Search the Community

questions: 1. I will be 6 months out on Jan 31st, will my hair start growing out (it got long but isn't quite thick) and getting thicker again? 2. Is there another way to get enough Protein a day without drinking Protein shakes (they make my stomach really upset now)? 3. For those who are 6+ months out, what is your daily life like, like mainly your daily meal/diet like? (just so i can have a better idea) 4. Did any of you have stretch marks (all your life...before surgery) where? [i have them on my stomach, hips, upper arms, and boob area.] And how much did you lose? Are they still horrible looking? Are you at goal weight? 5. Did you get pregnant (not that i want to, just curious)? How are your stretch marks now? Did they get worse? How many kids did you have (for future refference, I want to have two kids but i'm worried that my stretch marks will get worse, redder, uglier, and just horrendous. 6. Why do you need to get unfilled when being pregnant? 7. Is there anything to cover up stretch marks? Makeup? Tattoos (heard it wasn't a good idea because it'll just look worse?)? is there anything else that works 8. How long do you workout everyday? 9. What was your best expiernce with the band so far? 10. People who didn't get plastic surgery, would you still wear a two piece bathing suit like a bikini? 11. Do you plan on getting PS? Why? 12. Do you feel more confident? 13. Do guys/girls flirt with you more? 14. Do guys/girls ask you out more? 15. Did you find the man/woman of you dreams? 16. How many fills did it take for you to get to your goal weight? 17. When you first got your first fill, what was your expierence like? Was it painful? (people who don't get it numbed, please) 18. Can you give me an idea of what your shopping list would look like? ( i know it has to be healthy and stuff and i want lots of fruit) 19. Is there any fruits or veggies you cant eat because of the band? it would be cool if you all can answer these (: mainly if you are 6+ months out or at goal weight. about the daily meal plan, just want to know so i can buy healthier stuff AGAIN, kind of got out of track and out of hand ): but yeah im starting to get tired of having the same thing over and over i'm in DESPERATE need of a fill or two. i haven't got a fill yet because as some of you may already know, i was sick for 2 and a half months out of surgery and i didnt start feeling 95% better till the end of December, the weekend of my birthday. and since the week of christmas, i started getting hungry an hour after i just ate and its annoying! so yeah and i dont have insurance right now (i had Bluecross blue shield and i guess after you turn 19 they dont cover you anymore) so i MIGH be getting Medicade i'm not really sure, if so i hope they cover the fills because i am NOT paying that out of pocket, i dont have the money

im a high school student and its my last year, i will check into it and what i meant by question one is that some people after surgery their hair falls out a bit, mine got really thin to the point where it looks like i have bald spots but i think its starting to grow back ok chicken i can do but fish i cant cause i dont like it unless its tuna in the can, eggs, milk, cheese, and peanuts yeah for number 5 i meant for after cause i wanna know for like the future and just curious what its like what's pannus? yeah i cant eat veggies raw they taste nasty, they taste so much better steamed, thanks (:

Weight Loss - Diet Ticker

My DH had his sleeve done about a year ago; it took me a lot longer to make the decision to have the surgery--long story, but here we both are now, sleeved. And I have to say it's GREAT having a spouse who's been through it and understands. It is NOT cool that his recovery and weight loss and "dealing with the changes" was so much easier than mine is being! LOL It's hard for me not to compare my meager weight loss with his melting--I'm evidently one of those who is going to have to look really long-term, because the short-term view is sort of depressing. At any rate, I would say the positives definitely "outweigh" the negatives, and I'm glad to have someone here who is excited for me when I'm not excited, if that makes sense. And he's an excellent sounding board for all the emotional stuff, too, which is really nice. Meg

I had a loss this week - I've been bouncing around at 184.4 for quite a while but I walked every day this week, went back to liquids during the day and sensible meals at night and today I weighed in at 182.2. That is finally .4 down from my lowest weight since being sleeved so I am happy about that. Hoping that this week I'll see more loss and get down into the 170s soon! Have a great week everyone!

