Let Us All Get to Know Each Other :-)

Hi everybody! I'm Stacey, 38, (39 next month) and live in Fort Lauderdale. I was sleeved on August 20 and second to marrying my DH and best friend, it was the best thing I've ever done.   My DH passed away on October 14 of a heart attack.  We weren't even married for 5 years. The support that I've gotten from the people here has been amazing. I'm a paralegal and have 2 yellow labs.  I've been overweight since my early 20's and I kept gaining. I wasn't even considering WLS until I went to a seminar with my MIL to support her.  As we sat and listened to the doctor talk about the sleeve, I whispered to my DH that I thought I wanted to do it.   He was so supportive. I was a self-pay so things moved pretty quickly once I had my initial consultation. I have gotten rid of 105lbs and although I've been stalling, I've upped my exercise and started tracking my food. I think it will definitley help.  Physically, I feel amazing. I have so much energy.  I don't have that blah, yucky feeling.  I can walk for hours, cross my legs, fit into booths, be comfortable on a plane and in a movie theater...the list goes on. The sleeve saved my life.

Morin' all.  I am Bethany I am 34 ( 35 in July) I have been marrie dto a mostly wonderful guy.. ;0) for 12.5 years. I have a beautiful DD who will be 9 next month and a hansome little guy who is 7. I live in Northern Maine and own and operate an after market parts & accessories store for the power sports industry ( ATV's, motrcycles, dirt bikes, snowmobiles) I love what I do, I love workig with Dh and being "home" when the kids get off the bus. I am an animal lover, but have lost 2 dogs in the last 6 months and it has been heart breaking. I have started to love exercise, I love to try new things, and can not wait to go sky diving in Vegas next April. I reached goal in 6 months and 1 week after surgery, and I am now waiting for plastics ( a tummy tuck and boob lift) hopefully sometime between Aug & Oct. I love being part of this board, and I think this is a great post. THanks Sherri B

Sherri.. ur a genious!! Hi, my name is Eman, i'm 25 and living in Qatar but actually from Alexandria, Egypt...i'm an obstetrics and gynecology resident...happily married for 3yrs with no children....I've been grossly overweight all my life but lost a lottttttttttt of weight in college..it started to creep up again during my last yr in Med school but shot up again when i moved here..Qatar is a really hot country in the Gulf so we drive everywhere unlike Alexandria...          the main problem started with my residency program coz of the crazy shifts and staying at the hospital for days at end so i didn't care what i ate...I haven't been able to conceive for the last 3 yrs (even though all our investigations were normal) and as all my drs have told me it's because of the weight... i've been thinking about this surgery for the last 1yr but kept postponing it due to shortage at the hospital...I have a very strong family history of diabetes and hypertension and knew I was doomed if i didn't get rid of the weight...My blood pressure started to go up due to the stress of all the high risk patients i had to take care of and all the crazy emergencies i had to deal with....          Finally, I passed my board exam and did the surgery where i paid nearly all the money i managed to scrape up!!! i'm 3 weeks post op...down 20 pounds and ecstatic...even though i'm suffering from a stricture as a complication..i'm still happy that one day I WILL BE THIN AND HEALTHY!!!                Nice to get to know everyone!! I'm so in love with this place..it gives me great support!! Can't wait to get to know u all better....

Wow...Huge congratulations are in order then....First for passing your boards which I know the Nursing boards were hectic...So I know yours were beyond hectic! Way to go!! :-) And a second congrats on your new sleeve!!! Yeahh! Wishing you a very successful journey with your new sleeve and your career!!

Hi,I am a RN and a stay at home caretaker of my mom who is 97 such a challenge somedays by the way I am 55 and married to my childhood friend.We have two wonderful boys and 4 grandchildren and one on the way.I love life and God has been and continues to be so good to me.I love to walk, listen to music,read and talk .I love people and never meet a stranger.I try to stay positive,I have fought my weight gain for about the last 25yrs and having this surgery has been the best thing I could have ever done.It has given me life and more self confidence.I hurt when I see peole overweight because I know how they feel physically and mentallly.This board is wonderful,full of support andadvice and has always been their for me and others.So positive,thanks to everyone..

