Wheetsin

I average about 520 calories and was just advised to try and up to the 700 - 800 range. I've never heard that about 1200 calories is required for a healthy immune system. I'm eating nowhere near that, and have been around a sick DD all week and I'm doing on. If it's true, don't tell my immune system! 600 - 800 calories a day is fairly standard for younger sleevers in active loss mode.

My soft foods stage allowed for deli chicken and turkey. I often ate a slice wrapped around a cheese stick with a mayo + mustard combo. I researched deli meats fairly extensively in the days when I was doing a low carb diet. The cleanest I found (in terms of filers, nitrates, etc.) was with Boar's Head brand. At least then, it was the best by far. The local store that carried them has since changed into something else so now I buy the "Healthy Ones" brand (might be Sara Lee).

I know a lapbander (now a sleever, no it's not me) who once swallowed gum that got stuck in her pouch. She could feel it move around sometimes. Yep, they did an EGD with little endoscopy tweezers and pulled it out. She kept it.

It took me a while to get more than 1 - 3 tbls down, of anything. I think I was about week 6 before I could do it. Honestly I'm in my 8th week and I can do 4 oz of sashimi. That's it. Everything else is in the "1 or 2 oz" category. Some things are still in tbls. Protein drinks, like anything else, can make you gain weight if you drink too much of them. You aren't going to stretch your sleeve eating an ounce. As for the discomfort, any chance you're eating too fast? I didn't think I was, until I actually made myself wait (timed it out) 2 - 3 mins between bites. Then it was like night and day.

Now I'm going to be singing the title of this thread all day. Thaaanks.... Yes, more things are making me think of the sleeve. But want to know the worst? I was in McD's the other day (ugh, I know, but an Egg McMuffin - bread is actually pretty healthy)and they had this video looping on one of their screens about their products. One of them is a blended drink, maybe a chocolate malt or something similar. Something in the way the stuff was "funneled" (by the mixing) and the overall color -- well, every time I saw it I would think "An EGD?" It looked exactly like a scope view during an EGD. To me, anyway. I'm going to have to see if I can find a still of it somewhere. Oh I was watering the pots lastnight and it kept occuring to me that my stomach was about the size of that hose, and trying to visualize how the food fits into it, and what the early digestion must look like. I appreciate the gory details.

Figure out how to make a SF green tea frapp and we'll talk.

Yes - it largely comes from cow hides. Yeah, I eat the dead muscle tissue of animals and really is it that much worse? But still... a girl is entitled to a little hypocrisy... To PdxMan's point - yes, he is exactly right. In lengthier posts on this even I (shot hater) will admit that collagen Protein has a place in the protein world (but they taste so bad!). It's just not with us, right now, for what we're trying to get from protein supplements. Yum:

I don't chew gum, but I don't think I have enough capacity to handle the additional saliva. Even sucking on a tiny SF Altoid is enough to give me my "backing up" feeling.

Mainly you take them 3 - 4 times a day. This lets them be spread out, versus all at once. With some things that doesn't matter, and with some things smaller doses are absorbed better. I personally don't want to take 100% of "amost everything" at one time. Others are fine with it. It's just personal opinion, or NUT directions, or whatever people are basing their decisions on. The Bariatric Fusions taste WAY better too, IMO. Also because with Centrum you still have to supplement the B12 (one of the ones I am fairly strict about), and with the low capacity my sleeve has (Vitamins often fill me up as much as a meal) if I can take 3 pills instead of 4 or 5 (or more), I'm down. I don't worry too much about the calcium/iron fiasco. For one my labs haven't yet shown an iron deficiency, and unless I NEED a particular nutrient, I don't worry too much about taking it. (I'm always a little amazed at how many people take mass doses of things they may not even need, when some of those things can be detrimental). I'm not low in iron now (haven't been since I was an infant) and I eat foods with good iron counts, so even if supplemental iron is being thwarted 40% by Ca, which is the absolute highest I've ever read it being, it isn't hurting me. Just MHO.

I hate to triple post, and I feel like I've become their biggest fan, but look at the Isopure RTD fruit flavored Protein drinks. I too have a hard time with regular drinks. They're thick, and I've figured out that my sleeve doesn't like thick things very much. I tried these drinks (40gm per 20oz bottle) and they go down like Water for me. I'm drinking them 1/4 bottle as needed. And they actually taste good (at least the one flavor I've tried, "grape frost" + a squirt of grape mio stuff). I just ordered 36 bottles. I hope they don't get gross overnight.

