jensjoy28

4.5 weeks out... Breakfast 4.5 oz of a breakfast burrito I made that had egg, black bean, Greek yogurt, 2% shredded cheese and hot sauce on a wheat and black bean blend tortilla (Mission brand) Snack Handful of cashews and a grande skinny latte from sbux lunch 4 meatballs (1.5 oz total) with a thai peanut sauce I made dinner (planned, anyway) The no-dough "pizza" that there is a recipe for on this forum w/ reduced fat turkey pepperoni and mushrooms.

So, I walked to the little market that is at our office complex today and decided to try a new drink...Bai 5-calorie Antioxident Infusions...anyone else tried these? I guess it is sort of like a flavored tea/juice/water...Here is a review on a blog post I found online with picture of the bottle http://caitlinsconfections.wordpress.com/2012/10/24/bai-drink-review/ ...looks like they sell them on Amazon as well, and there seem to be pretty positive reviews. I looked at the ingredients and think MAYBE this is actually as 'healthful-like' as you can get while also being tasty..18 oz bottle has 10 calories...the ingredient list is filtered Water, erythritol (natural sweetener), lemon juice concentrate (I got the lemon flavor), organic coffeefruit (no, it doesn't taste like coffee), citric acid, organic stevia extract and white tea extract...the caffeine content fo the entire bottle is equiv. to 2 cups of green tea...the reviews I read included people on WWs as well as diabetic/pre-diabetic people... Looks like there are about 8 or so fruit flavors including blueberry, pomegranate, lemon, coconut and passion fruit. I will try some of the other flavors and give my input...but, so far this seems like a nice low-cal, low-glycemic, high-flavor drink

Right now, I'm only talking to myself here (and that's fine) but I figure at some point someone will stumble across these drinks as well and find this in a search...so, tried the pomegranate this morning, my favorite so far!

That is a great question for you to ask your surgeon...he knows how he closes up incisions (dermabond vs traditional sutures) and if you will have a drain. Personally, my limitation on swimming/soaking in a tub was until after the dermabond peeled off, which was about a week post-op...and a few more days for the drain incision to fully scab over.

Way to go...rock that tankini (and I say splurge on a bikini to treat yourself to ONEderland, you will look great in that, too)

Thanks for the encouragement! Workout was good...nothing crazy, 25 min of cardio and then some crunches, push-ups, planks and squats (all of which proved how far down the rabbit hole I'd gone)...but, I'm happy I went. I have 2 month-long passes to barre method classes, (which are supposedly great toning and conditioning classes that integrate interval training, isometrics, and dance conditioning and have similarly ardent supporters like Cross-Fit) that I plan to use beginning in July as I can tend to get bored with the same ol', same ol'...we shall see :-)

Lordy, if this thread gets derailed PLEASE don't let it be about this topic

I am so sorry that that is your reality. I have some friends who have a similar dynamic with a parent, and it is one of those things that those that haven't experienced it have a hard time grasping what that must be like. I agree with previous poster that a good therapist can help tremendously...both in understanding all of the ways that this may have influenced how you view yourself as well as how it can carry over into the relationships you have with others...Awareness and understanding are just two of the powerful tools for you to have if you choose to continue a relationship with her...as one of my friends says (typically in response to someone asking why she keeps her mother in her life at all) "is she the mother I wanted...no...is she the only mother I have...yes" Best of luck to you...hope your new stomach is just the beginning of your metamorphosis

Is it possible that you ppi is intended to be time-released? If so, I could see how the full dose being introduced directly to your stomach may have caused sickness

^^ the shingles could be very possible. My mom had it a couple of years ago and the symptoms you are describing sound very similar to onset of symptoms she had (was one of those "what the hell is this?" only to find out her symptoms were textbook) I hope you don't have to endure that...it is quite painful :-( http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/shingles/DS00098/DSECTION=symptoms

I had never heard that before about adults needing less than kids...so thought I'd look it up...according to the government's National Institute of Health that publishes the Recommended Dietary Allowance and issues fact sheets for health professionals and the public on vitamins and supplements, adults need more than kids of almost everything (Vitamin A, B6, B12, C, D, folate and Iron are the ones I looked at)...calcium was the one that I noted where adults 19-50 need less than teens and seniors. I remember loving those as a kid...got some post-op and, let's just say my current impression did not match my memory...

