catwoman7

Not sure although your breast density changes a lot when you drop a massive amount of weight. There are a few women I know who've been WLS patients who've had call backs after mammograms after they lost all their weight because things looked a bit odd - although in all cases, it turned out to be nothing. Maybe he just wants a baseline?? At any rate, if he requires a mammogram for surgery, then he requires it - not sure you're going to be able to fight that one.

I still don't do pasta at four years out. Empty calories that take up stomach space. I have eaten zoodles a few times, and they're a decent substitute. condiments - they do have sugar, although I still used them occasionally. As far as spicy things, if you can tolerate them, there's nothing wrong with eating them. My sense of taste intensified after surgery, so sweet things tasted sweeter and spicy things tasted spicier. I couldn't handle spicy things quite as well as I could pre-surgery, and to top it off, I couldn't slam a glass of milk after eating something that was too spicy for me since we're not allowed to drink right after eating. SO...I did shy away from spicy things for awhile (I still don't eat anything *super* spicy, since I can't drink anything afterward to cool my mouth down!!)

some plans allow for it. Lots don't, but some do. Some surgeons want their patients following ultra low-carb diets; others recommend more balanced diets. Mine was one of the latter, but I tended to go lower carb than what his clinic recommended.

You need to follow your plan. This early out, you could seriously injure yourself by doing crap like that. Plus why are you already trying to sabotage your surgery after only two weeks? Do you have a therapist? It sounds like you've got some issues that need to be addressed.

OK - that makes sense. You could also bring some protein bars along. I don't eat them often, but I sometimes take a few when I travel. They're a little more convenient than shakes.

RDA is 15-25 grams a day. People early out from WLS probably don't get nearly that much because we have to focus so much on our protein requirements (actually, most Americans in general probably don't get that much every day). So anyway, if you're in or under that range, theoretically you won't be overdoing it.

am I reading this correctly in that the cruise is 11 months after your surgery? If so, most people are off protein shakes by then. You can usually get enough protein through your food by that point that you don't need to supplement anymore. A few people do (like me - we discovered early on that I malabsorb protein, so I need way more than the average WLS patient), but for most, no..

there are a lot of people with bipolar disorder who've had WLS surgery...

all those things you mentioned are normal - weight gain due to IVs in the hospital, constipation, etc - normal. Just stick to the eating plan your clinic gave you and you WILL lose weight. The only way you'll fail is if you don't follow the plan.

as others have said, you'll start feeling the restriction once you move to solid food. Plus, you've had some nerves cut, too - it takes them awhile to regenerate. That may be a factor as well. .

sorry you're going through that - yikes! I had two strictures that had to be dilated (one at four weeks out and the other at eight weeks out), but no problems after that.

what your doctor said - that's a great way of looking at it. "The absence of hunger...". Also, "full" isn't going to the same for many of us as it did before surgery. I rarely feel full anymore like I did before - now, I start feeling a little uncomfortable (hard to explain the exact feeling - but..uncomfortable), and I know if I keep eating, I'm going to get sick. Early out, too, you're probably dealing with nerves that have been cut and not yet regenerated, so "stop eating" messages may not be getting from your stomach to your brain. So it's doubly important to measure things then....

the guidelines most of us get are that we should focus on protein first, then non-starchy vegetables. If there's room after that (which there often isn't early out), then an occasional small serving of fruit or whole grain carb (although whole grains can be tough on your stomach early out - so I'd wait on those). Some people, esp those who are carb sensitive, never or rarely eat fruit at all during the weight loss phase, given the sugar. I'm not particularly carb sensitive, but early out, a fruit serving for me meant maybe six or eight berries on my Greek yogurt. I still don't eat a ton of it because of the calories - and even though fruit is packed with vitamins, there's still a lot of sugar in it, so I limit it.

fruit is mostly water and compresses down to nothing in your stomach. Thus, most of us can pack away a lot of it. But all that sugar?? And the calories? Seems like a lot this soon after surgery. I agree with the above poster - is this on your surgeon's plan? Wouldn't have been on mine, but...

you need to white knuckle it and stick to your surgeon's plan. You aren't very far out and could do serious damage to your stomach. Plus if you're cheating at only a month out, you're setting yourself up to blow it. You just had major surgery. This is a last resort to lose your excess weight. Don't blow your big chance.

many people have no complications at all and of those who do, most are minor. You hear "bad stories" because people who have major complications are reaching out for help. People who don't have any complications and for whom things are going great aren't likely to broadcast that fact on the internet. Thus, it seems like major complications are more common than they really are. I know what you're feeling because before I had surgery, I stumbled across some sites that had horror stories, but those kind of stories are really rare...

the slow down in weight loss is the infamous "three week stall" (it's not always during week 3, but rest assured that almost all of us experience our first stall sometime during the first month after surgery. I had mine during weeks 2 and 3. Once my weight loss started up again during week 4, I dropped like 6-8 lbs practically overnight....) the starving part is sometimes due to dehydration or stomach acid. Are you getting enough to drink? Do they have you on an antacid? Many of us are prescribed something like omeprazole for the first 3-6 months after surgery.

how much protein are you getting on average? And yes - at a year out, you shouldn't need meal replacements - you should be able to get enough protein from your food, unless there's some malabsorption issues going on. And the calorie range they gave you sounds reasonable for being this far out. Can you type out a couple of typical daily menus? It's sort of hard to assess unless we know what you're eating on a typical day. Thanks!

both are good surgeries - and as the above poster stated, both have their pros and cons. I've been involved on bariatric internet forums and support groups for five or six years now, and I know of many people who've been successful with both. So yes - you can definitely be successful with the sleeve!

Since you were just in the ER and were given Toradol, I would call the hospital or your doctor and see if it's safe to take oxycodone right now. *Usually* a lot of us are given some sort of mild opioid (like oxycodone) to take as needed the first few days after surgery, and then we switch over to Tylenol as the pain lessens, but since you were given Toradol yesterday, I'd ask just to be on the safe side.

for the first several months, I had to measure everything out and just eat that, because like you, I'd end up getting sick if I didn't. I guess I still rarely feel "full" - and certainly not the same way I felt "full" prior to surgery. I still measure some things, but usually when I start feeling the slightest bit uncomfortable, I stop - because I know if I don't, I'm going to get sick. you may not be at a point yet where you can get all your protein requirements from your food, but you will be there eventually. Until then, you'll have to supplement, as you're doing.

it's funny how different people's tastes are - Unjury products are one of my favorites!

yes - dehydration can cause that - so can stomach acid. Are you on something for that? Many clinics put people on some kind of prescription antacid for the first 3-6 months.

are you RNY or VSG? Either way, you should let your clinic know. That's not normal. If you're RNY, it could possibly be a stricture (if so, easy fix...). Just give them a call and let them know what's going on - if you haven't already.

It depends on where you are in the process. I'd eat something like that *now*, but I wouldn't have the first few months post-op. Not that it's bad for you, but you don't have a lot of stomach real estate, and you have to get a lot of protein in. A whole wheat tortilla has some nutritional value (i.e., fiber), but not a ton. That said, if you've already eaten it, fine - probably no harm done (unless you're REALLY early out).