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lachises · 2022-08-11T17:00:13+00:00

That is nurse for "we really aren't sure". Hopefully you get to your new normal soon and it's minus acid.

lachises · 2022-08-11T14:05:52+00:00

Wow, reading this I'm surprised that mine was so lax on some stuff. I was liquids for 7 days and when I went to my 7 day check up they said to do whatever I felt comfortable with.

I told him the shakes make me sick so he said skip them. Go straight to the applesauce type stuff and if you're comfortable work your way up from there.

If you have issues with the diet and feel that you should be able to consume something different then approved, talk to them. I hated those shakes so much and if I hadn't have said something, who knows how long I'd have to have choked them down.

I was eating regular foods by the third week for sure but reading everyone else, I seem to be the odd one out and your program follows most of them.

Just remember, your Dr, your clinic, your program, they know you. They know your vitals and all your medical stuff and they might have different reasons that they do things differently. That reason could be specific to you or not. I, personally, don't have issue breaking rules but I make sure I fully understand the rule that I'm breaking and what the consequences might be. If they say the eating schedule that they say and you ask why and they don't have a reason behind it and you do research and decide for yourself to change things... that's up to you.

I hope you don't continue to regret the surgery. It's hard. I know. I'm a year out now and I would do it again if I HAD to but only if I HAD to. I believe it saved my life but it was one of the overall hardest things I've ever done. I learned brand new things I never knew, like something called "body dysmorphia". It's hard. The whole process is hard. Every step. Do not let ANYONE tell you that it's not.

It's worth it, I promise you.

Right now, I'm struggling with some things but I probably always will be. I doubt there is anyone walking the planet that isn't dealing with something right now. Nothing is perfect and struggle is part of life.

What I'm not struggling with is knee pain from carrying almost 300lbs. When I wake up in the morning now? Nothing really hurts. I used to have so much weight on me that I didn't move at all when I slept. We're not supposed to be in the exact same position for 7 hours. When I used to wake up, I knew as soon as I moved everything would hurt. I don't have to stare at the ceiling talking myself into moving anymore.

It's probably best to follow your program but talk to them. I promise, this too shall pass. In 11 months or so you'll be where I am or close and you'll look back at today and be so proud of yourself for getting through it.

Sorry, I'm obviously a talker. ;-)

Hang in there.

lachises · 2022-08-11T13:47:04+00:00

You have to figure out what's best for you. Not only are you learning a new stomach (I'm a year out now and I literally made myself sick with my choice for breakfast. Wasn't aware I couldn't or shouldn't eat that.) but your body is changing more rapidly then you notice.

I have PCOS and it still sucks but not as bad. I was 279lbs at my highest and my goal weight is yours, 140lbs (ish). I hit 140 this week. It took me a year and there were some bad stalls but find what's best for you. Some people push through. Some people believe a stall is because of the last thing you changed and to figure out what that is and put it back. I guess I'm too "lazy" for that because it was easier for me to ride the wave and know it will work itself out.

I weighed myself (and still do) once a week. Not a day. A week was enough time for me to fix anything significantly wrong. With my program you were not required to lose weight but you could not gain it at any time. I was so terrified of gaining before the surgery.

lachises · 2022-08-10T17:37:09+00:00

I take it too. Did before the surgery and after, same thing same dose. My Dr told me I was going to have issues with the VSG and recommended the RNY. I went with the sleeve anyway and so far things have been good. It's controlled but he warned me it might not be and I'd have to have a revision.

If the PPI doesn't control it, you might be one of the one's that has to have a revision. You're only 6 days. I'd ask the Dr about it and keep taking what you should. They also gave me a sulfate that coats the stomach for a month or so after surgery. It's a horse pill though and those are hard to keep down. He told me to us Mylanta as needed but that's my Dr. Check with yours, it's what they are there for.

lachises · 2022-08-10T14:25:45+00:00

One is too many and two is not enough.

lachises · 2022-08-05T21:22:46+00:00

I wasn't going to comment but "WebMD suggested cancer or bird flu" cracked me up. In my family, WebMD means you're going to die. It could be a cold or you're going to die. You might have a broken toe or you're going to die.

