smkeller

Good for you, I had Dr. Aceves, too. It will be one month on 8/29/11. It's fun to hear about Almater and the crew. Seems like a dream now.

It's a function of BMI's. If you have a BMI over 40, 45, 50, most doctors require you to do it for safety reasons. Apparently it makes the liver less slimy and easier to handle. Plus, of course, you are lighter, which is better for the heart. Just do the best you can if your BMI is high. Most people cheat a little, because they just can't stand it after a while. Every little bit helps your surgeon, which helps you.

Yes, my wife didn't like or accept my wanting to get WLS. I finally just went not telling her. She had said that I would get skinny and attractive and leave. Just insecurity. She didn't speak to me for a week after I came back, but now things are normal. It would have been nice, though, to get support for it. I had at least four co-morbidities.

Good to be excited, Melissa, but watch out that your expectations don't run wild. It's just a new beginning, and if you have some bumps, the come-down can be severe. Best wishes, of course.

Thanks <blush>

Naw, Lash, you know why... men are just slow learners.

Excellent, excellent. This is the kind of information that makes this forum a goldmine.

Good work.

Jealous, jealous, jealous, JEALOUS - but it is encouraging. Congrats.

You are right to be concerned about your Calcium consumption. I have discovered a little talked about truth concerning our calcium needs after surgery. The most common forms of consumable calcium are calcium carbonate and calcium gluconate. There are some others as well, but these are the most common ingredients even in the calcium pills or chewables sold at heath food sites (unjury, for example). HOWEVER, if you have to take a PPI, before or especially after WLS, then the PPI cancels out the calcium absorption of these more common ingredients. The amount of calcium absorbed anyway is only about 20 to 25 percent. Talking PPI's lowers that to 5 or less percent. That means you would have to be taking tons of pills each day to meet your requirement. The ONLY form of calcium that is going to do us any good after surgery is calcium CITRATE. Harder to finder, but better to use. Check your bottles. See this excellent site: http://www.advancedh...um_Citrate.html

Congratulations, you sound real good. I would avoid the grapefruit though; it interferes with a lot of medicines and is very acidic.

Sounds pretty normal to me, but remember to walk, walk, walk.

No horse pills.

Happy to see you are feeling better, Bashful.

I am only starting my fourth week post-opt, but my stomach doesn't hurt after eating. I did try a piece of toast dipped in milk - THAT was a nightmare. You sure aren't eating too much that I can see, seems really good. Are you taking Prevacid and GasX? Might just be gas trapped by the food.

Kala, I was depressed to tears right after my surgery for a good two weeks. I finally got really stoned, had a couple of whiskies, made a party of one, and was OK the next morning. I don't recommend doing that, but do do something to break the spell. Best wishes.

Good choice, worked for me. Dr. Aceves is the real deal.

I am a little over three weeks out, and my left side still hurts some at night when I turn to my left. That's the side that takes all the punishment. Take the meds you need and rest as much as you can. I never had pain radiating to my back. Are you taking GasX? Helps a lot.

Congratulations, you are on your way.

You ain't use'n your tool, man. No, not that one, the NEW one. Drinking and eating doesn't allow the the food to stay in the stomach, so you get hungry again. Stop drinking and eating and you'll lose again.

HDUB, you are taking me back three weeks. I was there maybe in the same room as you are now. I can't remember much about it though. It seems like three years ago. I don't think that I was ready to communicate much for awhile, and I think it is amazing that you want to and can this soon after surgery. The first three days were the worst though - I do remember that.

RNY is not an attractive surgery if you look at what they are doing to you. Lower BMI's have (so I have been told) a much better chance of losing ALL their excess weight and keeping it off than higher BMI's. I was happy to hear that because I was at 35 BMI at surgery. I think that you will be fine with VSG. It can also be just the first stage of a Duodenal Switch should your BMI skyrocket for some reason.

Everyone is different, but I would take as much time as you can, especially with kids AND a job. You generally can go back to work sooner if you feel up to it. I'm sure the company would appreciate that, but I would reserve as much as you can just in case you have a rocky first two or three weeks. This is fairly serious surgery, and I think that most people rush it. Good luck.

You can chew anything you want, but just don't swallow it. I did miss eating too, especially in the evening hours. I also was hungry the first couple of weeks, but now in week four a lot of the need to eat has abated. I find having a good dose of protein first thing in the morning helps with that. This surgery is restrictive, so a couple of big bites changes your attitude pretty fast about a large amount of food. Good luck.

I had Dr. Aceves, because his record is so good. The hospital is first class, too. I don't know anything about Dr. Kelly, so I can't comment there. I also had some dental work done while I was there - two crowns. I also stayed with a very friendly and helpful Mexican family that charged half the price of a hotel. Email me if you want any particulars on this. - Steve