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It kind of bothers me too. Luckily my husband is eating 'good'. He had a stent put in his heart almost two years ago and he is not the type that pops a cholesterol pill and lets it do the work.....the man reads labels and has changed his way of eating and his life. He rides 10 miles on a stationary bike 4 x's a week....has gone from red meat to now we eat bison almost exclusively.....he eats salad now. No oreos, butter....you get the picture. I started making changes when he did, so now we both watch what others are eating! You just can't help it!!!

thank you!!!

I hit goal the first week in Nov - just under five months. I'm now about 8 lbs under goal am finding maintaining easy so far. To keep from continueing to lose weight it seems like I am constantly snacking. I am never hungry, my 'new' hunger is an empty feeling, usually around dinner time, so I know I probably need to eat something, but that's it. The team at my surgeon's office stressed at the seminar that this is NOT a diet, this is a new way of life. Nothing is off limits after we reach goal, other than carbonated drinks. I think common sense is in order, there are things I avoid, but there were things I avoided BEFORE surgery. I am still getting use to the idea that this is how 'normal thin' people eat. They can have a little slice of pumpkin bread and not feel guilty. I can only eat certain amount at Breakfast, lunch and dinner - therefore I am adding additional calories into my diet throughout the day. It feels like a 'bad habit' that I should NOT be doing. The thing is, I MUST or else I would continue losing weight. I was averaging 675 calories a day during the losing stage, and my dietitian said to maintain i should be getting between 800 and 1200 calories per day. I'd have to play around and find what worked. She and my nurse said 'lighten up, live a little' - I'll have a little pumpkin bread, dip my steak in a peppercorn sauce, I'm snacking on a little Peanut Butter on a graham cracker. Peanuts, fruit.....Just adding things in that I avoided before. 950 - 1050 seems to be the right amount, but it is a lot of work to get it in going from what I WAS at. I don't want to do it by eating a Ding Dong! LOL I have always eaten potatoes since surgery....but only about 1TB at a time. Bread was a no no during the losing period, and I eat very little now, and only 100% whole wheat. Very little Pasta and rice....I'd rather have something else! =) I still measure and weigh everything when I'm at home.....I weigh myself twice a day because it's a "game" i play. I guess at night what I'll weigh in the morning! =) I also keep an on line food log. I like to keep track of everything. I'm obsessive, I am very aware of everything I put into my mouth. I've learned everything I can about what we've all had done....I love my sleeve! I hope maintenence continues to be this easy!

You look amazing!!!! What a fun journey we've been on this year! All I can say is "Ditto" - I would do it again in a heartbeat!!! I hope you're having as much fun buying clothes as I am! Happy New Year!

Define medically necessary. I had a BMI of not quite 37 - insurance did not deem in necessary. I had no medical problems....yet. I felt it was preventive maintenence.

If you're asking US, I think you know the answer. I have what I refer to as my bariatric Bible.... it gives me step by step guide lines for everything. My doctor actually went a step further than what this large book he gives out says....he goes so far as to say, Clear liquids the first week and week 2 and 3....nothing that won't go through a straw. I wouldn't put anything in my mouth that might land me in the ER!!!!! A resounding NO, not unless you put it in a blender.....ick!!!!!!!!!!!

I share with my husband if it's a place where we know there is enough....I eat very little now - or I will order an appitizer (sp?) or just order a regular dinner and then take the majority of it home and it will last for a few meals. I am with whoever said 'no way am I announcing to a stranger I'm a former fatty'!!! A kids meal, according to my dietitian, is NOT a good choice!

My hope was to reach my surgeon's goal by New Years Eve....I reached goal at just under five months, the first week in November!!! You will be SHOCKED at how quickly you can do it IF you follow the surgeon's and dietitian's advice. I was obessive about what I ate and what I did not eat. I didn't eat anything sweet until I reached goal. I am looking at what you have to lose and you don't have much more to lose than I did, you can do it!!! I felt like "Rocky" getting ready for a fight....ready to do battle. I know that this is NOT a diet, but until I reached goal, I treated it as one as far as what I put into my mouth!!! You'll succeed in each and every goal you mentioned!!! Good luck!!!!

