bikrchk

For me it's never been "what" I was eating but HOW MUCH OF IT! I can no longer eat half of a pizza anymore. I still enjoy pizza, just 1 piece (or less) in a sitting now! The restriction of the sleeve has given me the freedom to eat what I like, how I like it, and for that I am grateful! As long as I move my body and don't over eat, it's all good!

#1 This was NOT what I expected as a pre-op, but I don't feel like I'm on "a low calorie restricted diet", AT ALL. Quite the opposite, actually. The restriction of the sleeve has given me the freedom to eat what I like exactly how I like it. I worked my way up to 1000-1200 calories during the loss phase, which sounds low if you've not had WLS, but is on the high end of what I see most WLS patients eating. I adopted an exercise routine which has given me a metabolic boost and allows me to maintain nicely on 1400-1500 calories per day which is a lot when you only eat 1/2 cup of anything! Pasta, yep. pizza, yep, a cookie or two, yep! (never in the same sitting anymore!) The difference now is that I do not over eat these things! I can't. It hurts when I do so I've learned not to do it, (these are painful lessons, lol). So, I feel like I miss out on NOTHING. I have fewer issues around food cravings because nothing is "forbidden", (other than carbonation which I don't care for anymore as it makes me uncomfortable now). Some folks CHOOSE to swear off certain foods. This is their CHOICE, and it works for them but is not the only path to success. I do not "diet" anymore. I DID food journal for the first year and 1/2 until I'd been maintaining for 6 months as I needed to understand what patterns work for me, ensure I got enough Protein and know what that looks like. I weigh once per week. If I go 5 pounds outside my "zone", I journal again and cut back until I'm back where I belong. I choose protein first and still get 75-85g most days. I take my supplements. I exercise 5x per week, (this was not even a consideration before). For the changes I've made, I now enjoy being free of all the meds I was on preop for blood pressure, anxiety, cholesterol and asthma, normal labs and size 4 skinny jeans! HAPPY? I am ECSTATIC! The trade offs have been totally worth the life changes! #2 The lose skin is... what it is. I can't expect that the skin that has carried 75-100 extra pounds for the last 30-40 years could "bounce back" with perfect tone. However, it's not as bad as I anticipated. Exercise helps some. What I've learned is that most of us will live with some degree of body dismorphia, maybe for the rest of our lives. Some days I feel like I look great, some days I feel like a busted can of biscuits! At almost a year and 1/2 out, I can't really trust my "feelings", so I've adopted a "fake it till you make it" mentality that works for me most of the time! What "helps"? Looking at old pictures, the new boyfriend calling me "hotness" and telling me how beautiful I am and the open mouth stare of old acquaintances or exes as they try to figure out who the hot chick rocking the skinny jeans is! WORTH IT? I would NEVER go back! That said, you need to be prepared to make certain lifetime changes or you will make yourself miserable. So mull it. Chat it up with a counselor and the hubbs. Research it. Attend some face to face support groups if there are some for WLS in your area. Learn from those who are living it. This is a HUGE decision and not the answer for everyone. Best of luck in your decision.

I was released with a nausea pill and a nausea patch and used both for the first 5 days or so. After that, didn't really need anything. I do take a PPI twice a day (and probably will for life as I had reflux to begin with). After the initial healing period of the first few weeks, the only time I got nauseated was if I over ate or ate too fast which is still the case at 14 months out, (but not to the degree it was at 6 months out).

I stopped short of a Facebook announcement, but I don't hide it by any means. I follow multiple bariartic support sites on FB so it's not a secret and I'm honest with anyone who asks about my weight loss methods. When people ask what I've done to look and feel so great they are generally saying "I want some of what you got"! For me, I'd feel dishonest and like I was doing both of us a dis-service if I didn't include the whole truth in my answer. You never know who needs to see the example you've become either for themselves or for a loved one who is struggling. Living that example is part of what helps me stay on track and I'd not hide it for anything!

I came down with something similar a month ago. Turned out to be a stomach virus. Lasted about 15 days! You should probably get checked just to be sure though.

I waited probably 4 months to try alcohol again. I was primarily a red wine drinker pre-op, but tend to prefer whites or mixed drinks (with grapefruit juice) since I don't do diet soda anymore. It's harder to work in alcohol around meals these days since I tend to comply with the no drinking while eating rule, then once I've eaten I'm too full for hours to drink anyway.

It's not clear from your profile or ticker how much you have to lose. If you're concerned about going below a 16 my advice is to seek some professional guidance from a bariatric nutritionist or psychologist with bariatric experience. I don't entirely believe that you weight will "choose you", but in my own experience, I went from an 18 to an 6 in 6 months with what I consider little effort. I'm currently in a 4 and maintaining well. I'm in a healthy BMI place and like they way I look for the most part. I've never had much of a butt to begin with. What's left is non-existent. Up top is much smaller as well. My point is, YOUR BODY WILL CHANGE and both you and the hubbs need to be prepared to deal with it.

A B12 supplement was one of the things on the list for me to take "for life" along with extra D3, extra calcium and iron in addition to 2 multivitamins per day. I've never had energy issues and labs have been perfect so far. Recommended? Yes!

