Bufflehead

@@monopoly2015 I was allowed to have hot sauce once I advanced to purees (for me that was at four weeks out), and one of the first things I had was refried beans with hot sauce. I also did pureed tuna with hot sauce and poached egg drenched in hot sauce. It never gave me any trouble. I do have a sleeve of steel though, just like before my surgery I had a stomach of steel. No food ever bothers me. I am pretty sure I could live on a diet of old t shirts and tin cans

Maybe ask your surgeon for a referral to a PCP with whom he or she works regularly? I know my surgeon can do that, I'll bet yours can too. Good luck!

I am so sorry your husband is behaving like he is. I truly hope that he will have a change of heart and treat you the way you deserve to be treated by those who love you. Putting that aside -- I believe you can care for yourself after your surgery, barring some sort of major complication. I am single and live alone. I went home two days after surgery (my doctor's protocol) and didn't even have anyone else set foot in the house for over a week, and I was absolutely fine, no problems whatsoever. You will need to be able to take it easy and rest, so it's good that you have a full-time nanny! You may not be able to lift your children for a few weeks after surgery, so if you need to do that, you may want to start working out alternatives for when your husband isn't around to care for them -- feed them on a blanket on the floor rather than lifting them into a high chair, lower the crib to its lowest level and allow them to climb in rather than lifting, teaching them to sit next to you on the couch and (carefully!) climb on to your lap for cuddles rather than be lifted up for hugs -- basically any time you lift them, think of some alternative maneuver. Good luck to you!

I use liquid calcium, Wellesse brand. I buy mine from Amazon. I can't handle the giant horse pills that you need to swallow for calcium tablets, and the chewables were all higher in calories and carbs than the Wellesse liquid calcium (higher price, too).

Your stomach may not be sending you proper signals because your nerves are still healing. Be sure to stick with the amount your program allows you to eat, no more, whether or not you feel restriction or "full."

They are seriously almost TOO good. I keep waiting for them to get busted by the FDA for false labeling or something. They were sued for false labeling,* and a number of people have questioned the accuracy of their labels for years. http://www.fox42kptm.com/story/24876128/quest-bars-involved-in-lawsuit-over-misstating-carb-and-fiber-count http://www.lowcarbfriends.com/bbs/showthread.php?t=790249 http://freshluke.blogspot.com/2014/03/on-quest-for-spike-in-blood-sugar.html http://www.amazon.com/review/R1U7XSFXAEXYI/ref=cm_cr_pr_viewpnt/186-0943921-5548854#R1U7XSFXAEXYI *note - not by the FDA, and of course just because they were sued doesn't mean the complaint is correct! The case settled a couple of months ago due to the new proposed FDA regulations that are supposed to address stuff like net carbs, types of Fiber, etc. All that said, I've stopped eating Quest bars because they made me hungry. I find that if I get my Protein from meat and fiber from veggies, I do much better managing my hunger.

Congrats, you look gorgeous and so happy! I love the tattoo idea

It depends on what your surgical practice allows. You should probably check with them. I was allowed FF and SF puddings, and peanut butter, as long as I stayed within my daily calorie and carb limits. I was not allowed bananas or any other fruit as they are too high carb for my surgeon's program.

Probably half to 3/4 of one patty. I wouldn't touch the bread (makes me feel queasy and uncomfortable). If I had room after eating the patty I might be able to do 3-4 fries? I would try to resist them though. I also wouldn't touch the shake - no eating and drinking at the same time, and the shake is a waste of my calorie allotment for the day. If I waited 30 minutes after eating the theoretical hamburger patty and fries, I would guess I might be able to do 1/4 of a milkshake.

I would say make sure you have additional samples of protein powders/drinks on hand for after surgery. Because if you sample something now and buy a tub of it before surgery, you may well find that you loathe it after surgery. Sampling now is fine but many if not most people need to sample after surgery before committing to a larger quantity. I made sure I had my vitamins and supplements ready to go -- I used liquids rather than chewables for the first four weeks. I got a heating pad, which I found very comforting after surgery. A digital food scale. I was required by my surgeon to have a home blood pressure cuff since I had high blood pressure prior to surgery, and blood pressure can fluctuate a lot after surgery. I also made sure I was stocked up on my Amazon instant video library, Netflix queue, and had a bunch of books to read. Good luck!

I went back to work after two weeks. For the first two days, I only lasted until about 2 PM and then went home because I was so tired. But I could have stayed if I had had to due to not having paid leave available. I would think 2 weeks would be fine for you if you don't have any major complications. The toughest part will probably be making sure your hydration and nutritional needs are met. Good luck!

