shriner37

Just curious how long it was before you were able to sleep on your incision sites. I'm at Day 5 post RNY. My incision sites are no longer sore but I've been sleeping in a recliner as a precaution to keep from putting pressure on them. I'm told my staples will be coming out at my one week follow up, which is actually tomorrow. How long after surgery did you wait (if at all) to return to normal sleeping?

I would hate to try to explain that one to the ER doctor!

Thanks. Yes, every day gets better. This is revision surgery for me so I've been through this with the sleeve, but it was 2015 and some of the details are a bit fuzzy in my memory. I'm a side sleeper and I think after the first surgery I was able to sleep on my side after 3-4 nights. It seems like the incision pain went away quicker this time than last, although this time the gas pains lasted longer.

Yes. I have five incisions, all of which are secured by staples except there is one stitch in the left most incision. The surgeon's PA will take the staples out at the one week follow up.

This topic is a large part of why my first surgery wasn't more successful. I was quite the party guy, hanging out with friends every weekend who drank lots of beer and ate snacks while shooting the breeze at the lake. Unfortunately six months or so after the sleeve I was able to train myself how to drink beer again, and also learned that most snack foods are "slider" foods. This stalled my weight loss at about 60% of my goal. The other thing I learned was that the restriction lessened over time. By five years out I was able to eat almost a regular plate of food. There was still restriction on solid protein (I could only eat about 4 oz of steak) but I could eventually add reasonable side dishes to it. I'd say before surgery I would eat a very large portion, while after I was able to eat a much smaller version of a normal plate of food. While most folks Thanksgiving plates were heaping masses of food, mine was a few ounces of turkey and an assortment of maybe an ounce of each item I wanted to try. I just did a revision to gastric bypass due to hiatal hernia and GERD, but i am looking at this as a second chance to get it right. Six years out from my first surgery my lifestyle has changed enough that not drinking, or only having an occasional glass of wine or cocktail, now is fine with me. Success with weight loss surgery truly does require lifestyle change. The sleeve or pouch is a tool. Its maximum benefits are the first year after surgery. It continues to be a tool after but without a change in lifestyle the benefits won't last forever.

I haven't been diagnosed with LPR but my primary says many of my ongoing symptoms suggest it. I've had eustachian tube dysfunction for a number of months. After ruling out the other causes he thinks it may be GERD or LPR causing them to be constantly irritated. I also had a hiatal hernia which might have made things worse. I just completed a reversion from sleeve to bypass. Both my surgeon and my primary think this will help once things have a chance to heal up.

Alcohol ended up becoming a major obstacle to my loss. My social life involved regular beer drinking. After getting sleeved I knew I was not supposed to drink carbonated beverages, however my desire to hang out with my friends caused me to learn how to overcome that obstacle and drink beer. I think this is the major reason I never hit my weight loss goal and then gained some back. What worked for me recently was to use a time restricted feeding program along with a Keto based diet. I ate mostly Keto and only had two meals, lunch at Noon and dinner around 5-6pm. This came from, the insulin control diet programs recommended by Dr. Jason Fung. Given that my sleeve kept me from feeling really hungry it worked well and I dropped the 20 pounds I gained during the pandemic restrictions. Now I have major issues with hiatal hernia and GERD, so a revision to RNY is scheduled for tomorrow. I've decided since I have been given a second chance I am going to make the most of it. I have determined that alcohol no longer has a place in my life, and neither do snacks and slider foods.

I'm set up for surgery the day after yours. However, mine is a revision so I went through the process of having a sleeve in 2015. I too was concerned about complications. I have a family member who works at the bariatric practice and sees patients every day both before and after their surgeries. She was 100% supportive of both my decision for initial surgery and the revision which was comforting to me. I also realized that the horror stories we read online are a tiny percentage of all who have these surgeries. I believe the vast majority go smoothly and once they get past the initial discomfort of the early healing process most folks are glad to have done it.

To follow up on this topic, I had my EGD today and the surgeon said he saw about a 3cm hiatal hernia. He went ahead and scheduled me for hernia repair and revision to RNY next week. I'm looking forward to resolving the hernia issues and also the GERD.

That is a frustrating situation I'm certain. I haven't gotten that far yet as my EGD is next week. My doctor seems to think he can get a hernia repair approved, so if that were the case I'd only be on the hook for the extra work related to the RNY if I decided to do it.

I am five years out from my sleeve. I am going in next week for an EGD as my surgeon suspects my hiatal hernia is blocking my sleeve. I am only able to eat a couple ounces at a time without feeling terribly full. I read a message here where someone stated their surgeon was able to push the sleeve back into place during their EGD. I have never heard of this before. Has anyone else heard about hernia symptoms being relieved during an EGD?

Did your surgeon revise your surgery when they did the hernia repair? Mine said they almost always revise the sleeve to a bypass when they do a hernia repair. I wasn't told why, but am thinking this might prevent recurrence of the hernia in the future, as well as addressing GERD issues that might be more prevalent with the sleeve.

