Sleeve- Do you regret it?

Good luck Lissie! I'm sure all will go well👍

Gosh im praying I have a good story like you guys thanks for the support 10 hours till surgery;-)

Absolutely not. I have lost 20 kilos in about 4 months without effort and are slowing increasing exercise to gain greater health. I feel more confident and happier seeing my reflection in the mirror. 

Occasionally I think about my reduced portions - they have become second nature now which makes it easy. If I am eating some really yummy food at restaurant I may feel a second of "Oh, I wish" but it passes and I know that if I could I would just overindulge. In fact I am enjoying eating out more and paying far less ! 

I have to be careful with snacks, to limit to 2 a day with protein included. 

I have been lucky though with minimal side effects, I cannot tolerate raw veg which I hope will change and I have reflux (but I had that prior). No nausea, no vomiting, no major food aversions, nothing. 

I feel blessed to have had this surgery.

Hi Lissie

I coped with the doubts and fears by focusing on the future I want v the future I would have without the surgery.  I know there are complications with any surgery, but the complications associated with obesity were more scary and had a higher percentage chance of occurring.  It made it an easy decision, if I had the op I might get complications, but if I didn't have it I definitely would have complications.  Good luck and I hope all goes well for you.  When you are up and about please let us know how you went.

Thanks Giys surgery is in two days now I'm freaking out a little seeing as I have never had a operation. I think I have nearly cancelled 100 times this weekend:-( I just have to keep reading your posts and I feel like it will be ok. xo

Hell No, no regrets at all - 14 months post op

I am nearly 9 weeks out and I have no regrets at all.  I feel "normal", as in I don't feel like anything is missing inside, and I am able to eat mostly all the foods I used to eat.  I had reef and beef the other night, but without the beef, I just ordered the topper of garlic sauce with prawns and calamari rings.  It was the perfect size serve and I enjoyed it as much as I used to enjoy a giant plate.

I did have a bit of diarrhea to start with, but I figured out it was Berocca and dairy so I have gone lactose free and that has helped enormously.  I also had some constipation, but I have gotten better with the water intake so that has solved the problem.

I am 15.3kg down so far, with another 20-25kg to go, and I feel much better.  I am excited about the future now, instead of dragging myself through the day.  I hope you have a good experience with your sleeve, and good luck.

4 years post sleeve and now 4 weeks post bypass due to reflux issues.

No regrets at all. Life does go back to normal.

Hi Denzel,
I did have initial pain & discomfort but I don't now. Switching from water to tea sorted that. My surgeon & dietician introduced solid food in weeks 4 & 5 and following their advice I've been OK, I mainly eat softer solids like meat balls, casserole, etc. I can't eat a whole entree, but I've had a few work lunches & my brothers birthday so I order an entree as it's less food on the plate & after a few bites it doesn't look like you've not eaten more than half your meal. I find that leaving food raises eyebrows with wait staff and fellow dinners. I've not told many people about the sleeve and just explain I'm changing my eating & choices if asked.
Missy

hopeful22912 wrote:

I love the new me confident, happy, assertive, healthy, explorer not to mention the great clothes I can now wear.

Hi hopeful22912,

I loved your whole post, and just so happy for you where you are now in every sense.
It was also great to hear from someone who has been sleeved for a while.

Hi lissie

I am 15 weeks post-op tomorrow - so in time frame still early days for me, but with my memory problems it seems like a long time ago!

I have absolutely no regrets, and I am very grateful that I have had no complications and all has gone very smoothly.
I am confident that having had the surgery can only be beneficial to me in the future healthwise.  Even though I was only just obese, BMI 30.4 when I had the surgery done, I had diagnosed and was being treated for endometrial hyperplasia and moderately severe sleep apnoea.
I haven't noticed an improvement in my ME/CFS + Fibromyalgia, and have been getting hip pain - but I also have had abnormal autoimmune antibodies for a while, so it could be related to that, or change in weather.

Self confidence has improved heaps just by the fact that I like and accept my body thinner rather than fatter, when I felt quite disgusted with it.
And now I feel 'normal' - in that I feel inconspicuous in society - not fat and not being judged.
I enjoy putting on clothes and seeing myself in the mirror looking slim!
When I move back to NZ I will no longer be the female family fatty.  It's been difficult going back visiting having a super slim sister and a slim mother, let alone teenage nieces with their lovely bodies!
Last Christmas, having connected with old school friends, some of them who are still living there, one who has moved back and one who was visiting, I didn't want to go back to NZ and see them be the fatty and have them feeling sorry for me for being so.  I was also too embarrassed for my family to see me.
In particular, I have always been aware of my big arms and been embarrassed by them and found them repungent, always had them, but now that I am the slimmest that I have been for more than decades (except briefly in 2013  when I had tummy problems), I may develop the confidence to wear sleeveless clothes in summer.  Oh for cosmetic plastic surgery to remove the saggy 'tuck shop' parts!

