VSG AJH

VSG on 12/03/13. I'm down 60 pounds total, 43.7 of those pounds since surgery. Started my surgery process in a tight 26 and 2X/3X, now I comfortably fit in a 14/16 and size L. Same size L shirt at 5 weeks post-op vs. 10 weeks post-op:

I'm vsg4me on Instagram. Just 11 weeks out, so not loads of before/afters, but I'm 60.4 pounds down today, so I put a new one up.

LOVE this post, LL! So fun and encouraging!

I agree with this suggestion for quick meals. Don't overlook the deli section of your grocery store also. You can find grilled chicken, grilled fajita meat, nitrite-free ham and turkey, cheese cubes, etc. Denser, more-filling things not packed with carbs and calories. I buy lots of packs of the fajita meat, portion it out, and freeze the portion in freezer bags. It can be stored that way for a good while, and it's lunch bag ready.

You should look on the Vets threads. A bit of regain seems totally normal, AND totally changeable. There are lots of vets successfully relosing their regains through the 5:2 diet and other means. Please don't be discouraged! You're still a success!

My little guy was five months old when I had surgery, and he was nursing exclusively at that time. To prepare for surgery, I pumped a lot in advance, and I had Dad feed him from a bottle a couple of times in the three months leading up to surgery just to be sure he could/would. He didn't love it, but I knew he could do it. We also had empty syringes on hand from a prior little one who needed supplemental feeding during our nursing relationship, so worst case scenario, I knew Dad could pull those out and dribble milk into his mouth. I also purchased a can of organic formula and put it in the pantry just in case my stay in the hospital was longer than anticipated. My little guy came with me to the hospital, and I nursed him in the car before checking in for my surgery. I nursed him, checked in at 10:00 A.M., had surgery at noon, and was ready to go be dismissed by 8:00 A.M. the next day (though I did wait to leave until a little after noon so Hubs could put our other small ones down for a nap before coming to bring me home). Since your surgeon is supportive of you nursing post-op, I do not think it entirely unreasonable for you to have your little one brought up to the hospital once you're on the floor and settled, particularly if that makes you feel more comfortable. You could have some gas pain and belly tenderness, but I used a My Brest Friend pillow (well-placed regular pillows would work) or did a side-lying position to nurse comfortably post-op. I will say for myself personally, I was pretty loopy that first day and focused just on drinking and walking. I did not nurse at the hospital, and I felt totally comfortable that my little one was being well cared for at home. By the next day, I was fine physically, and fine to care for my little one. (The lifting restriction prevented me from carrying him around, but someone could hand him to me, and I could take it from there.) As for your sleeping test, keep in mind that you will really just be away from her for one, maybe two, feedings. Practice now with a bottle or cup so you can feel at ease. My guy is eight months old now, and his eating routine looks like this: nurses at 7:00 A.M., purées at 9:00 A.M., nurses to sleep at 10:00 A.M., nurses at 1:00 P.M., nurses at 4:00 P.M., purées at 6:00 P.M., nurses between 7:00-8:00 P.M. Sleeps through the night. I would like to add more food at lunchtime, maybe a a snack in the afternoon, but he still prefers nursing and would rather I didn't. I don't recommend necessarily regulating a child's eating schedule, particularly when they're nurslings, but I do encourage you to take note of the schedule your little one has laid out. I'm big on nursing-on-demand, but a couple of children ago (we have six kids), I noticed that my kids really ate at pretty regular and predictable times each and every day. Once I became aware of each baby's habits, I was able to plan and schedule my day accordingly. Maybe if you know the precise times when your baby wants to eat, you can outline those times and feel some measure of control even when you're away.

I woke up from my sleeve surgery hungry, and I am genuinely hungry every 2-3 hours. I honestly think that's normal and healthy as (1) eating at regular intervals keeps your blood sugar stable and your metabolism healthy, and (2) we have such small capacities, we have to take in food 4-5 times per day to hit macronutrient goals. What I find works for me is to schedule mealtimes for my baby sleeve just like I schedule mealtimes for my actual babies. Just like with my children, it takes 3-4 days for my baby sleeve to stop fussing and wanting what it wants when it wants it. I eat five times a day (six if the day is very long), and I eat every three hours. I get my day started around 8:00, so I eat at 9:00, noon, 3:00, 6:00, and again at 9:00. Breakfast and Snacks are 100-150 calories each, and lunch and dinner are usually between 200-300 calories. I range between 850-1000 calories per day, and 85-100g Protein. I'm eleven weeks out, almost 60 pounds down, and I've not technically stalled once. (I did just come out of a WL delay of about one week, but that's not technically a stall, and I busted out of it with a large loss.)

I'm eleven weeks post-op and still nursing my guy. He doesn't drink juice or Water, anf though he's taking purées twice a day now, he's still nursing several times a day. Still having good let down, and when we've been separated for several hours since surgery, I become engorged and begin to leak. All of that to say, I am having ZERO supply issues, and I honestly believe my milk supply is far better than I've had in my three prior nursing relationships. I believe it's because I'm so focused on water/nutrient/vitamin intake, and I think even with a smaller intake, I'm much more well-nourished now than I've ever been. I had Demerol injections in the hospital post-op, and I came home on liquid Vicodin, which I didn't need to take as often as prescribed. I had the same medications in the hospital when i had my c-section, so no concerns there. At four days post-op, I switched to regular ol' OTC liquid Tylenol, and I was fine. Verify with your doctor or hospital nurse that whatever you're being prescribed is safe for nursing moms, and you'll be fine.

My starting weight for this challenge is 211.0. I'm still in the stall that I ended the Valentine's Day challenge in, but despite that, and despite the short length of this challenge, in going to set my goal at 199.0. Because of the stall, I know that might be a little ambitious, but I'm hoping to break this stall and have a banner loss. Fingers crossed!!

