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My name is Hutch - I have a tentative date of May 9th with Dr Aceeves in Mexi -Cali I am a truck driver and struggle with weight loss so I have made the decision to be sleeved. I am nervous but not scared. I have been 100 lbs overweight for the last 10 years and I have tried every diet imaginable - and they work for a minute and then fail. I have no one to blame but myself. I have diabetes, sleep apnea, asthma and planter faciatias in my feet which causes me alot of pain. I hope and pray that after the surgery with time these conditions that I mention will go away. I recently got married to a beautiful woman that was sleeved in Janurary,2010- and when she said that I needed to get a passport I thought she was excited about going on vacation but little did I know she had other plans - I am happy though because I feel that this is the best decision for me and for us to live a long and healthy life together. If you all will join me in my upcoming journey I would greatly appreciate all of ur help and support. Thank you and God bless, Hutch

I worked in a bridal salon for a long, long time. The first thing you do need to do is track down the manufacturer of the dress. They almost certainly have showrooms in Manhattan. Call them, tell them you have had weight loss surgery and that you are wondering if you can wait until May or June to order their dress. The odds are very good that they will tell you that won't be a problem. The vast majority of dresses, from both high end and low end manufacturers alike, can be had in under two months when necessary. Four months is usually quite comfortable. You need to talk to the actual alterations lady at the salon to see what she has to say about the dress you've picked. She may say to you that she can only take the dress down one size and if that is the case, then that's probably not a good choice for you. When I had pregnant brides coming through, I'd always have them talk to the alterations lady so that they knew exactly what they were getting into. Generally speaking, a size 14 can be altered down to a 10 or back up to a 16 - that's probably your best bet, but that doesn't into account the style of your dress. They are certain necklines and certain bodices that have very little room for alterations. Next, put an ad up on Craig's List Creative Gigs (it won't cost anything) for a local dressmaker. Find someone with a real portfolio and real references. There are lots of seamstresses who make their living knocking off bridal and evening gowns for individuals and they do a beautiful job. Also, check local fabric shops that carry HIGH END bridal materials and see if they have referrals. They will usually know all the best seamstresses in the area and who is the most reliable. Under your circumstances, that's probably the best way for you to go. Having worked in the bridal industry, my alarm bells are going off. I'm wondering if either the salon or the manufacturer is in financial trouble and that's the reason for the long wait period. Something isn't right here. Anyway, however you go, have a beautiful wedding. :thumbdown:

I want to go to bed! Unfortunately I still have 4 pills left from my pile to take . . . staggering 10 minutes apart . . . crossing my fingers they all go down. GRRR. So the meds I take for my colitis are capsules, which doctor says are OK but I have to stagger them 10 minutes apart. I take 8 pills a day - so I've split them up 4 times throughout the day. I also was getting massive heartburn from the Calcium crystals I got, so I have switched to the citracal petites (CVS brand) but I have to take 6 of those a day. Then I have my 2 softgel Multivitamins a day, and my BP pill in the morning. HOLY CRAP! I feel like I am constantly taking pills. For those of you who are at least 3-6 months out, do you get to the point where you can take more than 1 pill at a time? Pre-op I could take 4 of my colitis capsules at once with not too much Water . . . I could get down my morning Vitamins in a gulp or two.

my insurance says it pays 90% of surgery costs and 90% of anesthesia.. what am I lookin at approximately here?

Awesome job!!!! Keep up the good work! It took me 2 months to lost 36 lbs. and I'm happy as can be with that (that's including the 10 day pre-op diet, LOL!). That's a lot of weight to lose in a month!!!!!!!

Thankfully day 10 was the last day and it stopped. Hopefully it won't happen again. Thanks

Increase food intake or increase the meds? If the meds aren't working then call your doctor back. You have to nourish your body but you work up Protein and Fluid goals. Set small bench marks for yourself. Your only goal should be to not get dehydrated. If that means sipping all day then just take a sip once every 10 minutes. However I would address the anxiety first. A large part of being successful with this is mental. Get the anxiety under control so you can deal.

I think about surgery day. It's weird, but I worry more about surviving the surgery itself than the actual complications you can have from it....I feel guilty sometimes, like I could leave my kids motherless because I want to be thin again...but my nut told me I deserve this and death is rare...I have decided to believe her. I don't even want to worry about it. I push it to the back of my mind most days. Sometimes it comes creeping up though.... Also, I am worried about what I will be like coming out of anesthesia. Like, I guess we get either super chatty,tired, or cry...when I had my wisdom teeth out years ago I was told I cried...I hope I follow suit again lol....because I don't remember....I think it would be less embarassing to cry. I watch too many youtube videos lol....I cheated on my diet yesterday! I ate three Andes mint chocolates oh my and one today...I fed the rest to mykids so wouldnt be tempted...I have three kids so they each got like three a piece..... I was doing so well smh. I think it liquifies too and will be out of my system and not cause my liver to enlarge lol.....man I miss real food....but getting on the scale this morning and seeing 200.4 made me tear up. I am almost afraid to get on the scale tomorrow. Onederland is a huge milestone and to be under 200 is significant for me...I never imagined in a million years I would be over 200lbs.... or eat a whole box of mac and cheese in one sitting either but here I am lol....striving to be a better me

I took 2.5 weeks off. My surgery was on Wed the 28th of November, and I am returning 12/17. I am fortunate to have separate vacation/sick time and extended sick time. We get one full week per year of extended sick time, so I have about 10 weeks saved. I was lucky.

