Miss Mac

Don't do anything I wouldn't do. ;- )

One thing I did not mind about the full liquid and puree stages post-op was that my throat needed those three weeks to heal. My sleeve surgery was uncomplicated, but my throat was swollen so bad from the tubing that it was hard to swallow even Water for a while. It did get better by the time was into soft foods. I hope that you recover quickly and get get on with the recovery process.

Cold Eeze. A pharmacist clued me into it years ago. It has zinc in it.

You get to eat a snack and dinner? Well, the pre-op liquid diet certainly is an inconvenient right of passage. Our tongue and tummies are insulted by the neglect after years of over-indulgence. Once you are past that third day, it gets a little more bearable. Just remember that the weeks of discomfort before and after surgery, are only temporary, and you come out on the other as a winner. Hang in there.

I am older and retired. I am sooooo glad I did not have to return to work or take care of little ones. I was exhausted until I started on regular foods at one month. About six weeks in I began to feel like I could live with my new normal and had a little energy.

15 before and 30 after. However, if I am eating something spicy, I will have a bottle of Water handy to rinse out my mouth a bit. Swallowing that little bit of water has never caused a problem.

I was not restricted from soup. I just avoid the rice and noodles like just mentioned.

My two years are coming up on December 23rd. I still weigh, measure, and log my food, and step on the scale every day. I am not good at estimating portions, so this all keeps me in check. It is so much easier to deal with a small variance that something gone out of control. I started out post op with my regular foods measuring at 1/4 cup plus one tablespoon, and could only drink my Water an ounce at a time. I just barely got in my 64 ounces of water. Now I can eat 1 cup of something dense, like beef stew, or 2 ounces of meat plus 1/2 cup of veggies. I keep fruit for a morning snack. I can drink a cup of water (or tea, Soup, etc.) at the rate of two ounces every few minutes. Most days I can meet or surpass 100 ounces of water in a 24 hour period.

Bariatric surgery exposes the raw dynamics are our relationships and we find out how people really feel about us. If his virtues outweigh his vices, then, sure, you can find a way to manage the marriage more productively. On the other hand, life is too short to live with a jerk. The worst thing you guys can do is to clam up and not talk this out. If the two of you can approach your issues with open and honest conversation, you will at least know where you stand. I wish you the best outcome that will give you peace of mind.

Your dilemma reminds me of the Israelites wandering with Moses in the wilderness for forty years. If I had been there, I probably would have written a cookbook, "101 ways to fix manna." What I do when I am grieving for one of my old favorites, I find a way to re-invent the recipe. Take pizza for example. Here comes the crockpot again. I put my sauteed ground meat, and favorite pizza veggies (mushroom, onion, green pepper) in the crockpot (or casserole dish for the oven) and add tomato sauce and italian spices. When it comes out hot, I sprinkle some parmesan and shredded mozzarella on it. It's fun and challenging to interest the pallet while ditching the dough, sugar, salt and grease, but it can be done.

It is so sad to hear that one of our bariatric sisters is having such troubles. I can't imagine how you feel. Even though opinions and tact vary here on the forum, one thing we all do have in common is that we understand how easy it is to get tired of being strong. Please let us know how you are progressing. Hugs from Chicago.

The worst part of this whole process of getting bariatric surgery is the aggravating hoops you have to jump through with the insurance company and doctors. Getting to the place of an actual appointment date for the operation is a full-time job by itself. Hang in there, kiddo.

I met the love of my life online. We communicated by email every day for a bout six weeks before we agreed to meet at a local restaurant. He was 53, I was 52. We both had been thrown away twice and were a bit reluctant to bare the most private details. We "grew" on each other over a period of time as we discovered how much we had in common, right down to our standards for housekeeping. It does not matter that he is tall and I was round. We looked like an apple and a pencil together! It does not matter that he has olive Mediterranean skin and I am as pale as porcelain china. It does not matter that he has a few replacement teeth or that I have replacement joints. Here is what holds us together to eventually take that final walk towards the sunset. We will probably be that couple who lives until they are 98 and die within minutes of each other because we could not imagine life without our mate. 1. We compromise. I get to control the temperature of the house, and he gets to control the remote. He tucks the sheets in at the foot of the bed and I pull mine out. He does the work in the garden and I take care of the flower beds. 2. We share household chores. I keep the toilet, sink, and floor clean and he scrubs the bathtub and glass shower curtain. He is a better cook than I am, so he cooks and I clean up after we eat. And by the way guys....a man who helps with the housework ups his "sexy" game by several points! 3. We understand each others' love language. I touch him many times throughout the day and tell him how much I appreciate and love him. In the nine years we have been together, he has never said "I love you", but he DOES "I love you" every day. He remembers my birthday and holidays without being reminded. He is unselfish and brings home a surprise or me every time he goes to Menards or Walmart or makes a trip shopping anywhere. He reseeded the flower gardens and brings me fresh flowers everyday through the blooming season. So far, I have not mentioned Shakespeare's "Beast with two backs" because that is a result of our intimacy, not the definition of it.

