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Hey Vicky, I was sleeved 10/23. I had the nausea real bad too and still do if I take my vitamin. Tomorrow I get to start the soup phase, so I will retry the vitamins then. Nothing is worse than nausea, imho NOTHING. So sorry you are going through that. My surgeon prescribed me chewable nausea pills, and even suppositories if it got bad. I haven't turned to those yet and do not intend to, lol. But if yours is that bad, there are more options/help for you and you should call and ask for something better for relief. Hang in there, my friend!!!!!

The ghouls and goblins don't just knock on your door yelling "Trick Or Treat"! They sometimes reside in the so-called "Customer Service" departments of health insurers, proving on a daily basis that they are not interested in their Customers and not usually capable of providing Service. We thought some of these stories, and we have oodles of them, made for an appropriately ghastly Halloween blog. Make sure you read all the way to the end so you can see what the Devil has in store for some of these folks in the insurance industry! "I don't have to give you any information about your appeal!" While this particular horror story involved an Aetna appeal years ago, problems like this happen all the time and we still can substitute the name of nearly every other major insurer for Aetna and have a similar tale to tell. Kelley was following up on an appeal we filed and was requesting confirmation that things were in process and inquiring about the status. The "Customer Service" person simply refused to provide any information despite confirming were the appealing patient's representative. So what......she just wasn't going to give any information to our office. Many reading this will know how incredibly nice Kelley is. If you don't know her then you can be certain her reputation for patience in matters like this is beyond dispute. Since this representative obviously wasn't going to budge Kelley calmly requested to speak to a supervisor. That's when things got interesting. The representative refused to transfer the call, stating the issue "did not rise to the level of involving a manager." A full thirty minutes later, after repeatedly demanding to speak with a supervisor and ultimately threatening to file a complaint with the Massachusetts Department of Insurance, Kelley was finally transferred to a Supervisor's voicemail, who got an earful of "message" from our office concerning what occurred. Kelley suggested the Supervisor listen to the recording of her exchange with the service representative because (don't forget) "this call may be recorded for quality assurance purposes." When the Supervisor called Kelley back she profusely apologized and confirmed the customer service personnel are required to transfer the member to a supervisor immediately upon request and that the representative was way out of line. The happy ending to the story is ultimately that Aetna approved the RNY gastric bypass that was the subject of our appeal! "I'm sorry but you don't have any right to appeal or obtain an IRO of this denial." There are some insurers who try to eliminate patient rights to appeal, especially appeals occurring before the surgery takes place. Some denials are labeled as coming from "courtesy reviews" with no appeals available. (I personally find it interesting they use the term "courtesy review" when they rarely do much of a "review" and hardly ever show any "courtesy" . . . but I digress. . . .) BCBS of Alabama is among a number of payers who sometimes try to bar appeals. It is very rare that appeals are not available prior to having surgery so don't just accept their statements as being true. We know when they are playing games and most of the time companies (like BCBS of Alabama) end up processing the appeal and when (shock of shocks) they tell us the member appeal was denied, we request an "external review." BCBS of Alabama, of course, has an unusually high level of incompetence so we should not have been shocked their response was that the member actually did not have external review available because the denial we received resulted from (you guessed it) a "courtesy review." Unbelievable! Enter Kelley (you'd think these companies would know better) who spoke to 2 different Supervisors about the situation, each of whom provided her with different (yet both still INCORRECT) stories about the nature of the member's rights. After spending one hour and 10 minutes on the phone Kelley was finally transferred to an "Operations Manager" who was truly horrified at what occurred. She immediately initiated an expedited IRO request and 7 days later our client was approved! When the dust cleared Kelley and the Operations Manager had a conversation and she again apologized for all the misinformation which was conveyed and assured us that they were using this case as a "teaching example" for their customer service personnel. "You didn't think that just because we APPROVED your surgery after your appeal we're actually going to PAY for it too, did you?!?" It can be truly horrifying for the physician and facility to not get paid after successfully getting an approval. Worse still are patients like us who fear getting HUGE bills even though we thought everything was settled after "winning" a pre-surgery appeal. This can happen, usually when the maze of insurance company Departments fail to update their systems to show things were approved. We sometimes need to go back to a payer, even after a successful appeal, and re-start the battle. It can time time, patience and knowledge to successfully navigate the insurer's system to get this fixed. Fortunately every time this happens we have gotten these claim denials resolved and re-processed for payment before the providers and patients turn into angry villagers storming Frankenstein's castle to chase these Monsters for the payment they are due. So as I wish everyone a safe and happy Halloween, I offer special greetings (and a warning) to insurance company executives and their customer service representatives who seemingly delight in making patients and providers miserable. They need to stop now. A number of years ago, at the Obesity Action Coalition's first Your Weight Matters conference, my costume included a button warning those in the insurance industry who do not change their ways. . .Hopefully they listen! HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

Good evening sleevers, my surgery date was June 14th and I’ve lost 78lbs so far. I haven’t introduced myself to rice potatoes not bread YET. I was wearing a size 22 and today I brought a size 10. I’m super happy but frustrated that my pouch doesn’t like much. I still have a problem with salads, chicken, and salmon. I mostly eat ground turkey, beans, oatmeal, nuts, eggs, bacon and protein bars. photo on the left is my work ID that was taken last July. Photo on the right was taken two weeks ago.

