rachaelg

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Well, it's been a great 1st month! I can't believe that I went from totally regretting my sleeve right after the surgery to loving it so much!!! I have lost ALMOST 20 pounds and am so close to ONEDERLAND! I can't wait to get there. My clothes were really tight before, so they fit now. I don't need to get new clothes yet. Besides being really nauseated the first couple of days, I responded really well to the surgery and have had no other difficulties (except the IV problem). Right before I left the hospital, Dr. Alvarez told me to sip water every 5 minutes. It's amazing how much water you can drink when you drink it all day! I have had no problem keeping the water, protein, or foods down. I did have a bite of fabulous bread my husband made the other night, and it made me sick. I'm actually excited about not responding well to bread - I shouldn't be eating it anyway! I'm really trying to get my head into eating protein first and turning to protein if I want a snack. I have not been perfect, but anything is better than the way I ate before. One of the things I really love about being sleeved is that now I can tell the difference between being thirsty and hungry. Before, I think I ate when I was actually thirsty. I drink a lot more now. I also love that my head hunger has subsided somewhat and I don't feel like I am starving anymore. Interestingly, I am really getting into exercising. Before when I dieted, I didn't ever really exercise regularly. I am now playing tennis, walking, riding my bike and working out on the Total Gym. I hope I can see the difference down the road. With almost 100 pounds to lose I know this will be a long process, but I'm up for it!!! Best to everyone. For those who are starting, it is so worth it and thank you to those before me who have not only given great information, but who are true inspirations! Rachael

6/7 @ Dr's office 221.4

6/14 - 215.5 (-5.9lbs)

6/16 - 210.5 (-5.0lbs)

6/23 - 207.0 (-3.5lbs)

6/30 - 206.5 (-.5lbs)

7/1 - 206 (-.5lbs)

7/2 - 204.5 (-1.5lbs)

7/4 - 204 (-.5lbs)

7/5 - 202.5 (-1.5lbs)

7/13 - 200.0 (-2.5lbs)

7/28 - 197 (-3lbs)

7/30 - 196 (-1lb)

8/3 - 193.5 (-2.5)

8/21 - 186.5 (-7)

9/13 - 179.5 (-7)

9/21 - 177.5 (-2)

10/05 - 173.5 (-4)

I can't believe that I was being picked up from the hotel at this very minute last Saturday! What a ride it has already been! As of now, I am easily getting all of my liquids down and am not hungry - yay! I am really looking forward to full liquids on Monday though. Surprisingly, I have a lot of energy. Probably because two nights ago I finally started sleeping all night again. On Monday, I will start walking 1/2 hour in the mornings with my DH. It's so funny, I have been obsessing with this surgery for so long - I guess now that I have the sleeve, he is finally interested in the dynamics of it. All the best to everyone! Lastly, what I've been drinking... 64 oz or a little more of Crystal Light with 42 grm whey protein bullets added to the water, so I'm getting 84 grms of protein a day SF Popcicles. My husband got me some SF Fudgecicles that I have been eating, but will not get more - too many calories 1 cup of broth each day for salty

My goals for weight loss:

be able to cross my legs again (ACCOMPLISHED!)

buy clothes that I like, not just what fits (badly)

loose the daily soreness in my feet (ACCOMPLISHED!)

look younger

look like myself again (ACCOMPLISHED!)

weigh less than my husband (ACCOMPLISHED!)

have more energy

exercise more

be able to wear boots

be more active with my kids

fit comfortably in airplane chairs

not always be hot

wear a tank-top

not feel like the biggest person in the room (ACCOMPLISHED!)

