Photo925

My doctors visits have been pretty easy. Its really a good opportunity to ask any questions you've been wondering about. The dr will check the incisions and talk about how things are going, what you're eating and what kind of activity you've been doing. I saw my dr at one week out, one month out and then I go back at 3 months out next month. He also checks to make sure that you are on track with your weigh loss and tells you how to adjust if its not going as well as he thinks it should be. When waking up from surgery, I would say that my pain was about a 7 at the worst. That being said, you are pretty numb and they load you up with pain meds pretty good so you are in and out of sleep. Once you get to your room, you start controlling your pain meds yourself with a pain pump which is great. They set the pump on a timer so that you can hit a button and get the meds administered to your tummy yourself. You can hit the pump whenever you want as long as the timer has reset (so you don't giving yourself too much medication). I remember the one thing I wanted was some Water cause my mouth was super dry, but they wouldn't let me have it. When they finally let me brush my teeth the next morning I was sooo happy!!! I know a lot of people talk about not needing or using the pain meds that they give you, but I don't really agree. The pain meds help you relax so that you can rest and get healed. I don't think I would have slept at all without them just from being uncomfortable. When I woke up, I felt like myself, if fact I wondered if he forgot to do the surgery, but I had my five scars, so I knew he did!!! But I really didn't feel any different. I lot of people talk about feel nauseous after, but I was lucky in that regard also. I only ever felt nauseous the first time I stood up to do laps around the hospital and once I started walking, it went right away Kristina

Hi, Just a tip on Water intake. I had a hard time with this in the beginning also and a couple of things helped me. 1. Make a game of it....I used to put four bottles of water on my desk in the morning and I couldn't go home for the day until I drank them all. 2. Crystal Light - Ya, you don't want to have this all the time, but it can help you get used to having to drink all the time. I like it better so I can mix it up as opposed to having just water. 3. Buy a fun cup - okay, this one sounds silly, but I saw a thing on pinterest where the lady had a water bottle that was 32oz. She marked the sides with times so that she would know if she was behind (she had to get the water level to a certain point my the time marked) she had two of them..one for morning and one for afternoon I don't think I've mentioned this, but I think the most important thing to do during the time frame of class is to give up anything that you are addicted to and cannot have after surgery during the course of class. I was very addicted to caffeine and drank 3-4 monster energy drinks a day. I weened myself off them slowly, but had I waited until surgery, it would have been rough!! (Plus I'm not positive, but I think you cannot have nicotine in your system for a certain time period before surgery) So if you are addicted to caffeine, liquor or nicotine, I suggest that giving that up be your first step!! I totally hear you on having to skip classes at the holidays, we had to skip two weeks during my classes, it sucks because you want the process to keep moving, but also because you stop doing classes for a bit during a really easy time to gain weight...we all came back weighing more than before Have a great day all, Kristina

Ya..tracking calories is definitely eye opening!! And fruit is a tough one - still haven't even had much since surgery - I've put it in my shakes once or twice, but once you have surgery, your focus totally changes and you really only care about getting Protein in and once you have a small amount of protein, you are pretty full, so fruit and veggies are very secondary! and fruit just isn't worth all the calories sometimes. When I say protein powder - I mean the powder you buy vs the ready to drink shakes. The premier Protein Shakes are a ready to drink shake that are super handy to keep at work or for a morning when you are running late. As for the size of your stomach and drinking - Im not positive about the 2oz thing, I think that its actually closer to 5 oz with the sleeve and 2oz with the bypass. Drinking is really only an issue in the first weeks after surgery. While in the hospital, you only drink out of this tiny little one ounce cup and they tell you to drink one ounce every 15 minutes. You don't start taking protein until after you get home. I would take and make a double protein shake in the morning and then just sip from the cup all day long until it was gone (some days I just couldn't finish it, but that was more because of getting sick of the taste rather than the full liquid feeling) Once I graduated to the creamy protein shakes, I could only have half of one at a time, so I would have have for Breakfast and half for lunch and then an egg for dinner. An important thing my surgeon pushed after surgery is that you are only to eat three times a day and only what you can eat in a half hour and that's it. If you get hungry in between meals, you drink more water!! Snacking is a huge no no, which kinda goes against the thought process many people have with regards to eating small meals throughout the day to keep the metabolism up, but its easy to get used to, especially because most of the time you aren't ever hungry. I find that most of the time when I think Im hungry, its just because Im bored!! Kristina

