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I’m 5 months out and I’ve stalled out (it’s been about 2.5 weeks with no loss). Is this it? Can I hope to loose more or am I done? When did you stop loosing after gastric sleeve. st w 238, CW 185. SD 9/19/19

I remember posting in December 2019 and a poster wanted to see a male before/after pic. The first one is from my highest weight ever at 314 in August 2019. I am now 244, 70 down since then and 46 down since surgery on December 17. I've been active as a basketball referee and playing pickup games in basketball. I also walk around 3 miles a day at work; not all at once, but in spurts throughout the collective day. Aflac paid me for my surgery through my hospital indemnity policy so I thought that was great! My health insurance paid their part 100% so I'm looking at getting a loan soon to pay off the rest. It was well worth it!

Been craving tamales really bad, and I found a good recipe to try. I would probably leave out the jalapenos/salsa until you can eat spicy foods (if you can at all), but they sound delicious and amazing and I never thought to use cauliflower for a tamale. Nom nom. Copied from: https://www.rippedrecipes.com/recipe/cauliflower-tamales-3994.html Ingredients 4 medium Egg 2 wedge or slice (1/8 of one 2" dia lime) Lime 2.5 serving (serving = 4 oz) Tyson Foods Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts 4 serving (serving = 1/4 tsp) Goya Adobo All Purpose Seasoning 1 serving (serving = 2 tbsp) Old El Paso Pickled Jalapeno Slices 6 serving (serving = 3/4 cup) Green Giant Cauliflower Crumbles Directions Cauliflower tamales! 2 bags of Green Giant Cauliflower Crumbles 4 eggs 1 tsp adobo seasoning 2 packets true lime / or lime juice from 2 lime wedges 10-12 oz meat of choice Pickled jalapenos (optional) 1/2 cup world market salsa verde 9 corn husks Soak corn husks in hot water for 2 hours before starting. Purée cauliflower crumbs until they reach a rice consistency. Place in cheese cloth and squeeze out excess water. Mix with seasonings and eggs. Lay out corn husks and apply thin layer of mass mixture even on husk. Measure 1-1.5 oz of protein of choice and put in center of husk. I added 3 jalapenos on top as well as a 1/2 tbsp of salsa verde on the protein. Fold husk together to close the tamale. Steam for 25 minutes and done! NUTRITIONAL FACTS per 1 serving size (Recipe makes 9 servings) Amount Per Serving Calories 83 Calories from Fat 28 % Daily Values* Total Fat 3.06 4.71% Saturated Fat 1.02 5.10% Polyunsaturated Fat 0.41 Monounsaturated Fat 1.30 Cholesterol 100.72 33.57% Sodium 255.33 10.64% Potassium 194.67 Total Carbohydrate 3.23 1.08% Dietary Fiber 1.49 5.96% Sugars 1.52 Protein 10.75 Vitamin A 0.22% Vitamin C 48.00% Calcium 2.22% Iron 3.11% * Nutritional Values are estimated and may vary

On March 26 I will be having gastric bypass surgery at 77 years young. Over 10 years ago had a lapband after having problems it was removed. Looking forward to my surgery! They told me a man of 79 had gastric bypass who turned 80 the month after and was doing a wonderful job.

I'm doing ok so far. I've talked with someone and it's not a big deal. The last 10 days of the pre-op diet I plan to stick exclusively to liquids. I've read on here that there are people who had popcorn or something along those lines during liquid diets and they still have had surgery. I've lost nearly 10lbs in a week, and the whole point is to shrink my liver. I also talked to a friend who had RNY, and he kinda scared me straight the night I had cravings for taco Bell. I have been so tempted to eat anything besides soup, but I haven't. I wish you the best of luck on your journey.

