Jump to content
×
Are you looking for the BariatricPal Store? Go now!

Rootman

LAP-BAND Patients
  • Content Count

    4,075
  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    2

Everything posted by Rootman

  1. Rootman

    Swallowing Pills

    Me neither, had some HUGE pain pills I brought home from the operation. I had a bit of trepidation swallowing them as they actually upset my stomach pretty bad and tasted just awful. I bit the bullet and tossed them back as far as I could swallowed a gulp of water and sat on the bed for a few minutes for the nausea to pass. No physical restrictions simply mental.
  2. Over 45 minutes you have passed the stuff you first ate and are making room for more, NO I don't think you are stretching your sleeve. If you can wolf down 4 ozs in 10 minutes then force down more then YES you would be stretching it and I've yet to see anyone who can do that so soon pre-op, it typically hurts like hell and makes your heart feel like it's going to jump out of your chest.
  3. I agree with BBJ above, CLEAR liquids PRE-OP just not make much sense, maybe the DAY before or so but an entire regiment of days or weeks is funny. I was told eat anything that can be sucked through a straw without changing it e.g. no pizza put through a blender
  4. Rootman

    B-12 DOSAGE

    I took an OTC sublingual tablet. Got it at Walmart. Several dosages are available, start with the ~1000 mcg and when visiting the doctor they should run a standard blood panel for Vitamins and minerals. You can adjust your dosage up or down as indicated by the results. B12 is relatively benign and is Water soluble - which means the excess is easily flushed out by the kidneys. However nearly EVERYTHING can have toxic side effects if taken in excess, including, oddly enough, water itself. I started out taking the 1000 mcg dosage daily and dropped back to every other day when it was tested high. I've since dropped it entirely since I've been taking EmergenC Vitamin C drink to lower my urines PH level (more acidic) to help prevent kidney stones. It appears to be working as I've not had a kidney stone incident for over a month now.
  5. Rootman

    FOOD DIARY??

    I'd say if it's a prerequisite that they want then go ahead and do it. It can be as simple as a piece of paper with the Breakfast, lunch, dinner and Snacks you eat on it. I would bet they also want to track your caloric count too so you may have to pick up a pocket calorie book - which will probably have a diary built in to it. There are scads of online ones: https://encrypted.google.com/search?source=ig&hl=en&rlz=&q=food+diary&aq=f&aqi=g10&aql=&oq= I use http://www.myfitnesspal.com/ as it also records exercise too.
  6. Yes, I thought the same but I took a few blood sugar studies, one a month long and I always tended to be hypoglycemic rather than hyper. This HAD been the norm for decades of my life, and my mother even noted as an infant I would be bathed in sweat and demand drinks all the time. SOMETHING weird was going on and it seems to be "over" now.
  7. Rootman

    Income tax

    For USA taxes YES, but only if your medical expenses OVER 7.5% of your adjusted gross income. Here is a site that has a lot of tips - a good read: http://www.bankrate.com/finance/money-guides/maximizing-your-medical-deductions-1.aspx Remember you are not getting a tax rebate, you are just not paying taxes on the amount you spent out of pocket for medical needs over and above 7.5 of your adjusted gross income. And that's only if you can use the long form and itemize.
  8. Well since Ouroborous reopened this topic I'll chime in again. Since the last post of mine above it's been hot here a few times and I hardly perspired at all. I've worked out in our wellness center, walked a few miles - which is amazing since previously walking to the john and back was an accomplishment before WLS, but I digress. I've ridden the stationary bike for 30+ minutes at medium resistance at full resistance for over 5 minutes, done weight training on various machines and hardly broken a sweat. Mop my forehead and the rest dries out in a few minutes. SOMETHING has changed drastically since as I pointed out above I used to sweat profusely at ANY body weight almost ALL the time. I have had a fan in my office (third one actually, wore out 2) that I would run ALL day EVERY day and still sweat in an ACd office at 75 degrees. Not any more, have not turned the fan on once since my operation. Last week it was in the 80's and we opened the windows and the doors. I had to close the window nearest me because I was cold! YES, I'd MUCH rather have this than be a sweathog again. You can always put something on to warm up, you can only take so much off to cool down Perhaps my sodium intake? Carbs? Who knows. I just hope it lasts forever!
  9. Rootman

