Lissa

I take 500mcg daily of sublingual B12. It's the first "pill" I pop each day. I put it underneath my tongue and let it dissolve while I'm getting my water and sorting out the rest of my meds. When it's nearly dissolved, I chew up my tums, which puts enough saliva in my mouth to finish dissolving the B12. The drink of water after the tums are chewed takes care of swallowing the rest of the B12. Then I eat my mini babybel before I swallow my multi-vitamin and chase that with the small pills i take (biotin, albuterol, acid reducer, etc). It sounds complicated, but takes me under a minute to do unless I chew the cheese up really small for some reason. The cheese keeps the multi from coming back up because iron on an empty sleeve for me is a sure recipe for getting sick.

My sleep pattern has changed drastically after surgery, too. I now go to bed at midnight and I'm always awake between six and seven am. Pre-op, I was always super tired, even when driving. I do have sleep apnea that I started using bi-pap for about 2 weeks prior to surgery, so I'm not sure if the need for less sleep is because of the bi-pap or because of weight loss. Either way, I'll take it. I'm more productive and energetic now than I have been in years!

I see a therapist, not just for food issues. I didn't look for someone who only dealt with bariatric issues specifically. I looked for a therapist with whom I was comfortable. I wanted someone who wouldn't let me BS her, because I'm pretty good at that, and someone who could handle ME. My gal is very quiet and laid back, but she doesn't let me get away with anything. That's good, because my aim is to overcome both the food issues and the underlying garbage that started the food issues. IMO, it's more important to find a therapist that you're comfortable talking to than to find a therapist who deals with specific issues. They could be Freud himself, but if you're not comfortable, they will never do you any good.

I'm almost 9 months out and, while the weight loss slows down on it's own, it's still really easy for me to control my hunger. Losing weight isn't as easy as it was immediately post-op, thank goodness. I can't imagine where I'd end up if I were still losing 20 pounds a month! But, staying on track and "just" eating normal is much easier than before. I do get hungry, but it's more like "Oh, it's been 4 hours since I ate". I eat a meal, which for me is about 5-6 oz of food, and then I'm satisfied and move on with my day. It's not an all-consuming hunger that says I have to eat mass quantities right this minute! I'm still losing weight, but at a reasonable pace. I'm exercising and still working through my food issues. I think the food issues will pretty much resolve themselves as I continue. One of the biggest changes for me post-op has been that I now think of food as either Protein or not protein. I still eat protein first, and I've added back in some complex carbs to my diet because of the exercise I'm doing. The carbs give me a short-term energy boost for exercise, which is great! As for the sleeve being a tool, it helps us to jump start the weight loss process, plus gives us restriction to help us not overeat. It's not magic, but sometimes it sure feels like it!

Pookey, Great NSV!!! I am laughing because your friend didn't recognize you! That's terrific! BTW, My sons love Rammstein, so I've definitely heard a good bit of their music! Pretty good, IMO!

I use Mio drops. You can flavor individual bottles to your taste at that time. About $3.78 for enough to flavor 20 bottles at walmart.

I'm looking forward to the pics as well. I'm just starting to think about having plastics. I'm still at the big chicken stage, but I went through this same thought process before having the sleeve done as well. I just keep imagining how much happier I'll be to have everything tight once I hit goal and a month or so of mild pain is definitely worth that!

Yep, the pain is caused by the fact that your bones are now exposed (less fat to cover them) and they are in contact with or rubbing against things they wouldn't have been bothered by before. My left hip hurts if I lay on it for too long these days. I just turn to the other side during the night. No big deal.

Dooter! I love the new pic!!

Lose the word "only" unless it's "I've only got x pounds to goal!" You're doing quite well with your sleeve. Immediately after surgery, you have water weight to contend with from the fluids that are pumped into us during surgery. Losing 21 pounds in under a month, or two months, is fantastic! Keep up the good work!

The NSVs make all the difference in the world, don't they?!

Thanks again! I'm keeping my feet up today, watching some stuff on Netflix, and walking around every 15-20 minutes, so I should feel better soon. It's raining, so no pool or hot tub for me unless it stops. I'll report in later or tomorrow and let you know how it's feeling then. It's too funny, though. *I* have pain from exercise! LOL I'd have never thought this could happen to me since I was so sedentary. And, I'm itching to get back to my workouts, even though I know it's not a good idea right now.

It would have stayed if I had been older, but he assumed, correctly, that I would lose weight and start exercising after surgery, thereby extending my life expectancy. I'm glad it went well and thanks for your congrats. IMO, this is the best thing I've ever done for myself. Bar none.

LOL, Giselle! I may pay to have the house pressure washed next time! That was quite a project! I think WebChickadee may be right. My muscles are handling the workouts fine, but my joints are very painful right now. I do have access to both a pool and a hot tub, so I may have to spend more time in them and less time doing the killer cardio. As long as I get my 30 minutes a day of cardio, my doc doesn't care how I do it. I'm still putting aspercreme on my shoulder and my knees and downing Water like crazy. Hopefully it will help quickly. I hurt! LOL

Fluffy, I had surgery to install the filter, then my VSG and three weeks later, the filter was removed. My venous doctor did not want to leave a filter in my vena cava for life because he was afraid it would eventually become clogged and kill me all by itself.

