Search the Community

I got my date (November 19, 2014). So excited. ???? I have even stated getting ready for the 2 weeks liquid diet. During the day I've been drinking the protein drinks along with all types of liquids, like broth, jello and ice pops. I eat dinner when I get home. Then 2 days last week I went the entire day liquids. I did good. My family helped by cooking dinner, I went into my bed room ????. This test really helped me. The thought of going cold turkey all at once was causing me stress. I lost 10 pds already. I even thought of not doing the surgery but I know the 10 pds won't stay off if I don't get the lap ban. I took the 10 pd loss as a sign that I am ready for this and I can do it. Lisa

I struggled this weekends, it was really hard. I do better during the week because I'm at work and I'm very busy. To make things worse I have been sick. I just got finish telling myself you can do this, so I got up and got a protein drink. I want a bag of chips so bad right now. It is a mind thing. If I get to hungry, I have been eating eggs or broth with white chicken meat in it. In my house Sunday is pasta night, this was the worse night yet. I love, no, I am addicted to pasta. ????. Not being able to eat pasta last night made me very depressed ????. It even made me rethink about having the procedure. I went to my room closed the door and I survived. 10 more days, seems so long. I have lost 15 pounds already.

My one week anniversary! Woohoo! I'll never forget March 23rd. That day didn't come off without a hitch. I travelled from a Northeastern point of PA to Smithtown, LI, NY. Mapquest and GPS speaking , it's a 2hr 30min drive. In reality, it's about a 3-4 hour trip and I don't know what I was thinking. I had to make sure that our 5 children were secured in school and daycare before we headed out. 3 of my children were dropped off at a neighbor's house at 6:45 am. They don't normally wake up until 7. My 2 babies were safe and secure at daycare by 7. They had no idea why they were so tired, bless their hearts. No one knew about my surgery, except my hubby and 2 of my friends. Everyone thought I was at court as a witness for a medical case.... I've even had to write down my stories on my iphone calendar to keep track of what I told who. I've worked so hard at keeping my secret because I come from a long line of judgemental family members and a circle of friends who like to talk. I don't like to be the object of anyones stories. Besides, this is for me, not for them. My appointment was set for 10:30 arrival with an 11:30 scheduled surgery. HA! Have you ever driven into NYC on a Monday morning during rush hour??? Needless to say, I got there late, cursing my head off the whole way, hitting traffic in place I NEVER hit traffic in the entire 6 months I was going for consults and tests and appointments and procedures and appointments... you get the picture. Poor planning on my part. What I should have done was left the night before, spent the night at my parents house in Brooklyn and drove from there. The problem was that I needed a driver for the ride home, and there was no one to watch my children but my DH. I couldn't ask anyone to take the kids earlier than 6:45, because it would have been asking for too much. I did what I had to do! I got to ambulatory surgery at nearly 11 and I was all freaked out that they would turn me away. Dr. Nick even had one of the nurses call me at 8:30 to find out if I could come in earlier because he was running early. DAMN! I could have gone in earlier. They were so nice in ambulatory. They took me in and did all the pre-op stuff they were supposed to do. I saw nurses and techs and support group leaders and nutritionists and the nurse anethesist and anethesiologist.

I came home from the hospital 10 pounds over my surgery weight. It took about a week for the fluids to come off. I agree with others, don’t weigh yet!

Health Alliance covers the lap band procedure. You have to go through a 6 month "I can change program" but as long as you meet all there criteria they approve! As this is the insurance that I have and my surgery date is scheduled for 4/22/10

After seeing my surgeon about getting a sleeve revision (had my band removed 12/10) I was told I would need to lose 25# before he would schedule surgery. So...after I got mad, and cried a bit...I put on my big girl panties and got serious! He wanted me to eat meat and veggies...no sugars, grains, or dairy AND 1200 calories a day. Well, I am doing that...sort of. I cut all sugars and processed carbs out of my diet. I did keep the dairy (mostly cheese and half and half in my coffee) and I'm averaging closer to 1500 calories... BUT.... I lost 5 pounds this week!! I changed my ticker for my FIRST goal...lose 25#...then I'll start on the next goal! Happy Monday Everyone!

