AvaFern

Are you eating too quickly? The first 8-10 months after I had the sleeve I rarely puked and then ever since then my stomach has no tolerance for sugar, oil, milk, and periodically random things like chicken and crackers that it doesn't usually have an issue with. So, in my experience you can develop food intolerance, however I also notice that I get much sicker, much faster if I am not careful with how fast I eat. Every once in awhile I'll be in a hurry and choke down 1/4 of a chicken sandwich, or a few too many spoons of vegetables too fast and almost instantly I have to throw up. For foods that my stomach tolerates, the barfing is usually because I didn't chew enough or ate too fast. Also, now I am paranoid about getting sick in public places, so before I even start eating my stomach wants to barf because of stress more so than the actual food. So, my post wasn't a very organized response, but I would try consciously eating slower and chewing longer. If that doesn't work, then it may be a sensitivity. I am the opposite of you...I am fine with moist chicken, but fish makes me barf. This was another sensitivity that only developed months after the surgery had been over and fully healed. Also, you're not bulimic if you're barfing because you feel sick. I had a member of my family feel nosy and say she thought I was bulimic which was offensive because I literally see her maybe once a year and she knows nothing about me. I puke a few times a week- not because I'm trying to spare myself calories, but because I open my mouth and the food I just ate comes spewing right back out. As long as you're barfing because you feel sick, you're unlikely to be developing an eating disorder. The trick though is to know when you're physically sick and when you are psychologically making yourself sick, so if you are uncertain, perhaps ask your doctor what he thinks.

I regret not having it done sooner. I was miserable the first 1-3 weeks after surgery and convinced I had ruined my life. I was sick, hungry, and in pain and the idea that I had cut out 80% of my stomach forever was terrifying. It has now been 2.5 years, I wear a size 0-4 in designer clothing, I have maintained at weight for 11 months, and while I ended up with a sleeve that has no tolerance for certain foods (milk, sugar, oil, etc) which isn't the case for most people, every single day I would make the decision to have the sleeve surgery again.

You and I are a little different in that you are burning more calories than me during the day and if I remember correctly you are also good about doing weight training work, which I hate because I'm lazy, ha. Do any of you still track in maintenance? Yes, I use MyFitnessPal everyday. I saw today that I hit 165 days without forgetting to login. I stopped tracking for awhile last summer and while I didn't gain weight immediately when I did start gaining a few pounds as soon as I went back to tracking I was right back at maintenance. It makes me feel like I'm more in control. As an example, this morning I woke up about 0.8 heavier than yesterday, which is still within my normal fluctuation range but I only had like 800 calories yesterday. Of course, 230 of it was because I decided to try a Pasta steamer, which not only made me sick but also cost me a little bit of temporary weight. I have had pasta less than 5 times since surgery so I knew I'd be heavier this morning, but because I had everything in MyFitnessPal, I'm not worried about it because I can see that I was well within all of my set goals and actually quite a bit under compared to my usual calories. If so, how do you force yourself to eat enough calories? Yeah, usually I don't have a problem with calories. If I go over 1800 I gain weight, around 1400-1700 I'm fine, and I think the few days a week where I'm just not interested in eating and I get about 800-1200 calories are probably what makes up for the higher calorie days. I know that there are days where I eat more than I should, so I don't worry about the lower calorie days when I don't feel like food. What tips/tricks do you have for getting in extra calories? Ohhh no problems, haha. Did you struggle to disassociate tracking from "weight loss mode"? Yes, very much. I don't wear my fitbit anymore because I'm not as concerned about hitting steps. Also, to be fair as long as I stay a little bit in weight-loss mode, I don't have to worry as much about gaining. When I was losing I was obsessive about tracking everything, however if I halfheartedly attempt to lose weight, the result is that I maintain, which works out for me. I guess in that sense I never really totally moved out of weight loss mode.

Self-pay in Florida was 18K with a very reputable surgeon. They fixed my hiatal hernia as part of the process-I wasn't charged extra for it. I would consider consulting another surgeon. On that note though, insurance not paying for their part of that surgery is not a surprise. When I had plastics, I thought I would be clever and have insurance pay for the removal of a fibroadenoma at the same time as my boobs were being done, which would then have deducted a lot from the cost of anesthesiology. Haha, nope. They will literally put the doctor on a clock for the time it takes to do the hiatal hernia repair and then turn that clock off afterward and you pay the difference. Paying out of pocket for just the sleeve is expensive, but the hiatal hernia is usually done just as part of the procedure and not priced differently. Insurance companies also probably know this and that is why they tend to turn down paying for part of a procedure that is completed as part of a procedure they don't cover. Also, having to pay the full price up-front is standard because if you don't pay them later, they can't exactly give you back your stomach and recoup their loss.

