Alithinos

The South Beach Diet says that scotch whisky and red wine are okay. They are both pretty low on the glycemic index. Since you don't care for wine, I'm guessing you might not be fond of whisky. Time to hit up your local package store and get a bunch of mini-bottles and some mixers such as fresh lime juice, lemon juice, etc. How are you with martinis? I'm a gin martini girl myself... Check out recipes for gin rickeys, gin or vodka martinis (go heavy on the vermouth and find a good one like Dolins). There is a plethora of really interesting and new liquors out there. There is a bar here in DC (PS7) that does 100 Calorie Cocktails, bless their tipsy little souls. I don't have the actual recipes, but if you have a bartender friend, they can probably figure it out: Tighten the Beltway Bluecoat Gin + grapefruit + ginger The Chile Flip Stoli Pomagranik + lemon + Kashmiri Chiles They both sound really cool, but the first one sounds like a winner.

Protein gets weird when it is heated over 130 degrees F, so you probably would want to heat your soup (not too much) and then check the temp before you add the powder. You can't cook with it. My next choice would be soy protein if I couldn't tolerate whey. I'm glad that I can, considering the fact I'm lactose intolerant. Not a milk drinker either, but almond milk is a great thing. Can you do soy milk? At the Vitamin Shoppe, you can find Jay Robb egg white Protein shake mixes that have about 23-25 g of protein per serving, which is great. I have a sample but haven't tried it yet. There are things you can do to amp up the protein level, such as adding yogurt, to shakes. Can you tolerate greek yogurt?

There is a great cookbook called Eating Well After Weight Loss Surgery that I can't recommend highly enough. My parents came to help when I had my surgery in late August, and my dad made several of the recipes for me. He can have meat, it just needs to be soft. We made a chicken and mushroom Soup, another chicken dish, beef stroganoff, and potroast. Since I was nearing the puree phase, we pureed everything and froze it into ice cube trays. This gave me 1 oz portions. Even though I have just started the soft phase, those little cubes are like gold! I take them to work along with greek yogurt and a shake. Does he eat fish? Can he try dark meat chicken (as it is more tender)? Also, getting on a decent ppi regimen is crucial. Thank goodness for protonix.

You can take Benadryl for the itch, but I'd hold off on putting anything on them until they are really well-healed. I had terrible itching as well, and developed huge hives around each incision where the glue was used. Apparently it is pretty common for folks to be allergic to the glue. The itching improved after a few days. Wear very loose/soft clothing and try not to scratch. I'm now 4 weeks out and started using the Mederma on Friday.

I keep hearing that the chewables (not the gummies) are far more absorbable than the kind that you swallow. If you had a NUT through your surgeon, could you ask for advice? This is an icky story, but I've heard that the centrums and such tend to go through most people, according to people who clean out port-a-potties. Are you just tired of the chewables?

At about 2 weeks out I went out for brunch with my family and had a poached egg and cheese grits. I ate really slowly, so even though it was so much less than what everyone else was having, it was fine. I took home the grits and snacked on them over a couple of days. I'm a month out now, so am looking forward to going out for seafood now - broiled and baked healthy fish dishes should work for the soft stage. You might want to check out menus online beforehand, and bring a protein shake in a thermos to restaurants that might not have options for you, but I would be inclined to avoid places that don't have 1 or 2 things you could eat.

I second Darkkyss and Preacher's Wife. My reflux was painful, so my primary care physician increased me to two protonix per day. He needs to stop weighing himself every day. Once a week is good. I weigh on Fridays, as I'm more likely to be really "good" during the workweek. If I weigh myself again on the following MOnday, I will find that I haven't lost anything more. I don't know why this is; all I know that Friday works best for me. Also, even if the scale is moving slowly, he will lose inches. I have two friends who have had weight loss surgery and they find this to be very true. Once will measure when the scale isn't moving, and is always surprised to find that she is smaller somewhere. Measure and do that once a week or twice a month. As for the nosy people, that's your husband's business. "Don't ask me mine and I won't ask you how old you are/how much you weigh/if you had work done." 60 lbs is great. He is ahead of most people at this point. I'm a month out and I've lost 20, but I have about 120 to lose.

The Johns Hopkins nutricians did not recommend Protein shots for a few reasons. First, they are usually made with a lesser protein source. You need to look for whey protein isolate - it should be the primary/only source. Second, they argue that the human body really can only absorb 20-30 grams of protein in a sitting. Accordingly, your body better absorbs the protein over the course of the day. I've read in a couple different places that morning and evening are ideal times to have a Protein shake. If you like savory, I can recommend Unjury's chicken Soup flavored protein. I've had luck with their chocolate Supreme (with almond milk), strawberry Sorbet (with water), their unflavored powder (which goes amazingly well into a lot of foods and drinks) and chicken soup. I'm looking forward to trying their cheese sauce in October, when I can have Pasta again. Hopkins strongly recommended Unjury's products, which are all made/sourced in the US. Please do not buy anything made in China - you cannot be sure about the safety or integrity of products made there. I also liked Orange Creme by Chike and can't wait to try their Iced coffee flavor. Before I went through nutrition counseling, I had found a protein shot at CVS - I think it was fruit flavored and had 40 g of protein. It smelled like wet dog. Fruity wet dog. Yick. I couldn't do it.

