HeyBigMan

I was kinda wondering what I was doing wrong too but I have just the opposite problem. Tomorrow will be four weeks since my surgery. In the first two weeks post-op I lost 24lbs. Over the last couple of weeks I've lost only 2lbs. I haven't found anything that disagrees with me (except peanut butter, which just felt like a brick sitting there) and I seem to be able to comfortably handle more than two ounces at a time. For example, I'm eating chicken salad right now, probably just had four ounces and I'm feeling full. I think I just don't know when I'm full sometimes though until it's uncomfortable. I haven't had anything way off the diet plan except a few whole wheat crackers with tuna salad and a bit of egg noodles in a tuna casserole. I'm hoping once I start getting my activity level up a bit I'll start losing faster again; I'm 63lbs down from my highest pre-op.

Hi guys, I've noticed something that bothers me a little. I've seen a number of posts from people saying their post-op diet plans are unclear; this appears to be more common among people who paid out of pocket to be sleeved in Mexico or other locations outside the US. As I understand it, they don't necessarily get the benefit of pre- and post-op counseling, nutritionist visits, etc. and are pretty much left to research things on their own. Nobody should be left to fend for themselves after a surgery like this. This site does a great job of providing support and information based on others' experiences to help fill the gaps, but I figured it couldn't hurt to have something a bit more concrete for those who need/want it. So... I decided to help what little bit I could. Several days ago I e-mailed my nutritionist to ask for a copy of the document I received at my only required visit. I'm posting that document here for those of you who might be interested in information straight from a nutritionist on how to eat after being sleeved. I've removed her contact information so she doesn't get bombarded in case this becomes popular. Of course, a bit of Googling for post-op diets for vertical sleeve gastrectomy patients will do the trick as well if you want to see the variety of recommendations that are out there. I suppose I should add... I'm not a doctor, nurse, nutritionist, or anything of the sort; just a patient like you. In my own research, post-op diet plans are all over the board, varying greatly from one doctor or facility to the next. My care providers seem to take a little more conservative approach than some others, and this information has worked pretty well for me so far. I hope it will for you too, but check with a qualified professional if you're unsure. If anything conflicts what with your care providers have told you, consider them to be the authority here and follow their advice. Hope this helps! Edit: so naturally I posted this to the wrong forum. Any mod wanna move it to the pre- and post-op diet forum? Nutrition for Bariatric Surgery.pdf

Your post got me to thinking, so... I posted the information I was given by my nutritionist. I started a new topic on it in case it benefits others. Take a look here and grab the attachment if you're interested: http://www.verticalsleevetalk.com/topic/58842-pre-and-post-op-nutrition-plans-see-attached/

I was sleeved on 10/24 and just got to where I can sleep for a bit on my side for the last few nights. It's not quite the same as what I really want to do (I think I do some weird twist thing, I'm really flexible) so it's not as comfortable but at least I'm not flat on my back. If I go too far over I feel my incisions pull a little, so I back off. Whatever you do, be careful; the last thing you need is to injure yourself. For example, I'm a little sore right now because I was bent over weird trying to plug something into the back of my computer at work. It kinda feels like I got punched. So now I'm sitting here at my desk leaving everything alone. lol

I actually ended up in the ER four days before my surgery because of sharp stabbing pains in my lower right abdomen. They were just above the pubic area. The doc there ordered a CT scan, which came back normal. It also showed I didn't have kidney stones, which was my initial thought since I hadn't been getting enough Water. Their best guess was that it was an intestinal spasm related to the Optifast 800 pre-op diet I was on. When it didn't hurt, the area was fine. I could press on it as hard as I wanted, jump up and down, whatever. But when it struck... I was doubled over. Weirdly, it started occurring more after I would pee, stand up or lean forward. It was probably an 8 on the pain scale for me. My surgeon saw no reason to delay my procedure, so away we went. I experienced it a couple more times while in the hospital, but it was way more mild. I had it once or twice again after I got home, less painful each time. It's gone completely now but while it was happening I was terrified. I have some strange irrational fear of appendicitis (it's like a little bomb inside you that can go off without notice!).

This is my first post, but I figured I'd reply since it was a concern of mine as well. I really, really did not want a tube up the junk. When I woke up, the foley catheter was in. It was stuck very securely to my inner left thigh (I still have some sticky residue two weeks later, need to get an alcohol pad on that). I was not remotely interested in seeing it (difficult at that point anyway) or touching it (infection is bad!). I have a very vague recollection of someone coming in, lifting my gown and doing an ultrasound on my bladder. At least that's what I think it was, I was still halfway out of it. I slept a bit than a doctor came by and said something like, "Two hours ago you didn't have any urine but now you do," referring to the bag. I guess they were concerned about retention, but I was just dehydrated a bit from not getting enough to drink (in my opinion anyway). The nurse and care partner came in a couple of times to do "foley care" where I think they just wiped around the urethra a bit to keep it clean. Any time they moved the bag from the bed to the IV pole and vice versa so I could get up and walk around, I felt a strange little twinge from the catheter. It's hard to explain; it wasn't pain, it wasn't discomfort, it was just weird. Finally, the next morning my nurse removed it. He first removed the saline injected in the balloon used to hold it in place, then told me to take a deep breath and then let it out when he said so. I felt him pressing down on my stuff just before he told me to breathe out; he pulled it out during that breath. He said something about it helping when the patient bears down a little. Overall, it was nothing really. Besides, I was tired, hurting a little, drugged up... I didn't give a damn who saw it, removed it, whatever to be honest. I was given six hours to pee on my own, came in just 15 minutes under. It stung just a little but wasn't bad by any means. Hope this helps!