kczar

I don't do well with bread and most carbs. They make me feel bad. However, popcorn is a slider for me so I have to avoid it. A few crackers out wonton chips work well. And I can eat a piece of toast occasionally. But I mainly avoid them.

I've never used the chat feature of this site. If it is a problem and you don't want to report the issue, I would suggest sticking with the threads and private messaging anyone that you connect with. You can then avoid the people that upset you and enjoy the resources available.

Peanuts aren't the best option because of their fat content. Almonds are better. You still have to be careful because they can be sliders. I stuck to deli meats and low fat cheese in the beginning. I have added almonds, Mini Babybel and wonton wrapper chips. I cut them in squares, spray them with cooking spray and either add a bit of salt or Mrs. Dash then bake them at 350 for around 8 minutes. They satisfy the crunch, give a bit of protein and are pretty low carb.

I know it's tough but you need to make sure you're drinking enough. My surgeon said if you're urinating apart least two out three times a day you're probably hydrated. If in doubt, go to the er or urgent care center. It's nothing to mess around with.

Not sure about a blood sample from the wrist, but the dye is to check for a leak. That can be life threatening. My surgeon actually ran the dye through at the end of surgery so I didn't have to actually swallow it.

Wow, that's pretty extensive requirements! All I had to do was have six forms filled out based on visiting a nutritionist or PCP at least 30 days apart. It covered my weight, diet and exercise plan. Sounds like you're almost at the end of the ordeal? Hope everything turns out okay.

I took Benefiber every day for a while, using it to take my supplements. I'm doing better now (more fiber in my diet at four months) so I take it about three times a week. It will get better once you can add a bit of variety to your diet. It is temporary!

Welcome to the board! Congratulations on your quick progress to the sleeve. Make sure to go through all the sections here because there is a huge wealth of knowledge that can help you with your journey. Keep us posted on your progress.

If the office has a nutritionist now, I would recommend making at least one appointment with him/her. My insurance didn't cover it, but it was $45. If they haven't replaced the nutritionist yet, I would say check into doing an Atkins or South Beach plan. They're low fat, high Protein and are good prep for your post-op diet. It's a good idea to start cutting out soft drinks, fried foods and high fat now. Because it was the toughest part for me, I started early not drinking during and immediately after meals. If you haven't already, I would get some samples of protein powders to find out what you like. Protein Drinks are going to be a big part of your life for at least the first few months. There is a pinned thread in the diet section of this board that have links to a lot of sites that offer samples. Keep me posted on your progress!

That's great, Jen! I really like him a lot. Are you going to Baylor or Medical City? All my appointments were at Medical City but the surgery itself was at Baylor. They have a great bariatric nurse coordinator there. In my case, I think it was about a week before I got insurance approval. The insurance coordinator is really on the ball and she makes sure that all the necessary paperwork, filled out properly, gets to your insurance company. The only hitch I had in the entire process was the woman who does the actual surgery scheduling. I could never get her to call me back. I finally had to talk to the woman in the front office and asked to talk to the office manager about the problem before I got her to take my call. I was approved at the end of July but Dr. Kuhn was going on vacation the second week in August so my date was 8/20. At first, we thought there would be a change in my insurance effective 8/1, so they were willing to try and bump another patient to make sure I got a date in July. Fortunately, that didn't happen. Overall (except for the person who actually schedules the surgery), I have been extremely happy with the staff. The PA George seems on top of things and the sonogram tech is very friendly. All the nurses seem caring as well. And I really love Dr. Kuhn. He has such a gentle manner. Good luck and I hope you get a date very soon. If you don't have family in the area and have any questions or need some support, let me know. And you may want to start checking out the support group that meets once a month. It's the second Monday at Medical City.

My experience is that, while I can't drink as much as I used to at one time, it's just as satisfying. I can drink several ounces at once and it seems to quench my thirst just fine. I'm four months out.

I know it can be frustrating, but you have to fight for this! If you haven't already done so, call your insurance and ask to speak with the bariatric surgery manager. This person will know exactly what you need to do. And if you've gone to your PCP this year (and if he/she is supportive) you can probably get them to fill out the necessary forms. My surgeon had a nutritionist on staff for the first three months of my monitored diet but then she left to have a baby. I just took the forms she was using and started seeing my PCP. Plus he was willing to fill out the form with the date of my physical (where we first discussed the surgery), which shaved a month of the timeline. They do want fairly detailed information. My sheet included the date of the visit, my weight, my typical meal plan (breakfast, lunch and dinner) and what type of exercise I was doing and how often. It also included the doctor's recommendations (avoid sugar, fat, etc.) I know the "hoops" seem a bit much but you have to understand that the insurance company is going to be paying out tens of thousands of dollars to the surgeon, labs, anesthesiologists and hospitals. My insurance company paid over 20k just to the hospital! They want to make sure that they're not "wasting their money." Hang in there. You'll get through this.