    Interesting article on BMI

    According to the BMI charts most American football players and pro wrestlers are obese if not morbidly obese. Yeah, just call one of them a "fat ass" and wake up in the hospital. That's probably the extreme but I've always taken BMI recommendations with a grain of salt. Problem is you can be denied insurance or have higher rates because of them. When I drop below 200 I look thin, really painfully thin. I look good at 220. So when I reach that I am going to consider it a compete success. If I drop lower and don't look like skeletor that's great, otherwise I will be happy. Pre-surgery I was asked to pick a goal weight between the limits on the BMI chart for a six footer male, 160 to 190 - so I choose 180 as an arbitrary goal. 190 was probably more realistic.
  10. Hope it's just a bug or something harmless. Best to you!
  11. Shanna, sounds like your head is screwed on straight and you are doing this for the right reasons. Keep up with the diet, keep examining the issues and if WLS is for you then go through with it. We all wish you the best!
  12. Rootman

    Leaving on a jet plane....

    Been there, done that. Wanted to call the airline and change my return flight as soon as I got there. nearly barfed a few times too. I stuck through it, as you will too. I'm now 100+ pounds down in less than 5 months. You can do it too.
  13. Rootman

    Gastric Sleeve

    Been there done that and am now 113 pounds lighter in about 5 months. Had no big problems. The place is clean and compact and seems nice. It is a little noisy though so take some ear plugs. The staff are nice and professional. The recovery house's finish is a little lacking, they really cut corners on it's construction so it looks pretty cheap. Overall I've had more problems with facilities in the US then I ever had in my single instance at Jerusalem Hospital in Tijuana. I've seen ONE post where someone CLAIMED there had been a few deaths and goofy accusations of "death threats" when liability is brought up. I have yet to see any first hand concrete proof of any such events though and suspect someone is exaggerating to drum up business for their own clinics.
  14. Rootman

    What are some "Sleeve-Friendly" restaurants?

    A lot of restaurants Entrees are not only too big, they are like 4 times the size they need to be. A few times the wife and I split an entree, take the other half home and then have a meal each AGAIN off the same entree. One guy I know who both he and his wife had bands would order an entree and a to-go box at the same time. They would split the entree before even starting to eat, box one half and then split the remaining half in half and each have one of the remaining quarters fr a meal. The thought is "out of sight out of mind" and by getting half the food right into a to-go box it eliminates and temptation to eat a bit more.
  15. Congrats! Make sure to have the smelling salts right by the scale!
  16. Carbs are NOT the "enemy", just try and concentrate on Protein MORE than carbs. Almost everything has carbs, it's unavoidable. Carbs are quick energy, the body adsorbs them quickly and if there are too many in one sitting packs the rest away as fat. The body also has a preference of pulling energy from fresh calories rather than body fat, so it will leave the body fat and just use whatever else you stick in your mouth first and leave the at for "emergencies". protein is long lasting energy that takes the body a while to break down. If you are eating the right amount of caloric intake and it is largely of protein the body will take some tie to break it down and use it. Protein has the necessary stuff in it to allow the body to build lean muscle mass too. Fruit and stuff while it does contain carbs is pretty much harmless. Eat all you want. Just make sure that with the limited amount of food that we CAN eat that you get your Proteins in FIRST, then carbs then fats. That way you fill up on proteins first and if any room is left a few carbs. If you're losing weight while eating the right caloric amount then you are doing fine.
  17. Rootman

    food to eat.

