DeniseM

I'm doing Paleo- I love it, I have no problem finding recipes that taste great and that I can get in my protein. I feel so much better now that I have eliminated all the garbage from my daily diet!

I use a stopwatch timer on my phone when I eat and I time myself to take a bite every 5 minutes. It really helps me to eat slowly. I also use a timer when I am drinking to remind me to sip- it really helps me to get in my fluids and protein every day.

Every surgeon has a different pre-op diet, so you really need to talk to him/her about what is allowed on your pre-op regime. For instance, my surgeon had me on a strict low-carb diet to shrink my liver for two weeks prior and then clear liquids two days before surgery. I was given very strict guidelines on what I could and could not eat and I followed it exactly because I wanted the best results.

I was in the same place as you with no co-morbidities. This is a really serious decision and it is not for everyone. If you are having so much uncertainty you should take a few days to really think this through and not rush your decision. When the time comes, you will know in your heart what the right choice for you is.

It took me about four weeks to really feel like myself again. You also have to remember that your hormones are going crazy right now and that will affect how you are feeling. You are going to have moments when you question your decision, but you need to keep focusing on the future when you are feeling good and losing weight. This IS just a bump in the road and you will be feeling better as each day goes by. Hang in there!

I started in week 5 when I was off soft foods- just a bite or two at a time to see how my stomach would handle it- I have had no problems with either, cooked or raw. I eat fresh fruit several times a week, and I have either raw spinach or raw kale in my smoothie every morning.

I also wanted to add the risk of needing your gallbladder removed- I am going tomorrow morning for an ultrasound because my doctor thinks I might have gallstones due to my rapid weight loss.

Bad breath- I have this all the time and most types of mints and gum make me nauseous. I just try to keep my distance when talking to people

I have the same random hiccups. Good news is that they get less painful and less frequent but I am almost 9 weeks out and still get them every day.

Everyone is different- I took two weeks off but I have a desk job. If I had an active job I think I would have needed at least another week or two.

I came home from the hospital 5 pounds heavier- it was gone plus some within the first few days.

I am concerned with this too because my arms were really big, and they are now starting to get flabby. My trainer tells me that if I do enough arm exercises, particularly the triceps, then it will really help. He works my arms until I want to cry- we'll see in a few months if it makes any difference in my loose skin. I am not sure it will, but I am willing to give it a try because I have nothing to lose.

It was about two weeks for me, and I am also a side sleeper. I had one incision on the right side of my stomach that felt like a knife in my gut no matter what I did and the only position I could sleep in was sitting up on the couch for the first two weeks. It wasn't fun, but before I knew it I was back in my bed sleeping like normal.

An EKG is a basic test and a stress test is a comprehensive test of the heart. Not everyone will need a stress test based on their current medical conditions as well as their age and their other risk factors such as cholesterol, smoking, family history of heart disease, etc.. I didn't have a stress test, but I had a both an EKG and an echocardiogram which is like a medium level test because I have an irregular heart beat. If all you needed was an EKG, then that means you have a healthy heart.

The first few days I was really groggy from anesthesia, and I found myself getting confused on my meds and one night I took a dose too soon by accident because I forgot what time I took it last, and after that my hubby took over. If you are going to be alone, make yourself a chart of what meds you need to take at what time so that you don't get confused, especially in the middle of the night when you are sleepy. My hubby took a week off work to be there with me, and that was enough time. By the time he went back to work I was fine to be on my own. I had some really significant post-op pain the first week, and I am not sure if I could have done it by myself, so if your friend is offering, I say let him come. If nothing else, you will have someone around to watch movies with even if you don't need any help.

One of my favorite TV dinners is Kashi Chicken Pasta Pomodoro, which I eat all of the chicken and veggies and only one or two bites of the pasta, and I have not had any problems, but I only eat about 4 or 5 pieces of the pasta, so it is a really small amount. I haven't tried any other pasta than that yet.

Pure Protein Frosty Chocolate was the only flavor of protein shake I liked after surgery, and I drank several cases the first month with no problems.

I didn't say that you were judging anyone, I said that I (meaning myself) try not to judge other people based on the choices they make that are not choices I would make. I also did not say that being concerned for someone is judging them.

I took my pain meds round the clock for the first seven days, and then at night for the next few days, but everyone is different- if you are in pain, take your meds! Don't worry about what other people have done, listen to your body. One thing that really helped with my pain was wearing a compression garment around my stomach which I got at my one week post-op visit. It made SUCH a difference in my pain that I was able to stop my pain meds when I was wearing it and only took them at night when I was not wearing it.

I felt that feeling a lot in the first few weeks- my stomach did not feel full, but I could feel the food in my esophagus and I realized that I had eaten too much. I have to be careful and measure everything I eat because I rarely feel full in my stomach, but I can always tell by the feeling of food in my throat that I have eaten too much, or too quickly. It took me about a month to be able to eat 1/4 cup, but my doctor told me that she made my sleeve very tight and to expect that. Now I can eat 1/2 cup of most foods, but every now and then, even when I measure, I will still get that feeling in my throat before I am done eating because some foods just take longer to move through the sleeve than others.

I think that we are all different, we all had different issues coming into the sleeve process and some of us have dealt with our food demons and some of us have not. Many food issues are psychological and simply reducing the size of your stomach will not fix a psychological problem. What I choose to do for my sleeve journey is my choice. Some people might not agree, but at the end of the day, it is my choice, not theirs. That being said, I agree with you in that I see many people posting on here things that I would not personally choose to eat, but again, my choice. I try very hard not to pass judgment on anyone by commenting on their food choices, unless they are asking a specific question. If someone just ate an entire bag of chips or drank an entire bottle of wine and now they are posting about it, who am I to judge them? Their choices have no effect on me. I simply shake my head and close the thread and read the next one.

Yeah, technically they are supposed to send the reports, but having worked for the past 20 years in the medical field, I know what REALLY happens, and bottom line, if you want something done, do it yourself! And don't let them tell you that you cannot get copies of your own records- you are legally entitled to them, and you just need to sign a release form to get your own copy. Some offices might be jerks and make you pay for the copies, but it should just be a few dollars.

I had to do that with several doctors. I wanted to have my surgery before my husband deployed so he would be there to help me, and if I had waited for all the different specialists to send in the records I probably still wouldn't have had my surgery! Because I was on such a specific time line (ended up having my surgery 10 days before he left) I got copies of the records that were needed and then hand delivered them to my bariatric coordinator. It was inconvenient, but it was the only way to ensure that they were received so my surgery could be scheduled.

I love avocado, and I have been using Wholly Guacamole packs on top of my chicken breast to keep it from being so dry. I'll have to try it with tuna- I am not a big fish eater, but I have been trying different Proteins and I would like to eat more canned tuna because it is so convenient, but have not found a way that I like it.

It could be the mayo- mayo makes me queasy even now, almost eight weeks out. Try the tuna again in a day or two plain with no mayo, or maybe a little lemon juice.