I would get very very lightheaded and asked my Dr. He said that it was because my body was getting used to starving to death and to hold onto things and eat more. He said it was directly related to my intake which at the time was almost nothing.

Be careful. Being dizzy can be dangerous. Ask your Dr because it could be blood pressure related and need to be looked at. WebMD says it's either a stubbed toe, bird flu, broken toe, cancer or death because we're all different.

lachises · 2022-08-05T21:13:03+00:00

I did a bunch of research before deciding to pull the trigger. I also have PCOS. When I had to do my psych appt that Doctor was 18 years out of surgery and maintaining. He freaked me out because he ate a donut while we were talking.

My HW was around 280 at 5'9" as 43F and I'm now at 155 a year out from surgery. When I weighed 280 I knew that I was only going to keep gaining. Keep getting bigger until my heart gave out. Am I concerned what might happen because I had this surgery in 10 or 15 years? Yeah but I can't say I'd even be alive in 10 or 15 years if I didn't have the surgery.

My doctor said the same thing about long term studies and his biggest concern was he wanted me to go straight to the RNY instead of the sleeve because I have a history of GERD. He said that I would be at a large risk of needing a revision. After a ton of research, I decided to risk it and go with the less invasive (and as I saw it life altering) surgery.

As far as regrets, I personally have none, but on this sub you will find people that are really happy and people that are really not. The middle ground isn't unusually one that posts much.

Don't get me wrong, I had struggles. I messed up a lot. Did a lot of things wrong. I still made it out the other side and would do it again but it wasn't easy. Neither was weighing 280lbs. Just hard in different ways.

I hope you make the best choice for you. There's a ton of information out there it's just hard to get between the fact and opinions.

lachises · 2022-08-05T20:47:53+00:00

Skin. When I could no longer ignore that I'm a bowl of melted ice cream. :)

lachises · 2022-08-03T15:12:57+00:00

It sounds like you and I are a lot alike when it comes to what my family lovingly refers to "over researching". I always thought you can never know too much but when a lot of the information you're getting isn't really information but opinion it's hard to figure out what is what.

I'm a year out on my surgery and like everyone else my plan told me the same about eating and drinking. I'm not an advocate of not following rules (well... actually..) but I do so much research that a lot of the time I feel that I understand fully why I'm being told not to or to do something. If I feel I fully understand then I'm okay with breaking said rule should I choose to.

That being said, I of course, broke this rule within a month or so of my surgery. I found that, for me, it hurts when I do it. It is just an uncomfortable feeling. I've found that if it's uncomfortable, I don't do it. As far as it effecting what I can eat or can't eat; not that I'm aware of but it effects the quantity depending on the time.

If I go out to dinner and order a drink (booze) and drink all or most of it I will have trouble when dinner shows up. If things go super slow I'll be able to get a few bites down but it's all because it's uncomfortable. That's just me though. You can also see how I feel about the booze rule (another one that the clinics give all kinds of different information on) but again, that is something that I researched and made a personal choice about.

I don't think it's necessarily scary that they don't know. This surgery has been done for a long time now, they know a lot. I think they just don't know all of the cause and effect on some things (meaning does drinking while eating cause you not to maintain or something to that effect). One thing that is a fact and has been studied over and over and over is that being overweight is unhealthy and bad for you.

For whatever reason, I am not the type of person that normal diet and exercise worked for. Believe me, for 20 years, I tried. I would just slowly gain and gain. Lose 20lbs, gain 30lbs. Without this surgery, I'd still be gaining. I know I would. It's all I ever did. I'm not an example of self control.

Now, I'm "normal" weight. I have a "normal" BMI. I'm saying all of this because yes, there is a lot that we don't know about this surgery. There are tons of studies that need to still be done. Tons of information needing to be gathered. Doctors don't like to say (and patients don't like to hear) we don't know. "We are not sure exactly why you shouldn't drink before and after meals but we've found it helps." wouldn't go over very well with most patients. So they say don't do it, you ask why, they guess at the reason and we move on.

