juny

i felt the same way, if you'd asked me a year ago about any of this stuff I'd look at you funny. yep your tastes can change post op, it's all a process.. You can mix them with milk but for preop diet, it's water only (at least for diet according to my nut). after the clear liquids stage then you can do the milk and whatever else. Also keep in mind some have adverse reactions to protein drinks, like gas and bloating. I had this w/ muscle milk, which was tasty but for the rest of the day my stomach was a symphony.

so you did a liquid diet on the same day as a stress test? how unpleasant.

besides costs, it's also really important that you find a protein shake you like, not one you can just tolerate. My nut had me try them out 3 months ago and it took me 2 months to find one that was both filling and tasty. This is for preop purposes. They range pretty far in price as well. Body Fortress (i think) from Walmart is $15-20 but the isopure that I buy is $45. If you haven't tried them there are many websites that offers single servings to try. I bought about 15 from one place. It's actually cheaper in the long run rather than buying a whole tub of something you've never tried and when you're talking about $40--80 for protein, it's worth the cost of a single sample. I kept my invoice and wrote down my feelings about protein content and taste. I tried one every day until i found one i liked.

since when is h m o a dirty word?

I want to say my *** aenta, has a 1,000 deductible with 100% coverage after the deductible, but I'm by no means certain, no one talks about it at my hospital. But between now and my surgery I really need to figure it out if I'm going to rest easy after the surgery. I don't know what it is about hospitals but I really don't understand the nature of the relationship between the health insurance company and the hospital. i cannot recall anything that I bought that potentially cost as much as this surgery and not actually know how much I'm going to have to pay until actual billing. I don't like the feeling that I'm walking into the surgery not knowing how much I'm going to be on the hook for when I get home. It's ridiculous!

So the treadmill test was the test I was most worried about because I'm seriously not a runner at all. I had my test today so I thought I'd share how it went and what happens to maybe allay some fears. I think the not knowing is half the problem. So I scheduled first thing in the morning, I recommend this so you're not waiting for the people who came in before you to get done. The wait doesn't help my anxiety level. I walked right in to the reception and within 5 minutes I was talking to my technician. Originally, I was crabby because it was a guy and I'm already self conscious. He was great though in spite of telling me that I have short legs and that would make it harder to walk quickly on the treadmill. We talked about the hospital and what I like (the people) and what I hate (their central scheduling/epic software/etc). I was told to wear a baggy shirt and some pants you can really walk in. I was also told not to eat the morning (or 6 hours before the procedure). He lifted my shirt (i still had my bra on), swabbed the places he was going to put the adhesive things that would hold the ekg wires to my body (my first roll and just below my bra) to give a good reading as I laid down on the gurney. They were sticky (obviously) but when they came off they didn't hurt like...oh say duct tape. So between the banter he's telling me about the process. I get my blood pressure taken (which was high for me but not high). So here's the deal, after you're all wired up they put a belt (this belt fits don't worry about it not fitting) on you so that the wires and such don't pull off when you're walking. The blood pressure cuff stays on pretty much throughout and they periodically test your blood pressure throughout. They did not use the automatic one, I'm pleased w/ this because I honestly never have a good reading from those things. It's either really high or no blood pressure at all. So you get off the gurney and on the treadmill, mine didn't have sides, it had a bar you have to hang on to. The overall program is that it steps up both the incline and the speed until your heart reaches it's target rate. In my case, I'm 30 and it's 180 i think (don't quote me). You get on, the treadmill goes immediately to 10% incline and 1.7mph. I think every 2 minutes or so it raises the speed and I think the incline. This isn't some slight increase in speed It goes from 1.7 to 3.2 to 3.7 to 4.2, if your tech is paying attention he might just warn you which helps tremendously, I ended up at a 14% incline. The test goes on as long as you feel you can tolerate or reach the heart rate they want you to reach. The tech said usually people last between 5-8 minutes. I'm not sure if he was saying that to make me feel better but I did make it to 8 minutes. I told him straight out that I can walk up but not fast. The cardiologist came in when I was about to start the test and watch my ekg. He blabbed about his sons gym class and after I got to 3.2 i was not sharing in any conversation because I was huffing and puffing. It's fine though I think the atmosphere left me feeling like i wasn't being watched to fail and "look at the fat girl try to move...." Overall it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought. I was worn out but the doctor said he felt that I could probably have gone on longer. I didn't argue it but I seriously, I couldn't have done 4.2 mph, that's closer to running. It's just so uncomfortable to try moving my body that fast. The doctor said he felt I was very healthy and because I've been walking 3 days a week it has helped me keep my heart healthy. All done. Within 30 minutes I was out the door and on my way.

depends a lot on your starting weight. those of us w/ higher starting weights tend to lose weight quicker, but then we have further to go.

i'm pre-op. i'm picking the vsg because it's less invasive than the gastric bypass, not a fan of rerouting intestines...seems unnecessary if you can get a similar effect w/ vsg, leave more of your stomach and still be able to take pills like a normal person. vsg does not have the same problem the bypass does with malabsorption of nutrients. lapbands, despite being sold as a permanent weightloss solution are not actually permanent. just a search w/ 'revision' on this forum can show you the numbers of problems people have had. also i dont like having to come back over and over and over for fills and unfills. i also fear getting things stuck. for me its vsg or nothing.