Assuming your bariatric surgeon’s office has a dietitian, I would bounce that question off them first. I had all kinds of issues with the liquid pre-op diet last year, it was one of the reasons why I opted out at the last minute, 2 days before surgery last year. I am not looking forward to doing it again, but health matters dictate I must get past it this time around. I kept in contact with three others who were in my pre-op support group who went through the sleeve surgery in 2019. All three are now reaching a year post-op and the feedback I am getting is encouraging, but cautious. One of them has not been as successful as the others but she knows what she is doing wrong. From what she tells me, she “grazes” and eats small amounts of food constantly during the day and evening. She has gained back about 35% of the weight she initially lost and is now considering revision surgery and moving to full bypass. She says her biggest mistake was not reaching out for help. I plan to be active in this support group, I know I am going to need help and I want to make myself available to help others.

Hi everyone, Tomorrow is the big day! I'm in at 7:15 and will be in the OR at 9am. I had 3 c-sections and my last turned into an emergency hysterectomy so I'm familiar to recovering from surgery. I'm still super nervous because it's still an operation...I'm taking a week off of work and I'm reading a lot (too much is what my hubby would say) just to know what to expect. I really want to make sure I recover well. Aside from all the wonderful posts I've read here, I found Dr. Vong on YouTube who has made some very informative videos. I have struggled with my weight since 2012. At that point I was working out and getting on track which off course meant that the next logical step was to get pregnant with child #2. Child #3 followed in 2016 and I haven't been the same again. I'd diet for months, lose 10 pounds which would come back with more once life took over. I began a new job in 2019 and someone told me about their VSG experience. I immediately made an appt with their surgeon. I initially thought well this means I can eat however I want since it will all be over. I put up a few pounds and felt like crap. 12/28 I woke up and decided I needed to prep for surgery. I also felt like if it went well, I would reconsider the surgery. I have been on a low carb IF plan since then. I found it easy to stick too especially because I knew this would be my new normal. I met with members in support group and decided to go ahead with the surgery. All was great, then it was time for the liquid diet and honestly I've cheated here and there. I was 75% on point. I'd have great days and then an off moment. I kept waiting for that moment where I wouldn't be hungry anymore. It's never come. I do realize that I should have made a plan for this with time frames for my broth and jello. I'd get busy at work and then try to catch up on shakes...so lesson learned. I have plugged in time frames into my calendar which will send me alerts for liquids for the next three weeks. I have the containers ready so I always have my portioned liquids with me no matter what. I have my bag packed for tomorrow with the essentials and aside from reading, lol, I'm relaxing with my kids and my broth...

Okay so I had a moment like this today at the Pilates studio. An instructor I hadn’t had in awhile was back at our location and she made a comment to me after class about how fantastic I looked and how strong I had become. Another gal in class piped up saying she was noticing the same thing about me and then it turned into a discussion on how much I’d lost since joining the studio last March. So I told them all that I’ve lost 120+ pounds since January 2019, and there was a part of me that wanted to add, “but it was bc of WLS, so please don’t look at me with awe and admiration,” Then I mentally took a step back and realized that 1. I didn’t owe anyone an explanation of how each of those pounds came off, and 2. I am amazing and awesome for sticking to my program like I’ve done for the last year. I could’ve “settled” for losing 50,60,70, etc pounds, but at the end of the day I pushed myself beyond anything I ever thought I could’ve. And you know what? I am actually very strong and dedicated to this lifestyle. Yes the compliments sometimes can make us feel guilty and awkward, but I challenge each and every one of you guys to give yourself credit for the incredibly brave and wise decision to have WLS in the first place. This choice isn’t the easy way out. There’s so much involved in it that will be with us forever and we chose forever altering our digestive tracts to get back our health. There are many people out there who will -for a multitude of reasons-never make our very difficult choice.

I saw my doctor 10 days after surgery. He looked at my incisions and he told me I could start exercising, lift weights, go swimming, lol. Said nothing I could do would hurt them, WOW. Go figure. I didn't do any of those things though. Just stuck with walking for a couple of weeks. Then I hopped on the stationary bike at the gym. Tried elliptical today and it just about kicked my butt. I finished 30 minutes though.