Other posters have covered most of the important questions. When asking about the size, the term they use is bougie (BOO-zhee). It's the size of the guide used when removing the extraneous stomach tissue. There's a picture floating around here somewhere that gives you some comparisons. Basically, they range from a thin felt tip marker to a highlighter. The most common is the size of a BIC pen. One question I didn't ask but wish I had known to was if I was going to be sent home with a pain pump. Instead of something hooked up to my IV, I had a thin lead inserted just under my sternum that dripped a continuous feed to pain medicine. What shocked me was that I was sent home with it and instructed to remove it after the third day home. It didn't hurt at all but it was freaky. So check on that so you're prepared. You may also have to give yourself injections for the first 7-10 days home. It's a blood thinner to prevent clots. Again, it doesn't hurt but if you've never given yourself a shot, it's weird. I hope that doesn't scare you too much but I think it's important to know these kinds of things. Also, make sure you check out the frequently asked questions in stickied in this section, if you haven't already. It's got a huge amount of information. Good luck!

Like everyone else said, being nervous is completely normal. I had the six month (actually eight months when all was said and done) to prepare and I wasn't really nervous leading up to the surgery. But the second day home, I suddenly thought, "What the hell did I just do to myself?!" But it passed quickly and I'm 100% happy with my decision. It's the best present you can give yourself. So ask for the good drugs when you get there and you'll be fine!

One thing I found very helpful was not something I brought to the hospital but something I took home from it. The staff emphasizes that you need to take small sips of water but also that you need to get in a certain number of ounces each day. For me, it was 60-80. They gave me a few of those little plastic cups that they dispense medicine in. They had a two ounce capacity so I would fill them up and take four sips out of them (1/2 ounce at a time.) Then I made a tick mark on a piece of paper to keep track of my intake. After a couple of days I didn't have to use them anymore because I had trained myself to take those small sips and could gauge my water from there.

Even though my insurance's requirement of a COE meant I couldn't use my preferred (and closer) hospital, I agree with the policy. Hospitals have to meet a lot of standards to get the certification and since this is a major surgery, I wanted to know that the staff really understood what was involved. My hospital even had a bariatric nurse coordinator that came in a couple of times, gave me a lot of great tips, and even provided me with her cell number to reach her if I had any questions during the first few days home. And for those of you how don't have insurance coverage, look for hospitals that are working on COE certification. They often give discounted rates in order to meet the minimum number of procedures required.

That's very normal. It means you have good restriction. I'm four months out and I'm up to about 3 ounces of protein at a meal.

I live in a suburb of Dallas so I went to Baylor Hospital. Dr. Kuhn and his staff were awesome.

Everything's going great! I keep saying that I'm the poster child for the sleeve. I had no complications, I was getting my fluids and proteins in within the second week and even though I'm not losing as fast as others, it's been steady. And so far, no hair loss. This is the best gift I've ever given myself.

Yeah, this is one of the side effects that they don't list on the brochure! First the pain pills impacted me terribly then the lack of fiber took its toll. I tried the fiber gummies but I was so tired of chewing during that stage (all my supplements were chewable/gummies) that I stopped taking that. I switched to Benefiber and it works great. I just fix it in the morning and use it to take my supplements.

Most likely, the pain is from the stitches they put into your abdominal muscles. Once you start feeling better and moving around more, you'll pull them causing pain. Once they dissolve (in about another week or two) you should be just fine. Just try to be a bit careful with moving around too much and don't lift anything heavy!

The first "eating" even after surgery can be tough. We had a Mexican food buffet for my sister's birthday a month after I was sleeved and it was a bit tough looking at all the food I couldn't have. But Christmas was great. I was able to eat pretty much anything I wanted to, just about 1/10th of what it would have normally been. And I lost 2 pounds! Keep your eye on the prize. It's worth it.

Congratulations! Can't wait to get there myself.

Yep, it's caused by the stitches they put in your abdominal muscles (yes, you have them!) Once you get to feeling better you start moving more and it causes that pain. Once the stitches dissolve you'll be fine. Congratulations!

I don't drink a lot of coffee but I've seen a lot of people on this forum that do indulge in decaf. I'm assuming that it's a non-fat latte as well? Because you definitely don't want to drink a bunch of empty calories.