I had surgery 3/29/2012. I dropped down 17lbs before surgery (258 to 241). Afterward, I gained 8lbs right after surgery, then dropped down to 239lbs a couple days after surgery. I was 241lbs when I went to my 1 week post op check in. I get my first fill this Thursday, and my weight is up to 248lbs =/ anyone else yo-yo like this? I drink plenty of Water, get walking in, eat 3 meals a day. I have my menstrual cycle starting now, so I account for a couple of the pounds being water weight because I always "gain" around this time of the month. I just don't want to go in for the fill and wonder if gaining 7lbs since my last weigh in will be a bad thing or if anyone else has experienced it. Inch wise, I'm smaller. Eating hasn't been too bad. I eat slow and chew well, some things go down better than others. But with the fill coming up, I have no idea what to expect! Thanks for any input =) Manda

I know what you mean I have 5 more days of fasting until my surgery and I am trying to keep busy getting my house clean and ready so that when I come home there will be nothing to do... also I am going shopping to make sure I have everything in the house I need when I come home... ugh! Just keep busy.. may God Bless your surgery and I pray that you have a spectacular weight loss journey

Thank you for all the posts. I have been doing more research on both types of surgeries pretty much all day today. I'm still completely torn and still don't know which surgery I will get. All along I have wanted the RNY because I thought it was a better choice for me personally (I think I might need the dumping syndrome to keep me in line), but what if I fall into the group of folks that the weight loss does not help the pain and/or swelling in joints and lower back? What if I suffer some other injury that causes me pain and Tylenol doesn't work? I will be talking with the doctor as soon as I can for some medical advice, but I wanted to say thanks to you for answering my post!

Well my first blog was about making my first call to UNC and waiting to hear from my Case Manager That call was made on Monday. Well I got the call today which was very quick because I was told it would take up to 7 days to hear back from them, but anyway she informed me that I would be approved once I have completed my pre-weight loss program then in 4 months I will start working with a surgeon, and start the next step. I am so excited to get this process started.:thumbdown:

Well my first blog was about making my first call to UNC and waiting to hear from my Case Manager That call was made on Monday. Well I got the call today which was very quick because I was told it would take up to 7 days to hear back from them, but anyway she informed me that I would be approved once I have completed my pre-weight loss program then in 4 months I will start working with a surgeon, and start the next step. I am so excited to get this process started.:tounge_smile:

I lost sooo much. Cut it all off several months ago (very short) in a do that made it look much fuller. hair is thickening out again, growing really fast (I think the trick there is I never stopped eating my Jello, in addition to multi Vitamins and Water, etc)...I have decided to keep the do for now. One thing that is interesting, I heard of a girl that had a scalp transplant - no s---! Cut the scalp in a t-formation tightened scalp , and redeposited the hair from the t-section to fill in fore-line and either side of her natural part...BUT I CANT FIND PICS!!!! grrrrrr!!!!

So I'm admitted to the hospital due to pneumonia and was informed by the attending doctor that he recommends (and is referring) me to have weight loss surgery. Ironically, the night before I was informed, I had look up bariatric surgeons in Brooklyn who accepted Medicaid/Amerigroup. I have asthma, prehypertension, chronic back pain, and the list goes on. I found a doctor, Dr Piotr Gorecki, he has an office in Park Slope and accepts my insurance. I wanted to know I anyone else has had their surgery approved with Medicaid and how long was the wait?

I stalled for three weeks from day 9. At 6 weeks today I am down 30 pounds total. The scale and weight loss is a constant stair step. Same a few days and lose. It also depends on my total digestion and hydration. I just keep on keeping on knowing I'm doing the best I can and trying to learn a new respect for my new normal. I am trying to slow my eating and chewing thoroughly. I am trying all sorts of foods but in moderation. Some days I just cannot stomach another shake and I'm glad I graduated to Protein bars as part of my regimen. I do know that when I workout outside and sweat from the 100 degree days, I have to stay super hydrated but usually the scale will move a little more. The best to all of you for accepting new as the hardest thing we have ever done but necessary and welcome in our improving lives.

Wow.. I saw your weight loss ticker. HOLY COW! My goodness. You've lost half of you basically! Great work! Amazing!!!!!!!! You look awesome.

Your stomach takes awhile to heal. I suspect that at 12 days post-op, protein bars are way too soon. It wasn't until the 3rd or 4th month that my nutritionist recommended them. I recommend you discuss this with your surgeons office or nutritionist. When you reach that stage, I would recommend Quest protein bars. These bars were good in that they had high protein, minimal sugar and also contained fiber. They also came in a lot of different flavors. The fiber is important because it helps with constipation that can become a problem towards the end of your weight loss phase.

I took a notebook with a list of questions I already had so that I wouldn't forget any. And that way I could write down the answers and any other notes. They'll ask you to describe your previous attempts at weight loss so you may want to jot a few notes down on that before hand - when, what did you try, how much did you lose, how long before you started to regain etc. They'll go through all the surgery options and discuss with you your specific conditions etc and help decide what will be the best option for your particular case. So it does take a while but it is not overwhelming. In my case, while I do see my primary doc regularly (2x a year to monitor my high blood pressure) he is only in the background for this process. I'm using the surgeon and his nutritionist for my insurance-required 6 month medically supervised pre-op period. I am having my primary copied on all tests etc and his office is part of the same larger medical group that the surgeon is in so he has total access to the records at my surgeon's office. But the point is, you probably won't HAVE to use your primary doc for this process other than to get the letter of recommendation.

