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Hi there I have an office job as well and I returned after 10 working days off. You may feel washed out for a few weeks but I had no problem returning after that amount of time. Good luck with it all!!

Hey all, This is my first post. I was just sleeved on Tuesday 10/2 . Overall my surgery was uneventful, had some heartburn waking up but it passed. I'm home, no pain (haven't taken any pain pills at all), no gas pain and over all feeling good. I'd say my only complaint is feeling weak and the liquid diet I am not enjoying at all. I am holding off weighing myself at home and will see at Dr appt on wed. I think I want the number to be higher than a few pounds. I'm hoping it is. I had a moment the night after surgery while still in the hospital that I thought "what have I done" and I'm having a little depression at the thought of no food another 2 week's and not having so much energy to get up and go with my daughter. But I'm trying to remind myself no food is temporary and in the end it will all be worth it. I look forward to taking this journey with you all. Stats: 5'9" Start: 316 lbs

Hi, Happy Birthday!!!! How does it feel to be a size 10 on your birthday? LOL Different from last year! Have a great day!!! Babs in TX

You know, I never kept tabs of how much i lost month by month. I know I was at 171 day of my sleeve (down from 239 with the band). I do know by June I hit my goal of 139. However, the inches came flying off! And keep in mind, we all lose weight so differently. I see some folks on here are down 60 lbs after a few months (WOW!!). Envious of that..took me a year on the band to lose 68 lbs. ugh! I set baby goals for myself..10 lbs at a time... And as for how youll look, you'll look FABULOUS!!! no worries there honey.

Well, my pcp's first comment was "one of my patients died 5 days after having wls... try getting that out of your head! of course turns out that patient had a ton of other issues which should have prevented her from getting surgery in the first place but that only comes out after you prod and ask. figures... One sort of has to believe they'll be OK, right? i've found it very difficult finding testimonials of people who regret doing wls that aren't completely cuckoo... If you find any non-crazy reports of people could you share? most regret videos I watched are either too soon after surgery or the presentation style makes it somewhat difficult to take them serious but I have been looking. I especially am looking to hear from people 5-10 years out.

I was instructed not to lift anything over 10-pounds for several weeks. I stayed home for 2-weeks and really felt great on day 7-post op, but was glad to have more time off to recover fully. I have a stationary desk job.

I was banded on 1/16/09 and went back to work 1/20/09. I was off 3 days but would have only been 2 if Monday had not been a holiday. I work at a desk all day and don't lift. I felt great a little tired at the end of a 10 hour shift but with very little protein I expected that. Everyone is different in this category for sure.

You have take drink fluids!! do you have protein drinks? I had trouble with food and was very nauseated, dehydrated from feeling so weak I did not drink. When I would eat solid food it hurt bad. Then I started waking up with acid the worst I have ever known and had always had it before. Called Dr. and they put me on new med. The solid food still was a problem nausea and pain. Called and they wanted to send me for a scope. I have a long history with my gastro Dr. and called and wanted a consultation first. I had started taking my Librax which is a smooth muscle relaxer for IBS and it was helping. My Dr. told me I had made the right choice. I had Surgery April 10, 2013 and I am just now starting to eat a little solid food. Fighting with my old self of eating too fast and too much seems to be the problem now. Food will not stay down when you do not take care of your new self. I hope you call your Dr. and get some help. Good Luck!!

Hi! I have a referal to Dr Martin, no insurance, public system. Has anyone been banded under this system in PA Hospital Brisbane? I have soooooo many questions, although they are lovely when I phone no one can give me even a ball park figure for waiting time.I have a letter saying I am on a waiting list, but have not been categorized yet, My referal was faxed to them 01/10/08, the letter recieved from PA is dated 13/10/08. I have'nt had my 1st consultation yet either? and no appointment date yet. After the 1st consultation how long do you wait to be banded?:thumbup: The other questions tha maybe someone can answer: Is there any doctors that will do the op on a payment plan, I really don't mind paying, just have'nt got that amount of money up front. I don't even care if I have to go interstate or O/S. I have a very strong family history of diabetes melitis (father, all his siblings and my Grandmother died in a diabetic coma) Obesity, my mother is over 200kg and in a nursing home, unable to look after herself. My BMI is 41.35.:thumbup: If anyone has any advice/help/suggestions I would love to hear them. Thanks everyone, Debra

