BLERDgirl

Congrats! I was sleeved on 9/18 & I'm down 32lbs as well!

It's okay to be nervous. It's still major surgery. I have a multitude of health problems as well. A laundry list of allergies, including a latex allergy. Last year I was intubated and put in a medical coma for 4 days due to a severe allergic reaction. I also have a benign tumor on my pituitary and had uterine cancer a little under 10 years ago. Truth is once you do your homework as far as the procedure and choosing a doctor, the only thing you can do is say a prayer and let go. I made sure to be as compliant a patient as possible to stack the deck in my favor. I was already exercising regularly, I don't smoke, only drink socially and followed the pre-op diet. I realized that the chances for an improved quality of life was worth the risk for me. You can give your boyfriend statistics up the wazoo. You can slow walk him through all the steps you are taking to ensure a positive outcome. It may work, it may not. If you are 100% sure this is the best move for you, I think the best thing to do is to explain that to him and tell him that you need his support for this

Did he mention the sleeve at all? From what I gather many doctors who no long do the band are adding the sleeve as an option. Do you have the option of seeking another doctor? When I was researching I looked at 2 different hospitals in my area. I agree with @@stanpry regarding using Myfitnesspal or some form of a food diary. Like it or not most of us are food addicts. We have unhealthy relationships with food. Recording every bit you put in your mouth is the best way to hold yourself accountable. In the past when I lapsed in using the diary I found I tended to assume I had things in control. I've been using a diary for 3 years now and I am still surprised at no only how high in calories something may be but also things like how much sodium and sugar are in some things. Using the app helps keep me on the straight and narrow.

if your medical team isn't overly concerned then let yourself off the hook a bit. Relax and just keep trying. You'll be fine.

I'm not for or against any of them. Powders can be mixed with yogurt and oatmeal. Premade shakes are great for on the go nutrition. Prior to my surgery I used to drink a vegan protein powder every morning because I take water aerobics and it's not good to workout on an empty stomach. So I was used to protein powders. Since my surgery I use a variety of premade, powder and liquid because it gets boring eating the same thing over and over.

Try a variety of shakes, waters & powders pre-op, but don't buy more than a weeks worth before going in for surgery. Some people's taste buds change with the surgery. You don't want a bunch of stuff you can't drink.

I don't bother with breads or Pasta. They don't give me a good nutrition bang for the buck and they end up sitting there making me feel uncomfortable. To me that's counter productive to the surgery. #Noworthit I've only been out twice. Once with my sister we went to the diner I love for Breakfast. I was finally on the soft foods so I got a vegetable omelet with cheese. I ended up bring most of it home. I think it took breakfast, lunch and dinner to eat it all, but it was good! I was told at my 6 week appt I could start adding regular foods as tolerated. I'm vegetarian so we went to this vegetarian Soul food place I like. I got mock BBQ chicken, collard greens and brown rice. Again I have most of it left over, but I'll nibble on it tomorrow. I have lots of food allergies and I'm vegetarian. My family has always been really accommodating with this so this new stage hasn't been an issue for them.

As soon as your incisions heal.

If it's white powder it's cut with other additives. They take away the metallic taste and the bitter aftertaste that can occur with natural stevia. I was using the stevia herb which is green because it's literally the dried leaves ground up into a powder. Unfortunately both versions cause hives for me. In fact most artificial sweeteners trigger my allergies. Sucralose which is found in splenda doesn't seem to cause a reaction but I only use it in small amounts. I've been going back and forth between date paste, brown rice syrup and organic sugar, raw honey and maple syrup as sweeteners.

If you find a class and it's too much at first, try just walking the pool for min - to an hour. The pool at my gym is 5ft at the deepest point. Sometimes after class I just walk back and forth or jog back and forth for while.

Get a variety. I had powder, premade and clear liquid that I would add to tea. I got bored of the thick shakes and having the clear liquid was a nice change of pace.

I had a really easy time of it. No pain at all! I was walking in recovery, and continued walking once in my room. I was in the hospital 2 days and only needed tylenol once for a headache. Otherwise I was fine. I didn't even bother to get the prescription for pain meds filled when I was discharged. As for soul food eating, I'm already a little different because I am vegetarian. I eat collard greens but I don't add pork or turkey to them. In fact tonight I treated myself to the Soul Food vegetarian restaurant in my area. I had mock BBQ chicken, collards and brown rice. My hair is loc'd. Because I am menopausal I already was taking Biotin. So far I haven't noticed any hair loss. Once I came home the worse thing was a rash where the IV site & every bandaide was. That was due to late allergies and even none latex bandages have a small amount of latex in the glue. For most people it's not a concern, but I have multiple allergies and I'm hypersensitive. A few days using hydro-cortisone cream cleared the rash up. Also for the first few weeks I got tired really easy. I felt pretty normal after a week, but ran out of steam really fast. My best advice is relax, follow the doctor's recommendations as closely as possible.

I didn't do a lot of cream soups. I did some, but I also did keifir, some Protein shakes, yogurt and cottage cheese. I made oatmeal using the Protein Shakes, miso soup with bits of tofu and grits with a bit of cheese added in. Try out different things and see what you do like.

