traceyinflorida

No, but at one month post op my doctor gave me ursodiol to take for the next six months to guard against problems with the gallblader associated with rapid weight loss. He said that I may have no problems at all, but it is better to be safe than sorry.

Wow, great thread! It is so nice to get to know a little more about people you see posting out here all the time. I can't normally make a post without writing a novel, but I am going to try to keep this one to a short story so here goes.... I am 45, live in Florida after transplanting here 10 years ago from RI. Sometimes I miss New England, but I love being a Floridian now! I have been married to my wonderful husband, Mike for 21 years now. We met our junior year in college at Rutgers University. I worked in pharmaceuticals for ten years as a sales person and a medical liason, but I left when my son was four and my daughter was 2 because the travel was becoming too much while having a young family and I no longer wanted them to be in daycare more than they were home with me. While we missed the second income, I never looked back. My son is now 17 and a senior in high school. I am constantly amazed by the wonderful, intelligent, accomplished young man he has become. He plays football and baseball and hopes to play one of those in college (most likely football) while going to school for Engineering. He is looking at schools everywhere in the country, except Florida! (mostly the Northeast and midwest) He wants to be back in a climate more like New England with changes of seasons and snow. Personally, I am not ready to start emptying my nest but I am excited for him and his prospects for the future. My daughter is 15 and turns 16 in October. She is my fashionable, athletic, funny, social butterfly. She is a sophomore in high school and is facing a tough academic year, but she is a hard worker so I know she will be successful. She was a competative cheerleader from the age of five (we had no idea what we were getting ourselves into) but decided to give it up this year in favor of running cross country and track and being more involved in her high school. I am still trying to decide what I want to be when I grow up. Right now I am so busy with my family and their activities that I do not want a full time job. I have dabbled with a couple of direct sales companies. I have had my own business making window treatments, cushions and memory quilts etc (which I still do on a limited word of mouth basis now) but when the kids are in college I would like to get back out into the work place again. Unfortunately, my husband was diagnosed with muscular dystrophy when the kids were young. It is a progressive disease and he is now confined to a wheelchair full time and fully dependent on me for everything. Two years ago he finally had to go on long term disability from his career in pharmaceutical marketing. So figuring out how we will take care of his needs if I go back to work creates a bit of a wrinkle in the picture. We will cross that bridge when we get to it.

I was excessively moody for about a month post surgery. I feel like all has stabilized now. Actually lately I have been feeling really happy. It's hard to be in a bad mood when you are getting thinner! I hope it settles for you all soon too!

I agree with Spatters3, you are very brave! I gave up on the water parks years ago because I could not stand the feeling like I was going to have a heart attack just from climbing the stairs, let alone the weight limits! I cannot wait to read your NSV about conquering the water parks next summer! You will get there! You are doing great so far!

You look AMAZING!! Congratulations! Thanks for sharing!!

It gets MUCH better. Now that I can eat food again, I don't think about food much, other than planning what I eat to make sure I get all my protein in. The first month is really hard with the first two weeks being the hardest because you pretty much on liquid. Hang in there! The suggestion to do something nice for yourself is a great one! Getting a pedicure, buying a cute top that you couldn't fit in before, even just taking a little ME time to read a book are great ways to reward yourself for your hard work. In the meantime, we are all here for support!

The staples will always be there, for the rest of your life. I would imagine that the tissue will heal around it though.

Good advice! I have been there, done that and never care to repeat it!!

I was having a problem with foaminess and sliminess with my protein powder too. I wanted something that would not turn out so thick. I added two more ounces of skim milk for a total of 10 oz and now it is just right. I also either give it a really quick pulse in my magic bullet to keep it from getting too frothy, or shake it in a blender bottle for no foam at all. Like you, I needed to find a way to use up all that expensive protein powder.

I think I am just really picky or did not do it right. At the time I was even struggling with the taste of water, so maybe I should give it another chance (since I have so much of it!) I am glad someone out there who likes it piped in!