I don't know. In 2015 I was self pay as my company insurance didn't cover bariatric surgery. I'm now retired and the ACA plan I have also doesn't cover anything related to bariatric surgery so if GERD was a side effect of the first surgery they wouldn't likely cover it. I think they will cover the hernia repair but not the bypass, so there might be some partial coverage.

My one year surgery anniversary was this past week, so it seemed a good time for a little reflection, and also experience sharing for those who are new to the surgery or considering it. As background, I am a 5'7" tall male in my mid 50's. Have fought weight all my adult life. I had reached my maximum weight of 301# last summer, fighting type 2 diabetes and sleep apnea, and decided a change was needed. I was able to lose 15 pounds by the time i started my pre-surgery preparation last September. My surgery and recovery were uneventful. My type 2 diabetes resolved itself immediately after the surgery. I lost weight at a fairly steady pace for several months. Then I faced some lifestyle challenges involving significant travel and eating out and my rate of loss slowed somewhat. I've gotten on and off track a couple of times during the year. My goal was to lose 100 lbs. from my pre-surgery weight. I've been able to lose 75 of those pounds in the first year. I'm still losing weight slowly and have had no issues with regain in the first year. I've been able to drop four pant and shirt sizes. My health status has improved immensely, with way more energy and stamina than I had before. I continue to be amazed at the physical achievements I'm able to experience that would have been impossible before. My nutritionist tells me that with full program compliance I should still be able to lose 10 lbs per month however I'm seeing that at this stage losing a pound a week is more reasonable. I still feel restriction but have learned what slider foods are and their impact on weight loss. I'm fairly compliant with the Protein aspects of the program but still reach for Snacks and slider foods too often. I'm certain this, plus some alcohol consumption have impacted my rate of loss. The biggest thing I've learned is that the sleeve is not a magic fix for weight management. It is a tool, and like any tool you need to learn to use it properly. Managing diet and exercise will continue to be a lifelong task, and the diet changes I made last September were lifetime changes.

My toughest part is the mental thing. I'm addicted to wanting to eat. Expecially late night watching tv.it sucks Sent from my SM-G930V using the BariatricPal App This is the toughest part after surgery as well. My body isn't physically hungry but head hunger is a real challenge. I've found that keeping busy helps a lot. If I have something to do for the evening I don't even think about food, but if I am just sitting around in front of the TV it is challenging to fight the urge to snack all night. And snacking can derail weight loss very quickly.

I wouldn't be nervous, and I don't know why you would give up your journey for better health. Both surgeries are very effective and have long term benefits. The sleeve is a little less complex surgery than the bypass and perhaps requires slightly less behavioral changes post-surgery, but on the other side of the coin the long term weight loss of the bypass seems to be a little better than the sleeve. I know people who have done very well with both surgeries. It is worthwhile to push your surgeon for more information so that you understand and are comfortable with his advice.

I dropped from size 46 dress slacks to currently size 38. Dress shirts went from a 19 to currently 17-1/2 and almost ready for 17's. Shorts from 40's to 34's, and T-shirts from 4XL to XL. Being that my weight had gone up and down a lot prior to surgery, to start I had a good assortment of dress clothes in most of the sizes, only having to purchase t-shirts and casual clothes. I have now reached the end of what I had 'in stock' and have had to start purchasing clothes. In fact today I'm loading up 8 boxes of clothes to donate to the local thrift shop that supports a no-kill animal shelter. My loss stalled for several months, at my own hand, but now has picked back up so I hope to get to my goal and run through a couple more sizes. Spending money on clothes you will only wear for a short time isn't fun, but getting new smaller clothes is one of the non-scale victories that help to keep me motivated.

@@Blewis913 Congratulations on your successful surgery! Things will improve quickly, day by day.

I slept in a recliner for the first two nights. After that I was able to sleep lying down, but had to be careful for the first couple of weeks not to move around as I tend to roll a bit when sleeping and this caused discomfort with the suture areas. I know it's a challenge but once things healed a bit the issues for me went away fairly quickly.

I can speak to this question from experience... I'm eight months post-op and have had an occasional beer since about the third month. To be able to drink it at all I have to pour it into a glass and allow all of the carbonation to escape. I tried a couple of times drinking one from the bottle and could only manage a few sips before the carbonation basically locked me up with an uncomfortable full feeling. I used to be a weekend warrior, spending weekends with friends at the lake and consuming large quantities of beer. I suspect this was a large contributor to my weight issue. I've found that post surgery there is no way I could return to that sort of behavior as I tend to be affected much sooner and stronger by alcohol than I was pre-surgery. Alcohol gets metabolized in the intestines, and for a normal person the stomach holds it and meters it into the intestines. With a sleeve it hits much sooner so the effects are magnified. Also, for me alcohol consumption to any degree greater than one occasional beer just stops my weight loss in its tracks. Overall I think it is something better left for maintenance.