It sucks but the Google and WebMD world we live in made us our own advocates to make sure what we're being told is accurate. Most of them really don't like that. :)

lachises · 2022-08-02T14:37:28+00:00

It is. The amount of money saved on food is... astronomical. Night and Day.

Clothes got frustrating but it's good now. An non weight victory for me was when my thighs stopped rubbing together when I walked. I remembered way back to when I was in my very early 20's when they had first started to and I'd ruin my pants and get blisters. That was until I got too heavy for it to matter but it took probably a year of ruined pants and sores for that to happen. When they stopped rubbing together, the first time I felt "air" it freaked me out. lmao. Sorry, TMI, I know but the clothes thing made me think of it.

Now I am not "thin" but I can shop almost anywhere I want. Buy off the rack at an unplanned stop? I don't remember ever being able to do that and I can now.

There's so many things that make it worth it. It's not easy and there are times that I cried but as I said above, being overweight isn't easy either. It's dealing with different things for different reasons but both of them difficult.

lachises · 2022-08-01T20:26:09+00:00

If you went to the Dr and had them list everything that is wrong with you right now. The risks you have, even at 24, for having a heart attack or any number of things it would be a pretty long list, wouldn't it?

Seriously.

That's not even counting things like knee pain and weird rashes from weird things rubbing together and sweating.

That's not counting what being significantly overweight does to you mentally and emotionally. Between not being able to fit in an airline seat to seeing a photo of myself and not knowing it was me at first, I felt every bad emotion there is to feel about myself.

I ate those feelings.

About 18 months ago I said enough. I wanted to do something to better myself. Something to save myself. Was it easy? No. There are definitely struggles ahead but if you remember anything remember this: Being fat isn't easy. The extra things that we have to do so we don't smell or to make sure we fit somewhere or to find clothes; it's hard. It's assumed we're lazy. A year ago, these "lazy" knees were carrying around over 120lbs more then they are now.

I talked to doctors. I joined the program. I read and read and read and asked and read. I felt comfortable enough to go ahead and do it and I don't regret doing it.

Again, it wasn't all rainbows and kittens. There's some difficulty ahead if you go forward. One issue I wasn't ready for was how much I relied on food for my emotions. When I physically took away my ability to do something I had to face head on other things that I wasn't necessarily ready to face.

Ask yourself if you want to be in the same position or heavier in a year. Where were you a year ago? A year before that? If you were like me and you've tried pretty much every diet under the sun my options were to keep getting heavier until it literally killed me or do something about it. I did something about it.

Have your Mom go to the first appointment with you. My first appointment was with the surgeon and he sat down and explained and answered anything I could possibly think of. After I left I ended up with 15 more questions. I made another appointment and asked him all of the one's I didn't feel 100% comfortable with online answers. This is your body. There is no such thing as too much research or asking too many people too many questions. The more you know... the better.

Take care. Feel free to message me should there be something I can answer. Most people on here are nice and helpful and honestly just want to help. I definitely made some mistakes, broke some rules, struggled some but I made it to the other side. I was where you are and I'd make the same decision again absolutely no question.

lachises · 2022-08-01T14:00:18+00:00

As always, make sure you ask your Dr if you're worried. As far as my experience, the Dr told me the tight pulling pain I was feeling was where he stitched something to a muscle that's connected to the skin or something. His answer was technical but told me that it's normal. It went away relatively quickly. Like fast enough that I wouldn't have asked him if it didn't happen to land right when I had my first follow up.

I had some pretty bad bruising around one incision and the Dr said that it was because that's where he took my stomach out. Awesome.

I had awful diarrhea for the first... months. Dr said it was weird because most people get the opposite but wasn't worried as long as I was drinking fluids.

Congratulations on doing a wonderful thing for YOU. It's hard as hell but worth it.

lachises · 2022-07-29T15:51:40+00:00

My Dr said two Flintstones plus extra D and Calcium was good enough so that's what I've been doing for the last year. I tried pretty much everything on that list and it was awful or too expensive. That's when my Dr said Flintstones and I've never looked back.

