[jackie58]

Everything is still going great since surgery. I am now walking 3 miles a day and feel better than I have felt in years.

[cyndie]

Originally Posted by jackie58

Everything is still going great since surgery. I am now walking 3 miles a day and feel better than I have felt in years.

So inspiring!

[gammalam]

I had the sleeve surgery on June 2, 2016 so I am starting my 8th week out on Thursday of this week. The first 3-4 weeks were much tougher than I had anticipated with the liquid and baby food diet and the very low calorie count I was able to get in. I have had a great deal of trouble with reflux making it tough to eat or drink anything but that is not something that happens to everyone, it is getting better and my surgeon says it should be well under control by 3 months out. I was depressed for a couple of weeks post surgery and not someone prone to depression so it was just a tough time. I have wonderful family and friends who were very supportive and understanding so made it through it. I have found that I am never hungry which is a very odd thing after being morbidly obese most of my life. I am 52 and have been overweight since high school with many years of ups and downs and different diets. I have lost weight here and there but always gain it back and gain back more. (common story) I can eat more variety of foods now so I have more energy and feel much better than those first weeks. I can't eat more than 1 cup of food for a meal and find that it is easy not to graze during the day because I'm not hungry. I do feel a sensation when my stomach is empty but that is easily remedied with water or one of my planned meals. It is not an unpleasant feeling, it's just something I notice and address. I don't feel as deprived now that I can eat more variety of foods and don't really mind the limited amount because I am full and satisfied. I have lost 43 lbs and am excited about how far I can go with this over time.

[Lyn2007]

I am also considering the sleeve and seeing my doctor about it next week. I hope you all and others will keep sharing your experiences on this thread!

[EMERALDberry]

I have 1 friend who had the sleeve done and 1 who has been waiting to lose the amount they required her to lose in order to have it. The 1 friend who had it initially lost 40 lbs and has gained it all back. The other friend has been fighting to lose the same 5 lbs for over a year in order to be approved. Like others have said in this thread, if you don't address what causes the problem, the sleeve won't "fix" the weight loss issue. I am doing the old WW points plan. I like it because it is not too restrictive, in the sense that, I can eat whatever I want, I just have to know how many points it is and stay within my daily allotment of points. I wish you all the best on your journeys.

[Gale02]

Originally Posted by Lyn2007

I am also considering the sleeve and seeing my doctor about it next week. I hope you all and others will keep sharing your experiences on this thread!

Lyn! Long time no see! I still check in on your blog periodically, I love seeing your journey. You've always been such a great inspiration to me.

I know I said it above, but I had the sleeve done 12/15/14. Like EmeraldBerry, I have friends that have had WLS and not succeeded. I have had remarkable success with it (so far.) I think the biggest difference I've noticed is that there are two mindsets: People who think it's going to solve everything and is "the easy way", and those of us that understand it's still a TON of work. When I had WLS I was naive enough to think I'd never have to be on a diet again. Yeah, right. I'm still on a "diet" every day of my life. Forever. I have to make the right choices, follow my plan pretty religiously, and exercise regularly.
The one true benefit of WLS is built in portion control. I can only eat 3 oz of solid protein (or 5 oz of yogurt, cottage cheese, etc.) without making myself sick and in pain. HOWEVER, if I chose to I could easily eat 1000+ calories of empty carbs in a sitting. Simple carbs pass straight through my sleeve and I have nearly ZERO restriction with them. That's where making good choices comes in. If I stick to plan and eat the right things, my tool works. If I see it as a solve-all, and eat whatever I *feel* like eating I will be right back where I started in no time at all.

I hope this doesn't come off as a Debbie Downer. I LOVE my sleeve, and having that surgery was the single best thing I've ever done for my health. I just had to make sure that I was at the point and in the head space where I was ready to do the hard work it required to succeed with it. Its success level is directly proportionate to how much work one is willing to put into it.