@@ag0177 I am a little shorter than you (5'8") but started at about the same weight. My high weight was 301, but I had lost 16 lbs on my own and was a 285 when I started the surgery process. I've had a good ride so far, but at about the six month mark my rate of loss slowed significantly. I have continued to lose some inches but the loss of pounds has slowed to a crawl. I suspect this has to do with my food selections coupled with extensive travel and eating prepared food. I have a follow up appointment with the surgeon and the nutritionist tomorrow to see what I need to do in order to get the loss back on track. Overall, even though progress to my goal has slowed I have had great success. In eight months I've lost about 77 pounds from my high weight and 61 from my first surgery weigh-in, almost 10 inches off my waist and similar losses in other areas. I've dropped from size 46 slacks to size 38, casual shirts have gone from 4XL to XL, and I've found it made all the difference in the world as far as being able to exercise. I went from being out of breath walking up the stairs to being in the middle of training for my first 5K. I was able to stop both of my type-2 diabetes meds as of surgery, and have reduced by blood pressure meds from three pills a day to one, with hopefully the ability to stop it entirely very soon. Good luck with your surgery! Follow the recommendations of your surgery team and nutritionist and you should do great.

I would try to relax and think happy thoughts about all of the benefits you will get from this. Once the team starts prepping you the medications will help calm your nerves. Don't get discouraged this afternoon if you have some pain or discomfort which is completely normal on the day of surgery. If they offer you pain meds take them, or if they give you a PCA (pain button) use it. Just do what the medical staff says and you should feel much better shortly after and be well on your way to recovery and success!

When I was on the puree stage I didn't have any solid cheese, only cottage cheese. After progressing to regular foods though, I am a fan of Sargento's low fat Colby/Monterey Jack cheese sticks. They are made with 2% milk and have I think 60 calories, about the same as string cheese, with much better flavor. This is my ready snack for mid-afternoons, perhaps with a Protein shake or a small handful of almonds.

I would think you should be fine. The pre-op liquid diet serves three main purposes. 1) It causes you to lose weight quickly which primarily comes from your liver, which is basically a big sponge. However the liver is right above the stomach so shrinking it before surgery is very beneficial to successful surgery without complications. 2) It provides for a totally empty stomach during surgery. 3) It gets you into the right eating pattern for your recovery period immediately following surgery. Not every practice even requires a liquid diet. Some only require it for a day or two before surgery, while others ask for a week or two. As long as it is several days before surgery I don't see where this would be a big issue. If you are concerned, you could always ask your surgery practice.

There is a surgeon, Dr. Matthew Weiner, who has produced a very good series of videos on YouTube that provide a great deal of information about the surgery and weight loss. One of them discusses the changes that occur in our metabolic setpoint after weight loss surgery (can't remember exactly which one it was). If I remember correctly the videos all advertise his book "A Pound of Cure", but looking past that they are full of good information about the surgery, the body's reaction to it, and how to be successful with it. You can search YouTube for "Matthew Weiner" and go to his channel, where you will find all of the videos. In a nutshell, the sleeve resets our metabolic setpoint. Instead of your body striving constantly to retain fat, it now strives to lose fat to bring itself to it's new, more normal target. As long as we work with it by eating enough Protein, limiting carbs, sugar and alcohol, and provide some moderate exercise it works. This is why they say the sleeve is a tool... you need to make the behavioral changes to go along with it to allow your body to be successful. To understand why resetting the metabolic setpoint is important, look at the recent articles published about The Biggest Loser contestants. They all lost great amounts of weight through diet and exercise. Many of them have gained it back. Diet and exercise alone don't work long term because they don't change the metabolic setpoint. When your body loses weight it goes into survival response mode and does all it can to restore the lost weight. We must change the setpoint for long term weight loss success. Changing the setpoint is the equivalent of changing the thermostat in your house. This is the key metabolic benefit of VSG. Researchers believe your metabolic setpoint is controlled by the leptin-ghrelin-insulin balance in your system. VSG removes most of the stomach tissue that generates ghrelin (hunger hormone). This is why we aren't very hungry, except for head hunger, after surgery. Removing most of the ghrelin also affects the leptin (fat storage hormone) level, causing the body to want to reduce leptin levels and release fat. The change in both of these also impacts insulin levels, which reduces insulin resistance and in many cases immediately resolves type II diabetes. Endocrinologists don't know exactly why and how all of this works yet, but it does. In fact the ASMBS has reclassified the sleeve from a "restrictive" procedure to a "metabolic" procedure due to the impact it has on our metabolism. I believe those that have not been successful believed that the surgery was all they needed, and didn't change their lifestyle, food selection or habits. The sleeve should be a catalyst to change to a new, healthier behavior.