Ginger Snaps

There's an app you can get for iPhone called "Eat Slower"... you can set it to beep or vibrate up to every 3 minutes. You just lay it on the table beside your plate, set it for 2 or 3 minutes and then every time it vibrates or beeps, you take a bite. It's AMAZING how long two minutes can be! lol Maybe this will help you out. I agree -- it's very hard to eat slowly. G

I agree about getting a trainer to work with you who has experience in people your size. Or, you might ask the doctor if he'll write you a script for physical therapy. I've heard of some people getting that so insurance will help cover. They talk to you about exercise (which will probably be walking at this point) but they also work with you on balance issues and look for areas where you might be weak (my left shoulder) and help you develop some strength in those areas.

I agree with all the above. I'm a month out from bypass and I never feel hungry. I eat by the clock, trying to get in my Protein (60 g per day) through small "meals" throughout the day. I call them "meals" because it might be the three tablespoons of Better Than eggs that I'm eating scrambled now for Breakfast, or 2-3 ounces of low-fat lunch meat, or a 1/2 cup of turkey fat free chili. It's amazing how little food it takes to make a "meal". I loved to overeat -- the only head game I feel going on right now that's like what I felt before is this dang cupcake thing -- when I was alone at the house (usually a Saturday afternoon), I'd go to the grocery store and buy a package of 12 of those little miniature butter cream icing cup cakes and eat all of them. Now, every time I was in the grocery store they are right there staring at me (by the front door so I can't avoid them) and my mind says -- Hey... cupcakes! I walk away because I know I don't want to go down that path again and because they'd probably make me sick anyway, but my brain still talks about them. Other than that, I really don't feel any cravings for any of the old foods. Bread doesn't sound good, chocolate has no appeal... my tastes haven't changed but I'm not driven by the cravings for those things. I think the doubts you are having are SO NORMAL! None of us felt in control over our eating or we wouldn't have had surgery. But you see so many successful people here who have gained that control and you can be one of us too! Best wishes.

@Kimteehee I'm right there with you... I worried a lot about whether my depression or bipolar would "kick in" after surgery and I'm doing great. I haven't felt any more or less emotional than I did before surgery. I'm so happy it didn't create problems because I have been stable on meds for a long time and don't want to move backwards! Wishing you the best!

I also had reflux and decided to go with the bypass. I haven't regretted it so far. Any food I've tried is fine (I'm sticking strictly to the plan -- I'm sure fried chicken wouldn't sit well) and no nausea or vomiting or anything like that. I went with bypass because of the reflux but also because I wanted the surgery with the best track record and best chance of maximum weight loss. So far down 22 pounds in 30 days -- not too shabby!

That's great! It took me to about 3-1/2 weeks to feel that energy but I had pneumonia the first week and I feel like that threw me behind a week. Best wishes and I hope it's all downhill for you now!

My doctor was OK with me walking as much as I felt like I could starting right after surgery. It was hard for me because I also developed pneumonia and ended up back in the hospital. I was the one pushing the IV pole for laps around the floor. My doctor just gave me clearance yesterday (4 weeks out) to start lifting again even though I had a pretty big hiatal hernia and I thought I'd have to wait longer. It depends on your situation and your surgeon, but I think you definitely can walk now as much as you can tolerate. And the energy thing is perfectly normal... it took me about 2-1/2 weeks to feel like I wasn't made of lead! lol

It sounds like you're having a bit of perfectionism going on -- you've done great so far and who cares if you weren't perfect all the time? This is a little bump in the road and you have the skills and knowledge to get over it. DON'T give up on the training -- muscle burns more calories than fat, so if you're building muscle, you're amping up your metabolism. Use your doctor and NUT to your full advantage. And believe your doctor if he says you're doing great. THEY KNOW!!! We're often our own worst critic -- decide today you're going to be gentler to yourself and stop beating yourself up! You wouldn't do that to your best friend, so don't do it to yourself either! Wishing you wild success!

I'd suggest going back to your surgeon and NUT and going back to the basics. After having something as drastic as WLS, why would you want to go after another snake-oil quick fix that hasn't been proven to work? If you get back to the basics of Protein first, very limited carbs, you can be successful with the surgery. Go back to your surgeon, be honest with them and get a plan together. They want to see you succeed as much as you want to! Best wishes!

I'm not on any blood thinners and not at risk for clots. I didn't have to do any shots before or after surgery. I had them daily in the hospital (with a nurse injecting) but I refused those when I was readmitted for pneumonia because I was up walking around a lot and was tired of being stuck. It's not always required.

WebMD has some very useful and medically accurate information about all 3 surgeries. They have slide shows and have statistics that talk about the benefits and risks. I think there might be some animated slideshows in it, too.

I have a Fitbit and used to wear it religiously never taking it off except to shower. Now that I'm out of the habit, I keep forgetting to put it on. I find it's a really useful tool. I tried to set goals for myself of 7000 steps a day. It's hard to get that many in with a sedentary desk job. But, I'm walking between 30-60 minutes a day on the treadmill now, so if I could remember to wear the dang thing I'm probably getting that many pretty easily now and should up my goal. G

Not bad -- perfectly normal!!! I'm a visual person too and love to see that ticker for the weight move down and the ticker for surgery move further and further out (I'm post-surgery). Best wishes and wild success on your surgery!

