justmel2003

I had RNY surgery July 2014 and had a great experience with my doc and all the nursing staff at the hospital. I went home on the third day, a Wednesday. I went back to work on Monday (desk job) and only did part time the first week. But while tired at the end of the day i really did feel good! Pain was practically nonexistent. There are some who take 6 weeks off after surgery and all i can think is, why? Obviously there are those that have complications, but I really do think that the quicker you try to move and get back to a normal schedule the better you'll feel. I also tend to think that much time at home gives you too many opportunities to think about food, what you miss eating, etc. Just my two cents. Good luck to you!

I, too, am at a stall after losing 130lb in 10 months. However, since I log everything into My Fitness Pal I can definitely see that it is my higher carbs and lower protein that has had the biggest effect. I'm also turning to food more than water so H2O reduction doesn't help either! I'm trying to get back on track with my food choices and spend more time in the gym. What I have noticed in posts, though, is that strength training is not emphasized. This should really be the foundation of gym work. Cardio is great to condition the heart and lungs as well as building slow twitch (fatigue resistant ) muscle fibers. But building fast twitch muscle (for fast, strong motions like lifting heavy weights) will keep your metabolism running higher, even at rest. Think about it, hamsters can run all day long on their little wheels, but they're still fat, right? Lol And marathon runners can go go go all day and night, but they probably need help lifting a heavy bag of groceries or moving a couch to vacuum. Anyway I know I had great, fast results and am slowly but surely uncovering a better body with strength training (as well as HIIT/Tabata work). Just my two cents. Good luck to everyone on getting back on track!

Hi all, Finally the light bulb went off a few months ago and I just decided, "this is it." My insurance would not cover me so I took money out of my 401k, putting a serious dent in it; however, I'd rather enjoy my life now rather than later (or never, I could always die young!). I went to an informational seminar, listened to the options and made an appointment for a consult with Dr. Snyder (Denver, CO). He was great, talked to me about my options, asked me "why now?," which was good to know he cared about that, and wasn't just after another paying patient - he is concerned that you are actually ready to make this huge change in your life. After meeting with the doc, I met with a case manager that outlined all the steps I need to take to make this happen. After making the final decision to do this and after my initial appointment with Dr. Snyder on April 23rd, my surgery date is quickly coming up Monday, July 21. I honestly can't wait - I've been very big for a very long time and I'm ready to start living my life - hiking, riding a bike, fitting in an airplane seat, wearing pretty underwear, etc. I'm not sure what my 'official' high weight was, but I would guess I was right around 390-400 pounds a couple years ago; my current weight is 373. I've dodged some serious bullets - for instance, I don't have diabetes, high cholesterol, sleep apnea, or hypertension - but I know at age 46 I'm a ticking time bomb, and have started having joint pains; and carrying groceries up the stairs to my 2nd floor apartment has become a major chore. I have a boyfriend of four years that has overall been supportive and caring, and he's behind me 1,000% on this. He's been a little 'too' supportive, I have to say. He says I'm a gem, but I'm still not sure how we ended up together - he has two BS degrees in exercise physiology and molecular biology, and is fanatical about weight training; me? not so much, lol. I have made some strides in the gym thanks to him, but with the surgery coming up he's driving me crazy about preparation, in the gym and outside the gym. He wants me in the gym 6 days a week 1-2 hours at a time and to go 90% liquid diet now, adding arginine, glutamine and citrulline to my Protein shakes to enhance healing. I'm a little stressed about that, to be honest. Right now my stomach is the same big hole and he wants me to pour nothing but liquids in there - it'll be a lot different after my RNY bypass, my stomach will be considerably smaller and I won't be hungry (which I'm looking forward to, honestly). Anyway, has anyone else had a partner/significant other that is overly pushy? Other than dealing with his 'support' I feel really great about this decision and am very calm about it all - of course, I may fall apart the morning of surgery, lol. I'll be in the hospital 3-5 days - what did you guys wish you had taken in with you? Fan? Robe? Book? Anything I won't need at all? How did everyone spend their time, other than walking every couple of hours? I'm hoping to be on the low end of the pain scale, but I'm also having a umbilical hernia repair done, so that might complicate things a little. Anyway, I've been getting a lot of great information reading the various forums, and really appreciate how supportive everyone is. I'll post my before pic when I do that next week, and will try to keep up with monthly after pics - I have a lot to lose (about 200 pounds), so it should be a pretty drastic change for me. Good luck to everyone out there who is thinking about doing this, and a big thanks to all of you who are so involved in supporting the newbies like myself. Melissa

