lunabella007

I write this with a full sleeve--I think I might have overdone it on the yogurt a little! The first ten days of my new life have been pretty busy! I haven't had the ability to really stop and take time to rest since I got home from the hospital. There's a lot of sickness in the family these days and my mother in law depends on me to take care of things for her! I'm going to go to sleep soon--today was SO busy! But first-- I got the opportunity to talk to five ladies today at the surgeon's office, and gave them a presentation about the experience of having surgery. It was great to see the relief on their faces when they realized that I'm only 10 days post-op, and I'm doing so well! There was a lot of hope in that room--and I know those ladies will be successful! It makes me feel good that I can help them the way a kind lady helped me by showing me her scars. Oh, and the surgeon gave me a DVD of my surgery--yes, we're just geeky like that. My liver was much prettier than I imagined! I spoke to the ladies about how odd it was that not only am I not hungry, but I'm beginning to appreciate food in the abstract (pizza steaming on a tray in a commercial is yum!) rather than in the concrete (the thought of pizza on my plate, even a tiny piece, is not really that appetizing). I like the idea of pizza, but the idea of chewing and swallowing it and processing it through my sleeve doesn't appeal at all! The same goes for soda, french fries, etc. It's like a miracle, I tell you! You have to learn to listen to the sleeve's cues. For me, that hasn't been difficult. I know about two spoonfulls before I'm full, I can feel it. There is a two tablespoon difference between stuffed and uncomfortable and satisfied. Before, I could eat plate after plate of food (not that I often did, of course, but I was physically capable of it). Now, I have to FORCE myself to eat, especially the first meal of the day. Anything more than 8 tablespoons at a time and I'm physically uncomfortable--lots of swallowing, light cramping in my upper abdomen. For the first time in my life, my body is telling me when to stop! Do some people have this sensation naturally built in to their stomachs? Maybe some of us need to have it surgically constructed, while others are born with it.

Thank you Ready! Set! for your kind words! You're going to do great! I think the people who do best with their surgery aren't necessarily the people who are all gung-ho to change their lives and change the world and live in alimentary virtue forever and ever Amen, but rather the people who go into it with an open heart and an open mind to take it day by day and just live the experience! By the way, I've definitely found it to be easier than I thought! My body is giving me the cues I need to continue down the road to my goals for the first time in my life! When I went into the surgeon's office for my consultation, I said to him "Look, I've got to be back up on my feet and moderately functional in seven days or less. I can't take a vacation, my mother in law is in home hospice, and she needs me." He promised me I would be fine for normal activity much quicker than I thought possible. Turns out, I was able to get back to my real life about 3-4 days after surgery. So, basically a long weekend Good luck tomorrow! Please let me know how you're doing! If you have any questions or need any help post-op, just let me know if there's anything I can do!

Honey, you and I should hang out! One time when my husband and I were traveling across Canada, we were trying to find a place to stay the night, but there were very few motels nearby, and the ones there were were filled up or the lobbies were closed. We went to a gas station to ask if we could use their phone to call a potential motel, and the gas station attendant handed me his phone. When he came around my side of the counter, he turned the "closed" sign right away because, in his words, "This is an emergency, you remember what happened last time there was no room for them at the inn?" He got on his moped, and led us to the nearest available motel--no joke. We got a room that night because of my 8-months-pregnant-looking belly. The first time I got asked "when are you due?" was when I was 14 lol I never thought to use it to my advantage, but I wonder if it might also have gotten me a seat on a crowded bus

A lot of Americans are of the "live and let live" school of thought, and there is a really large and growing (and vocal) fat acceptance community here. Thank goodness! But there are also people here who think it's their moral duty to nag and badger fat people and make their lives as miserable as possible so they'll be forced or shamed into changing their slovenly, stupid, and lazy ways. I know a young man (pretty well) who cannot eat in a restaurant if a fat person is eating within his visual range. There is a lot of bigotry out there--this young man doesn't even realize he's being a bigot! For many of us, though, it's the subtle insults we get on a daily basis. Once I popped into a middle-brow chain lingerie store, and a shop woman accosted me, asking "Are you looking for perfume, or are you shopping for somebody else?" As if they didn't have a single bra or panty that was worth my while to even look at! By the way, I later found out that the store DID carry my bra size. I've never been back there since.