Man! I'm down only 30 lbs PO. I've been fighting the same 3 lbs up and down for 10 weeks. Probably time to call my NUT, but last time in I was doing everything "right". :/ I've added in 4 days a week of an hour of crossfit. I'm up to 900 cals, keeping carbs under 50 g and fat under 30 g, and protein over 80 g. Water is probably around 80 oz, not inc my shake.

I had my surgery 5 weeks ago. I am down a total of 24 lbs but in that time I lost most of it in the first 2 weeks, then stalled the 3rd week and week 4 lost close to 10 lbs. In the last week I have lost nothing again. I am doing everything the way I was instructed. I drink fluids, get 60-80 grams of protein daily, take my vitamins and am slowly incorporating solids into my diet. I do not eat anything I shouldn't. Mainly protein, veggies and fruit once a day. I make my own protein shakes. I cannot work out due to having severe spinal stenosis and degenerative disc disease in my lower back. I cannot walk for long periods of time. I was told I can swim but not until after I go for my post op appointment in 2 weeks. I do some resistance training with rubber bands on my arms and legs. Is it normal to stop losing?

https://www.forbes.com/sites/alicegwalton/2014/03/04/the-protein-puzzle-meat-and-dairy-may-significantly-increase-cancer-risk/#39c8a2bc58b7 Note that in this article: A high-protein diet was defined as getting 20% of one’s daily calories coming from protein, a moderate-protein diet is made up of 10-19% calories from protein, and a low-protein diet consists of less than 10% protein.

My team allows up to 6 meals per day to meet my protein goals. I'm eating every 2.5 - 3 hours. I'm 10 weeks post op and can make my protein goals much easier by having many little meals. I'm slowly reducing total meals and increasing serving sizes, but 2 - 4 oz us all I can handle. Take your time, find what works best for you.

Who is going into the soup stage? Sleeved 10/23 and tomorrow is the big day for something besides a gross protein shake. What do you have figured out for soups? Any easy homemade ones?

yes, you will be able to have it, your body may not like it anymore as I'm learning (10 weeks post today). Things I used to love and crave, my body rejects. which isn't all that bad because it will keep me away from those naughty yummies

Just reporting in. I had my surgery 10/15. My doctor did it through my navel as I requested and I will have no scars or marks (I know they are tiny anyway). I spent 2 nights in the hospital and a very painful first week. The second week I worked from home and resumed some activities like washing my hair and being human. I'm tolerating lots of foods like mushed avocado, mashed potato, hummus, yogurt, and protein drinks. And since I know a lot of people wonder about going back to work, 2 weeks later I am at my desk job, tired but doing fine. My only stall far was constipation related, I think. Considering all we go through to do this, I think I see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Hey guys, So first a quick update - Just celebrated my 10 month surgiversary on Saturday and made my 1st weight goal, which was 140. Currently at 139.7 and probably aiming for 135 before settling down into maintenance mode - yes I could aim lower at my height, but don't love the sagging skin that is starting & won't likely be able to have any cosmetic surgery. Plus, given my health issues, I feel - and my docs agree - that this is a realistic goal to maintain. Can't believe this time last year I was scheduling my surgery and taking out a loan and researching, researching, researching! Seems so long ago and also that it has flown by at the same time ; ) Have a few other victories to celebrate such as total inches lost so far over 42" when added together from biceps, bust, waist, hips, thighs & calves - so that is exciting! I tend to think of myself as "Droopy-Drawers" now, but I guess that's ok. Also out of plus sizes finally, which makes me so happy. Much more active now, both in and out of the gym - doing things around the house & yard I haven't done in a long, long time. Still dealing with all my back & chronic pain, but at least I'm able to DO more! Bloodwork is good except still a little low on the iron - continuing to work on that one. Hair could be better but I knew that was a strong risk and am praying it will start growing back soon. All in all it has been a great journey & totally worth it - that part w/o a doubt! Anyway, the reason for my post - have just started having this pinching sensation lately when bending over or leaning forward. It is in the area of the incision on my left side but the one closer to my belly button than my side - the one up about midway (not the little one under diaphragm area). It's not excruciating but is like a sharp pinch, and has been pretty much daily for the past week I guess. If I were earlier out post-op I would say it felt like being poked by a stitch or maybe popping one - but I would certainly hope that wouldn't be the case at 10 months. Has anyone else had a similar sensation this far out, and if so, did it go away on its own or did you ever find out what it was? Just wondering if I should be concerned...

