GreginMI

I was told to take a Flintstones complete chewable twice a day. After day 31 I can go to an adult vitamin with iron twice a day and the at day 90 it's one adult vitamin a day for life. I also take 500mg of calcium twice a day and Vitamin B12 complex once a week.

I was the same way. The nausea went away after a few days of eating, though. I think your stomach has to get used to food again after not having anything even semi-solid put in it. Hang in there and I bet it goes away soon.

My question is how do you all know which incision is the one they pulled your stomach out of?

I had the scrambled egg and cheese for my first soft food item and it didn't settle well. Now I'm eating a boiled egg white and it settles pretty well on my stomach.

The doctor gave me 5 weeks off because I work in a factory and have to lift very heavy things for work. If I had worked in an office, I would have only taken 2 weeks off.

I felt that way before surgery. I used to LOVE to eat. And I mean I could put it away and like you, I felt great after stuffing my face. All I can tell you is what the surgery did for me. What it did was totally reset my system. The thing is that I have had ZERO physical hunger since the surgery. None. Nada. Zip. Zilch. I have to actually remind myself to eat because I could honestly go all day without eating anything and be perfectly happy. But that isn't healthy. I try to get my proteins in every day. Where food used to occupy my thinking all day, now I hardly give it much thought at all. It's amazing. I still have a full feeling when I eat but it's much different. Once in a while I get head hunger and miss sitting down and being able to eat a 22 oz. Porterhouse steak or a double bacon cheeseburger, but those moments are fleeting. I guess you go through a mourning period for food. That's fine, though. I've lost 45 lbs so far including the pre-op diet and I'm only 4 weeks out from surgery. The weight loss outweighs any desire I have to eat a huge amount of food anymore. I am so happy I did this and I know you will be too. Good luck to you!

My insurance paperwork said that too, but when I got to the surgeon's office they just had some sheets to fill out and I had to list the diets I've tried and failed at and the dates I tried them. There was never any "documentation" concerning the diets required by the surgeon.

Like you, I was fine with Protein shakes on my pre-op diet. In fact, I was okay with them for about 3 weeks post-op. Then one day, they just disgusted me. I couldn't drink them anymore. And I am still trying to figure out ways to get the protein in other ways. I did find this hot chocolate from mybariatricpantry and is it ever yummy! Instead of coffee every morning now I have this. It has 15g of protein. Give it a try! http://www.mybariatricpantry.com/Pantry_Selections_Hot_Chocolate_Protein_Drinks_p/ps-ht_choc.htm

I'm only 4 weeks out now so I'm not going to mess with carbonation. But around the 3 month mark I'm going to test some beer and see how it affects me. Not going to be a big drinker but sometimes at the bar with the boys I want to enjoy a cold beverage now and then.

I also have BCBS of Michigan PPO and have excellent coverage. (Ford hourly employee). After my Primary doctor sent me to the surgeon, I went into the office, filled out some paperwork, they made some calls to the insurance company, and at that appointment they gave me my surgery date only a month out from that date. No pre-requisites at all! It was pretty amazingly fast!

Have you tried Zilch mixers? My girlfriend was on Weight Watchers and bought some of these little packets to keep in her purse. When she's out she asks the bartender for a shot of tequila and a glass of ice Water and she mixes the packet and the shot in with the water and instant margarita! They taste pretty good, kind of like a skinny margarita but much cheaper. They even say for bariatric patients in the narrative on the page. sugar free and low carb. Not bad. http://www.zilchmixers.com/

I think these kinds of reactions have more to do with them and less to do with you. I wouldn't worry about it too much. I know it's sad to lose a friend but it was their choice, not yours. I find if I surround myself with people who are positive and happy it rubs off on me. I cut the negative people out of my life. Apparently sometimes they take care of that for you. Best of luck.

I'm 3 weeks out and my surgeon used a 40fr bougie on me and I've lost 43 pounds including the 8 day pre-op diet. I asked him about the bougie size and he said that even though a doctor may use a 32 bougie it doesn't mean they use it for sizing. They could just be using it as a guide. It all depends on how close against the bougie the doctor staples the stomach. It's not an exact science. He says all his patients lose weight very well with the 40 and it's better for no complications.

I work for one of the big 3 and I have BCBS of Michigan. After reading that most insurance companies don't cover the sleeve because they consider it an experimental surgery I wasn't even thinking about getting it and was resigned to the Gastric Bypass. When I went to the surgeon's office and talked to them they ran my insurance and said it covered all the procedures. Then the surgeon actually said he thought the sleeve was right for me so I was pleasantly surprised! You never know until you find out! Good luck!