Tried the blueberry today...tasty as well. Bought pomegranate and clementine to try this weekend. ...not the cheapest drinks for sure...but nice to get some flavor in a low-glycemic option that doesn't use artificial sweeteners.

Painful and stabbing in my lower abdomen 2 days post-op was gas pain (had none in my shoulder as many have described)...it was enough to stop me short, bent over in pain. I don't doubt that some people do experience bona-fide hunger early after surgery, but I actually think that many of us are not that great at "understanding" the messages our body sends...to the early poster who made a reference to thirst being mistaken for hunger...she's right, studies have shown that upwards of 40% of people make this mistake. I responded to a similar post recently where someone was "certain" they were hungry only to find out that what she was basing that on were the rumblings in her stomach (again, gas) As a few others have said...especially at this early stage, it is ALWAYS better to ask YOUR surgeon for permission instead of forgiveness...good to look into the acid blocker that johnlatte mentioned...and, if your surgeon doesn't clear you for more, try to grin and bear it with the happy silver lining that it is only for a short period of time.

A month out... Breakfast 12 oz decaf, nf latte A crustless 2-egg 3-cheese quiche lunch Rest of quiche Snack Prob 1/3 c hummus w 5 small pretzel chips dinner 4 pieces of sashimi, no rice (Tuna and yellowtail) and 1 piece of spicy tuna roll (rest is in fridge for tomorrow.

Sw 310 Cw 280 5'7" Surgery date 5/8 Feeling great...30 pounds in 30 days

My surgeon said that nearly 85% of his patients have a hiatal hernia...many times people don't know they have one...sometimes they show up on the pre-surgery upper GI, but not always. Like another poster, they found mine during surgery and I only had had heartburn occasionally

WooHoo!! I had kind of hoped to have the first 30 pounds gone at the 4-week mark, but I needed another couple of days...so 30 in 30 (which works out to 20% of my excess weight). I have been so fortunate to have a complication-free post-op, both physically and mentally, and signs point to a "sleeve of steel" for me :-) The "hardest" thing for me so far is to get the 64 oz of fluid (which was also an issue pre-op as I just don't tend to feel thirsty and so can go hours w/o taking in fluids and not realize it) as well as having a short attention span with food...I'll eat something and it will taste delish and will settle well, but then that same thing doesn't seem appealing the next day which leaves me looking for new foods quite often, and not doing much with the inevitable leftovers generated from such small portion sizes. Now at 4 weeks out it is time to get serious about getting back into the gym and gettin' my sweat on on a consistent basis...

Good for you! Be safe (both physically and emotionally) and have fun

This explains it better than I could :-) http://www.livestrong.com/article/428904-why-do-women-lose-weight-in-breast-before-thighs/

Congrats! That is wonderful.

Water retention or waste making its way through your intestines...is very common, and, as others have said, is one of the reasons they encourage us only to weigh weekly

Who said you'd feel great immediately post-op?!? You just had major surgery. The average for most people (and doctors) is to anticipate a 2-week recovery period (more if you are returning to a very active job). There are some (myself included) who felt well enough to have returned to work a week post-op, but that really does not seem to be the norm. Good news is that, for most people, the first 3 days are the worst, so you might be surprised how much better you feel by the weekend. Good luck.

I found this on Pinterest and tried it tonight...tasty. While I only made for me, seems like a good one that your family could have over rice. This is half the orig. recipe and my post-op stage (1 month, getting in 1/4 to 1/3 C) I will easily have 5 servings : 1 lb bs chicken breasts, cut into chunks 1/8 C ap flour 1/4 t pepper 1/2 T canola oil 1/4 C soy sauce 2 T rice wine vinegar (I used apple cider vinegar) 2 T ketchup ( I used hoisin, because was, surprisingly, out of ketchup) 1 T brown sugar 1 minced garlic clove 1/2 t fresh grated ginger 1/4 t crushed red pepper 1/2 C cashews Step 1: add flour and pepper to plastic bag. Add chicken pieces and shake to coat ( do this right before step 2, or it will get wet and gummy) Step 2: heat oil on med. high in large skillet and brown chicken 2-3 min. on each side. Step 3: make sauce (all remaining ingredients except cashews) Step 4: add all (except cashews) to crok pot and cook on low for 3 hours. Add cashews about 15 min. Prior to serving. Also, could see adding snow peas, broccoli and/or carrots to the pot halfway through cooking.