I tried them when I did the 17 day diet. there were 2 kinds of pastas. one was in the tofu/asian section and the other was in the gluten free section of the grocery store. Fair warning on both that I tried. While they taste fine after you rinse and cook them, the smell leaves OH SO MUCH to be desired. I cant' really name the smell but i'd like to say it was almost fishy? Once they're cooked and rinsed it's fine. but i didn't forget the smell. Still you can eat the whole back for like 80 calories.

Nope, don't have a date, my 6th visit was on the 15th and my letter of necessity is supposed to be in the mail. I'm hoping for a December date but more likely will be in January. Mildly disappointed w/ that since i've got limited pto. Staying w/in my calorie allowance is so hard, it's one of the primary reasons I'm getting this done. Even when i'm eating healthy, i have real problems w/ quantity. do you have a date yet?

Oh boy do I have bad heartburn today...woooo. I have no one but myself to blame. I got bored and made brownies, yep I knew better and I did it anyway....like almost the whole pan of brownies, in about 13 hours. I'm not thrilled w/ myself but I'm not a wreck over it. I think it just frustrates me is all. I make pretty good choices during the week but my tendency on weekends is not so hot. They weren't that good either. Anyway onward and downward.

You know. I can understand just about everything you've said, I've said them to myself. I've also said that I can lose weight on my own and keep it off...that was a couple years ago and no I haven't. You wanted this a month ago, you wanted this 3 months ago, you knew this crappy 2 week pre-op was coming and all the other sacrifices that come with surgery. What makes these last 2 weeks different from the last 6 months? I'm not trying to change your mind or anything but the current situation sucks and its going to suck after the surgery but it will get better, loads of people on this forum are a testament to that. Like the other posters i respect and understand your decision because no one but you can go through this. If you're not ready then you're just not and that's ok, I'm glad you're wise enough to know it and to hit the brakes. I wish you the best either way

i'm preop...no i seriously would not have done this post op. I've either been very good or very bad, just wholely inconsistent w/ my diet, it's frustrating. I've been screwing around w/ the same 5lbs for 3 months. i have a really bad week, like 2500+ calories then 3 weeks of coming off that and trying to be good. Some days i'm just so tired of being good and then i have a little bit and a little bit more and a little bit more and then the pan was gone. it was a single batch of betty crocker fudgy brownies. like 3/4 of a cup of oil in those suckers...wtf was i thinking.

Did you feel like you needed all 4 weeks or do you think you could have gone back? I ask because I've only got a couple weeks off for my own surgery. I've heard other people are ok but others are completely wiped out.

You sure it's not the gastric bypass you're thinking of?

Same here. It's less w/ the isopure but after googling it, it's looking to me like it's a byproduct of the Protein. Mostly it's just very uncomfortable throughout the day. My nut said that i really needed to pick a shake i more than was just ok w/....right...all the ones I liked, even the muscle milk, she nixed... I"m also preop, i did my last appointment for my requirement last week. They're submitting my papers and we'll see about setting a date soon. I was really hoping for end of year but it will most likely be the beginning of the next.

I'm currently emptying an Isopure tub, its eh, 50g Protein, 220 calories, 1g fat and i want to say 3g sugar? I could be wrong. You can half that and still be just fine. the equivalent 2 scoops of Muscle Milk light is, maybe 200 calories, 25g of protein and 2g sugar and 6g fat. I enjoyed the nectar chocolate as well, I might have to price check that since Isopure is $45 on sale for 3lbs

I've been experimenting w/ shakes as well. first off, your tastes may change after surgery so don't go stocking up on anything until trying them after surgery. second, my own personal experience, I tried shakes w/ 10-15g of Protein per serving...these tasted good but it did not keep cravings away or give me a sense of fullness for any substantial length of time. The 25g Protein Shakes are less tasty but gave me a greater sense of fullness. A side note, the tasty ones also did that tyrant business to me about 2 hours after I drank them, my guts were a freakin orchestra for the rest of the day.

As i wrote it, I was coming to the decision that tax season wasn't going to happen for me. I'm looking at other avenues now. AARP offers free tax returns for low income and retirees. I volunteered there before and really enjoyed it. I might do that again since it really doesn't require anything like the effort of a part time job. I'm feeling better about my choices. I'm going to be fine. It's funny how after these appointments I go a little to pieces every time, just to have to remind myself that I'm fine and I need to move on.

