Chelsi

i hated the bariatric advantage that my doctor recommended. i found premier protein ready to drink shakes to be fantastic. especially now after surgery they're so easy. i also use pure protein chocolate which is great. it doesn't have that overly sweet/fake protein taste i felt the bariatric advantage had. and recently i found body fortress chocolate peanut butter which is AMAZING. i actually was craving some crunch today so i made a shake with water and froze it for about two hours. it was almost like a slushy consistency and it was amazing. i also love the isopure, it's refreshing when the protein shakes feel too thick going down. good luck!

haha i packed a lose set of pajamas for going home in, my kindle and my cell phone and charger. i used none of it, as i was sleeping most of the time.

mather was absolutely wonderful! the nursing staff was phenomenal, i only stayed one night and i felt safe and secure and very well taken care of! there was on mix up when i was transferred from recovery to a room and nobody notified my mother and husband. so they spent three hours waiting to find out where i was. that, i was upset about. but other than that, it was fantastic. it's a center of excellence for bariatric surgery so i was very reaffirmed with choosing dr ahmad and argarwala.

first off, congrats on 54lbs! that's wonderful! you must be feeling so good! but in regards to seeing a change ourselves, my best friend actually has lost about 60lbs in the last year and finally i couldn't take staring at her baggy jeans and i was like "kayla, you need to buy smaller jeans, you look like you're homeless". a lot of the times we don't notice the changes, it takes another persons perspective. maybe go into a store and try on different sizes and see which one you are most comfortable in? try thrift stores and consignment shops too so you're not spending a ton of money on clothes just to go down a size again in a couple of months. just don't look like you're homeless! haha.

just always refer to your nutritionist and surgeon because my post op diet is VERY different from this one.

the only thing i really had a funeral for was alcohol. a week before my three week pre op diet i went out with a bunch of my friends and had two drinks. and after not having alcohol for like two months i was on the FLOOR. i also ate some fried foods, but the next day I was back on the horse. i NEEDED to lose 20lbs before surgery otherwise i felt like my surgeons were going to be angry. they're very intimidating lol. just remember that after surgery you're allowed to eat whatever you want, it's just making the right decision not to eat those things that is harder.

everything went well! i was sleeved on 9/18 so i'm four days post op? everyday gets easier. i have a very low pain tolerance and i've only been taking the pain meds at night to help sleep, so it's really not that bad. the gas pains are more severe, but walking helps a lot with that. other than that, everything is great! i already know i will not regret this decision. do you have a date yet?

hi! i'm chelsi and i'm from long island too! i had my surgery with dr ahmed at mather in port jeff, though. it's still nice to see other long islanders on here, though!

i'm allowed to drink coffee with just milk, and i'm only three days post op. i believe it has to be decaf, though. it's weird to see how everyone's surgeons have different opinions.

i'm only two days post op, and the protein shakes are filling me up too fast. the isopure has been amazing so far. even with the aftertaste, i'll drink a sip of powerade zero afterwards if it gets too gross for me. my dr actually gave me two flavors to try in the hospital, i'm grateful for that, i think they're great!

I was sleeved the 18th and I haven't even farted (sorry for the TMI), I've only burped. So I was starting to worry myself.

i'm only two days post op, but you need that protein (at least 60-80g/day)! it's the only thing we are really allowed to eat/get nutrition off of. sipping water takes a while to get used to, especially if you're used to gulping like i was. premier protein ready to drink shakes are great. my husband gets it at bj's for a good price. i also love the body fortress chocolate peanut butter with a cup of skim milk. it tastes like a reeses shake. but there are so many options to protein, i'm sure you'll find something that works for you! good luck!

i went from taking a 5mg percoset every two hours to half of one every four hours during the day. they're not lying when they say the walking helps! it really does. every half hour i try to get up and walk around, even if it's just around my kitchen counter a few times.

Now that I'm home and all settled, I figured I would share my sugery story. Just to all those pre-ops, who aren't sure what they're getting into, it's sort of scary. Maybe my story will help ease your fears. My surgery was scheduled for 11:45pm on Wednesday. I arrived at the hospital at 9:15. I spent a long time in pre-op, the hospital actually had a computer catch fire a few floors up which stalled me for another hour or two until they could clear all the OR's. They had me walk into the OR, which was scary, but the nurses made me feel really comfortable. The anesthesiologist told me they were mixing me up a fantastic cocktail, and the last thing I remember was telling the nurses I shaved my legs for them. haha! I woke up in terrible nausea and pain. Now, I guess it should be noted that I have no tolerance for pain and most pain meds made me feel nauseous. So I spent a good two and a half hours in recovery. They also had a problem getting blood from me, something about clotting. They finally got a good balance between my pain and nausea, and I was transferred to the step down bariatrics unit a couple floors up. From there, it was basically pain management and walking. Every two hours I had to pee, then I would walk around, then I would get some more pain meds and go back to sleep. This lasted all Wednesday night and then Thursday morning I had my leak test. First thing I could drink other than ice chips and woooo it was gross! But I had no leaks. They started me on what they call a phase one clear liquid diet. They gave me a tray of all sorts of stuff like Isopure (which i didn't mind), chicken broth, diluted apple juice, SF italian ice, tea. They measure how much I was drinking by having me drink out of the CC cups. The chicken broth helped A LOT with the gas. I guess it was the warmth, but when I stood up after drinking there was relief in my lower back. My stomach is really sore. I've been home since 5pm last night. Last night was rough. Taking the percosets, crushing them and in applesauce is so gross. But I needed them to sleep last night. I woke up about an hour ago, sipped on half of a ready made Protein shake, took a walk around my block and feel pretty good. Sitting up is the best position pain wise, that's how i slept on the couch last night. So far my focus has been on getting a Protein shake in, and my liquids. I'm really sore, but I'm trying not to take the pain meds. Percoset just makes me so loopy and yucky.

all is well. will write about my whole experience tomorrow! thanks for keeping me in your thoughts, that meant a lot.

well, I'm going to the hospital in an hour! i guess i'll catch ya on the sleeved side!

I'm going today too! good luck! here's to us on our new journey!

good luck, sleeve buddy! keeping you in my thoughts today as we start this new chapter of our lives!

my husband, immediate family, in-laws, a few close friends, and my coworkers (i work in a group home, there's only a handful of us) are the only people i've told. afterwards, i don't care who finds out that i had it done, but i just didn't want to deal with the crap anyone has to say beforehand. i don't need to be second guessing a decision i know is going to be worth it because of something stupid someone that doesn't matter might say. go with your instincts! good luck!

I work at a group home so I only have three coworkers I see everyday. they have been some of the MOST supportive people I've told. I eat dinner at work and my coworker goes above and beyond to make sure we're having healthy, well balanced meals. my clients got put on a healthier diet unknowingly because of me. so everyone has lost weight! haha.

no problem! let me know how your pre op goes! less than a week and we get surgery. I'm excited!

i just got back. they took blood, a urine sample and the nurse went over a thorough medical history with me. they also had me do a chest xray to make sure my lungs were clear, and that was it! i also got a vitamin b12 shot when i went to sign consent at my dr's, they said my levels were low and it's helps with healing.

i was told they would definitely take blood. i know we'll probably meet with the anesthesiologist. when i had wrist surgery, the majority of the pre-op appt was them asking about anesthesia and if i'd ever had problems with it. which, i had never been under before. but i'm on long island! so happy to have a sleeve buddy!

i have my pre-op tomorrow! i'm going on the 18th too!

i agree! getting in all 64oz of water a day has made all the difference in my pre op diet. good luck! you can do it!