You CAN make it to your surgeon's goal and below, I'm sure of it - I DID! My surgeon's goal was 150 as well, and I weighed between 150 and 155 in HS.....I weighed 144.3, my all time low, yesterday morning. I am maintaining between 144 and 146 now....just this past week I've dropped to 143. It's amazing. MY personal goal was a size 8, which is nice and comfy, it has been for a while now. I still cannot believe they fit and are never tight. I pass by the women's section and I KNOW I'll never shop there again - it's just now sinking in. Have faith, it will happen!!

I totally agree. I know we can 'eat around' our sleeve with 'soft' food. For instance, last night we went out and I chose to eat fish instead of pork because I knew I could eat more of it, pork is so dense....of course BOTH were healty choices, but you know what I mean. I have to WORK at getting in the calories I need to right now just to maintain. If I were to over eat, I'd throw up, not stretch my tummy! Ick...I cannot imagine it really. I've eaten something a few times, usually pasta, that makes me uncomfortable, I don't know how people can do that on a regular basis. Thanks for your input Tiff.

I don't know WHY, but I'm glad to know mine isn't the only one that does it. I'm exactly like you....my new little tummy grumbles and make noises during eating some and AFTER....never before! What is weird is this usually only happens after dinner, seldom at Breakfast or even lunch. It's like, "oh no, not food again!!"

Tell her it's preventive maintenence so you'll avoid health issues in the future and so you'll be around for a long time for her grandchildren. So you won't be a burden to them when you are old!! When it comes down to it, if she isn't paying for it, it is NONE of her business....I'd be real tempted to tell her to bug off if she can't be a cheerleader but my "filter" doesn't work real well.

I didn't have one.

How are you feeling? What does your surgeon suggest? I can see how this could happen. So far I am able to maintain. I'm getting the hang of it, I've been at goal for about six weeks, but it seems like I eat all the time just to get the additional calories in to do so. I can't possibly eat extra food at meal times because of the restriction, so I have to eat a little here and there throughout the day. I'm not complaining, I LOVE my sleeve, but it is a whole different way to think now....and this is the new normal. Can you drink milk? If so, are you drinking 2% or full fat? How about milk shakes, they don't really seem like junk food, and should give you calories. I'm trying to think of things that are not just pure junk, and since they are milk based and have loads of calories, it seems like a win/win thing! I know they told me to eat meat that was was higher in fat I.E. Ribeye steak and not to be afraid to have gravies or sauces on the side occasionally to add some calories in. Are these things you've tried? Good luck!!!

Kymmi - your caloric intake seems very high to me if you're still in the losing stage. I reached my goal almost two months ago and my dietitian said I would need to UP my calories from my average of 675 calories a day to between 800 and 1200 calories per day to maintain. I know that some people may take in a little more per day when they are losing but you are in the honeymoon period for the first year. Do you have a dietitian that you see or can talk to? If so, what do they say about the calories? I'd have to ask, what are you eating? I had NO sweets, NONE until I reached goal. I know this is not a diet, but until I hit my goal, I was obsessive about it and everything I put into my mouth. I TREATED it as a diet I guess. Good luck!

So which is it, can we stretch our tummies back out or not? Some say yes, some say no!! I do not possibly see HOW we could ever stretch it out too much....not from what is now 3 oz to what WAS like a deflated football, which they say was approx. 51 oz. I have not been hungry since I woke up from surgery, my 'new' hunger is an empty feeling occasionally, but nothing that I would call real hunger. I feel lucky, I hope it stays this way! So, which is it, does it stretch or not?!!! What do we believe??!!

5000 mcg - I'm sorry!!! I do not have a bad reaction at all. I can't remember if I got this at Wal Mart or Wal Greens. I remember it was a buy one get one free. The first couple of bottles I bought were 1000, then I found this and when I realized I could take a larger does, I got it! If two 1000 tablets bother you though, I don't think you'd want to take the 5000!!! Did you start taking it pre-op?

I weighed a few days after surgery because I was staying at my dad's house and he had a scale, then the doctor weighed me at my one week post-op visit. After that we were at the beach for a week so I didn't have a scale....I weighed again at my two week visit. Now...I weigh every single day, the scale went up and down for the first five months. I'd lose a lb or two, then it would go up a lb, then back down. It would some times take three or four days before the two lbs would be gone for good. Now I'm maintaining. It was a week before I had a BM....and for a month I only had one a week. It was horrible, I tried everything, then discovered Miralax and now I take Magnesium pills (3 per day) and that helps. good luck!!

