Kindle

I , too, thought everything was too sweet post op. I diluted my Premier chocolate and vanilla at least 1/2 and 1/2 with skim milk. The powders (including the Syntrax nectars) I mixed with at least twice as much water or skim milk as the directions said. And like dee81sd said, plain Greek yogurt can cut the sweetness some. I also used tons of Unjury unflavored powder...mixed it in every broth, cream soup or bisque I could find. Diluted and strained the thicker cream soups.

Eastern Idaho is lovely this time of year. Fancy a trip to Yellowstone or Grand Teton National Park?

First of all, why do you even need a nut? The post op meal plan after 3 months is very simple. Drink at least 64oz of Water (more is better), get at least 60g Protein, take your Vitamins and stay away from junk food and simple carbs. Basically eat protein first, then veggies, fruit and whole grains. That's it! Pretty simple and easy. You don't need someone looking over your shoulder telling you if you've been "bad" or good. Go ahead and track and measure if you want, but you are obviously doing fine. Honestly, unless your insurance requires postop nut consults, I don't really see the point. We all know what we should and shouldn't eat..... Just read labels and make smart choices. I don't track anything and the only time I ever talked to a nut was surgery day when we went over the post op diet stages.

There is a stall subforum you should post this in. "Don't sweat the stall stuff" http://www.bariatricpal.com/forum/1102-dont-sweat-the-stall-stuff-new/ Or if you just do a search for "stall" you will find dozens of answers to your question already posted. My answer is throw the scale away, get in all your Protein and Water, follow your basic meal plan and go enjoy your new life.

LOL. I totally get that. I'm getting a mammogram tomorrow and I'm sure the tech is going to be thrilled with my flapjacks. Much easier to squish into the machine than my previous melons.

Bummer! Maybe I should go to Vegas......

18 days out. But I didn't tolerate them well till about 24 days

The general rule is sugar free everything while you are in your weight loss phase. That being said, artificial sweeteners really upset my sleeve from about 1 to 4 months out. I had to find protein shakes sweetened with stevia and I couldn't tolerate crystal light, G2, vitamin water zero, Mio flavor drops, etc. Plain water also upset my tummy, so a I ended up drinking a lot of diluted fruit juices and Pedialyte. But even the 100% /no sugar added juices have a ton of natural sugar. Never seemed to slow down my loss, and fortunately I don't have that sugar/carb trigger addiction thing that makes me crave more.

I agree with Miss Mac. I think the hair loss thing is a crap shoot. I have very fine, slow growing hair and any loss would be noticeable and take a long time to recover from. I was seriously prepared to shave my head and wear hats. But at 7 months out I have had NO hairloss. And I really didn't do anything to prevent it. I take the same whole food based Multivitamin and D3 and Iron like I always have. I did add sublingual B12 and Calcium after surgery but have never taken extra Biotin or used special shampoos. My 6 month bloodwork showed high iron and calcium, though, so I've cut back on those. I think nutrition plays a stronger role in hairloss/no hairloss than topical treatments. With the exception of a few days early on, I've always gotten 60g (and usually a lot more) of Protein everyday. My whole food based Vitamins have a lot of micronutrients and cofactors that chemically synthesized vitamins don't have. How you handle the physical, mental and emotional stress of surgery probably plays a role, too. We see complete hairloss in dogs and cats sometimes after a traumatic or stressful event. Even with having additional health issues 2 months out, I never really let myself stress over what my body was going through. I just stayed positive, found ways to deal with whatever was happening and enjoyed the journey. Ironically, the more you stress over hairloss, the more likely it is to happen. So relax! Enjoy your new life and if it happens, it's just temporary and well worth all the good stuff that's coming. Oh, yeah, And I eat lots of red meat, too. More red meat than chicken and fish combined.

I was told if it goes through a straw, it's a full liquid. Anything that melts and becomes a liquid before swallowing would qualify, too.

Well, preop I was a 44DD and at 4 1/2 months out I had to shop for new bras - 38C. Not sure what my weight loss was at that point....probably around 60 - 65 pounds. Unfortunately I jumped the gun, because now at 7 months out I'm 90 pounds down and those bras are too big. Now I'm a 34B. Haven't had this small of boobs since middle school! And they certainly were never this saggy.

I'm 7 months out and tracked fluids and Protein for the first two months only. Since then I just keep a tally of what I drink in my head to make sure I'm getting 64oz or more. And since I get at least 30-40g protein from my daily smoothie and I always eat protein first, I don't bother tracking that anymore. I've never tracked calories or carbs or fat or measured my portions. I just use common sense, read labels and make good choices. If I wanted to track everything, I could do weight watchers or any number of other fad diets. I had surgery to make things easier. I drink Water, take my Vitamins and follow the basic meal plan...a balanced diet of protein first, veggies, fruit and whole grains. I limit Pasta, rice, bread, junk food, alcohol and sweets. I eat "bad" foods sometimes but in moderation and I never feel guilty about it. I eat when I 'm hungry and only until I'm satisfied, not full. That's usually only a difference of a couple bites, but I think it's important to not always shoot for being full. It's the full feeling that got me fat in the first place. My 6 month bloodwork results were great, I feel fabulous, I'm 12 pounds under surgeon's goal and 2 pounds under my personal goal, so this method works for me.

