OzRoo

In Woolworths here in OZ, they are in the crackers aisle, savoury crisps and biscuits. I would think that they would be in the US, near the Ryvitas. They taste great, especially with cream/cottage cheese. A couple of Cruskits with cheese keep me full for hours. Please, someone let me know if you find them. I'd be really surprised if they are not available in the US. Arnotts is an American company.

Today my weight dropped to 75kg (165 Ibs). I was told that at 74kg (162.8 Ibs) I'd be a success. I am now 10kg (22 Ibs) away from my goal weight, and 15kg (33 Ibs) away from my stretch goal of 60kg (132 Ibs). It is amazing to see how sugar caused few stalls, and even a little gain in the past. Since I stopped eating ice-cream and frozen yoghurt, and sticking to the food plan, suddenly my weight is peeling off again. It is like my body can't process sugar and stores it as fat instead. So, I have to be mindful constantly of what I put in my mouth. The sugar and its bad effects will never change. If I eat sugary food, I put on weight, if I don't eat it, I lose weight. So this will be lifelong process for me .... Happy to say though that melons and frozen berries satisfy my sugar cravings after dinner, and are a much healthier substitute. Funny, I never used to eat much of rock melon or honey dew, now I love them It is good to see the scales moving down again! I swapped ice-cream for frozen yoghurt because I thought it was healthier and lower in calories ..... alas what started with a small serving of frozen yoghurt became larger and larger servings. It was emotional eating for me, as I had lot of stress recently, so I felt I needed a reward..... Thankfully I realised what I was doing, and went back on track, back to basics. Basics work for me, and I have to be mindful of the Sugar Demon!

@@sallo Hi Sallo, wonderful to meet you! It is a great site for info and support. I don't dare having any sweets anymore, as they set up a craving for me for more and more ... I have been having melons and berries for Desserts. Tonight I had honey dew with blueberries and bit of Chobani yoghurt. It tasted delicious. I have ran out of blackberries, so I will get more tomorrow. Yes, lately I have been losing weight quicker myself. From 101kg down to 75kg today. At 74kg I was told I'd be classified as success. I want to get back to 65kg, or stretch goal of 60kg. Basically I want to fit back into my clothes again. I was only obese for 2 years, had a massive, rapid weight gain. Some of it due to my auto-immune thyroid disease. Ironically, this disease kept me slim all my life, and turned 180 degrees 2 years ago. So, I am just very grateful that I had WLS, and can get my health and my life back. Nice to hear from you, and best wishes with your weight loss

@@ramona5555 My favourite Soups for the new baby stomach were: pumpkin, tomato and mushroom. Easy to digest and tasty. I stayed away from anything spicy. NutriBullet is wonderful. I even pureed salads or cooked veggies. Good luck with your op!

Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia

Yes, I was over the sweet shakes. Needed warm, savoury stuff. I actually pureed poached salmon with stock and yoghurt, and loved it. Used to puree minced chicken with stock as well. My NutriBullet became my best friend

@@lutheranian I was told no NSAIDS for 30 days post op, same with Fish Oil, vit E etc Yes, in my opinion you could well have lowered immune system due to the trauma of the surgery, changes in diet, and your body trying to recover. As well as another stress of your new job. If you have pain, and don't want to take aspirin, how about Panadol/Paracetamol? My long term recipe for avoiding colds is vitamin C and Zinc tablets. This has worked for me for many years, and I rarely get sick now. I take powdered Calcium Ascorbate (vit C), mixed in water and bit of juice, and high strength Zinc tablets. Both are great for boosting the immune system. I just hope that it won't upset your stomach or give you nausea. I always take these 2 after a meal, never on an empty stomach. Good luck, and I hope you feel better soon!

@@LipstickLady @@Djmohr For you xxx

OK, we Both are Awesome ! xxxxx

@@LipstickLady I just came across your fabulous post and results. You look stunning! Awesome and hot! Such inspiration and great role model for the WLS. And now, few years later you are maintaining your weight loss and live a happy, productive full life. Mega Congratulations to you !!! The weight loss takes years off the face and body, it made you look so much younger I am only 5 months post op, but I already look younger myself, and my face is getting back its shape, and my eyes are big again. I still have 22Ibs left to goal, and 33Ibs left to lose to my stretch goal. I believe I will get there. So, thank you so much for posting your journey. Awesome stuff! xxxxx

@@1Cor2:9 Well done and Congratulations! Awesome result! I am 1Ib away from being a sleeve success. I lost 60Ibs 5 months post op. Well, my revised goal is another 22Ibs down, and my stretch goal is 33Ibs away. I most certainly don't want to stop at my current weight. I want to keep losing until I reach my goal, then maintain it. My motivation is like yours, so I wish you all the best! We can do it