Surgery on 2/19. Getting nervous, but I’m ready.

Last summer when I started thinking seriously about bariatric surgery, I had trouble finding info on the timeline for Kaiser patients in the DC/MD/VA area. So for anyone who's interested, here's the process (and my timeline): Got a referral from my primary care provider (9/3/19) 1/2 WLS class with a nutritionist (9/19/19) 1/4 appt with a nutritionist (10/23/19) 1/2 Surgeon-led bariatric info session @ Holy Cross (11/12/19) 2/4 appt with a nutritionist (11/22/19) 2/2 Surgeon-led bariatric info session @ Holy Cross (11/27/19) 2/2 WLS class with a nutritionist (12/20/19) 3/4 appt with a nutritionist (1/16/20) 4/4 appt with a nutritionist (2/12/20) Got approved for surgery (2/14/20) Appt with surgeon @ Holy Cross to schedule surgery (3/3/20) It's designed to be a six-month program starting with your referral and ending with the appt with your surgeon to schedule surgery (with variety of mandatory classes and one-on-one sessions spread out over the course of those six months). Here are some of the other requirements you have to take care of before a board will review your medical record and approve you for surgery: Ideally, you lose some weight, but there aren't a set number of pounds you have to lose. Behavioral health evaluation H-Pylori antibody stool test Sleep apnea screening Write a letter to the surgeon about why you want to have surgery Although my nutritionist is at South Baltimore County Medical Center, the only two bariatric surgeons currently available for Kaiser patients in the DMV are at Holy Cross in Silver Springs. My surgery will likely be at Largo Medical Center, and once it's scheduled, I'll update this post but I've been told to expect a six to eight week wait. I hope this helps!

I think I had a 10 lb limit for the first four weeks or so.

I have a one year old at home so a little older than yours but my surgeon said I couldn’t lift over 10 pounds so I will not be able to pick her up. Someone could put her in my arms and so on but I can’t actually lift. maybe you could find someone, a family member or friend to help for a few weeks with baby. but then again, all surgeon’s are different and you might have a different weight limit.

I agree on healthier swaps but another tool is to divide up the candy into separate little baggies. If you have the willpower to let yourself have 10 M &Ms or 3 pieces of sour candy a day then you can look forward to that tiny treat but stop and really enjoy that tiny portion. Honestly if you had a big portion you stop really tasting it after a few bites anyway. This could be a dangerous path for some but it works for me. NEVER eat straight from a box or bag, always put what you are going to eat into a separate dish so you can visually see how much you are eating.

Funny enough, I was with a different surgeon that my wife had found before they decided mid year that they were no longer accepting my insurance. So I decided to do my own research and came across Dr. Schillingford. Aside from the overwhelming responses of good experience with him, I noticed that alot of his patients were self pay. For me, my insurance company required the nutrition visits and psych evaluations, not the Dr. My initial consultation with him was a group consultation which he spelled out the details and what was expected and answered any questions. He did not require any particular weight loss, but did have a 2 week pre op diet, which is normal. I'm nearly 3 months out and have my 2nd follow up next week. Support groups are not required, but they are provided. Their support staff is really friendly if you call, although they don't always answer the phone so leave a message and they will usually get back to you pretty fast. I'm sure @Lolo 2020 can fill in the blanks where I didn't. As for my personal success, started 11/7/19 at 328 lbs, 268 this morning.

Oh wow, I was told not to lift more than 5-10 pounds after surgery. I'm so sore, can barely bend over. Kudos goodness to you for lifting a 5 month old in a car seat - you're super woman

I get this all the time, unfortunately, because I'm on diuretics right now. I know my "pee" pills are working if I'm in the bathroom every 10-20 minutes for a couple of hours. I really hope to get rid of these post-surgery!

I had my sleeve surgery done in October of 19, all was ok till now, I am having severe spasms and pain no matter what food I eat. As anyone experiencing this issue?