food logs are a necessary evil, but I think that you will find when you use one of the online options (Lose It or My Fitness Pal) they have a lot of restaurants listed in their database. If it isn't listed I always just do my best to guess. I find it harder when you eat at a friends house or somthing because you have no idea what they put in that food to make it!! So you have to just guess and not worry to much about complete accuracy. Exercise is the same way, different people burn calories at different rates, so when the treadmill tells you what you have burned, its just an average. I love the premier Protein shakes from costco. Most of the people from my class stick to chocolate, but I like the vanilla. The surgeons are also really big on finding a Protein powder that works for you. They like the powders better because you can add more to help you get to the protein number you have to reach each day. The powders are cool too because you can add stuff like frozen fruit or Peanut Butter to them to mix up the flavors. I personally always have a case of Premier Protein around because they are quick and easy in the morning. Premier is also good because its 30 g of protein and getting the 70-90 grams you need a day is extremely difficult without working in a good shake once a day. Glad your first class went well!! That's a huge class, mine had maybe 14 by the time we were done, but we lost like 5 people after the first class. Kristina

I'm so happy that I can help and share my experience so I'm beyond happy to answer any questions!!! The amount of time spent on exercise in class depends on the teacher. My teacher spent tons of time, but there were classes that did none and some that just walked the building (after classes are complete, you have an appt to walk around the building four times to prove that you are at least healthy enough to do that because walking laps in the hospital is super important). So the amount of time depends on the teacher. My class did not have to turn in weekly logs, but there were classes that did and honestly it's a good habit to start developing.... I log everything since surgery and it's a great help to see trends!! Everyone is different, so discussions about personal weight loss were difficult. There were times where we went around the class to talk about how we were doing, but only the teacher saw your weigh ins to see how you were doing....I found that when I did badly (cause my class took place through the holidays too!!) it was cathartic to just confess that you had done badly to help move in a positive way. There is tons of class participation, but I suppose that this could be different based on the teacher also. You guys are mostly right about the classes getting out at the same time. My class way actually told how lucky we were that no classes let out at the same time as ours. It still goes quickly though. Since all the after class appts are relatively short, they fit you in quickly and by the time you get to the surgeons, there are three of them to choose from and they do multiple surgeries most days. Now, when I say it goes quick, it does, but that waiting for the different offices to call is the worst....it feels like forever!!! Plus if your class is close like mine was, you'll know when others start getting called and you'll stare at your phone just willing it to ring!!! But just be as patient as you can...once you get your date, everything flies by!!! Kristina

Since some poeple were wondering about what they talk about in class, I thought I would put the table of contents up from my class so you can see the basics on what is covered: 1. Introduction to Options - Program Goals 2. Establishing a new relationship with food 3. Embracing Change 4. Reasons I often Overeat 5. Benefits of Exercise 6. Asserting Myself 7. Surgical / Medical Info 8. Importance of Nutrients 9. Healthy Physical Activity - Building Exercise into My Life 10. What is Addiction? 11. Assessing me New relationship with food 12. Healthy Physical Activity - Resistance Training 13. Understanding my Surgery 14. Choice and Taking Responsibility 15. Post Surgery Eating One 16. Post Surgery Exercise 17. Managing My Anger 18. Post Surgery Eating Two 19. Creating Healthy Habits 20. What do I need to Know? 21. Body Image 22. Creating a Healthy Lifestyle 23. Managing My Stress and Stress Eating 24. Maintaining Healthy Lifestyle Changes Hopefully that is helpful!! Krisitna