There was an element of that in my obesity as well, so I completely understand. Part of my nervousness about how people might respond to me (positively) might be related to that too.

Yes, it does suck. But this too will pass!

Hello! My surgeon was Mark Pleatman of Bloomfield Hills, MI. I was self-pay, and the value is phenomenal. He has a no-surprises package for self-pay patients. The cost included the surgery, the anaesthesia, the hospital stay, two years of follow up appointments, and access to their nutrition program and support group with free lectures from time to time! The staff there (I dealt with Rachel) was pleasant, competent, and the service was very human and personalized. The hospital I stayed at was Doctor's Hospital of Michigan, and while it's in not-so-gorgeous Pontiac, the nurses there were STELLAR! When I turned on my light, the nurses were there in five minutes or so. They knew my name, they knew my story, and gave me hugs when I left the hospital--one even fetched me a glass vase with a ribbon around it for my roses! I got a lot of encouragement from these ladies! The Pre-Op nurses did their best to calm me down, and they tried (pretty well!) to distract me while they were placing my IV. No complaints, actually! I'm one week pre-op and have had no trouble whatsoever!

I have anxiety issues too, and some chronic pain problems of my own. In all likelihood, you're going to find yourself feeling so relieved that it's over for the first week or so that you won't have time for many other emotions. I've noticed my emotions leveled out a bit after surgery, but oneangelone had the opposite happen. I suppose it's different for everyone, but just imagine all the pre-surgery stresses and nerves dissolving away, and that's how I felt for about 3 days after surgery. Just coasting

Congratulations! I can hear your excitement! Let us know when you've got your date! YAY!!!

Wow! That's awful! In the beginning you had me with macaroni and cheese with chicken, but then you just made that thought fly from my mind as fast as speedy gonzales! I'm so sorry you got so sick! You're a hilarious writer though!

I LOVE that!

Excellent take on this. I hope I get to that place myself, because I have no desire to bring myself down with negative emotions over people's reaction to me that I can't control!

I bought for weeks 1-2: - unjury Protein powder (I use this for every meal) - Chewable bariatric Vitamins (I purchased these and the protein at my surgeon's office) - Calcium citrate + vit. D supplement chews to preserve my bones -Tons of different low sodium broth options (chicken, beef, turkey, french onion, tomato, etc.) - Crystal light - Diet tea - Mio Water flavorers - 4 bags of frozen fruit for smoothies (which I was told I could have 3-4 days post op. This will vary depending on how you're healing, and how your sleeve reacts to certain fruits. Mine hates pineapple.) - Seedless watermelon to suck on (spit out the pulp). I love this, because it makes you feel human again, putting something "solid" in your mouth! - Cottage cheese (for smoothies--it's really good and an ok source of protein) - Ground Flax Seed with berries (for an additive to shakes and smoothies) - PB2 (Peanut Butter Powder--just add water for peanut butter with no fat! A fun addition to banana based smoothies. Also comes in chocolate peanut butter flavor, that tastes sort of like a reeses) - Greek yogurt--an excellent buy. It tastes good, blends well in a shake, and has TONS of protein. - Hot cereals like oatmeal and cream of wheat (served VERY thin) - A variety of low calorie fruit juices to sip (I got 5 cal cranberry, and it's pretty tasty!) - A non-caloric sweetener like Truvia or Splenda, if you like your tea sweet, or your smoothies a little sweeter - Diet Jello cups You'll be amazed at how far food can go when your tummy's only 2 oz! One single serving of Greek yogurt takes me 3 sittings to finish. I'm 1 week post op right now, so that won't last forever, but it's made me a real cheap date as far as the grocery bill is concerned! My advice would be to not buy too much of the stuff you know you'll be only eating during the first two weeks. You'd hate to have stuff left over, when the sight of it turns your stomach (like pineapple!)