BTW Lissa, I heard back from one of the "shot" manufacturers and about 8% of their "combination of whey isolate and hydrolized collagen" was the whey part. So in this shot that's maybe 45gm protein, about 17% of it was worth anything. Ugh, so much wasted sleeve space.

Suggestion = don't look for high Protein shots. Search "protein shots" or "incomplete protein" here and you will see why. Is 8oz your limit at a time, or during the course of an entire day?

With most things I'm stuffed around 2oz. The only thing I can really eat more of is sashimi, and with it I'm full between 3 - 4 oz, depending on how slowly I eat. My Snacks probably run about 1 oz (I'd have to check fitnesspal to be sure). I usually have at least one snack, sometimes two. I drink 1 or 2 8oz servings of low sugar apple juice with my Fiber supplement dissolved into it. If I don't get enough food Protein in, I will add in a Protein Drink as needed. Other than that, I try to always have water or iced tea with me. How much you can eat will depend on food density, your sleeve, how quickly or slowly you eat, and a lot of other factors.

About a week earlier, but no stronger. As of now I'm about 2 days late (if I count 28 from LMP), so I'm thinking the 1 wk earlier might have been a fluke and I'm actually on my "normal" cycle, which should begin next week. We'll see.

I'm not posting this in the Protein subforum because it's likely a short-time thing and I think it may benefit people out there. I finally stopped by a GNC yesterday to try one of these drinks. Normally $5+ per bottle, "apple melon," "grape frost," and one other flavor that I can't remember were marked down to $1.34 each. I asked if it was a nation-wide markdown or just for my local store and was told, "Probably nationwide." This is a significant savings and I know a lot of people here rely on these drinks, so it might be worth a call to your local GNC. I stopped by a 2nd store thinking I'd stock up more and they only had the "apple melon" but it too was marked down. So it's at least more than one store (though they could have the same owner). I tried a grape frost lastnight and thought it was pretty good. The thickness of Protein Drinks has been making them very hard for me to drink, my sleeve doesn't like thick things at all. This goes down nicely. And Walmart carries a generic Mio that comes in plain grape. Together, I'm actually digging protein drinks again. Haven't tried the apple one, and I didn't buy any of the third flavor that was marked down because it didn't sound like something I'd like.

To be fair, you're mostly asking people who've already had it done, so they probably didn't think it was too soon. The first Duodenal (which I'm assuming would have included the first VSG) switch was performed in 1988. Prior to that - gastrectomies had been in use for a very long time, just not for weightloss. The first gastrectomy for cancer was done in 1881 (Billroth - and not a "sleeve" per se, but still gastrectomy). Removal of the greater curvature of the stomach for reasons other than weightloss really aren't new at all. It's just the "as a bariatric procedure" that's new (well, if you count having been performed for > 20 years as new). I think this is majority true, but certainly has exceptions (your use of "typically" is well noted). For those not familiar with these or the difference, Billroth I connects to the duodenum, Billroth II connects to the jejunum - which is performed depends on how much/exactly what has to be removed. When I was first researching the sleeve (with the help of a friend who is a very good surgeon and an even better researcher), removal of the fundus and greater curvature of the stomach was done for gastric cancer (retaining the pylorus and pyloric valve, removing the fundus and some amount of the greater curvature) around 1950. I think cancers of the gastric fundus are generally treated through a sleeve procedure, unless the cardia is also affected (but by no means am I sure). I'm a band revision, and honestly - I never believed it would be with me forever. I was banded earlier than most, and even then I knew that chances were it would come out at one point. I hoped it might, but never trusted. Even 6 or 7 years ago it was very carefully stated that it was intended to be a permanent implant, but... And the band isn't causing a high rate of physical complications (things like erosion are still fairly low stats), it's just mechanically failing a lot. It's also one of the only procedures out there that can mechanically fail. With what's available right now, my firm opinion is that the VSG is the way to go IF you are a personality that can be responsible for a restrictive procedure. Maybe it's too soon, I guess more time can always tell something new. But I think it has been used long enough to be a calculated, well-researched risk. A much better risk than sitting around waiting for the next greatest thing, which probably will be brand new, so then you'd be waiting another 10 - 20 years to start seeingthe mid-long term research coming out...

