Whatcha Eating Today VSGers? Saturday, March 31, 2018

Good morning and welcome to the weekend! I am hosting Easter Dinner tomorrow so will be prepping for that and looking forward to seeing DD for the first time since Christmas. What are you up to today?

QOTD: When you first started looking into WLS, did you know about the VSG? What made you decide on VSG vs other options (and are you still happy with your choice)? When I first contemplated WLS many years ago all I was aware of was RNY and the lapband. At the time, I thought lapband might be the better option but I was afraid of having a foreign object in my body and I wasn't ready to move forward with WLS anyway. About 2.5 years ago when I decided I had to do something about my weight if only to improve my health, I spent a lot of time searching on the internet and reading about my options. The news about the lapband wasn't good (I had been right to be leery) and the number of VSG surgeries being done was increasing quickly. I was nervous about the malabsorption of RNY and some of the potential longer term ramifications so the VSG seemed to fit the bill. I did however discuss both RNY and VSG with my surgeon who would have done either and though I waffled for a bit, in the end I felt VSG was right for me. And I'm happy I did as I did lose all my excess weight and so far have been able to maintain that loss for over 15 months.

2 Years post-op

Always lots of coffee...

B: eggs, cottage cheese and Canadian bacon

L: Tuna salad, pickles and cottage cheese

D: Dinner at a friends house

S: Yogurt with strawberries and/or mozzarella/prosciutto sticks and/or nut thins and hummus

Hiya! I had am AMAZING time at AwesomeCon yesterday. I went dressed as Runner 5, which means I wore leggings and a Runner 5 shirt. I can safely say I've never worn something so form fitting in public before (except to run) and I was a bit anxious at the start of the day, but felt totally fine once I got there. Woo!

I bought an amazing new jacket that fits like a glove, omg. I also got fitted for a corset dress. I'd done this in August 2015, but never got around to buying one and I didn't love any of the fabric options they had at that moment either. I vaguely recalled wearing a size 6 then. Yesterday the vendor said, "I think you'll be a size 8." She started putting me in one and quickly said, "Maybe a size 4." I ended up in a size 2. Lol.

Today Lance and I are going to watch Pan's Labyrinth to check out the new speaker components in the living room and, tonight, Art and I are going to see a local production of Jesus Christ Superstar. Aside from those things, I'll be working on school and normal weekend homemaker stuff.

QOTD: When I first started looking into WLS, I knew nothing about the different types. But a friend of mine told me she'd had VSG and pointed me to OH, plus I know how to google, so I learned quickly. My reasons for choosing VSG were ultimately based on the fact that everyone I knew IRL who had RNY was unhealthy. I had other reasons too, but that was really the main one. I'm not sure if I regret that choice now. I'm super happy with my VSG and I'm happy with my success. I'm also really paranoid about acid. I'm sure, with RNY, I'd have found something else to be paranoid about, though.

1: protein shake
2: leftover beef salad or leftover lamb salad
3: pork chops with orange-soy sauce (I'll be sous viding the chops.)

liquid and vites: on track
exercise: home PT exercises

I too worry about acid in the long run, but with RNY I would probably be worrying about ulcers.

QOTD- I knew about the vsg. Absolutely did not want lapband or RNY due to friends with complications. I had looked into lapband. 10 years earlier. Glad O didn't follow through on that. I felt like vsg was sustainable and compatible with my life. I've never been happier. Best decision ever for me.

B 2 eggs bacon, bits

L fish with broccoli and cheese.

D steak with salad.

Good morning,

Im helping a friend pack up her apartment so she can move in a couple weeks. So I don't know what my food is for today. She's taking me out to breakfast but I don't know where.

Qotd I looked into surgery many years ago but things happen and couldn't get it. But looking back, I probably wouldn't have been successful. In 2012 is when I first heard about vsg but my insurance wouldn't cover it. I didn't think I could afford it. But when I turned 50, I decided it was time and I was going to make it affordable then I went to the seminar they said vsg was covered by my insurance so I started researching it. I chose because my family had the rny and they weren't successful plus I didn't want my intestines rerouted.

Have a good day

Good morning! I'm hosting Easter as well so I've got some shopping and prepping to do today. I think we'll take the kids to the library and get some haircuts as well.

QOTD: For probably the last five years I would periodically look up wls and read about it for about 30 seconds before once again declaring it wasn't for me. I typically don't take medication and avoid the doctor if I can, so this sort of intervention seemed extreme and for some reason it felt like giving up. Last February at my highest weight and feeling so physically miserable I committed to eating keto, ended up in the ER due to an electrolyte imbalance, and in the few weeks following I regained almost everything I had lost. After 15 years of failed diets I was finally at the end of my rope and I decided it was time to actually explore my options. I thought I would get RNY because research showed they had a higher percentage of weight loss, but my surgeon asked me to consider VSG. He said because my eating habit was not snacking but rather volume eating, it would likely be a good tool for me, and I wouldn't have the added risk of operating on the intestines. So I did a deep dive into VSG research and liked what I saw. The rest is history. I'm a little less than 6 months out, but as of now I'm very grateful I chose VSG.

b - Coffee and pp

l - Protein shake

d - soft chicken taco with cheddar and tomatoes

Good morning!