It took about 6 months before I could eat "anything", rice being the last hold out, but seeds, nuts, fruit skins, whatever, it's all good now as long as I don't over eat.

I'd pick the meat out of whatever non-fried variety sounds good starting with chicken or fish early on. Avoid rice until you're a little further along. Rice can be hard. Took me a while to tolerate rice again at all and it's still not a fav. Lettuce wraps are great too if you're doing Thai.

I love to eat out! at a sandwich shop I order an "unwich", (the guts wrapped in a lettuce leaf). It's not that I don't tolerate bread, I do, but it fills me so fast I can't do the meat so I avoid it most of the time. If I can't snitch a few bites off someone else's plate, the toppings off a pizza or 1 piece of a very thin crust works, soup or 1/2 salad at Panera is great. Half a sushi roll (4pc) works. A single hard taco from Chipolte is good too. I've also been known to nom a single chicken strip or 4-6 nuggets from Chick Filet, (I know, fried, but it's not a habit and it's good protein)! I also never travel without Quest bars. Portable protein and not covered in chocolate so if they melt they're just chewy.

I was approved with BCBS of Kansas City with a BMI of 37 and a crap ton of medicated, but not completely controlled co-morbidities, (high BP, asthma, high cholesterol, pre-diabetes, joint pain due to hip displasia). I did have to do the 6 months Dr assisted weight loss attempt, (I gained a bit). Was approved in about 2 weeks. I'd have weighed with rolls of quarters in my pockets if I thought I needed to!

I think I enjoy in more now! I live alone, so I've had to learn to adjust recipes even when planning for left overs, but today, I can afford quality over quantity so I don't have guilt over making food exactly how I like it, (real eggs, real butter, the occasional desert etc). No my cholesterol has not gone through the roof, (quite the opposite, in fact, I used to take a statin pre-op and need nothing now), no I don't gain weight as long as I exercise and don't over eat. If I feel like baking to get one or two cookies, I just make sure someone else, (the boyfriend or the office) is the recipient of the left overs!

It's funny... When I did that test almost 100 pounds ago, I was lead to believe I was "large framed". Makes sense, right, I wear an 11 shoe and have large hands, 5'6" so height is pretty average. BUT, try it now, (90+ pounds off and at a healthy weight) and I'm "small framed" by that test. At 140-145 pounds I wear a size 4 comfortably. Personally, I think it's BS. I was FAT before. That is all.

I didn't really track fat\carbs. I set MFP to balance the rest of my calories (1000-1200 during my loss phase) after 75g of protein to balance equally between the others. I did not lose particularly "fast", but it was fast enough for me. I lost steadily with few stalls, no hair loss and moderate loose skin reaching my goal range, (about a 90 pound loss). by about month 9. I'd lost 13 preop I count in the total.

Maintenance for 6 months now... Painting my own toenails Walking several flights of stairs at work. In leather trimmed leggings, knee high boots and a cute sweater with a 25 pound backpack and being the only one NOT winded in my group! Running up the stairs at to 75 foot tall zipline tower and being less winded than my "fit" friend who runs 1/2 marathons, then receiving instructions for the "little people" in the group to "ball up" on the zipline so I make it all the way across! Ziplining rocks BTW! NOT having my thighs rub together.

Do stay grounded. Online dating was not a thing when I dated more than 20 years ago, but I gotta say, it's been FUN! I spent the last 6 months "volume dating"... Meeting as many people as I could, not taking it too seriously, not getting too deeply involved with any ONE person and It. Was. Fun! But exhausting. I've kinda settled down with just one for the time being and that transition from my phone blowing up all the time to a normal relationship was interesting. Kinda felt like there was a small hole there where all that "attention" was for the week after I hid my profiles. But life is good right now. Feels like I got a little bit of "normal" for the first time in a long time! And you know what, some men will want you for your body no matter what. Some will look for a deeper connection. When you're first meeting someone, I think the assessment of "is there chemistry"? is going to happen, (it needs to happen) no matter what, and it's okay. Compatibility is a "total package". I like him because he's a bonafide hero, a badass firefighter, with an education, principles, a good heart and bad boy biker spirit. He likes me because I'm educated, have a "fine" a$$ and biker chick spirit among other things. I LIKE that he "looks" and thinks I'm beautiful, (relaxed fit skin and all). It makes my still very present body image issues melt away! He's recently lost 50 pounds (diet and exercise) and likes that I start my day with exercise and a Protein shake because it inspires him to make better choices too. It may be vain, I'm not sure how interested I'd have been in him 50 pounds ago when the most exercise he got was lifting 12oz at a time. I need someone who can keep up with me on and off the bike! So don't fear your soon to be beautiful bod! Embrace it! But do try to stay grounded. It IS a jungle out there! But jungle surfing can be fun!

I had "silent reflux" pre-op, diagnosed with my EGD after which they put me on Omeprazole which helped A LOT. They told me it could get worse with the sleeve and that if it was uncontrollable afterwards the "fix" was a revision to R/Y. It WAS worse post op, but they put me on a second dose of Omaprazole which finally got it under control after the first few weeks, (which were bad). Still take 2x day, (may for the rest of my life) but have no symptoms. Hope you find relief soon.