By day 6 you should be fine (probably sooner) for stuff like making your own shakes etc. You will definitely want help with the kids. You cannot pick them up because you will not be allowed to lift more than 10 lbs. I was driving my son back and forth to Miami (2 hours each way) for a football camp by day 5 (I was off pain meds by day two in hospital)

Nancy, the protein shake I am using is close, but the nutritionist said it was fine for both pre and post op. It has 6g carbs and 4g sugar. She said the extra gram of carb is fine. I use Nitro-Peak Whey Protein by Inner Armour. I get it at Vitamin World, but I found that the one I order from Vitamin World online tastes better than when I buy the same product in the store. I can't imagine why they would taste different, but they do...weird. Unjury makes yummy protein powder that fits the bill. You can go online to Unjury.com and order samples to see what you like. Chike makes yummy protein shakes too, Chike.com you can order samples. The other brand I have not tried, but comes highly recommended is Nectar. You can also get samples to try their flavors. If you like fruity drinks, then Nectar has many that mix up with water to be like Kool-aid. I would go the sample route (I don't think you can get samples of Nitro Peak) unless you know that you like protein shakes. We have been drinking them on and off in my house for years so I already knew I liked that one. But if you are not sure, $40 is a lot to spend in the event that you hate it!

BUT, you can mix it into things like oatmeal or SF jello or SF pudding to disguise it's taste and give those things a protein boost. However, in my opinion it only serves to take those perfectly tasty items and give them a really gross texture. I know lots of people who have learned to like it though. I have two big jugs of unflavored protein powder if anyone wants to try it. I bought one at a local vitamin store and when it made my chicken broth just completely disgusting, I tried buying Unjury thinking I just didn't have the right brand. Unfortunately I did not like it either. I am back to just drinking my chocolate flavored protein shake and finally my taste buds are allowing me to enjoy it once again.

After seeing OTR's Thread on not all Proteins being equal, I will admit I was wrong. I may be showing my age here, but that admission does not come easily...it is more like The Fonz from Happy Days saying very quietly and with much trepidation, I was Wro....oo....nnng. At least that's how my husband sees it when I have to admit that this was one of the RARE occassions when I was not right. LOL. All kidding aside, I was thinking about what you might like as an alternative to the shots in your Water since you like the fruity flavor and having the blast of Protein in your water. There are lots of good fruity flavored proteins out there that would mix well into water. nectar is one brand that comes to mind that mixes up into a Kool-aid type of drink. I think you can order samples online through their website. I am sure there are more. Personally, I never liked the shots anyway and am not a big fan of fruity drinks so I am just going to throw my shot away. I'm more of a plain water and chocolate shake kind of girl. Thanks for taking the time to do the research, OTR and sharing it.

I would look at your history with diets. Have you been able to reach your goal weight? Have you been able to maintain your weight loss? How long have you maintained it? Also, can you really see yourself drinking medifast for the rest of your life as part of a maintenance plan? Personally, having tried so many different diets both supervised and unsupervised, with support groups, without support groups, if it were me faced with this choice, I would do the surgery. The idea of this plan is probably appealing to the part of you that questions whether you really want to undergo major surgery to lose weight. If you are going to make such a radical lifestyle change, why not just do this instead. I know that voice because two years ago when I had made up my mind to have surgery, that was the voice in my head. Frankly, I feel like all I did was waste two years that I could have been living a healthy life only to end up finally having the surgery in June anyway. Research your options. Find out the true weight loss statistics and maintenance rate and compare them to surgery. Also really think about yourself and how you would do at either one. Make up a pros and cons list of both. You have to be 100% committed to having surgery and following the food guidelines. You can stop drinking Medifast, but you can't get your stomach back. I wish you luck!

I was very thirsty in the beginning, but now I have resumed to a normal level.

Prayers and hugs for you! I hope you feel better and get released soon!

I lost 15 lbs in two weeks. Week one, two protein shakes (<5g sugar, <5g carb, >18g protein) and one meal of lean protein and veggies. One of each per day, SF Jello, 6 oz lowfat/low sugar yogurt, 3 oz fruit. Week two same but no "meal" only three protein shakes. Good luck! You can do it!!

Way to go NATE!! You are probably already feeling so much better! Keep up the great work!!

I LOVE THAT! Congratulations, Skinny!!

My whole family, mom, dad and hubby (teenage kids stayed home....thank goodness) were at the hospital when I was put in my room after surgery. They all sat there watching me sleep. I finally sent them home! If you are there for a couple of days, it will be nice to have him come visit you after work to keep you company, but you should not need him to take off work to be with you. The nurses will take care of you. You may find that he can even go back to work after a couple days of you being home (unless you have kids to take care of- then take advantage of every second!!) If he can get the time off, but work is flexible enough for him to go back earlier if you are feeling okay, then he can save some of his vacation time for when you can both enjoy it. I was fully functional by my third day home from the hospital. I was tired, but functional!