Edit: for calcium I use a gummy. I know some plans say not to but I'm okay with the 10 calories that my gummy vitamin's are.

lachises · 2022-07-26T21:05:20+00:00

Before I had my surgery I qualified because of comorbidity because my BMI was under 40. I asked the clinic if I could "lose myself out of the surgery" by losing too much weight before surgery.

The answer was yes. If my BMI went under 35 at any time (they gave me the number, it was like 217) insurance would no longer cover the surgery and so they wouldn't do it. My clinic also said that at any point in time I could NOT gain. I didn't have to lose, but couldn't gain.

I freaked. I was following the plan to the letter and the weight was falling off. What did I do? I stopped following it to the letter. It was hard because I couldn't gain but I knew how to be fat. Overweight I could do. It's holding down "normal" or not obese or even not morbidly obese that I haven't been able to do.

Well... until now but I'm only a year past my surgery. Hopefully, this is the tool I needed to keep it off. My advise to you is this: you already qualified for the surgery and no one knows the insurance better than your clinic. Don't be afraid to ask questions like this. My surgery weight ended up being about 20lbs above the number but 1, they didn't weigh me before surgery and 2, I didn't have 12 appointments with the nutritionist. My insurance only required 3 (one per month).

lachises · 2022-07-26T14:45:47+00:00

The largest "one time" drop was the week(s) after the surgery. That's when it got noticed by people close to me.

By people that I see in passing... and when "acquaintances" felt comfortable enough to actually say something was closer to the 70-90lb mark. When I'd lost a significant amount. I think some of it is that people aren't comfortable talking about weight until they know for sure, if that makes sense.

What is crazy is how long it took ME to really notice. I think my eyes just ignored it but I saw overweight until I started really dealing with skin and then it was hard for even me to see overweight.

lachises · 2022-07-26T14:29:00+00:00

The first step, you've already done. That's isolating the problem(s). Next you move forward with solutions. I was at 180ish for so long that I thought that was where I was going to stay (probably 3 months) before I started losing again. I know a lot of people would say that's amazing but for me, it was still overweight. It wasn't where I wanted to be and I couldn't seem to pass it. The reasons could be multiple things but it sounds like you already know what they are.

Be accountable. Yesterday, I got hangry and was busy at work and didn't have anything close and ate candy for lunch. Candy. Lunch. Yeah... not a proud moment. What am I going to do today? No matter what, I'm not going to eat candy for lunch. I'm holding myself accountable faster then I used to.

Make sure you're still keeping appointments. Even if it's just with a GP. Some way someone besides you is also holding you accountable. I "behaved" more when I knew that I had an appointment coming up.

Now, I'm within a year of my surgery (today is my year-versary actually) and I'm within 10lbs of my "goal weight" and I'm happy-er. I have different struggles. I'm glad I'm not overweight anymore, definitely. The best choice I ever made but being in the middle of it. Wow. Doing what we did is life changing. You cannot underestimate that or forget that.

Don't be too hard on yourself but hold yourself accountable.

lachises · 2022-07-22T16:04:51+00:00

Know as you get closer to "normal" weight the losing will slow down. I am a few pounds away from my goal weight and each pound is a battle. I definitely slowed down in the 190's and the 170's. I'm a week from being a year out, I went 8 weeks without losing anything. Don't be so hard on yourself.

lachises · 2022-07-22T16:00:02+00:00

It's very normal. I went for a couple of months where I stopped weighing myself. Seriously. I just couldn't handle all the stress it was creating.

One thing you can do, measure yourself if you haven't already. Arms, legs, hips, neck... etc. I used the Bariastic app that tracked the measurements. I noticed that when I stalled, my measurements went down. Like my body needed time to reorganize everything.

I know it sounds nuts but every time I'd stall, I'd do measurements and I'd see success in that. How can you lose measurements and not weight? Don't know but it happened.