@thecandidate the sleeve was definitely the best thing I've done to take my life in a positive direction!!! Exercising is great now! I have great energy and only have tobe careful about when I exercise and when I eat. Since you can't snack, I try o eat my lunch a little later if I workout after work. I only got cleared to exercise at the end of sept...until that point I could still only lift under ten pounds. I wouldn't say I felt a lot of exhaustion. Maybe the first couple days back to work because your getting back in the swing. Then there was one day I helped my sister move...I still didn't lift much but after a day of a lot of activity, I was beat!! I stayed home from work for two and a half weeks and was in the hospital for three nights...surgery on Wednesday and I went home on Saturday. There were two people in my class that had to stay in the hospital longer, but the rest of us had the standard three nights. I'm happy to chat or answer questions!! Kristina

Hi Guys, Sorry I took so long to respond, but I try to stay away from the computer on the weekends!! So glad to hear that you are all doing well. Im about two and a half months post op and Im down 47 lbs now!!! WOO HOO!!! Its going great but the stalls are brutal!!! It really sucks when you are eating right and working out and your body just isn't responding!! But I try just to stay away from the scale for a few days after I notice it not moving for a bit and it removes the stress and he weight loss always catches up! Its so funny to me because you guys have some of the same concerns that I had prior to surgery and now I don't even give it a second thought. So far my hair has fallen out much (Im still early) but I took the hair skin and nails Vitamins prior to surgery and then started taking them again as soon as the doctor allowed me to. Getting in enough Water is a piece of cake for me. I actually drink normal and have for more than a month now. Every once in awhile I'll have to remind myself that I haven't had anything to drink, but I can drink a normal amount (no one ounce sips...I haven't done that since I was in the hospital). I haven't had any issues with food...except ground beef....my tummy does not care for that and honestly I wouldn't have eaten it, but I was traveling for work and had to go to all these dinners where choices were slip!! My advice would be to avoid travel in your first 3 months!! But I brought my Protein drinks and crystal light packets and it was alright!! As far as the classes go, I can't say that I enjoyed them as much as some people do. Im a huge researcher and much of the stuff they taught just came off as basic or very common sense and when I would ask a specific question and my teacher did not know, I lost faith in her. We also spent up to 45 minutes of each class working out...which is great, but she would not cover the information in the binder that we were supposed to be covering because we spent so much time working out. I think your class experience can really depend on your teacher. You'll see if you ever have to make up a class with another teacher that they are all super different in their style of teaching the information. I would love to have had all the guest speakers that were talked about above, but that never happened, I think we had one the whole time The next thing I'll say about the class is that looking back, I think that Kaiser goes over things in a way that suits both types of surgeries that they offer, but much of what they teach is for the RNY patient and/or is the worst case scenario. Which is kinda good because afterwards you are just left feeling like everything is so easy compared to how they taught you things would be in class....of course I recognize that everyone is different, but just from my personal experience and the friends I've held onto from class, the whole process is a lot easier that Kaiser makes it out to be. Also, the surgeon does over ride a lot of what Kaiser says. When you first go in to meet your surgeon, they give you a disc that has a pdf on it with information about the surgery and your surgeon will strictly want you to follow those guidelines as far as introducing food after surgery (I'll try to attach the pdf...if not you guys can send me your emails and I can forward it to you) The guidelines that the surgeon gives you differ in ways from what Kaiser says, but I stick with my surgeon!! For example, I was having a pain at my main incision a couple of weeks post surgery...turns out it is totally normal because the inner stitches were just a little tight and they were pulling....my surgeon gave me another round of pain meds to help me sleep at night and when kaiser found out they told me to stop taking them and switch to tylenol.....overall, it would just be better if they were on the same page about things. My class was also super close during the class and the surgeries. We have definitely separated some since as it was easy to stay a tight group when we were all focused on surgery, but after surgery is complete and you start settling back into normal life, we just separated, because we didn't have too much in common once the surgery wasn't connecting us anymore. There has also been a degree of competitiveness that took place. Don't get me wrong, everyone was happy for each other, but when some people lost weight faster than others, it created some tension. This all being said, I still talk to my best friend from the class almost daily and there's a smaller group of us getting together on Saturday for bowling!! Your classmates offer great support!! I just scrolled through the messages to answer a couple of questions...but let me know if there are specific additional ones as Im happy to help!! For class there was no homework in my class...however, i heard that some of the classes were required to turn in food logs each week. For protein I still do the Premier Protein from costco. I did the nectar protein right after surgery cause for that first week you need a clear type of protein and I haven't touched the stuff since!! That first week home, I was so sick of that protein that I couldn't wait to be rid of it, so make sure you get one you really like!! Or have a second options available!! Your tastes do change also, I literally think that scrambled eggs are the greatest thing on the planet after surgery...they were alright before surgery, but I just love them now. And I hate hard boiled eggs now and I used to eat them all the time before. Anyway...Im all over the place with my comments, please let me know if you have any questions!!