I had it until I started soft foods.

I was allowed to take my three blood pressure meds the morning of my surgery.

I keep mine dry. The doc has me using Gold Bond Medicated Powder.

Here are some practical steps you can take while you are waiting for an appointment with your team. Plan ahead. Make sure that your pantry and fridge are supplied with the foods that are on your plan. Then plan on one day what you might eat on the next day. It might be a good idea to stay with lean meats like chicken, turkey, fish etc. and not indulge in sausages, cold cuts, hot dogs, etc. I broke one stall by forsaking cheese and Peanut Butter for a while when I discovered that my tablespoon of peanut butter was more like six tablespoons of peanut butter. Measure and weigh your food. Kitchen scales are very cheap. I have even seen them at the Dollar Store. Use the scientific principle that you cannot control that which you do not measure. It is sooooooo easy to get away from proper portions when you go back to "eyeballing" it. I am one of those people who does weigh every day. My NUT suggested that I put it away for a month and see what happens. I gained ten pounds! By weighing daily, a gain of .4 pounds is easier to recover from than a gain of 4 whole pounds. Opinions vary on the usefulness of this, but I need it. Don't beat yourself up. You have a good head start. Look up the lyrics of Frank Sinatra's THAT'S LIFE. I wish you the best, and I am going to send you a private message.

I had a bad day with cauliflower early on, so I waited until about six months before I tried cabbage. There was no problem, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Retired V A, here. I went in early on a Monday morning and came home Wednesday evening. I think all I paid was about $300, plus a few $20 co-pays for my various follow-up appointments at the bariatric clinic. Even then I got a $140 refund. BCBS FEP is awesome. Once my packet was submitted, I was approved in two days. They will also cover the panniculectomy with proof of medical necessity, but don't expect a tummy tuck.

Sure. I waffled back and forth........until I had a stroke caused by my high blood pressure caused by my 53" waist.

Here are 1,623 of them: http://www.bariatricpal.com/topic/276681-how-about-some-nsvs/?hl=%20nsv

I completely agree that you should see your primary doctor as soon as possible for some blood labs. That will let you know where you are deficient so the the doctor knows how to proceed. I am sorry to hear that you are not getting good follow-up care. I had follow-up visits at two weeks, one month, two months, three months, six months, one year, eighteen months, and my two-year visit is coming up in December. Hopefully your regular doctor can intervene for you and point you in the right direction. We see a vegan or vegetarian on the forum from time to time, and they have to be very clever about getting in their Protein. Until you get in for your appointment, you could investigate how vegans and vegetarians get their protein. I found the fruity clear Protein drinks (like Syntrax Nectars) easier to handle than the milky ones. Good luck. We don't want you to end up in the E R all dehydrated.

Post-op it was all I could do to get a couple ounces of food or Water down at one time. As I made that gradual transition to solid foods (4 1/2 weeks), I began to feel a little better each day. By the time I was at that point, I could eat 1/2 cup of food, maybe minus the last bite. I really did not have much energy until I got to solid foods, but even soft foods helped. By six months I could eat one cup of food or two ounces of meat plus a few small bites of veggies. I am fast approaching two years and can comfortably eat one cup, which sounds and feels like a lot, now. It's hard to remember how I used to eat a big ol' plate of food, go back for seconds, add a dessert (or two) plus about a quart of soda pop. And sometimes I felt like I was starving two hours later. Maintenance is not so bad. I can eat anything I want, but what I want has changed. My body is used to receiving Proteins and veggies, and balks at anything sugary or starchy. The process becomes more automatic as you go along. In a few weeks you will be able to look back and encourage someone who is where you are now.

My man and I have been together 9 1/2 years. We met through the Craigslist Personals, at the time that I was conducting my own social experiment. It just seemed like all the men who posted wanted a 21 year old Barbie Doll, but I was a round, short, 55 year old, thrown away twice hot mess. So......that is what I posted. I got 93 responses in about a week's time. First I eliminated the perverts who sent pictures of their anatomy. Then I eliminated the ones who sounded crazy. Then I eliminated the ones whose interest was not compatible with mine. I had nine responses left out of 93. I dated a couple of frogs and the met up with this guy who was my age, tall, thin, soft-spoken, and employed. We met up at the White Castle restaurant, went to a movie matinee down the street and then parted ways. He called me a few days later to see if I wanted to go to a White Sox game, so I did. We have been together ever since. End of hunt. I did not need to look any further. That Craigslist experiment changed my life. I wish you the best result possible on your experiment, too. Being honest and up front is a good approach. It looks like you are trying to be careful.

Welcome to the forum. That three-month pre-op diet can be inconvenient, but well worth the trouble. It will help your brain, tongue, and stomach get on the same page before surgery. You are welcome to hang around here for support. Just keep in mind that opinions and tact will vary. Good luck to both of you.