Search the Community

I am super excited and nervous, I got my surgery date right on my birthday. Today I turn 27 and my surgeons office called after 2 weeks of crazy wait, giving me a surgery date of april 9th. Hopefully i.can connect with all April sleevers and share our progress date. My stats are: Weight: 220 Height: 5'2 Bmi: 40 Goal weight: 130 Sent from my S Galaxy using VST

Hi Oz! Your age will definitely be an asset for losing weight, and your gender, too. Congratulations on this decision to turn your health around. I am three months out and thirty pounds down so far -- one third of the way to my goal. Know that you will probably experience an excellent initial loss but then there may be a slow time while you get to the right fill, then you'll go down again. Working out will be an excellent aid to weight loss so start exercising as much as possible now or maybe you are doing that already. I think that's the magic ingredient. You are going to do great!

YOU TOO~~~ Also how do I get this weight ticker

If you track your foods on one of the sites that gives a percentage or a graph you will realize that even if you are eating foods that are higher in fat, you are still eating way below the number of grams that are healthy for an adult. I figure that I am eating such small quantities that I am going to enjoy them. I eat full fat foods, that are high quality. I like to get more bang for my buck. I eat strong flavored cheeses, and feel satiated more quickly. The day before my surgery my cholestoral was 249, three months out my cholestoral was 181 (w/in healthy range.) My goal now is to increase the number of healthy fats to get the good cholestoral up. My theory is that even though we all did this to lose weight it can't be a quick fix or a diet. I eat whole foods (foods that look as much as possible as they were created) then I know what is in my food. When you focus on fat free foods manufacturers have to use other foods to acheive the texture and flavor that full fat foods give you so you are often not giving yourself a better quality food. Sorry for the ramble ramble! Anna

I know you posted this in the "Ask Dr. Gregg" area, which is good. But I believe only a doctor that sees you in person can answer this question. You would need to have labs done in addition to a body fat analysis. Also, there may be an underlying condition causing your weight loss that has nothing to do with the sleeve. If you haven't already had a check-up with your surgeon, an internist or primary care doc, please do so. You can most certainly lose too much weight.

I think it is good that you are aware of your fear and vocalizing it, which minimizes the power on your psyche. In the past, my "fear" would actually lead me to derail my own success. With the band, I have more control over what I eat, and it gives me more time to grapple with negative feelings and to get past them. Whether we acknowledge it or not, fat layers do provide us a barrier between ourselves and others, even ourselves and the world at large. Personally, I felt a heavier weight "grounded" me; made me more "stable" and protected. Like I was afraid I would float away at a lower weight or something! Irrational, yes, but coming to terms with that has made me much more powerful in my own right. With less emphasis on my body, I spend more time looking inward. And I like that! Even though not many have replied here yet, I bet there are many, many of us who understand how you feel. Congrats on your success and to breaking through those scary feelings and settling into "you."

I feel so disappointed and lost in this whole process. I started this process in Sept 2013, met with the NP and nutritionist at the hospital that my insurance listed as one of their center of excellence. I did the blood work, went to the diet seminar. Got my instructions for pre and post op and all the paper work that is needed to be completed. I went to my doctor and gave in the paperwork to be filled in, did the psychiatrist evaluation in Oct, went to the hematologist dr n started back on my blood thinners bc I knew he won't clear me if I didn't cuz if a previous PE. I got a promotion in Nov and a new branch so I was so preoccupied with that that I kinda fell off with following up on the paper work at the dr office. I had to finish my six month diet anyways I started weight watchers June 2013 so I was almost done doing six months. Then in Jan my book with my stamps got wet and washed out (UGHHHH) so I emailed weight watchers and they sent me a email with all my weigh ins. My case manager nurse at United health care never returns calls so I got unenrolled in the program, I wanted my $1,000 incentives in my account to help with follow up apts. So I had to call and enroll again. Fast forward to July 14 I got my focus back to wls, call my dr office and asked about the paperwork and the office worker was like she is waiting on the dr etc etc n she is working on it. Months ago when I 1st started talking to my dr about wls he was like he would completely help me! So I know she was lying. So few days later after talking to my new nurse from UHC and got clarification about if they would accept the email with my weigh in dates n stuff, I call back my dr office and the girl is on vacation and her boss was like oh yes Mariza mailed the papers off last week. I was so happy!! So I call the hospital to check if they received anything and NOPE! So I waited and had to go by the office to pick up a prescription in Aug, I see Mariza and asked her about what they put on the diet form and she was like oh I still have the papers and was just going thru past months progress notes to help fill it out. My mouth dropped! All this time still Oct 13 she had the paper work n didn't do anything!!! I got mad but I'm the quiet sweet mad and just told her what my insurance said told her ill fax the papers myself and just give me the stuff. So I sat there while she typed of the letter n stuff but my dr was on vacation so had to wait a week for him to sign it. He got back on Aug 15 I called at 9am bright n early and had to keep in top of her to fax everything over. So August 15 I faxed over the paper work to both the insurance and hospital and was told 14 days so I had a countdown going was all excited! Called the hospital last week n they said they didn't submit yet cuz the nurse was still going over the psychology report. Ughhh lol. So I call UHC today cuz it's been "14" days and was told its under review and the case was just opened Aug 27th. So 14 days starts over again! Lol so I call my nurse from UHC to see if she has a answer but sadly no But I did find out the hospital submitted for the lapband n not the sleeve! Thank God I asked cuz I changed my mind since when I first talked to the hospital in 2013. But I thought u really decide when you meet with the surgeon themselves. So I had to call the hospital for them to resubmit for the sleeve! So they have to open another case n the countdown starts again. At 1st when I found out the hospital didn't submitted till last week I felt so disappointed that I was getting so excited n close to my "14" days n it was all for nothing. But I'm glad it happen because I would have gotten approved for the wrong procedure and would have to start again. So I called the hospital they going to call and change it and I have a appointment Oct 7th !! So hopefully I will get a date! So I'm just gonna focus on my upcoming trip to Costa Rica in 14 days instead. Sorry for the long post.. Just had to get it out!!