Wishing you an uncomplicated surgery and recovery and wild success in your efforts!

Bought cat litter at Target the other day. The bag I buy weighs 18 pounds. As I was walking across the parking lot with it kind of hugging it against my belly because it was heavy and didn't have a handle, I realized just 4 short weeks ago I was carrying more weight that than this around on my body every day all day long. What a great feeling to know that weight is gone and more will follow and I won't be this big ever again!

I haven't been here for a while -- bypass on June 9th and doing great now 4 weeks out. Just saw my surgeon this morning and he cleared me for exercise -- said "do whatever you want"! YAY! I've been walking on the treadmill but I find cardio work to be SO boring! No complications (other than being readmitted to the hospital for pneumonia 2 days after I came home). No nausea, vomiting, pain... feeling great! Was very tired the first 2 weeks but that was in part because of the pneumonia. Started regular foods yesterday -- everything tastes great and sits well except for half of a protein bar I tried to eat one day. Felt like a brick in my stomach. I'm so glad I did this -- down 24 pounds. I went to Target to buy cat litter the other day. The bag I buy weighs 18 pounds and as I was carrying it out to the car I thought -- gee -- a month ago I was carrying around more weight than this every day all day long. Amazing to think about!

Woot woot! Congratulations! Ginger

Are you tracking Protein and carbs? My NUT and doctor have a goal of 60 g of protein a day for me. If I'm eating that much, I find it hard to get many carbs in at all (except from the beans). Even before seeing the NUT, you might want to log your food for a couple of days so they can see what you are eating and help fine tune it.

OK -- don't know if this will work for you or not, but if you work for a larger company they probably have a nursing mother's room with a couch. On days when I feel wiped out, I schedule myself a 30 minute lunch or break or whatever you call it and go in and take a quick nap (with phone alarm set). It makes ALL the difference in the world for me to be able to finish out the day. You might also be able to take a quick nap in your car if no room is available. I made special arrangements with my boss and he was fully supportive of me napping so I could work -- better than not working at all. Best wishes!

@@cbk -- there is a whole forum devoted to people revising from band to bypass... http://www.bariatricpal.com/forum/775-band-to-gastric-bypass-revisions/ Best wishes!

I was very low energy for about 2-1/2 weeks but I also had a bout of pneumonia just after surgery that got me readmitted. Once I got on some pureed food with flavor, I started feeling a lot better and now 4 weeks out today I feel great. In the second and third week when I came back to work, I used the nursing mothers room in the early afternoon and caught a 30 minute nap on the couch and it made all the difference in the world being able to make it through the day. It does get better!

If you're feeling breathless even when talking, I'd suggest calling the doctor. Five days after my surgery, I was having trouble getting enough breath to finish sentences. I didn't feel pain or anything, just didn't seem to be able to get enough air in. He sent me to the ER and turns out I had pneumonia (no fever or other symptoms). Shortness of breath can also be a sign of a pulmonary embolism, so it's worth mentioning to your doctor. I sing for my church worship team and it took me 2 weeks after the pneumonia to feel like I had any lung capacity again but now I feel great 4 weeks out.

I've had a similar experience. I've been able to tolerate everything I've eaten (except I tried half a Protein bar last week on soft foods and it felt like I had swallowed a brick). I don't feel "full" or "restriction" but I'm measuring every single thing I put on a plate and I'm staying at half a cup or less. I don't feel any hunger either, so I'm eating by the clock. I eat Breakfast and around 10:30 or 11:00 have lunch, then a late lunch around 1:30 or 2:00 and then dinner around 6:00. It works good to split lunch because it's too long of a stretch from 7am to 12pm or 12pm to 6pm. The past week I have started noticing more of a full feeling and actually haven't finished some of the portions I've doled out for myself.

I thought about trying to precook stuff but never got around to it. However, I haven't had any problems because the progression is slow anyway. So, at the beginning of each week, I'd read the booklet from my nutritionist to see what was allowed and then go to the store and buy 2-3 or some of those things. Your choices are pretty limited and you won't eat very much, so shopping is pretty lightweight. Now that I've finished my soft foods week and am on normal food this week, it's a little more intimidating. But, I bought the precooked chicken fajita meat, cans of chili and refried Beans and egg beaters and I'm fairly good to go. I don't mind eating the same things over and over again so it's working for me to just stock the fridge with precooked stuff. I keep track of Protein with My Fitness Pal and if I'm not at 60 grams late at night, I throw in a shake.

I'm a month out now... I continued to swallow my pills after my surgery for 3-4 days and then I got readmitted to the hospital and my doctor told me he didn't want me swallowing any pills again from Sunday to Friday when he saw me. So, I quit cold turkey. I really struggled that week with feeling very weak and tired. It was a combination of the pneumonia, low calories and going off the meds. Once I saw him and he said I could start swallowing pills again, I did and I've felt great ever since. So, I don't think I'll be asking the doctor to drop off any of meds for a while at least until I've dropped some more weight. Then, we might discuss it. But, it did prove to me just how important my meds are to my sanity!