I definitely sleep more peacefully after the weight loss. I hardly ever wake up in a different position than how I fell asleep. I'm a side sleeper always have been, but it's been cool because I can now sleep on my back comfortably.

I ask because I am afraid I am going to stop having those weight loss days.

It's best to ask your Dr when and how much on exercise, though walking you could start anytime. My Dr released me back to the gym a week after surgery, but I had to avoid ab exercises until 6 weeks post-op. Great job on your weight loss, but remember, this time is for healing....don't let the scale rule you. I got 'stuck' for over a week at the same weight, but my body was changing during this time. Relax, take a deep breath, and follow your Dr's directions :biggrin:.

Really truly not much!!! My own pillow (heaven at the hospital and nice to hug on the drive home), Chapstick (woulda died without it!!!) phone and charger (I also I took my iPad), clean panties, tooth brush/paste, hair brush/clip/band. I worse sweat pants and a baggy thirst to the hospital and wore the same thing home. Until all the tubes and IV were gone I wore a hospital gown, when I got up and out i put another gown on over it to cover my posterior. Didn't want blood or stuff on my night gowns! I did have 1 pair of soft Jammie's I bummed around in the last night once all my extra parts were disconnected, would been fine without em! I don't like slippers so I wore the socks with grippers on the bottom (brought a pair but had to stay longer than elected so used the hospitals) took a book, never opened it. HW 312, pre-op (RNY) 255, current weight 207.4

I find this very interesting. I've been told that exercise is absolutely ESSENTIAL for weight loss and I've been told that exercise will not affect weight loss at all - that it only matters "what you put into your mouth". I was told each of these items above by medical doctors. Now, I'm not afraid of hard work (hard exercise) but I don't really enjoy it. And because the weight loss specialist MD told me about exercise not affecting weight loss, I tend to put more faith in his opinion. (The other MD was an immunologist) BUT, I've also seen this first-hand in my own experience. My bottom line is this: I don't really enjoy exercise, but it does make me feel better, physically and emotionally - so I do it. It also increases my lung capacity (I have had asthma for 30 years). I watch "what I put in my mouth" to help with weight loss, and I had the LapBand placed to help me to put less in my mouth. I still have to make good food choices - and for me that has to be low-carb to lose weight.

I have been a pretty slow loser. I lost about 33 pounds in the first 4-5 months. I had problems with reflux and had to get unfilled, then we visited with family for a month befre moving to another state. I went 3 months without being able to see a doctor to get adjustments. Once I found a doctor up here in MT and was able to get to a good place, I have been losing weight at a pretty good pace. I seem to lose it in spurts, but I think that is my bodies way of dealing with the lose. In Novemeber I lost 14lbs. in 3 weeks, but then I stayed the same for 2 weeks, then went through another spurt and lost 10 in 2 weeks. Oh, it took me about 5 fills (2 unfills in there too), to get to what I believe is my sweet spot. I, personally, believe that our bodies need time to adjust to everything that is going on with it. Surgery is a big thing and so is weight loss. Hope you get the restriction you need soon! Karyn :tt1:

I find the SouthBeach diet the solution for weight loss. The Southbeach begins like the Atkins. This is to break the carbo addiction. Unlike the Atkins, it cuts back on the saturated fat and replaces it with good fats (olive oil, canola oil)... After two weeks you begin to add fruit, vegetables and whole grain products back into diet. White carbos and bad fats are eliminated for good. I use a lot of ground beef in my meals. So I bought me a meat grinder and pick up less fatty beef roasts, cut the fat off or out and gind it. I end up with some of the nicest ground beef I've ever seen. When I go to cook it I add back fat with olive oil. The other day I found chuck arm roasts for $1.79 a #, bought 6 of them. I ended up with 98% fat free $3.00+ a # ground beef.

Here is a good article about why stalls happen: http://www.dsfacts.com/weight-loss-stall-or-plateau.php

I am 2 months out, and just in the last couple of days I am able to drink like a normal person. I can't chug, but I can drink half a glass at a time without issue. The drinking after/during meals is likely going to be a permanent thing, at lest as I understand it. Maybe some of the farther outs could comment on that. Congrats on your loss! 40 lbs in a month is great! I am now 45 lbs at 2 months and couldn't be happier.