catwoman7

it's not uncommon for liver-related enzymes to spike during rapid weight loss, since rapid weight loss is hard on livers. HOWEVER, it's good that they're checking out just in the off-chance it's due to something else. Keep us posted!

It's been awhile for me, but I think by three or four months out the swelling was mostly gone (although my surgeon said it could take up to a year to see the final results). I didn't do any belly button training - in fact, it was never mentioned. Mine looks like a normal belly button now - has for a long time.

I agree with kcuster. Also, you might want to check realself.com for patient reviews. They review all kinds of doctors, but the majority seem to be plastic surgeons. I used that - plus recommendations I found on this forum and other similar forums - to come up with my short list.

I eat corn tortillas now that I'm in maintenance, but early out, no. I agree with what others have said. Plus, corn tortillas don't have much in the way of nutrition, and now is the time to really focus on highly nutritious foods since your stomach can't hold all that much. You need protein, vitamins, minerals - tortillas just don't have much of those.

an 88 lb loss in six months would be a lot. Not impossible - but a lot. It should definitely be do-able by your one-year follow-up, though. You'll likely be down even more than that by then.

yes - antibiotics are fine.

plans are all different. I'd check with your clinic. 1100 is a lot more than I was eating at two weeks out (I was probably about 10 months out when I was eating that much), but some surgeons like to start their patients out at higher calorie levels - so I'd check with him/her. and honestly, very few programs have you track calories the first few months - they're more concerned about meeting protein and water requirements.

ask for the nausea patch. I got one for my plastic surgeries because I experienced nausea for a day or two after my RNY. That patch helps a lot. Also - if you still get nausea regardless, let the nurses know. They'll put Zofran in your IV line. That also helps quite a bit.

I can eat popcorn - but I'm several years out. Movies are tough, though, because my husband insists on buying it, and most of the time, I can't keep my hands out of it. You'd be surprised how much of the stuff you can put away (probably because most of it is air, which shrinks way down once it hits your stomach). Anyway, this is one reason why I don't go to very many movies (I'll watch them on Netflix or whatever, though) - it's too tempting to eat popcorn when I go to a theater.

true. My program never had us counting carbs - they stressed balanced eating. I lost over 200 lbs.

regular strictures occur in about 5% of bypass patients, and they're an easy fix. I've never heard of the issue you had before - but I'm glad they fixed it!

I agree 100% with everything Sleeve_Me_Alone said. All of those issues are very common.

mine got better. My husband is pretty active, and when I weighed over 300 lbs, I could barely keep up with him - and now I can. We enjoy doing a lot of activities together - like biking, walking, and kayaking - that I couldn't do before. I agree with the person who said that strong relationships tend to get stronger and weaker ones sometimes fall apart. That does seem to be a common pattern (although of course, not always). I think with the weak ones, they sometimes fail because the person who's had surgery develops more self-confidence and has more options - they're no longer "stuck" in an iffy relationship because they're afraid its their only option.

bypasser here. The first few months after surgery I pretty much stuck to a few berries that I tossed on top of my yogurt - but I eat all fruits now and have ever since I hit maintenance.

People are more likely to smile at me and/or strike up a conversation. I've gotten some male attention (some of it unwanted), which surprised me since I'm in my 60s. Attention has been positive - as opposed to negative attention that I got (that is, when I got it...) when I was obese. For instance, no being laughed at or pointed out by adolescent males - and no one peering into my cart at the grocery store to see what "fat people" eat. Also, it still seems very weird to me to be able to eat in public without people looking at me. Oddly, I still feel anxious about doing something like walking around eating an ice cream cone, even though I know no one is going to think or say anything, like they might have when I was obese. So yes - I'm treated differently - at least in some instances.

high liver enzymes level do seem to be common the first few months after surgery, though...I see postings on that a lot. Mine were as well - then about a year out, they were back to normal. My PCP was freaked out about it, but I did read online that it wasn't that uncommon, and it was due to the rapid weight loss (which is hard on livers). Interesting your surgeon said that, though. EDITED to add: unless he meant it wasn't anything related to the surgery per se, but just rapid weight loss in general? (as in...even if your rapid weight loss wasn't due to surgery?). Not sure. here's an article about temporary spikes in liver enzymes after weight loss: https://www.mdedge.com/endocrinology/article/53013/obesity/liver-enzyme-spike-after-weight-loss-deemed-transient

dumping isn't very common in sleevers, although it could be that. It's usually caused by consuming too much sugar or fat in one sitting - I don't know how much of either would be in your protein shake. It could also be an intolerance of some sort. Hard to say...I'd just monitor it and see if it happens again.

an endocrinologist would be more of a specialist in that area, but depending on your insurance company, you may have to get a referral from a PCP first. re: osteoporiasis - is that the same as osteoporosis? If so, that's another area that some endocrinologists specialize in. I see an endocrinologist about my osteoporosis (which may or may not have been related to my RNY - it runs rampant among women on both sides of my family, plus I'm over 60 years old to boot).

less beef and more broccoli will definitely turn that around - although as we know, protein is really important, too. Although I suppose you could make it with chicken if you wanted... 340 calories per serving and 28 grams of protein is actually decent - although I'm in maintenance, which makes a difference...

the pre-op diet was the worst part of the whole thing for me. i was actually relieved the morning they rolled me into the OR for surgery! You just have to white knuckle it - it'll be worth it in the end. It's been a few years for me, but the first few days were the worst - it did get better after awhile...

I slept in my bed with some extra pillows to prop me up.

only about 30% of bypassers dump, and for those who do, you can prevent it by avoiding or limiting sugar intake (or fat - some people dump on fat). I've never dumped - and I know lots of other bypassers who've never dumped, either.

if you can get through six months, you'll probably be OK (not everyone loses hair). I started losing mine at five months out, but I didn't lose very much. Highly doubtful anyone noticed.

in addition to what kcuster83 said (which I agree with), stomachs don't "churn" nearly as much after surgery than they did before....so it's doubly important to chew things really well before swallowing. So that could be another factor (although I agree with the dryness of chicken - lots of people have issues with chicken the first few weeks or months because of that)

just wanted to hop back on here to add that the last 20 lbs was a BEAR for me to get off. At that point I was only losing around 2 lbs a month. Yes - a month. But I kept at it, and they did eventually come off.