wear cute bras and panties

wear a bikini

not be embarrassed about how I look

to see old friends again

wear shorts that don't ride up the inside of my legs

I am finally posting about the surgical experience with Dr. Alvarez! For those of you who have been waiting, sorry it's taken so long. Before you read this, I want to say that even though my experience was not perfect I would go back again. Starting at about 4 days out I feel great. Besides my arms from the IV's, I don't really feel like I had surgery. Dr. Alvarez is a fabulous surgeon and I would not want to go to anyone else! He has such confidence in the VSG that it makes me feel confident about it too. He has a very gentle bedside manner, is engaging, and very sweet. Being so handsome helps too! I want to post about the negative experiences though, so that those of you who have not had the surgery know some things that can come up - not that they necessarily will. Okay, my DH and two beautiful boys drove 7 1/2 hours from Fort Worth to Eagle Pass on Friday night. The Holiday Inn that we stayed at was really comfortable and nice. When we checked in I was told that Rosy would be picking up myself and another patient the next morning at 7:15. She was right on time and absolutely wonderful. She drove us in the "fat" van over the border, which only takes about 15 minutes. We arrived at Dr. Alvarez's office and were taken to the waiting room. We only waited for about 5 minutes while he was checking on patients who had already had surgery. I was the first into his office...gave him the check, was weighed, asked my questions and then was told that I was first - my surgery was scheduled for 9:15 so it was time to get ready!!! My they are fast! I had a chest x-ray and blood work and was dressed and ready on time. Honestly, the hospital is not as state of the art as ours, and while the head nurse speaks English, the others don't so much. It is really clean and I never felt like the hospital itself was in anyway inferior to the hospitals in the states. I don't even remember being wheeled out of my room and taken to surgery. The next thing I do remember is waking up and feeling so uncomfortable. I found out that I do not react well to anesthesia. I did a lot of tossing and turning on my very uncomfortable hospital bed! I think I must have knocked my IV loose, because my hand and arm ended up looking like a swollen baseball by the next day. I also had a lot of nausea, which is not typical I think. They had a great medication for that though that I really appreciated. The nurses are great about keeping the pain meds coming. I did have gas pains in my chest and it felt uncomfortable to talk when I was at the hospital. My ONE complaint is about the IV's. I ended up being dehydrated, probably because the IV fluids were going into my tissues and not my veins, so after the IV was removed the next day I had to have another put into my other arm for another day. Both nights the IV fluids ran out and I had lots of blood back up into the IV tube. GROSS, I know. I have a real blood and needle phobia, so this was my worst nightmare. the same think could have happened here though. Okay, so I'm backing up to the first day. By the time it was early evening the nausea had set in and I was really regretting the surgery, I did get up and walk the halls once. I had a really hard time sleeping because I was so uncomfortable, but did get some rest in. The next morning, Pricilla the head nurse came in to see if I was ready for the leak test. I had such nausea that they put it off. The IV remained in my puffy arm until early afternoon then it was removed totally and I was taken for the leak test. The fluid is pink like Pepto and doesn't taste bad. I passed the test, but was told that my sleeve was slow, so I would have to go really slow with the ice chips. I spent the rest of the afternoon throwing up stomach bile after each ice chip, so I was taken off the chips and put back on the IV in the other arm. I also walked the hall a lot that day even though I felt bad. My left arm by the way was not only swollen, but hot so I had to ice it down for the rest of the evening and overnight. The heat was gone by the next day. When I woke up the next morning, I was told that I could not be released because of the dehydration. So I kept the IV until about 7pm that evening. I was able to add the ice chips back though and at around 6pm, Dr. Alvarez came to check on me and said that if I wanted to I could be released to the hotel. The thought of being in the comfy hotel bed an with my family was enough for me to say yes. So, the Dr. checked to see if Rosy was available to pick me up - she was and I began the wait to leave. I was discharged from the hospital that evening at around 8pm. I was no longer dehydrated and had tried some juice at about 6:30 and was able to keep it down. YAY! Dr. Alvarez was very thorough with the discharge information. I felt like I understood everything that I needed to do when I left and understood the meds I should take. So, Rosy took me back to the hotel - I can's say enough how wonderful she is. My husband met me at the door and I was happily welcomed by my children. That evening I did throw up once, but slept so well!!! The next morning I started sipping every 5 minutes. Since my sleeve was still slow, Dr. Alvarez said to take 1 small sip each five minutes and that I would be able to get in enough fluids in that way. He was right, I think I got in more than 64 oz that day. We left the next morning (Tuesday) and I felt pretty bad on the ride home. Miraculously, the next day though I felt GREAT, like I had not even had surgery. When people say each day gets better, it's TRUE! I already feel like it was worth it! And even though my experience was not perfect, I still have absolute confidence in Dr. Alvarez. Truly, it could have been much worse. If you have any other questions please feel free to let me know. Best to everyone on your weight loss journey. YAY, I'm on the LOSERS BENCH!

I am counting down the days. It seems like it is taking forever to get here. I keep reading messages from those who are on their way or have just had their surgeries. It makes me want to be there all the more! I was not put on a pre-surgery diet because my BMI is relatively low, but I have been drinking lo-carb 100% whey protein drinks for breakfast and lunch. I'm sure I have not lost any weight though, because once the evening comes around I'm ravenous. This feeling is what I want to relieve. Let's shout it out for the small tummy!