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Hi, I have a bmi of 32,off on holiday next week so it is bound to rise over the two weeks away, my question is this,is there any way I can get a sleeve with this bmi, Ive been offered the band but really don't want it as there seems so many complications and horror stories Would it help my case if my mum and two sisters have developed type 2 diabetes and my dad has had to have a quadruple heart bypass? Anyone had the sleeve in uk with lower bmi and who did you go with? Any advice greatly welcomed x

I had severe nausea the first two days after surgery. After that, none. In fact, I only take my nausea meds to help me sleep at night. I'm one week post op, so next Monday 12/9 I'll transition to puréed and see how I do! Katy W- Louisburg, NC Lapband revision to VSG with DS HW- 297 Weight at Surgery-279 CW- will update at two week appt

That is what I felt (I'm only 2 weeks out so I still remember it vividly). I have had anxiety/panic disorder for the last 20 years give or take, so I kind of knew what to expect. In my case, I asked the anesthesiologist beforehand if I could take Xanax before I arrived at the facility, to which they told me I could, so long as I took it 2 hours before my arrival time. Doing so made the pre-knocked-out part 1 million times better than normal for me. Otherwise, I would try to distract yourself and do some fun things that you won't be able to do for the first couple of weeks. Take a walk, country drive, go boating, go to the movies... basically anything that you enjoy that will not cause you to get "hurt" (Allergies, etc.) before the surgery. I'm sure everything will go fine, but I will pray for you tonight!

Hi, as you might have read, my name is Carmen. I am a mother of two, a 13 year old daughter, and a 9 year old son. Currently after 15 years working I am taking a break to continue my education. I am an EMT, and I am going to school for cosmetology. I been in the retail industry all my life. When I became and EMT, it was one if my great accomplishments, I was very happy. I started to work for a busy system in the City of Syracuse, and I was doing OK. At the end of my 15 hour days, I was in serious pain, but i got up every morning at 4am to go to work and do it all over again. But the pain got worst, i was barely able to stand on my feet less carry a heavy bag with an oxygen tank. I took a medical leave to address my condition. Resulting that I have arthritis on my back and my knees are deteriorating and I have tendinitis on my wrist. Anyone with arthritis now that pain only gets worst and it never gets better, I started taking medications for the pain that wouldn't allow me to drive the ambulance in the state. So I had to extend my leave indefinitely. My neck started to hurt, along with my ankles, and even so I decided to start going to school for cosmetology more standing up and more wrist work, What was I thinking? I figure I need to continue working on something I like doing but I want to make more for my work, and I want to work when I want to ( when not in pain). Anyways Its been a journey I am half way my journey (http://bbgbeauty.blogspot.com). My brother ended up in the hospital, also my mother. My brother had developed sleepanea, a sleeping disorder mostly on obese people. He weight at almost 600 pounds. He had let himself go. He was in the hospital for many months until he was able to get out he now weights around 550. He can barely walk, or breathe he ended up with a tracheal tube for life or until he gets his weight under control. Now my mother is battling her foot to diabetes in the hospital and they ha to amputate all her toes. I go trough a lot with them and finally get them into my home and they doing a little better. But its far from over, my mom goes again more times to the hospital and still struggling to keep her leg now in top of everything my boyfriend ends up in the emergency room because of his diabetes. I said to my self no more... I decided I am not going to end up like them, to this date I don't have diabetes, I might be in the border of Sleepanea, I might already have it. I don't have high cholesterol but my blood pressure is very high and I take medications for these. I talk to them about loosing weight and that we could do it together, they seem reluctant to the idea of eating less and healthier. I guess I am on my own right now. Each person's health is their own decision. My mom is somewhat supportive, she "tried to keep me under control with sweats" and by trying i mean she waves them in front of me and says resist the temptations! lol . My boyfriend has gone so far to the info group and support groups in the area for me and have allow me to expend a little extra on healthy foods. We all know that healthy food is more expensive... but thats another topic. So I went to the information group to gather information about the Gastric Bypass Surgery, and I have learn a lot. I also went online to research, and I been to support groups in the area. I filled my paperwork and submitted to the surgeons. I am awaiting a date to start the process. It should be this week. They called me last week but I was missing my doctors referral, which hopefully they faxed today. I been on a diet on my own so i can gradually start my transition to better eating. Its been hard. I am limited to 1,400 calories a day, witch is not much compared to what I was eating before. its like torture, to the point that I don't want to leave my room into the world because everything is food, advertised, in commercials, int he internet, on games, in my kitchen, my family and kids, across the street next door, its everywhere, the temptations are all there, its worst than drugs. And for someone that has been big since a child, and never been restricted on what I can eat because my motto was, "I am going to die anyways might as well die happy" Well, i rather die happy but not suffering restricted to a bed or not able to enjoy life. I want to be able to fit in the roller coaster so when my daughter goes in a date I can follow her and get in the same rides as her and her boyfriend. I want to be able to fit on normal clothes and spend $20 less on a shirt. I want to be able to run after my future grand kids, I want to be able to have a snore free sleep, and wake up energized, I don't want to be afraid of a stroke or diabetes. I want to keep all my limbs, I want to be able to work and make money! I want to be able to wash the dishes with less pain on my back and knees, and I want to be able to go back to being a great EMT and live a long healthy life. And more than anything I want to go to my birth country and shove it on their faces that I was able to loose weight and I ams till beautiful as I was before. So this is why I decided to do the gastric bypass. Even thou a lot of people say you can do it without the surgery, I might... but YES i am opting for the easier way, where I will have less chance of failure. Once my stomach is smaller, I will able to be full with less food thus being different from now, that I eat less but i am still hungry. And I don't care if people don't agree with me on doing this surgery, it my decision, and if I am weak for doing it, so be it. Pre-Operation: Currently I weight 280 pounds I lost 3 pounds in 2 weeks. Here are some of my current pics, They are gross, but I want you to have an idea of the real situation and have a visual concept of my progress.

