Sleevedreamz

I have eaten out 3x since my surgery 2.5 weeks ago. I had grilled tilapia the 1st time, grilled shrimp the 2nd, and today my husband ordered a full rack of ribs and I shared with him. I was only able to eat meat from one section of the ribs and had a couple small bites of sweet potato and 1 tiny onion peel. It is amazing how quickly I get full now, but I am able to eat out. I just usually make sure we are going somewhere that will have something grilled or broiled which most places do. It's a nice little treat to get out and I always get so excited after we leave bc I know I would have normally eaten an entire meal. Plus, I have eaten over at a friends house for a party and no one noticed that I ate less than normal. We had chili and I just made a bowl like I normally would and ate and talked and not a single person looked at me weird or asked and my friends are very outspoken so had anyone noticed they would have definitely said something. Good luck! You will be fine and things gradually get better with time.

So sick of trying to find a cute and sexy halloween costume every year that will actually fit me and not make me look ridiculous. I find so many ADORABLE costumes in the regular sizes and every year I want to cry. Really hoping next year I'll finally get to choose from the lot and not be stuck on the plus size page contemplating what to buy for our annual costume party. I hate being limited to my choices (and I feel the same about clothes)! Who's with me?

Thank you so much, but I have a bunch also. I usually splurge at Halloween on my costume so although it is a pain finding ones I love, I always do. Just can't wait until they are smaller! I have already ordered mine this year which is what sparked this post. I usually end up spending around $150 so I bet it'll be cheaper when I can shop anywhere! You are so sweet to offer though. Enjoy your weekend.

15 days post op and although I got off to a slow start in my healing process bc of the reaction I had to anesthesia, I have been pushing my own limits every day to try to feel better and help the swelling go down, etc. I have been feeling pretty weak so getting started in the mornings has been tough. Today, I finally dragged myself out of bed and decided to sweep and mop my hardwoods. We have about 2800 sq ft of hardwoods so I didn't know if I would make it, but it really needed to be done. Then my sister brought my niece and nephew over and I held my nephew (about 12lbs) for like 5 mins and my abdomen was hurting pretty bad. After that my largest incision started to leak (small amounts of Fluid and blood on my shirt) and I have been in pain ever since. I'm so mad and frustrated bc I feel like this thing is never going to heal. The muscle underneath feels all sore again and everytime I move I feel like I'm being stabbed from the incision pain. Has anyone else had problems with this or is this another one of those moments where I'm the 1%??? :/

I can't believe that's still happening at 4 weeks. I know we had major surgery, but when they said I could go back to work in 6 weeks I just assumed by 4 I'd probably be back to normal. I've never had any type of surgery before so I'm just shocked at how much it takes out of you. I am sorry you also hurt yourself and hope you are feeling better soon. All of this sitting around and doing nothing is for the birds. I can't stand it. lol

I guess I hadn't really thought of it this way. I see all of these posts about people running around shopping 2 days after surgery and I couldn't even move two days out so I felt like I was being lazy. Clearly, my body decided to put me in my place. I HAVE to go back to work in 4 more weeks and I must be able to lift patients (sometimes very heavy ones) so I am praying that I am healed by then. I will not be doing anymore house work like that or picking up my sweet nephew again for a while. My doctor's office called me back and said maybe I just pulled and agitaed the muscle. I am definitely hoping it is that verses popping my stiches or worse. Still feeling VERY bad today and just sitting around taking it easy. Hope everyone else is doing well! Thanks for the responses. I freaked myself out a little.

I can't go back to work for 6 weeks so I'm super jealous of everyone getting out of the house. I am still exhausted and in pain though which is really starting to get to me. I forced myself out of the house today and went and walked around Walmart for about an hour. Not only is my husband at work during the day, but he suddenly started working OT this week so he hasn't been getting home until around 8 or 9 so I am going insane. At least when he is here I don't feel so bored and lonely. Now that I've gone to soft foods I am not able to eat the same 4oz I was able to take in on pureed. Also, never seem hungry so I am struggling to get my Protein in. That's all I eat when I sit down; some sort of meat and after about 3-4 bites I'm done. Anyways, love reading everyone's posts. Take care!

Lucky you! I am envious. I too have always drank water like a mad person, but 4 days out of the hospital I broke out like crazy and it is still happening. I am even broken out on my chest which is insane to me and driving me a little batty. I am hoping my body is just purging since I'm newly sleeved and this will stop soon. I told my hubby that I can't believe it is happening with as much water as I drink on a regular basis, but here I am.

It makes me sad to see that some spouses are not being supportive. That is a big problem bc of you can't lean on and look to the person you married for support where can you? When I got married I weighed 115lbs and although I have gained a ton of weight he has always been sweet and never made me feel bad about it. He knows how much it bothers me to have gained as I've never been overweight before so he was totally on board (after some initial concern as to whether it was safe) and he has done EVERYTHING to make this as easy on me as possible. He even refused to eat in front of me while I was on liquid & puréed bc he said he didn't want to make me feel bad. I say all of this to say that the spouses who are being anything less than supportive should be ashamed of themselves! We have taken a huge step to make ourselves healthy and it is so unacceptable for the one person in the world we have CHOSEN to spend our lives with to make us feel bad. I am so sorry for those of you dealing with this. If it were me, I would definitely tell them what they are doing and let them know if they can't be supportive then they shouldn't probably be holding the position in my life that they are. Hope things improve. And, as for friends, I didn't tell anyone else besides my mother. In the past I have not discussed my medical procedures, etc with my friends so I did not this time either. To me it is no different and my weight (big or small) shouldn't make a difference and if it does then good riddance.

