Matt Z

Taste is SUPER subjective. I enjoy Isopure, Gold Standard, Synthia-6 and Muscle Milk powders. As well as Gold Standard Casein proteins (Casein is a slow acting protein good for night time usage).

Sounds like all things related to not drinking enough water... what is your typical daily water intake (just water)?

Congrats and good luck!

Totally normal feelings, first and foremost... don't let the fear spiral out, just remember it's normal and try not to worry about the worry itself. Pretty much everyone is afraid of death and pain. But those are usually secondary feelings. Ask yourself WHY are you afraid to die? WHY are you afraid of pain? Now, some things to remember. Mortality rates for WLS are so much lower than what the statistics appear to show now, this is because of how the older versions of the surgery had higher complication rates, with the update to a full laparoscopic surgery, rates have decreased dramatically. Pain... is subjective. I had minimal pain, period. I've actually had pulled muscles that hurt more than this surgery. Just focus on the reasons why you want the surgery, and the risks you face if you DON'T have the surgery. And, trust in your surgical team. They want you to live and be healthy.

Hello everyone. Today marks my 6 month Post-op Band to RNY Revision. It's been an interesting ride. March 21st, I arrived for my surgery at 0600. Was taken back to prep at 0630 and was in surgery before 0730. My surgery was a tough one, the band was fully encapsulated in scar tissue and took almost 4 times longer to remove than it should have, the surgery itself lasted much longer than expected. But, thankfully my super awesome surgeon Dr. Beth Ryder stuck with it and completed the full revision rather than only removing the band. I remember it being after 3pm when I made it to the recovery room. Recovery, for me, was super easy. I was a little weak/woozy for my first walk around recovery. But once I got to my room for the rest of my 3 day 2 night stay, things were just super easy. I would disconnect and reconnect myself from pretty much everything to do my walks. I didn't need any extra nausea meds or pain meds. I did have an on demand morphine drip if needed. I'd hit that before I had to do any big moves, or to help me sleep. But that's really it. They took that away early on my last day, it was no longer needed. At home, things continued to be easy, I was already familiar with the log roll method of getting in and out of bed from my lapband surgery, so I had zero issues with that. I took my time with things, followed my instructions and made sure to hit all my requirements. The weight loss has been both amazing, and frustrating. I weigh myself every day. I know it's not advised, but I like to track it daily if possible. I have a scale that does body fat % as well and this has helped quell some of the frustration, those stalls, I'd see my body fat % dropping, so I knew that even if my weight wasn't moving, that I was still on track. It helped a bit, but still, it was / is, frustrating. I feel fantastic. I've had issues with not recognizing myself in mirrors which is a trip. I've almost broke down in tears because I could shop at normal stores, I bought things right off the rack without trying them on and they fit exactly as I expected. I'm much more active, have less issues with lots of things. I'm very happy overall. There have been some odd "side effects". I have thoracic spinal arthritis. Guess I've had it for a while, but because I was fat, the visceral fat that covers our bones, tendons, joints, muscles, etc, was insulating the nerves from the arthritis. So, I drop a ton of weight... and now I can feel it. Also, with the visceral fat loss, tendons and other connective areas had gotten a little, slack/loose/painful. But that wasn't anything some time in the gym couldn't fix. Working out really REALLY helped tighten up areas that were excessively loose, internally. Excess skin isn't super bad either. Which is awesome seeing as I'm coming from a max of 370. Yes I've got a bunch of odd "crinkly" skin, but it's not near as bad as I had expected. I got lucky and didn't have to deal with hair loss either. Thankful for that. I'm hairier now it seems. I guess with reducing the "stretch" my skin had to do in order to accommodate me being overweight caused the follicles to become spaced out more. So I'm not "hairier" exactly, but my follicles are closer together making for the appearance of being hairier. I've had some CRAZY emotional swings. Fat stores estrogen, So as you lose weight, expect there to be hormonal imbalances. Make sure whomever your support is, knows this as well, so when things get heated or super emotional, they'll understand that you are dealing with weight loss related hormonal changes. I'm able to eat pretty much anything I want now. Which is a double edged sword. I can eat cake and cookies and cupcakes without any real issue. But, I can eat cake, cookies, cupcakes without any issue... so, will power is still needed. I got lucky and my hunger sensation is still very low. I don't get a "full" feeling exactly, but I get to a point where I just don't want to eat anything else. I still take my time and I don't drink within 30 mins of eating. I'm currently doing a light Intermittent Fasting (IF), I'm eating between the hours of 8am and 6pm and that's pretty much it. The science behind this process is pretty sound and makes TONS of logical sense. March 21st, I weighed in at 294.4. Today, I weighed in at 224.1, 70.3 lbs dropped since surgery, 145.9 lbs since my heaviest. Thank you to all for your help and support. I hope to continue hanging around providing any help I can to those walking the same path. To all: Learn to love yourself. Learn to forgive yourself. Stay strong, everything is only temporary.