Lissie, You WILL be able to eat surf and turf again, but your stomach will limit the amount you eat. You can share the dish with someone else :)

MissyMagic I found that I could sleep on my stomach if I put a small squishy pillow under it :) 
Early days yet for you regarding the eating!  Maybe you are getting pain when you eat because you are eating too fast? Do you chew, chew chew, 20 times on both sides of your mouth? And put your utensil down between bits, bites which should be no larger than an eraser...? No, I don't either! Lol!  But I should, as I tend to go from being ravenous and eating too fast to unpleasant side effects.  This I am working on with the guidance of my dietician.  
I can't remember how many weeks out you are, but am surprised that you are eating out?  My dieticians program was not starting solids until 8 weeks + post-op. I doubt that I could eat a whole entrée yet either!  Going by my home cooking at night I can eat maybe 6 prawns, 7 is too many.  I don't breakfast until about 1030 and can't get through 2 poached eggs unless I eat some, and come back to the rest later.  I haven't been very adventurous with food, as I am not a confident cook, nor enjoy cooking.  (Nor, due to the limitations of my illnesses wellness and energy - including cognitive functioning -  and very low income, do I get out to socialise so haven't been in the position of dining out).
So I tend to just cook up mince with tomato passata sauce and vegetables and wade my way through that! So basically stuck on the soft food stage, with occasional other stuff such as chicken.  I found that I can eat nuts though...
However, I have a birthday coming up with friends coming to my place and I am going to make a Tom Kha Gai soup!

All the best everyone,
:)

Hi
I am also coming up to 2 years and I can honestly say no regrets, I still some times mourn food when I see what I would like  and what I can have,  but my life has changed 100% for the better. Not only do I have great health but I am teaching in another country, I always dreamed of travelling but was always to fat too even consider it, I now live in Bahrain and use it as a base to travel throughout Europe in my school holidays. 

Don't think the operation is the total answer it is just a tool, we still have to work at losing weight and maintaining it and when I first moved here I put on 10 kilos because I now have a great social life and with social life comes drink and food, and once on it is hard to shift dedication and hard work to remove it.

 I love the new me confident, happy, assertive, healthy, explorer not to mention the great clothes I can now wear.

I wish you luck with your journey and as you achieve your goals don't forget to check in here every couple of months it is great to see how others are going and if you can encourage or help someone going through what you did it is kind of a pay back for all the support you received
Regards
N

7 and a half months out and no regrets here (whatsoever!) I'm 36kg down and I definitely still enjoy my food. Truth be told, there are times when I wish I could eat a bit more because I'm really loving it or something, but there's also that sense of "wow, I'm fully satisfied on that small amount" and that feels good (to me).  If I really want more, I can wait 10 or 15 minutes and have another little bit.  There probably are things that feel different although I wouldn't say it's related to your concern of "feeling different inside with half your stomach missing".  

Unless I'm eating there's no difference for me and when I am eating, it's not that bad but it is possible to get tightness or discomfort if I eat too fast or too close to drinking.  I've had to learn to be more aware of these things and I can mostly avoid it now, but there is a period of adjustment where you have to re-learn a few eating habits (or there was in my case).

I can sleep any way I want to.  Missy - how far out are you? Maybe things will change.

Hi

I don't regret it but I'm not quite loving it either. I can't sleep in my tummy but back and sides are ok. When I eat out I order an entree or kids meal and can't finish it. I had a bit of pain and discomfort but not unmanageable. There's quite a few things I don't like the taste of now but from what I read that might pass in time. I can't feel the missing tummy but I do feel full quickly.

Missy

In all honesty....I'm sorry, but yes, I do.

However, I think you'll find 95% of people don't regret it. You need to take our stories of complications etc into account to keep you grounded but then look at the overall statistics and make your informed decision.

Good luck.

I'm almost 8weeks out Lissie and life is pretty much back to normal except I'm 14kgs lighter😊

I can go out and share a meal with my friends, it's just a smaller meal or I literally "share" a meal now!

I did feel a bit of pain afterwards but that has gone now and I don't feel different inside. I alternate between sleeping on my side and my stomach. I was uncomfortable sleeping for a while because I had to sleep with pillows propped around me before gradually sleeping comfy on my side. Now that I'm healed I have no problem sleeping on my stomach again! For me it took about 7 weeks to really feel back to normal.

No regrets! I have had a great recovery! I eat small portions and best of all I don't feel deprived at all.

I had so many questions before too, they're not stupid or weird! The last two months felt like it dragged along but now that it's done I can't believe how different I feel!

Be kind to yourself, be positive and give yourself time to heal is the best advice I found. Good luck with your op😊

I am coming up to 2 year post Sleeve and have been very happy with the process and the results. I love going out to dinner, admittedly the first six months was dedicated to losing the weight but since I have been in maintenance I enjoy going out and eating. Here's today's lunch, yum.

Hi Lissie,

I'm only 7 weeks out but no regrets at all. I had the same concerns re eating out but I've enjoyed a few meals at restaurants now and no problems at all - I can eat anything but just in small amounts.  So I order an entree or kids meal. And the best part is, I really don't feel like I'm missing out because I'm FULL! 

I had no pain after leaving the hospital, I didn't even need panadol. 

I don't feel any different inside at all. I feel great!

I'm a side sleeper so can't comment on sleeping on stomach, but I don't see why you couldn't!

Hi all :-) I'm new here and shelduled to have the sleeve surgery in a week and kind of freaking out.. My favourite thing in the whole world food wise is reef and beef with garlic sauce (probably why I need the sleeve lol ) will I be able to enjoy a meal with my friends and family ever again? wI'll I be in pain for months after? can I sleep on my stomach? do you feel different inside (missing half your stomach? so many stupid and weird questions I know but I would love you guys to give me your feedback xo