The only reason you're not supposed to drink and eat is because it washes the food through your stomach faster. I decided from the start I wasn't going to be spending the rest of my life eating with a dry mouth and I have never followed that rule. If you pay attention to what you're eating, then if you drink at the same time, it doesn't really matter. Medically there is no reason to not drink and eat, it just keeps you feeling full longer, so you eat less, and then lose more weight, like Jamie said. That being said....I am 2.5 years post-op, I have maintained at goal for 11 months, and literally never followed the stupid drinking rule once. I like beverages with meals, lol.

I had a desk job when I had surgery. I was working from my hospital bed by day 2, however mentally I wasn't doing great work until about day 5. You can easily return to a desk job within a week of surgery. I was back at my desk the Monday after my Monday surgery and didn't have any issues.

@@Elode Yep, I didn't even know my ab muscles were pulled apart, lol, I thought that only happened if you had kids! Honestly, it just feels like you had a good day of abs at the gym- it's more of a muscle soreness from that part of the surgery than a stabbing or ripping pain like you think you'd feel from sutures. I didn't really see a difference but the first time I went back the gym a girl goes to me "oh your waist got smaller!" haha, so I guess the muscle repair worked!

I am 2.5 years out. I hit goal 11 months ago and fluctuated within 1-3 pounds for the first 6 months. I then thought I could eat junk food and I gained 7 pounds, which then took me 2 months to lose. I have since spent the last three months back to where I was before, fluctuating within my comfort zone- 1-3 pounds around my goal weight. I am not exactly a model dieter. I eat anywhere from 1000-1800 calories a day generally in whatever I want, however "whatever I want" is generally chicken, crackers, and granola, lol. I don't eat sweets, fried food, or anything that has oil or major sugar mostly because it makes me really sick. I used to workout everyday, however since I've been at goal I don't have to workout a lot to maintain where I am. I also think that I lost a lot of muscle, so when I do workout I pretty much instantly start gaining weight, so I'd rather be skinny than strong, which is totally a bad thing to say, but whatever, I'm me, lol. The only way I don't gain weight is by weighing myself every single day. I write down my morning weight on three scales (1 has big pretty numbers, one syncs with MyFitnessPal, and one is a Tanita with fun metrics, so that's why I have three). I log my food into MyFitnessPal everyday. My allowed fluctuation over my goal of 129 is up to 132.8, and as soon as I see a 133 on a scale in the morning, I pay extra attention to what I eat the next day or two and I drop back down to the 130 range. Consistent vigilance is the only way I can stay thin and having accepted that my scale is a daily part of my life, I now embrace the fact that it's mean little morning reminder when I ate badly is what keeps me at goal.

@@Elode Haha, yeah I don't have any pictures up. I can though completely understand not wanting a lift. I was very bummed when I was told I would need one, especially since you end up with that lollipop anchor scar. As it turns out I think they use either a different suture method or some type of adhesive because at 1.5 years post-op on that surgery I can barely see the scars running from my nipple down to the under-boob scar, so that was a relief. I think if that is what you want, then you should go for it. This was my favorite surgery- boobs and stomach, and I still wake up everyday, get naked to step in the scale, and checkout my plastic self in the mirror, lol. I'm sure you will love your results.

@@Elode Yay! Congrats on surgery! Ok, so I swear this is not me trying to be rude, but are you sure on the 750? I was a 38DDD before surgery, I had a lot of breast tissue removed during my procedure because it was full of lumpy bits (not bad lumpy bits just annoying lumpy bits) and I got either 375 or 400ccs and my boobs are giant. You mentioned you have a small waist, which I also have, and I gotta say in hindsight I would have gone with smaller implants. Just the other day I saw a picture of me where if you see the full body image I look fabulous (ok so not very modest) but when you just see the top of me I look very thick and almost fat because my boobs are so out of proportion to my body. I ended being a 32DDD, which is virtually impossible to actually get in any size and cup-wise I fit into the 36DDD at Victoria Secret, although the band doesn't fit. I am seriously considering a revision where I drop down to a 300 purely because while I have always had big boobies, fake big boobies are a totally different thing than real big boobies. They look fantastic, I don't ever have to wear bras if I don't want to, but it really limits me in terms of some cute clothing, such as jackets, because my shoulders and waist are small and then my giant honkers are well, giant. So...while size is a very personal thing, 750 seems enormous, just from my personal experience, so no judgement at all. Also, something to consider is that you already have bigger breasts, so you need to factor that size in as well. I made the mistake of imagining what I would like like with all those girls that had no boobs and got implants, however I am way bigger than them now with the same implant size just because I started out with more. I am sure you will look fabulous, but that is my current size-related issue, so I thought I'd share.

