catwoman7

several companies have a flavorless option - Quest and Unjury come to mind - but I know I've seen others. If you can't find any in stores, check online

I would definitely take it. Although it doesn't *guarantee* you won't have gallbladder problems, it greatly reduces your risk. It's worth it...

some people are carb sensitive (I'm not, but I know a lot of people are). If you are, you might want to cut back on some of your carbs - it might help (oatmeal, rice, popcorn, Kind bars, Larabars, fruit). A lot of people focus mainly on proteins and non-starchy vegetables during the weight loss phase and then add more carbs in once they hit maintenance. Again, not everyone is carb sensitive, but if you are, it might help.

re: weight loss, You usually come home from the hospital weighing more than you did when you went in because they pump you full of fluids during your surgery. It takes a few days to get all that water out of your system. Secondly, almost everyone has their first stall right out of the gate - as in within the first month. They call it "the three week stall" because it's usually the third week out, but not always. Mine was weeks 2 and 3. Once I hit week four, it broke and I dropped like 6-8 lbs within a couple of days. Just keep following your program and the weight will start coming off. I should add that not everyone drops 30 lbs the first month - in fact, I've been hanging around bariatric sites long enough to know that that seems to be the exception rather than the rule. I lost 16 lbs the first month. I was a slow loser practically the whole time and ended up losing over 200 lbs. Just stick with your program and it'll happen - whether fast or slow!

I ate hummus a lot when I was in the pureed stage. I don't think I had avocado, but I'm sure it'll work fine when you can eat pureed foods. Just keep in mind you're supposed to focus mostly on protein, though...

yes weight loss definitely slows way down after the first few months. Also, you are a revision - and revision patients almost never lose as fast as those with virgin surgeries. are you sticking to your plan? If not, do whatever you can to get back on track. If yes, then you're in a stall. Your honeymoon period is likely not over yet. I had long stalls after I was eight or so months post-op, and every time I thought my weight loss was done, but then it would start up again. It finally stopped at 18 months out (but that was fine because I was at a normal BMI by then)

I agree on the carb thing - that does happen to some people (but not all) when they eat carbs. Sugar alcohol can also be a culprit for some people

you're probably just in a stall, but aside from that, you should be eating more and getting more protein. Your body needs it to heal and to keep your muscles from wasting away.

I had almost no pain at all, but people are all across the board when it comes to post-surgical pain. The fact you had hernia repair might be a factor, too...

are you sticking close to your program? If no, get back to it. If yes, then you're in a stall. Just give it time and it will break.

You are being too hard on yourself. Just hanging out on these boards and others for the last few years, I would say most people lose somewhere in the 15-25 lb range the first month - and then it'll really slow down from then on. I know you'll find people who lose 30 lbs the first month, but I think they're more the exception. I lost 16 lbs the first month, so I lost at about the same rate as you are. Check my stats - I ended up losing over 200 lbs and all of my excess weight. If you stick to your program, the weight will come off - whether fast or slow. Your commitment to your plan will have a MUCH greater effect on your ultimate success than your rate of weight loss.

when I had that issue they checked for gallbladder issues - as well as pancreas and liver. Other than some mildly elevated liver values (which are very common after bariatric surgery - they eventually do normalize), everything looked OK. My PCP at the time thought I might be getting an ulcer. so she had me take a PPI and something like Gaviscan to keep my stomach coated (Carafate is another drug they often use for coating). But then I switched PCP's, and the new one had me tested for an ulcer. Nope. So she figured it was probably GERD. At any rate, it went away after awhile and never came back, so who knows what it was (other than not my gallbladder, liver, pancreas, or an ulcer!)

I've heard of it but have never tried it (I never had a gas issue). I know some people find cutting way back on carbs and/or sugar alcohols can help with gas, too.

I broke out in hives three weeks after surgery, which at first we attributed to ursodiol since that IS a known side effect (although not common). My surgeon's office had me stop taking it for a couple of weeks and then try getting back on. So I did - and no hives that time. So who knows what caused the hives that first time - probably not the ursodiol. anyway, I also took it for six months. I think that's pretty standard. I didn't have any problems with it.

I hoped and prayed that I would be one of the lucky ones, like you, but no - my hunger came back at five months out. Boo.

for many of us, yes. And things get a lot harder when they do...so use this time wisely - it'll never be easier to lose weight!

I've heard from others that you don't have sensations at first because your nerves have been cut - which does make sense. That said, at 3.5 years out, I don't get the same "full" sensation that I did pre-surgery. It's hard to explain, but I just know when it's time to stop eating. I start feeling uncomfortable, and I know from experience that if I try to eat more, I'm probably going to get sick.

there are several factors that influence your rate of weight loss. Whether or not you dropped a lot of weight before surgery is one of them. Like one of the above posters said, weight loss is front-loaded - a lot of the initial drop is from losing water weight. people who have lost a ton of weight pre-surgery, as you have, don't usually experience those big drops right after surgery. That's because they've already had their initial water weight drop. I was the same way - I lost 57 lbs pre-op, and just 16 lbs the first month after surgery. Don't let it discourage you, though - I did end up losing all of my excess weight (over 200 lbs). As long as you stick to the program, the weight WILL come off.

I almost never cheated the first year. I occasionally go off-plan now (I've been in maintenance for two years), but I weigh myself every day and have a certain upper-limit weight. Whenever I go over that, it's all hands on deck - I stick to my plan 100% until I get back down below that number again.

yep - I lost my appetite for five months. Take FULL advantage of that - it'll never, ever be easier to lose weight than it will right now. For most of us, our appetite/hunger comes roaring back sometime within the first year, and things get a lot harder then.

re: calcium - I actually take 2000 mg (500 mg 4x a day) because I have osteoporosis, but 1500 mg (500 mg 3x a day) is pretty standard for RNY patients. Don't forget - we don't absorb everything 100%, which is why we have to do things like take two multivitamins a day, too - whereas most people just take one. So no, 1500 mg is probably not excessive for a WLS patient. P.S. VSG patients don't have the same malabsorbtion issues that RNY patients do, but I think most of them are told to take 1500 mg a day, too.

I just take Centrum or the CVS or Walgreens generic equivalent of Centrum (if you're supposed to start with chewables, as many of us are, CVS and Centrum both make a chewable form, too). I take two a day. We were told not to take gummies, but I'm an RNY'er, if that makes a difference.

at 2.5 months out I had lost 33 lbs. You're losing it way faster than I did. And I eventually lost over 200 lbs.

I've taken a capful of Miralax every day for probably three years. My PCP said it was fine - it doesn't cause dependency like some other laxatives do.

back when I did chewables (first few months post-op), I did Centrum or the CVS generic equivalent