Do you have a white tongue and/or some discomfort swallowing? It could be Thrush - I had surgery on 7/21 and have done great overall, but this has cropped up. I just got a pill for that yesterday. I had a hard time getting anything down since nothing tasted right - even plain water. Turns out it was a nasty little yeast infection in my mouth. I took one pill and the fuzzy tongue feeling is better, but the follow up pill 3 days later will knock it all out. Be sure you throw out your toothbrush after a day or two after your first pill so you don't reinfect yourself. Good luck!

I'm sure blood work has something to do with it...I'm very heavy with an astronomical BMI but have no comorbidities with good cholesterol etc., and only had to do 2 days Clear Liquids pre-op, thank goodness! broth and sugar-free Jello got real old real fast, I can't imagine doing 15 days. Stick with it - there are some decent-tasting Protein shakes out there that will get you through! Good luck!

For a quick on the go shake, I really love the Pure Protein vanilla (30g protein, 1g sugar). The Myoflex chocolate is a little heavy on the chocolate I think, but drinkable (42g protein and has a good amount of branch-chain amino acids). For powder mixes, the Met-Rx vanilla is hard to beat - it's slightly higher in carbs but really is good. I really like the Isopure vanilla mixed with anything (like berries, or PB2 peanut power). But my favorite so far is a combo: 1 scoop Isopure Cookies N Cream 1 scoop Probolic Chocolate 6oz skim milk ice cube or 2 Super delicious! FYI I got all the powder stuff from Bodybuilding.com - good prices!

My boyfriend went to GNC and got me a deluxe blender kit for $30 that is incredible - it comes with several cups (large and med), plain tops for storage, sipper top and top with a hole for the straw, as well as the plastic straws, and it came with a chopping tool and small cup. It's about the same size as the bullet I think - but it's a lot for $30 bucks.

I got quite a bit of stuff on Bodybuilding.com, and here's one concoction I came up with that is really really good: 6oz skim milk 1 scoop Isopure Protein shake mix - Cookies N Cream flavor 1 scoop Probolic Protein Shake mix - chocolate flavor a couple ice cubes This seriously takes like a great chocolate milkshake!

Dacarter, DO NOT FEEL like a failure for not losing on your own! My own research (and that from my doc) has shown me that more than 95% of people fail in their efforts if they have more than 50lb to lose! My boyfriend of 4 years has a degree in exercise physiology, and has been very active (and annoying) in his attempts to help me with nutrition and exercise. He admitted to me that he felt like a failure when I decided I was having the surgery, that he couldn't teach me anything. That statement made both of us feel like crap! So, with the resources I had at my disposal I didn't manage to lose a pound while with this guy, how could the average heavy woman succeed? You're taking control of your health, and have nothing to apologize for, and don't need to explain to anyone your decision. If someone asks tell them the truth - that you've had surgery and are will be getting healthier every day and feeling awesome doing it! The statement 'easy way out' is a joke - it's major surgery, a major expense, and an incredible commitment! I had surgery on 7/21 and am feeling awesome. A little tired here and there, but I've needed no pain meds since leaving the hospital. If you're doing this - feel proud of your decision and look forward to being a new awesome you!

One thing I forgot to mention - for the last several days I've had a weird taste in my mouth, my tongue felt fuzzy, nothing tasted right, and had a little discomfort swallowing. The white tongue pointed to Thrush - yucky yeast infection, but only takes two pills to cure. I didn't put two-and-two together until my nutrition class this last Wednesday, but the nutritoinist brought it up thank goodness so I was able to jump on it before it got too awful. A couple days after taking the pill, be sure to replace your toothbrush so you don't reinfect yourself!