@@The Candidate Hi Debbie, Keep asking questions!! Im happy to help!! Im a bad example of how long it takes from the end of classes to surgery date because of my embolism. I had to wait longer because Dr wanted me to finish my blood thinners first. I finished class in May and had surgery in August, but I would say most of the class had surgery within two months of the class ending. A word of advice, when they send you for labs or to take care of something, do it right away. There's so many people waiting, so even waiting a couple days to get blood work can push back when they call you by days or a week even. For my preop labs, there were a whole bunch of tests, but I really just had to give blood, so I couldn't name them all!! For the 100%, no they are not super strict (they will act like they are) all that happens if you don't lose the 10% is that you have to go see Dr. Ray once more after the class ends, before they order your labs and send you off to Pacific Bariatric. Because of that appt, there is like a two week delay for surgery. There was only one person in my class who lost the 10% and she of course had surgery first. I would definitely try to lose it because it will save you some time of waiting. Now, once you meet the surgeon, you absolutely cannot gain any weight or they can cancel your surgery (of course I've heard of people who did gain and it didn't effect the surgery at all) but I believe that is dependent on your particular situation. The way I see it, every pound you lose preop is one less you need to lose post op!! (It's still hard though because you can sometimes get the "food funeral" mentality and have a lot of "last meals" I don't know a great deal about the bypass because I went into this knowing I wanted the sleeve. But yes, it is true that the hunger goes away. I can say that there are days where you feel a little hungry, but it's usually head hunger and I'm just bored so I find something to keep me busy. You almost have to remind yourself to eat every once in awhile. Hope that helps. Please let me know if you have any other questions

@@The Candidate I'm happy to answer any questions!! I picked my surgeon. I know that some people will just take which ever one has the first available appt, but I had had a pulmonary embolism just month prior so I picked Tanak because I had heard good things about him. All the people in my class mostly just took whomever was available but everyone was happy with their surgeon. Dr Tanaka can be almost intimidating when you meet him, but I like that he took everything really seriously. The psych eval was super easy. It was just like having a conversation with your friend. They just want to know that you are ready for the changes and have a good support system. My sister had gone through this before I did, so I had great support and the psych eval isn't even anything to worry about. As far as an endoscopy, I never had to have one. So I'm not sure if that is a new thing, but I never had to have that procedure. I was in the hospital three nights. So I had surgery on Wednesday and was out on Saturday. There were two people in my class that had longer stays because of issues. I took a total of two and a half weeks off work. I work a desk job most of the time though, had I had to be up moving around during the day, I would have taken more. I was definitely tired during the first week back. I did tons of research, so I think I was pretty prepared. Things that surprise me is that even now, six weeks out, I haven't been cleared to work out. I can walk and do cardio stuff, but still can't lift over ten lbs and I expected to be able to get back to working out sooner. Learn now that stalls are a way of life after. I see a lot of people freaking out over not losing weight fast enough or having stalls where they lose nothing for days or weeks. I had to put my scale away to keep from weighing myself all the time. I learned to chill and as long as Im doing what Im supposed to, it will work. Oh....and in class (depending on who your teacher is) they will tell you all sorts of things that they say you can never have or eat or drink ever ever again...its just not true. I really feel like they just tried to scare the crap out of us sometimes in class, everyone is different and you never know how you will react to different foods after surgery!!