Hi, I'm Deborah(DebbieJean) as my best friend calls me and I'm 38 and I've been married for almost 3 years now.  I have 2 wonderful boys ages 10 & 16 and I've lived in Houston, TX all my life.  I have been researching weight loss surgery for over a year now and had my heart set on lap band but have changed my mind based on all the wonderful reviews on the VSG.  I have worked for the same company(Oil & Gas) for 14 years and I'm an Inventory Supv.  I am hoping to have my surgery sometime this summer. 

Hi, my name is Sylvia and I am 61 years old and happily married to a wonderful man who is my Knight and shinning armor. This is my second marriage. I was happily married to my first as well. My children father died from a stroke/heart attack. He was only 48.  I have two wonderful children, a son 42 and daughter (bestest friend in the whole wide world) 38.  My daughter had RNY in 2006 and has lost 135 lbs and she is my right hand support in my quest for the VSG. I also have 6 grand children ages 3-22

I was born a 10 pound-er and the story of weight problems from day one never left me. I am Looking to having my surgery late May or early June. I still need insurance approval. I have a tentative date of May 28 but things are not falling into place. Never the less. I will be having surgery this summer............for sure!!

I have met and made quite a few wonderful friends here on this VSG forum and I swear I love this place better then a "JULY BAR-BE-CUE" !!!

Hi All, A day late and dollar short but here goes. I am 56. I am married and have 2 grown boys. I have been overweight since I was 3 years old and no one else in my family has a weight issue, lucky me. I raised my boys with no help from their father( who beat me regularly) and they have really done well with their lives. I'm going to be a grandma on or about Aug 7. I can't wait. I love my VSG and I am so happy I had it done. I lost 96 lbs and have stalled for a long time( I even went up 4 lbs with the death of my mom 1 month ago) and I am fighting back to lose those 4 and more. I will not ever give up. I will lose at least another 25 lbs. I may need a little more surgery to accomplish my goals, we'll see.  Right now I am searching for a new Christian counselor( mine went on a leave of absence). I think I have found one and she specializes in food addiction. I'm hoping to clear up my mother and food issues and be successful on my own to lose the rest of my weight. I can tell you this, I will never be MO again. As much as I still have issues and want to eat I still cannot over eat and I still find myself going for protein first. No matter what happens I will never be MO again, this surgery assures me of that. I'm not in that normal BMI range either, but I will NEVER be MO again. Carla

G'day all!! I'm Carrie and I'm 32.  I've been living and working in Santa Fe, NM for 9 years now as a technology teacher at the school for the deaf.  I had the VSG in December 2007 and while I had a rocky start with constant nausea (missed 6 weeks of work!), I'm doing fabulous at this point!  A total of 84 pounds down and only 80 to go! I have two dogs and a cat... even though I'm allergic to all three!  My biweekly shots are worth the love they bring to my life :)  I met the love of my life here in Santa Fe and we love traveling, fixing up our fixer-upper (lesson learned: don't move in a fixer upper if you get attached easily!), and doing stuff together. I'm currently in training for my third triathlon (did two before my big weight re-gain a few years back) and am feeling so motivated and positive about myself!! I read the OH boards everyday (it's hard to stay away when I have access to the computer the whole day at work!) and couldn't have done this without you GREAT, wonderful bunch of people! Hugs!

Great idea, Sherri!  Like so many people, I have been heavy since I was young.  I am 44 years old, have a wonderful husband, a great step-daughter and two sweet grandsons.  I have chronic pain issues and I'm praying that WLS will help me.      I started looking at weight loss surgery in January 2007.  My insurance requires a 6 month physician supervised diet before even considering anything.  I had to wait almost three months to get my 1st appt.  That was April 9, 2007.  I lost 25 pounds in the 6 months, but then I got a promotion, very busy at work (doing two jobs) and then the holidays and I gained it all back.  At the beginning of 2008, I lost all faith in my ability to lose weight and keep it off by myself.  I went to the surgeon's seminar on February 4, thinking I would have an RNY.  Well, he mentioned a VSG and said he thought it held a lot of promise as a procedure.  I did tons of research and knew that is what I wanted.  However, my surgeon's office wasn't ready to do it and insurance doesn't cover it, but I am ready to have it NOW.   I am scheduled to have a VSG with Dr. Joya on June 2, 2008.  Like somoene else described themselves, I am not much of a talker or a poster, but I am a reader and the people on this board are amazing!  I have learned so much from each of you.  I feel like I know so many of you and I'm grateful that you are here.  I thank everyone for sharing their wisdom.