    I too had a great difference in taste, and at 4.5 months out I still don't enjoy many of the foods I used to. I don't know if its all psychological or if there is a physical aspect of it too. Take advantage of it and ween yourself off all the foods we should no longer eat.
  18. Rootman

    Possible Problem ~ Question

    I would bet on the syrup but if it happens again go to the doc. Years ago we had some bright red pain killer syrup, I think it was codeine and something else. Well I ended up like you with bright red stools and panicked before I figured out the source. I stopped taking that crap right away and took the rest to a disposal site to be destroyed. Sure scared me for a few minutes.
  19. Yeah I am definitely hairier too. I am not sure about the follicle theory. I know for sure that my testosterone level shot up more than twice what it was and 7X as much as before I started replacement therapy. The doc said that I now have less body mass to dilute the hormone through and therefore my level rises - which makes me hairier and my facial hair more heavy too.
  20. Yep, got itchy and stubbly for a few weeks afterward.
  21. Rootman

    funny taste

    It's probably ketosis, the body is burning fats and it leaves a coat on the tongue and gives everything a funny flavor, my breath also smells funny - at least to me. It lets up after a few months but 4.5 months a LOT of food still tastes "off" to me.
  22. Wow, that's fast. I'd say just take it easy and if anything bothers you just back off, mushies are always an option.
  23. Rootman

    Chicken....?

    WOW! What a spectrum of time, from 2 weeks to 5 months! I was told to wait 6 weeks. 2 weeks for liquids, 2 weeks for pureed and 2 weeks for mushy food.
  24. Rootman

    Fears! Need your Help!

    Sorry this is so long, I feel real "philosophical" today Same here or so it seems. Being a Christian I am dread to believe in something apart from God's will but it sure does seem like my "luck" sucks big time in most cases. My bro gave me 20 scratch off lottery tickets for my birthday. Now typically out of 20 you'd have at least a few $1 winners or even better. I had NONE. Just goes to show how my "luck" is. But sad story that it is if you make a good well informed decision it will usually work out for the better, my VSG certainly has. I've had like NO problems, well I did have some kidney stones from not hydrating enough and popping too many Tums (learned I need Calcium CITRATE not calcium CARBONATE). But at least nothing life threatening. Here I am at 4.5 months out and have lost 110 pounds. I have starved myself a few times and lost a bit of weight only to have it boomerang and I pack it back on PLUS some. The VSG is different not JUST a diet, and truth be told it IS the diet apart from the sleeve that causes you to lose weight, the sleeve just gives you the ability to keep to it. I too was worried it would not work and I would just blow all that money and mutilate myself for no good reason. I now have a LOT better eating habits and at 4.5 months I still don't really even WANT to eat, I have to make myself. Not force myself exactly but I have to sit down and make myself eat. Prior to this I would take ANY opportunity to stuff WHATEVER I could get in my mouth. I would gorge on MASSIVE amounts of everything. A lot of my favorites don't even taste good to me any more. I wonder if they ever really did, was I just shoveling it in, barely chewing it and not really tasting it and just getting high from the endorphins that having a full belly coursed though my system? I'm not sure, all I know is if I don't like it I DON'T eat it whereas before I probably still would have. If you're like most of us you are doing it too. If all the sleeve did is make us really appreciate the TASTE of food then it would be well worth it. I was worried about the same things. I really preferred quality food to average food. I would NOT eat a McDonalds hamburger but sure would wolf down a Royal Red Robin burger in a heartbeat. I would not eat at Olive Garden with their "fake" Italian food but would scarf down a plate of our "real" Italiana Restaurante Spaghetti any time. I think the sleeve changes your appetite AND your palate, I know it certainly has for me and while I DO miss it somewhat It's just a fond memory and little else. I do not long for the food I used to eat. I tell people it's like getting a divorce from food, you are no longer lovers but just good friends and see each other only when you have to. Most of us went through the same thing and some of us really wigged out when it came down to the time. Study the options, examine the realities, seek the consul of others you trust and if of that bent - pray about it. Only YOU can determine what is the right decision for YOU to make. We all wish you the best no matter what direction you take.
  25. Rootman

    WONDERING???

    Well mine certainly haven't gotten much smaller - and being a GUY that's pretty bad . Technically I guess their moobs and not boobs. @Free2b - my rump went from a huge squared off thing that smashed up in the middle to a nice round "sexy butt" (my wife's words - HONEST!) . I am not sure how further weight loss will change it, I might just end up like Hank Hill . I know it hurts when I sit very long and it didn't used to.

PatchAid Vitamin Patches

×