Hi, Congrats on getting started with Kaiser!! Im in north county too, but drove down to Clairmont every week so that I could get into class as fast as possible!! As far as deciding what type of surgery you get, they go through the different options with you in class and the benefits of both so that you can make a good decision for you. I think that the doctor would only over rule your decision if there was good evidence that you should go with the other option. I chose the sleeve because I'm not diabetic and I just didn't like the idea or rerouting my insides. I actually never met the surgeon until after classes were over. You have to go to an orientation at pacific bariatric, but they go over the very basic stuff and you'll only meet one of the surgeons there, and he is just giving a speech and answering questions for the group. They may have changed it that the class gets to meet them ahead of time, so I'm not sure. There were two people in my class that chose not to have the surgery (they could still have it because you have a year from the time classes end. One guy was a little older and he felt that he didn't really understand the ins and outs so he opted out. Another guy just wanted to see how much he could lose on his own before having surgery, so he may still have it. As far as what you learned in class, Im a huge researcher, so I learned a lot prior to entering class. The class does add value in getting ready for surgery, but I can't say I got a ton out of it. The best thing I got out of it was the support group of my class. We still chat all the time and all visited each other in the hospital. It's great to have people to know that are going through the same thing as you. Don't stress too much about knowing everything they teach in class before surgery, I have found that a lot of what they taught was very broad, covering what could happen in both surgeries. I had the sleeve and I think a lot of what was in the Kaiser book didn't even apply to me. Let me know if you have any questions!! Good Luck!!

I totally know how you feel. I had surgery on 8/27 and I've lost 30lbs. I really try to actively not focus on the number. I just do what I need to do and stay away from the scale as much as I can!! Stalls are going to happen, but stressing about them does me nothing, so I think its just better to focus on making good choices as opposed to the number on the scale. The weight loss will come!!!

The Premier in just vanilla is my favorite - I used to like the chocolate before surgery, but I lost a taste for it after!!

Life after surgery is great. Im now 6 weeks post op and down 30 lbs. No pain at all anymore. I was cleared to workout recently, but basically only cardio type stuff because im still not allowed to lift over 10 lbs. It is very strange at first to eat so little, but you get used to it quickly. It nice not to be so fixated on food like I used to be. Before surgery there was always a thought in my head about what the next meal would be, but now, I barely think about it. I just keep planning my meals at work. At dinner I mostly eat eggs or fish to keep the Protein high for the day. I have discovered that some senses have changed. There are foods I used to like and hate now and I think my nose is way more sensitive. Good stuff smells amazing and bad stuff gives me an instant headache!! I see my surgeon next week and I'm hoping that I can have some more food options opened up to me!! I've also discovered that Kaiser and my surgeon are clearly not on the same page as far as some things go, it's hard to balance what the right thing to do is, when two different people are telling you different things. I tend to always side with the surgeon though!! He is awesome...I hear all three at Pacific Bariatric are great, but Tanaka was fantastic.

I take the Kirkland SF ones from costco also. They have chocolate or caramel...I love the caramel, you almost forget they are a supplement because they taste just like a caramel chew!!

Pinterest is great for this also!!! I have boards of different meal ideas that I will be able to eat at the different stages!!

Hello, Im three weeks post op. About one week after I was feeling great, no pain, no problems. A few days after that, I started getting a severe pain in my left side, not at the incision, but much deeper into my abdomen. I called the dr and they said this is normal because there are internal stitches. But now I'm a week and a half later, and I still can't move without feeling this sharp pain on my left side. Sometimes its just a twinge and others its more severe and I can't even move. I'm not sure if I should call the doctor again?? Or just deal with it. Has anyone else experienced anything like this?

