biginjapan

Are you walking? Move, move, move. I’ve been up and moving since day one post op (today is day 7), and I haven’t had any gas pain since the first day. I know everyone is different, but the best way to deal with the pain is to move, as often as you are able to.

This is for everyone out there having surgery in March 2020, regardless of surgery type, to post their thoughts and concerns here. Surgery was just the first step. We still have a long road ahead of us, and having support around you is a great way to stay motivated and on track.

Don’t weigh yourself for at least a week after surgery - it is often higher (5-10 pounds) than your pre-surgery weight because of the reasons listed above. Even if you can drink liquids easily, don’t let that fool you. First, your stomach is extremely scarred and healing, so it probably can’t tell you that you are overdoing it. Second, just because you can drink more, don’t. There’s a reason why we are given strict limits - it’s not only for our healing stomachs, but to get used to constantly measure/weigh our food so that we stay on track. My sleeve failed for that reason (I had my revision on 3/3) so I’m being extra careful now.

Another March3rd-er (?) having an easy time of it. Since day 1 post op they given me vitamin water and a small yogurt drink to take in addition to water, and yesterday (day 3), I had some cottage cheese (considered a purée here - OMG in Estonia they must love it because the dairy case seems to have more cottage cheese options than yogurt ones), and baby food (the kind that come in the squeezable soft packs). It’s weird to me that both of these foods (in addition to other purées) were recommended to me, since that wasn’t the case when I had my first surgery in Mexico. In any event, since I’m living out of a hotel until next week I don’t have a lot of options food wise. Long story short, I’m doing well getting my liquids in, ok with the protein, and the purées didn’t cause any issues. If I hadn’t gone through this before, I’d be worried, but as it is I’m feeling great. The first time I did this (sleeve in 2017j, I was the only one in the hospital with little to no pain, was walking around at least 4 hours a day, and I actually accused my surgeon of not having done the surgery despite the scars and drainage tube coming out of my body. She told me that some people are just lucky, they go through surgery and the post op period without any problems and that I should be thankful for it. She even showed me a picture of my excised stomach to prove it. My current surgeon told me that he did check out my sleeve before he made it even smaller for the RNY and told me it was perfect, so whatever doubts I had in my mind for the past three years were put to rest. The one thing I do know is that transitioning to soft or mushy foods will be, not necessarily problematic, but that we’ll feel it more. That’s why I’m focusing on maintaining good habits (weigh or measure food, no drinking 30 min before and after any food), since I think that’s one of the main reasons my sleeve failed the first time.

I just got out of hospital for a revision to gastric bypass and had no liquids only stage at any point during my pre-op diet (which was, ideally, 3 protein drinks a day and one meal with lean protein, veggies, and good carbs 800-1200 calories a day). The night before surgery I was told to eat a carb-rich meal, like risotto or pasta, which I did. I have to say I’ve had no adverse effects - I was drinking water an hour after I got out of surgery (and have been doing 1200mL a day since), have been off pain killers since the first day, and generally feel great and full of energy - even better than my last surgery, so maybe this way of doing things really works.

Me too. I’m still in the hospital and weighed myself 24 hours after my surgery. Up 2.5 kilos. Luckily I won’t have access to a scale until late next week so I don’t have to worry about that headgame. However, to the OP, having surgery doesn’t automatically kickstart everything into high gear all at once. If you look at the stats many people lose between 10-25 pounds the first month, depending on starting weight/BMI and surgery done. The scale may show little to no movement. But things are happening in your body. Even when I had stalls on after my first surgery, I was still losing weight, as I could feel it and see it in the way my clothes fit. I also had a ton more energy. Don’t just focus on the numbers on the scale, there are a lot of non-scale victories to look out for.

Hope you feel better soon!

Well, I live in Japan where health insurance is done through your company so if you have something done, people are bound to know about it. For that reason, I’ve self-paid both my surgeries out of the country, and did it during my vacations (like now). When people asked about my weight loss I focused on the diet side of things (mostly keto, even if it’s not) and most people accepted it. Like others have mentioned, just be vague about the surgery and focus on your diet/exercise habits if they ask about your weight loss afterwards.

Tim - follow the guidelines from your nutritionist. Since your stomach is still sore and very scarred from the surgery, it may not be giving you signals that you are full (that should change once you get to solid food). If they recommend 4 oz (max) of liquids or purées at a time, only have 4 oz - don’t eat more just because you can (I went through the same with my gastric sleeve surgery back in 2017). Measure, weigh, and take no more than 20 minutes to eat - it will help you stay on target even if your eyes and stomach say otherwise.

I kept a few big clothes, ones that I liked, so I could do a before and after comparison after I lost all the weight. Joke was on me though, as I needed a more than a few of those items when I gained back about 50 pounds. This time around (I just had revision surgery), I’m going to toss or donate them, since there’s no stronger motivation to stay on track than having to buy new bigger clothes once again!

I was going to suggest PB2 as well, but I will say this too - cravings can drive anyone crazy, but giving into them now, so early in the game, will make it that much harder to resist later on. I say this as someone who just got out of a gastric bypass revision for a failed sleeve which failed mostly because I caved to my addictions (chocolate specifically) which lead to falling off the wagon entirely.

I’m day one post op on a gastric bypass revision, but so far not feeling the temperature shift yet (I know it’s pretty common).

