Foxbins

Yup. I went to The Biggest Loser ranch in Utah for a month (which cost almost as much as my sleeve eventually did). I worked out six hours a day, five days a week, and about two hours a day on Sat. and Sun. and stuck to their diet of about 1000-1200 calories (they give you 1200 a day but I did not always like the food and didn't eat everything that was served). I admit that at the end of the month I was in great cardio shape and much stronger but I had lost only 13 lbs. There was a guy there from New York at the same time as me who was trying to decide on diet/exercise or RNY and he lost 30 lbs in 30 days and was terribly disappointed. I figured that there was no way I could exercise six hours a day with a full-time job and decided to look for alternatives. I found out about VSG in December 10 and had my surgery in Jan 11.

That's great! I am so happy for you!

I had oatmeal with Splenda and cinnamon thinned with skim milk. It was hot, not too sweet, not chocolate-flavored, and had some fiber in it. I managed about 1/4 cup. I tried scrambled eggs and could eat about half of one. Seasoned refried beans with plain Greek yogurt on top was good, too.

If you are like most of us here, you have been on some kind of diet for most of your life, and she has probably heard you say so a number of times. I would tell her that you are on a physician-supervised weight loss plan and because it is working so well for you, you do not want to cheat. You are not lying to her.

My surgery was three months ago and I have not been hungry since. I think you will find, as you suspect, a range of answers. It appears that for some removal of the stomach (and ghrelin-producing cells) takes away hunger immediately after surgery and for others, the levels in the body decrease more slowly. There are some who believe that ghrelin, which is produced in other parts of the body besides the stomach, eventually is produced in sufficient quantities to cause hunger once again. Appetite and hunger are poorly understood physiologically; add in the psychological component and you have a multi-faceted conundrum.

That would be great! Thanks a lot for doing that.

Just drink water, tea, boullion, Gatorade, whatever fluid you can get down. Don't worry about protein just yet. Drink all you can and you will start to feel better and then you can progress to thicker fluids. I struggled to get in all the fluids I was supposed to for a few weeks. I was on clears for five days, then thin liquids for a week. I diluted my protein shakes so they were really thin--it got some protein in and also counted toward my liquid quota. Things will be better soon!

I'd put a couple butterflies on it to keep it closed until you can see your Dr.

I picked mine in the middle of the normal BMI range. I did weigh in that range 20 years ago so I know what I looked and felt like. It's a flexible goal, though, as my metabolism has changed over two decades. I want to get to my goal and see if it is maintainable if I eat like a reasonable person. If not, I'll add a few pounds. It's more about how I feel than the number on the scale.

You probably have a small hemorrhoid. Wipe carefully to avoid irritating it and maybe take a stool softener, as they are often caused by straining during a BM.

I would go to a Sac group. I have Kaiser but had my surgery in Mexico, so we don't really see eye-to-eye on some stuff. Plus, they make me feel like I had surgery on a kitchen table in a shanty by someone wearing a butcher's apron and holding a cleaver.

I took Prilosec at about 10 days out and had no problems, the diameter is small and your swelling should have gone down enough so that it won't hurt. I take Synthroid too and that had to start almost immediately post-op so I started swallowing pills 5 days out from surgery.

For the first time in about five years, my weight is below 200 lbs and the BMI charts say that I'm overweight. Who would have thought that I would be happy to be overweight, but compared to obese, I'll take it! Now if I could only fit into all my size 16 pants from five years ago. Only one pair fits...

Apparently, for years I have carried my own chair cushion on my butt. Mass transit, seats at the ballpark, concerts on horrible folding chairs--all were tolerable. Well, today I went to a training and there were these awful molded plastic seats and within an hour I was squirming and shifting from cheek to cheek. How do skinny people stand this? It hurts! Don't the makers of these chairs know that they are uncomfortable? Will my butt bones get callused eventually, or should I go buy a for-real cushion to bring with me to these sorts of events?

I am having a hard time imagining how that would work...something in Water or milk would make the Protein degrade? If that's the case, why doesn't the protein in Isopure (water based, in the bottles) degrade? Or the protein in RTD shakes that are milk-based? Or, for that matter, milk itself? If you brought deli meat to work and didn't eat it right away, would the protein go away? It doesn't make sense.

