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I apologize...I was sleeves two weeks ago today and on a full liquid diet. Just noticed I have been spacey or loss of words or what I went to do...forgetful. Just not normally like me to not be able to find the words I was going to say and space out.

Hello everyone! I’m new here. I’m 41 and I’ve been struggling with my weight for about 10 years now. I looked into getting the sleeve January 2022 when I was at my highest weight of 260 lbs. I decided that I would try to lose on my own and would revisit the idea of surgery if I was unsuccessful. In that year I managed to lose 20 lbs. This January I started researching again because I am determined to get back to a healthy weight. I went through an online seminar and decided to make my consultation appointment after I was diagnosed with pseudotumor cerebri and was told that weight loss can help alleviate the symptoms and I can stop taking the medication that I am taking for it. I have a host of other health issues and I’m hoping the weight loss can help me feel better physically. I had my consultation a week ago and my appointments with the nutritionist and physical therapist have been scheduled and I completed my initial bloodwork. I do not have to complete a medically supervised weight loss program and I spoke with my insurance company and was notified that the most I’ll need to pay out of pocket is $1300. I’m excited and nervous about what’s to come.

We lose weight faster during the liquid phase because it's right after the surgery and that's when the greatest weight loss is. Now at 4 months post-op I don't think doing a liquid diet for two weeks would generate greater weight loss than continuing eating the protein foods than I am now eating. Also, the first six months is the greatest period of post-op loss and happens slightly quicker than later.

In the quote of one of my many weight loss leaders: NOTHING TASTE AS GOOD AS BEING HEALTHY AND SKINNY!! At that time I just poo pooed her, I never understood it because I had tried so many times to get there and failed!! Now I also wear a size 6 to 8 jeans and blouse a size 6 undies etc!! She was so very right!! Nothing feels like buying smaller clothes and being able to buy off a normal size rack of clothes!!! CONGRATULATIONS!!!

I agree with everything @@Djmohr, @@Inner Surfer Girl, and @@VSGAnn2014 have said. The only thing I would add is that WLS is a tool, it is not a magic bullet for weight loss. In the end, what it does is help you to develop good eating habits. By decreasing the size of the stomach, it helps you to reduce your portion size and forces you to eat slowly, chew thoroughly, and generally eat more healthy. But, it is only a tool, and it is totally possible to overcome the tool and sabotage your weight loss. One example is grazing, or eating small amounts constantly. By doing that, you get around the fact that your stomach is smaller, but still rack up the calories. Or drinking your calories by drinking high-calorie drinks throughout the day. Or eating high-carb or high-fat foods. These are some ways to defeat the WLS. In the end, if you have real food habit issues, you would be best to combine WLS with therapy to deal with those issues so they don't sabotage your weight loss. As far as hunger is concerned, it is different with everyone, and you won't know until after surgery how it will be. Most people have less hunger, but not everyone. Everyone seems to struggle with "head hunger" (cravings) to a greater or lesser degree.

Congrats on your weight loss!! I can't wait till I start getting comments like that!

I'm finding with some weight loss that my pacemaker isn't snug and I can feel it more. It won't affect it's function, but it feels weird. Guess I'll have to do more weight workouts to tighten up the chest area. Anyone out there with a pacemaker and have similar experience?

does anyone know of a web site that we can talk in about our weight loss & general topics. lap band talk used to be able to talk to everyone but that chat room is no longer .. PLEASE if ya know of a chat room i can join PLEASE LET ME KNOW !! Thank You In Advance !! Bud The Man !!

The psychologist I saw for my psych evaluation had done a lot of bariatric evals and follow-up counseling and she said that she had seen a huge number of depression cases post weight loss. But a lot of her experience was in lapband, so I think she was referring more to the body image/not having adequate coping mechanisms/dealing with all the reasons we ate to begin with. For my own mental health, I'm planning on starting counseling soon and continuing with it. I know from experience that sometimes I fail in the coping strategies department and would like to be prepared.