Hello everyone. I have made the decision to have bariatric surgery. Diagnosed with type one diabetes and high blood pressure last year. Cholesterol diagnosis & meds last summer. I decided at that point to work harder. Exercise daily, eat much better and nutribullet. Well I have & been successful at not gaining more weight but not losing which us what I need to do to get healthy. I have never had a weight problem until I had my daughter in 2004 plus diagnosed with hypothyroidism at the sane time. I am a single mom of two wonderful children. They are 9 years apart but are my world. I am an only child with my mom. I have step brothers & sisters all live out of state. I am super closer with my sister than my brothers although I love them all. I have my first appointment with my surgeon next Wednesday. Thanks to this app plus other research I made the decision to have WLS. I an excited and nervous. I have been so used to feeling bad physically, i.e. tired, achy muscles bones, headaches & backaches. You just keep going, just a way of life. In all actuality... I'm killing myself!!! No I want to live, have to for myself, 10 year old daughter, 19 year old son. My mom I'm her only child... Plus I love life, yes I do... Well I'm happy to see so much support, read other stories and get more inspiration. Thanks for listening & more to come...

So...I had my final visit with my surgeon yesterday. I couldn't maintain the 10 lbs weight-loss I had and my abdominal ultrasound revealed a fatty liver so I have one week of a liquid diet starting the 23rd...not plzd but i look forward to the pre-op loss. I'm scared of arriving to the hospital late so I've booked a room at a local hospital to hang out the night b4. This way my husband can go back to the hotel and have Breakfast while waiting for me to come out of recovery. I'm going to miss my little girls for the few nights I'll be in the hospital.

Wow, I am going through the same thing you are. I got my 3rd fill and I was on liquids and mushys for the next 4 days. On my 5th day I went on a business trip to Vegas and I have not been able to eat anything at all. I can only drink Water, shake and eat Soups. But not creamy soups. It's not a good feeling because everything I threw up everything. So, my first two months I lost 19 lbs. for the last three weeks I hadn't lost anything at all. Then after 5 days of not eating anything, just liquids, I lost 7 lbs. How does that happen? I was thinking about going to the doctor but I have lost so much weight that I don't want to go. Oh and another thing, I am not hungry! So, here it is two weeks after my 3rd fill and I've decided to just eat soups until my next doctor's visti (in two weeks) so that I can loose more weight because I was at a plateau!

I think you are feeling normal. Even 7 mos post op I still freak out every now an then.. what I am amazed though is that how much I used to eat wihtout ever questioning it or second guessing it. When you are fully healed and completely absolutely not able to eat much you will also see it- My husband calls me 10 bite wonder now because no matter what i eat I can only eat about 8- 10 bites of it then I am totally full and feel like I just had a pre op thanksgiving dinner. lol... it is a process- it didnt happen over night...

I dont work out nearly as much as I should which is why I still have 30/40 ish lbs to lose. On average when I was at my best I was doing about 4 days per week 2-3 were running for about 30-40 minutes including wamup and cool down and the other day was like zumba which was an hr and I will tell you, Zumba class will burn some calories off you its a great workout to try. I have slowed down becasue I was driving my self nuts with the weighing etc. I have not wieghed in 3 months because of that. I have doc appt soon and its causiing me a little anxiety but my clothes fit. I was a 20/22 now im a 10/12 and down to a Med in shirts. My goal is size 8 on bottom and stay in Med shirts. I do agree to for the most part with the other posts that its a process and it takes time and you should ask your doc. BUT to be honest the doc or the nurses arent just sitting there with a hotline for us to call. When I used to call I got quick answers b/c they are very very busy. Wouldnt get a lot of time til I came in for an appt. Also They tell you in general from dealing with other patients, not from experience. I do like this site to some degree b/c its from people who have been through it. Most of the stuff that really helped me came from actual banded people not my nutritionist, doc etc. My advice to you with this site: EAT THE meat AND SPIT OUT THE BONES if that makes since. My doc who did surgery didnt really care for these sites in general which is why he told me to be careful and take it with a grain of salt, b/c people can be misundersttod or a little rough when they misinterpret. Try not to take the posts and comments of others to heart and remeber they dont know you. That the draw back to online blogging etc, sometimes there is misunderstanding on both sides. Anyway have a good evening

