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Don't be afraid to ask for something for pain if you start feeling it. Every one has a different level of tolerance. You should have been asked on a scale from 1 to 10, what is w comfortable level of pain you cwn tolerate and what level of pain is bad enough to ask for pain medicine. Once you pass your comfort level you need to let them know. Don't chase pain. What that means is ask for pain medication before you think you might need it, because once you do reach that level it will take time for the medicine to kick in.

It’s not just calcium and iron you need to watch for with the 4hr window. You also need to watch out for acid reducing medicine as well or at least that’s what my prescription bottle of levo says. I was sleeved 12/17/19 and then revised 8/11/20 for gerd. In the time between I did stall for almost 6 weeks which was frustrating but I eventually started losing again. Also, the closer I got to my goal weight the slower I lost.

Egg salad “sandwich” but what’s missing from the pic and log are the 10 pretzels plus half of an oatmeal raisin cookie so this meal was more like 500 calls 🤣

I went to buy some new shorts a few weeks ago since my shorts were falling off when I unfastened the belt due to the weight loss. I was a size 44 and thought I must be in a size 38 so took them home and they also were falling off. I went back and found some stretchy size 34 shorts and they are a bit tight but they fit pretty well and are not overly tight. I am shocked at how quickly these sizes have changed. My wife also had VSG surgery the same day as me and has kept up with my weight loss (since we started the pre-op diet) and we are within 10 lbs of losing the same amount of weight. She had kids tugging on her pants and she would have to grab them at the last second or they would come off. She also bought some new pants and is now down 6 sizes. She also has some older pants from when she was smaller so she is able to wear these as she is downsizing. This journey has been amazing for us and we have now lost more than our 11 year old daughter weighs now. Our 11 year old is just barely shorter than my wife, so my wife has the ultimate goal to be our daughters current weight when she is done. My wife and I have never had a significant stall during this weight loss phase. We usually have a few days where our weight stays the same but it has never been more than a few days.

I got my sleeve in August 19, 2020, at 26 years old. I am so glad I did it!!! I've always been overweight-obese. Finally at my high school weight. never been lower than 171 before. Did it because I started having health issues and I want to have children soon. Good luck!! The first month is the toughest but you'll do great!

Pre-surgery. My date is 3/2/21 so I'm hoping to lose another 10 between now and then. I figure anything I can lose now means more I can lose during my honeymoon phase. Plus, I'm trying to learn some better habits for afterward.

Omg, the calorie free coffee from Dunkin I've been drinking for weeks, just found out it actually has a calorie full syrup in it!!! My bad,,,but Im soooo sad now. No wonder i cant lose these last 10. Duh. Hopefully, they will melt off now Im off the sauce (syrup lol) [emoji2356][emoji2356][emoji2356][emoji2356][emoji2356] Sent from my SM-G965U using BariatricPal mobile app

I'm surprised I didn't get very many responses about this, but I guess if you don't live in the middle of nowhere, a trip to Trader Joe's is not a big event 😀. I found some product recommendations on keto web sites and YouTube videos. Here's my haul: They didn't have several of the items on my list, and there were a few things I didn't buy because they seemed way overpriced, but here's what I got (some of it is just general grocery items just to save me a trip to another store): Meat Individually frozen boneless skinless chicken thighs ($7.99) Ground chicken ($3.79) Ground turkey ($2.99) Pork tenderloin ($4.15) Chile lime chicken burgers ($3.69) Chicken sausage ($3.99) Produce Spaghetti squash ($2.99) Organic romaine bagged salad ($2.69) Heavenly tomatoes ($2.79) Head of garlic ($.49) Organic ginger ($1.79) Frozen Frozen green beans ($1.99) Frozen asparagus ($2.99) Frozen raspberries ($2.49) Pantry Avocado oil ($5.99) Kalamata olive oil ($8.99) Sesame oil ($2.99) Rice vinegar ($1.99) Salsa Autentica ($1.99) Salsa Verde ($1.99) Sundried tomatoes ($1.99) Masala simmer sauce ($2.69) Almond flour ($7.49) Snacks Chomps jerky ($1.69) Quest Hero bar ($1.99) Power Crunch bar ($1.49) Freeze-dried raspberries ($3.99) Refrigerated Plain nonfat Greek yogurt ($.99) Green goddess salad dressing ($3.99) Spicy cashew salad dressing ($3.99) I've only tried a few of these items so far. I love the green goddess salad dressing; it's only 10 calories per tablespoon and surprisingly tasty (I actually licked the bowl when I finished my salad). Sadly, it's perishable and only has about a month shelf-life in the fridge. Haven't tried the spicy cashew dressing yet, but online reviewers love it. I like the chicken burgers, but they'd be better on a nice, fluffy bun. I felt so weird buying all healthy stuff and no junk food! If I had made this trip a year ago, I would have been all over the delicious-looking baked goods and the snacks and desserts stacked above the freezer aisle.