I was banded on 5/19, so three weeks since surgery for me. Down about 20 lbs since surgery, which seems really quick. Ironically the last 7 lbs have been since I started eating food again (albeit soft food) and increased my calories. I also started exercising more vigorously (elliptical only for now) so that's probably what has kept me losing. Definitely have the same issue with a stitch sticking out from the port incision. I cut it down but yeah, it does not appear to be "dissolving" and it's a bit itchy. But the incision is healing so I just have to not touch it. And yes, it does seem indented somehow when I suck in my stomach. The other incisions look like they'll disappear without any scar but the port incision I doubt will do that, and the indent seems like it's probably not going to go away. My doc said they all look normal, so I take his word for it. Jillsko, sorry to hear about the clot, but it sounds like it's not going to adversely affect your health, so that's good. If there's one thing I've learned from this site, it's that no two people heal or lose weight the same way or at the same rate - there are just too many individual factors involved. Keep the faith and follow your doc's orders and you'll be fine I'm sure. Great to be post-band though, eh? Especially lately as I've ramped up my exercise and gotten back on real food, and as my healing has continued, I'm feeling just really thankful and really glad I did this. I am excited for the destination, but I am working hard to keep it in the day and to concentrate on the journey.:tongue2:

I had lost 17lbs preop.... Got home from hospital and had put 12 of them back on. It took a few days but then they all came off plus some. I'm now officially down 30lbs (17lbs preop and 13lbs since surgery). I am 10 days post op. Hang in there, it will come off.

You are making tremendous progress. Keep thinking positive about it even when you don't feel positive. VSG 10/11/17 HW = 360 SW = 292 GW #1 = 220 3/7/18 Final GW #2 = 210 (6'5") [emoji256]

Hello all, My surgery date was January 6, and I am down 53 lbs. I can fit into some size 8 pants, but mostly 10s, and I am wearing a SMALL top! That makes me so happy. I still can't believe this is where I am. The weight loss has definitely slowed down but it is still coming off and that's what counts! Like someone else mentioned, I think it is interesting that we are all basically at the same amount lost after 5 months.

I have posted this elsewhere and got several replies - none encouraging - so I will try here: I want the lap band removed (placed in 2008 by different surgeon) but I am still struggling with the decision to get the sleeve. Ultimately I know the decision is mine and I have to do what I think is right but I'd like some practical (not philosophical) advice. To me the main purpose of any WSL should be to improve one's quality of life. If losing weight does that - great. If your medical conditions improve - great. If you can do things you couldn't do before - great. And finally - if you look and feel better - great. My band is unfilled now and I can eat most anything. It is a crap shoot though as to when I get stuck or feel very uncomfortable and need to make myself throw up. I also get left shoulder pain. I was diagnosed with GERD many years ago and have been on nexium for about 10 years - so I have no heartburn or symptoms of GERD. During this time I have slept elevated. At age 64 I have chronic back pain and arthritis. Tylenol is not effective. My weight doesn't keep me from doing anything - more so the back pain and arthritis (neither of which improved with my weight loss with the band). So that brings me to my dilemma: I am at a BMI of 35 and the surgeon says I can expect to lose about 45 pounds. And I won't be able to take NSAIDS for life to treat my pain. I have also read that about 1/3 of those who didn't have acid reflux develop it after the sleeve. I have also heard the word "stuck" and vomiting and sliming with referral to the sleeve. Then there are all the foods (even healthy ones) that one cannot eat after the sleeve and many posts about problems with foods - getting enough Protein, etc... So, I guess what I am trying to decide is if the sleeve will improve the quality of my life or create problems I don't have now without benefits to my medical conditions (that's asking a lot for 45 pounds). Any advice - especially from those who didn't have a lot of weigh to lose?

I would go by your surgeon's guidelines also. My surgeon allowed really mushy cooked veggies during the mushy phase and then other veggies at 6 weeks out. Iceberg lettuce could be tried at 4 weeks but I waited till 6. Other lettuces at 6. I really never had trouble tolerating anything other than broccoli and cauliflower that weren't cooked well around 6 to 10 weeks. I can eat them raw now at nearly 6 months out. I like eating veggies bc they fill me up, they are low cal, good fiber, and I can eat about a cup of them bc of the water content. I usually eat them as a snack bc I can't eat much of them after eating protein.

