swizzly

I am not an addict, but I also didn't need to use pain killers post-surgery -- I was given maximum normal doses of paracetamol and I did just fine. I didn't experience much pain with this surgery at all. (I did have a hysterectomy a few years ago and needed morphine for that for a day or two.)

You look SO beautiful!! (And I seriously love your necklace too.)

Dude, those legs look FAB, no kidding!!!

So funny, peanut butter has been one of my life-saver go-tos since sugery. I've been eating spoonfuls of it as a snack since early post-op, it's very soothing to my sleeve. And I didn't even like it that much pre-op.

Wow, you look fabulous!!

{{{HUGS}}} Sweetie, your sleeve is fine, and if it's not, you will definitely know something's wrong. So just watch how you're doing and be careful. You have most definitely NOT ruined your sleeve, I can assure you of that. Just hang in there through the 'hell weeks' and you will see it work amazingly well. You're doing great, just keep up the good work and stay away from the bad foods.

You shouldn't be taking ibuprofen without specific permission from your surgeon, and I also wonder why he doesn't want you taking anti-acid medications?? If you had reflux already, you need to be on a PPI in my opinion. But you could at least try the Gaviscon. And you should stick with your diet as outlined, the hunger will fade over the next couple of weeks anyhow, especially if you treat the acid issue. I would really stay away from things like white carbs (Pasta, rice) and snacky crap like chips for a LONG time, like until you've reached goal. Those will really hinder your weight-loss. Good luck!

Yes, drink a ton of liquids, and make sure you're taking an acid preventer (PPI) like prilosec, protonix, etc. I also find that Gaviscon (specifically that brand) of chewable antacids help a lot with the growly tummy/hungry feeling. A lot of times what feels like hunger is actually just acid. Be careful what you eat in the first six weeks, gotta take it easy on that staple line.

I get asked that here all the time. I just say it's delicious, but I'm full. Repeat repeatedly, they'll get the point.

I have a hard time with potatoes in any form, they are like a brick in there. UGH. Also too much sugar makes me feel like crap. Everything else works just fine.

I take enteric aspirin frequently, but I am also allowed to take regular aspirin and/or ibuprofen as needed, as long as it's not too often.

Wow, well done you!! What a great feeling it must be!!

The water thing is a super goal to pursue! I do drink loads of water every day, at least two liters. But I can't drink it plain, it just won't go down well, so I add Mio or Crystal Lite or any kind of SF flavouring to it, always. And a bit more diluted than it calls for, as it is sometimes too sweet. But yeah, drink a ton of water, it is great for you and it keeps your tummy full as well. I have been on full food (except raw fruit and veg) from four days post-op, they do things a bit differently at my clinic. So I've been eating food all along. AND I never lost my hunger at all. For me that is a very good thing. It makes it like pre-op: I get hungry, I eat till I'm full, I stop. And my plan calls for three meals and three Snacks per day, so that makes it easy to get protein in every few hours, since I've never used Protein shakes and had to get all my protein from food. The other thing I do is really keep my diet quite varied. It would be easy to get in a real rut with this surgery and always eat X for Breakfast, Y for lunch and Z for dinner. But I eat all sorts of different things, so my stomach doesn't make the decisions for me (if that makes sense). There are very few things I can't eat well (aside from things I already didn't like pre-op LOL). But as far as advice, my three favorite are: drink more (you're already on this one), cut out white carbs (bread, Pasta, garlic bread lol, etc.) and keep your meals/snacks to planned times and contents. ETA two more haha: Don't drink calories (ie, sodas or drinks with sugar/calories in) and always track everything you eat -- I use myfitnesspal for this. Keeps you well-informed about what you're eating, where your calories are coming from, etc. Good luck, you can do this!!

We have very close surgery dates, I'll be 10 months out tomorrow. I've lost just about 84 pounds in 10 months and I consider that to be awesome! I don't snack too much, but I do get the urge and go for it now and then. I've lost slowly on purpose, as I've been on 1200 cals from as soon as I could do, and am still on 1200-1500 per day now. I like losing slowly and hopefully keeping my metabolism going a bit. But the snacking, especially if it's on crap food, will do you in, so get that in hand and maybe go for a walk instead of snacking? I do that sometimes...