I’m calling the doctor at 10 when they get in to see if I can come in

Have you considered online dating? I consider myself shy, socially awkward, and a bit of an introvert. Bars and social scenes weren't for me. So, 12 years ago I tried online dating and I was lucky enough to meet a woman than I married 2 years later. I was 32 years old at that time. Next month we celebrate our 10 year anniversary. I dated a few duds before I met her, but it was worth it in the end. Good luck! Sent from my SM-N960U using BariatricPal mobile app

I went from 398 pounds in January 2019 down to 319 pounds at the end of June 2019. I was on a Saxenda prescription since February 2019 and I also attended a live-in weight loss boot camp where I finished 6 of the 10 weeks I had paid. I stopped the Saxenda injections when I started the boot camp and canceled my weight loss surgery at week 6 thinking I got this handled. On week 7 there was a death in the family and I had to stop the boot camp and return home to deal with the mess. I am a stress eater, it's been a problem the majority of my life. Old habits are hard to break so before I knew it I was putting the weight right back on. By October I had regain just about everything I lost, it simply amazes me how easily the weight comes back if you deviate from the process that helped you remove the weight.

I've been taking Collagen since early last year (long before surgery). I started when I was diagnosed with arthritis in my knees in the hopes it would help and I think it did. I also noticed it helps my skin and hair feel better in general. I'm still early out from surgery so not sure if it will help with loss or not, but if nothing else, it's an extra 10 G of protein for only 40 calories and it dissolves with no taste in protein shakes or my decaf coffee. (It can make drinks sticky if the ration of powder to liquid isn't right).

I am 6 days post op. I had surgery 2/10/20. I'm having a hard time getting in protien. All taiste horrible, and are just hard to go down. I take a sip and immediately start to feel I'll. Any help please

The key here on a surgery decision is how well can you maintain the loss that you attain? It is not unusual to lose 10-15 lb fairly quickly when one starts a serious weight loss program (the so-called "easy ten") as your body tends to use up its quick energy reserves of glycogen (basically stored carbohydrate) which burns off fairly quickly. On average, we have 2 lb of glycogen kept in solution by about 8 lb of water - the "easy 10". YMMV, but I suspect that guys tend to store a bit more as we are more muscular, and glycogen is stored in the muscle tissues. Once your body runs out of glycogen and it gets the idea that you are serious about this caloric deficit thing, it changes gears and starts to tap your stored fat to live on and to partially restore functional glycogen levels, but there may be a bit of a lag or stall before that happens (look up the three, or third, week stall) It is very common for people to go through a pre-op weight loss program of some months, either for insurance purposes or as a "one last try..." and lose a lot of weight and think they have this nailed, and decide against the surgery. And then the weight comes back on, just as usually happens after major diet efforts (which is why most are here looking for WLS.) I did the insurance diet in concert with my wife, who was #1 on the runway - much higher BMI and comorbidities - and lost about 50lb or a third of my excess in that time. Philosophically, it was less of a weight loss oriented diet as it was a weight control or maintenance diet - what habits do I need to develop for 5-10 years out to maintain health and weight, rather that maximizing short term loss. As we were still trying to get my wife on the table (the DS she needed was still considered "investigational" by many insurers at the time) so I went into sustain mode - kept up tweaking the diet to keep it sustainable but made little progress on additional loss, but also maintained the loss that I had accomplished. Even after she finally had her WLS I maintained the loss and didn't feel overly inclined to go for the WLS (the VSG was not routinely performed or approved by insurance yet at that time, and I deemed the DS and RNY to be overkill for my needs.) Once the VSG was being approved by our insurance, several years later, it was apparent that I still needed that help to get the remaining weight off, though I was still maintaining that initial loss; had I regained what I had lost as is often the case, I would have gone for the DS instead, as that has much better regain resistance than the other procedures. So, by all means, think, rethink and reconsider the process and be comfortable with it. But do take a long term look at it, not just what weight can you lost over the next 6-12 months. Good luck on it!