I had to switch to decaf before surgery and for the first six week post-op, after that I could have the 'real' stuff again. My neurologist (migraines) says that they are saying now that some coffee/caffeine is good for us.....I have two cups a day and she says that is fine. I have not had any tummy problems with it since surgery. The nurse at my surgeon's office is a sleeve patient and she drinks coffee in limited quantities as well.

With all the liquid we need to get in, I can't get in what I suppose to of the 'good stuff' - I couldn't not possibly justify drinking diet or reg coke etc. I was never a soda girl, but after all we've been through to get to where we are - I've adopted as many healthy habits as possible, sodas are not something I want to do....and they are high in sodium on top of everything else, aren't they? I won't say that I won't EVER have a sip for the rest of my life, but they are not something that I will drink or sip on often. Of course I probably didn't drink a six pack a year pre-op! As far as the RNY patients....whoever said sit back and watch how quickly they re-gain.....I agree. An RNY patient is not someone I'd patten myself after at all. I know close to a dozen, all but one have gained a noticeable amount of weight back usually starting 3 - 5 yrs out.

Hey Matt - Tiffany is right....nothing tastes as good as being thin feels!! I literally have a new wardrobe.....donated 8 13 gallon bags of clothes to Good Will. I just wanted to give you a hint on eating at the airport. Wendy's chili. Check it out, low in calories, fat, Sat. fat....everything. No way you can eat all of it, but it's a life saver at the airport. I am pretty sure that I ate it at four weeks, but all surgeons are different. Just an FYI.

I have never, never, NEVER had "buyer's remorse" - not for one second!!! I enjoy every single bite of food I take, I just take much fewer, and there is nothing that tastes as good as slipping into a size eight feels; of having and seeing collar bones - I promise you that!!! I eat ONE piece of pizza, I CHOOSE the smallest but a normal size piece so I can eat the crust, my favorite part....and I enjoy it. There were times when I'd split a large with my husband. OMG Now he doesn't eat that much any more either!! I do not feel that I have made ANY sacrifices at all. At Thanksgiving I had a few bites of everything and for the first time in MY LIFE I left the table satisfied, not stuffed. You have no idea how wonderful that feels. I was in control, I'm in the drivers seat. I have not been hungry since the day of my surgery, I love it. I eat because it tastes good and because I know I need to. I love the social aspect of eating just like before. I still love the smell....sweets don't taste as good, pumpkin bread from Star Bucks is now my favorite dessert. Choc pie didn't taste good at all at Thanksgiving....I was thankful!! LOL I reached goal in just under five months, I didn't have anything sweet until then I had no idea that my tastes had changed. It was so weird! Anyway......I'd do it again in a heartbeat....it's the best decision I've ever made for myself!!

To be honest, the first two weeks I focused on liquids - I did NOT want to end up in the ER with an IV hooked up to me!!! After I got the hang of making sure I could master that....on week three I worked on protein. I gave up those stupid shakes, way too much to drink and they grossed me out. YUCK!!! I never could find one that was "ok" and didn't gag me. My surgery was at Forest Park Medical Center in Dallas and they send you home with a huge goodie bag full of freebie stuff and one thing was a protein "bullet" from GNC, blue raspberry flavored...I knew it was something they had said was ok to have to get in my protein and although it isn't something I'd order from a restaurant given the chance, it is ONLY 3.5 oz!!! I bought a case of these things. They are 42 grams of protein, I'd open one in the morning and take a few sips straight up and then another few at noon and finish it off later in the day.....between that and the food I was eating, I got in between 60 and 80 grams of protein a day!! I supplemented with those the first two months! I have NEVER had any hair issues. I also take a 5000 mg Biotin pill daily. I started taking it a couple of months before surgery! My biggest protein foods are 1% cottage cheese, 13 grams in 1/2 cup, 2 eggs, 12 grams in two eggs, I keep a bag of shrimp around and will steam a couple of oz of it for lunch some times. 1/4 cups of tuna salad is 13 grams of protein....and then a couple of oz of meat for dinner along with about an eighth a cup of cottage cheese if possible!!! I was determined NOT to lose my hair!!!! LOL The bullets saved me, I could not choke down a protein shake for two months, I was certain I had to find some other way!!! Good luck!!!