QOTD: When I first started thinking about WLS, I briefly considered the lapband as I thought that would be the least altering to my insides. But the horror stories of people who'd had to have the removed and the lower rates of weight loss maintenance steered me clear. At the time, I was leery of the RNY because it did reroute the intestines (I know it's nothing to be scared of now). I knew I was a successful weight loser, it was just the keeping it off and my ability to eat sooo much that was my big problem. So a tiny stomach seemed like the ticket. I never considered the DS because the malabsorption scared me off. I'm not sure that's something to be scared of now either!

B - coffee, yogurt, berries, grain free granola

L - egg white, turkey sausage sandwich

D - maybe chili

S - ??

I've been working on Easter meal as well. I have a lovely Hungarian knotted bread ready, the eggs are pickled, the vegetables are ready for the Haluski, and I'm adding a crock pot turkey breast.

We go to 8 am Mass, and then out to breakfast with friends every Sunday; always a challenge to find something great to eat. And thank goodness for amazing take out boxes.

B=Premier protein shake with coffee, 1/2 slice Mountain Sprout bread

L=Tuna creation and 10 Stacey Naked pita chips

D-=Eggface's tuna patty (egg, Kirkland tuna & peccorrino, baked)

S=Oikos Triple Zero

I'm not even 6 months out from surgery.

QOTD: When you first started looking into WLS, did you know about the VSG? What made you decide on VSG vs other options (and are you still happy with your choice)? I had 5 co-morbidities and have had 3 different kinds of cancer (genetic hereditary mutation puts me at risk for 6). I had a failed triple bypass at 6 months out and was in constant pain. My cardio suggested it. SO, I investigated. Since I don't have all my colon and also have celiac disease, the malabsorption of some of the bariatric surgery also use that as part of the tool. Then the American Bariatric folks and Center of Excellence investigation. So...

QOTD: I started considering WLS after I got cancer in 2013. If I had been healthier before treatment it would have been easier on me. Then when I won my first battle with cancer I wanted to lose weight and get healthy so I could enjoy my life and do the things I love. I didn't feel I had time to try and lose without the surgery and I never had long term success before. My cancer will come back and maybe coming back now. I chose VSG over the options because I felt it had less risks and when battling cancer I need to be able to absorb all the nutrients I can to be healthy.

B- premier protein drink

L- 2 ounces ham, mini baby bell cheese, Banana

D- Healthy Choice Steamers-Beef Teriyaki

S- 2 cups popcorn

Good morning! I'm at my second job today, and it's so slow that it's sort of nice. I'm sure once all the churches start getting out but I'll be busy though haha. We are not religious, but when I get off we will be doing a small egg hunt with the kiddos. We dyed eggs yesterday and my four year old nephew thought it was the coolest thing in the world!

I am exactly 3.5 months out from VSG, as of today

Well, I first learned about weight loss surgery when my friend Meranda from high school got it about 3 years ago, when we were both 25. I watched her success over a couple of years on FB. Last year, I hit my highest weight ever of 393. I was shocked when the doctor weighed me... I'm not really sure why. I knew that I'd had to buy bigger clothes. I knew that I no longer fit in the chairs at our favorite movie theater. I knew I had to get an Altima instead of a Sentra because I couldn't fit in the Sentra. I was also diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and started metformin.

Around that time, three different women that I know got vsg. Two were co-workers at my different jobs, and the third one was a very good friend of my sister-in-law. They all got it done in Mexico because their insurance didn't cover it and they were all super happy, slimming down, and had very little complications. Notably to me, they were all smaller than me. J hit 355 pounds, but that was the closest. I started to feel panicked, like I couldn't control myself and like I was going to die. So, I went to a free seminar at St. Francis in Memphis, where I learned about RNY, VSG, AND LAP BAND. The doctors there rubbed me the wrong way and were rude, so after a month or so looking I found a clinic that I really liked about an hour and a half away in Oxford, Mississippi. It was a bariatric center of excellence and when I met Dr. Byars and discussed the surgeries with him, I just knew that I was sure. My primary doctor, who has recently moved away, was on board and we immediately got my 6 months paperwork underway and I found a therapist that I really like. A dear friend's mother died after complications from RNY, and a coworkers mother was bedridden after nutritional deficiencies put her in the hospital for three weeks. She's 56 and still fragile. I'm also paranoid about the acid, especially since gerd runs in my family. I just felt right with the decision, which is unusual for me, so I did it. My wife and I worked extra, paid the 2 grand (rest covered by insurance) and I got it done.

Who knows? One day I may discover that I should have went with a different surgery, but for right now I'm happy and I'm healthier and I'm in remission and I'm still losing weight and even though I stumble every now and again... My quality of life is tenfold better.

B: reduced sugar apple oatmeal

L: 2 salami and mozzarella sticks, Greek Yogurt

D: Half a toasted English muffin, with a sunny side up egg and turkey bacon