Hello everyone, I hope this is the right place to introduce myself. I had surgery on the 8th of January and am doing quite well actually. I've been battling my weight for just about all my life. A chubby baby and chunky adolescents. My first diet was at the age of 14 with Weight Watchers. My last successful diet was Low Carb. Which i would suppose wasn't all to successful since i opted for surgery. I chose the Sleeve procedure because of the lifestyle i was already use to. Low fat and low carb. The tools i learned with that went well with this tool "The Sleeve". I am almost 5 weeks out and 26 pounds down since surgery. My daily intake is protein first of course and chew chew chew. I was required by my surgeon to lose 10 lbs. through the holidays and was at surgery weight the day of surgery. I'm on track with my supplements and still working ever so diligently on my fluid intake. I usually hit the 64 oz mark but not always. My protein intake is good but still not at optimal. I find eating small meals through out the day is helping with that. I have to remind myself to eat because i generally don't have much of an appetite. I'm in it to win it! I look forward to meeting folks here and getting to know you. I'm sure i'll have plenty of questions for all the Vets here. Perhaps there's something i can share with you in return. Here's to all of us losers. Sincerely Sherri

Don't worry, you probably gained some muscle. Muscle does weigh more than fat. You may be loosing inches and that's great! I know how you feel. When I workout I usually don't loose weight, but I do loose inches and that can be very frustrating at times, when you don't see the scale go down. Just keep working out.

Wow I feel exactly the same way. Whenever I get compliments I feel very queasy and usually don't believe it. I assume the person just complimented me to "be nice" Makes me feel awkward and also since I don't really notice my weightloss it seems untrue/not possible. I still thank the complimenter but walk away uneasily from him/her I never really give weight compliments to other people because I assume it will make them uncomfortable

I have to chuckle, people say to me. WOW, I do not remember you being that (long pregnant pause) and I add "FAT"! Then they always say, no you weren't fat just bigger. Oh come on let's face it I was "FAT". and they were just too kind. I know I was fat, so I know they did. The main thing I get asked now is how did you lose all your weight and I smile and say, I eat healthy! What I really think is funny is the people who never say a word or turn around and walk off when people compliment me.

Hi - I'm 12 weeks post-op and have had no issues and am losing weight slow and steady. I couldn't be more pleased. Anyway, just a couple of days ago, I started experiencing an occasional sharp pain on my left side right around my waist level. It comes and goes. Last night it woke me up and this morning I had an episode while driving to work. Like I said, it is intermittent and doesn't last long but since I've never felt this kind of pain before, it has started to worry me. Anyone have anything like that?

I've been on Wellbutrin for awhile and actually lost weight at first, then I just stayed about the same. When my Dr. suggests a med change, she always tells me about the side-effects of the drugs she is considering. If there is any indication of weight gain, she tells me and we have decided to avoid those drugs, if at all possible. There are so many choices in drugs now, maybe your Dr. can find another one that will as well, but not cause weight gain.

Mine took 8 months and 2denilesa but my doc got it through accuses some how thank God and tomorrow is my surgery and I am scared I have failed so many times before I have to make this work for me I m so miserable and un healthy st the weight does everyone feel scared they wont succeed st this before they do it?

Hi, I've only been slowly walking on the treadmill for 30-35 minutes per day at about 2.8-2.9 mph (less than 1 mile), but I'm only 11 days out from surgery. My doc said that I could resume (real) exercise after 3 weeks, so I assume that would be fine. You should really just monitor it by how you feel while doing it, and if you feel that your body is handling it. You could also double check with your Dr.'s office. Caloriesperhour.com has a great walking (and activities) calculator. It will calculate how many calories you have burned, when you put in a few different variables, like, your weight, height, etc... Hope this helps!

I had surgery exactly one week ago and have lost 10 lbs. This is definitely the fastest I have ever or will ever lose weight. LOL It slows down from here big time. The first week after surgery should be called the Golden Week. Haha.

