JamieLogical

I've just been taking my local grocery store's brand of Citrical Maximum. I was allowed to swallow pills at 7 days post-up, so never had to deal with crushing pills of finding chewables/gummies. For my multi-Vitamin, I have been taking the brand my surgeon's office pushed, Vitaleph, but they've just been bought out/rebranded, so I'm not sure I will continue with them once my current supply runs out.

If you didn't have a pre-op diet, then the headaches are probably you entering ketosis, due to lack of carbs. Most of us go through that when we do our high protein/low carb pre-op diet. It's perfectly normal for you to be able to drink much more than you can eat. If you do a search for barium swallow tests, you can probably find a video or two of someone doing their post-sleeve barium swallow test and you can see that liquids just flow straight through the stomach in a matter of seconds. food will sit in there and fill you up.

One thing you should probably do is get bloodwork done to make sure you haven't developed any deficiencies. Post-op, we are supposed to be taking a lot of Vitamins and I doubt you had access to those while in prison. And like @@Bufflehead said, you should try to get back to putting Protein first at all times and strive for around 100 grams of protein per day. Try to avoid carbs and slider foods.

@@akpiedra I struggled a lot with fatigue in the early days post-op. Like you, even just taking a shower was exhausting. It was hard for me to hold my arms up long enough to wash my hair! But things really turned around for me as I was able to get in more calories as I moved through the food phases. Once I was on things like eggs, soft cheeses, and tuna salad, I was getting in more calories, and therefor more energy. Hang in there! It really does get a lot better, I promise.

I had pizza last night and was so surprised and scared that I didn't feel full off of one slice. I stopped after that one though. Did you feel full from 2 slices? Keep in mind that I'm 11 months out. But even around 2 months two slices with crust would definitely fill me up. What I've usually done is eat one slice with crust or most of one, then eaten the cheese and toppings off one or two more slices. But it's usually just not worth it.

My recovery was pretty easy as well. I had gas pain the first day or two, but nothing I couldn't cope with. No pain meds at all after I left the surgical center. I had two bouts of dry heaving my second day post-op, but never actually vomitted. I'm now over 11 months post-op and have yet to throw up once. My main issue immediately post-op was difficulty sipping my water, but that got better once the swelling in my stomach and esophagus went down a couple weeks post-op. I was also very fatigued in the beginning from just not getting enough calories in. Never had any pain in my incisions or abs.....

Definitely get a food scale if you don't have one already. One thing I also found SUPER helpful once I was on to purees and soft foods were these 2 oz. plastic containers: http://smile.amazon.com/OXO-Blocks-Freezer-Storage-Containers/dp/B004QZBEFK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1438979990&sr=8-1&keywords=oxo+2+oz They were great for measuring out things like cottage cheese and tuna salad into since I was told ton only eat 2 oz. at a time.

That's normal. A lot of people don't get a full feeling while they are healing up post-op because of swelling and damage to the nerves from surgery. Just measure everything and eat/drink on a timer. You're get that sensation back sooner or later.

I had strained cream of shrimp soup a LOT during my full liquids phase and lobster bisque a time or two. Once I was allowed soft foods, I had crab salad. And since I was allowed solids, I've probably had shrimp once or twice a week at least. No issues at all for me.

I pretty much bought every kind of soup my grocery store carried. Broth-based soups for my post-op clear liquid phase and cream-based soups for my post-op full liquid phase. I had to strain them of course, but the flavors were still delicious. I don't know what your pre-op diet is, so not sure I can be much help there. I was only allowed protein shakes, one green salad with calorie-free dressing, and sugar-free jello/popsicles on my pre-op, so not a lot of room for experimentation there.

So happy to hear about your successes. Congratulations!

I highly recommend everyone do their own research and judge for themselves about the claim of 30 grams of protein in one serving of Genepro. The claim is that you get the *equivalent* of 30 grams of protein because of their production process and how much of their protein is absorbed versus whey protein. But definitely read up on it and judge for yourself. Don't just take the claim at face value without doing your research.