I wondered if this was normal and apparently it is. I was so excited before to get to the soft food stage as my surgeon calls it. I have 2 weeks to go on this before I go to solid foods. The first day I scrambled a soft egg and ate it. I felt immediately nauseous and had to lay down for awhile. I don't think I can eat another one for awhile. The thought of it disgusts me. In fact, about every food disgusts me when I think about it. I have to purposefully eat because I'd be perfectly happy not eating anything all day. I hope this changes because I'd really like to enjoy the little bit of food I am able to eat. Tuna with light mayo also grosses me out and I used to love it. I think the texture stage where you blend up chili and stuff really turned me off to regular food. I get sick thinking about it. I did eat some oatmeal this morning and it seems to be okay. So like the other people said, you have to try things and find out what you can tolerate and what you can't. I'm going to give cottage cheese a try tomorrow. I used to love it. I now understand though when people say your tastes change after surgery. It's so crazy but true. I just wonder what new things I'll end up liking now. So yes, I am with you on this soft food stage sucking and I hope when we get to the solid food stage we'll be able to tolerate more food. I chalk it up to your stomach not having anything solid or even semi-solid in it for so long that it's saying "What the hell is this?" when you introduce food to it again. Kind of like it has to get used to it again. Good luck to both of us!

Your experience was almost exactly like mine! I was a marine Sgt. and also a police officer and think of myself as a tough guy but this surgery knocked me on my ass! I was very surprised by that. It didn't help that I got into a car accident on the way home from the hospital and the seatbelt aggravated my already sore incision sites and it took me longer to heal. I had a big black and blue mark where the seat belt was for weeks. Glad you're doing okay though and it will get better every day!

My surgeon told me that only 3% of people that are 100 or more pounds overweight are able to lose the weight and keep it off without surgery. Those are pretty grim statistics. I was looking for a permanent solution to my weight problem and I do believe I found it.

I'm going to try to do something that I couldn't do as a kid. Learn from YOUR mistakes. Thanks for the reply.

So I'm almost at 3 weeks post op and feeling good but have mostly been drinking my 3 protein shakes for 63 grams of protein a day and taking vitamins. I do get my water amounts in and I manage an applesauce, yogurt, or pudding now and then on top of that. Yet I haven't felt restriction up until today. And hard to believe but it was WATER that I learned it on. I was watching TV and apparently not thinking about how fast I was drinking. I guess I started gulping it like the old days pre-op and before I know it I had a 16.9 oz bottle down in a matter of minutes. All of a sudden I felt this tightness in my chest and almost a pain in my gut. I was like, what is this? I grabbed my music and headphones and headed out the door. A mile later I felt fine. So yeah, I think I ballooned my belly up really fast. I'm glad I didn't do that on food or it would have taken longer to recede. All I know is from now on I'm taking longer to drink/eat and not going to race to get anything down. At least I know how it feels when full so when I go to solid foods I'll be able to stop before it gets THAT bad. This sleeve doesn't hold much!!

I'm with you on that. I get my water and my protein shakes in fine (although I hate the shakes now that I'm post op), and that's about it. I'm supposed to have 6 small meals a day, including the 3 protein shakes and 3 of the soft foods stage, but I can only get in the 3 protein shakes. Nothing sounds good to me. I've tried pureeing chili and beef stew and the texture just grosses me out. I am not hungry at ALL. I hope I get a little of my appetite back eventually. I do love the taste of food and would like to enjoy the little I do get to eat. In the mean time, I guess since I'm getting my protein in and my water in and taking my vitamins, I'm okay for now. Hope it gets better for both of us someday!

That goes right up there with why do some doctors have such a rigid pre-op diet and some don't? And why are the timelines different for different surgeons as to what you can and can not eat? Who knows! You should just follow what your surgeon says because you need to trust him. He should know what is best for YOU and it's what has worked best for his patients in his own experience. As for me, I had to keep a drain in for a week before I got it out where a lot of people either had no drain or got it out before they left the hospital. It was annoying to me but not that big of a deal. My surgeon told me that the drain is there to monitor the blood in your surgery cavity and if a weird color comes out it may indicate a leak. Let me tell you, when he pulled that thing out after a week it was the strangest feeling ever as it was coming out!

It's going to be bad whether you do that or not. The liquid stage sucks!

I had someone who had WLS tell me to just keep eating as usual up until the pre-op diet for the surgery. She said your body will have a whole reset after surgery anyway so enjoy it while you can. Not to eat any more than usual, but just keep your routine. I followed her advice and I didn't gain anymore weight than I was and was able to enjoy my regular food until the surgery. I was happy I did it.

I remember being where you're at. I'm a little over 2 weeks post op and I have to tell you that this period sucks because of all the liquids, purees, etc. but in 3 weeks I'll be eating regular food and I can't' wait! It was no cake walk after surgery but I can tell you that you'll make it fine and that it's totally worth it. It's normal to be nervous, but don't be scared. The pain is not unbearable and all the drinking Water and Protein shakes are really just minor inconveniences next to the new you that will emerge when it's all said and done. Be strong and good luck! See you on the other side. P.S. You're most definitely doing the right thing!