PPI stands for Proton Pump Inhibitors that reduce gastric acid secretions. I was on Rabeprazole initially, and this did not work for me. Nexium works, and I haven't had problems with reflux since I swapped meds. Acid reflux won't show up on lab results, you can only experience it, the nasty stuff, and if it is troublesome, then a PPI will be needed to prevent it, as untreated it can cause problems later on. Reflux can be tested via endoscope or Barium swallow (not that accurate), also the ph can be tested, but it is easy to diagnose by actually experiencing it. I am glad @@Lema that so far it hasn't come back. Good luck and I hope that you will stay free of acid reflux.

Today my weight dropped to 75kg (165 Ibs). I was told that at 74kg (162.8 Ibs) I'd be a success. I am now 10kg (22 Ibs) away from my goal weight, and 15kg (33 Ibs) away from my stretch goal of 60kg (132 Ibs). It is amazing to see how sugar caused few stalls, and even a little gain in the past. Since I stopped eating ice-cream and frozen yoghurt, and sticking to the food plan, suddenly my weight is peeling off again. It is like my body can't process sugar and stores it as fat instead. So, I have to be mindful constantly of what I put in my mouth. The sugar and its bad effects will never change. If I eat sugary food, I put on weight, if I don't eat it, I lose weight. So this will be lifelong process for me .... Happy to say though that melons and frozen berries satisfy my sugar cravings after dinner, and are a much healthier substitute. Funny, I never used to eat much of rock melon or honey dew, now I love them It is good to see the scales moving down again! I swapped ice-cream for frozen yoghurt because I thought it was healthier and lower in calories ..... alas what started with a small serving of frozen yoghurt became larger and larger servings. It was emotional eating for me, as I had lot of stress recently, so I felt I needed a reward..... Thankfully I realised what I was doing, and went back on track, back to basics. Basics work for me, and I have to be mindful of the Sugar Demon!

I think the sugar cravings/addiction will always lurk in the background, so I have to be mindful of it, one day at a time. Emotional/stressful times can make it worse for me, however I now experienced that the reset back to basics works. And melons with berries are now my best friends

@@SD123 Acid reflux and dehydration happens to few people, but not to everyone. I was one of those people who got bad acid reflux after my op. I never had GERD and I only had intermittent reflux once I got fat, but it didn't happen everyday. Post surgery, initially I had lot of reflux, then at each food phase change, reflux appeared again, even though I was on Rabeprazole PPI. I found out through forums that Nexium helped many people, so I asked my surgeon for a script, and Nexium did wonders for me. Dehydration can easily happen, as very early post op it is difficult to get enough Fluid in. You still sip it, and I didn't feel that thirsty, plus I was conscious of fluid going down. It wasn't painful, but I felt it, and it gurgled all the way down. I started adding bit of apple juice or tiny amount of lemonade to my Water, as post op it was difficult for me to drink water, something to do with the pressure. I also bought Hydralyte for emergencies. Yes, the first 2 weeks post op, on liquids only were tough for me. I was hungry a lot, and felt unsatisfied. Hot broths helped and some watery Soups too. I was getting sick of Protein shakes, and was craving hot, savoury stuff. Luckily, that phase went quickly for me. Purees were much better, and I got quite creative with my NutriBullet Soft/Mushy stage was great, finally was able to eat "real" food

Yes, I weaned myself off Equal that was playing havoc with my blood sugar levels, and got used to Stevia. I remember not liking Stevia years ago, but now I love it. I use it in my coffee and yoghurt. Tonight I had few blackberries, and they were so satisfying, delicious really. From now on I'll keep buying the frozen berries, as they taste great and don't create cravings for me

