DESERTDOC

I had VSG 07/2011. I lost 105 lbs over 8 months, and plateaued around 2/2012. Well, about 1.5 years ago, I started putting on weight and have put in about 30 lbs. My eating is out of control. I eat all of the time. I eat till it hurts. My willpower does not seem to exist. I have forgotten all of the tools I once used. So, I could use your help in getting back on track. Thank you for your time. Desertdoc.

Well, I did eat crap food, but I was happy to eat my stir fry with asparagus, pea pods and pineapple. I put off eating crap, for 2 hours after starting work, but in the end it remained the same. Ugh, carb addiction, sucks. But will work on the carb cleanse starting this weekend so I have time to focus and dedicate to starting it right. Desertdoc,

Thank you everyone. I really liked the post about the carb cleanse. And to answer another posters question, I do have a call into my nutritionist, and I should hear back today. Today, I brought lunch, a Lunchable, and veggie stir-fry. Best guess is I have about 550 calories for Breakfast and lunch, and I am going to do my best not to snack or buy any chips, Cookies, soda etc ad nauseum, LOL. Methinks, I lack in willpower area. Sigh. Thank you again, Desertdoc

For those seeking fruit juice not loaded with sugar, this is nice. No sucrose, fructose, etc etc. It is made with Splenda and a full container, 64 Oz., of Apple Juice has 210 calories if my memory is correct. Found in my local grocery store. http://oldorchardjuice.com/store/store.htm

Yes and no. Natural fruit sugars, Fructose, will spike your blood sugar, I think it it still better than refined sugar. Sucralose, Splenda, is not absorbed in the intestine, so there is no appreciable effect on blood sugar, hence safe for Diabetics.

I am hesitant to admit this but here goes. Dr. Baggs had me loose 10 pounds total, not 10%. My weight is evenly distributed so that made it very easy. The surgeon needs to move the Liver up and if you have a lot of visceral fat, this could cause problems. So, for me, it worked well to wait and see how much the surgeon wanted me to loose. I am also tall, 6' 2", so I am sure this helped.

Sashimi is great, pure protien, and no carbs. It is nothing but fish. Rolls, sushi has rice, made of simple short-chain carbohydrates that spike blood sugars and energy, then crash.

Here was my thought process: Band: You can theoretically eat a one pound steak for a meal, it will just take you 2 hours to do it, and you must chew it very well. Your stomach is still the same size. I did not want a foreign body with sutures to break left inside of me. Then I read about bands eroding and about a 50% removal rate at 5 years. RNY: Not my real stomach, dumping syndrome, too many long term care things to think about. Man created pouch out of something that should not be. VSG: No foreign bodies, my own natural stomach, removed the part that creates Ghrelin. My own body part, just much smaller, that is it. I can still eat most everything I enjoyed before, except I am eating much much smaller amounts. Each one has its own pros and cons. The above is just what worked for me. Regards, Desertdoc

Hello, It could be a myriad of things, one of which is Orthostatic BP changes. If you are extremely stooped over at the waist it could also be increase Intracranial Pressure, an ear infection, Vertigo or one of many other things. Watch it, be aware, allow for it. If it does not self resolve please see your health care provider. Desertdoc

Hello, I was sleeved by Dr. Aaron Baggs, MD on July 25th 2011. This was the process for me: January: Program orientation. Includes weight, overviews with Robin the Dietician, a Surgeon from the program and I think Liz McClaren RN Case Manager provides info as well. Plan to take the whole day off. April: Same day appointments with the program Psychologist and one other that I do not recall. May: Meet with surgeon. He provided me with goal weight and advised me to email him and to weigh in at my docs office in Sacramento and he would see it and email Liz Mc Claren to contact me with a surg date. In the meantime he will order various tests. Get them done. I did them at my local KFH facility. June: Met goal weight, Liz McClaren called and set up an appointement with her. June: With Liz got my surg. date and a brief visit with a Hospitalist, MD, questions only about your general health. July 25th: Surgery. The program was very organized and every time I needed something most in the program have been very helpful. Sarah will be an excellent resource. Do not hesitate to contact any of them with any questions. Good luck.