Did they give you an incentive spirometer to use? If so, keep using it every hour or two. Walk as much as you can. If the pain persists, definitely get in touch with your surgeon! Your surgeon can -- I hope -- give you much better medical advice than strangers on the internet!

For the first four weeks post-op, I took: --Wellesse liquid multi-Vitamin, double dose --Wellesse liquid Calcium, 1 tablespoon 3x per day --Wellesse liquid Iron, 1x per day --gel capsule of Vitamin D supplement --sublingual B12 After four weeks, I switched to Trader Joe's High Potency chewable multi-vitamin, 2x per day; generic iron supplement in a coated tablet, and B12 cut back to 2x per week rather than every day. I kept the calcium and Vitamin D the same and added in a daily K2 supplement (gel capsule, like Vitamin D).

How many calories are you eating now? I generally keep under 1,000 calories per day (I'm over a year out). I'm training for a 5K -- I ran 35 minutes this morning -- and find that I don't need any extra calories -- in fact the exercise makes me feel more energized. I usually exercise in the morning after fasting for 8 - 9 hours (I stop eating at 8 PM, and usually exercise around 5 or 6 AM) and then don't eat until between 10 AM and noon. I don't eat more on days that I exercise, or days that I exercise particularly hard. It's fine. If you really feel like you need more calories for exercise, maybe try an ounce of chicken breast before exercising and another ounce after? I guess one thing I would caution is if you are going to add in extra food for exercising, try to make it something you really don't like to eat very much. Make sure that you are eating it purely for nutrition and not for entertainment or as a reward. Not saying that is your plan at all, but I have seen a fair number of people who will exercise and then tell themselves that they "need" a brownie or a Protein bar or some other slider food because that's the only way they can get in the calories they must have.

There are lots of different ways you can tackle this. Have you tried using less protein powder -- mixing it into twice as much milk or water as it calls for? You'll get less protein of course, but less is better than none. If you are drinking RTD's like Premier Protein, try cutting it 50/50 with skim milk or soy milk. For water-based RTD's like Isopure, try cutting 50/50 with water, G2, or Powerade Zero. Have you tried warm liquids for your protein -- Unjury chicken soup protein, HealthSmart hot chocolate or cappuccino protein? A lot of times people have an easier time with warm liquids than cold. What about stirring in a little flavored protein powder to your Greek yogurt? I really liked chocolate protein powder and PB2 stirred into Greek yogurt. Are you allowed cottage cheese? That is another high protein food, and you can add in a little protein powder to get even more. And finally, what do you mean by "can't stomach"? For some people, this means they find it unpleasant. For other people, they mean active vomiting or foamies/slimies. If it is unpleasant but isn't making you physically ill, it may be that you just have to put up with some unpleasantness to get your protein in. This time will pass pretty quickly although I know it seems endless right now! Good luck to you.

In terms of the "wrong way" -- I have seen many people who claim that weight loss surgery is a wrong or bad way to lose weight because it will result in weight loss that is "too fast" and you'll end up with loose skin, long term health problems, etc. That being said, none of them can ever point to any sort of scientific study to back their claims up.

I have tried it -- it is okay but I prefer the taste (and numbers) of CarbMaster milk.

I use liquid calcium from Wellesse - it tastes fine.

My surgeon's plan called for 3 meals per day, no snacks other than protein shakes. The meals had to be consumed within 30 minutes (no saving stuff for later and considering it one "meal") and no more than 3 tablespoonfuls in volume. High protein/low carb foods only -- no grains, no fruit, no starchy veg such as potatoes.

I like to have it post my diary on my timeline so that my friends can see it and keep me in check if I eat something wacky. And if you don't close your diary, or if you don't go over 1000 calories (for a woman, 1200 for a man) it won't post your diary message on your timeline. So if I am under 1000 calories for the day, I just do a "quick add calories" for 100 calories or so, click the "complete diary" button, then take the "quick added" calories out. So my diary gets posted and it is accurate. Screw you MFP.

They've been done for many decades, as noted above. The outcomes are fine and certainly orders of magnitude better than long term risks of morbid obesity.

I never had to crush anything, my surgeon said it was fine to swallow any medication that would fit through a typical wedding ring.

@@allyray go pour it down the drain

Nope. I think his philosophy for sleeve patients is that he's not going anywhere near their intestines, so no need to clean them out. No liquid diet either -- just two weeks of high protein/low carb to shrink the liver beforehand.

Hospital gown. I had an IV pole to maneuver and a drain to deal with. Hospital gowns are designed to accommodate that, your regular clothes are not. Plus, do you want to get blood, IV fluid, drainage on your own clothes? I didn't! Just get a second gown and wear it facing backward when you go out walking the halls. That way you won't accidentally flash your fellow patients and their visitors.