2ndSpring

oh Laney - that is awesome. congrats!!! and Lisa - Hi! would love to meet you too. We met in Suffolk in Dec and Nassau in Jan - maybe we can meet next in NYC.

HI, I've never personally had to have a tranfusion but my daughter has due to a medical condition. She has it done in the doctors office. She gets hooked up to a IV, and then it is saline and then the Iron and then the saline again. She brings a book to read and says that it is not uncomfortable or anything. Sometimes she needs 2 or 3 sessions a week or 2 apart to get her levels up, but then she is good for a while. Hope this helps ease your mind.

((((hugs))) I am so sorry you have to go through this. I'm sure you will tackle it courageously, just like you did with your surgery. You've gotten terrible news and you must be scared - and angry too. But the timing is good (post-sleeve) and that may bring you some small comfort. Your old eating habits would probably not have supported what your body needs now to be strong. Now you have the tool to be able to stay on track to eat healthy and fuel your body's immune system. Please let us know what happens on Friday. We're sending positive thoughts your way.

We missed you!

Im here. Cant find anyone. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

its a good question!!! We use the word ounce to talk about both weight and volume, so it is very confusing. A food can weigh 4 ounces or it can take up 4 Fluid ounces in volume. A half cup is 4 fluid ounces in volume, but may weigh more or less than 4 ounces depending on how fluffy or dense the food is. So....totally confusing. i've been going by weight because I find it easiest. I use an an old weight watchers food scale. I put the plate on the scale and zero it out. then I put the Protein on the plate and stop when it hits 3 ounces. then i add another ounce of vegetables to get to 4 ounces total.

I'm in! See you on saturday.

My new favorite part about eating out is taking home the leftovers and not having to cook for the next 2-3 meals. Order whatever Protein looks yummy (and soft), eat your 3 bites and then take home the rest!! Since you are going to the movies afterwards, bring a small cooler with you for the car. The server will probably be concerned that you didn't like the meal, just reassure them that the meal was delicious and you are not that hungry tonight and they'll be happy.

I totally agree with this. The scale measures everything, not just fat. Your body is making adjustments, you are rebalancing your Fluid retention after the 2 week pre-op, and everything is inflamed. I lost a lot in the 2 week pre-op and then nothing in the 2 weeks after surgery. By the 3rd or 4th week, weight loss became more steady. You are losing fat, even if the scale says otherwise.

Not to worry - this is very common. The liquid diet you were on pre-op did a great job of depleting your glycogen stores and now your body has to rebalance, especially its Fluid retention. For these first few weeks, just focus on staying hydrated and get your shakes in when able, and don't worry about what the scale says. You are losing weight, its just being offset on the scale by Water retention and inflammation from the surgery.

Good luck!!

you look awesome. You've dropped a lot more baggage than the 83 pounds!

Great question! from a weight loss perspective, sugar wreaks havoc in your body. You eat it, then your blood sugar spikes and your body responds by pumping out insulin to get it out of your blood and move it into your liver for storage. As a result, your blood sugar dips down and your body responds to that by triggering cravings for more in an effort to stabilize. vicious cycle. Also, I've found that now that I avoid added sugar and all grains (bread, Pasta, etc), that i don't have any cravings and find it easy to stay on track.

My surgeon is on the lenient side. for example, I started mushy food a few days after surgery. But, I wasn't approved for lettuce and softer raw veggies (like cukes) until 3 months, and was told to hold off for a little while longer on harder raw veggies like peppers and carrots. My nut told me that they make the stomach work too hard and the stomach is still learning at this point. I'm glad I can have some at least, hummus is no fun without something to dip in it or spread it on.

I remember my doctor saying that the first 30 days after any surgery, patients are at a higher risk of blood clots. He said travel was fine as long as I got up and walked around frequently - at the very least, once an hour.

"Or, it can be a detour, a brush with a healthier possibility that is not embraced". That is all of my fears summed up in a concise, eloquent sentence. Great article!

if you want to see what the staples look like, there are some youtube videos of actual sleeve surgeries. very very cool. it is amazing how they perform the sleeve and I was really surprised by the small size and large number of staples. I felt better after watching.

Happy Anniversary!!!!

The force is strong with this one.

Thanks for lightening the mood

@@julia454 Please don't be offended. Everything I wrote was a heartfelt expression of joy from me to you. I meant to be supportive and congratulate you on the awesome work you have done. Quitting all 3 things at once is a huge undertaking and I was trying to let you know how much I admired you for it. Nothing was intended as sarcasm. I have done a lot of reading on cognitive behavior therapy and patting ourselves on the back is an important part of behavior change. Every day, I make myself take a moment and think of a success that I had that day and be proud. Maybe I should have used a different phrase - I can see how that may have sounded like sarcasm.

Yeah, they really hurt at first. Make sure you take your pain meds for the first few days so that you can get up and walk around. The walking helps with any gas pains you may have and helps your body to trigger healing processes. My incisions stopped being so painful after the first week but were still sore for a few weeks. Hope you feel better soon.

Yes! In high school a hundred years ago, I was a size 8 and my closest friends were size 2's - so naturally, I thought I was huge. How I wish for that size 8 body back.

Regardless of weight loss impact, reducing carbs diminishes my cravings. That is huge for me and so important as I struggle to create new behaviors. I'm still in weight loss phase. I am trying to walk that fine line between low carb and ketosis. I don't want to be in ketosis all the time. Right now, I'm getting carbs from vegetables, fruit and Beans. When I hit maintenance, I'll add starchy vegetables back in. I haven't decided on my stance on grains yet. I've been feeling more energetic (and warm) since I added more fat into my diet.

I am so impressed!!! alcohol, cigarettes and food. Every minute of every day, you should pat yourself on the back. I smoked for 25 years. Quitting is very hard. That advice about the first 2 weeks being the hardest is BS. It is hard for much longer so keep your guard up. It is not just the physical addiction but it was such a part of your life. It was a reason to take a break, it was something to do with your hands when you were bored, it was something to do with your mouth instead of eating. right? I promise it does get better. At first you will be preoccupied every minute of the day and think of nothing else. Gradually the time between will get further and further apart until one day you'll realize you went a whole day without thinking about a cigarette. It helps to remind yourself that never again will you have to go stand outside in the rain or snow to smoke, never again will you need to wake up on a Sunday morning and run out to the store because you ran out, never again will you have the awful smell on your breath and clothes, and best of all you will not develop those deep vertical lines on your lips as you get older. so proud of you!!!!