jbgirl5856

Thanks so much everyone...it's been a journey and I've loved having this forum here to see where other people are at. Right after surgery - I made sure to start walking and slowly increased how far I was walking. At about 3 weeks post-op I started jogging quite a bit, just in intervals (jog 3 min, walk 2 min, etc) and have increased it. I do a circuit training at planet fitness and do a lot of core exercises (sit ups, planks, supermans, leg lifts, etc). I also do free weight exercises and squats. I try to rotate arms and legs when I go. Considering I was basically sedentary before, any movement is good!!! As far as eating, I always have an egg or oatmeal for Breakfast. My other meals consist of chicken, veggies, Soups, Protein bars, etc. If I have a chocolate craving, I have a hershey kiss or something small like that. food used to give me such anxiety and I feel like that is completely gone. I don't live to eat anymore!! I actually have gotten into doing makeup as a hobby. I've replaced eating with working out and making myself feel good by getting ready and doing fun makeup looks! Sorry to ramble!! Biggest recommendation is to NOT cheat on pre-op!!! Seriously, don't do it. The quote that got me through was "Suffer the pain of discipline or suffer the pain of regret." I feel that before I chose this surgery, every night I laid down and regretted all my choices I made that day (eating, not working out, not getting ready, feeling depressed). I don't want to go back to that feeling. I was 231 on 7/19 at consultation and 216 on 8/22 at surgery day. That got me in the right mind set and gave me a head start on weight loss. I do not feel like I am on a diet - I feel like a normal 22 year old girl (even though I have given up drinking completely for now ) Good luck to everyone with upcoming surgery and thanks for all the very nice compliments. Can't wait to read about everyone's stories.

Hi Everyone, Just thought I would post in the forum! I got approved today for an August 22nd date. I got lucky in the fact that my insurance was actually pretty easy to work with and I got approved the first time I applied. I'm enjoying reading everyone's stories on here and am very glad I am having the surgery before I head back to school in September!

If you look on shape.com they put out monthly workout playlists that I really enjoy

I'm having similar problems...not so much with heartburn but with nausea. I have been doing really well but I started my period yesterday and it's been a hellish two days! I tried to drink my protein shake yesterday and threw up and have thrown up each thing I've eaten today and got sick walking on the treadmill at the gym. I haven't had any problems so far until now. I'm also 3 weeks out. I blame the period! And I miss my ibuprofen lol. Hoping the nausea will be gone tomorrow.

I was three days out but I wasn't sleeping on my side I was more so laying on my side for five minutes and then switching. It sounds weird but the thing that helped the most was being on my knees with a pillow tucked under my stomach and kind of going into a ball haha. My mom who is a nurse recommended me doing that and I thought it would hurt but it actually felt a lot better. Just do what you can tolerate though. It gets better!

Walk lots! The more you walk the faster it goes away. I also tried to change positions which helped a lot. Rolling onto my sides seemed to get things moving. Good luck!

My biggest complaint about nectar is how much it foams. I have the roadside lemonade and it foams so much when I mix it. Plus it does not taste like lemonade lol I was intrigued by it but was disappointed

As I've read from a lot of people, I had been having the hardest time with my Protein drinks. I dread them and plug my nose to drink them. Normally I would just chug it down but we all know that's not possible! I had tried whey protein in chocolate and Peanut Butter and strawberry along with nectar roadside lemonade. I liked these before surgery but only mixing them with four ounces f Fluid is so gross. Luckily I'm up to six ounces I finally made one I liked. 1/2 cup vanilla carbmaster yogurt 1/4 cup skim milk 1 scoop of vanilla whey protein All together it's 33 grams of protein, 7 grams of sugar, 12.5 carbs, 3 grams of fat, and 200 calories The numbers seem high but I only have to drink two to reach my minimum of 60 grams of protein Excited to move on to the next stage!

Okay...I'm seeing the light at the end of the tunnel! Yesterday was a little rough for me. I've been walking lots and lots but still had bad gas pain. Last night I felt it in my shoulders and I was freaking out After walking more and taking pain meds I slept through the night quite well. I changed sleeping positions a lot going from laying on my right side to left side to back. It helped a lot Today I woke up feeling a little nauseous but took some zofran. I think today will be a good day. I'm keeping a positive attitude. I was 212 when I had surgery and 220 when I got home yesterday from the hospital. I'm 215 today so that Water weight is leaving. Honestly at this point I couldn't care less about my weight! I'm following doctors orders and i know it will be worth it in the end. I'm looking forward to days to come. Hope everyone else who had surgery this week is recovering well! I'm really enjoying following this forum

My gas pain hurt bad night 2 post op...and a little bit on post op day 3 but it stopped after that. I walked a lot and constantly changed positions in bed. Putting a pillow under your stomach and sitting in a crouching position is soothing for it to. I know it's different for everyone! I'm sorry that you are having so much pain. Wishing you the best.

geez that's fast!! lol I haven't been feeling hungry. I'm really struggling with my 4 oz Protein shake - it takes me an hour to drink it. My doctor told me no more than 1 oz per 10 minutes during the first weeks.