My surgery date is set. I am becoming a sleeve sistah on July 14th. I am determined and I know that this is what I need to do...... I am 5'5" and weigh in at 300lbs. If you looked at my medical chart, you would be impressed, all my numbers are great, with the exception that I am 300lbs. I am healthy as a horse, a fat horse that is..... I work out like a mad woman, I train for triathlon, I lift 2 times a week, and do cardio 6-7 days a week.....spin, swim, C25K....you name it... I am in great physical shape and am healthy, except that I am 300 lbs....and am 5 feet and half tall??? So can you guys imagine what I could do physically if I weighed less???? I mean, let's all face it, anyone who is heavy, is STRONG....it takes a ton of strength to lug around my 300lbs! So here I go.....I am ready and I am ready to be re-born! I am not a poor food choice eater, I don't graze, I don't have a sweet tooth, I eat mainly protein and healthy fats (but let's face it I am a severe volume eater - I can down a 16oz rib-eye as if it was air, or last night I had 1 1/2 lbs of skirt steak....I love my meat......I also love a good beer after working out, or a vodka soda......I know these are empty calories...but hey! right!? So I am so ready for this, I really am....I am married and my husband is also a big man...we were both to have surgery at the same time....he's backed out and going to try "on his own" again....whatever..... I have a few fears: Will I lose my husband over this? We will have been married for 10 years in November. We dated for 5 years before getting married.....we have a great friendship and he's actually being super supportive and excited for me. he knows that I have done everything "right" (calorie control, high protein, medication, naturpathic, exercise, etc.....) he knows I need to do this....but at the same time....we have our best times and our entertainment is BBQ-ing, or fixing dinner, or you all know...basically revolves around food.....we both are good cooks, and love to experiment! Today I started thinking.......should I go for a Bypass vs. Sleeve? And then the old hauntings came back in....with a bypass I would have a larger stomach, and would lose weight due to mal-absorption and some restriction....but eventually, once I lost weight, I could handle managing my weight....you know like when I was in HS, and I could manage being around 180-190....those 10lbs were manageable....but my 150lbs are insane..... I am going to drive myself crazy...I have these ideas of "what if this doesn't work for me?" Seriously...I have tried everything, and my PCP knows and vouges for it, which is why he's suggesting and supporting my surgery.....but I can drive myself insane.... Can anyone relate? What are your thoughts? How did you all deal with all the fears, demons, etc.? I'm going to Dr. Aceves on July 14th. I am going to do this. I just would like some feedback on if this is the right type of surgery, should I wait for plication, should i go for bypass instead...you guys all know....all the same fears forever..... I am so excited, I feel like a kid before Christmas....but at the same time I am super anxious and scared...HELP!

I'm 10 days out and my protein shakes for making me nauseous I was on yogurt cream soup's and doing just fine digesting my 2 ounces my next stage was a few days away so I removed myself up to puréed foods just chewed up my cottage cheese well blended lentil soup are refried beans now I'm starting to feel better that I'm getting protein other ways than barely getting to my goal with my shakes

Oh don't get me wrong I am happy they are willing to cover most the surgery. When I had the band done 4 1/2yrs ago my insurance wouldn't cover it and I had to take a 13,000 loan out. Still paying it back. Just frustrated that the doctor is requiring me to spend the $450 with his people before he will allow me to have the surgery, then at that point will have to pay 10% of the surgery. Also I was hoping to be able to have it removed sooner, I'm just so sick of throwing up, the GI issues and pain.