all I can say is, I did the diet and exercise routine a gazillion times, lost at best 50-60 lbs (and those were during my more successful attempts - it was usually more like 15-20 lbs), stayed there for maybe a couple of months, and then gradually gained it back. This went on ....and on...and on....for DECADES (I'm in my 60s). I had over 200 lbs to lose, so I knew there was no way I was ever going to lose it if I couldn't even keep 50 lbs off. So I finally had to admit to myself that weight loss surgery was probably my only hope. So...I did it. I lost over 200 lbs in about 18 months, gained back around 10-20 (depending on the year and day - and a 10-15% bounce back after hitting bottom is unfortunately very common) and.....stayed there. And I'm still here. There is no way ON EARTH I could have done this without the help of weight loss surgery. Statistics show that less than 5% of people are able to take significant amounts of weight off and keep it off. It's a constant struggle because you are fighting biology. Weight loss surgery (WLS) really helps with that because your hunger hormones are lowered, your stomach is much smaller, etc. Granted, after the first year or two, it does become a challenge for most of us to maintain our losses, but it's much more do-able than it was pre-surgery. WLS doesn't guarantee you'll take off a significant amount of excess weight and keep it off, but it greatly improves your odds. I know you probably know all this already, though. Maybe your wife needs to do more research about weight loss surgery -what's involved, the benefits, the statistics including success rates of WLS vs. doing it on your own. Good luck with this - it's certainly much easier when your close family members are on board with it.

This is a great idea! There was a group of us on this forum who all had surgery around the same time (in 2019), and it was really useful to share our successes and setbacks with each other. Good luck!

March 9th here. I will complete a 10 day diet with 6 protein drinks, a small amount of fruits and veggies per day. I cannot wait Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Glad things went well for you! I don't think the docs are clear enough when they tell you to sip. I assumed that meant 3 sips per ounce (tiny cup), but no, in the first couple days it needs to be 8-10 sips per tiny cup. THAT would have been helpful info before I attempted to down ice water. OMG.

YES! Exactly. 10 pounds allows for a little extra room in my socks!

I think what helped me a lot was working out before I got the surgery. I went every other day and did 45 minutes of weights and 20-30 minutes of cardio. I am hitting the water hard and adding a little extra protein powder to my drinks. It helps me with my energy. I have been sleeping around 10-11 hours a day and getting my walking in. I have no more pain from my incisions and am down 17 lbs. A big part of it is learning to listen to your body. It’s amazing how much you learn about yourself.

Welcome to the February Bypass club @Sandramarie1986, @aug62012 and @M4rlene ! Good luck to upcoming surgeries this week: 2/8: @Mrs A B. @Tink22, @aug62012 2/10: @conniejoy529, @LOLove 2/11: @mwd GOOD THOUGHTS AND CROSSED FINGERS FOR ALL OF YOU!