Fair warning: This is a long backstory type vent. As the title explains, they'll be submitting this week to my insurance and eventually set me up with a date they think will be in January. I've lost about 34lbs in the pre-op during the visits. They coo and praise what I've accomplished. And I'm just not feeling it. I think it's because, oddly, weight-loss pre-op was not the goal, getting stuff done for the surgery was, this is insane, I know. I also look at it like it's verification that I can't really do this by myself. I mean if I lost say 50 lbs a year it would take me another 3 solid years to get all the weight I need off...barring any falling off the wagon...you know because that never happens.... I've got a bit going on in my life and it just feels like now I'm at the crossroads. I'm working full time, I've just come up on a year working for this company but I've only been hired as a permanent employee since April and I haven't taken a day off since. I'm also going to post graduate classes so I can sit for the CPA----note to self: get the freakin application form----. And I was going do some tax prep stuff for a seasonal place, just so I could keep up with tax updates, make a little extra money and get my family's taxes done. Ok.. now add vsg at some point in January and you can now see the problem of having too much to do in the space and time I have. Additionally I've only got 2 weeks of pto which will not actually be 2 weeks of pto because the pre-op classes and meetings are going to take the better part of a morning so...bye bye 8 hours of pto just in prep for this. I'm thinking the tax prep thing is going to have to go. And that about where I'm at the point of feeling the stress start to come into the back of my neck. It's just all getting to be a bit much. I still desperately want the surgery. Its so important to me not to go through another year carrying a full grown person w/ me wherever I go. I dont think this forum is a place I need to explain the reasons or defend myself. But outside this place I feel extraordinarily defensive about the desire to have the surgery. My family is either in the dark or not supportive. I live at home w/ my parents right now because the job I have doesn't pay enough to be out on my own but the insurance covers the surgery. This is why I felt conditions were right for the surgery. My dad has no idea, he had a stroke 7 years ago, he's mostly fine but his personality did a 180 degree change and he's no longer the parent that I can talk to but rather the parent that I try to avoid dealing with altogether. Long story short, he's a liar and he constantly needs someone to stroke the ego, the way a 5 year old shows youhow nice he made the bed. My mom knows I'm doing this but thinks it's drastic, thinks it not the right choice and why can't I just keep going to the nutritionist since I've already lost weight that way? When we talk about it she gets quiet because she doesn't like it. This wouldn't bother me if I didn't need her for my recovery. And if god forbid something goes wrong my mom is exactly the type that gives you the told you so look and lecture. Right... I can totally see me in agony w/ picc lines and leak tests her just looking at me like...see what did i tell you.... Why can't I just be happy that I've done everything to finally get the letter sent? I just have a lot on my mind. I have a lot of decisions to make and it feels like I'm going to have to risk something.

Yes they have a monthly thing going at the hospital, I've just got to get myself there is all. Thanks for well wishes

well i'm not a coffee/latte drinker but i remember a post from someone else who liked them. just Google drink click they do a bunch of coffee/espresso/latte mixes. you might try those if you really need to get a fix.

What New_Hope said is right, the calories aren't the issue for the first couple months. First thing my nut said was no drinking while eating, half hour before or hour after. Drink 64oz a day, and also make sure you're getting your protein in first. The biggest issue going forward is going to be what you choose to put in your mouth. Today it may be that you need a lot of it to feel satisfied or full but the important part is to start choosing healthy foods. The surgery will help a ton w/ quantity, it won't necessarily force you to make better choices about what you eat. This I'm sure is an issue for all of us who use the forum. Good luck

i'm still pre-op...i'm struggling w/ staying in the 1500-1600 range that my nut wants me it...i'm usually somewhere on 1800 on my moderate days and when i fell of the wagon over labor day...well....yeah off the freaking charts. I'm back on track but seeing these posts, i can't help but be incredulous about living off of 1000 calories, let lone 600...it makes my brain boggle.

support is great, but not a requirement for success. you can't know what's on the other end of the surgery. but for whatever time you have between now and your surgery, coming to terms w/ your decision, doing what's best for you given your circumstances is the most important thing. You're not doing this for anyone else and you don't owe anyone an explanation to prove its something you deserve to have. I say this because I see a few of these posts and they always sound like we're trying to prove something to somebody. I went through the same thing, until I accepted that no one can really understand the position i'm in or make me reach my goals, this is all me. Get ok w/ yourself...if the rest follows that's great. But don't pin your state of mind on anyone else. This is your life, your circumstances, your decision, no one has the right to circumvent those things. Best of luck on reaching your goals.