I didn't have any pain in the hospital. I didn't even need tylenol. I told them to take away the morphine pump cause I wasn't using it. I was walking in recovery and had no problem walking once on the floor. I went in Thursday and was sent home Saturday. Pain no worse than a menstrual cramp. Sunday I was gassy all day. No pain just lots of tooting. I agree with others, hold off on the scrambled eggs. Stick to your allowed food list. It's in your best interest.

Do a food diary! Seriously for me it's not as much about the calories as it is being accountable for what I eat. I use my fitnesspal because I can do it online and on my phone. On good days I start out and plan each meal. On not so good days I simply make sure to record everything I eat. Again I'm not looking at calories. I know I can only have ~800 a day. I'm also looking at my carbs, sugar, fat and sodium. It also records your Water. Secondly find a way to get in exercise. Even if it's just taking the baby for a walk. Make a plan of attack and at the end of each week revisit that plan and see what adjustments need to be made. HOLD YOURSELF ACCOUNTABLE! I wish you well.

Try going to whole foods and some of the drugs stores around and get single serving packs of a variety of Protein drinks, shakes and Water. Before my surgery I did that and used my pre-op diet as a way to test things out. Even then at 2 weeks I was literally sick of every Protein shake I had. They all had too much of a sweet taste. I finally started doing the shakes in the AM because if I added a bit of almond butter to them they came in at 31grams of protein each. Then in the evening I just had plain vegetable broth. It was the break my palette needed. If not, just keep trying! Hopefully your body is just adjusting to the new tummy and will sort itself out soon.

Thanks so much for the encouragement. I don't feel bad about my previous health issues. I learned valuable lessons from them. When my allergies became bad I started keeping a food journal. It helped me kick sodas, and processed foods. The journey also helped me identify my food intolerances as well. The arthritis in my knee lead me to joining a gym Water aerobics kept me active and my knees flexible. Even though I was big, I could still walk long distance and I no longer limped. All in all I like to think these things also led me to making the decision regarding the sleeve.

I never had a problem with constipation but I am vegetarian. I was put on a stool softener 2 x's a day for the first month. Thinking back to my pre-op days what made a difference was green leafy veg and plenty of Water. As mentioned try to get in a salad each day and drink plenty of water. even then you may need to take a stool softener regularly.

Agreed. The information I read said the lap band wasn't as effective and often ends up being revised to a sleeve or bypass. Initially I was more interested in the lap band as well. Like the OP I wasn't keen on the rewiring involved with the bypass. The sleeve was the perfect solution for me. @ashly200423 - Do they hold seminars where you live? The information I gained attending the semnar was what helped me reach my decision. By the time I met with the doctor I knew what I wanted.

try adding more variety. If you eat fish try tuna in water, try ground turkey instead of chicken, if you eat eggs, try soft scrambled eggs. a mild salsa or chutney adds a bit of change to meats and egg. I also recommend a nutra bullet or blender of some kind. It will help if food are too chunky for you at this stage.

@@JeannieBeannie - if it's available in your area try water aerobics. I started taking classes 3 - 4 times a week 4 years ago and it really made a difference. My range of motion increased as well as my endurance. My knees no longer hurt on a daily basis. Even my ortho was impressed.

yes. You should start walking ASAP after surgery. Add exercises as you start to feel better. I do mostly Water aerobics so I had to wait for all my incisions to close and the biggest one took a little longer. I went back at 2½ weeks post op. Just be careful if your incisions are closed.

Most of my incisions healed within a week. I overdid it and my largest incision where the drain was reopened a bit. It took about 2 - 2½ weeks to heal. I didn't have any pain in or out of the hospital so I never took anything for pain.

I too pureed everything. Being a vegetarian it was a bit of a challenge. I found that CVS whey powder had 26 grams of Protein. So every morning I started with a shake made with unsweetened almond milk and a scoop of almond butter. It was a nice boost to start the day, clocking on at 31 grams of protein. I also used prosource noncarb Liquid Protein. I'd but the neutral flavor and add it to herbal tea. Moving onto food, I made a soft scrambled egg with a tiny bit of shredded cheese and a tsp of 0% plain greek yogurt. Once a week I made Soups using Beans or root veg like squash or sweet potato, spinach and corresponding protein powders. I mixed salsa with greek yogurt, or mashed a bit of fresh fruit and had that with greek yogurt. I also had plain veg broth at night as a treat if I made my protein goal throughout the day. Even now I prefer to start my day with a Protein Shake. I usually woke out in the mornings and the big protein boost give me enough energy to work out but isn't too heavy on my stomach that I get sick.

I was told everything goes. My tragus is old so there wasn't an issue with leaving it open. I had a vc filter put in the day before. I planned to go to the piercers to have my tragus taken out when I left the hospital, but they wouldn't even do the filter with the tragus still in. A nurse removed it for me. She did a good job, except the hoop got bent. When I went to the piercers to get the tragus put back in a month later I ended up buying new jewelry.