after work, and Sundays. Every other day I'm pretty much booked up with Jazzercise although I might try to workout some days before going to class. We'll see.

Congratulations Tiff!!! A size medium is awesome. I hope you have a fun week next week.

This has been one of the worst weeks I have had post VSG-not related to surgery, just with stress. Due to this stress my eating has not been what it should be (not planned out at all, skipping meals, stopped at Subway twice, lots of peanuts) and although I've managed to keep up with daily exercise, I am just not losing (fluctuating one pound up then one pound down). I've heard and read that stress can cause us to hold onto weight, and I'm sure coupled with poor food/eating habits has not helped in the weight loss department. So today is a new day and the week is not yet over. I took the day off for a physical and plan to hit the grocery store and get back to planning my meals. My husband and I had a heart to heart last night, so I think those issues are pretty much resolved. I hope I'm back on track to meet my next weight loss goal of weighing 165 lbs on my next follow-up visit with my surgeon on 12/2. That's 3-4 pounds I have to shed in 2.5 weeks. I think it's doable, if I just get back on track. On a positive note, I found out yesterday that I passed the movement screening for Jazzercise and can now begin preparing for the audition in February. I was so very excited!

Weclome to VST! It's a very personal decision, but I'm sure others that were trying to decide between the two will jump in. For me, I was looking between the lapband and the sleeve. The sleeve won out and I couldn't be happier. I was a total carb addict, but knew that I did not want malabsorption (RNY or DS) and decided I needed to work on my addictive personality issues with professional help. The nice thing with the sleeve that I wasn't expecting is that for the first 2.5 months ALL food cravings went away for the most part. Now I'm eating so much less, like with RNY, and if you eat Protein first, there isn't much room for carbs (even if you want them like I do now at times). I think you could be happy with either as long as you are honest with yourself and your needs. Good luck with your decision and journey!

Thank you so much for the kind words. This morning I started my period, which explains a bit of the emotions I have been feeling.

I'm sorry to hear that you are going through this. I hope they get you feeling better really soon.

Way to go Tiff! Spinning has always scared me. It's so great that you are dedicated to your new routine...it's very inspirational.

I think it's perfectly natural to be obsessed with the VSG especially when you are going through your pre-op journey and then post-op when you wonder if you are normal. I am still pretty new as a post-op, but my obsession has started to die down a very little bit. I never did any obsessing at work though because I was/am always so busy, but as long as you are meeting your deadlines, you'll probably be okay. I'm hopeful and excited for you! Have fun reading and looking at pictures!

I'm thinking of you today.

Thinoneday, I am so sorry you're going through this. I wish I had some advice for the pain management, but I can't think of anything. My suggestion would be to go plop your bottom at the doctor's office and/or a physical therapist's place and kindly request a brainstorming session for things to try. They might not get it right (like with the steroids), but they should have some more knowledge of other things to try that are not related to a surgery. I do agree that after wls surgery and you start losing weight, there's a big possibility you will begin to hurt less. I didn't realize how much stress I was putting on my knees when I first started walking (must have gotten use to the knee pain) until I now feel nothing involving pain on my walks. Good luck with finding answers/solutions. I will be thinking about you.

I'm glad to hear everything is going so well. Congratulations!

I'm so happy that you had a terrific shopping day! Woohoo...a medium! I've always liked the idea of shirt dresses, but every time I've bought one, I've had to return it because I've got hips. Good for you for your 5 day a week workout schedule. We'll have to help keep each other motivated as the winter sets in:-)