Ok, now hear me out. I had a little yogurt and two bites of chicken breast last night for dinner and never felt the stuffed feeling or even full feeling. I’m three weeks out from surgery. About 10 minutes later I noticed the calcium chew samples that I will need to start in a few days so I thought I’d test one. The minute I ate it I ran to the bathroom thinking I had to throw up but instead experienced the dreaded foamie thing for two hours. What did I do wrong? It’s not blatantly obvious to me because I didn’t overeat at dinner. I never want to experience that again- I’m sure I will, but if there is an obvious reason PLEASE share!

Don't play with me..... cause a bitxh is in a size 10 jeans........ ( insert happy dance) Sent from my SM-G970U using BariatricPal mobile app

You're an inspiration, Joshua. Thanks for your honesty and for sharing. I obviously didn't have a sleeve, but the post op pain for me was between 9.5 and 10 for a few hours. They wouldn't give me more morphine, and I was at one point told they had to 'go see incoming patients' in the first room there. I was livid, and nobody was allowed in to the hospital due to covid. I to this day believe I would've offed myself then if given the chance. Not to scare anyone away, mind you. Even with what I've achieved a little over two months out, I'd actually go through that without hesitation again just for feeling this much better already. However, I think the advice I'd give was talk to your surgery team about pain management upfront. And know that it's "just" the bloated stomach from gas pressing on freshly cut insides ... you're not about to burst or anything (I remember being scared something was very wrong, which didn't help at all).

I was just idly wondering if anyone else had an extreme amount of pain after their sleeve (or any weight loss) surgery? I don't mean to scare anyone away from having their surgery because my situation is pretty unique in this regard. I am a recovering heroin addict so at the time of my surgery (August 2016) I was taking a medicine called Suboxone. Suboxone blocks pretty much all other opioid painkillers from working. I told my surgeon and anesthesiologist that I was on this medication and I was concerned that it would make the post-surgery painkillers not work so I brought my prescription to the hospital with me so I could give it to them so they could administer it to me after the surgery. Well fast forward to me waking up after my surgery in agonizing pain. They had literally just made 6 cuts into my abdomen and cut out the majority of my stomach and I had nothing working to dull that pain at all. They wouldn't let me leave the recovery room (I think that's what it's called) until my pain was under control. I was literally screaming in pain which I had never done in my entire life before that and I have not done since then. The nurse actually kept telling me that I needed to be quiet! If I was capable of that I would have been! The nurse kept giving me Dilaudid (an opioid painkiller) injections on someone's orders -who? I don't know. I kept telling the nurse that it wasn't going to work because I was on Suboxone, which by the way takes a very long time to work out of your system - like at least a few days until other painkillers will work. The nurse must have given me at least 4 injections of Dilaudid with no effect whatsoever before she finally believed that it wasn't going to work. Hours had passed since I woke up after my surgery before they finally listened to me when I told them that my mother was in the waiting room with my Suboxone prescription and that would actually work. 15 minutes later they brought it to me and I put it under my tongue to dissolve. Within 10-15 minutes my pain felt like it disappeared completely. Now it hadn't actually completely gone away but compared to the agony that I was experiencing before, this might as well have been nothing. What relief! To anyone that actually read all of that story thank you for making it this far! I don't have a real reason for sharing this, I just like this forum and have recently gotten back to reading and posting here and wanted to share some of my surgery experience. Feel free to comment about my story, ask any questions you want, or share any similar experiences you had. -Joshua

Please bear with me while I ramble and get something off my chest. I started this journey with a gastric sleeve surgery July 2019 things went bad quickly I was vommitting uncontrollably and very rapid weight loss I started losing my mind and had little to no muscle control by September. After a severe fall I was put into a rehab hospital and they decided to change the sleeve to a bypass. The revision was done 2/2020. After the revision I was discharged to my home. I’ve started regaining memories and muscle control. By June 2020 I was able to walk independently (with a walker for balance) by September I was able to forgo the walker unless it was long distances. Even with this crazy pandemic I’ve been pretty upbeat and happy I am literally half the size I was when I started this weight loss journey. Yesterday I went to my obgyn appointment they were complimentary and saying how I don’t even look like the same person. Then I got my after office report. I always read over them in case there is something I forgot or missed. The first line goes this is an obese female.... damn I’ve seen that word with ever dr appointment for more than 30 years but it has never bothered me like it is this time. I mean I’m literally half the person I was before and almost died to get to where I am now what else do I have to do to get rid of that word?

