TES

You definitely can't take these pre-op, and my doctor limits for a couple of months after surgery. Then he allows us to take NSAIDs. I also take omeprazole as a gastric-protective agent and will probably continue with it just to be safe. Every doctor is different, but mine is really good about following the current literature and making recommendations based on evidence-based medicine specific to VSG (rather than blanket recs for all bariatric surgery patients). I've checked a few things he has said on Medline/PubMed, and it's all stood up. I respect other doctors' opinions too--just saying that's one of the reasons I picked my surgeon.

>>I was sleeved Feb 20 I'm on full liquid diet. I made a yummy butternut squash soup put some tofu, chicken, cilantro, chicken broth, salt, pepped, when cooked put it in blender to liquify add more chicken broth and its a yummy liquid butternut squash soup with protein chicken and tofu. I have been thinking of adding tofu to soup to boost protein. What type of tofu did you use? (silken, firm, etc.). Did it blenderize nicely? thanks!

does Premier come in unflavored?

sorry to hear this but what an awesome tool. Bread aversion in the end is a good thing! I have read that it may be easier to tolerate well-toasted bread vs fresh bread, but not sure if you want to go there. Your chili will be tastier and better for you when you feel better!

I started on purees today (was thin purees for the past few days, and full liquid before that). Should I wait until I am on soft foods to start taking (Celebrate brand) caramel Calcium chews? I am 18 days post-op and the scale finally moved after about 9 or 10 days of not moving! I just stuck to my guns with Protein, Water, and walking. Also, I have been trying to get a little more sleep (even if I need to take something to help me sleep). I think that sleep/rest might be underrated as the 4th leg of the "ottoman" in helping the weight come off. Down 2 more lbs. What I love about the sleeve is that you don't have the option (or at least less of one) to go off plan when the scale isn't moving...it is such a great tool. I know that consistency over time is what will help us be successful. I am now at a weight that I was at for a long time ("set point" weight) previously, so hopefully I can keep things going....

I like Designer Whey from Vitamin Shoppe. Unjury is good too.

That's a great new mind set--good for you! :-)

IHOP charges 15.99 for an omelet? that seems like a lot! I agree with you--if you asked for the omelet a la carte, you would think that would come with a price reduction. Next time, could you eat a bit of your husband's omelet if he offers one, or order off of the kids' menu? At least you found something that worked well for you. And think, in the past, you probably would have happily paid to not gain and even lose weight!

Tekara, thanks so much for sharing this. Your weight loss is awesome--congrats! My RD recommended something similar to this when I had a pre-op stall, and it seemed to work. How long do you go without seeing a weight loss before you do the higher calorie/carb day? Could you give an example of your typical daily intake and then a carb/calorie day? I would really appreciate it. Also, how often/how much do you exercise on average? thank you so much!

In looking at this some more--that's a good protein count, but 100 g is like 3.5 ounces, which is more than I could eat, and it's over 300 calories and 30 g of fat for that serving amount. So if you cut it down to 1 or 2 ounces, the protein amount would change accordingly. Might work for me later on but right now I think I'm better off sticking with lower fat/higher protein options like cottage or ricotta cheese or cheese sticks. I saw there is a such thing as lite halloumi, which might be worth looking into. It would be a nice change of pace.

I haven't had it in a few years, but yes, it totally reminds me of something like a firm tofu.

Will your new insurance at the new job cover VSG at the same level that your current insurance does? (and with the same type of requirements--eg, is there a 6-month pre-op weight loss period, etc.). I would definitely take that into consideration. I thought I might be starting a new job when I was close to insurance approval and asked the surgeon's office if they could put in an expedited approval request. They did, and I was approved in one day (!). (My BMI is a lot higher than yours; I didn't have any major comorbidities.) Then I asked for the soonest possible surgery date and I received one about a month out; I had a scheduling conflict and asked to reschedule the surgery--and they were able to get me in the day after (!) I asked bc of someone else's surgery moving. It was weird only having one day to prepare but in a way it was great not having the anticipation and to be on the other side of it once my original surgery date came up. Anyhow, I'm glad that I went ahead and did it. I didn't end up getting the job for which I was a finalist! But I thought it would have been difficult to start a new job, take time off right away, and have to negotiate new insurance and maybe go thru the approval process all over again. As others have said, it's a personal decision. I do know a lot of people do this and say they wish they had done it sooner. I would give yourself a good 2 weeks before you go back to an office job, and take it easy for a week or two after that. You could have "bathroom issues" for at least a week after, though working at home would help with that. I was working from home within a few days of surgery but my stamina wasn't great until I transitioned from full liquids to thin purees on day 15 post-op. Your mileage may vary. Congratulations on your new job and on your decision to get VSG--I'm sure that you will find an answer that is right for you!

Halloumi is good when it's grilled with a little with lemon juice on top (opa!). I didn't think about it in the context of VSG. I'm going to pick some up!