That's awesome. I usually just trail ride (and I have no doubt my horse appreciated carrying 90 less pounds on our 20 mile, 3500 foot climb to a lake basin yesterday) But I do join in on sorting and team penning for fun in the local arena in the winter when our trails are under 10-20 feet of snow. Love your pictures....great NSV!

Unless you are self pay, it's not up to you. Unfortunately your medical options are in the hands of your insurance company. I'd call both your doctor and insurance company ASAP.

Lentils, split peas, edamame, avocados, artichokes, cabbage, pumpkin, soybeans, (roasted pumpkin seeds and soybeans are great snacks), broccoli, raspberries, pears and apples (with the skin) all have good amounts of fiber without being as carby/starchy as bread. Bran cereals would be good if they aren't triggers for you. Don't forget to drink LOTS of Water, too. I found a decent fiber supplement at Walmart that does not contain psyllium (which is probably what makes you bloaty). It's called Sunsweet Supra Fiber and contains prune fiber, apple, acacia fiber, powdered cellulose, blueberries, pomegranate and acai fiber. I mix it in my Protein smoothie everyday. I also eat Fiber One Protein Bars. I usually poo every other day, but if I don't go two days in a row, I take Milk of Magnesia that night and I'll definitely go that third morning. The fiber supplements at least help make things come out a little easier (sorry for the extra info)

Just go back to eating the kinds of protein you can eat. I transitioned through my food stages slower than what my "schedule" said. Just because the piece of paper said I could eat mushies at 3 weeks and solid food at 6 weeks doesn't mean my sleeve agreed to that. Take it as slow as you need to, but still shoot for all your fluids and protein in whatever form you can tolerate. It was 3-4 months before eating stopped being a chore and became enjoyable to me again.

I do.

Tell her thank you soooo much!! What did they say when they saw you? My mom kept saying it was very disconcerting to look at me and my dad thinks I look a lot more like my sister (who's always been a skinny twig). But they were both thrilled that I am happy and healthy. We had a great time. Can't wait till I get home in October to see my whole family!

I live in the middle of nowhere and NO stores carry Torani syrups. I got all of mine on Amazon ( including the handy dandy pump tops). Torani also has their own online store. Just created a new shake flavor today....premier vanilla, skim milk, ice and pumpkin pie Torani syrup....Yum! Used my Blender Bottle, BTW Other favorites are Premier chocolate with carmel and hazelnut, Muscle Milk cake batter with gingerbread, and premier vanilla with coffee and Irish cream.

I don't think you should look for the fastest way. You should research both surgeries and decide on the one you feel most comfortable with and that you can live with for the rest of your life. This isn't a race.

Ok, I lied. I didn't have the chocolate banana shake because I didn't have any milk. Went with a Premier vanilla with Torani pumpkin pie syrup instead. First time I had that combo....YUM!

Macman that's so awesome! Good job and you're right, you should just keep on going.....

Ditto. This is not a race and trying to compare yourself to others is never a good idea (with WLS or anything else in life). We are all individuals and we will all experience things differently. This thread will only lead to someone feeling bad about themselves because they couldn't "keep up".

Congratulations! And great attitude. I truly believe being positive is a huge key to success and happiness with this surgery. Yes, there are low points, but having a good attitude helps you fly through them with minimal drama. The negativity from some people really saddens and frustrates me. Every little thing on this journey becomes a burden and they make themselves miserable for really no reason. BTW, I didn't have my first stall until 6 weeks out and it was a doozy...gained 3 pounds and lasted a month. But I just kept following the plan and have had a slow but steady 1-2 pounds/week loss since then. I say this so you don't get down when you hit a stall. But Sounds like you've found your groove and I'm so happy for you.

1. I'm 7 months out and have a Protein smoothie everyday. At least 30-40g protein each. Couldn't get enough protein without the shakes. There are so many flavors and varieties out there, I would try and find some you like. I had a Syntrax nectar cherry lemonade yesterday on my horseback ride. Going to have premier chocolate with milk and a banana today. I also make protein dreamsicles with vanilla Protein powder and OJ and protein ice cream with cake batter protein powder, gingerbread Torani syrup and chopped almonds. I Add unflavored protein powder to pancake mix, quiche and casseroles. 2. I took Omeprazole 40mg daily for 2 months then weaned to 20mg for a couple weeks before stopping. Other than taking a very occasional Rolaids, I fortunately haven't had acid problems. 3. I haven't had any hairloss. You need to get more protein....main reason for hairloss. That, and stress. 4. Feel pretty good in the morning. In fact, since having surgery, I'm getting a good night's sleep without waking up in the middle of the night for the first time in years. I drink Sleepytime Extra tea at bedtime.