It's really not that difficult to change up your activities. Instead of going out to eat with friends, why not go to a movie, or visit a bookstore? If you're up for more active things, taking walks, going swimming, or even playing pool require concentration without food involved. I'm working on getting back into some of my pre-op hobbies, like sewing and reading. I've also added a daily swim (more like a dog paddle) to my routine and, of course, hitting the gym. When going out to eat, if you're really close with someone, you could always share a meal instead of ordering two separate meals. It brings the cost down considerably as well.

Since you have a crock pot, the sky is the limit. I really like pork cooked in the crockpot, although you may have to get creative about sauces since tomatoes are out. Almost anything is better, in my opinion, with some kind of sauce cooked with it. You can do beans in the crockpot as well. Pink beans cook up easily and don't have the same gas properties as pinto beans, plus dried beans are really cheap. You can up the protein content of beans quickly with just a little meat, and it adds flavor. Cooked pinto beans can be turned into refried beans fairly easily and can be "just" pureed to make a dip of sorts if that sounds appealing to you.

That's very cool! Thank you!!

Well, I'm up to 12 minutes on the helliptical! I am doing the arms and legs together. I feel better balanced when I do both at the same time. I'm definitely feeling it in my thighs, especially the muscles just above my knees! I do my helliptical time, then my (at least) 30 minutes on the bike. I definitely see the results happening quickly!

Ayay, This is NOT a diet. This is a lifestyle change. I don't know how far post-op you are, but I'm guessing you're in the 3-5 weeks category. If so, search here for the 3 week stall. Almost everyone goes through that stall and finds that the scale is standing still for a bit. Take your measurements now, so you have something to refer to later, pay attention to how your clothes are fitting as well. Are they looser? If you did take pre-op measurements, are you losing inches? I lost my first pants size during my 3 week stall. I put them on, zipped them up, and they fell to the ground! I'm not following any diet except: 70grams of Protein and 64 oz of Water per day. I don't track calories, carbs, or anything else. I have started adding in more "good" carbs because I've upped my exercise routine, but that's about the only time I worry about carbs. Stalls will happen, but they happen because your body needs the time to adjust to the changes. I shape-shifted in the last few months, losing a good bit of mass in my hips and thighs and developing muscle definition in my arms, tummy and thighs. In that same three months, I lost 10 pounds. Now my weight loss has started up again, but I imagine that I'll go through another shift in a month or so. The best advice I can offer you is this: Don't let the scale run your life. Weigh less often and concentrate on your protein and water goals. The weight will take care of itself. Add in some exercise, even if it's 5 minutes on the treadmill or exercise bike. Once it's part of your routine, you'll miss exercise when you don't do it. Good luck!

I've been high energy ever since surgery, but the first few days were a struggle to walk more and I was still trying to figure out my full signal. I had lots of pain in my left shoulder, kind of a dull achy feeling. I finally figured out that my shoulder was telling me when my sleeve was full, Duh on me! I remember forcing myself to walk: up and down the hallway in my apartment, around the smaller end of my building. I took over walking my dog from my son just to make myself walk. People are sick of hearing it, but the best thing to do immediately after this surgery is walk, walk, walk and sip, sip, sip. It's the fastest way to help your body heal.

Lay-Lay, I'm only allowed Tylenol as well. I've had two migraines since surgery, on the same day. One was the silent, behind the eyes type, and the other was a full-fledged migraine. I took my tylenol, laid down with a cool cloth and killed every noise maker in the house. Both went away fairly quickly and I figured out later that I ate something with MSG in it, which is a trigger for me. One migraine since surgery is pretty good, IMO. I used to have about 1 a month, so 1 in 9 months is awesome! Especially considering that I figured out the trigger immediately.

If you think you're dehydrated, work on getting in some more fluids. Water, pedialyte, G2 are all suggestions I've seen. Some people have had luck drinking their liquids from a spoon to avoid nausea. Eat SF popsicles or some crushed ice to help with hydration. Try changing up temperatures. I personally loved broth early post-op. The warmth was soothing to my little sleeve. If you're severely dehydrated, it might be time to go to an urgent care of ER. That might not be a bad idea anyway. I always worry when people say they have thrown up bile/stomach acids. Good luck!!

Well, Change, I just have to say that VSG saved my life. I am a whole different person now than I was on August 30, 2011. I've lost over 100 pounds and I'm three days away from 9 months out. Before surgery, I could barely walk from my car to my front door and now I'm a gym rat! With a lower BMI, your results will be even more dramatic, not to mention that you'll avoid a slew of health problems caused by obesity and a sedentary lifestyle. It's always better to prevent future problems rather than treat them after they show up! Good luck! There's a search bar at the top right of the page. Use it freely. We discuss EVERYTHING here related to weight loss and quite a bit that isn't WLS related.

Don't get in too big a hurry pre-op about buying shakes or Protein powder. Most of us have had a major change in our tastebuds post-op. I couldn't stand anything sweet for months after surgery. As for going back to work afterwards, it will depend on what your job requires. I was back at work at 8 days, and probably could have gone back sooner, but I had a drain and didn't want to mess with that while working. I was back at work the same afternoon that hte drain was pulled, though. My energy level has been really high, but some people have reported that they felt like they were dragging afterwards. It is major surgery, and a lot depends on how you react to it.