My husband asked what my biggest fear was about life after the surgery, and this was it. It's good to know that someone else has thought about it too. I guess I kind of lived in that "invisible" zone pre-op. It is going to take some getting used to!

That's a good point--confidence means a heck of a lot, and happiness is infectious! Great thoughts!

That's pretty much how I feel about it, too!

I believe it to be caused, in part, by our bodies going into "survival mode". We are, in essence, starving ourselves though we don't feel it because our stomach is so small. Many non-essential processes (such as hair and nail growth, menstrual cycle) stop or change for awhile until our body reaches the "new normal". It's just a side effect of drastic weight loss. It's ok, it means that your body has better things to do (like slimming you down!) than to waste a lot of energy on your hair and nails. Also, just about everyone loses some hair, and just about everyone returns to their pre-surgery amount of hair. Just think, your hair may be even more lustrous and beautiful as it grows back than it was before because your body is so much healthier!

Gosh, this makes me feel lucky that my husband is "dieting" along with me. If I make a shake, he has some too. If I heat up some Soup, I hand him a mug. I just put Protein in everything that's mine and pretty much leave it out of his (because its so expensive and he doesn't like the taste.) I made him dinner tonight because he had a long day, running around town, taking his elderly mother to doctors appointments. I made him a salad and some fish and chips--the salad had me drooling and I REALLY wish I could have had a taste! I can't wait until I can have salads again

For years and years I've been obese, since I was eight years old. I tried everything, from the sensible to the slightly insane to try to lose weight. After a year of diligent calorie counting and exercise failed to shift any weight, I spoke with my husband about possibly pursuing bariatric surgery. Pretty quickly, I started to gravitate toward a gastric sleeve, and did a ton of research. I put off making that appointment for a consultation for months. Now I wish I hadn't! Because, now I'm 5 days post-op and feeling incredible, and shrinking before my very eyes! I had a very easy surgery and my recovery was fast--practically outpatient. I was out of the hospital the next afternoon. Three days after surgery I could go shopping for a little while, five days after, I could resume my walking routine (although I may have been pushing it a little). I've had no trouble at all keeping to my full liquid diet, and have been doing really well so far! As of yesterday, I lost 12 pounds since my surgery date. By now, it is probably even more! I can actually feel and see the changes, they're happening so fast. This is so encouraging to me, that I can't imagine having any problem sticking to my diet. I haven't had any "head hunger" which is great--it's something a lot of people struggle with post-op, so I guess I'm just lucky that there wasn't a big psychological component to my obesity that I didn't know about. The only challenge I've come up against so far is drinking enough water. I don't feel thirsty, and my mouth isn't dry, but they say I should be getting about 60 oz a day. There's no way I'm getting that, unless you include the other liquids I "drink" like shakes, soups, etc. The nutritionist said I shouldn't count those, but it seems pretty unattainable if I don't! My stomach is only 2oz big, I would have to fill and empty my stomach 30 times a day with water alone to get 60oz of pure water. Blah. I can't complain--I'm feeling astonishingly well, and am losing weight! It's like a dream!

I'm keeping it a secret from my mother for now. She's got too much nerve-wracking stuff going on in her life right now with her parents being very sick, and she's under a lot of stress. She just had a stroke two months ago at the age of 51! She's a worrier, and I don't want her to worry about me, so I'll wait to tell her until I've lost weight and I'm clearly fine. I told my brother, because he's trustworthy and won't let mom know. Everyone else can wait to see for themselves. I just don't think it's that big of a deal whether I lose weight using a mechanical alteration (surgery) or a behavioral alteration (low cal diet and lots of exercise).