If you want to use something to get you by, there is a Neutrogena product at Walmart that I bought to help with the oiliness after surgery called "Oil Free Acne Wash" -Pink grapefruit foaming scrub- I love it bc it exfoliates and keeps the oil content down on my face (which I've experienced a ton of since surgery). It also smells really nice and fresh so I have been pleased. My face hasn't cleared up completely, but I can tell a notable difference since I got it. The breakouts have been driving me crazy. Good luck!

That is awesome! Congrats on your weightloss. You look amazing!

Stripes!

My experience was that it doesn't give the water time to settle and I ended up throwing up. I think it has to have time to go through the stomach and continue on its way and if you guzzle it backs up into the stomach and then you end up getting sick. Someone else may have a more medically logical answer, but this is my translation in plain terms.

I am already sick of puréed foods. I know lots of people have to do a full liquid diet forever so I feel bad even complaining bc I know I have it good, but I am already sick of mushy stuff! I'm trying to be creative to keep things from being bland. I have made lowfat potato/veggie Soup and lowfat broccoli cheese soup and have been alternating between those and cottage cheese. I think I'm going to have my husband make low fat white chicken chili for tomorrow. What is every one else eating during their puréed stage? I get full after about 2-3 oz so I'm struggling to get my Protein and Water in. I have to find an unflavored Protein powder that I can add to my Soups, etc. What is everyone else using? Rach

This is happening to me too. I am one week post-op. I am freaking out bc I do not want to deal with this.

Mine is doing this too. They are tiny little bumps and are all over the sides of my face, my neck, chest, and tops of my arms. I am freaking out bc I do not want to deal with this long term.

I am doing pretty well. Got off to a rough start, but after I recovered from the reaction I had to the anesthesia things have improved. I have already been cleared to eat soft foods (fish, chicken, moist meats, veggies, etc.) and have been doing that since yesterday. I'm down 13 lbs since surgery and am super happy about that. As of yesterday, I started breaking out with these tiny bumps on my face, neck, chest, and tops of my arms (acne) that I've never had before. I take really good care of my skin so that is really frustrating for me. I don't know if it is my skin purging or what, but I am really hoping this is not a permanent side effect. I have gotten out the last few days, but I am more tired than I would normally be. I'm a bubbly busy body so it's hard to wear down so quickly when that's not what I'm used to. Hopefully that will improve as well. Glad to hear how everyone is doing and hope to hear more from everyone.

I didn't realize how different surgeons were until I joined this board. My surgeon starts pureed on day 2 and so far I've been fine. Hopefully I continue to be. I started soft foods yesterday (day 7). He moves his patients through pretty quickly. I can't eat very much of whole soft foods, but it is much better getting to chew. I could do 4oz of pureed and can only handle about 2 oz of anything like chicken or fish so far. I'm sure it'll get better, but for now that is about it.

Good luck!

My NUT said that during the puréed and soft food stage I can eat around every 3 hours bc I won't get enough protein to keep me full to only do 3 meals a day. Obviously everyone is different, but maybe you should ask them if this rule applies to you to. Good luck!

Had my 1 week post-op appt today and aside from getting to start soft foods which made me super happy I have also lost 12lbs! Some days this doesn't even seem real.

So, I had my surgery yesterday morning at 7:30. The morning went by fine and I was less nervous than I ever anticipated. As a matter of fact, I am normally a basket case for "scary events", but I was uncharacteristically calm. After surgery was a different feeling all together. I remember waking up crying and feeling very sore and out of it. I could hear them saying I was harder to wake up than most, but luckily I did wake up. The past 24 hours have been hell for me. Aside from the pain in my tummy (and especially the largest incision site) I have had some adverse reactions, they believe to the anestheisa. My entire body aches and I can't move from the pain. It feels like someone has taken a baseball bat to my entire body and beaten me within an inch of my life. So, I am pretty miserable. They are doing blood work now bc they think I had a reaction to the paralytic they gave me. My doctor said the surgery itself went beautifully and that this complete muscle pain in my body I've described is brand new to him. They are having to give me blood thinners to avoid clots because I can't walk and I won't be able to go home today like everyone else. Hopefully this won't last too long bc it is hard on me. I fully expected to be up and walking around by this morning, but I haven't been able to. My poor hubby is practically dragging me to the bathroom every 2 hours bc I have been peeing like crazy, which is good I'm told. So, not sure who else had surgery yesterday or this week, but has anyone else had this happen? I am so stiff in and so much pain I can't do a single thing and it is really frustrating. Hopefully I will be better and able to go home tomorrow. Aside from the complications, I am excited I had the surgery done bc I already feel different. I had some chicken broth earlier today and felt satisfied aferwards which was amazing. Hope everyone else is having better luck than me!