Well I'm finally at my half way mark. With my insurance Fallon Health, it is requiring me to go under 6 month supervision weight loss plan. I met with a nutrionist twice. She finally signed off today to clear me. I met with psychologist and did a group nutrition class. I just signed up for an appointment with the psychologist again next month and an appointment with an exercise instructor in march. Is anyone from the boston/worcester area? Anyone at the half way mark? What is left on your checklist? Stats: im 5'6 240-250 and 26 years old Sent from my SM-N910P using BariatricPal mobile app

I have a chart on my wall at home: --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4-8oz cottage cheese 1 piece of fruit 1 egg 3-7oz beans (black, kidney, pinto) 1oz nuts/seeds/peanut butter 4oz meat or fish non-starchy vegetables (unlimited) Optional: 1 cup starchy veg: potatoes, winter squash, etc. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ When I eat something, I check it off the chart. Every day looks a bit different, but it keeps me on track, making sure I eat a variety each day, and when everything is checked off, I know I don't get more food (except I can ALWAYS have more non-starchy vegetables.) When I get to maintenance, I'll have to figure out how many calories I get long term. If I eat the largest quantity of everything on this list, it's about 1200-1300 calories. Add in a couple cups of milk or coconut water, and I'm getting up to 1500-1600.. which will likely be close to maintenance. So an extra hungry day has to be balanced out with a day that I hardly eat any of it, or losses won't continue. (I go for protein first on those low calorie days... meat, egg, beans, and cottage cheese.. 650cal). Low-fat dairy helps the calorie totals, as does leaving off the nuts. (Nuts are a LOT of calories for not much food: I can eat the fruit AND 1/2 starchy veg for the calories in the nuts!). Cheese = nuts' macros, but I already have dairy, so prefer nuts for variety. When we eat vegetables, we need to eat fat with them to get all the fat-soluble vitamins. Still working on the best way to food-combine to make this happen. Throwing nuts or cheese with the veggies helps add fat and protein, but can get calorically dense very quickly. It feels like things should be a lot easier once in maintenance and can eat more calories! If this post seems complicated.. well, it's because it IS. The menu is simple, but you still have to think about everything and where each thing fits in. I'm lucky that I like everything and don't have food intolerances. If there are special needs, then substitutions have to be found. It's noon, and this morning I've had a cup of 2% milk, a cup of cottage cheese, an apple, a cup of sweet potato and a small sausage patty. The rest of the day I'll only get an egg/beans and 3oz of meat. (I usually don't even eat until noon, but this morning I was STARVING). Trust me, if I didn't have my list.. today could easily turn into a 2000 calorie day! But, that's why I have the list.. to keep me on track. (Fingers crossed it works!)

Yikes! Thrush sucks big ones! Congrats on the surgery and 1 week losses! Hope you get to feeling better soon!

Frustrating update. I love the staff at the weight loss clinic at my hospital. They have been part of my life now for 2 plus years. I like my surgeon but his scheduler is driving me crazy. I called insurance on a Friday and was told I was approved. The next Wednesday I received a letter in the mail. Friday called the office and asked about scheduling. She says she has no idea as she hasn't checked her mail. She will check and call me back. Nothing.....called her the next Wednesday (and she says the 15th is already booked (?they are the ones that set that date?), it would have to be the May 8th or in June. I can't do the 8th (I have to travel that week but I also don't want to wait until June! She says she will talk to the doctor about the 19th since he is on call that weekend anyway. Call this morning and she hasn't talked to him! I need to make some plans here. I will be out of commission for 3 weeks! I have a job that I need to plan around. This is serious stuff! OK. Feel better now.

Okay I'm getting worried that I might not loss anymore weight. I'm currently 6 weeks out and I intake about 800 calories per day and I get all of my Protein in (like 70-90) and I get all of my Water in (80-120 ozs) and I work out every other day burning 700-800 calories on the treadmill. My question is will this 10 day plataue ever end. I'm scared I've might have messed up by getting this surgery and it don't work for me. I've only lost 20 pds since 2/15 and 15 pds on a 14 day pre-op diet. Here is my eating schedule: B: Protein shake S: Low Fat Cottage cheese L: 2-3 oz Tuna with 1 oz lowfat string cheese S: Protein Shake D: 2 oz Salmon, with 1 oz broccoli S: (2) SF popsicles before bed. Help any one! Sheka

I had mine on the 19the. So far so good. Healing great, walking some but weight loss slower than I hoped

Rapid wt loss will affect ur cycle. It's ur homone getting in balance no worries!

that's a pretty new look for you! I haven't changed my hair at all really, except that I am more likely to wear it down since I feel cold more often than not now.

