cat268

I'm a little over one week out now. Very little pain from the beginning. My biggest problem was walking the gas off, lol. I don't feel very different yet. I'm not hungry but I've got a schedule and I'm sticking to that so I can get all my fluids and Proteins in. I expect that I'll be able to tell more when I transition to solid foods next week. Right now I'm doing 2 shakes a day, one meal and a snack. I'm trying to keep the Protein first so my Snacks are something with protein like string cheese. I've got sugar free Popsicles and Jello but so far I haven't eaten any. I'm kind of surprised to find that since the shakes a sweet, what I crave is savory so no jello or Popsicles. I lost pretty well pre op, and still have some swelling and fluids but was down 9 lbs and 4" since my pre-op appointment. I deliberately didn't buy a set of scales yet because I know I get crazy and will be on them every few minutes. I'm beginning to get excited tho, I am anxious to see where this journey takes me.

The day after tomorrow I'll begin my 3rd week. I've been really careful to follow my doctors instructions, and will continue to be super cautious when trying new foods. I've heard way too many scare stories to be careless now.

Since my surgery, my husband has decided that he doesn't need the carbs either. He's right, he's mildly diabetic and he doesn't need the carbs and since he does the grocery shopping, he's not even buying bread or potatoes and stuff. Only problem is he's dropping weight faster than I am, lol.

I know this sounds silly but a nurse friend suggested that I go to the Dollar Store and get the athletes foot cream and use it every day as a preventative. I've had yeast infections under my breasts for years, and wow, it really works. Worth a try and you can only lose a dollar if it doesn't work.

Day after tomorrow I transition to solid foods, meaning I can finally get some meat. I must really be a carnivore because meat sounds so good. I will be able to have fish, shrimp, pork and chicken. I'm sooo looking forward to a piece of chicken. So far, I've tolerated everything I've tried but I really concentrate on Protein so am mostly eating eggs, cheese, some Beans. I have done very small amounts of mashed potatoes, maybe 2 teaspoons, and cream of wheat for one small snack and they were good but like I said, I'm mostly working on Proteins.

I was surprised to find I could do it fairly easily by day 3. Was told not to lift over 30 lbs.

You're ahead of me so you're probably already past this, but I'm doing a shake for breakfast and lunch, then a small dinner. So far my dinner is a scrambled egg and some veggies. I deliberately chose breakfast as my shake meal because I've never eaten good healthy breakfasts.

I found that ice water was harder to drink than cool water. I left out the ice for the first few days.

I think sometimes, it's not really jealousy, it's just that we don't have anything in common any more. I had "eating buddies" and the love of food was really all we had in common. Now that I don't go out for ooey gooey foods anymore, we don't have anything left to share. I moved on and they didn't.

I've replaced one meal a day with a Protein shake, I'm monitoring and pacing my fluids, I don't drink with my meals or for 30 minutes before and after, I'm trying to make better food choices, and I'm trying to work on the physical activity level. What else can I do to make it go better, faster, get better results? I guess you can tell that I'm kind of excited about this, especially as I'm 67 and haven't been thin in over 20 years!

I don't use a straw now and never will again. Pre-op, in one of the seminars, they recommended that we get used to not using a straw so I quit using one. Immediately I quit having those embarrassing minutes when every time I stood up or bent over I made very audible noises. I don't care if we can tolerate it or not, I will never use one again! LOL

I hope I can say the same by the end of next week. You're exactly who I want to grow up to be, lol.

My pre-op diet is up to 4 protein shakes a day, the rest clear liquids. Sugar free jello, sugar free Popsicles, chicken, beef, or vegetable broths, zero calorie sugar free beverages, and 1 cup of V-8 juice if wanted. No solids at all, no cream soups or milks. I'm on the 3 rd day and I've learned to save the v-8 for the evenings when I am the hungriest. It smells and tastes sooooo good.

I'm trying to research the differences between RNY and the sleeve, does anyone have a website that gives good solid comparative information?

Thanks, it seems that the sleeve is what I'll be doing!

Turns out that yep, it means that the sleeve is what surgeon wants to do. Too much scar tissue.

I was given the diabetic diet but truthfully, I wasn't very good at it. What I did do faithfully was do one protein shake a day, and 2 low carb meals. I lost 25 lbs in 2 months doing that. I am now doing 2 protein shakes a day and one low carb meal, I'll do that for a week, then move to a full liquid diet for 10 days. Then I get to have the surgery. I did listen to the surgeons suggestions, no carbonated drinks, pace my fluids, no drinking for 30 minutes before and after meals and of course, the one big problem, eat slowly and chew 30 times for each bite. I am STILL struggling with that one. They told me that if I worked at it before, it would be better after and I'm trusting them on that.

Interesting question. I'm still pre-op, but having been an Ovarian Cancer survivor, I had multiple abdominal surgeries. Not only did they throw away my belly button, the did a bowel re-section too. Now I'm wondering if that means that I have no choice but the sleeve?

Thank you to all of you. I really NEED to practice eating slowly and chewing thoroughly. I already know that's going to be a hard one for me, and I needed that reminder.

I'm 67 and just getting starting in this process! I'm sure I will look older and wrinkly but I'll feel better! And I have every intention of being the hottest wrinkled old lady out there!

I am still pre-op so this might not apply to you, but I spent 10 years in a weight loss 12 step program and I learned a lot there. My job is high stress but I work at home. I got so that I would do anything to avoid working, "just show up" saved my career. I made myself sit at my desk every day, turns out that I can't keep my hands off my work if I just show up.