You never really realize....

Hi everyone! I am on day 6 of my preop liquid diet and you just never really realize how many food commercials, radio ads, magazine ads, etc there are until you are on this diet lol. No wonder we are all obese!

A little about me I am 22 year old from Arizona and I am having my VSG on the 21st of this month with Dr. Kelly in Tijuana. I am beyond excited!

I got approved for the Lapland with Dr. Monash in 2010 but for insurance reasons had to switch doctors and got banded with Dr. Juarez in July 2010 but had so many complications with it and most days I could not even ge****er down without it coming back up even with no fluid in the band. With all the starving I lost about 40ish pounds. I had it taken out a year later with Dr. Monash(amazing doctor if anyone is considering him!) After surgery I gained about 100lbs and am now ready to get rid of all of it! I would go with Dr. Monash again but my insurance will not cover another surgery.

After getting my band out I swore to myself I'd never put myself through weight loss surgery again and I'd just do it on my own, but here I am! I have been inspired by all of you guys and have been reading this forum for years but am usually too shy to post. I look forward to being sleeved and be on the losers bench with all of you! Be ready for all of the questions I am sure I will have post op lol.

Agreed.  Without a doubt, the entire food industry is actively working against us and we live in place where calorie dense food is easy to come by.

I'm amazed at how many lapband failures there are. I know I shouldn't be, my mom had one that tried to migrate out of her body and had it removed, but the failure rate of that procedure really is crazy. I'm curious now as to what the complication and removal rate is?

I was sleeved just before Halloween, and it is hands down the best thing I have ever done for me, myself and I. It has entirely changed the way I think about food and my relationship with it. Losing weight is great, but the profound fundamental changes in the way I approach food now is the best part of it, for me. 

I'm down 70 lbs overall from pre-op diet to today. I've been really conservative with the foods I choose to eat. I keep it simple and structured, and while that may minimize choices for me, I maintain a steady weightloss and it works for me. Head hunger is a real thing,  but since I know I have to eat protein first, if I do give into that head hunger, I eat a very small amount of protein that's on my plan. If I can't do that, then a 1/2 tsp of some really good hummus usually stops it in it's tracks. Prior to surgery, I would have been wearing a path to the fridge. 

I was a self pay, after all the testing and pre-op food and vitamins I spent 18k. I grew up in SoCal and have visited Mexico a number of times from Tijuana, Nuevo Laredo, Mexicali and Juarez. The thought of having my surgery there was just not an option to me. Very high fear factor. As I read on here, there are a tremendous amount of people who have had their surgery in Mexico with little or no complications so obviously things have changed which is awesome for people who had their insurance company decline the VSG. The one thing that is lacking with having your surgery done in another country is follow up. There are some great books out there but the two that I would encourage you to read are: Dr. Beck Diet Solution and Dr. Alvarez's book Successful Weight Loss with the Gastric Sleeve. Dr Beck's book is cognitive therapy that asks the WHY do people overeat and how to unravel that knot and Dr. Alvarez's book outlines the basics on the gastric sleeve like what to eat, when, fluids etc. It's a simple book and a small one, but very handy to have around. It's on Kindle or you can get a physical copy from Dr. Alvarez's website. I was just reading it last night when I was dealing with head hunger LOL  It kept my head in the game and myself out of the kitchen looking for comfort food because I have a terrible cold right now LOL

You're going to LOVE your sleeve. It's a lifetime commitment for sure, but a very healthy and positive one! 

I was sleeved 4 1/2 years ago and my daughter was sleeved 2 years ago.  We are both pleased and have never looked  back.  Good luck!

I just got sleeved last Saturday by Dr. Kelly. He was wonderful and I really enjoyed talking with him before and after surgery (his family ate dinner with us the last night we were there.) If you have any questions about Dr. Kelly or the TJ experience, I'll be glad to answer them for you!

Good luck and keep us posted.

The food industry in this country SHOCKS me sometimes. Scientists are hired to  create foods that we become addicted to... It really is no wonder that we are an obese nation. We are groomed to be food addicts. I've tried to, for the most part, model my post op diet after those of some of the European countries that I have visited... Food should be enjoyed based on QUALITY, not QUANTITY or for a "so-stuffed-that-I-want-to-puke" feeling.

I agree, i am 22 days post op and i've been in bed the whole time due to spine issues...Basically i read and watch tv, and every time the commercials come on i have to mute the tv because of all the food commercials!!! Not that they make me crave all that junk, but it's just disgusting how much they push fast and junk food on us!!!!

Congrats!!!  Very excited for you!

And Facebook posts!! My friends post food pics all the freaking time. Ahhhhhh!!!!!

I too had the band.  Placed in 2/09 and out 9/12.  I got sleeved a year ago and it is so great and does what they told us the band would but didn't.  You're going to be so happy you changed your mind and went ahead with it.