It sucks to make yourself get up and do it when you hurt. And I can only guess that you do. I certainly did almost 100 pounds ago. At some point, I had to decide what I wanted more... To be one with my sheets, or to get off my @ss and move! I have congenital hip displasia. Pain since my 20's so I'm fairly limited in WHAT I can do without causing more damage. I finally ended up purchasing a high end exercise bike. It sits in my living room in front of my big screen. In the beginning, I motivated myself by starting a new fairly addictive Netflix series and only allowing myself to watch it from the bike. Believe it or not, Breaking Bad helped me break my bad habit of inactivity! I HAD to know what happened next! Today, with several more series I wanted to see behind me, I get up at 4:30 am and spend 45-60 min pedaling away enjoying some TV. My motivation now is how it makes me feel when I DO vs when I DON'T. My day is just not right if I don't start it by sweating. I feel heavy and lethargic, my brain seems "slower" and have to watch what I eat much closer as I don't have the extra 400ish calories to play with. And I DON'T like to live like I'm on a diet! At some point you have to stop wishing for what you want and TAKE IT! It's there for you, you just have to decide how badly you want it!

I stuck to decaf for a couple months. Today I'll have 1 cup in the morning with a scoop of chocolate or vanilla whey shaken in. Makes a yummy latte. If I want more coffee I use decaf. I was SO addicted before, (diet coke was my 'water'. It took me 6 months to wean off. I never want to be that addicted to anything again! Plus, a lesser known side effect of caffeine is that it leeches the calcium from our systems. Sleevers already have to take extra since we are somewhat malabsorbed (not like a R\Y, but calcium deficiency IS a thing for us too). I need to keep all the calcium I ingest!

Mine was required for 5 days, but I ended up doing closer to 7 as my EGD happened right before the 5 days started and I had to clear liquid fast for that. I WAS required to lost 10 pounds between my consult and pre-op appointment, but was allowed food during that time.

All I can say is that I was more afraid of what my life looked like WITHOUT surgery than I was of the complications FROM surgery. I'd been overweight to obese since I was 8 years old. I was reasonably healthy until I hit my 40's. After that it was a downhill slide of blood pressure meds, cholesterol meds, asthma meds, anti-anxiety meds and pain from carrying around an extra 100 pounds. I carried it pretty well. No one would have guessed that I was 100 pounds overweight when I went in for surgery 13 months ago. So complications... They DO happen, but they didn't happen to me. I was only hospitalized overnight, never needed narcotic pain meds and was back to work the next week. It was a struggle the first month, but I got in a groove after that. I do not miss being able to eat a big meal. At. All. I thought I'd mourn food. I don't. I love the freedom to eat what I like how I like it in small quantities and be free from the obsession I had with food! I've given things up... All my pre-op meds, carbonation, my sedentary lifestyle, and most caffeine. Traded for Protein bars, an exercise bike, Vitamins, confidence, size 4 skinny jeans and a new found social life! GOOD TRADE as far as I'm concerned!

It took me 6 months to break my caffeine addiction! I used to start out with several large cups of coffee, then drink diet coke like it was water all day long. I managed to wean off completely starting with half-caf coffee and subbing LaCroix for some of the diet coke, but it was not easy! I had headaches off and on for months. I stayed completely off for the first several months post op, and have returned to a single k-cup of caffeinated coffee in the morning. If I want more coffee, it's decaf. I don't do any kind of soda at all any more. Bubbles are banned and make me feel icky anyway. Do what you can to get off that stuff now! You don't want to be dealing with kicking that addiction post op.

I was told to get at least 73g of protein per day for women, (more if you're exercising). Given I don't want to live on grilled chicken or some other hunk of meat for 3-5 meals per day, I'm going to have to incorporate some protein supplements. COULD I get it with "all food"? Yes. I just choose not to live that way. I'm more satisfied with variety in my diet which helps me stay compliant with eating well. Plus I LIKE a scoop of chocolate why in my coffee! Tastes like a latte and I miss it when I have to use "regular" creamer. My afternoon supplement, (when I get one), is a PowerCrunch bar which gives me my "cookie" fix. My doc doesn't care how I get my nutritional needs met, just that I'm getting them met, that I've advanced my diet, that I feel good and that my labs are good.

I've had very much the same experience only sounds like mines moved a bit faster which was scary as hell! I went from this body dismorphic late 40s divorcee to the very obvious object of desire in what felt like a hot minute! It was a few weeks. We've really hit it off and I LIKE this one. Kinda scary to be in this vulnerable position where where we can get hurt huh? This is the second guy I've dated (out of probably 50 in the last 6 months, yeah, I was going for volume, heh) that I LIKE. The first one broke me a little. But I finally decided that I wasn't going to remain "shut down" for safety anymore. It's a good thing. Feel like a teenager again! Feel like I'm growing. It's easy to hide behind all that extra weight and use it to shut people out but look what we were missing! It's good to feel strong enough to take a risk!