Well got my scope done today everything is a go for tomm 3/21/12 lost 10 pounds pre op and am the first surgery in the morning at 9 est so wish me luck everyone.

I just did my first half yesterday. I had some oatmeal and 6 almonds before the race. During the race they will have Water stations and other types of electrolyte drinks for you. Then at the end of the race they had some oranges, banana's and bagels, kind bars, coconut water. When I was training I used one of the belts and would put Powerade zero in the two containers. I also use the Clif shot blocks when I run 10 or more miles. I have never done a full so I don't have any tips on that one. Good luck- LA

The effects of gastric sleeve surgery are: restricts food intake controls hunger Following gastric sleeve surgery, food continues to move through the digestive system naturally, from the time it enters the stomach to the time it is released into the small intestine through the pyloric valve. The difference is that after surgery the amount of food that can be eaten at any one time is greatly reduced. The surgery also helps to control hunger, because the upper portion of the stomach that produces the hunger stimulating hormone Ghrelin is removed during surgery. I've gone through the Kaiser Options 12 week pre-op program with the intention of having weight loss surgery, after many years of yo-yo dieting and always gaining back the weight. I'm 56 and I needed to do something very proactive to give me longevity and a more active lifestyle. I got really tired of being sedentary! Tired of needing a belt extender on an airplane, tired of never sitting in a booth in a restaurant! In the 12 week program, we were expected to lose 10% before being eligible for surgery and put on a restricted calorie diet, mine started at 1400-1700 calories for six weeks, then 1200-1400 for the next six weeks, and after that 1200, which is ongoing while I wait for surgery. The post op information indicates that the dietary restrictions after surgery, once fully healed, are to eat mostly Protein, then fruits & veggies, then carbs. The new stomach pouch can only hold about 3-4 ounces in the beginning, so this is not much food, but you feel FULL after eating very little, and the stomach is no longer "stretchy". You have to supplement with protein about 80-100 grams per day. This means for most people supplementing with Protein shakes between meals and then meals with high protein as a main component. I can envision having some carbs after surgery, but this will not be my mainstay. I have lost a good amount of weight even now at 1200 calories and 30 minutes a day of walking and some resistance work and strength training. I take Vitamins everyday and drink at least 64 oz of liquid daily. Mostly, if you feel better having some carbs in your life, you would be better to switch out to whole grains. I do this by having whole grain crackers, reduced fat triscuit and wheat thins, whole grain bread, brown rice (learned to love this) and whole wheat english muffins, Pasta, etc. Even tortilla chips are whole grain, so I can have my chips and salsa and still lose weight. In the big scheme, you can't do things the old way. You have to eat healthy and do the work, by monitoring your intake, and drinking Fluid and getting excercise. The sleeve is a tool not a simple fix. I'm going for it.

I always say that I bounced out of the hospital, because I was there only one night and ready to go bright and early the next day. I had a death in my family that same week and drove cross-country the next day. I returned to work 1 week after my surgery, due to the Thanksgiving holiday. But I also had a very similar experience with my C-section (up and about as soon as the epidural wore off and I could feel my feet, that was 10 weeks ago) so it could just be me. I have a high tolerance for pain, pain meds, and a low tolerance for being still! You have to baby yourself, even if you do get up and around. Take things slowly until you are sure you have the muscle movement located, or you will end up pulling something. And don't lift anything! That's big muscle they cut through to get to the goods, so let the muscle heal. Also, keep that subdural anesthesia on for the recommended time. I removed mine at 5 days because it was bugging me, but I really could have used another 2. That stuff really does let you move more naturally right out of surgery. Good luck!!!

So as most of you big guys know from experience that it is a pain in the butt to find an office chair (any chair) with armrest that don't pinch your sides. Now im a big guy, 498 to be exact and the biggest issue I always find going out to eat or to the movies is will I fit in the seats they have. But I never thought I would feel like that at home. So before I got my "Fat Man Chair sent from the Gods" I had a very nice La-Z-Boy office chair with arm rest given to use by my mother-in-law. It was a bit snug and as I got bigger it just started pinching the heck out of my sides and leaving marks. Mind you I didnt spend to much time in the chair because I had been injured and used my laptop in bed mostly. So finally I was like ok let me take of the armrest and oh how it was comfortable. Only problem is because of my weight I had bent the plastic legs that connect to the casters and basically the bottom center of the char hit the floor and scrarched it up. I started up at college full time online from home and I was using the desk for all my studies so I was spending 3-4 hours a day on it. So I got rid of the old chair and started using a folding chair, big mistake, I have severe back issues and the hard chair just killed it. I was looking around on livingxl for chair that would work and wow they were expensive, im a stay at home dad and a full time student, so spending a minimum of $400 on a office shair was not going to happen. So i started taking summer school classes and oh man, my days are long. For those of you who have taken a Summer semester of college know how intense and long those 4-5 weeks are. So after the first week I calculated I had spent over 50 hours at my desk and since one of my classes is a computer science Unix class I was hacking away for hours. I finally broke downa dn was like "OK, I need this chair no matter what. your back is killing you and yoou deserve some comfort" So I started looking on livingxl again and found a $399 chair on clearance for $250, oh yeah what a steal...But wait, can I find a Promo code..YUP good ole Independence Day, I ended getting an additional 10% off plus only $4 shipping for a 58lb. chair...Score, I ended up paying less that $240 shipped. Now 4 days into using my chair I am so happy and my back and sides love me for it. Hope you guys enjoyed my little story.... -Carlos