from what I've been told......... plan to take 2 weeks off work for a desk job and 4 if you have to do a lot of manual labor.

I took 2 weeks and I am a Secretary.

Dear Dr. Watkins: Thanks for the clear and informative post on the viability of the stomach post GPS. I am sure to be aFUTURE patient, as I have read enough now that I am letting my insurance approval for the lap band go unused and saving money for the surgery. As I prepare, by educating myself, three burning questions have come to mind about long-term GPS which are somewhat related to this post, and others may also be interested to know: 1. If my stomach is folded in on itself indefinitely, is there any chance of the folded up part growing bacteria, or getting an infection or peritinitis from being all folded up??? Say... could food get stuck in those folded up parts and fester??? I read this somewhere, and hope its not true. 2. If my stomach is folded up indefinitely, what if I ever needed to find out if I had cancer... would an MRI be able to "see through" the folds??? Hope this never happens, but it did cross my mind. 3. Some woman on the Lap Band site claims that GPS is the a "modern version of stomach stapling," and that after time, there will be leaks and cracks and horrible consequences as we get older. While I realize this surgery is still experimental, wasn't it done in Greece for a number of years? Has that terrible result actually happened to anybody??? And... why arent' more doctors doing this? It is so cool. Thank you kindly, I am so glad they put up this site as information is hard to find.

I still have 1 teaspoon of sugar in my coffee every day. I couldn't find a sweetener that I liked so I've been drinking it this way since day 1 post op & my NUT is fine with that. I'm 18 weeks post op & I've lost 58 lbs. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Hi all. I am 7 weeks post op and looking for a veteran sleeve buddy that I can vent, ask questions, and share stories with. Would prefer someone in Michigan.

Hang in there-- I have gained and lost the same 2# for the past 3 weeks.. I am frustrated .. My biggest problem is lack of exercise. I did FINALLY start a Water walking program AGAIN. Our weather has been soooo rainy, snowy & crappy, they my mobility was the pits.. I was using the stupid walker AGAIN!!!! As I sit here typing I am nursing a Protein shake (and drooling at the smell of my grandsons pancakes.)

I did a 10 hour flight back to the UK 10 days after my op, so I'm sure you'll be fine on just a domestic one (I flew domestically 3 days after my op).

Went to my post-op appt today and the Dr moved me on to stage 3 which is a big relief for me I can deal with things here soooooo much better!!!

At 3 plus months I learned it comes Bigger, Better and more often. Lol Poop that is!

Hi there - I was banded 5/30 and on full liquids for a few more days. Here's what I'm allowed to have: Protein shakes (at least 2, up to 4) SF popsicles SF Jello skim milk 4 oz of light OJ, prune juice, or V8 juice broth "strained soups" with "no particles" - I have interpreted this to mean tomato soup, pacific brand creamy tomato, V8 brand potato and leek soup, and campbell's broccoli cheddar, which I emulsified with a hand-held blender. My instructions say the soups should have no meat. on day 9 post-op, I can add the following: creamy soups (still no meat or chunks) LF cottage cheese baby food pureed fruits and vegetables then 3 days after that comes the pureed/mushy phase -

OK thanks I have an appointment set up for 2 weeks I'll keep track and bring it in. Thank you Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using the BariatricPal App

If you suspect you are pregnant, make sure you are taking your vitamins and getting balanced nutrition (which is probably currently better than you were eating before). Then, call your Dr immediately. I don't want to scare you, but I was just reading last night that nutrition-related birth defects occur in the first two weeks of pregnancy, which is why it is so important to plan your pregnancies, and if you THINK you may be pregnant, see your Dr immediately. Don't wait. Let us know how you make out!