That just goes to show that everyone is different. I only had pain when I got in and out of bed.... My incisions hurt quite a bit, there's even one now that is still giving me discomfort. As are as nausea goes, I had very little. I mean maybe three minutes tops when I got up to walk around the first time, but that was it. I know there are people from my group that still have regular nausea months after surgery, so I feel lucky that I haven't had that problem. As far as the pain meds go, they give you the prescription to fill before surgery and I would get it filled just in case. Even if you aren't in tons of pain, it can help with the discomfort. I had a very hard time sleeping after I first got home so the pain meds helped take the edge off so that I could sleep more than an hour at a time. Of course it's totally your choice, those are just my two cents. My food is going good so far....it's strange how quickly you get full, but I'm really trying to listen to my body because it can be painful to over eat. A few from my class have had problems with vomiting and that's the last thing I want to do!!!

Yes, the pre-op diet is only one day and it's just Clear liquids. It goes by so crazy fast too because I had my pre-op appt that day too so it was over quick and the nerves take over a bit so I never got hungry. I know what you mean about the six months!!! My sister also had the sleeve via kaiser and she's in riverside and the classes are only 3 months long there!!! The six months goes by quick though and I made great friends who are from all walks of life and they really help you through the journey. If you know anything about fitness or nutrition, I have to admit that the classes are somewhat basic, but it's good to hear things again and it's a lot of info on how to deal after surgery. As far as cross fit goes, I can't say for sure, but given the intensity of cross fit, I would assume you would have to wait a few if not six months to get back at cross fit...it's a pretty major surgery so the exercise after has to be pretty low impact for awhile. You also may need to wait till you can get your calories up before doing cross fit....I know I'm only two weeks out, but I get tired walking in a store!!!! I'm not an expert though, so make sure to ask the surgeon and yhe teacher in the class. I do finally eat real food tomorrow so hopefully I'll have more energy!!! If you lose the 10% and it puts you below on your BMI, you won't be denied....I actually asked the same question at one point!! Let me know if you have any more questions (laying around is getting boring!!!)

Hi there plussizecrossfitter, I went through the program at positive choice as diego and just had surgery on August 27th so I can answer your questions, just keep in mind that I started this a year ago, so something's might be tweaked from that time. 1. Yes they do have evening classes, but I'm not certain if they are any later than a 6pm start time, there may be one at 7, but I'm not sure 2. After orientation, they send you for labs and then put you in a class, mine was about a month after, but I took the first class I could get into. If you need an evening class, you might have to wait a little longer, it just depends where they are in the cycle of classes 3. They did not require proof of previous weight loss attempts. They ask you about it, but that's about it 4. They want you to lose 10% of your total weight! but I'm not really sure what initial date they are going from. I heard different dates including the orientation dates, but my class went off the first day of class to the last. I actually did not lose the 10% (most of my class didn't) and it's not a huge deal. If you don't lose the 10%, there is just an extra hoop to jump through at the end! but it's just en extra meeting with the doctor. That being said, it is best to try to lose the weight. I'm happy to answer questions if you have more'!!

This is such a random question...but how long after surgery can you take a bath?? I've heard of people being able to swim about two weeks after, but Im wondering if the temp of the Water makes a bath a no no for awhile? I realize that different surgeons may have different opinions, but Im just curious because I love a nice long bath!!

Just to clarify, I mean taking a bath...not a shower, but thank you for the input

It's different for everyone...my preop was just to have the surgeon clear you for surgery. I have a secondary preop the day before just to go over paperwork. I won't even see a doctor that day

You and I have similar situations.... I see the surgeon on the 23rd and I'm scheduled for surgery on the 5th.....luckily I don't have much of a preop diet... Only liquids the day before.... I started my journey in September.... Can't wait for surgery!!!

Im scheduled for August 5th (well....hopefully!!) I should have been scheduled back in July, but I had a pulmonary embolism back in March and my surgeon wanted me off my blood thinners before surgery. So im not so patienely waiting!! I had a cat scan last week and my chest scans are all clear (which is awesome) so I see the surgeon on the 23rd to give me the final "okay" for surgery on the 5th....Im so excited that I can harldy wait...I've felt ready for this for months now (I started this journey last September!) Glad to see so many on the journey with me!!!