Multiple Questions (Please see if you can answer any of them) - Thanks in Advance!

Part of her cost is shipping to outside the US....LaToya, you won't have the extra shipping costs/VAT, etc that she has.

I don't get how everyone does it so cheaply though as the 90 day unpackaged DS supply from Vitalady is $399 and then I add lots of calcium and Vitamin K2 on top of that.  That's without shipping and taxes.

I am also on the Vitalady plan, but do not buy everything from her site. I get free shipping from Amazon and Costco, so I buy as much as I can through those sites. A year's supply of everything I need is about $1200. (I buy it all at once since I use my flexible spending plan through work.)

Mine was done in one step. It was a revision from the RNY.

I am very happy with the weight loss and being able to keep it off. I do have a LOT of gas and very frequent poops but I'm told it depends on what I eat.

Almost everything I eat causes gas, but greasy foods also causes runny stools.

I never thought I'd lose too much. I got down to 143 and some people told me I was getting too small but I was happy there.

No, I've always been happy with it. My only regret is that the DS wasn't available in '76 when I had the other one done. 

I can't say exactly how much I spend on supplements. I take a multi vitamin, calcium citrate, zinc & dry E .The day of surgery I weighed 340.Now I stay around 150-160.

For extra protein I drink Muscle Milk. It's lactose free and tastes like rich chocolate milk. Sometimes I blend it with a banana or strawberries & it's a yummy shake.

                                 

Thanks! Can I ask you your age? You mentioned you had your original surgery in '76.

Are those the only supplements you take? Do you have annual labs? You need to be taking A and D at a minimum. Vitamin A deficiencies can cause irreversible eye damage. A shortage of D may mean you aren't absorbing your calcium. I hope you are getting annual labs with all the important tests done.

Yes I am taking dry vit D and my calcium also has vit D. My iron is low so I get iron infusions and labs every few months.

Ok. I didn't want to give the original poster the impression that the ones you listed are the only ones needed. Sounds like you got it covered.

Hi there. Here is my perspective at nearly 9 months.

I had a single step DS although my surgeeon had talked about my needing a two stage due to my BMI.

My every day life is much better but certainly not perfect. Having lost a lot of my weight makes things 
much easier. No longer taking medication for diabetes. I had a pre-existing condition with diabetic foot
ulcers from before surgery and this has gotten better with the wieght loss but not yet completely gone.
No health issues from the DS.

The only thing I have found I can't eat is straight milk. I didn't have a problem before surgery but after it gave
me the runs and an incredible amount of gas. I have no problem with protein powders, cheese, yogurt, or 
artificial sweeteners that some people have.

The first couple of weeks I had the normal post surgery regrets. No regrets now that I am healed.

Last time I checked vitamins were costing me about $60/month. I feel I can lower that once I can get to 
places like Costco. Right now everything is mail ordered usually via amazon and sometimes vitalady.
630 mg calcium 3X daily
2 multivitamin / day
120 mg iron daily
B50 complex once a week.
magnesium 250 mg 3X day
Vit a-10,000 /day
Vit D-50,000 2X/day

I forget the dosages but b12, zinc, copper,  potassium, Vit E and K

I have one protein shake a day at 24gm protein. I usually get in about 150 grams. Lots of chicken, tuna, other fish at anywhere
from 6 - 8 oz at a time, Plenty of cottage cheese, yogurt, and regular cheese too.

High weight 552,, surgery weight 464 (4/15/13), and current weight 318.

Thank you for all.the information. And congratulations on your sucess so far.