Bhageerah

Just like what has been stated it is normal to have gas pains several days out. I was having them up until about 4-5 days out. If you are having second thoughts then please talk to your Dr at your appointment just to be on the safe side. It may not be gas pain and it is better to be safe than sorry! I know my surgeon pretty much told us to call anytime and there was no question that was a dumb question!

I take 4 per day, two in the morning as well as two in the evening with meals. I am 7 months out and I started them about a month ago. Dr told me to take magnesium since it is a smooth muscle relaxer, I take two of those a day at the same time I take my psyllium. Magnesium was not working on its own, so I added the psyllium without any issues whatsoever. Of course I have to drink plenty of water and lets just say that I will not be going back unless my surgeon tells me to stop. They work extremely well, and I can tell when I do not take them. They have worked miracles!!!

Yes, I am not sure what your numbers are but you can see mine in my profile. I did not see any weight loss for about a week or two and then it all started FLYING off. I had a few stall weeks but on average I was loosing about 10-20 pounds a month. You will not see much loss at the moment because of all of the swelling in your abdomen, once the swelling goes down and your body starts reacting to the change it will not take long. I assure you that if you follow the plan that your Dr gave you, that you should be down 10 or more pounds during your first 3-5 weeks. If you start exercising (walking, or riding a bike) you will loose even faster. Just please abide by any and all rules and regulations that your Dr has put in place! You will be fine!

For me it was my face, then I rapidly noticed that my waist was getting smaller, then after a few months I noticed my arms and back fat disappearing! I am just glad it is going, going gone!

Let me congratulate you sir and say welcome to the family! Please do not worry about the amount of liquids that you are able to consume at this stage. I can assure you that I was EXTREMELY worried until I started doing some research and found out that you are able to drink more because water just slides through your pouch. Pretty much the only thing that will "hold" you will be your protein, and anything with a thick consistency. I am a little over 6 months out and I can consume water VERY easily. But when I try to drink a protein shake I have to stop after a few sips and let things settle. It takes me about 15-20 minutes to finish a 20 oz shake. I can absolutely KILL a 16oz bottle of water in 3 minutes or less!! Stomach noise is somewhat normal as well, some more than others! My MIL had a bypass and after she eats she sounds HORRIBLE! I normally don't have any noise but it depends on what I eat but noise is rare. Give it a little time it may work out that you will be "normal" in a bit, you are less than a week out and are still swollen. If you still feel the same after a week or so then you my want to talk to your surgeon and tell them about the stomach noise and the pain that you are experiencing. Normally you will have the gas pain for 3-5 days post op. Just hang in there you will be over this soon! I know that it sounds crazy but this is the worst part, once you get over this hump it is all downhill from here! (journey is a lifetime and you will have a lifetime of good choices to make and trying to keep the weight off but as far as the pain goes its all downhill!!)

Hello, I apologize but I am not going to be able to give you any advice because I am just a little over 6 months out. But I have to say several things! One congratulations on how well you are doing this far out! SERIOUSLY! And second you are giving me inspiration because me gaining everything back is one of the things that makes me worry. The fact that you are 20 years out and are only having issues with 10-20 pounds gives me some hope! If you are really seeking advice I can only say to try going to your surgeons office and asking them for some advice.....I know that my surgeon has weekly meetings and groups that attempt to help people in situations like what you are experiencing. Good luck and thank you for the hope that you just gave me!

Hold on there sis! I know that it seems hard at the moment but trust me in a few weeks as you see the weight melt off and your body starts changing and you feel better and get more energy you will forget about the pain that you are in. I am 6 months out and do not regret it one bit. I am over 6 months out and honestly I have forgotten about the pain. I am glad it did it and you will be as well! Just hang in there and sip and walk, in a few weeks you will be one happy woman! Good luck and keep up the great work!

I have a brother that is over 450 lbs, he was part of the reason that I choose my surgery. I know that his body is screaming under the weight. At first he told me that he was considering it, he now says that he wants to try to diet first (high protein low carb) but is not doing it right. I am keeping silent at the moment because he says that he was going to be good for a year. He now says that he does not want to do it, because he has spent so much time in hospitals when he was young. I can blow his excuse out of the water but I am just giving him some time to realize that what he is going isn't going to work and then sit down and have a heart to heart talk with him. He needs it, and I want him to have it. I just know that if I push too hard it will push him away, so I am patiently waiting. I will give it until August and then I am going to sit down with him.

I had been having issues with things moving like they should! With all the protein I was locked up tighter than Fort Knox! Mom was a health food nut and told me about psyllium awhile ago, I now take magnesium pills twice a day as well as taking several psyllium capsules a day. The combination of the two keeps me "regular" without having to worry about a complete blow out. (sorry if that is TMI) One great thing about the psyllium is that it also absorbs grease and cholesterol so it is serving a dual purpose!

I was ok at about one week out but to be honest with you with everything that I had going on sex was the last thing on my mind! After about two weeks almost all of the pain was gone and I was feeling great. As someone else stated, as long as you do not get crazy with the "relations" you should be absolutely fine!