Tracey, that's awesome! What an exciting time this is for you! I'm so glad you're able to move forward now in the direction you want to go in! Since you asked for suggestions, might I suggest making sure your food tastes good? This is important before surgery, but even more important afterwards. You'll be eating much less than you did before, so you can afford to add a pinch of garlic, some lemon zest, some herbs and spices, whatever you're hankering for! If all you eat is chicken broth and yogurt smoothies, that gets old kinda fast. Might I also suggest that you test drive some non-flavored Protein powders? You can literally put them in anything, and most post-op bariatric diets that I've seen rely on Protein Powder pretty heavily. Even people who can get their protein from other sources, and have gone on to a solid diet sometimes can benefit from using protein powder in sauces, Soups, beverages, etc. I'm so excited for you! You're going to do great!

I have my sleeve tomorrow morning. I'm still sorting through my feelings, but I'm glad that the day is finally here! God, I'm tired! Like, bone-butt tired. I woke up at 8am without an alarm. My mother in law is very unwell in hospital, and is not getting better. We had to spend a lot of time sorting through her hospice care options today with her care team, and it was a bit emotional. We had to leave early to get to the surgeon's office to finish up the last of the business end of things for my surgery tomorrow. Then we had to find a grocery store (not easy in this town, lemme tell ya). I'm having surgery in Pontiac, MI by the way. We got a bottle of clove, cardamom, and cinnamon Water and it tastes just like chai--mmm! And a bottle of lavender mint water. Just cause I'm on a liquid diet doesn't mean it has to suck. We're staying at the Residence Inn Marriot, and the room is so cute and comfortable, and has a microwave for my broth (thank God!) I took my milk of magnesia an hour ago which was surprisingly not nasty. Oh, and I straight up "ate" an entire quart of low sodium chicken broth after I peppered the heck out of it. I'm not super hunger, but my head hurts though. Probably low blood sugar. I have to have a shower tonight with Hibiclens, and another one in the morning before we go to the hospital. I don't relish filling out a crap-load of forms tomorrow morning when I'm hungry, barely awake, and scared. I hope they can give me a little something to relax me kind of quickly. I'm having a hard time thinking right now, probably because I'm so tired. I wanted to write something eloquent and philosophical about losing something, and gaining something, and sacrifice, and how positive I feel about moving ahead with this whole experience but I'm afraid that will have to wait. I'm kind of sleeping with my eyes open I was going to have a swim tonight, but I think the best thing to do now is to just have a sleep. A woman today told me that I was beautiful! "You're beautiful, and Irish, what more could a woman want?" That random act of kindness made me feel so great--it was just some lady on the elevator at my mother in law's hospital--she didn't know me, but she made my day! I've decided that I'm gonna work this sleeve for all its worth, and the party starts tomorrow! Got to go, the milk of magnesia is kicking in!

My surgeon said that most people will experience some hair loss. If you think about it, your body is turning off the "non-essential" functions so it can focus on burning your fat for fuel. Hair is pretty non-essential as far as our bodies are concerned, though I certainly don't feel that way! lol I'm taking Vitamins for my general good health, a multi, Calcium citrate with vit. D, and will be taking Biotin and b vitamins when my stomach settles a bit more. I'm personally not worried about losing hair (though I DO love my hair) because it isn't permanent. For me, it's the same as having skin flaps hanging from my stomach and my arms--just part of the process!

Blogging your story is going to be fun, and is going to help you through the tough days, and give you an outlet to rejoice when you triumph! Congratulations on your decision to have the surgery! You sound like you have the right attitude to succeed, and I bet you will!

Yes, yes and yes! My back actually hurts worse than my belly and I'm only 3 days post op. The nurse also offered me a pneumonia shot since I care for my elderly mother in law who is a cancer patient, and the site of the injection hurts more than my belly! I had pretty bad gas pains on day one and day two. I passed my first air today and let me tell you it helped! Shoulder pain, chest pain, and back pain, and they're all getting better with passing the air. It is fairly common I think!