Hello all- So glad I found this website--it's always less daunting to know you're 'not the only one' out there and can discuss what's going through your mind (which works overtime with big decisions like this) I meet my surgeon tomorrow morning with hubby and my sister to set a date. April 3 is being strongly considered, at my request and the surgeon's office OK, as my Easter week off will minimize the need for lots of sick time. My background is that I've always been the 'big one'. The youngest, yet largest sibling. The big, funny friend. The mom who can't jump into the mix for anything too physically demanding. The overweight bride. The airplane passenger they all dread sitting next to--and who prays that she won't have to ask for an extender. Ugh...I'm sick of all those labels. I'm ready to start fresh and get healthy. I have sleep apnea, take BP meds, have knee pain, back pain, and am on anti-depressant. I'd like to eliminate those eventually. I have finally decided that my love affair with food is not so 'lovely' and I want to see how the other half eats. I have a loving, (thin) husband who is very supportive but doens't really 'get it' the way we all do..he is very supportive of whatever I do though and I'm very thankful for that. I have to boys 7 and 10 years old who need a mom with more energy and confidence. I want to be able to set a good fitness example for them too (and maybe show up in some of their childhood photos..lol) I actually started this process, in Buffalo NY, in November 2010 with original intentions for surgery in early 2011. They'd put me on S. Beach diet as part of their pre-surgery requirements...I'd done very well on s. beach and the surgeon gave me the choice as he felt I was an excellent candidate but since I was having success did I want to try on my own? I did try on my own and eventually (again) failed at weight loss. So I"m back...but this time for the Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy as I'd, over my year, heard several stories of how the lap-band required a great deal of maintenance and had some pitfalls along the way. Maybe it was meant to be that I waited as my insurance carrier, which covers the VSG now would not have last year. So, cross your finger and say your prayers for me that I get my surgery scheduled and I can join you all in the Quest for a new beginning. I'm ready. Nervous about surgery but definitely ready. Moreso than ever before. Thank you for any advice or support you can lend me. I've told a very select few people (a couple close co-workers, friends, and family) and plan to keep it to myself generally. Amy

About 10 days for me....

Anyone have a revision from sleeve to bypass? If so how much more weight did you lose? I have lost another 30 pounds to date and my surgeon told me I should only lose about 10.... Worried I might keep losing and get myself in trouble.

My surgeon requires all his patients to undergo a 6 mo. diet to show that they are willing to comply with his directions. Basically he has no requirement for how much weight you should lose, but he doesn't want you to gain weight during that time. I would not have done well losing 10% of my weight (which would also be 28 pounds). Today was my last weigh-in, and I only lost a total of 8 pounds, so you are way ahead of me. Good luck!

I am on purees again right now since I had a fill last week. I do cottage cheese and hummus. Cottage cheese has a decent amount of protein. I also do fat free refried beans warmed up and then I put them in a mini belnder with some fat free shredded cheddar and puree real good. I put that in a bowl and top with fat free sour cream, salsa, and guacomole. It is really good, I call it a burrito in a bowl. Oatmeal is quick and easy, and I have actually been eating baked potatoes(chew REALLY well and take small bites, TRUST ME!!!) with basically the same stuff on it as the beans minus the guacomole. Make sure you do your protein shakes. If you make them using Skim Plus you get like an extra 10 grams of protein on top of what the powder delivers.

Have a great week everyone! Had lapband surgery 10/12/16

My first appointment was mostly just informational. What to expect, what my insurance requirements were, etc. Then I had my first weigh-in and met with my nutritionist to make a plan on how I could start changing my diet and losing weight before the band. I had my first appointment on 6/15 and am scheduled for surgery in 10/22. I tried really hard (80-90%) of the time to follow the nutritionists plan and have lost 30lbs so far. Now hopefully the band will help me with the last 90-100! Lol

05-22-19

Hi. My name is Mary and I found you guys by typing in a problem I was having in a search engine. It must have been fate I have been watching and reading your stories for a couple days and you have all been quite helpful and inspirational. I started my journey at 301 pounds. I knew when I crossed that 300 line that was it for me. I was a insulin dependant diabetic with liver and thyroid problems and high cholesterol. It was time to change. I went to the seminar in February and started working out and seeing my surgeon and a few other docs regularly. I got down to 283. I started my liquid diet on July 20 and had my surgery on July 27. Life sure is different I am only 10 days out and down to 264. I am on puree and tolerating it well. I have not taken any insulin since the liquid diet started. I feel great I'm glad this forum is here so I can talk to/listen to people going through the same things as me. Thanks for being here!