That is wonderful about the insulin! I'm not diabetic, but I am a medical writer/editor, and I have written articles on studies that have found this very phenomenon. It's theorized that some of this effect is based on changed beta cell activity after surgery. It will only get better as you continue to lose weight. What a great thing you are doing for your long-term health, given the increased health risks that come with type 2 diabetes. Congratulations!

How is everyone's weight loss going? I lost 18 lbs of fluid the first few days (from IV in the hospital), then 10 more pounds by 10 days out. Now, I'm 16 days out and the scale hasn't moved in 6 days. I'm still happy with my net weight loss but wonder what else I could be doing. I'm eating about 400-600 calories a day, getting in all of my fluid (at least 64-72 oz of water plus soup, tea and other fluid), walking about 20-30 minutes/day (still a little weak but feeling so much better on thin purees than full liquid), and making sure I get at least 60 g of protein. I know you shouldn't compare yourself to others, but when I see people losing 30 or more pounds in the same time frame, it makes me wonder what this journey will be like for me. I'm hypothyroid secondary to pituitary issues, but I started at a higher BMI so thought for at least the first couple of months, I would see pretty good weight loss. Planning to up my exercise starting this weekend. I was told I can't do water aerobics for 6 weeks but will start pool walking in addition to regular walking. Then adding the exercise bike and light strength training at 6 weeks.

I would ask your surgeon--you definitely don't want to pull out your stiches. Maybe a abdominal binder would give you some added support?

My surgeon, and I'm assuming others, also gives you something during surgery to dry the secretions in your digestive system. So that adds to the dryness too. I couldn't drink until I passed the dye test the afternoon after my surgery (not even ice chips), so the chapstick was a huge help. Also, the nurses gave me the sponge glycerine sticks too. I also brought facial wipes (the kind you use to remove makeup) and kept them on my bedside table. They were refreshing when my mouth was so dry and skin a bit itchy from the narcotics and incisions. I brought body wipes too, which were nice for the 2 days before I took a shower. And deodorant.

My surgeon allows NSAIDs about 90 days after surgery, which is one of the reasons I chose VSG over RNY (he prefers you not take NSAIDs after RNY, but if you really have to, he has you take a PPI or other gastric protective agent). I am going to try to limit how often I take NSAIDs even after this time period, and to be safe, I'll probably still take with a gastric protective drug that my surgeon recommends. Hopefully the weight loss will help with some of my joint aches that cause me to take the NSAIDs. I have been doing fine with liquid Tylenol when needed for now. As others have said, your surgeon can let you know his/her preference. I think it's great you were switched from RNY to the sleeve. There are so many reasons I'm glad that's what I chose.

Not that I'm advocating this, but I used to buy "hullless" popcorn for my grandma, and she really enjoyed it. It comes in a bag with other not-good-for-us snacks. If someone is going to indulge and you're worried about the popcorn seeds and your sleeve, this might be a better option.

I was thinking the same thing (17 days postop), and then yesterday I had some pureed lentil Soup (a thick type) with a Laughing Cow wedge mixed in and I was like "whoa"! my stomach definitely let me know when I better not take one more bite. I had about 2.5 ounces and felt like I had just pushed away from the Thanksgiving dinner table. I love my sleeve! :wub:

Thanks so much, Jen and JP--very helpful feedback. This morning I had about 3 black specks instead of a bunch of them, so hopefully they are dissipating. I did get dehydrated on Wednesday while I was out running errands (seems to happen really quickly these days), so I wonder if that had something to do with it. Hopefully there won't be any bigger ones that get stuck. Both my husband and mom have had kidney stones and I felt so awful for both of them.

So I don't want to get in the trap of thinking that every health symptom is related to my VSG 2 weeks ago, nor do I want to panic about anything, but tonight I urinated, and there were black specks in my pee, almost like someone shook a shaker of pepper over the toilet bowl. I feel completely fine and my urine was a nice pale yellow. I googled this and it sounds like they could be very small kidney stones? My mom just had kidney stones removed a few months ago so I may have a genetic predisposition. I am definitely calling my doctor in the morning. Hopefully I'll be fine tonight, but if I have any back pain or other symptoms, I'll definitely go to the ER (hoping that doesn't happen). I did start Ursodiol today to prevent gallstones, but I can't imagine that is related? Has anyone else ever experienced this before or after VSG? VSG doesn't cause a greater risk of kidney stones, does it? Thank you for any insights that you might have!

Can you have some low-carb veggies, so you get your fix without the "bad" carbs? Or even something like half a baked sweet potato?

How long after surgery did you feel "normal"? I told the PA at my surgeon's office during my 2-week post-op appt that I felt pretty much back to normal--and she started laughing (LOL). She said I just had a major surgery and the soonest I would really be back to normal is 6 weeks. I do notice that I get fatigued more quickly but I do feel that I'm about 80 to 85 percent normal if I reconsider? I would consider normal feeling up to an active vacation where you can walk around all day and not run out of steam--etc.

I also feel a lot better since I started thin purees. I felt pretty punky on just full liquids (my doctor doesn't allow yogurt, refried beans, or anything like that while on liquids).