GenJones

Hi Jesta - Congrats on the successful surgery! I, too, had no problem with fluids. I always made sure I sipped (because it's drilled into us) but I did a little guzzling a week or two out and had no feeling of wanting to burst or wanting to vomit it back up. I do tend to keep food and liquid separate, just so my stomach won't empty too soon, but feeling uncomfortably full if I don't sip? Nope. I'm just like you. Again, keep your drinking time separate from your eating time and just listen to your body. You still have a lot of healing left to do.

I'm four months out and I've already had two or three stalls. They really do end if you're scrupulous when you count your calories and remember to move around a lot. Also, really work to get that protein, as it can be harder to lose weight if your protein count is too low. Be patient and your weight loss will start again soon!

I know JUST how you're feeling. When they weighed me the day before I left the hospital I had gained 10 lbs! I was distraught! But it came off quickly so I think it was fluids from both the surgery and the post-op IV. Congrats on making it through.

The diet you've started is designed to shrink the size of your liver which is, if you're like most bariatric patients, fatty and overly large. Since your stomach is behind your liver, your surgeon will have to lift it up and out of the way in order to operate on your stomach. The smaller you can get that liver, the easier it is for your surgeon and the less time you'll spend on the operating table. The first 3-4 days are the toughest. Your body adjusts somewhat after that and things get easier. Good luck!

Ok guys, what the heck am I doing wrong? I'm about 3 weeks post-op DS and, up until about 5 days ago, I was doing great. At my first check up I'd lost 30 lbs. Now the scale hasn't budged for five days and I can't see a reason. (Are you even supposed to reach "plateaus" at this point?) I haven't been overeating; I think I'm getting enough fluid and I'm walking up and down the halls of (snowbound) house. Has anyone else been through this kind of thing? thanks for listening

Hey Jean - Why do you hate the BMI scale? Just curious.

Hey Strivingforbetter - You only have 20 lbs to go?? That's fantastic! I can't even imagine having that few left. Good luck on making it to your goal!

Jean E: Thanks for that analogy - very helpful. And I guess my car is in gear again because I'm finally losing again.

I know just how you're feeling! It's exciting but having insurance paperwork done makes it all so real, doesn't it? Don't worry (but of course you will!) this is a really positive step you're taking. I'm about 2 months out, 30 lbs down and I'm really glad I did this. Best of luck and good wishes to you!

I just had a Loop DS done and my surgeon said that he might do it in stages if it looked like they couldn't do the whole procedure because of too much fat in the belly area. If that had happened, he would have done a gastric sleeve procedure and then, after I'd lost a good amount of weight, he would have done the actual switch. As it was, I had the whole surgery in one step, but I understand now why a surgeon might do it in stages. I think some surgeons remove the gallbladder or appendix as a matter of course, supposedly to prevent problems with them later. Other surgeons have a, "if it's not broken leave it alone" philosophy. This is something to talk to your surgeon about before your surgery. Good luck!

Thank you all so much for sharing your experiences. I almost feel normal now!

Thanks so much for this! I plan on heeding your advice on the BA samples.

I hadn't thought about motivation like that, but you're probably right. (And I can see those first few months being a rough time, indeed.)

I'm wading through all the requirements of my surgeon's program and the time has come for a behavioral topics class. I'm supposed to take at least one class pre-op and catch up on the rest either pre or post op. There are six classes in all: - Stress Management - Self-image & Self-esteem - Mindset & Motivation - Eating Patterns & Behaviors - Emotional Eating - Changes in Social Dynamics From what you all have been through, which one (or more) of these topics do you think would be most helpful to someone pre-op and in the first month post-op? Thanks!

I was thinking the self-image class and the one on changing social dynamics seemed like definite post-op topics, if only because they both deal with changes in weight, but I may be wrong.

Thanks for that answer - it gives me a lot of insight. It's funny, but I think I'm like you were: NOT being plus-sized seems like a dream. Just imagine being able to buy clothes anywhere or fitting into cinema seats with no problems. One can dream, eh? *sigh*

Whoa - I hope you don't mind me asking, but I was looking at your personal stats on the left side of your post and saw that you've lost 65 lbs in about 2-3 weeks. Really? That's stunning! How is your body handling that? *pre-op newbie stares in wonder*

Hi there - I'm a fellow newbie who went into my surgeon and asked for a sleeve gastrectomy and was told that I weighed too much for the sleeve alone to be effective. My high weight was 412. Now you may be much taller than I am at 5'6", but everything I have read since has confirmed that for someone with a BMI > 50 the DS is best. I'm now on the 6 month medically-supervised weight loss program my insurance requires, waiting to get my surgery date. I know the DS is a big procedure, but then again, I'm a big person.

Are you talking about regular soda, with sugar? Because I drink diet soda and I'm wondering if the "no soda post-surgery" is because of the carbonation or because of the sugar. I certainly wouldn't want to do anything bad for my liver but I really don't know what it is about soda that's bad for WLS patients.

I didn't really have a choice. My surgeon talked to me for a bit, then asked me which procedure I was thinking about. I SAID VSG and he said, "It won't be enough. You have too much weight to lose. You need the DS." Since reading more about the procedures, I'm inclined to trust him.

Hi there - Just wanted to introduce myself. I'm someone very early in the process (just had my first consult with my surgeon yesterday) but I wanted to start being active in the forums now so that I can learn from you all and not make too many newbie mistakes. I look forward to talking to you and learning from you in the days ahead.

Hi there - if you don't mind my asking, why did you get an endoscopy and how was it done?