I had very good luck with turkey chili--the tomato base keeps the meat moist, the pieces are small, and turkey was easy for me to digest. Then I moved on to scallops, shrimp, tilapia, chicken with gravy, and I think my first beef was a meatball. Keep trying, eat slow, wait between bites to see if it's coming up. Good luck--

I had a pedicure before surgery. The anesthesiologist looks at the nail beds on your hands to see if you are well-oxygenated (in addition to all the monitors you're hooked up to). Check and make sure you can't have painted toes--I loved my pedicure before surgery because I sure didn't want to bend over to tend to my toes for a couple weeks after surgery.

I didn't sleep very well after surgery either; it was hard to get comfortable plus I was usually taking a nap in the afternoon. It went away pretty quickly; certainly after a couple weeks I was sleeping normally.

If you had a BM yesterday it's unlikely you are constipated today unless you are very dehydrated. With regards to your questions about bladder and urinary tract infections, mostly it hurts (burns) when you pee, you feel like you have to pee and can't, and you feel like you have to pee often. For a bladder infection the area just above your pubic bone is sore. Do you have a fever? Appendicitis can sometimes feel like generalized abdominal pain early on and only localizes over the right side later. You should really have some blood work done. If you continue to feel this bad, go back to the ER; certainly I think that you should call your surgeon's office in the morning. Please let us know what happens.

Congratulations to you! That's awesome!

I am wondering whether you have spoken to your surgeon...as a self-pay patient it is in their best interests to have a happy patient post-surgery. Do you know what size bougie or guide was used? Have you asked for their assistance? That's where I would start before considering the DS. Since the sleeve is the first part of the DS, if your sleeve is too big you will be relying on the malabsorption component alone. It's a complex and drastic surgery to contemplate on someone who is 6 pounds away from their short-term goal and 25 lbs from their long-term goal. Are you logging your food and counting calories? I don't mean to be harsh, but why would you eat two slices of NY pizza? Just because you can doesn't mean you should. I am glad you came here to ask for assistance and I think you should be proud of your weight loss so far. It appears to have been difficult for you and it may continue to be difficult but with determination I know you can succeed.

I have had hypothyroidism for about fifteen years now, plus I am post-menopausal. I have the basal metabolism of a lizard in winter and I can still lose weight with the sleeve. I am on relatively high doses of levothyroxine because I feel best if my TSH levels are around 1.0 but people are different and you might not like it that low. If I am above 4, I am cold, my skin is dry, and I feel lethargic. Work with your doctor on finding what makes you feel best and be reassured that you can lose weight with hypothyroidism. Exercise also helps to burn calories and rev up your metabolism once you feel up to it.

Your post-op pantry looks like mine did before surgery. However, what I bought and what I used were two very different things. I initially could not tolerate cold food, so no popsicles for me until about week 4. I could not drink the Protein shakes initially, I had a hard enough time getting in 32 oz of Water. When I could tolerate the protein, I found that I disliked the ones made with water. I did drink diluted grape juice at room temperature for a week or so. I couldn't have soups per my plan until after a month. I have eaten my popsicles since and given away the protein that I did not like and now I drink costco Pure Protein RTD shakes. You are certainly prepared but if you cannot drink much of anything but water post-op don't worry. Just keep drinking so that you don't get dehydrated. Best of luck to you!

Oh, you poor thing! I am sorry you are having such a hard time. I can empathize with the fluid problem--it was a couple weeks until I could even get in 40 oz of fluids each day. All I can tell you is to take tiny sips constantly and they will amount to enough to keep you from needing an IV. As far as acid, I came home on a PPI to control stomach acid. What are you taking for your acid? If it is not working, ask your doctor to change it. I hope you feel better soon.

I have been drinking with a straw all along, my doctor doesn't prohibit them. I have also been able to take normal-sized swallows of liquid since about six weeks out. However, if I drink too fast I will have to burp to get the air out to make room for the liquid...