Hi Everyone, On Friday, I made a last minute decision to go to New York for my sisters 40th birthday. My family consists of thin folks who eat carbs, Teddy Grahams, cheesecake , biscotti and lots of Pasta. So naturally from the time I arrived until the time I left, I ate what others ate. First there was the party which consisted of penne ala vodka, a five foot italian sub sandwich, eggplant parmagiana, lemon chicken, potato and macaroni salad and for the rest you get the picture! Dessert consisted of three different choices like cheesecake, cannolis and birthday cake. THere was also champagne, MUDSLIDES to follow and homemade wine. Well needless to say, I had to try everything. I guess I was surprised at how much I could eat with the grazing over a 5 hour period. I knew it was bad since once I get on the carb trail, I have trouble getting off of it. Saturday and Sunday were pretty much the same. I tried to get some exercise and walked a little and did the elliptical machine forabout 15 minutes. I am afraid to get on the scale and find myself back over 200 pounds. Here I am 15 months post op still obsessing about food some of the time. I know I could use a fill, but my doc wants me to wait 2 more months. (I recently had an unfill of .20 after a fill of .10 which made me looser and more receptive for food.) I dont believe in the elusive sweet spot that everyone talks about despite my success losing 136 pounds so far. I do have restriction and when I attempted to find the sweet spot, I just got overfilled and had to take more out than they put in . So I do know my maximum which is somewhere between 2.5 CC. and 2.6, but not a drop more because I was miserable for about 2 days before having the .10 they put in . I now have 2.4, which is not enough but still offers me some restriction. So I am upset with myself for making such bad food choices. I could have just said no. I was hoping to drop another 5 pounds before coming to Vegas next week. Now I will be lucky to just be the same weight I am today. I think I am going to do Protein shakes this week and see where I get.... Do you sense my frustration? Babs in TX 334/198/170 -136

Im 2 months out an Ive lost 30 lbs. I HOPE to lose 10 lbs this month to get me at 40. I think your loss is awesome! Keep it up!

It's now come to this: after months of nutrition classes, doctors appointments, and a psychiatric evaluation, I will be having a sleeve gastrectomy tomorrow. As I sit writing this I am both excited and a little nervous. I know what it's like to be put to sleep because I had my tonsils and adenoids taken out when I was seven, but still, this is major surgery and I've not surgery for a long time. I'm having this done at a young age (I'm 19) because I have a bad family history when it comes to heart problems, blood pressure, diabetes, and so on. I'd like to avoid all that. I also don't know what it's like to be thin, so that prospect alone excites me about having the surgery. As of today, I have lost 133 pounds pre-op, but I want to lose about 140 more or so (the BMI calculator says I should be 150-160). The hospital I'm going to is very nice and I have a great surgeon and nutritionist. I do have to stay for two nights, but that's ok, though I kinda wish I could go home the same day. I hope I get a private room. My surgery is scheduled for 7AM and I'm the first of three surgeries my surgeon is doing that day - one sleeve and two bypasses. He told me he's done seven sleeves, so I'll be his eighth. This doesn't scare me though, as he's done countless bands and bypasses, as well as many revisions (he told me he had recently worked on a woman who had her stomach stapled back in the 1980's). He did tell me he had leaks in two but that was because he was using a different type of staple. The hospital has wi-fi and will let me have my cellphone so I won't be disconnected from the world. I've read so much on this site and know what to expect, so I'm ready. I'm hoping my age and the fact I've been exercising for several months keeps the pain and soreness at a minimum. You guys are great, I love this site, I'll try to post more, and look for me in the chatroom that night, as I'll try to be in it (if I'm not too out of it!) Well, I think it's time for this train to load up and await his departure for a whole new station