@@Queen of Crop I had a seroma. It should be just Fluid, not blood. The layers of your stomach that were peeled apart, didn't stick together correctly, so now your body thinks that it's injured and it's producing all of that extra fluid to try to heal you, which your body doesn't realize isn't helping much. I had a seroma for about a month, it was annoying, it required a second drain be put in, and then multiple times being drained, and then finally my doctor filled the seroma with alcohol, which did the trick, dried it all up, and I was good within two weeks. The trick to healing the seroma quickly is to avoid twisting...you want those two layers to stick back together. I caused mine because I just had to walk miles and miles everyday too soon after surgery and the twisting of my torso resulted in a seroma. Wear your binder and your compression, and think of it this way....it has to heal and it probably isn't getting any worse, so you only have improvement to look forward to!

Lol, I have virtually no sex drive, although I'm not sure at what point this happened. Before surgery I wasn't much of a dater, however I regularly enjoyed "me-time" if you know what I mean. Now, while I was a good gf during the one relationship I have had since my sleeve and I put out routinely 1-2 times a day, I really have no interest in it one way or the other. I figure if I date someone again I will care and until then, eh, more time to do other things.

If it makes you feel better, it is highly unlikely that your issue was caused by your eating unless the bleeding was a result of a cracked liver. Internal bleeding during this procedure doesn't really have much to do with your diet and it is entirely possible you would have had the same issue if you had followed the diet, assuming of course your problem wasn't oriented around the liver. Given this though, I would say to take the fear you feel and use it to make you very motivated to follow the post- procedure diet.

Did you eat them spread out over a bit of time? I still have good restriction at 2.5 years out, but I can eat an entire box of crackers over the course of a few hours without feeling constricted at all. I don't really eat bread or anything comparable to waffles- not because not eating it is part of my diet just because I don't really care about eating it. I do think though that if the waffles were soft and didn't have syrup on them (the sugar would make me sick) I could easily nibble my way through that many in an hour or so. It looks like you just found one of your slider foods, so now you know to stay away from them. This would not indicate to me that your sleeve has stretched at all- it sounds pretty normal.

That really isn't that bad. Fried food makes me sick, but every once in awhile I'll end up eating some. I log it in MyFitnessPal and move on. Like CowGirlJane said...food doesn't have the same power over me anymore. It's not good, it's not bad, it's just food to be factored into the calories for the day. I don't really eat junk anymore because there is no longer a forbidden appeal to it. Past that though, shrimp has Protein, so if you're hungry for it again, just have the grilled version and it's basically guilt free.

No, your office does not get to tell you when you can have surgery. If you're leaving for a week to have surgery, which is really all the time you need off, you are allowed to use your PTO however you choose. If you have the 3-4 weeks you want off saved in PTO, the same applies. They don't have to give you paid time off if you don't have those days banked, but they don't get to tell you whether or not you can have surgery. You don't even need to tell them you're having surgery- it's none of their business. Past that, you should fall under FMLA, so if you don't have the PTO days, then you can take off without pay for the time you need. Again, the specifics of your surgery are none of their business. If they give you a hard time, tell them that you will be happy to have your attorney contact them.

Protein needs are generally based on weight, like the other person commented. I would not however agree with your doctor that at a month out you need to be reducing your protein that much. If you were now at goal weight, then sure, protein differences that significant are fine, however this is the time you should be getting your protein and as long as you are within your calorie limits and you are getting a lot of protein, then I say stick with your current plan. As a note, I never got my full protein requirements, because I was self-pay so there was no real diet information provided. I've been at goal for 11 months now and surgery was 2.5 years ago. If you just eat normally and get the suggested amount of protein for your diet, you should not be losing hair. The point of eating so much protein is that it fills you up faster and keeps you full longer than if you ate the same amount in carbs. Also, it tends to have less fat, which is also better for you.

I think people are just uninformed...in this case rude as well. I can understand that people find the idea of cutting our stomach out to be extreme, however if it improves our health is it really so bad? A guy I knew who was in his 40's suffered from major diabetes and morbid obesity. Last year he ended up septic because of an infection and it destroyed his liver (i think either that or a kidney). Either way, before he could be cleared for a transplant, he had to have heart repair surgery, and last month he died in the OR. I sincerely doubt that if he had had bariatric surgery when he was younger and had been able to maintain a healthy weight that he would have died the way he did. I don't know if I will be healthier in the future, but I know I am healthier now. Also, plenty of people have had their stomach removed due to cancer and their life expectancy from nutrition related issues is not different than a "normal" person. That information contributed to my decision to have surgery.

