lauraellen80

Welcome! Best of luck with your insurance!

Oh, and also--going crazy with food when you've decided on surgery is totally a thing, referred to as "food funerals." I was doing a lot of that for awhile, then I decided that it wasn't going to help me any, but that I'd plan for a special meal once a week leading up to my pre-op diet, things that I wouldn't be able to eat again and wanted to say "goodbye" to. That worked well.

I'd say, pick one thing at a time to work on and once you have that under control, add another. That way you won't get too overwhelmed. Personally, I knew that I might murder someone if I had to kick caffeine at the same time as I was doing a liquid diet. So I started cutting back on caffeine slowly a few weeks before that--eliminating any extra sources beyond my morning coffee (like iced teas, Coke, etc.), then only drinking one big travel mug of coffee instead of two, then drinking from a slightly smaller mug, and so on until I cut out coffee completely. The pre-op diet was miserable enough as it was--I'm sooooo glad I wasn't going through caffeine withdrawal at the same time (as an extra crappy bonus, I started my period shortly after starting my liquid diet, too!). Good luck! You can do it!

This may sound weird, but... try gently "tapping" on them instead of scratching. It's a trick people use with new tattoos that are healing. Helps relieve some of the itch without doing damage.

Tofu would be good if you're on soft foods.

The dietician in my surgeon's office was nice enough... I dunno about how helpful she was, beyond giving me accountability in the a couple months pre-op by checking my MFP logs. She was young--still in her twenties, I'd guess--but the meal plans and advice she gave seemed straight out of the 90s. Low-fat or fat-free everything, with a lot more carbs than most people on here seem to eat. I just plugged in one of the sample "one year out" menus that she gave me, and it's 41% carbs (80g), 21% fat (18g), and only 38% Protein (74g). She quit right around the time I had surgery (she was very pregnant, I'm guessing she decided to stay home after the baby came), and the new dietician hadn't started yet when I went back for my first follow-up. I'm really hoping they have someone on staff when I go in for an appointment tomorrow, because I have a lot of questions about what and how much I'm supposed to be eating at this point (7 weeks out) and the rest of my weight loss phase, and I'm still super-confused about carbs.

Paneer tikka masala from our local Indian place, no rice. I ate about 1/4 cup and had a few sips of a mango lassi until I got all worried about the lassi and whether it would be considered a "fluid" and if I shouldn't have it right after the paneer. I ate a little more of the paneer the next day for lunch but then told my husband he could eat the rest and drink the rest of the lassi. This was in the soft foods phase. I could probably eat a bit more of the paneer now at 6.5 weeks out, but I still need to ask my NUT about the lassi.

My surgeon and dietician's instructions only said not to use straws for the first week or so. I regularly use a Hydro Flask water bottle that has a straw--like others said, it can help you get in your fluids. I'd say, try it out and see how it works for you.

At my one-week post-op appointment, the PA said that my incisions need to be "completely healed"--whatever that means. I would have asked for clarification at my one-month appointment, but I had to cancel it because of a family medical emergency that took me out of state for two weeks. Everything is closed up, and my scabs are gone, but the incision lines are still red and feel kinda bumpy underneath. I dunno. Better safe than sorry. I just need to grit my teeth, deal with the heat/humidity we're having, and go walking to get my exercise for a few more days.

I'm dying to get back to water aerobics classes, myself. I'm about 6 1/2 weeks post-op, and figure it would be okay, but I'm too nervous to go without the official OK from my surgeon's office! I actually called today, but the PA isn't in until next week, when I have an appointment anyway.

I stopped at Target after work and saw that they are having a promotion, $10 off denim when you try on jeans (um, okay). So I took a pair of regular (not plus) size 16 skinny jeans to try on, and also grabbed a pair of 14s, just for kicks. Tried on the 14s first, and they fit! A couple months ago, I was wearing 20W jeans from Target. Plus, I startled myself when I opened the dressing room door to go in--my reflection was much smaller than I am used to it being, and for a split second I thought someone else was in there!

My throat was a little sore for a day or so after surgery from the intubation, but nothing major.

Yup, right there with you, buddy. I had an old fissure that I developed a few years ago after being on antibiotics (for a sinus infection) followed by steroids (for a horrible case of poison ivy). One of my reasons for choosing the sleeve over the bypass was that I was told that sleeve patients had fewer problems with constipation, and I most emphatically DID NOT want to go back to fissure hell . But here I am... I'm hoping that once I can add in more fresh veggies, it will go into "remission" again.

I'm sorry that you are still having such a rough time of it... we must have had surgery about the same time, because I'm six weeks out, as well. Can I ask--how long did it take from your first seminar/consult to surgery? and did you feel pressured into the surgery by family, a friend, or a doctor? I only ask because it seems like people who don't feel like the choice was entirely theirs have a more difficult time adjusting... Anyway, there are definitely things that suck about it, no doubt, and there have been times recently where I just desperately wanted to binge-eat like I used to. I just got back from two weeks of being out in Indiana after finding out that my dad was in severe heart failure, and he ended up having triple bypass surgery. It was tiring and incredibly stressful, and I did have moments where my old comfort foods were calling my name. But, my dad's heart problems (and the fact that they have a genetic component) made me even more sure that my surgery was the right thing to do for my health. I think the reason that your initial post came across as "scaring people off" a little is because of how you worded some things--rather than saying that a negative may happen, you said that it will happen. From reading these boards, it's become clear to me that there is not one, monolithic, WLS experience. People's bodies and brains react in all kinds of ways, and you can't really predict it. I've always had a weak stomach, and I fully expected to be one of the people who puked up new foods all the time, but (knock on wood), I so far haven't. I agree that people need to be well-informed of all the possibilities, both good and bad, but all each of us can say is, "This is what it's like for me personally." Best of luck--and remember, our stomachs are just now getting fully healed from surgery, so don't count on things sucking forever! We still have a long way to go!

Hunt's Sugar-Free Snack Packs (they make jello and pudding) don't have aspartame. They are on the shelf with the jello and pudding mixes, not in the refrigerated section. Luigi's Sugar Free Italian Ice is made with Splenda.

Definitely get activity during the pre-op diet, but be aware that you may have a few days of feeling weak, shaky, and not up to working out 100%. I do water aerobics and had to use a floatation belt for class, which I normally don't, during that time because I was getting woozy.

Me too! In fact, I called my surgeon's office in tears a couple weeks post op because so many posts on here were so anti-carb, and it had me freaking out and questioning everything my dietician told me.