Fiberone sells 80 calorie wraps that are quite tasty, I also eat the super high grain count bread on occasion.

Don't focus on the time, it'll only make it seem longer! Just focus on doing what you need to, then before you know it, you'll be progressing to "real" foods. When in doubt or when you feel like you are struggling. Just remember all the reasons why you wanted the surgery and remember to stay strong.

I understand. Sounds more like you don't miss "carbs" since every single vegetable in existence has carbs in it, sounds like you are missing white flour. That stuff is so addictive! It was a hard battle, but I don't eat white flour at all anymore and I no longer miss it!

It'll never fully go away. But understanding the triggers helps. For me, I stood in front of the candy Isle and looked at all the candy that I love, and internally said "F you candy, you are tasty but you are not good for me, you only work to make me feel like crap, yes, I'll enjoy you for a moment, but the damages you cause are not worth the momentary good taste." I confronted everything I wouldn't be able to or shouldn't eat again, head on. It's helped out greatly. I also found swaps for things. Finding something that will satisfy the craving while still being within your diet restrictions helps greatly. I was a HUGE Ice Cream guy. Can't do that crap anymore, I found Halo Top "ice cream" that's super low in calories and fits my post bypass restrictions. I typically only eat 1/8th of a pint or so, but even if I ate the whole pint, it's still only a max of 320 calories or so. Things like that, find things you can substitute for the bad stuff. It helps get you through the mental BS. It did for me anyway, maybe it'll work out for someone else.

I know for me Chili was approved, as well as chicken salad, tuna salad, etc are also approved (without the added vegetables in it). Reach back out to your nutionist and see if they can get you an expanded list of foods you can eat. Saying only seafood and pureed meat sounds very VERY limited. I could also have anything that was baby food consistency, including baby food if I really wanted to..

Do yourself a favor and get the band removed and covert to bypass. Best thing I ever did...

You shouldn't be "eating" this close post op anyway... you should be on full liquids and purees only. It does not last forever and it will go away and you'll be fine once you heal up. Just stay strong and focus on all the reasons why you wanted the surgery. it *WILL* get better.

Swaps, I'm all about the swaps. What can you swap that pizza out for that fits your diet and is a healthier option. Not sure how far out from surgery you are, but cauliflower pizza is a pretty good alternative to typical pizza. Check the panel clearly but it's a decent swap.

Anytime you make diet changes, you body will react to those changes, typically by holding weight or gaining a bit. I know it's frustrating. I'm 6 months post op and dealing with a few small gain/drop/drop/gain/drop situations. Still trending downward overall, but those little up swings make me so damn angry!

Who's bashing who where exactly?

Good luck with your ordeal. Looking into Intermittent Fasting (IF) It's free and works wonders, I'm sure it'll help you out in the long run.