I miss pizza. I've actually eaten pizza several times post-op, but I find that it's usually just such a waste. I barely eat any of the crust and even then I can eat maybe two slices. It's just doesn't satisfy me the same way eating like an entire pizza used to. So, I usually don't bother. It's so weird because there have been times in my life were I would literally eat pizza in some form or another every single day! Now I go a couple months, decide to try a little, remember why it doesn't work anymore and then skip it for another couple of months.

Definitely a gutsy move asking them to reweigh you! So glad it worked!

I was allowed to swallow all my pills at 7 days post-op and had no issues doing so. I'm really surprised you were told to crush/open your meds for three full months!

My nutritionist got back to me and said I can have Gatorade diluted with water to get some electrolytes and be well hydrated going in and to have fruit to get/keep my blood sugar up.

Going under is very easy. You really won't know what hit you. Coming out is a lot less fun. You will be disoriented and uncomfortable, possibly in some pain, and my throat was REALLY raw. I spent a good 15 minutes probably just moaning uncontrollably and not really having any sense of what was going on. As for pain and discomfort post-op, it really varies by person. I had gas pain the first couple for days, but no serious pain around my incisions or ab pain. The main challenges for me were a bit of dry heaving on the first full day post-op (no actual vomit), the gas pain, the pain from my drain which went away as soon as it was removed, and difficulty drinking. Even the tiniest little sip of Water was an ordeal for me the first two weeks or so due to the swelling in my stomach and esophagus. Everyone's experience is different, but the important thing to remember is that it is all temporary! You will feel a little bit better each day. Things will get a little bit easier for you each day. And you WILL eventually feel "normal" again. Maybe not your old "normal", but a new normal that you will be comfortable with.

Did he give you any advice about what to eat/drink before and after? Edit: Actually, this seems like a question I should ask my nutritionist. I'll shoot her an email!

I would advise getting used to putting protein first with all of your meals now. That's something that will take some getting used to. And start getting creative with your protein options, because chicken at every meal will get old fast! Now is a great time to experiment with recipes and different food preparations. Also, it's a great time to start getting more active, even if it's just walking. Everything you can do NOW to improve your health will just make your surgery that much safer and more successful.

The one I really loved was being able to go on all the rides with my nephews when we went to Dollywood this spring! I'd gone there in spring of 2014 and could only fit on ONE of the roller coasters.

Could you buy a new refillable bottle somewhere? Luckily (?) for me, I was addicted to Water LONG before my surgery, so I have practically had me water bottle super glued to my hand for years. I never leave home without it. Seriously.... I take it in my car with me even if I'm just running to the grocery store! It's been to three different countries and about twenty states with me! You will definitely get more in tha habit of having yours with you and you definitely won't forget on your next vacation!

Don't panic. Self-diagnosing on the internet is a slippery slope! Definitely talk to your doctor, but wait for a real diagnosis. Hopefully you can get it figured out!

My sister and her 4 kids are staying with me. They range in age from 2 to 9. I eat less than the 2 year old for dinner most nights! Last night we had "make-your-own" subs. They all had rolls, deli meat, cheese, onions, avocado, lettuce, tomato, etc. I just had a little roll-up of a couple slices of deli meat, two slices of cheese, and some mustard.

I am technically allowed to drink 20 minutes after eating, but I usually have to wait at least 40. I am just SO full from the food that it takes that long for my stomach to empty enough for the water to fit. I assume there wasn't any sugar in that tea you were drinking? PS: 110 grams of chicken plus two egg rolls sounds like a LOT to me. I can usually only do about 4 ounces (112 grams) of chicken and nothing else in one sitting and I'm 11 months post-op. But since you are male, you might have a slightly larger sleeve than me.

@@Ravend26 I think the VAST majority of us have been where you are. I've lost and regained hundreds of pounds over the years. The best I did was 90 pounds in one year, but then I lost and regained and lost and regained all the way back up to within 10 pounds of my starting weight by the time I finally decided to have WLS. You have to make the decision that is best for YOU and filter out all the noise. The decision to have surgery is between you and your doctors.