Here I am on a Saturday morning, my only day off this weekend. Instead of making the best of it, I'm wallowing, feeling inept. My life has become unmanageable. More days than not I go to bed having to push out overwhelming negative thoughts. I have to numb myself so that I don't think about all the things I'm not doing or have done wrong or don't do as well as others. It's hard. Things bothering me are: 1. It's been almost a year since my surgery and I've lost 45 lbs. My better me thinks good thoughts about this. I've kept it off for longer than I've ever kept weight off in my life. But the rest of me is disappointed, not surprised though. I haven't worked at it for a very long time. I want to go back for another fill, but I'm afraid to show my face, be seen, be reprimanded for the long hiatus, be seen as a failure. I don't know why I can't do this. What is wrong with me. Conclusion: I haven't worked very hard at it, I regret that, but nothing is stopping me from getting back in the game if I can overcome what stops me. 2. Getting blown off by a guy who I thought would call. I thought I was doing him a favor seeing him again, and now I feel like a total idiot. Was I nasty to him, did he sense my disinterest? Was he not all that intereted to begin with? Why can't I get over it. Coming up on 30 I feel overwhelmed sometimes thinking that I will always be alone, like I didn't get picked for the team in gym class. I'm a reject and everyone else left to be with is a reject as well. Mostly I think, why do I keep trying to date when I know that I'm not remotely comfortable with who I am? Conclusion: I'm not ready to give up online dating because I don't have much going on in my life and even the occasional first date gives me something to get excited about. There is no reason I can't work on myself and continue dating. 3. I'm lonely. I hate that no one calls me to do anything. I don't feel like I matter to anyone. Granted Cara calls daily, but I'm tired of talking to her. I don't know if I should say anything. She just redirects every conversation towards herself and even when she does let me talk there's no conversation, just uh huh, yeah, that sucks - anyways...back to me. I can't keep it up. Beyond that, I feel like others here all have a life and put me it when I ask if they have to. Otherwise they all have significant others or close groups of friends. I'm alone, completely alone. 4. Work. I love when I'm with patients, but I'm just not challenged or inspired to work hard. I've become so lazy and I'm not learning anything. I have a chip on my shoulder that I'm not a real doctor, yet I make no effort to actually be an expert in what I do. 5. My apartment, it's a wreck. It's always been that way, it's nothing new. I've never been able to maintain my home. It's always a mad dash to clean it up, a promise to keep it up, and failure. I don't know why I can't do better. I think it's because I park myself in front of the boob tube every night and zone out until it's time for bed. Sad. I know things were better last year when I quit smoking. I would like to stop again, I just don't know if I'm ready. I'm definitely precontemplative. 6. I don't want to go home and disappoint my family with how I look. 7. I'm not in the holiday spirit, I'm really depressed that I'm alone again and have to beg the other folks to come over so that I can celebrate. I'm afraid I'm going to develop an aversion the holidays that I used to love so much. 8. All the crap I haven't done. Loan deferments being the biggest issue. 9. My hair, I can't believe that wasn't number one. I don't even know if I can write about it. It's pitiful and disgusting and I can't stop and I don't want to get help but I really don't want to go on like this. I say I can stop but I can't. I just don't want it to get any worse. 10. Apathy. I used to work a full time job, teach part time and study for classes and tests. During that time I journalled all the time and was able to live a normal life. Maybe I remember it better than it was. Why can't I do that now. I get home by 430 most days. I'm off more weekends than not. SO, what now. I have the day off, what do I want to do with it. Can I even motivate myself to do anything? What would make me feel better: -getting out of the house -doing something social -shopping for dress pants -fixing my other dress pants -cleaning up a bit -organizing clothes in my room -sending Pete an email -painting?

Finally! Today I have my first fill. :thumbup: I have just been so frustrated with this whole appointment scheduling. I was suppose to have my appointment for 12/24, but I was not going to be eating only soup or whatever would be excluded from my diet, so I had to reschedule the appointment. It been two months, and the weight has been going back and forth. I guess I have to be grateful for being able to get into jeans that I haven't been able to fit for a long time. So for that I am grateful. I also took a two-week break from exercising, so I really can't complain for the reason that I haven't lost the weight. Today is Wednesday, and I have already worked out two days, and I finally included weighs into my program. I am feeling really good about that. I just want to be sucessful in my weight loss. I don't want to feel like I am missing out, by not eating foods that I don't need. I don't want to seek foods for comfort, I want to be better than that. I know that God will bring me through that. I am kinda nervous about this fill process, but I am ready for the leaves to be cleared on my path to weight loss and better health. Yayyyy :confused:

We all built different...and caloric intake is different. I have done nothing but weight lifting for size and strength....which is a cardio effort if you put in the hours and weights. However, I have done no cardio specific exercises since surgery. I'd prefer a slow burn and maintain...and hopefully grow muscle. It has worked well for me, as I've seen steady gains in weight loss and strength increase. This may change down the line, but I don't want to loss the weight too fast. It will come from the caloric restriction. Likely, when I finally plateau for a while I'll change to a cross fit routine to shock my body a bit. But as I said...we all have different needs and goals. Best of luck to you.

I had my 3 month check up today ( 12 week mark ) . I was hoping to be at 70 lbs loss. I am at 73 !!!!!!!!!!!!!! So excited. Also Nutritionist said ok to eat some summer melon, berries, tomato , cucumber if I feel I can tolerate it. She said introduce one at a time see how I do. So excited to have some fresh fruit again, especially now in the summer. Go back in 12 weeks for my 6 month check up. My Goal for myself is 100 lb loss total.... and get my A1C to 5.5 ok...............I am on my way..........

I have been averaging a loss of a pound a day since surgery. By this time next year, I'll be 365 pounds lighter.

Sweetie - BOTH of your parents abandoned you - not just one of them...I guess our parents did what they knew - and if they knew better they would have done better...... that said - your feeling like you have to 'please' everyone via weight loss or other things you accomplish in life - is normal - yes normal -- how the heck does a child parent their siblings? my step-son (who is now 16) played the exact same role for almost two years with his 8 years younger little brother....while his mother sat on the computer in her bedroom, often with the door shut! -- it is neglect and abandonment - on many levels -- HUGS to you! you are brave and determined to resolve the past so that you can walk smiling into the future - good for you!

Yup. I have bcbs CA. I too had to appeal. It was a long frustrating time. I began my first doc visit in June and had surgery nov 22. The doc suggested I go on a 2 protein drink, one meal, one snack diet, high protein low carbs b/c my liver was mushy, enlarged and likely fatty. I didn't stay on it the whole time as my emotion got the better of me at times, but when it finally came time for surgery, my doc was pleased with the weight loss and "feel" of my liver. So I just continued that and only had to do a 3 day liquid prep. Yeah. I had a beautiful liver. Doc gave us pics of the surgery. Total, since June I have lost 46 pound, 23 in the 6 weeks since surgery. It's not fast, but I am happy, lower than I have been in ten years. I still eat too many carbs. I can eat way more than many on here at six weeks. I am tempted and often succumb to temptation. I ate 3/4 of a jr burger from whataburger w cheese and felt so guilty. Then I realized I was struggling to keep down to 1500 cal before surgery, and now on my worst day, I had 1200. This surgery will happen for you. Don't give up. If the appeal fails, there is a second appeal process. If that fails there is self-pay and loans. Good luck and keep us informed.

You pose a great question. How do we go about developing new and healthier habits so that our surgeries and weight loss are successful long term? I used to get a low blood sugar feeling every few hours and would seek out the closest sugary substance I could find. I was incorrigible. This fed into my food addiction and at some points, gave me the excuse to stuff my face. I started counseling a few years ago for food addiction and it really helped me a lot. My social worker taught me cognitive behavioral therapy techniques and mindfulness. I also changed my diet to higher Protein lower carb. Slowly the low blood sugar feeling started to go away and when I looked at sweets I didn't reach out for them subconsciously like I used to. I think both the CBT and the diet change helped me physically and mentally. I did still like to eat sweet things but the pull wasn't so complete as before. Then I started the pre-surgery liquid diet. After 2 weeks I really started to detest sweet tasting things since I was drinking [artificially] sweet Protein shakes all day. To this day I will reach for savory over sweet. The spell has been broken. If it happened for me it can happen for you too! Here's a great book I read when I started therapy. The great thing about CBT and mindfulness is most people can learn to do it themselves: http://www.amazon.com/Mindful-Eating-Rediscovering-Relationship-Food--/dp/1590305310/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1375367684&sr=8-1&keywords=food+addiction+mindfulness I wish you best of luck!!