Lol, I'm pretty sure you can't actually get kicked off the forums because there are a lot of people who are still around who tend to be rude, hurtful, or otherwise actually deserving of being removed. If you want to lose weight the way you're doing it, then more power to you! All of us have made our own choices and it is no one's place to judge yours. I might suggest though that in addition to certainly speaking to people here, maybe you should also join a forum where people have lost weight with the traditional route. You might have more in common with then in some areas than with people here, but by no means does that mean you wouldn't be welcome on this site anymore.

I hated that, however once you are at goal weight, 6 months to a year later, no one says anything anymore. It really used to irk me that people would push for a number...so how much exactly did you lose? Ok fine I lost 111 pounds, yes I was a monster, thank-you for letting everyone around us who didn't know I used to be fat know my business. I really tried to accept that this is people trying to be nice and supportive. People want to compliment you and they don't realize it might be hurtful. I personally never comment on weight because first, I hated when people did it to me, and second sometimes people are losing weight because they are sick. If someone has clearly discussed their weight loss goals, when they have reached a very obvious loss, then I might say "girl, you look fantastic!" which can be interpreted by anyone around us as a kind compliment without mentioning weight.

You didn't damage your sleeve. This all sounds like soft food and at 4 weeks, you're mostly healed enough that even harder foods (like lettuce, chips, etc) probably won't hurt you much. You probably feel sick because you haven't eaten that stuff lately and your stomach is not used to it. I am 2.5 years out and what you ate would have had me puking in 5 minutes. My stomach doesn't do grease or cheese, so yours may not be a fan of that stuff either. You didn't physically hurt yourself, but maybe this serves as a good reminder to try to not eat stuff like that for awhile.

I'm also on depo and yep, it's only the oral contraceptives you have to worry about.

I have been on depo for 12-years-ish, which is notoriously associated with weight gain. I use it primarily for control of my cycle- you never get a time of the month, it's awesome! I can say that in the end it all comes down to how much you eat- the bc itself doesn't make you gain, it just makes you hungrier, especially if you aren't used to it. I have been fat and thin on birth control and I have gone off of it for a few months at a time 2-3 times over the last decade and the only time I notice weight fluctuations is when I legitimately eat more. I've been at goal for about 10 months, but if I don't weigh everyday and make immediate adjustments I start gaining. This week I hit 133, which is the "time to stop eating so much" weight for me, so I dropped my intake, was careful with logging my calories, and this morning, two days later I'm back to 131, which is a weight I'm going with fluctuating around. The best way to maintain is to make is an every single day thing. Also, I noticed the idea of being "fat and happy" when you're in a relationship isn't entirely a stereotype. It's nice to sit at home, hang out with your man, skip the gym sometimes, eat yummy food, go out to nice dinners, and generally be in such a good mood that you don't realize you're gaining weight. You can get back down to where you were- just really start logging all of your food and workouts and hopefully you see the scale start to move.

Almost all doctors will be fine with you taking any regularly prescribed medications the morning of surgery. You swallow them with just enough Water to get them down your throat, and you're good to go. Of course confirm with him, but generally that little bit of extra, especially if you take it right when you wake up, won't matter and then you won't have any issues to worry about later in the day.

I didn't cheat really until about 3-4 months after surgery. I had my surgery in September and then enjoyed chocolate and sweets all through Christmas. I went back to not eating chocolate or sweets January, and then I didn't really eat much junk again until the same time the next year. I have a deal with myself that I can have as much chocolate as I want around Christmas, because if I eat it the rest of the year it is the one thing I cannot do in moderation and I will eat it everyday. This Christmas was the third Christmas following sleeve surgery, I had been at goal for 8 months, and I had no great urge to eat junk. On Christmas Eve I had a few pieces of chocolate, a bite of brownie, and other things I don't eat the rest of the year, felt kinda sick, and have had no urge to eat it since. So, while sometimes I will get a muffin at Starbucks that I know is bad for me, or I used to get a cakepop or a cookie, I actually "cheat" less now that I'm at goal because it isn't cheating anymore. If I want cake, I can have it...I just seem to never really want it. The worst food I eat on a regular basis is goldfish crackers. Since my New Years Eve chocolate adventure, I haven't had any sweets, I haven't had anything really bad for me, and except every once in awhile debating a muffin or a bagel, which I sometimes have a few bites of, I don't really eat junk food. Perhaps because now that it isn't a matter of cheating, the desire to have it is no longer there.