Rejoice!!!! Right now you cannot eat food, so it would be terible if you were wanting it!!! Eventually you will enjoy food again, hopefully you will eat because it tastes good and because you know you need to. I am six months out and still am not hungry. I have always enjoyed the smell, but i eat because of the things I mentioned and because I like the social aspect, just like before. I just eat, much, much less but I enjoy every single bite!! I started cooking and enjoying cooking for us again when I got home from Texas, I was three weeks post-op. I felt good and it was summer time, so he was grilling for himself quite a bit. I can't remember how long it was before I could start eating chicken and shrimp etc.....but for now, be thankful you are not focusing on food, some people apparently have head hunger and have real food compulsions they have to deal with from day one. Count yourself lucky, I did!!!! I hope this helps!!

Good morning Lissi!! I think it's hard, if not impossible for someone who has not gone through this to understand. I read on this forum that we should have a friend, relative or significant other point out people who are our size when we are at a mall or something. I have done this since shortly after surgery when I started losing weight, and I have also had my husband point out people who are the size I WAS before surgery, which is interesting. I was heavy but I don't think we ever see ourselves the way others see us. Or maybe he was biased, I felt heavier and more uncomfortable in my own skin than he saw me. It is soooo weird though for him to point to others now and say, you are her size. I know IN MY HEAD that I am thin (skinny, yikes, I STILL CANNOT wrap my head around that word) but because of the size I am wearing, an 8 in jeans and a medium top, I do know I am thin, but still, it is hard to "really" equate "thin" with ME!!!! I still find myself glancing at the women's clothing as I walk by and know, I KNOW that I will never shop in that dept. again. Isn't that a cool feeling??!! I hoped for this, and I knew that I would lose weight, a size 8 was my personal goal, but part of me knew I'd be happy if I could get down from 18's and 20's to a 12!! An 8 just seemed like a long shot!!! I would have never really thought I could go from a 1x and 2x to a medium and be comfortable in it!!! Wow!! As far as exercising, I do a little, nobody can ever say I lost weight because I started exercising. I have a theory on this!! I have made life changes with eating, I started this several months before surgery. I cut out a lot of carbs, cold Cereal, which I ate almost every morning, had as an afternoon snack and a bowl every night before bed; chips....gone forever unless I have guacamole, then I will have several baked "Scoops" ; I eat very little bread; as far as sweets, I don't have them often, very seldom, although since I'm at goal, I do have a little, but I do NOT feel deprived. I'm lucky, I am not hungry. With the sleeve, we have forced portion control and I lost my hunger on June 11th!! Thank God and Dr. Davidson!! I attended an exercise class offered by a physical therapist for six weeks...it was one day a week, no big deal. I went to get ideas mainly because we have a stationary bike here at the house. I was riding it for two miles a couple of times a week. I discovered I liked the weighted ball and the band. The weighted ball, throwing it in the air 20 - 35 x's randomly is quite a workout, believe it or not. It weighs 5 lbs. It is something I can do here in front of the TV and I like it....I found one at WM and I DO IT, some times two times a day. I also like the band, the PT gave us all one, I am sure you can buy one too....I tied a knot in one end, threw it over a door and shut it. I do arm exercises with it. My arms are what I have really been working on. So, that is the extent of my exercising. My theory is this.....I lost weight, and really have been quite sucessful in my opinion, because I've made changes in eating and because I listened to the dietitian and surgeon. I park as far out in the parking lot as possible so I have to walk, I go up and down our stairs and I "move" like they said. I do a LITTLE exercise but I didn't want to have surgery, become and "exericise nut" for six months, lose weight.....and then burn out on exercising... I KNOW ME!!! If exercising were a big part of WHY I LOST weight rather than change in how I dealt with food....then when I got bored with it and slowed down or quit.....then what happens???? I am afraid I'd gain.....so, I lost weight doing what I can do from now on, making choices and changes that will "stick". I attended this exercise class with five other women, THREE were 3 - 5 yrs out and regained weight. Granted, all three were RNY patients, but still. I had the opportunity to talk to the physical therapist alone after class one evening and asked her WHY they'd gained the weight back. The first class is when we'd all introduced ourselves and given a little of our story and that's when I'd learned that they had gained some back, all three had gained approx. 30 lbs. Anyway, the PT said that they'd fallen back into some bad eating habits and also had been exercising, then stopped. NOT ME!!! See my theory, my weight loss is because of changes I've made that are life changes I can stick too; I did not go from not exercising, to being a exercise guru, which is NOT ME.....losing weight, then burning out, quitting, only to regain. I've lost weight, reached my goal by making changes I can live with!! Make sense??!!!! I know.....way to wordy!! Have a great week!!!