Hey Dan -- I know you keep saying you'll get back to cardio when your foot is healed. Bum wondering if you've found some good cardio to do while your foot is on the mend? I'm in double walking casts and have been since about four weeks before my sleeve, so 14 weeks now. I essentially have some stress fractures and dissolving bone. I, like you, can't do anything high impact, but I've been doing some walking and bike riding in my boots. Thinking of joining a gym with a pool just to add that to the mix, and I saw a video of cardio exercises done from a chair (TTapp), but I'm looking for other stuff to do. Any tips?

Bea -- Thanks again for organizing this challenge! I sure didn't realize just how challenging it would be. Looking forward to the next one! I'm at 211.0 today, so down only 0.6 pounds for the week and 1.0 pounds away from reaching my overall goal. I also think I might be in the beginning of my very first stall as I've been up and down the same 0.6 pounds all week despite careful intake observation and exercise. Boo. I'm not too discouraged, though, because I've lost almost 15 pounds during this challenge, and I'm 10 weeks out without having ever stalled before. Not too bad. Best of luck, everyone!

Is your husband saying you're not considering your children because you're planning to have the surgery, it because you're torn? I have six kids - ages 13, 11, 4, 2, 2, and 7 months (was 5 months old when I had surgery). I'm two months out and down 56 pounds. Sure, I was concerned I'd have complications that would steal me away from my children, but obesity comes with complications that will steal me away from my children. As I'd unsuccessfully tried everything to lose weight on my own and keep it off, I was guaranteed the complications from obesity. At least now I have a tool to hopefully help me avoid those. Already, I can do so much more to care for and keep up with my crazy bunch. Even my husband commented on this last night as I rocked our little one to sleep, then just stood straight up from a seated position on our deep couch (without struggling or scooting) with him in my arms to carry to bed. I attribute that to the 56 fewer pounds, a much smaller gut, and the air squats I'm now able to do. . While it's normal and reasonable to be scared, this is a tool that can actually bless your children.

I'm in, Bea! I've enjoyed the V-Day challenge. Thanks again for organizing!

I agree. I miss their witty banter and sage advice. Not nearly the same awesomeness without them.

If you have two days clear at the end, and 10 days worth of shakes/bars, a couple packs of Premier and some high protein/low carb bars will be enough to get you through.

Your surgeon is crazy. It is very unlikely you'll hit goal weight in six months, and you'll see many successful sleevers still losing 12-18+ months out. This tool does work best in the first six months, but for what it's worth, my surgeon's office says to reach for 50% excess weight loss by 6 months out. You should work out for optimum health, but there are sleevers losing who don't burn 1000 calories a day. I'm losing, and I've never burned 1000 calories a day working out. You should absolutely do your best, but I wonder if your nutritionist has an opinion on calories in/calories out.

Try warm things: decaf tea, warm broth, protein soups. Sometimes temperature really matters.

If it's any consolation, I woke from surgery craving a sandwich. . Things get better when you can actually take in Proteins and denser things.

MsShuggggg -- my starting weight was 267.2, and I'm now 211.6, so 55.6 pound loss. In was sleeved on 12/03/13. I was in a tight 26 and I'm now in a 14/16. Here's a pic of the pants I wore to my surgical consult (26) behind a pair I wore this week (14).

Not necessarily. I felt very tender about a week to ten days out (though I felt amazing at post-op day 4) and it lasted through just before the three week mark. It was all around that large incision, and doc said that was where the one through-and-through stitch is. He said pain would disappear when it dissolved, and sure enough, it did. The tenderness I felt was manageable with liquid Tylenol.

I'm nursing post-op, too, and it sure can be tempting to reach for those carby quick energy foods that we've relied on for so long. I echo a couple of suggestions here that you do focus on reaching for protein. It's as easy and certainly more filling to reach for a cheese stick and a couple of slices of lunch meat as it is to reach for a bag of chips. Don't justify those carby snacks and excess calories with "eating for two," because that's just false. I have a nearly 30 pound seven month old who still relies heavily on my milk supply. I eat five times a day, and I take in 850-1000 calories per day and 85-100g protein per day per my nutritionist and baby's pediatrician, and my milk supply is fantastic. I always take all of my vitamins, and I hit my water goals every day. Per my team, these are the things that keep my milk supply where it needs to be while encourage good health and weight loss for me. Best of luck!

I felt exactly the same way. Do remember that though you feel well, you have indeed just had major abdominal surgery. Your doctor likely used a pain block to aid you on this side of the knife, so don't overdo it on accident (as I might have) and don't feel alarmed when it wears off (as I did). That said, do honestly enjoy the way you feel! I never got to a point that I felt not than muscular tenderness, and I've had no trouble taking in fluids and proteins since the very beginning. I've also had no trouble transitioning through food stages, and I've not yet hit a stall. I'm down 55 pounds and several sizes at eight weeks post-op. I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop, but so far, so good. I honestly love my sleeve!

My weight today is 211.6.

I had zero trouble taking in fluids immediately after surgery. I too felt concerned, but not struggling with Fluid intake is a blessing. I've had no trouble hitting both my Water and Protein goals from the very beginning, and as others will come along to say, the restriction really does improve as you move along to denser foods and Proteins. As for the bowel stuff, it's normal for your bowels to take a few days to start back up again after abdominal surgery. I experienced the same thing post-VSG and post C-Section a few times. I do recommend taking a stool softener for a couple of days so that when it is time to go, it's more comfortable to go.

Using the search feature, you can read all about stalls. They are very common as your body readjusts, and if you're meeting your dietary goals, you will very likely begin losing again in no time. Hang in there!