Yes. I gained 10 pounds or so. You are pumped full of fluids during surgery. Don't obsess about it; it's just saline (or something similar) and will "pass"

For the past three years I have readied myself with holiday cheer and a half-ass attempt at mapping out the 'perfect' plan for losing weight in the new year. By March I would feel defeated and begin to fear the coming of Spring, which would then lead to Summer … my least favorite time of year (even as a teacher!) because of my weight. This year … right now … today … I am smiling! Yes, I am nearly 100 pounds over weight, but 2013 will prove to be THE year … The year I buy a size 10 jeans. The year I embrace Spring with bright colors in my wardrobe! The year I am eager for summer to arrive so I can wear SHORTS! The year I go to the beach with my children and don't feel as if I need to hide under a black 'cover-up'! The year I leave the lights on … if you know what I mean! :wub: My approval letter arrived last week and I am scheduled for banding on the 18th of December … pre-op diet starts on Monday … it's not going to be easy … but neither is lugging 100 pounds around for another year. Bring it on 2013 … !!!!!

This is the third time since my surgery two months ago. I woke up in the middle of the night with horrible pain from acid in my esophogus. This morning I was coughing and choking as if some went down my windpipe. It is very uncomfortable. I get up and take an antacid tablet and chew on some oyster crackers and it goes away in about 10-15 minutes, but boy is it painful. I'm going to call my doctor on Monday but I just wondered if anyone else has experienced this.

44 lbs from my highest weight. I weigh in again on Wednesday, but in 10 days, I had lost 29lbs after my sleeve. It is exciting!!!! Thanks everyone!!! I have a few of the single packets of unjury, the chocolate Splendor is my fav, but I'd love to try the strawberry Sorbet! The chicken Soup mix they have is so terrible!!! Blech!!!!

So, I am almost 4 weeks post op and about 10 days ago I started with persistent vomiting and food becoming stuck when I eat. Went for the scope today, and I have a small bowel obstruction. Need to have a barium swallow and then surgery to correct. Anyone aware of this procedure?

I've lost about 10 lbs but I have been trying to lose the weight. Exercising a lot on top of the diet. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

sleep apnea has been a very hot topic in the trucking industry for about 10 years. A combination of extremely poor diet, constantly rotating sleep schedules, high stress and very long hours of sedentary work put truckers in a particularly high risk group to become obese and develop sleep apnea. Many obese drivers will be subjected to a sleep study when renewing their medical card. Truck stops are starting to sell components for CPAP machines on their shelves, which indicates the sheer demand among the driver population.

So, during my initial consult, my doctor asked if I wanted to go ahead and get me psych consult. I agreed because I was sure I wanted to get the surgery. My psych consult consisted of me waiting for psych forever, and then her coming out and telling me she was really busy, so if possible, could I just fill out this quiz and just leave it on the table in the waiting room (privacy?) when I was done and she's pick it up and call me later. The quiz was one to check for depression and other mental issues (asked the same question 3-4 times in different ways to make sure you were honest). So she calls me later and we talk for maybe 10 minutes where she asks about my support system, etc. She asks me about 10-15 questions off a list and we are done. No, it wasn't thorough but it was a means to an end and I was approved. Well, the bill came yesterday. $575 dollars just for her. After insurance, around $400 out of pocket to her for that. My surgery only cost $1500! I'm debating calling and challenging the price---really, she did so little---but I wasn't sure if that was just part of it and I should just suck it up and pay. What do you think?

I have started working out on my Elliptical. We are supposed to be getting 30 minutes of exercise daily (I have been walking). However with the elliptical, well it's pretty obvious in less than 30 seconds that it has been 20+ years since I have actually "worked out". LOL. I was following the training settings on mine and their recommendation is to start with 20 minutes the first time, and do that for 5 days and then the following week go for 25 minutes.. and keep increasing over the weeks until you reach 40 minutes. Well I have everything I can do to even get through 1 song on my playlist. LOL I'm assuming I should just start there and go? 5 minutes this week and try for 7 or 10 minutes per time the following week? So there is my confession and someday my inspiring starting point: "The first time I got on my elliptical, I couldn't even finish the first song on my playlist".