This is new to me, I've never seen anywhere that said that RNY increases the risk of vomiting, I know the sleeve sure does, so many posts about vomiting issues and they are all from those with sleeves. As far as dumping, I don't experience this either. It's one of those listed potentials but isn't a guarantee. And even still, it would only happen if you ate things you really shouldn't in the first place. I found this, it lists "Nausea and vomiting" as common, but the catch is, that's for food intolerance not "just because you had the RNY. https://www.bariatric-surgery-source.com/gastric-bypass-side-effects.html It's important to note that the same site reports Nausea and Vomiting for the same reasons as the bypass, but with the added potential for that symptom to occur not only for food intolerance but GERD issues as well, in which, 1 out of 5 Sleeve patients will have GERD issues, some sites list this higher. Absolutly! The information I provide is simply for the sake of having the information. I'm not going to do anything other than provide what I can find for facts on the surgeries so that folks are better informed. Sadly not all doctors have their patients best interest in mind. All the "must do 2 surgery revisions when it's not medically necessary doctors, those that are being paid to do one surgery over the other (and yes they do exist), those that aren't comfortable doing one surgery of the other and try to sway the patient into their preferred surgery (that happens often as well) I love my surgeon and I trust what she says, but that doesn't mean I don't research it myself and confirm what she's said. It's always best to be as informed and educated on a topic as possible and not just take someone's word for it based on the fact that they are a doctor. I work at a hospital, I see this stuff all day, every day. At the end of the day, it's your call, I hope things work out well and that everything goes off without a hitch.

Biggest thing, don't cave in. The ONLY person putting that food in your face is you. You control you. SO... control you! Now, find something that's a healthy option that you can swap with whatever you are craving that will satisfy the craving. There are some amazing foods out there that you can eat that are WAY better for you than most of the junk that's out there. 3 ingredient Keto Cookies using nothing but bananas, cacao powder and raw peanut butter, super amazing fudgey cookies that are decently low in calories, have ZERO added sugars and pack in the protein and nutrients that you just don't get from typical cookies. You can either avoid or confront the foods. I confronted them. I legit stood in front of all the candy in the candy isle and was like... "screw you candy. You made me fat and unhappy and made me feel like crap. Sure you are tasty, but it's all just junk and I don't need you." I used to eat a LOT of ice cream, now I eat a 1/4 or so of Halo Top, way better option. You have to make this work. Do your best and only your best and it gets easier. If you fail or cave... that's fine, but, it's not. Don't beat yourself up... but don't make it "ok". Work with your surgery, not against it! Good Luck!

Not finding anything specific unfortunately, at least nothing "new" or recent (or clearly outlined). Rebound rates aside, if you've got a slight reflux now, it will be amplified with the sleeve and reduced with the Bypass, based simply on what the surgery does. And in the off chance that you end up with a major problem... there is no going back after the sleeve, 90% of your stomach is rotting in medical waste somewhere (or been incinerated), with the bypass, everything (for the most part) is all still in there. The sleeve is ONLY a restrictive surgery, there isn't any reduction in caloric intake caused by the surgery itself outside of forcing you to reduce your intake, but then there are all the "slider" foods etc. I made the mistake of choosing the lapband back in 2011 because I was under-educated about the bypass, and well, I didn't want to make any permanent changes, which is ironic, because, I didn't get any permanent weight loss. So, second surgery to remove the band and revise to the bypass in March and I really couldn't be happier... I really do wish I went with the bypass from the get go. A personal (in real life) friend of mine had the sleeve, and he's getting it revised to the bypass because of the lack of progress. Just things to be aware of.

Yup. Invasive surgery where gasses are pumped into your abdominal cavity to inflate it will do that LOL. Use your Incentive Spirometer every hour to help reduce the gasses. The rest of the swelling will subside as you heal.

Welcome and Congrats!

Can we please get the function restored so that when a user clicks on a post (like/confused/thanks/congrats/etc) that it shows us who did that? The case for when someone posts a confused face, it would be nice to see who that was so that the ability to address the confusion could be made. Thanks!

Not everyone uses "stages" for their diet, so that part is totally lost on me. But. You can easily find higher calorie "healthy" foods. Dates are high in calories. Nuts, nut butters etc. You can get some weight gainer proteins as well. LOTS of options for higher calorie foods you can consume.

Totally normal, unless you have the fat or excess skin removed, you might not ever see the same size at the same weight as previously seen. Much like blowing up a balloon, once you do, it'll *NEVER* be the same again.

I would advise you discuss the increased risk of staple line failure that the revision from band to sleeve comes with due to scaring from the band. My surgeon will *NOT* do Band to Sleeve Revisions due to the increased failure /leak rate of Band to Sleeve revisions. Band to RNY does not have these added complications. If your surgeon didn't warn you about the increased complication rates, might want to ask them and yourself why. Just a heads up.