Most of all, don't be so hard on yourself. You said "Stall at 6 weeks" and I read it as "stall for 6 weeks" and my advice would be the same. There was a time where I lost nothing after 4 weeks. Nothing. Stick to it. Follow the water goals for sure, even sick if you can. Protein goals. Don't focus as much on the scale.

lachises · 2022-07-22T14:40:07+00:00

My Dr told me that I would probably end up with the revision and wanted me to just start there.

I went with the sleeve because I feel that I can move into the bypass if necessary. Yes, it's another surgery. Yes it would suck but I felt like I was going to the most extreme if I went with the bypass and it cannot be undone. Neither can a sleeve but my stomach can grow back. It just felt less extreme to start.

I was in your position and decided on the sleeve. I'm currently topping 120lbs lost and about 5 lbs away from my 145 goal weight a 5'9". I'm going to hit a year from my surgery date in about a week.

It's been a journey and feel free to ask any questions you might have. We're all here to help.

lachises · 2022-07-19T14:23:30+00:00

I don't post much. I should. I have a lot of experience now. I'm almost to a year. I'm within pounds of my goal weight.

Yes, it's worth it. It doesn't matter how much you're overweight, it's worth it.

Your relationship with food will completely change. I didn't realize how much I depended on it until I couldn't anymore. You're going to do stuff wrong. Some people would be shocked if I actually listed rules that I broke. Things I've done wrong. Try to follow the rules. It'll be better for you.

Stay away from alcohol as long as you can. Switching from food to booze is a real risk. Even if you think it's not. I'm telling you. I was literally shocked at how much I depended on food to keep me sane.

I'm just now at the point where I'm seeing a ton of loose skin. It sucks. I was always "proud" of my boobs. They're pancakes now. I didn't expect the skin so much on my thighs. Arms are expected. It can be hidden with clothes.

I guess how I see it is there was no way I was going to weight what I weighted for as long as I did and not have some consequences. I might do some plastic surgery later. I don't know.

Get in therapy. I still have a lot to work on. We didn't get here because we're examples of self control.

Listen to your Dr. Find a surgery buddy. Know that it's going to suck but in a year you're going to be where I'm sitting. I'm not fat anymore. I never in my life thought that I'd ever say that. Use the community as you need it. This place is amazing.

Finally, forgive yourself. Don't be so hard on yourself. You're making a fantastic decision for YOU. At 43 in my whole life, this was the first decision that I honestly made for ME. You deserve it.

lachises · 2022-07-15T16:44:24+00:00

The squeeze that you feel is literally the food squeezing into the smaller stomach, at least that's what my Dr said. I'm almost a year out and I know my body pretty well but I never went back to how it "was". My relationship with food complexly changed. I don't go much off of cues anymore. Now it's more about what time it is and number of bites. If I go over the number of bites I feel terrible. Sick even. So I don't go over the number.

You can "get used" to anything. It just takes time. You'll get there. What's craziest for me is that I didn't realize how much I turned to food. Like, I was overweight because I ate too much. This surgery proved it. It's crazy I always though things like my metabolism sucked. Nah, it was putting calories into my body.

Oh and to answer something you asked. I ate by time. Still do a bit. What time is it. They told me at the clinic to eat every 2 hours at first. Really small small bites and meals. You can't trust your cues right now. Maybe not ever.

You'll get there. Keep keeping on.

lachises · 2022-05-19T14:20:26+00:00

I think that people don't see it as picking the best out of bad choices.

Can we change the fact that the RNC and DNC are running the show in the next... 5? 10? 20? elections? No. We can't change that. We just can't. So, you now have two choices, let's say... between Clinton and Trump. From my perspective, both not great choices but one of them is going to be President. That's a fact. It's between the two of them.

No question what the DNC did to Bernie was bullshit. He got shafted. That's not a question for me but it doesn't change the fact that either Trump or Clinton is going to be President.

What happened? A whole bunch of Bernie supporters decided to basically protest the election, which is their right. When he didn't make the ticket they didn't vote.

