JamieLogical

Definitely feel free to post back here if/when you are feeling down post-op. It's one of the things these forums are best for. Commiseration and tough love! We'll tell you we've all been there and know how much it sucks. Then we'll tell you to suck it up and deal, because it's only temporary!

Is there a reason you use collagen powder? I was specifically told not to use collagen because it is a low quality protein that isn't utilized as well by the body. I was told to only use whey isolate when supplementing.

Glad to hear all went well. Keep us posted!

Not sure which surgeon's photos you looked at, but one thing you need to know about Mexican surgeons especially is that the "after" photos are usually taken VERY soon after the procedure. It takes a good two years for surgical scars to fade. What you are looking for when reviewing photos of scars is whether they are thin, flat, straight, and symetrical, not how dark or visible they are. The dark and visible part fades with time. If they are zig-zaggy, or wide, or asymetrical, those things do not improve with time.

How many grams of fat were you able to have? My NUT just told me to cut out fat.Sent from my SM-T217S using the BariatricPal App I wasn't given a fat limit. I was only allowed 3 Protein shakes a day and one green salad with calorie-free dressing, so there definitely wasn't much fat!

I think a lot about how I will need to adapt my diet as my activity level changes. Obviously right now, while training for this half marathon, my caloric needs are artificially high. When this running season is over and I undergo my second round of plastic surgery, I will have at least 6 weeks of no exercise and then slowly ramping up duration and intensity as I recover. My caloric needs will be very different through that period. That's why I am trying to construct my diet so it is "modular". I have this feeding schedule and a rough idea of what to eat at each feeding. But, I want to be able to cut back the number of times I'm eating as a first step when I need to cut back calories. And then change what I am actually eating at each of my remaining feedings as needed. On the surface, I want to be very analytical about all of it, but I clearly still have a lot of emotion tied to food.

You'll turn a corner after about day 4, but it's never going to be much fun. I was only allowed 3 protein shakes and one green salad with calorie-free dressing per day. It SUCKED. You just have to tough it out. It's only temporary. You'll prbably get bad headaches as you enter ketosis, but like I said, that gets better after Day 4 or so. Just make sure you don't cheat once you are in ketosis, because that'll knock you back out of ketosis and you will have to start all over again with the misery.

I think the majority of us go through a period of "buyer's remorse" in the early days post-op. It's pretty miserable. You are in pain or uncomfortable, every TV commercial is torture, you can't eat or drink enough, you are exhausted, and you are very emotional. It's incredibly common to question what in the world you have done to yourself and cry multiple times a day. However, within a few short weeks you heal up, you can get your fluids in, you can start eating more solid foods and getting calories in, and you start to feel like a real live human being again. From that point forward, I didn't experience any regrets at all! I have been sooooooo happy with my progress and my new life. Definitely one of the best decisions I ever made for myself!

I could not agree more! I have said it many times. It's very important to stick to your surgeon's and nutritionist's plans in the beginning, while you are healing and adjusting. But ultimately, you are the one who has to live the rest of your life. You have to figure out what works for you. What causes you to eat more? What causes you to eat less? What allows you enough energy to get through your day? What makes you tired and lethargic? What causes your sleeve to be angry with you? Sticking to the guidelines in the beginning gives you a chance to heal up and learn new habits. But there will be a LOT of trial and error beginning a few months out to try to figure out how you can make this all work for you long term.

Yeah, the thigh and butt lift will be surgery #2 for me and I don't really have a timeline for the breast revision. I've discussed it a lot with my surgeon and we have a plan, but since we can't do it at the same time as the thigh/butt lift, I am thinking it might be another year our before I can get it done. The expense, the time off work, the recovery.... have to figure out how to make it work along with everything else going on in my real lift. The good news is, in a bra, my boobs still look great. So I can live with them like this a while longer.

I originally went with over the muscle and I'm going to be getting a revision to under the muscle. I got my implants after having lost 90 pounds "on my own" back in 2010/2011. Back then I still had *some* real breast tissue. So I did gummy bear implants over the muscle with a donut lift. I then went on to re-gain and re-lose and re-gain and re-lose weight over the next 4 years to the point that in July 2014, I was back within 10 pounds of my highest weight (so 80 pounds more than when I got my implants). I decided to get sleeved and have lost 100 pounds since then. So am now 20 pounds below what I weighed when I got my implants. I now have NO real breast tissue and my implants are visible below my skin. They have also sagged a bit. So I am probably going to get a lollipop lift and move the implants under the muscle at some point in the future. But my priority right now is my spiral thigh lift and butt lift that I plan to have in August or September.