A Pulmonary Embolus ( PE) is not the same as a Pneumothorax (Collapsed Lung). Pneumothorax is rare but does occur secondary to trauma. PE's are more associated with surgery and its accompanying bed bound patient. Generally, its is due to a blood clot post-op. Is your personal physician out of his league? No, he is not. Especially if he is boarded in Internal Medicine. Do I think he is correct in his statement to you? Given what you provided, no I do not. I would like to know his thought process for making this statement. Sometimes peoples body structure alone predisposes them to a Pneumo, especially tall thin, males can have a belb that cause the Pneumo. Ask him what does he see to make that conclusion. If he does not explain it so that you can understand or he gets huffy, fire him or her.

<br /><br /><br /> At the risk of sounding harsh and abrupt I will answer this way. Contact your surgeon. This is what he is payed for. Not only to cut, but to provide pre and post-op support. This should have been well explained, well ahead of surgery and a comprehensive guide made available to you. Do you not have this type of support?

I have been stuck at 295 for 5 days now. I am 2 weeks post op and dumped 20 pounds in the first 9 days, then nothing. I think for me its having faith in the process and trusting that what has been done by my surgeon will work as has been stated in the many posts on this forum. Of course it is frustrating, but I am only 2 weeks post-op as of today, and sometimes I forget that. I am having to learn to eat all over again. New habits, routines, rituals etc ad nauseum. Stay strong, and never quit!

You only fail if you quit. Have you quit? If not then FIDO! **** It, Drive On! Take some time to rethink what you are doing that is not going well. The think about what got you to 143. Recommit to those good habits and refocus. FIDO!

Most beef is high in fat, including the ground beef you most likely had in your taco filling. Your stomach produces extra acid to aid in digestion and the acid was not inhibited enough by PPI, I assume you have been given. Also, not sure if this is the case, it could be there was a lot of pressure due to food, on the Cardiac Sphincter. Read more here. http://www.cardiacproblems.org/cardiac_sphincter/cardiac_sphincter.html DESERTDOC Mobile Intensive Care Paramedic Lic # P08062

<br /><br /><br />\ Hi Lee, No, I won't be making that one as I live in Sacramento and need to find something closer to me. Any advice? Desertdoc.

<br /><br /><br /> For ME, it was important that I did 2 things and two things only my first 2 days post-op. Stay well ahead of the game and took pain meds whether I needed them or not. I stayed hydrated. Everything else came second. I have had little felt pain, I have had Jello, applesauce, pureed Soup etc, with little problems. I walk around when I want to walk then lay down and sip Water. I do not walk far, but I walk often. I sipped out of a 1oz. cup for 5 days and did not rush a single thing. That is what worked for me. Edit To Add: Do I think you did damage? I do not. I think you body was reminding you to be careful. If you are unsure, contact your surgeon and ask. DESERTDOC

Hi all, I have been following this thread and perusing the forums in general since January. I started the process with KFH-Richmond in January and had surgery 07-25-11. My surgeon was Aarron Baggs MD. I started at 6'2" tall @ 330 lbs. I found the process with Kaiser Richmond to be fairly straight-forward and not a lot of fluff. I am happy they have you meet certain goals and do not rush the process. For me, it took time to wrap my head around removing part of my body, as it is not a natural act. Most staff in the Richmond program are great and each had their role to play. I am tall, and my weight is well distributed. So, if it was not for the fact that my mother had a heart attack, stroke and was a diabetic before 50, I doubt I would have pursued this course. I am fairly healthy, SCUBA diver, swimmer and in decent shape, that said, I do have hypertension so it was just a matter of time before something happened to me. Follow the directions given pre and post op by all staff members to a T. I can say I did and it was an easy process. Stay well ahead of pain management and use the PCA even if you do not have pain. Walk, walk and walk post-op, it really does help. The med-surg floor is noisy at best and not a place to rest. Plan on waking to loud crashes and bangs by people who do not seem to care about those that are recovering. That is my first post now that I have something to contribute. Looking forward to learning from those who have gone before me. Regards, DESERTDOC