Leaderboard

I also think that all the stages reiterate how serious this kind of surgery is too. It certainly isn’t for the faint hearted or those wanting the loss thinking this is the easy way. My first group session sounds very similar to yours. The nurses said right at the very beginning that jabs like Ozempic or Wegovy were not available and you could see that some were disappointed. My next group session is in August so it will be interesting to hear from others at that session. We were given a lot of reading matter to familiarise ourselves with the whole process and encouraged to contact the Bariatric department if we had any questions or concerns, which I found reassuring.

For surgery on the NHS, it has to be shown that the patient is fully aware that the surgery is only a tool and that the patient has realistic expectations of life post-surgery. We have to show and understand that we are prepared to put in all the necessary work (daily vitamins and regular blood tests, to adhere to the rules of eating both immediately after surgery while we heal and then the lifelong commitment required to maintain their losses) I’m glad that my NHS Trust has hoops to jump through if I’m honest, as it inspires confidence for me. Would I love surgery now? Of course! I’m I mentally prepared for it? No, I don’t think I am. The past couple of weeks have shown me that I do respond to emotional situations by trying to soothe myself with food. Will I be able to do that post-op? Very, very doubtful as I would be worried about undoing both the surgery and the psychological readiness I know I need to undergo said surgery. I do read some posts on various forums that do give cause for concern as a pre-op patient, just as Tek identified above. I’m in no position to advise but it is comforting that the more experienced posters do their utmost to give advice and guide the user in contacting their surgeon, doctor etc or to re-read the advice they should have been given 🙂

Hi, just looking for ideas of what might be going on. Side the day after surgery, I've been having issues with vomiting for several hours after eating. Not every meal, not even every day, but usually one a week. I do ok with purees now, but no solid food patterns are appearing. Even I say hours, I mean hours. Like, up to 12 hours is the longest so far. Throwing up food for several of those hours, then water the rest. I can eat or drink during this time - it comes right back up. I've had to get fluids, thiamine, and anti-emetics by iv twice now in 3 weeks. I've had an upper gi/ small bowel study done - liquids only - and everything was fine. My labs are fine, mainly because I'm diligent about my meds on days when I can take them. My surgeon won't do anything else because the gi study came back normal. Has anyone else ever dealt with this? Or any suggestions from anyone? I have an ultrasound scheduled to check my gallbladder, but I dint think it's that since my liver enzymes are perfect. I'm at my wit's end - I can't sleep, can't work, can't lie down, can't do anything except sit there and vomit every 10-20 minutes - literally. Just looking for some kind of hope at this point. Thank you for reading this far.

Hello! I'm a brand-newbie and am scheduled for surgery on September 5, 2024. I've gone through 6 months with a dietician, sleep study, endoscopy, all of the usual suspects. Now I'm in the official countdown to actually having the surgery and I thought it might be interesting to hear from some folks who have been through it and what they wish they would have done in this timeframe. Should I be working out more? Is it too early to start a liquid diet? What should I get ready in my house for when I come home afterwards? Any advice is appreciated!!! Diane

I did 2 things preop that helped immensely: 1) this may sound weird but i guessed i’d be in a little pain from the incisions so a couple of days before going into the clinic i move everything i figured i’d need in the first week post up to middle shelves in my kitchen/fridge : cups, scales, protein shakes and powders etc. And thank god i did because i had abdominal muscle pain (like i’d done 10000 crunches) and was told not to bend down for a while. 2) i wrote out « meal » plans from what my dietician provided in order to clearly see what time of day i’d eat (protein shakes) and drink (water). I’m the kind of person who needs a set plan that’s clear and that i can follow because i was lost the first few days. I wrote out 4 weeks of meal plans and i varied the shakes and purées and soups so i didn’t get sick of one specific one (never ate the same one 2 meals in a row and alternated with the next day). Not sure it actually helped my experience but it did help me see clearly mentally 🤣

I'm so glad this came up. There's one reference to caffeine in my prep book, but the doctor and dietician have said nothing else about it. And I wrote coffee on my diet plans, but nothing about decaf. I'm going to ask them about it, but I'm now realizing that I will have to cut out caffeine. I'll have to start a weaning process. This might be the toughest pre-op process for me.

Oh you poor thing. Vomiting is the worst. Just throwing some ideas out there for you to consider. It’s not uncommon to develop some food intolerances (usually always temporarily) after surgery - lactose & sugar alcohols in artificial sweeteners being the most common (often in protein shakes). Could this be a possibility? It can be sensitivity to other foods or ingredients too. It’s not uncommon to develop spasming in the stomach & digestive tract after surgery. Again this is usually temporary but the body & mind can be unpredictable. My dad experienced chronic vomiting after chemo & his doctor explained that sometimes the body/mind thinks vomiting is a normal behaviour. It just takes time to break the habit. Don’t let your surgeon or support team brush you aside. Malnutritiion, dehydration are a possibility with vomiting like you’ve been experiencing. This is some information about spasming you may find interesting. https://renewbariatrics.com/stomach-spasms-after-gastric-sleeve-surgery/ Hopefully, it will get even less frequent & it stops for you soon.

Yea. Mine seemed like a joke as well. I mean he did ask questions about my history and my expectations as well as what support system I had and stuff like that. I just didn’t feel like it was really on depth enough. I feel like someone who was just saying all the right things could have easily passed.

No I don't take measurements. I really wished I had started this at the beginning of my journey. I just love that I have an excuse to buy new clothes again. It has taken me a while to like clothes shopping because I was not used to having too much choice. Now I am hooked

I wouldn't be surprised if you losing weight is absolutely terrifying to your ex. As long as you are obese, he can assure himself that you'll never find anyone better than he was, which seems to be important to a lot of people regardless of whether they ended the relationship or you did. It's a pride thing. But when you start losing weight, now you're probably happier with more energy, you might look more attractive, maybe dressing in nicer clothes, too... uh oh! Now he sees you were totally settling for his sorry butt and are likely to find someone way better, and then his ego will be bruised as all your friends and family tell you how lucky you are. My ex, (who is legally not my ex yet, which is very annoying) is the sabotaging type, too. I see him 5 days a week when he picks up the kids for school or drops off from activities. I've had to tell him about the surgery as I'll need his help with the kids, and I am still on a family plan insurance so he'll need to know about deductibles and such, but I fully expect him to start panicking as the weight loss becomes noticeable. I can hardly wait to find out how he'll try to sabotage me.