7/21 was my surgery date, and everything went very quickly, very smoothly. I woke up pretty quickly and felt really good almost immediately (thanks, Morphine!) My surgeon used an On-Q pain pump - it's a subcutaneous line that constantly drips pain med directly to the sight of surgery; I had to carry around a little 'hand-bag' for a couple days, but it's totally worth it! Up several times the first day. Had the catheter out the second day and didn't have any problems urinating after that. Had an x-ray with contrast (yucky stuff) on second day to check how everything was running. Stopped using Morphine and went oral on pain med the Wed morning after surgery, and other than one right before they pulled the Q-pump and the Penrose drain, as well as the central line IV in my neck, the afternoon of discharge (Wed afternoon) I really haven't needed pain medicine at all! I have some soreness, to be expected, but nothing I would even want a Tylenol for. I still had quite a bit of drainage in my Jackson-Pratt drain (the one with the bulb) so I went home with that - it was finally removed on my post-op appointment this last Wednesday (10 days with drain). I'm healing up really well, still a little bit of oozing from Penrose drain site, really nothing from the Jackson-Pratt drain site, and I'm itchy itchy itchy. I got oxygen delivered when I got home, I was needing just 1 liter of O2 during exercise and 1 liter at night; now I'm just 1 liter at night for another couple weeks - I've been sleeping really well, so it's helping me heal faster. I was sent home with Enoxaparin, an injectible blood thinner, and had to do that twice a day - here's a tip: be sure to let the alcohol dry before you inject, and keep the fat pinched for a few seconds after you're done injecting, it eases the burning. Prior to my post-op appointment I had to take a nutrition class, and there were several other people that had surgery the same day. I'm graduated to soft foods (yogurt, cottage cheese, scrambled egg, soft fish, etc.), and in another week or two I'll be introducing more soft foods, with solids in about 6 weeks. The day of surgery I was down 5lb from the start of things, and at my post-op I was a total of 20lb down (10 days out). Definitely the first couple of days I felt like I was sloshing around with all the liquids they put in my IV and what I was drinking. I was warned that I could gain Water weight right after surgery and that the scale is not your friend right now! I have noticed a change already, not so much with my clothes, but I can walk down my apartment stairs now without my knees crying - and that's at 20lbs! I would seriously counsel you all to NOT WEIGHT YOURSELF the first few weeks. In fact, I don't think the scale is a friend at all - you should be trying to eat right, drink right and exercise; working the program will guarantee weight loss, but focusing so much on numbers might just discourage you. I went back to work the Monday following surgery, I've been part-time this week but have had zero trouble driving (I have a 5-speed). FYI - the three things I only used from home in the hospital were my small fan, my Android cell phone with charger, and an extension cord for both. With my phone I had relaxing music playing at night, and with the fan I really did rest well - when I wasn't being woken up by nurses! lol Honestly, this exerpience has gone so smoothly and couldn't have gone better. I felt well educated going in, the doc and nursing staff were amazing and I feel a billion pounds lighter already! The only thing I'm pretty disappointed about was that I could not post anything on my cell phone! I have an Android and am using Bariatric Pal Pro, and everytime I tried to post I was kicked out - so annoying. Anyone that is going into surgery, I wish you all luck and good health.

Woohoo! Got the go-ahead with no special cardiology release needed - the afternoon of 7/21 I'll be a post-op bypass patient and will be a big 'ol loser, can't wait! Good luck to you all - we'll all be losers together!

Good to know, thanks!

I just had my pre-op today, bloodwork, etc. , and I only need to do Clear liquids for two days. Other than the celebratory office lunch and happy hour in a couple days I'll be on Protein shakes. I'm hoping my surgery won't be put off, though, my ekg came back funky on the p-wave, which is an electrical thing, no blockages or anything like that. I'll find out in the morning if the anesthesiologist will okay me or send me to a cardiologist. Keep your fingers crossed!