That is cool! However, I am quite happy not to see mine. I think it would freak me out. Ignorance is BLISS!

I have the New Whey brand of liquid Protein shots. 180 cals per 3.8 oz container Fat: 0g Total Carb 2g Sugars 0g Protein 42g Sodim 100mg Potassium 50mg Ingredients: Water, Complete Protein Matrix (IDS Proprietary blend of collagen Protein Isolate, Whey Protein Isolate and Casein Protein Isolate) then blah blah blah. "Complete source of protein containing all essential amino acids as par of a balanced diet" Because I have read that your body can only absorb 30 grams of protein at a time, I split this in half so it is 90 cals, 1 g carb, and 21 grams of protein per serving. Quite frankly, drinking even that little 1.5 oz is completely repulsive to me (but others don't mind it) so I have only had it once. I am considering Sweetsuzie's method of throwing it into my water to see if it makes it more palatable. It does not give the exact amount of whey protein to collagen protein, but it was recommended by others as a better source of protein than its collagen counterpart by folks on this site. There are so many variations of protein powders, RTD's, shots, shakes, lattes (now I am getting silly) out there. It's overwhelming and confusing. We are all just doing the best we can with all the different opinions and recommendations of NUTs, doctors, bariatric nurses etc.. I would think getting 26 grams of collagen protein in a serving is better than getting 0 grams of protein because you can't find a way to make it work for you....just my opinion.

Chris, what an emotional and stressful year you and your wife have had! My first thought is thank goodness you both are sleeved because without it would be so easy to slip back into old habits and gain a ton of weight with all you've had going on! The first thing I say to your wife (after sending a big hug) is you are NOT A FAILURE!! You have been dealing with so much, caring for your parents, moving, working. I imagine there is little time left to think of yourself. I have a husband who has muscular dystrophy and is confined to a wheelchair. He is completely dependent on me for everything and unfortunately we do not have any help on that end, so I am pretty much on call 24 hours a day. I have two teenagers who are very active in school and sports, so on that end we are very busy too. So I know all too well how easy it is to put everyone else and their needs first and forget or run out of energy to take care of yourself. That being said, it is important that she take care of herself. The weight gain, the stress etc are all taking an emotional toll on her that is not good for her, you or her parents. If I were talking to her, I would say cut yourself a break. It has been an emotional and stressful year and things have gotten off track for you. It happens, but now is time to start taking back CONTROL and taking care of you. Go back to basics of when you first started this journey with being sleeved. Start with the pre-op diet of Protein shakes, and one meal of lean Protein and veggies for two weeks. This will clear any sugar and carbs out so any cravings that are creeping back in will be eliminated. Go back to tracking what you are eating. Focus on eating protein first, veggies second and sticking with only complex carbohydrates. You've done this once, you can do it again. Make time for yourself to excercise daily. You need it for the stress relief and some 'ME' time. If she cannot get out of the house long enough because of her parents, consider investing in some help if you can swing it, even if it's just hiring a neighbor to hang out at the house a few days a week for an hour while she exercises. Maybe her sisters can come for a couple hours, a few days a week. You mentioned they are ineffective (I am sure there is a whole story there) but maybe if they are asked to do one specific thing, for a specified period of time with a schedule you can all agree to, they can be of some help to you. Alternatively, you and she may need to work out a deal...she gets up early, gets to the gym or for a hike or ride before you go to work. Or you give her a chance to do what she needs after you get home. I feel for you guys. Things sound a bit overwhelming right now, to say the least. But now that you are getting settled, it is time to find a way to refocus some of your energy on taking care of each other. YOU BOTH CAN DO IT!! YOU ARE WORTH IT!

Those little trackers can be deceiving. I lost 10 prior to my pre-op diet. I lost another 15 while on my pre-op and then I have lost 38 lbs in 10 weeks post surgery. So really you are ahead of my pace when you look at it that way, since I have a whole month on you. But, as much as I would love to wake up tomorrow and be at my goal weight, I am okay with losing an average of 3 pounds a week. I still hate the stalls (I have had two) but I know now that they will pass. I also use them to evaluate what I am eating to see if I could be doing something different. You are doing great Sherree!!