I think its a matter of what you get used to. I've been drinking skim milk virtually all my life, since I was about 10. My children have never drunk anything else once past infancy. I dont actually drink milk though, I use it on Cereal and in coffee. Full cream milk makes me feel nauseous, its disgusting! That's because I'm not used to milk having a creamy taste. I'd just suck it up and get used to it. Its like the sugar in coffee thing. I cant believe people use artificial sweeteners on a daily basis like that, when two weeks with no sugar in your coffee, and you're used to it. Its one of the easier dietary challenges to master!

Good luck, but I would start with your band doc......it kind of sounds like a slip or erosion....I hope not. I have been through that recently and almost lost my band. I am still unfilled and am gaining wt...already up 10 pounds. Best wishes, post after your doc visit. Mimi

I live in New Zealand and we don't have those stores lol ... Ill have to look into if we can buy over the counter?? .. I took 2 x 2mg ones - I didn't know we could take up to 10! That's good to know lol Rebecca

No thank you https://sciencebasedpharmacy.wordpress.com/2013/01/04/the-detox-delusion/

I paid privately (in Belgium) and literally had one visit with the surgeon (lasted about 10 minutes) and one meeting with a dietician (lasted about 5 minutes). And that’s it. Choose which surgery I would want and picked a surgery date. Since I had quite a low starting BMI (35.5), I didn’t have to do another appointment with the dietician. Other people had to record their eating for a week and discuss that with the dietician. 🤷🏻‍♀️ Leading up to the surgery I also had to do some bloodwork through my GP. But that’s it. Got a leaflet explaining the pre-op diet and that’s it. 😅 I already knew everything I needed to know since I did lots of research myself, so I didn’t really mind all of this, but it did seem quite weird to me, compared to the hoops people have to jump through for insurance. One advantage of being self payed was that at my hospital they always do the self-pay patients first, so I was actually first of the day and done by 9 in the morning. 👍🏻

Cerrin, I do feel for you. This morning they were baking gingerbread men in the kitchen here. Christmas is definitely a tough time to be on liquids! When I picked it, I thought "oh how tough can it be?" Big words coming from a fatty! But I try to keep in mind that the reason I wanted to do it now rather than AFTER the season is that these ARE my bad foods and if I waited, I would have an EXTRA 10 pounds to take off. Who wants that? I'll be keeping you in my thoughts and trying to send you positive thoughts. Steph

I'm not a medical person and have never worked in a hospital. I'd tell you to keep a very close eye on your blood pressure. I had to be taken off of my beta blocker 10 days after surgery. I hadn't lost that much weight (not in relation to my overall body weight) but my BP had dropped to dangerously low levels. And my primary told me the same thing. It's not so much that they cause you to not lose weight, but they can sap your energy level which keeps you less active which can lead to less weight loss. Talk to your primary and keep monitoriing your BP. If you have never had high blood pressure, I'd think that would put you in a speical bucket where the drug could drive it down even faster than someone like me who once had sky high BP. Minimum, check it when you are in a drug store or grocery where they have a machine just to be on the safe side.

Definitely. I went to the Emirates Stakes Day at the races on saturday, all dressed up. I met a girl there who was our host (IBM corporate enclosure) who was as tall as me (I was wearing 4 inch stilletos and felt like a giant on the train, lol). She was model thin though, but looking at her, you know, her body was just totally different to mine. Yes, I could lose another 8kg to be "as thin" as her, but I wouldnt look the same. I am already verging on skeletal around the neck, shoulders and chest, so much so that I took back a dress with spaghetti straps becuase I felt it made me look gaunt. I would just get even worse up top and I would STILL have hips and thighs. She wasnt anywhere near as bony as me up top, but she was probably a size 10 to my 12 (Australian sizes here). Just different all over. It did make me think, we just have to learn to accept, and even love, what we are.