summerset

Wow. That's a picture I've luckily haven't seen so far.

Exactly. We walked out dog yesterday in the sunshine so that's pretty normal but you could notice people being kind of ... suspicious when you walk by them. I can't help myself viewing every person on the street as a potential virus dispatcher right now. The streets are empty, that feels kind of spooky now and then.

This. How much one "can" lose depends on how much one weighed before surgery. Someone who went into surgery weighing 250 lbs will not lose 180 lbs. Unfortunately OP didn't tell us so far how much you he/she weighed before surgery or what the current BMI is.

What kind of tips are you looking for exactly? Exercise at home? Sticking to diet? Dealing with your emotions? All of this?

This is a good time to work on stress/frustration tolerance. If you can survive CoV-2 stress without sabotaging yourself in any way, you can survive quite a lot of stressful times in your life that for absolutely 100% sure will occur in the future. I recommend books about normal eating and especially the books of Karen Koenig. She also has a blog. If bingeing is also a problem I highly recommend "Brain over Binge" though that book's not everyone's cup of tea.

Or toilet paper hoarding... 🙄 Like you can get everything at the stores despite toilet paper, dried pasta and in some cases UHT milk, these paper kitchen towels and hand soap. Pharmacies are out of disinfection, gloves and masks of course. True. I sometimes think one should also practice "social media distancing" instead of only "social distancing".

It's not unusual to have a good cry after being finally being through with the surgery. Many had to fight for their WLS or had to jump through countless hoops to get coverage for WLS. The tears you cry might be tears of relief.

Give it a few days though once you're on solids for the cravings to calm down.

Absolutely. This is also the time people can use the new skills they gained from "doing the headwork". This "headwork" stuff is emphasized a lot on this board - and now is the time to put it to work. A crisis is always a chance to learn and grow. Put things to work. If you don't have the skills yet, now is the time to learn them. There are plenty of (free) online resources. You don't need to see a therapist or group face to face to help yourself. Nobody is forcing foods down your throat that aren't good for you. Keep up your familiar eating routine. You can exercise at home. Plenty of resources online as well, some free (e. g. youtube, vimeo), some you have to pay for (e. g. Freeletics, YAYOG, Alo Moves, YogaGlo, Ekhart Yoga etc. etc. etc.). Do bodyweight exercises, maybe get a pull-up bar or an aerosling like gadget. You don't need to go to a gym to exercise. Don't be one of the people writing a post that contains the line "and then life happened and I gained it all back" a few months down the road. No one is doomed to regain or not-losing because of lockdown and being in shelter. No one.

Yes. SARS-COV-2 puts "gaining weight" into a new perspective. A rather unimportant one compared to many other things. I can see though that people are focussing on the possible weight gain problem as in the end it provokes less anxiety than the virus. However, no one is automatically doomed to gain weight while staying at home. Not you, not me - NO ONE. And I was supposed to know that because...? You said in your first post you're "prone to anxiety" - that's what many people are these days, including myself. I can see that you're obviously mad at me. I'm sorry you are. But lashing out at me will most likely not help.

I take a 50.000 IE once per week as well or in summer 2 x 20.000 IE. 2 x 20.000 IE per week is recommended by the dietitians in my team. They say that it needs to be adjusted according to blood values. Some can take 1 x 50.000 IE per week and it's ok. Others need to take 2 x 20.000 IE per weeks. Others need to take 5.000 IE per day to keep their levels good.

But you do have malabsorption of fat, right? This is something you have in common with the DS crowd. And this effects all of of the fat soluble vitamins (ADEK). As for pancreas enzymes: that's an issue best to be discussed with both your surgeon and a gastroenterologist.

The fresh wound looks adequate. Still some swelling and hematoma around it but nothing to be concerned about. I will be home for a week. Hopefully everything will be alright then.

Stew looks good. What's in it (besides lentils, lol)?

Calcium levels in your blood says nothing about bone health. It just means that your PTH is doing what it's supposed to do: keep calcium at adequate levels in your blood stream and that there most likely doesn't seem to be a calcium malabsorption. Or do you talk about a DEXA scan? DS patients have to deal with fat malabsorption and can have problems with absorbing fat soluble vitamins. I think they take vitamin D in dry form though I don't know for sure. Maybe it's a good idea to ask on the DS board for advice?

How did you take your vitamin D in the past? Did it come in an oily form or in a dry form? And how low are your levels? What suggestions did your dietician make?

I can't chime in on the fast weight loss or on the pictures, only with what I think about "being prepared". WLS is like learning to swim. You can read everything about swimming and the technique, about how your body will feel when immersed into the water and you can listen to the people giving you lectures on the "right way to do it" until they're blue in the face and your ears are bleeding. The only way you will know what swimming is like is when you finally hit the water and try not to drown.

There is no need to be afraid of a bypass. Of course people are scared because surgery and general anesthesia with all the risks are involved. That's normal. That's also normal with plastics. However, there is no need to be afraid of the bypass itself. What is supposed to be so different? Possible dumping? It seems to me that people highly exaggerate the possibility of dumping. The vitamins? Well, sleeve patient should take them as well. Every procedure has its complications. With the sleeve it's e. g. severe GERD.

It doesn't matter in the end if what people feel is "real physical hunger" or not. People want to eat for whatever reason and they want real food to chew on instead of liquid protein concoctions no one would down who isn't forced to do so. On this kind of diet one doesn't need to be a "food addict" to get severe cravings. Put people without food problems on a meal plan like the WLS immediate post-op one and you're going to see some interesting phenomena that are quite similar. People think about food all the time. Don't believe it? Take a look at the Minnesota starvation study. It's an interesting read. In sum, this **** is real, not being able to eat definitely does have negative side effects (even though we want to deny it) and it might be some hard days but what usually helps is to know that it'll pass. Things will change the moment one is back to normal food for a few days.

If you have a body fat scale this can help as well. They might not be very accurate but when you see your weight standing still but body fat going down fast you're most likely just retaining water.

In our hospital staff is preparing for the "big fall out". Security is at every entrance, you have to show your card that identifies you as a staff member. I wouldn't want to be a surgical patient in these days if I can help it in any way. There can always be complications that puts you temporarily on IMC or ICU - and maybe there is limited capacity then.

Same in Germany. However, people who're in quarantine mustn't leave the house or flat. No walks, no shopping, no nothing.

Update: first day of work and this "weird bump" wasn't seroma/haematoma but herniated tissue. Thanks to the surgeons who fixed it the same day. Also many thanks to my co-workers who are all very helpful and understanding. People are all very caring and I'm very grateful. And I'm home again after what? 1.5 hours of work and a night in the hospital.

Maybe try again in 2 or 3 weeks if you liked the taste of it?

My stomach would turn as well. I'm sensitive to these fat/protein only combos. Plus in general it sounds like something that you might tolerate later on but not 2 weeks out of surgery though this differs vastly of course.