Back~To~Amy

Hey Moderators- Can we add a pin to this post so everyone on MFP can come to one central location to add their username and find the username of other VSG'ers? Thanks! BTW, I'm BackToAmy on MFP

Wow! That is a great NSV. Congrats Lissa! ~Amy

I added a follow button tonight. ~Amy

I love reading about other people's journeys. I think it is inspirational and can be helpful so I thought I'd start a post where those who have blogs/vlogs can share a link to it. Mine is in my signature link.

This is all becoming real today. To the point, that it often causes "butterflies" in my tummy. I started my preop diet today.....1 day down, 13 days to go. It's hard to believe that in 13 days, I will officially be on the loser's bench with a lot of you here. This journey is very exciting as well as scary at the same time. I'm gonna be blogging and hanging out here a lot. I think it is my coping mechanism. While I have realtime support, those people are all skinny and can't begin to understand like y'all here can. Best of luck to everyone in your journey!

I wouldn't fret too much. Just pick up and move on. As a side note, my diet is called high protein/low carb but my instructions say I can have up to 120 carbs a day. To me, 120 carbs makes no sense at all, but that is what my paperwork says. However, my daily meals and Snacks are: 2 shakes, 2 high Protein snacks, 5 oz. of low fat meat and 2 cups of non carb veggies. There's no way I'd eat anywhere near those amount of carbs if I follow that. I did and am at only 33 carbs for the day. I too recommend My Fitness Pal. It's a very good way to track everything. Best of luck to you!

So, I am about the pickiest person in the world about what I eat and drink. I like absolutely no type of artificial sweetener which presents a huge problem in finding a Protein source for the preop and post op diets. I have tried so many already and cannot stand them. They all make me gag. Needless to say, I have been very stressed about what to do and was even trying to figure out if I could do this without having to use a protein powder/liquid. Yeah, I know, not a good thing and I knew that. However, in being totally honest, it crossed my mind to try and avoid the liquid/powder forms of protein and just start getting it in once I could do it post op with food. I totally understand that we all have different likes and dislikes but in all my reading and trying to find something that could work, I noticed that for every person who recommended a protein powder/liquid, there were just as many or more that said they couldn't stand that particular protein. But, recently I noticed so many posts recommending Premier RTD Protein. The opposite though wasn't true. Unlike the other protein recommendations having just as many or more people hating a particular recommendation, I didn't see that trend with Premier RTD Protein. I thought there just has to be something to these things so I made a decision to try yet another protein recommendation. However, you can only get it at Sam's or costco and I don't have a card for either of those places but my Mom does. We had plans to hang out today so I asked her if we could go there to get some so I didn't have to buy a membership only to find out I don't like the darn drinks. Off to Costco we went and I bought the chocolate ones. As soon as I got home, I put one in the freezer to get it cold quickly. After about an hour and a half it was nice and cold. I opened it up knowing I wouldn't like it, but I was wrong. Yippppeee!!!!! I've never been so happy in my life to be wrong about something.. The chocolate has no Vitamin, protein, gritty, lumpy or chalky taste. I cannot taste any artificial sweetner and it has absolutely zero aftertaste. It tastes just like a chocolatey chocolate milk. Just like the full flavor stuff with all the calories and sugar. It was really good, If I had to pick one thing "negative" to say about it, it would be that it is very chocolately. That could be good if I'm having a craving for sweets. If I'm not, I could tone it down with milk. The benefit of that is I've added a little more protein to it by using some milk. I totally cannot wait to try different things with this drink lke making it more of a shake and by adding some banana and/or PB2 to it. So......to all of you out there who have yet to find a liquid/powder protein souce and you haven't tried Premier RTD protein, I highly recommend you try these. I seriously cannot tell you how picky I am and the fact that I'm highly recommending these is something else. Now, all this being said, I know not everyone will lke these. I just wanted to tell others my experience in hopes it can help someone else like others helped me by what they posted about it. ~Amy

Just remember, unflavored doesn't mean tasteless. I am EXTREMELY picky and found that Premier ready to drink chocolate Protein shake doesn't have an artificial taste or aftertaste. It tastes just like chocolate milk to me. If I had to pick something negative to say about it, it would ne that it is more chocolatey to me than regular chocolate milk. If I need to, I can add white milk to it to cut some of the sweetness down. ~Amy

I hope they work for you. I was sooooo excited when I finally found something I liked. I do worry about getting bored with them and having nothing else I like, but I also plan to add things to them to change them up a bit. Good luck!

Lookin' good! You can see your hard work paying off. Keep it up girl!

I am self-pay because, although I have bariatric coverage, it isn't good and thus cheaper to do self-pay. Therefore, I can't speak of the hoops you will have to go through. The "hoops" are very specific to your insurance company which sometimes are based on the benefits picked by your employer. I would definitely suggest you call your insurance to find out. After reading here though, I see some have to go through a monitored diet (3, 6 months), psych evaluation, nutrition classes, sleep study, other various medical clearances. Oh, and one more thing not related to your question I thought I'd mention is that this board is an AWESOME place to be. You will find lots of answers to your questions and lots of support. Best of luck to you in your journey!

Sorry, I just saw this. Go to this link for a picture of them: http://www.premiernutrition.com/protein-shake.html

I can't speak for Sam's, but Costco sells them in an 18 pack for $24.99 in my area.

Hi Nanny3Kids. I am still preop with surgery scheduled for June 5, 2012. I just wanted to say I'm sorry you are going through a rough time right now. Hang in there girl! I've read a lot of posts and many people have posted feelings similar to yours right prior to surgery and responses from people who had already had the surgery who said they felt the same way. One thing I do know, is that when asked, postop people say they wish they would have had this procedure earlier. Good luck to you in your journey to a "new" you! Take Care!

Thanks for that. It made me lol! ~Amy

I've seen quite a few posts where people list the Vitamins they take. It seems a lot of people like the gummy Multivitamins but they don't contain any Iron. I haven't been seeing people list that as one of their supplements. Are you just not taking any iron in supplement form? Shouldn't you be? Thanks!

Oh how I wish mine didn't. :-) ~Amy

Oh my PdxMan. You gave me a good chuckle. Thanks! ~Amy

You've gotten lots of good advice already. I just wanted to stop by and say hi to another patient of.Dr. Nicholson's. I'm preop still and although I've heard wonderful things about Dr. Nick and staff I have heard your complaint quite a bit and truthfully, it bothers me a bit that he isn't more involved. Though not enough to go elsewhere due to the fact he seems to be one of the "top dogs" in WLS. BTW, where do you live? Best of luck to you in your journey! ~Amy

I'm still preop but just emailed my disability paperwork to the nurse today. She said they start at three weeks off and go from there. Since I'm on total liquids for three weeks, its nice to know I will be able to do that at home. I'm not sure why, but it seems to me like it would be better. ~Amy

I'm sorry that I don't have the answers you ask. But, I wanted to say congrats on the new job and for having coverage. Good luck on your journey. ~Amy

Just an FYI for anyone who buys Premier Protein shakes from costco. They have a $5.00 off coupon in the add for the protein. It's good for about a month, I think. There is a limit of 2 but my Costco let me keep my coupon so I can reuse it should I want more. Also, if you didn't get the coupons, go to Customer Service. They will give you another booklet with them all on there. Also, there is a coupon in there for gummie Vitamins. I think it was for $2.50 or $3.00 off.

Poor thing. You did have a rough day. I'm still preop and sometimes feel like you. You will get there! Remember, this is a journey and you have already begun the process to a new you! It just takes time. Take care. I hope tomorrow is better. ~Amy