jane13

I agree with Sleevywonder - it depends on WHAT the smoothie/shake has for ingredients. I use the plain, NF greek yogurt as a base and water/ice or unsweetened almond/cashew milk and then add from there. In general my smoothies/shakes always have powdered flavored Protein (30grams of protein). I add to an unflavored powdered protein (26 grams of protein) a small amount of fruit 1/4C, or a small cup of fruit flavored NF greek yogurt. Then I only add water/ice/almond/cashew milk.

@@FreeTheSkinny66 - no you are not alone, keep posting. I am post-op and thankful. I will keep you in my prayers, that your process works through, whatever the outcome - keep coming here.

@@Stacey78 - you are a "beast" - great job and attitude!

Post honeymoon phase the reality of how well you use your tool the rest of your life, is what makes or break you. You got this!

@@darima77 - I eat cereal occasionally but I barely put enough unsweetened almond milk on it to make it wet. The worst part about cereal is the carbs, IMO, and its hard to eat JUST a 1/4 of a cup and still get 30 crabs :/ Its like eating almonds (delicious) but can you ONLY eat 15-20? Beyond that you are getting a lot of calories so be careful about what you eat - - - adds up.

@@MIMISAN - I had pizza about a month out, maybe six weeks. I ate two bites. I wasn't really that impressed with how it would taste. I eat a square from the really thin crust meatlovers one from Dominos when we order. For leftovers I eat the toppings the next day at work. The crust doesn't have the appeal it use to have, a bite or two and I am done. I have always been a deep dish fan too :/

@@melyssafaye @@Lori222 - those fears are pretty common, and some of us fall down and get back up and come back here for support. The pre-op is tough and I am not going to say your post-op is going to be any easier. Think about it this way - why did you go through all of this? Could you lose before? What are you going to do if you back out? Join weight watchers? Atkins? Join a gym, start working out, eat less...... We have all been there, done that. It didn't work. There ARE NO GUARANTEES. This is a tool. We are here - get online, ask those scary questions and call your medical team. Go outside if you are hungry, take a walk, drink some Water. I backed out - had to wait for pre-op classes to cycle back around. What did it for me was realizing I COULDNT do it on my own. I could GAIN weight (I did when I backed out). I was scared. I HAVE NO REGRETS!

@@Changed2016 & @@Ruth1ess - I am just south of Jacksonville. Had my surgery at St Vincents Southside with Dr Uchal.

I am shooting for being at a normal weight BMI - 163 - by start of summer June 21st(?). That's about 6 lbs a month {{[[sigh]]}}

filet o fish, minus the bun, I love tarter sauce so I occasionally eat a little of it.

scale sudoku BP Getting rid of stuff that I don't need (clothes too - NSV).Anything that just add clutter (books, VHS tapes, knick knacks, extra bedding, extra plates/pots/pans). Its like extreme spring cleaning - simplifying my house - is my excuse!

@@reree6898 - sounds like you "got this" ! great job, by the way

@@hdawg8099 - YEA!!! Keep sharing ;D

@patriciaorta - it takes about a week for most of us to feel our new "normal" that's why we share that with anyone who is pre-op. I was one of the lucky ones who had no issues. The buyers remorse is pretty normal too....

@@gingeryank - welcome to the BP family and keep posting - we are here for you!

@@Stacey78 - I had to stay for the leak test the next day. I had no issues and took pain meds only the first day home and once or twice at night, then quit them all together. I didn't need them.

I am/was the picture taker for years because I have never liked "posing" even when I was thinner. My 20th class reunion picture had all of the LBD women on the front row (legs crossed) and the heavier women, we filled the back two rows. Most of us were wearing black, low heels and turned sideways. I still wear black, always have, always will. My 35th is this year - I may go and aim for the front row - legs crossed with 4 inch heels! I may have to put them on for the picture though. I don't walk well in very HIGH heels. When I got heavier and everyone had cameras on the cellphone my picture was popping up on FB and cellphones and God knows what else...I still don't like having my picture taken. I am sure I am on one of the "shoppers at Wal-mart cites". I will say it will be for my weight, not some bizarre fashion statement, hair color or questionable gender.

@@OKCPirate and @Dub I have to watch the grazing thing at work. I bring in Snacks, lunch and Breakfast because I come in at 430ish. Generally the snack is non-refrigerated and I keep them at my desk (grazing reach). I put them in my locker where I have to walk about 100 feet to get them. I only keep 1 snack at my desk. great post~

By the way as you said, 80% of kidney stones are calcium based. The key, we were told, is to determine if its diet or something else. Husband went dairy free for a few weeks and the calcium levels increased - leading them to parathyroid glands. The 1st stone we were told could have been a one in a lifetime thing. When the urologist scoped his kidney for the 2nd one, prepping to blast it, he saw tiny ones inside his kidneys...waiting, not good.

I wasn't on blood thinners ever and only had the compression cuffs at the hospital and once I got up and was moving around steadily, those we not used after that.

@@CowgirlJane - he was scheduled to have the second one pulverized but the urologist saw it and took it out. The second one (3 years later almost to the day) was bigger than the first, and he literally took them out when he scoped inside, rather than pulverize them. The nephrologist agreed with the urologist that his kidneys had 'corners' inside making the stones more apt to sit. One of them suggested he see a endocrinologist. The endo discovered that the parathyroid glands were overproducing. They had analyzed the stone. Since the adjustment by the endo (lemonade, Water pill and certain vitamins) he hasn't had a stone in over 8 years. My mom passed one the size of a nickel :/

If you feel uncomfortable I would call doctors office and see if you can take something NOW before you are in the 24 hour "window" pre-surgery. Miralax? That's my new BF If you had a BM early in the pre-op diet....maybe there isn't a lot to ...uh....process, since its a lot of liquids. call doctors office. don't wait too long or it will be painful

@@CowgirlJane - my hubby was told to drink lemonade to ward off the stones. His were Calcium based stones due to over active parathyroid glands producing excess calcium.The nephrologist and endocrinologist told him that the lemon helps with the stones. He drinks the artificial and sugar sweetened version because he is not a WLS patient. I drink the Wylers pink and regular lemonade so I don't develop stones and because I really don't like the other flavors except the generic "Tang" version. Do you know yet what caused yours?

Like others I lost some hair, mines curly too, and I think I notice it more than others because I see it all over the sink in the bathroom. I have cut mine shorter. I still take all of my Vitamins and 10k of Biotin. No drainage tube for me, but I did have a catheter :/ as soon as I told them I wanted to physically "go" they removed it No vomiting or severe gas pain for me, ever. I also had the little patch behind the ear. I hadn't had any surgery like this before and I was apprehensive too. I made sure I was the first patient for the OR. I didn't want to wait in pre-op and think about it. I was wheeled in, greeted by everyone, mask placed over my face and was told to take a deep breath and relax and that they would take good care of me ~ Best decision. NO REGRETS!

I was required to do 3 pre-op classes (only done once per month) for BCBS Fed employees. They were nutrition classes for bariatric patients.