The only place I heard the non-drinking rule prior to my surgery was in a pre-op group meeting with mostly RnY patients, where the nutritionists were giving quite general guidelines (we all got our specific plans and rules in separate one-on-one appointments, several of them...) and I heard the drinking thing and she said something to me that I didn't really catch (it was all in German), but I think she actually said it didn't apply to sleeve patients, but to be on the safe side, I kept to the 15/15 min thing just in case. Actually, for me it is NOT true that liquids 'wash anything through.' Quite the opposite. There have been times I wish it were true, I'd have loved to have washed through something not sitting well or that I'd inadvertently eaten too much of. But if I drink whilst I'm eating, I get extremely, uncomfortably full, so I generally don't do it.

I was only told to stop drinking 15 minutes before eating and that's pretty easy, so I usually do. I'm supposed to wait 30 mins after eating to drink, but I usually make it 15-20 mins before I have a drink. There are so many 'myths' about WLS and what will/won't happen to your sleeve if you do X, Y and Z. But I'm a fan of scientific evidence, and I've not seen any about the eating/drinking thing for sleeve patients, especially vis-a-vis stretching anything out. I've not even seen compelling evidence that a sleeve CAN be significantly stretched regardless of what people try to do to it. But that thing your (MoonSiren) doctor said about washing things through too quickly and not getting the nutrients? That kinda doesn't even make sense, as we get most of the nutrients out of our food in the intestine, not in the stomach. So washing it through faster (if, indeed, that actually happens) would not have any impact on the nutrient absorption that happens in the intestine. What makes the most sense to me personally is that Water and other liquids can make you feel full too quickly so you don't actually get enough food in there. But water on an empty stomach will pretty much go right on through, there's no need to wait a full hour IMO...!! I hate playing according to stupid rules based on pseudo-science or just straight-up superstition about stretching things. So I have a wee bug about this topic LOL.

Good approach! Mine is to be STUBBORN and just wait it out. Oh I guarantee you Ms Stall, I can outlast you any day and twice on Sunday, so BRING IT ON. Eventually it gives up and slinks away for a while...

WOWZA!!!!!!!!!!!!

Oooh, sorry to hear it!! I had a drain that didn't bother me at all, they took it out day five post-op. But you should watch the lowered potassium levels, those can drop precipitously and cause big issues, so if you feel yukky at all, you should get them checked again! Good luck, and get well quickly!!

My feet went from 10.5 to 9 or 9.5 and I got rid of LOADS of awesome shoes. Sigh. My rings started at size 8 and now I'm about a 6.

I tend to knit, crochet, use the internet, and clean out my drawers one at a time. But I wasn't a major TV snacker, so that's what I did before, too. I think this is temporary and you'll feel better soon, it's just a weird phase. Keep your hands busy and keep yourself distracted for a while. GOOD LUCK!!

Even I, the laziest human EVER, agree that a good workout will get you away from the food and will curb your hunger a bit and lift your mood too. Good luck, you can DO THIS!!!

I've been quite poky too, but I've also been 1000-1400 kcals per day since a month or two post-op. I lose slowly but fairly steadily, with the odd two-month stall in there sometimes. Things are going good and I see no reason why a six-month or one-year mark should make a difference to that. :-)

I always used one post-op, was never against any of my rules anyhow. Now I'm addicted to those Evian bottles with the sport top thingy where you have like a little round spout you drink out of. Use those all day every day.

Oy, my hair has been dropping like it's trying to escape a burning building! Started at almost exactly 3.5 months post-op and has really slowed down over the past month or so, but I'm not seeing much regrowth yet. I use Aveda Hair Potion to make it look thicker and I take biotin and silica...I think the Hair Potion is doing the most good LOL. I also use Joan Rivers Good Hair Day powder to make my scalp not show, which totally disguises the thinness. It's awesome.