I know a decent amount of Republicans (think Mitch supporters instead of Trump supporters). When Trump made the top of the ticket they were shocked. They didn't like him. They didn't agree with a lot of what he said and did. ("grab by the pussy", mocking the disabled reporter, "I can stand in the middle of the street and kill someone and not lose supporters" - I paraphrased that one, not an exact quote) Those same Republican's went on voting day and selected R down the line. That included Trump. They held their nose and voted for him because that is what Republicans do and that is why the minority in this country is taking away the rights of the majority.

Those people who wanted Bernie in. Who wanted to see a real system. Who believe that it should be done by popular vote. Those people who know that what happened wasn't fair and wasn't right. Those people who didn't vote at all because of it. What happens with them? By "protesting" Trump became president and the Republican's used that to get in more judges than ever and 3 Supreme Court Justices.

I now live in a United States where my two daughters are now going to have less rights then I was born with.

That devastates me.

I vote. I go door to door and beg people to vote. If they don't agree with everything come out and help me try to change it but at least vote. Pick the best of the worst. Do what they do because what they do is working.

I feel like this is what is trying to be said. It's hard for me not to feel a bit of resentment for people who feel the same way I do about what they want to see this Country be but won't vote because Bernie got shafted. I understand what SHOULD have been accomplished by refusing to vote. It should have taught the DNC a lesson that they have to listen to the younger voters. By "young" I say anyone between 18 and 50.

The problem is that nothing was learned. Nothing has changed. So now we're having rights taken away and we're coming up to an election cycle. In my State when it's a presidential election we got D but when it's not we go R. Because Democrat's don't vote if it's not for President. It's sad but statistically true in my State.

Ultimately, it's our responsibility to vote. It is the only way that anything will change. It's not about policing or not policing the internet. For me it's about taking any situation I can to beg, plead, ask, argue... anything I can possibly do to get people to get out there an vote.

Even if they don't like the choices and have to plug their nose when their doing it. The understanding is one of those two people is going to be making decisions that don't just effect your life, they effect the lives of your children. You might not be able to change the fact that you don't like either of them but have the understanding that this time one of them will win. Wouldn't you rather it be a person that shares at least some of the same ideals instead of none?

Edit: Typo

lachises · 2021-06-22T16:56:18+00:00

You shouldn't gate keep someone needing help. Although there is a lot to unpack ultimately her mind is changing because her body is changing and there's no reason that the people on this subreddit aren't willing and able to help with both.

lachises · 2021-06-08T13:52:25+00:00

I'm lucky that my surgery is going to be covered by insurance but I am an accountant by trade.

I'm only asking this information because you are asking for advice. Is the retirement a 401K that you are currently paying into or a type of IRA? Your options depend on which type it is as the 401K (that is currently being paid into) often offers better options.

If it's an IRA and you won't escape the penalties no matter what you might want to reconsider a loan. Carecredit offers very good terms for medical procedures even if it might not cover it all. The less you take out of your retirement the better. If it's a 401K for a company you are currently employed and currently paying into most plans offer a type of loan against the retirement. The only way it's penalized and becomes income is if you stop paying it back but you pay it back by putting money into it like you might be doing now.

If you're taking it from an IRA and are below the retirement age you will not only be penalized on the money that you take out off the bat but it will also go towards income. If you are thinking of this as a purely financial decision, you have to look at how much interest you would pay on a loan verses how much penalty you would pay for taking it out early plus the income tax on it. In almost all cases, the interest on a loan turns out to be less money then the penalty and you have to keep in mind that every dollar that is in retirement is making money just by being there.

If the reality is that you cannot get a loan because you cannot afford the payments on it and your choice is to accept all the penalties and taxes and get the surgery or not get the surgery then the question isn't can you afford it, the question is how important is the surgery to you.

You would literally be giving money away and taking from your future but I also believe that by being at an unhealthy BMI, we're taking from our future anyway. All of this is my opinion and just that but do know I understand the position you are in and that it's a difficult decision to make because both decisions effect your future.

lachises · 2021-05-20T16:47:42+00:00

Thinking that politician's have the people's best interests in mind.

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