I told my employer the day after I was scheduled. This gave them about 6 weeks of notice. It was nice since during those 6 weeks I could take care of all my pre-op appts without anyone thinking I was "sick" (interviewing)! Good note on the FMLA Tibbie, lots of people do think it's a "right" for all workers. A lot of people also get FMLA and STD confused. FMLA is all about protecting the job. It does nothing to keep your paycheck coming in. STD keeps your pay (usually just a portion of it) coming, but does nothing to protect your job. STD is not government-mandated nor automatic, unless your employer gives it to you as a company-paid benefit. Can't tell you how many people I see with FMLA approved, thinking the time is also paid (without them using their PTO or other pay benefits). I'm lucky in that my employer automatically initiates FMLA when an STD claim is received. I actually forgot to give 30 days notice of FMLA, but had setup the STD so I was OK. To all - make sure you read your employer's policy on medical leave, jut to ensure you're covered as much as possible.

Last night I looked online and the best price I could find still averaged out to $2.90/bottle (with a coupon) or $3.32 standard. So that price is definitely great. I didn't think I'd like them, but I'm kinda digging the grape. It's a bit weird, but with that Walmart Mio stuff, it's good. I did put it in the freezer for a bit to get it as cold as possible. I don't think I'd like it neary as much if it warmed. It just had "that" taste to it. Best is that so far I can drink it almost like Water & drink several mouthfuls at a time. Regular RTDs or home mixed usually take me over an hour.

Most Protein isn't clear, it's at least a little opaque if not completely. I didn't have that restriction after surgery, so I can't share what I did but I'm going to guess that the clear liquids do not apply to your protein drinks. I'm guessing it's protein drinks (70 - 80gm day) and then clear liquids in addition, instead of food. But definitely call your surgeon or nutritionist and find out for sure.

Are you being effected in a bad way? Good? Neutral? What is going on? I didn't really have a hard time, or haven't yet - who knows what's coming. But this wasn't my first WLS, and with my first I shed pounds so dang quickly that I didn't have time to focus on much else. I have all kinds of time this time around. What role did food play in your life? Whatever it was (usually it's control, but it can be more), it's normal to go through a mourning period. It can also be hard to find ways to replace the food that are healthy and not self-destructive. When something has been so significant in your life for a long time, well - there aren't many things we can successfully do "cold turkey" without finding a fast replacement, or quitting. We can't really quit, and if a replacement (addiction transfer, usually!) isn't readily available, in can leave you very lost.

So weird how much it varies. I get a little hungry, sometimes. Maybe once a week, in the late afternoon. It's easily ignorable, and doesn't seem to have any impact on how much I can eat. Alternately, when I had my lapband I was never hungry. I could easily count on one hand the number of times I felt hunger during those 6 years. So even though I'm still rarely hungry, it seem like I always am, relatively. We'll see with DD. I'm definitely watching for signs, and doing my best to make sure she has as neurosis-free of a perspective on food as I can possibly help her develop. But it's really a bit more complicated. Look how many fat parents have fat kids. That's partially nature, yes -- parents cook unhealthy food so kids eat unhealthy food -- but there's also a huge nurture aspect. Nothing is just one, or the other. She eats healthy. She has her entire life. But there's still an aspect of her schema for things like portion, healthy eating, etc. that is going to be connected to the quantity of food she sees mommy eating. It's unavoidable. At the end of the day we're all a little neurotic, and it's usually because of our mothers.

Does your surgeon do the pylori test standard, or is there reason to believe you need treatment? (e.g. do you have stomach pains or discomfort, etc.) I didn't have to do one, but that sucks. I know what it's like to be close, and yet so far from reaching it. The only situation I can think of where you'd need to have the testing done where the surgeon wants it is... well, actually I can't think of any time you'd HAVE to, but often if you're covered by insurance, having it done where they recommend (usually the hospital they operate through) keeps the costs covered by whatever copay you've already made, if you have a copay plan. BTW, there's a breathing test that can be used for pylori. It's supposed to bemore accurate than the traditional test. I don't know if that's what you're being scheduled for or not, but maybe its results are available faster? Might want to ask.

We have similar stats. I was 348 the day of surgery. When I had my lapband I was about 385, but got down to about 215, then back up from there. First week sleeve post-op I was down about 45 lbs IIRC, but also extremely dehydrated. Probably 18 - 20 of that was fat. I've been stalled for the last 3.5 weeks (at least)... but that happens with me. You're going to feel amazing. I remember fondly (sigh) how I felt when I was down enough that the 100s were not just an impossible goal.

It's all good, I was just (hoping?) you understood that this wouldn't be an easily hideable procedure.

Cold might postpone, it depends. Fever is what you need to watch out for. If you're allowed any supplements (some ppl have to cut off everything about 2 weeks pre-op) try zinc or Zicam. Especially if you have a sore throat (just suck on the pill). I swear by it. You're scheduled for VSG and your wife doesn't know? You're not going to try and keep it a secret afterward, are you? (I can't imagine it would be possible to do).