I started an excel workbook. Tab 1: 1) track weight loss per month versus my forecasted goal 2) track weight loss per week versus my forecasted goal 3) track BMI and current BMI ratings 4) track chest, arm and waist measurements per month versus my forecated goals 5) I chart via a contol charts to see if I'm loosing to much or gaining weight, so I can change what I eat to prevent any additional shifts. I'm a 6-sigma Black Belt geek. Tab 2: 1) track my clothing size per month versus my forecasted goals Whatever method you use, make sure you like tracking via that method or you might stop tracking.

It's brave of you to expose yourself and be honest about what's going on. If it were me, I wouldn't tell the doctor. I had an experience recently when I was 2 days before surgery and my doctor flipped out, mainly because I didn't know to stop NSAIDS but also because I told him I had a bite of a brownie. In my case, the NSAIDS was certainly a problem, and surgery would have to be postponed a week. But his flip-out was so bad that I wasn't sure I wanted him be my surgeon. Doesn't sound like you've done all that much to be beating yourself up. And you have a whole week to turn that around. I feel for you about even doing a week-long pre-op. My plan, this second time around, is to do the absolute best I can. My doctor will know by my weight loss whether I've been dieting. You can't reduce your eating drastically and not lose weight. There are two things you should do. One is stop beating yourself up. The other is use periods to end a sentence. It's hard to figure out what you're saying when all the words run together. Good luck. Do your best, and think twice about "true confessions."

I had a plethora of NSVs this week that I totally didn't even realize! It's probably a good thing since the scale hasn't been moving much (almost 5 weeks out). I need any kind of victory I can get! 1. went off the (low) diving board at a public pool for the first time in years! I have a torn meniscus and was always afraid I wouldn't be able to get up the ladder. I also had fears of snapping the board in half! lol 2. I went out to dinner for the first time since being allowed real food and stayed on the plan. I actually went out twice, got chicken once and seafood once (all baked or grilled)... had maybe two bites of the accompanying mashed potatoes and rice (forgot to substitute my sides). 3. Went out bar-hopping with college friends and didn't drink a single drop of alcohol! These friends do not know about surgery and I want to keep it that way for the time being. I had to get very creative since there were many toasts to the newly engaged friend and to my weight loss (ha ha- the irony). An 8oz bottle of Water fit great in my purse for my trips to the bathroom! lol 4. I actually went to bars both nights this weekend and made it home without stopping for fast food. I used to be the queen of 4th meal- Taco Bell, Wendys, McDs. I was ssoooo tempted (this was the hardest NSV) on my way home because I was actually hungry. Instead, last night when I came home I had a few salami roll-ups and tonight had some milk. 5. I finally joined My Fitness Pal and started tracking my food. It's definitely not as difficult or time-consuming as I expected (the reason I put it off). 6. I went to see my psychologist for the first time since surgery. I was seeing her long before surgery and she was actually the biggest advocate of this for me and facilitated the discussion with my mom because I was too terrified. Anyway... she didn't recognize me! Legitimately, she wasn't just saying that. I was wondering why she didn't say hi to me when I saw her sitting outside the building! Whoo hoo! As always, thanks for all the support! Love this place!

Yay!! NSVs are so much fun =) It's amazing how much the weight loss really improves our lives. You are doing so great!

Just googled it, and darned if you aren't right, RNY patients have a higher incident of alcohol abuse than banders. http://www.webmd.com/diet/weight-loss-surgery/news/20121015/addiction-risk-weight-loss-surgery

I think it must be hard to be at goal! I mean think about when we've lost the weight before. There was always an end to the diet right? Done, finished, normal, carry on,

Thank you! I was always a skinny kid and was a skinny teenager but always saw myself as fat. It wasn't until many years later that I realized I was never overweight until I started to gain weight in my 20's. I have tried many diets over the years and failed. I'm sure most of you can understand that. Anyway, one of my biggest fears has been that this won't work either. I used to work with someone who had lapband and the only weight she ever really lost was what she lost on her pre-op diet which was a low-carb atkins type diet. I understand I'm going to have to work hard for this to work too but I've learned a lot throughout the process of getting approved for my band and I can honestly say that I think it's going to be a huge help for me. I've learned to make better choices. I've learned a lot about portion control. I've learned to make my Snacks count. What makes things difficult for me right now(or at least prior to starting my liquid pre-op diet) is that with the smaller food portions, I always feel hungry. I never have that feeling of satiety that we all desire and THAT makes it difficult to stick to a meal plan. So once I have my band and have had enough fills to get me to the green zone, I think it will get easier.

Good thought Jayson... Think of the Rx as another card in your "deck". You will need to work with your docs to balance everything, but this WON'T eliminate your ability to lose weight.

I have bcbs of al. I called bcbs and talked to them to see if it would cover my lapband and they told me if I met all the qualifications that they had listed on the website they would pay for it 100 percent and all I would have to pay was for the Hospital fee of $100.00. I went through the weight loss program for 7months without skipping a month and my surgery had to be within a year from my weight loss appointments. I had to prove that I have had a BMI over 40 for the past 3 years or 35 with medical related issues that required medications. I could only prove 2 of the 3 years so I had to send in a picture of myself for the year that I didn't go to the doctor to prove my weight. I think that is all I had to do and they approved me the first try. I used Dr. Dewitt at Princeton Baptist Hospital in Birmingham. Do you know why you was denied?