Did anyone take a personal fan? I'm usually on the warm side, and I just don't know how warm or cool my room will be...

I'm very heavy right now, but tall - my starting weight is (currently) 373; my surgeon asked me what I wanted for my goal weight (possibly to feel me out about how realistic I am), I said 160. His reply was "let's shoot for 180 and negotiate from there," which I thought was a great answer. Given my age (46), height (5'8") and size I might have a hard time with the extra skin, etc. I visited Dr. Wolkodoff here in Denver, he's a PhD in exercise physiology and is very involved with pro sports medicine. He did an in-body scan to get an accurate picture of intracellular/extracellular Water, where my muscle is located, where I need to gain muscle, etc. It was actually surprising to hear that my lean body mass is currently 167, and he suggested a goal weight of 210 (adding the average 24%-ish body fat most women should have). He gave me a BMR (basal metabolic rate), and told me to gain 2lb muscle in each leg but that I had plenty of muscle in the upper body; he gave me some basic information and suggestions as to an exercise regimen. It was a great consult, and I'll be following up with him post-surgery at 1mo. 3mo. and 6mo. This is something i would suggest everyone do, not just bariatric patients, and I'll be bringing my 24-yr old daughter with me next time - she's not heavy but doesn't really exercise and I'd love for her to have an outside perspective on her body composition so she doesn't land in the same boat as me. My surgery is 7/21 - good luck to everyone on here, both pre- and post-surgery. Mel

Hi there, Are you on the liver shrinking diet everyone seems to be talking about? Maybe that will slap me in the face on monday when I do the pre-op testing and meet with the surgeon. I went to a support group meeting at the hospital last week and should have asked the post-op guys what their situation was. I do know that my liver enzymes are good and that I don't have fatty liver syndrome so perhaps that's why no one has mentioned it. But I feel for you! My boyfriend is staying with me until after the surgery and is driving me crazy, telling me I need to be 90% on liquids now to prepare mentally and physically, when all I is want is just to say goodbye to my favorite foods! Lol goodbye popcorn and diet coke at the movies, goodbye to a juicy steak, etc. He's looking out for me, I know, but is a serious buzzkill! For the hospital I'm bringing clothes and teva sandals, toiletries, charger for my smart phone, a book and a cross-stitch I've been 'working' on for a few years. The pillow is a good idea. I don't have far to travel though, about 10 miles, how far are you? I've also thought of bringing a small fan, I get crabby when I'm hot, and usually hospitals are on the warm side with no air moving. I bought a big fluffy robe since I don't have anything but a silky sexy-ish robe, but I might return it...hard to imagine being comfortable walking around in a warm terry cloth robe. Yes, I'll be up a lot walking too, my surgeon and nurse say a couple hours after surgery and a minimum of 6 times per day, and I guess there will be a couple post-op classes I'll be attending with other bariatric patients while I'm in. Same for me, about 2-3 days in, barring any complications. Which neither if us will have, right?? We're going to do great!

Yay, so close yet so far. I'm glad to have a pal on here going through the same thing at the same time! I have my pre-op on Monday the 14th, not sure if I'll be put on a special diet or not. Right now I'm trying to replace 1-2 meals per day with Protein shakes, and be consistent with the gym. But am only hitting the gym 2-3 times per week. I'd like to feel good going in, especially since I'll have to take it easy for a few weeks after. Let me know how you're doing, if you're freaking out, and what all you'll be taking to the hospital. Seems like I could practically move in but I'm sure I won't need most of what I'm thinking of taking.

Clone him? Naw, the world couldn't take two of this guy in the world! LOL You can just borrow him anytime you want. To misquote Henny Youngman - take my boyfriend...please! He actually is great most of the time, but with this coming up so soon we can't seem to have a conversation NOT having to do with what I should be doing in the gym, what I should or should not be putting in my mouth, etc. It's getting a little exhausting...

Hi, waiting for final PCP surgical clearance, have gone through all pre-op items and hope I'll be on track for a 7/21 surgery date for RNY by Dr Snyder. Would love to be in contact with local support group, I live in Aurora.