Hi everyone! I'm 2 weeks out from VSG. I've only told my spouse and am lucky enough to work from home until likely the fall so have some time to think about how to handle talking about weight loss. There are a couple of thin people in my life, including a coworker, who have always been very nosy about what I eat and how much. I think my body was a kind of "worse case scenario" for them and they were always looking for ways to remind themselves how not to become me. This always annoyed me because, for the last three years, I have eaten very healthfully. Of course there were many years before that when I didn't eat as well. But for the last three years, I really pretty much ate the way I did when I was thin. Lean protein, non-starchy veggies, whole foods, etc. I am certain I ate no worse than the people who were nosy about my diet. And I would lose 10 pounds here and there, then gain a bit back, but never made a real dent in my excess weight....which is why I decided on WLS. I've looked through a lot of the old threads about how people talk about their weight loss to people they don't want to reveal WLS info to and a big thing a lot of people say is "I changed my diet." This is great because it's not a lie, but I also kind of don't want to give the few people in my life who were so nosy about my diet and I think assumed I was bingeing junk food the satisfaction of saying my diet needed changing... I don't know if anyone else is in this situation? Or if I'm just being petty and proud? lol

I’m so nervous and scare my about surgery this wWednesday that is coming up I don’t Know if I’m ready to do this I want to be happy I’m sad also feb 8th will be 6yrs since my mom passed I really hope I’ve making the right decision doing this surgery I’m worried if my hair going come out I have natural short hair I’m worried that going messed on this stages I’m really scare I just want my mom 😢

The total you should have to pay is you deductible plus your out of pocket maximum i.e. $600 deductible + $1200 oop max = $1800 If you have met your deductible, you only need to pay up to your oop maximum, but usually after you have met your deductible, you pay a percentage such as 10% or 20% of any bill until you meet your oop max, i.e. $12,000 hosp bill × 10% = $1200 which meets your oop max. Any bill after this would be paid 100% by insurance as long as providers are in network.

Hi all! I’m a 19 yr old young woman in the process of getting a VSG. WEIGHT: 358 lb HEIGHT: 5’5 BMI: 59 I’m kind of doing this alone so I desperately need advice and answers from anyone who can help. I’m on month 3/6. So far, I’ve met with my doctor, I’ve had labs done, and now my next steps are to meet with the surgeon, dietician, and have my psych evaluation. I need to know when should I contact my insurance (sorry if that’s a dumb question). I’m on my mother’s plan, and we have BCBS (IL) Anthem w/ PPO Suitcase. Is the gastric sleeve covered with them? When will I find out if it’s covered or not? Thank you for your help!

most people see the biggest drops during the first month or two after surgery. After that, it does slow down to about 2-3 lbs a week (maybe a bit higher for those with a higher starting BMI). So your rate of loss is pretty normal. I'm not sure where you started, but I was well over 300 lbs. I lost 16 lbs the first month, and then 10-12 lbs a month for the next six months or so. Then it dropped down to about 6-8 lbs a month....and gradually went down from there (by the end, it was like two lbs a month - UGH!). As long as you're trending down, you're good! and to reiterate, yes, your rate of loss is completely normal. Just follow your plan. If you cut back too much from your plan, you risk getting sick or having deficiencies. So I would not worry about "moving the needle faster". Massive weight loss is a marathon, not a sprint, as they say...