Thanks! I’m just about to go to bed after my first full day post op. Feeling a bit tender and uncomfortable but drank a full litre of water plus some liquid yogurt drink. Walked about 5000 very slow steps around the hallways. Hopefully tomorrow will be even better.

My surgery is at three and my surgeon has encouraged me to keep hydrated and drink water, coffee, or apple juice until noon! I also had a carb-heavy meal last night. Let me tell you, these European surgeons have different standards that I’m not used to (since I did the US/Mexican way last time), but I’m going with it. We’ll see what happens.

Tomorrow is already here for me! I’m also a March 3rd surgery, but I’m in Europe so a few hours ahead of you. My surgery is the last one of the day in the afternoon, due to it being a revision, so lots of time for me to think about it here in the hospital. I got the sleeve 3 years ago and it was much easier than expected. However, other people on my floor had different amounts of pain, so everyone is different. The first week or two is probably the hardest, but even then it’s not that bad (think: first world problems). You’ll do great and remember that this is for life. You’ll have to always think about what and how much you are eating, but you’ll also be free of whatever health problems you may have and will be able to enjoy shopping so much more. Good luck!

I like Syntrax Nectar as well (Twisted Cherry and Roadside Lemonade are my favourites). These mix well and taste like regular drinks and unlike other protein powders with chocolate or vanilla flavours, work well on their own.

I am!!! So glad to hear that. I decided to go with him over everyone else (and I looked worldwide) because of the absolute detail and reasoning he had behind why I needed a full gastric bypass and not a mini, like so many other doctors were recommending (it seems like this is the popular choice now, especially in Mexico). Edit: no disrespect to the mini gastric bypass! I just felt like it wasn't quite right for me despite having so many doctors tell me so. I had a couple of doctors recommend the full bypass but only Dr. Kaur did so with reasons that were connected to other health issues I have, which made me feel more secure in choosing him.

The part of the stomach that produces the hunger hormone ghrelin gets removed in both sleeve and bypass, but after a year or two (or even faster) your body finds a way to make you feel hungry again. That's why establishing good eating habits for as long as you can is essential.

I originally went with sleeve for the same reasons many have posted here - I didn't like the idea of my intestines being rerouted, I didn't want the vitamin regimen for the rest of my life, and it just seemed more extreme than what I needed. However, I'm now less than a month away from getting a revision to gastric bypass, and I try not to feel angry that I didn't do that from the start (mostly because I've paid for 2 surgeries). Unfortunately I had to self-pay in Mexico, and my experience with that is that the doctors will basically agree with what you want and rarely take the time to consider your own personal needs. I live in Japan and there really isn't any doctor or program for me to use here, so I was stuck. The reality was even though I didn't have any co-morbidities, I had 150 pounds to lose and was a sugar addict. Bypass was probably the option I should have gone with from the beginning. But now I'm getting my surgery done in Tallinn (Estonia) from a very reputable place, and one of the reasons why I chose it is because the surgeon had a very specific plan for ME, as opposed to himself, like so many other surgeons. One thing I know from my failed sleeve is that being (or having been) obese is like being an alcoholic - once one, always one (your fat cells never disappear, they just shrink, waiting to be filled again). You have to be vigilant about what your triggers are and how to avoid them. There will never be a time in the future when you can go back to how you were - it's just too easy to fall off the wagon. I know now that it's normal to always feel a little bit hungry, that if I feel full then I've eaten too much, and that I can never eat sweet things - once I start it's hard to stop. It's just better if I never start.

My sleeve and I failed. Despite numerous attempts to reset it, nothing has worked. It's also clear that I have a sugar addiction. I should have done the bypass from the beginning, but I was a little fearful of it and the lifetime of supplementation. I'm hoping that the bypass, and knowing what I know from my previous experience, that this will be more successful.

March 3rd, sleeve to bypass revision. I started my pre-op diet this week (I don't need to for another 2 weeks but I wanted to get a head start). The hard part for me is that I will be travelling for 3 weeks before my surgery, so I hope that I can deal with all the different foods while away. I'm an outlier here as I'll be getting my surgery done in Estonia (!). I live in Japan and there's only one really expensive place in Tokyo to get it done -- it's just easier and cheaper for me to go abroad, since no matter what I choose, I have to self-pay. I had my last surgery in Mexico, so this will definitely be a change. It's really interesting how different the recommendations between the US/Mexico and Europe are for eating both pre- and post-op. I get to have a full meal (carb-heavy) the day before surgery!

I'm scheduled for my bypass revision (like you, my second surgery after a sleeve 3 years ago) in early March. Good luck!

Congrats! My surgery is also March 3rd!

I had my surgery almost exactly 3 years ago and didn't tell anyone other than 2 friends who live halfway around the world and are not connected to any of my other friends, family, or co-workers. I wasn't going to tell anyone, but then I thought someone should know in case something happens to me. When people asked about my weight loss I focused on the the low carb/portion control aspect of what I was doing (which, let's face it, is what leads to long-term success). I'm going for my revision surgery in a month's time and this time no one will know. The only people I would be willing to tell are some friends who are also morbidly obese - but only if they asked me specifically about it. In a few years time, when I am hopefully in maintenance mode, I think I would be more willing to talk about it openly, but while I'm still struggling, it's not something I can really talk about. I live in a country that has one of the lowest overweight/obesity rates in the world, so it's not like there are a lot of people out there who have a shared life experience that I can talk to about it.