SD123, Yes, I am really seeing results now. Early post op I didn't have too many issues. I woke up with a large drain on my left side, IV and had some pain, mainly at the drain site. Not everyone gets a drain, I had fair bit of oozing so had this drain. I had no nausea, was so glad to have something to drink finally. I was in the hospital for 3 days, and once at home I had all the stuff for the liquid phase. Sipping was bit uncomfortable initially, and I could feel liquid going down my oesophagus. I had bit of nausea at times, took Zofran wafers, and had oxycodone for pain. I found the liquid phase the toughest one, as I felt really hungry. I was surprised re this hunger, but I was still quite raw post op, and had fair bit of reflux, even with the prescribed PPI. I had a couple of nasty experiences, one was waking up at 3 am, choking on and coughing up acid, burning, foul acid. I elevated my pillow, and this happened again few days later. I was told to stop drinking tomato juice, especially in the evenings. I also told my surgeon, and asked to be put on Nexium 40mg. Nexium really helped with reflux. The second scary experience was I started feeling faint, cold and clammy with racing pulse while I was driving. Lucky it was a short drive. Once I got to my appointment, the nurse on duty recognised that I was dehydrated. She gave me Hydralyte to drink, and I was fine 15 minutes later. I threw up few times, too dry scrambled egg and after a fatty beef mince. I had a terrible reaction to chocolate, reflux from hell! Maybe just as well. Other than the liquid phase, other stages of purees, soft and mushies, then more solid food were much better to cope with. I had few stalls, and I learnt through this forum that stalls are normal, and that my body will keep adjusting itself at its own pace. I still have burps and wind post op. Did not have it before op. It will subside or be gone one day, especially once I get off the PPI. I am just plodding along, my appetite is gone, don't feel hungry till late afternoons and at times I have to force myself to eat. If there is anything else you would like to know, I'll be happy to share it. My health problems are good now, my sugar levels are normal, and my liver is perfect now. My hair is thicker, and my face looks 10 years younger! So, I am just very happy that I had this surgery

I have no regrets, and I needed this surgery, because my weight started to spiral our of control in the past 2 years. I was always slim before, and all of a sudden I gained over 90Ibs in 2 years! As I said in my earlier post, I could see my weight doubling ...... I started having health problems and my self esteem was at an all time low. I had to wait 9 months for this surgery due to my thyroid disease, and my thyroid had to be stabilised prior surgery. For me, this surgery has been a life saver. I have lost close to 60Ibs so far, all my labs are great now, and I can look in the mirror again. I am not lugging 2 heavy suitcases with me every day, my health is getting better and better.

QUESTION TO THE VETS. Since my gastric sleeve op I noticed that I now burp and pass big amounts of wind. Every day! Probiotic is helping a bit, and I am avoiding foods that produce gas, such as Beans, cauliflower, and soy sauce. I take De-Gas at times, as well. I am also on Nexium PPI. I wonder if this condition will last forever, due to high Protein diet. My stomach rumbles also, after each meal. I eat slowly and chew well. Did any of you notice that it gets better with time? Also, I read that taking PPI can also promote burps and wind, as the production of hydrochloric acid is disturbed and digestion is altered. Did any of you vets, got off the PPI, and noticed improvement with your digestion and less burps and wind? I also read elsewhere that many people post WLS have burping and gas issues, even years down the track. I would love to hear from you and your experiences. I never had this problem before …… Thank you

Great! Thank you both. I am only 5 months post op, so I am hoping that this will get better. @@Bufflehead I was wondering if the gas would go away after getting off PPIs. It did in your case, so there is hope for me yet. I am truly happy to hear that these conditions pass with time, and only crop up when the wrong food is eaten. Many thanks, our fabulous Vets!

Yes, it is like a drug! Can't have it in small amounts as once I start, it sets up a craving .... So, going abstinent on sugar. Only sugar from now on is from fruit. And I don't binge on fruit

I buy commercial sauces, like chicken tonight, or Pasta sauces that has cheese in it. There is the 3 cheeses sauce, also cheese and bechamel sauce. Nothing too heavy, but sauces that have some Proteins in them. With the salmon, I would also sprinkle bit of soy sauce as well. I don't use soy sauce anymore, as it gives me gas now. Just have a look in your supermarket what sauces are available, I am in Australia, and I am sure you will have a larger selection of sauces. 5 months post op, and I still put sauce into my savoury meals to make them juicy and easier to eat.

@@russtee My first scrambled egg was quite moist, and it went down OK. Weeks later I had another one, but it was lot drier, and it got stuck half way down my oesophagus, and stayed there. Next I felt my chest was on fire, burning travelling up, and I had to run to the bathroom. So, I am too scared to try it again, It actually put me off eggs for now. My poached salmon, I just covered it in sauce, and microwaved it for a couple of minutes. It came out soft and juicy, and was very yummy!

Yes, sounds like acid reflux. Happened to me twice in the past, woke up at 3 am coughing up and choking on burning, horrible foaming acid. I elevated my pillows and got a script for stronger PPI, Nexium 40mg. This helped me, and thank goodness I haven't had this happen to me again! I also had to stop drinking tomato juice, as it was too acidy. Good luck!

Hear hear @ Well said! She has to learn not to judge or form opinions about people and their situations she knows nothing about.