Oof. So sorry. MoM cleared me out almost immediately, but it can be rough on your system, so only use if if the doc says it is okay. My doc has me on 2 colace a day and miralax for 2 weeks. If I'm regular at that point, I can go every other day. It is pretty gentle.

You are doing great! I had my sleeve done on the 24th too, and have lost 17 lbs. I'm feeling pretty good about that too. 5 lbs a week is WAY better than what I was doing on my own. Slower weight loss should help with excess skin. Have you measured yourself? The scale may not move, but the tape measure might.

I was only in the hospital for one night - they released me around 7 pm on Saturday evening. My mom stayed with me on Friday night (she's good at that stuff - I had my husband and dad go back home). Having someone there was really helpful. They can walk the halls with you, make sure you sip on something, help you to the bathroom, remind you to hit the button for the morphine, etc. While I have been lucky not to have any nausea or vomiting, I have had some issues. The first week it was acid reflux. I couldn't get enough fluids in and had spasms in my diaphragm. A visit to the ER (on the advice of the nurse, who wanted to make sure it wasn't heart or lungs) solved that problem. They gave me an iv of fluids, a shot of prevacid, and a GI "shot" (lidocaine and other things to drink to help soothe my esophagus). My primary care physician increased my dosage of protonix to twice a day, and that has helped. I can now drink fluids much more easily. The second week the issue was constipation. Senna just did not do anything. The nurse recommended Milk of Magnesia, which was really rough, but ended the problem. Dr. Lidor recommended miralax at the 2 week follow up appointment, and that has been perfect. Eating has not been a problem. A friend who is 2 years out on her sleeve recommended a GREAT cookbook called Eating Well After Weight Loss Surgery. It will indicate what is okay to eat and when. You just have to puree the hell out of everything. My dad and I made several of the recipes, pureed them, and froze them into ice cube trays. Each cube is an ounce, which really helps you with portion side. We made the chicken and mushroom Soup, chicken beau sejour, pot roast and veggies, and beef stroganoff. All are great and keep me sane. The family enjoyed the pot roast and beef stroganoff too. I look forward to trying the Dover Sole after a month - I don't think I will have to puree fish during my soft stage. If you can do this ahead of time, it will help. Otherwise, I seem to have pulled muscles in my abdomen (overcompensating), which is painful. I think that the nerve endings are also healing, and this hurts too. I wasn't really prepared for that. Remembering to drink all the time is also hard. Have you ordered any Protein samples? unjury and Chike have sample packs. I like Unjury's chocolate supreme and strawberry sorbet the best, and have ordered the unflavored to add to food. I also have their chicken soup and wil order the cheese sauce when it comes out in October (it is seasonal). Chike's orange creme isn't bad either, but is kind of thick. I prefer to mix them in shaker bottles (another really good thing to buy). Feel free to "friend" me!

Hi, Solize - Dr. Lidor performed my sleeve surgery on August 24th. I'm down 18 lbs so far. It is tough, but I'm so glad for all the preparation that Johns Hopkins requires of us. Make sure they give you a belly band before you are discharged. A week afterwards, I pulled muscles in my abdomen. Also, I met with an occupational therapist while in the hospital. She gave me several tools to help me through the first few weeks. One of the best was this long gripper stick thingy (my husband calls it my robot hand) to help you pick things up off the floor or help you put on pants. Take advantage of this help! I didn't really need the physical therapist at that point, but kind of wish I had taken advantage of his help now. The nursing staff was really lovely. - Alyson

I deal with chronic shoulder pain related to a car accident. It tends to create knots all over my back. The only thing that has really eradicated it is going for frequent massage therapy. If your doctor will write you a script, you can get up to 12 visits covered by insurance. Unfortunately, my certified massage therapist doesn't take insurance, but she is amazing. I try to go at least every 10-14 days. I started out seeing her once a week for deep tissue massage, and we are now just using basic swedish massage to keep the pain at bay. I didn't need the flexoril or the giant ibuprofen tablets as a result. Have you also thought about acupuncture? I tried it for a while to help with sinus pain, stress, and insomnia, and left my appointments feeling kind of blissed out.