It gets better every day! I am six days post op. Right after I had the surgery I was miserable and totally out of it. I was not expecting to feel that type of pain - but the next day I was up and walking. You have to walk!! It makes things sooooo much better. Set an alarm for every two hours (every hour if you can handle it) and walk. I'm assuming your hooked up to IVs so don't stress out about drinking. You have plenty of fluids going in to you. I stayed two nights at the hospital and maybe had 6 sips of Water and apple juice lol It's normal!! Just know that when you wake up tomorrow you will feel a little better. I didn't have a drain, so I can't speak to that. Just keep looking forward and thinking about the big picture. You can do it!

No shame in taking pain meds! The prescribe them for a reason. In my opinion, the less pain I have the more able I am to focus on doing everything else right such as walking, getting liquids down, and having my Clear Liquids. Keep up the good work and I hope the pain subsides! I probably had a dime sized bite of Jello and my stomach growled for 20 minutes haha

Glad to see people in the same spot! I think I will continue pain meds through the night and stop them tomorrow. No need to risk a bad night's sleep for me since I still have some pain today. Overall today has been good though! My follow up appointment is next Thursday. I will follow all of you on your journeys Good luck to everyone!

The day has come!!! I have to be at the hospital at 2:30 and will be sleeved at 4!!! I had to take antibiotics yesterday - neomycin and erythromycin. It was awful. I was prescribed zofran to help with nausea but it did help. Erythromycin is not fun!! I got very sick from them and I don't get sick often! On a good note I weighed in at 212 today! That's 16 pounds lost during pre-op dieting. I didn't cheat and I am so glad! Good luck to everyone else getting sleeved today! Hoping for a healthy recovery!!!!

What a difference 36 hours can make! It look like I am headed home this afternoon. I have been feeling a lot of nausea but I've been taking zofran and it is making me better. I feel so much less bloated today. Yesterday I felt like my stomach was permanently stuck out and it was uncomfortable. I've been walking almost every hour and using my spirometer a lot and I know it has helped. I've had a great nursing staff and had a private room that has been great Overall I have had a good hospital experience. I will admit I was not expecting the pain I felt the first night and I am so glad that was only a night My only annoying experience was when I arrived to the hospital and had lab work right away before surgery The nurse looked at my birthday and shook her head and said "You are way too young for this. You havent even had children yet" and then gave me some pity hug. Not a fan of that...a little judgmental on her part! I'm 22 and so glad I did it now. I feel that my recovery has been going very well. Excited to see what's to come (and to sleep in a real bed!)

Thanks so much everyone! Today has been a good day! Last night was hard though. I'm doing my best to have a very positive attitude and have been following te doctors orders to the best of my ability. My leak test went well! No more catheter woohoo lol. Lots of walking!!!

I'm wrapping up day one post ops and I agree with you. I was freaking out last night! I was so out of it I couldn't even keep my eyes open and I swear I thought I would never move again lpl. Today is much better! I keep thinking that the worst is over and it's only getting better. Been doing lots of walking but can hardly eat my clear liquid trays. Have had a fair share of ice chips though! Good luck to you

Well I'm in the hospital one day post op. I was out of it yesterday and was really exhausted. I woke up at four am and have had nurses coming in and out. I was feeling a lot of pain and nausea but it's under control with pain medication now I've been walking! Can only go up from here!!

Good luck tomorrow! My surgery is today and I can't believe it's already here. Wishing you the best!

I'm having my surgery at 4pm tomorrow!!! I'm really proud of sticking to my preop diet. This quote has gotten me through temptation these last couple weeks You can suffer the pain of discipline or suffer the pain of regret! I had to remember that when camping with friends this past weekend. Everyone indulged in food and I stayed on track. Hoping I can continue. Good luck to everyone else having surgery this week! Down 14 pounds (231 to 217) during preop diet

I had better luck through e-mail. I also had called my insurance company directly and they were very helpful (Blue Cross Blue Shield). Good luck!

Woke up today with no headache -woohoo. Thanks everyone

So I'm doing my pre-op diet. It's 5 days of a <1000 cal (low carb, high protein) and 3 days of Clear liquids. I'm honestly not minding the <1000 cal diet - it actually makes me feel in control. Logging my food has been great - my hospital provided me with a log but I decided to buy one on Amazon. It's called DietMinder and I love it! Here is the thing that is killing me - No Diet Coke!!! I have a serious migrane in the front of my head. Basically my mom is addicted to the stuff and I grew up drinking it all the time. I'm only 22 - but this is a horrible habit of mine. I've gone 3 days without it and I'm proud of myself for that - but when will the headache go away!! I'm sure other people went through this I'm looking forward to being Diet Coke free without the side effects!

Get the lean machine fuji apple one! Each of the waters are different. The lean machine only has 4g of carbs and tastes pretty good. It is also caffeine free. Good luck