I tested positive for H-pylori, so I am on day 10 of 14 days of medication (20 pills per day UGH). I asked the nurse if this was going to slow things down or change the plan and she said no. As of now, I have my psych evaluation November 6th., Pre-Op educational meeting at the hospital November 20th, and my pre-op appointment with the doctor on December 6th. The only thing they haven't scheduled yet is my EGD. If I haven't heard from them by the end of the week I am going to call 1st thing Monday morning. It's getting close! Hope everyone is doing well and is on pace to have surgery still in December.

Thanks for the concern. The symptoms actually passed about 10 minutes after I posted and I feel fine now. I plan on sharing the episode with my doctor at my next appointment.

I did the same thing. I am scheduled for the 8th. I am on day 4 of PreOp diet and it should be day 5, but when i woke this morning after 3 days I was already down 10 pounds.

I just love seeing all the Holiday-time surgeries getting booked. A lot of Good people starting 2019 off in A Good Way!

Saw my surgeon today and got my date. 17th Jan. Lapband removal, possible hiatus hernia repair and revision to RNY

Hi there! I'm 3 months into my 6 month supervised plan, so we should be having surgery around the same time! I was just given a surgery date of Feb 5th 2019 this week. I also cannot lose any weight - my insurance doesn't go by just the starting weight either. I am at 36 BMI right now, and the cut off is 35 with co-morbidities. The nurse told me this weight in that I need to make sure I do not lose ANY weight. I've been eating 1300 calories or less and walking 10,000 steps daily for 3 years now and haven't lost any weight (due to ploycystic ovarian syndrome) - I think I'll be fine, LOL.

I haven't bought anything - I only just got my surgery date and it's at the beginnng of Feb 2019. BUT, I have started making a sweater in a size 34 chest. Let me explain, I'm a knitwear designer, and I have to make the samples for the designs I publish, to be photographed for the front of the pattern. 34" is the norm, and it's not easy to find models locally. Today, I started a sample in a size 34" in a beautiful olive green that I know will suit my colouring, with the intention that I will model it myself for the pattern pictures. I am only a 38B bust right now, but that's because I had a breast reduction 5 years ago. I used to be a 44H. I may as well be bigger than I am, because my belly sticks out furhter than my boobs at this point. Not loving the eternal 9 months pregnant look, have to say. I have always been too embarrassed to model my own designs. I am hoping that by this time next year I'll be a 34B, with the rest in proportion, and I can save myself a lot of time and money and angst looking for models. It will be such a proud moment for me, I can't even express how much.

ok my opinion - that and 3 bucks still wont get you a Starbucks coffee do not stop your meds without medical supervision if you have to choose between mental stability and being thin choose metal stability. i dont think you have to choose but if it comes down to just those 2 options choose mental health. you will take longer to get there but you have the rest of your life to finish this race. eat the 3 walls of the grocery store - veggies , meats , dairy nothing from the middle isles as harsh as that sounds it really is that simple - dont consume processed carbs sugar under 10 grams per day carbs (from veggies) under 50 grams per day all other calories from protein and fat whatever mix works for you. if you dont eat sugar and processed carbs the calorie count will fall by default. all the bad slider foods and liquid calories are covered by no sugar and no processed carbs with a total carb cap of 50g per day. you can then work to a 16/8 eating cycle and use ketosis during the 18 hours of fasting to help nudge you along despite the meds messing with your body chemistry and this one will be the most unpopular of all - NO FRUIT if your not losing weight as a side note i believe some if not most of that 6 pounds you gained was water. it takes 24,000 extra calories to gain 6 pounds of fat and i just dont see that happening in a month. water and fat are not the same and the water weight can go just as fast as it came but the fat is much harder to burn up. please dont give up. post WLS is mostly a mind game so keeping yourself happy and positive is the best medicine.

I’m 27 and had surgery on 10-16. I have a 6 year old and I wanted to be able to live longer and enjoy life with her. Don’t be embarrassed.

CW 227 GW 140 I'm 42. I lost 10 lbs on liquid diet. I'm having a VSG Sent from my SM-N960U using BariatricPal mobile app

Good luck with your procedure April Marie. Mine is tomorrow morning at 7:30 10/29. I'm so excited my day has finally come. I'm ready to start my new journey Sent from my SM-N960U using BariatricPal mobile app

Hey ladies and gents... Can you please post your before and after pictures for some encouragement... Feeling a little nervous but a good nervous... Good Luck to all doing their surgeries, here's to better health, getting off meds(like myself), and bringing 2019 with a bang Sent from my 5049Z using BariatricPal mobile app

Hello, I'm new and my surgery is in 2 days. Excited and nervous. I'm 40 and my surgery is 10/30/18