Definitely get this checked out ASAP. I had something similar earlier this year. It turned out to be hemorroids (getting old is a scourge), but the gastroenterologist also diagnosed me with diverticulosis. You need to make sure it isn't anything more serious. How is your Fiber intake? Are you taking Colace or something similar? Have you had a colonoscopy recently? I can't imagine the preparation for one post-surgery.

I have been adding a couple ounces of no sugar added apple juice to 8 ounces of water with a little ice - it makes it go down much more easily. An ER nurse who had bypass surgery recommended it to me. She also said you could try adding some Propel Zero to water as well.

I'm not a fan of the Protein shots. Not only do they smell like a wet dog, they are not usually composed of a really quality protein, such as whey protein isolate, which should be the first ingredient. Unjury's chicken Soup and their chocolate flavors work for me. The quality of your protein really matters. It took me about 7 days until I was able to get in either protein or Fluid goals, and I even made a trip to the ER on day 6 due to acid reflux and spasms. They gave me an IV of fluids, which helped a bunch. I did feel a bit weepy that day. Other things that work for me include adding a bit of apple juice and ice to my Water. Do you have a decent bariatric surgery cookbook? I like Eating Well After Weight Loss Surgery, which was recommended to me by a friend who is two years beyond her sleeve surgery. We made the chicken and mushroom soup yesterday and used ice cube trays to freeze 1 oz portions. We pureed the heck out of it and it is very nice - 26 g of protein per 1 cup serving. I only had half a cup, but it is a start. Each day gets a bit better. Go slow. You may need more time on liquids. Everyone is different.

I was having the same problem at about 4 days out. I'm 9 days out now. Try adding 2 oz of apple juice (no sugar added) to 6 oz of water, and put some ice in it. I received this piece of advice from an ER nurse who had gastric bypass three years ago. I can tolerate it much more easily with the juice. The Propel Zero was way too sweet, and water was too heavy. The NUTs at Johns Hopkins said to try very cold things if you can't stomach room temp fluids. That also works better for me. Each day gets a bit better.

I can tolerate it only if I add a bit of apple juice (no sugar added) to it. I will put in about 6 oz and add 2 oz of apple juice, and then add a bit of ice. It has really helped. I was told to do the same with Propel Zero. I have not tried Gatorade yet.

Was sleeved on Friday and have been having the same problems with reflux, and spasms, I think. It is so bad that I'm not able to get in enough fluids (24 oz yesterday, and that was tough) or proteins. I've got a call into the surgeon's office now... I wonder if going from 1 to 2 protonix will help. I had spasms (located about mid breast bone) that woke me at 5 am even though I'm sleeping with my head and chest elevated. How are the rest of you able to get in fluids and proteins with the reflux?

I was sleeved on the 24th and discharged on the 25th from Johns Hopkins. Getting in both fluids and Proteins has been a huge challenge due to acid reflux. I'm taking a 40 mg protonix in the morning and a 20 mg otc prilosec in the evening. Anyone else find something that works better? I only got in 24 oz of fluids today, but discovered I can tolerate sf popsicles and ice. It took me 2.5 hours to drink an 8 oz Protein shake. Greek yogurt and sf pudding goes down more easily. I only had one dose of pain meds today and am going to try and make that it so that i can maybe have a bm again someday. Can we take Colace yet? Sunday was awful, but Monday and Tuesday continued to improve.

It seems like you should be getting in more water too at this point. I could see 48 oz/day the first week, but you should be at 64 oz now. I wonder if dehydration is causing the swollen ankles and feet for you. I am currently at 264, so I deal with swollen ankles more regularly and am also looking forward to leaving that behind (along with foot pain).

The Affordable Health Care Act ("Obamacare") just recently went into effect. I would agree with SV2 - the law would prohibit insurance companies from not covering you, and I believe there is a limit to how much they can charge you as well. The link provides more information regarding pre-existing condition insurance: http://www.healthcare.gov/law/features/choices/pre-existing-condition-insurance-plan/index.html

Your NUT is probably correct. Getting to 900 or 1000 calories, at least, should up your metabolism, especially given how active you are. None of us are Michael Phelps, but that guy has to take in 12000 calories a day. Try giving your NUT's advice a whirl for a week or two and see what happens. I realize it seems scary. A lot of people on these boards talk about how upping their caloric intake during a stall seems to break them out of it. Also, have you measured yourself? A friend of mine, who is almost at 2 years past her sleeve surgery date, finds that she continues to lose inches even if the scale seems stuck. She didn't start working out until a year after the surgery and really wishes she hadn't waited. You're on the right track.

This is such a great topic. I won't be sleeved till the end of the month, but am considering a trip to the UK next March or April (I see that you're about 8 months beyond surgery, and I'd be about 6-7 months out at that point). Please post an update when you return and share what else you learned. Good luck with the protein shakes and be aware that European flight security agencies may not be as cooperative as the TSA for your return flight. Are you able to tolerate protein bars?