Man I'm seven weeks out and caught the flu. I'm having the hardest time getting liquids in even worse i have absolutely no desire to put food in my mouth. This is just terrible! Prayers needed that I get better soon. Thanks guys!

I say go for it! The first week is hard because you're weaning yourself off from carbs but by the second week you should be in the swing of things. This way the week before your surgery you won't be so miserable from craving all the carbs. Plus, if you do it for 2 weeks, you'll lose more weight and you'll be closer to your goal! I didn't have a pre-op diet but from the time between my initial consultation/decision to get the band and the date of my surgery was actually 5 months so I used it to my advantage and did Atkins and lost 60lbs! I love how I feel when I get rid of the carbs and I figured the more I lost then, the less I'd have to lose later. It was one of the best decisions! Good luck with your surgery!

I started this in the Post-op forum, but realize it migh be better over here. I don't know how I did this. For the first two weeks I was on Clear liquids and stuck to it except for a couple times when I had some mashed potatoes or a blended Soup. I'm supposed to be on full liquids until the 8th and then mushies. I just felt so good I started eating solids, albeit very healthy ones. I have lost 30 pounds all together (18 post-op) and hit a stall at 3 weeks that seems to have broken today after I went down a pound. THE QUESTION: Should I go a step back and go back totally on full liquids? It doesn't seem like cream Soups are all that healthy, but I still do cottage cheese and yogurt every day. Cucumber gave me pause, but broccoli, carrots, squash and Beans are fine. In fact, there is nothing I can't seem to eat so far. eggs, cheese, chicken, pork, beef, fish - all fine. I didn't do this flippantly, It just seemed to feel normal. I go between 550-650 calories a day. Here is a day's menu: Total 591 Cals. 22.7 Fat (g) 28.9 Carbs (g) 69.3 Protein (g) Milk, 2% fat 6 oz MaxProteinVanilla 1 serving Tuna, fresh raw 3 oz Somersaults Pacific Sea Salt 1/2 serving (Low carb, high protein cracker things) Cheese, cottage, lowfat, 2% 1/4 cup Cucumber 5 slices Cheese,Blue 1/8 cup Cheese,Ricotta 1/8 cup Salami,dry 1 slice P.S. The Salami and riccota cheese is an Eggface recipe in which you take a slice of salami, put it into a mini muffin pan and fill it with ricotta cheese seasoned with spices and topped with a tiny bit of mozzerella cheese. They are savory little protein cupcakes that are to die for. I made mine smaller and cut the egg yolk. The greek yogurt and gorganzolla or blue cheese is another Eggface recipe. It makes a great dip. Everything she makes is geared with protein in mind. If you dip your meats or veggies, you may as well do it high protein instead of using commercial dressings or sauces.

Yep, great advice here. I didn't feel real restriction until mushies. I also didn't lose any weight in the first few weeks - I gained from the IV and long flights. It took a while to lose that. If you haven't heard it by now, make sure you're on a PPI that works well for you. It comes up so often because SO many of us experienced those hunger feelings and didn't realize it was acid until much later. It feels exactly like hunger and a lot of us have a freak out when it starts to be an issue. I thought my sleeve didn't work but in reality my Nexium wasn't cutting it and I needed to switch to Prilosec. The "hunger" disappeared two days later. I'm a slow loser. There are other folks on these boards that are super slow losers. Guess what? We're still losing. The fact is that this isn't a race and there's no prize for getting to goal faster than anyone else. Unless you give up completely, you're going to lose weight with this surgery. I'm learning that it doesn't really matter if you do it in 9 months or 19 months...you're going to love life at goal. The early weeks are the hardest. Hang in there. ~Cheri

I am almost 5 weeks out and still have the tummy noises.

My hair stopped falling out at month 9, about the time I hit a normal BMI; I have no idea if the two are related. It started at about 12 weeks and I lost a lot, not bald but very thin in spots. Now it's all a couple of inches long.

I was totally exhausted after my surgery for about 6 weeks - the more protein I got in the less exhausted I felt - also started taking vitamins and that helped, too.

I am 3 weeks post op and just started puréed (refried beans, egg, etc) and having a bit of difficulty getting them down. I wasn't allowed that type of food at 1 week post op. your sleeve is still healing so you might wanna try and stick with protein shakes and liquids until the swelling goes down.