I drink right up to the time I start eating too now that I am far out from surgery. In the very beginning post-op, your stomach is swollen and even liquids can "fill" it. But once you are healed up, liquids pass through in a matter of seconds. There is no possible way to become so full on liquids that you can't eat your food. Which is the risk in the very beginning. I am 100% positive, after watching my barium swallow test, that liquid alone doesn't stay in my stomach for any amount of time. If I take a sip, and then immediately take a bite of food. By the time I'm done chewing and swallowing, that liquid is already on to my intestines. But, in the beginning, it is possible for swelling to cause the liquid to stay in the stomach longer and not leave enough room for food, so that's the issue there.

Yeah, I'm pretty sure most thin people aren't sitting on the couch 6-8 hours a night, watching TV, eating an entire large pizza, and a pint of Ben & Jerry's like I was. I'm pretty positive I was fat because I ate a crap-ton of food and never worked out. Every single time I ate less and exercised more, I lost weight. Which is exactly how I've lost weight post-sleeve as well. I eat way less and exercise 5 times a week!

Almost EVERYONE experiences hair loss post-WLS. It's a triple whammie, because WLS patients undergo anesthesia, have rapid weight loss, and have a period of vitamin/mineral deficiency... all of which can cause hair loss. There is little you can do NOW to prevent hair loss you are currently experiencing. It is all due to things that happened to your body months ago. There are possibly things you can do to help with regrowth, like special shampoos and taking Biotin. And obviously keeping up with all of your Vitamins and Protein can only help. The good news is, it grows back. I lost hair from about 3.5 months post-op to about 5 months post-op and it began regrowing right away.

Definitely do your research. There are actually a lot of decisions to be made when it comes to implants. Are you willing to travel? Which surgeon? Which material? Which shape? Which size? Under or over the muscle? What type of lift, if any? Your surgeon should be able to help you with a lot of those questions, but it's good to be educated about all the options ahead of time.

My nutritionist didn't give me any targets for calories, carbs, or fat. Just a protein goal. Meeting that every day seems to make everything else fall into place pretty well. I still believe calories in vs. out is the basic math of gaining or losing weight. But carbs and sugar and healthy fats all play a role in how MUCH we eat. If you eat simple carbs that burn up fast, you are going to be hungry again sooner and eat more. If you eat high protein and healthy fats, you are going to feel full longer and eat less. And there is no question in my mind that carbs breed carbs. If you start eating more carbs, then you are going to crave them more often and eat more of them.

I am sure your insurance would cover gallbladder removal if you needed it later on. I haven't had to have my gallbladder out and I'm glad I didn't remove it unnecessarily. You should probably consult with your PCP and your surgeon about it.

@@AvaFern and @@VSGAnn2014 Thank you so much for the detailed responses. I think one of my main obstacles to getting in more calories is that I still have a lot of restriction. In order to get to that 1700 mark, I'm already eating 6 times a day. Fitting in more food is a challenge because it means working it into my schedule. I had already made the jump to more calorie dense foods. For lunch almost every day, I eat 2 oz. of cheese and 1 oz. of peanuts, which is a total of 400 calories in one sitting. I need to find a balance that lets me fit in more "feedings" and ensure those feedings include calorie-dense foods I guess. I wasn't doing too badly with maintenance before I started tracking, because I knew I needed to eat about 600-700 more calories a day and I was usually doing that with two extra "feedings" of pure carbs. But now that I'm tracking, I feel SO GUILTY eating those extra carbs every day.

Hope you have a great time! Side note: It really is crazy how much weight loss impacts your packing. Laundry too!

Good luck! I hope your new sleeve will serve you well!

That sounds like WAY too many carbs. The way the liver shrinks with the pre-op diet is by depleting your glycogen stores. In order for that to happen you need your body to go into ketosis. Usually, to push your body into ketosis initially, you need to be down around 20-40 carbs per day.

I always use a combo of Claritin D and Mucinex, because I'm always struggling with sinus congestion whenever I get sick. Just be sure that you only get the "D" version of one of the two. Don't want to double up in pseudoephedrine .

Glad you have found comfort in these forums. They were an invaluable resource to me through my pre and post-op journey. I am so grateful for them and all of the people who participate and contribute. Please feel free to post any questions or concerns you have. Also feel free just to come here and vent and rage at the world, because we have all been there. The pre-op diet is no fun and the first couple of weeks post-op can be very trying. So if you need to come here for a shoulder to cry on, don't hesitate!

Congrats! I had my 18 month check-up on Monday and I too have been maintaining for a full 6 months! That's a new record for me! My doctor has seen me lose and regain weight so many times. She was THRILLED that VSG has allowed me to maintain at goal for this long already.

Love that you are taking such a proactive role in preparing for his recovery and are being so supportive through this process. Not all of us have that. Make sure he knows how lucky he is!