VSGAnn2014

Aaaahhh ... the sudden diarrhea. I'm 34 days post-op, I've had that happen at least twice ... and both times was in the morning not long after a big Protein shake. Don't worry about it. You're going to experience more than a few strange things before this is over. And most of 'em just happen. And then don't happen anymore. If it was a reaction to Peanut Butter, don't despair. What your body doesn't tolerate now, it will probably tolerate in a month or two. How it is now is certainly not how it will be in a few months. One step, one day, one month at a time is my mantra.

I agree about doing what you can to get him to attend the intro lecture. There's absolutely ZERO commitment involved. And a lot of education. Not to mention, looking around that room and seeing people who look EXACTLY like you who are seriously considering "the big no-no" ... WLS. Best wishes to you both.

I guess it comes down to this .... What do you really want? Once you know / decide that, you'll know what to do.

I'm taking 2 chewables a day of Caltrate (Calcium and Vitamin D3 Supplement). Each chewable pill contains: Vitamin D3 800 i.u. (200% DV) Calcium 600 mg. (60% DV) Magnesium 40 mg. (10% DV) Zinc 7 mg. (50% DV) Copper 0.25 mg. (13% DV) Manganese 1.8 mg (90%)

From the vets, I'm hearing: * High Protein * A wide variety of foods (not same old, same old every day) * Redefining "normal eating" to mean "like a normal, thin person" (not how we used to eat) Thanks, all of you. You're very kind to respond to this thread.

Checking in, fellow August sleevers. Sounds like everyone's finding their post-op VSG groove. Also sounds like everyone has discovered that the Three Week Stall wasn't just an urban myth. I'm 34 days post-op. Have lost 33 pounds total (pre- and post-op). I'm 2 pounds away from Onederland. Only unusual part of my VSG resume is that on Day 28 post-op I had gall bladder surgery. Could've done without that, but c'est la vie, eh? But I had the same surgeon, same surgical team, same hospital. In and out of the hospital same day. My protein intake is going well. Food experimentation is fine, even sometimes delicious. Last night we had Mexican takeout, and I had chicken fajitas (2 ounces of meat and 1 ounce of onions/peppers) slightly ground and 2 ounces of Rosarita no-fat traditional refried beans and an ounce of cheddar cheese (melted). I even had a couple (no more) of tortilla chips. Was delish! My water is usually 8-16 ounces too low (REALLY got to fix that!). Walking the dog for 30 minutes a day is my typical exercise, but my exercise activities and variety will increase soon. Also, Miralax works for me when constipation gets bad. My energy sort of waxes and wanes, but over the long haul it's getting better all the time. So, other than the gall bladder surgery interruption, all's going well here. Best to all. Focus on your progress and stay positive! I think that helps.

I had an easy recovery. But I napped more those first two weeks than I have ever napped in my whole life. Really loved those naps. So delicious.

Always enjoy your reports from the front, Vegas. Thanks and congrats on your persistence and progress.

I'm with @@TatorTot ... please keep the NSVs coming. I am also loving this thread. This is real life. Who care what the damn scale says.

Gee. I did not know that. Thanks for the news flash.

Sweetheart, I don't know WHY you want plastics. Those GUNS you're toting around are phenomenal. I can only imagine how much the trajectory of your whole life has changed. Thank you so much for coming back and showing us how it's done longer-term. Ann

Isn't it a relief to know what's going on? Mysteries like that just seem to make things worse. Glad to hear you're doing better.

Sounds like you are figuring it out. We learned so long ago how to eat and swallow. But now we have to relearn how to do it. It's a strange little trip, isn't it?

Whoa! You have had some bad luck. And I can absolutely understand how you are feeling and why you're feeling that way. I don't speak from personal experience, but there are people here who've also had leaks and recovered from them. It seems that your leak was caught relatively early on -- and that's the important thing to focus on. I hope they'll chime in and give you their stories and how they went on to conquer their initial setbacks. But in the meantime, you can use the search function here to find and read some of their stories. I hope you can find a path toward some optimism, because that would make your recovery easier. Maybe you could focus on all the things about the identification and treatment of your leak that were done correctly and from which you benefited? (By the above I'm not trying to negate your need to express your actual feelings right now. I wish you all the best as you continue to recover from your leak and its repair.)

I would gently suggest that you try to walk some more. For one thing, it will help you deal a bit with the stress and tension you're feeling. (Exercise bleeds stress out of the body, just does.) Also, if the weather is good where you are, just getting outside and getting some sunshine on your skin could help. It makes me feel better -- and there are some actual biochemical reasons for this. My experience (I'm only 33 days post-op) was that hydration was the most important thing. I couldn't get in all my Water initially, but it gradually went higher and higher. Just keep working at it. If you haven't tried Mio drops in your water, they were my go-to way early on to get the water down. (I'm now trying to wean myself off artificial water sweeteners, but they really do help early on.) Re Protein, I found Greek vanilla yogurt so soothing and a good source of protein. I have confidence you'll feel better eventually, but hope you feel better soon. Best wishes.

@@keepingmysecrets ... Since i posted above, I skimmed your 20 posts and understand now that you've been attacking this problem seriously for longer than a year. All I'd seen of your posts here when I posted above were your posts in this thread, and those didn't communicate the magnitude of your IRL effort to conquer your obesity. OK, respect. I understand better now your OTOH, OTOH back and forth about should I, shouldn't I have this surgery? As you already know, you're an unusual case here, having lost 170 or so pounds thus far through dieting under the supervision of your bariatric surgeon (or he will be if you get the surgery). I take back my snark. I really thought you were just jacking everybody up. As Emily Litella used to say ... never mind. Best to you.

Whoa. Dude has definite agenda. And is massively abusive. It's essentially a conspiracy theory site. Oh well ... gotta love the Internet.

Vabeachlady, you might be in the 2% of people who can keep it off. If you think you can, go for it. Honestly, if you could keep it off you wouldn't need or want the surgery. Good luck with your decision.

Yeah, I think so, too.

I am finally at the point where plain Water tastes better to me (and goes down faster) than Mio- and other flavored water. Good. I was tired of all those "tastes." Just plain water is a relief. And it's surely healthier than all those additives.

You having fun?

That's a WEIRD news story. Seriously. She's really milking it for the camera. (Says my gut.) Plus, she's not very heavy, even in her pre-op pictures. Plus, she as blonde as a beach bunny in those Mexican vacation pix, and now her long hair is grey through and through. How much time has elapsed between surgery and the on-camera interview? IMHO, there's more to this story.

You can do this. You really can. You're smart. And this is all going to be OK for you. WLS is just a big damn deal. It's a lot to confront -- the feelings, the fears, the information. I really do understand. You're going to be fine.

Rosie O'Donnell's return to "The View" and her 50-pound loss with VSG surgery is going to educate a lot of people very fast.

To the OP: I think you've got your research straight and your head on straight about this. I would not have chosen the bypass route for myself. I started at 235 pounds and am 5'5". Didn't want or need lifelong malabsorption, anemia, potential reactive hypoglycemia, or more potential complications. Go for the sleeve. Only one little caveat -- is everyone but you in your neighborhood getting a bypass because the local surgeon has a lot more bypass surgery experience and not so much sleeve experience? If that's the case, I'd be a little nervous. What you want is a surgeon who has beaucoups experience and success doing the surgery YOU will have. Just a thought.