To me the pre op diet was bad but not as bad as being post op and not having anything to eat whatsoever for two weeks. Not sure how long your diet was but my Dr had us on protein shakes for two weeks pre op but allowed us to have one low carb meal per day up until a few days before surgery. Post op was NO food until we hit the puree stage. I have never been so happy to just have a baby spoon of refried beans in my entire life!!!

Tidewater Virginia (at least for now!!!)

Off the hand I would say no, but my honest opinion would be to ask your surgeon, only reason I say no is because your stomach is somewhat sensitive at this point. Any foods not on the "list" are subject to possibly irritate your stomach and start bouts of diarrhea. Once you start going you will not be able to hydrate enough and will have to go to the ER in order to get fluids by IV. I unknowingly had a protein shake that had something that was not on my list, for the next day and a half I had the runs, I ended up having to go the the fire house and get some supplies so my wife could start an IV on me and give me fluids. My blood pressure dropped and I could barely get out of bed without almost passing out. Just call the office and ask and they will advise you, lets just say that the "extra ingredient" was not worth the issues it caused me!

6 months out and my stomach feels normal, about the only time that it does not feel normal is when I go LONG periods of time without eating or drinking something. I can not explain the feeling but its not hunger its rather painful and I know that I need to grab something to eat soon! The only other complaint that I have is that I now burp more than ever have in my life! Dr recommended a probiotic that I now take regularly, it has helped some but after I eat I still burp some, but I will gladly take that over what I was dealing with! Those are the only two issues that I have and to be perfectly honest both are minor in comparison!

Don't work as an RN but I do work as a medic/firefighter for a local fire department. I was able to get it in while being on calls all day long. The key was to be prepared for anything, I had shakes all over the place! In my locker, in my bag , a had some packets on the medic with me along with a shaker bottle. I would also carry a large water bottle with water to make sure that I did not have any excuse to get my water in, or something to make my shakes. Wife is a ED RN in one of the busiest ER's in the state so I understand your concern but trust me if you have the stuff on the floor with you then you will be fine! Just set yourself up for success and plan for the worst and you will be fine!

My dear, there will be plenty of men out there! I will be perfectly honest with you I like my wimmen curvy. But at the same time the figure does not make or break the relationship. It is in the personality of the woman, if the guy doesn't see the " real" you then please leave the no good, non deserving bastard by the road and move on! You deserve the best and if he can not support you on your journey then he obviously isn't worth your time to begin with!

I can tell you that I binge eat, when I returned back to work after my 6 weeks off it was something that I mentally was not prepared for. I had an OVERWHELMING urge to binge eat, maybe its from the stress. I am not sure, but one thing I can tell you is that it was something I had to and still have to work on, ESPECIALLY on weekends when we have some of my favorite breakfast foods! Yes I absolutely love breakfast! But that being said I personally had to get my head in the game and learn how to say no and limit myself. Surgery as well as the pre and post op diet helped me do that. You know where you are weak, or will soon find out! Just do your best to move forward and make progress, you will be fine as long as you start working the plan and abide by the rules. I have faith in you!

That is the only way that I used it, in my line of work I don't have the time to mess with a stick blender, so I use a blender bottle, or a contigo bottle and have not had any issues. It blends it well and without a lot of clumps. You should not have any issues! This powder and the Torani sugar free syrup are two of the main reasons I was able to make it through the two weeks post surgery. My palate was OVER the same chocolate and vanilla shakes that I had in the house, and to be honest at 6 months out I am just now going back to them to finish them off.

Had it, love it and continue to use it in my shakes! That stuff is amazing! I got it at Walmart for not a great amount of money.

I STRONGLY believe that you will be fine, as long as you are following her guidelines your liver will shrink. By now she has performed lab work on you so she should know where you are health wise. She is just using fear tactics to try and get you to stay on the straight and narrow to make sure that you follow her instructions. Just follow what she told you to do and you will wake up on the other side of surgery and will be happy! You will be fine!

All I am going to say is that if they can not see that you have gotten healthier and lost quite a bit of weight then they are absolutely blind! You look amazing! Congratulations!!! Job well done! I am doing well, I am down 94 pounds and feel great! The last night that I was able to sleep all night was Feb 3rd due to a 12 week old four legged addition to the family. If it wasn't for surgery I would not be able to keep up with my busy schedule (typical month is over 300 hours at work) and the sleepless nights from letting him out to potty, and walking 3-4 miles a day with him. I have about 20-30 pounds left and know that I made the right decision! I only wish I would have done it a few years ago!

I was looking at getting the lap band done but my surgeon warned against it, they stated that they remove more than they put in. They also stated that if they were researched more than they may not have been accepted under todays standards. I came home did my own research and made my choice for the VSG, I can not change your mind but I personally hate surgery. I only wanted to do this one time vs having the risk of going back and having a revision or removal done. Several of the staff in the Dr office had the band, and they actually warned against it as well, they were working to get the band removed and then have a VSG. I am not a chicken when it comes to pain but I personally would rather have one surgery vs several!

ABSOLUTELY NOT!!!! I am only about 6 months out but I can tell you that there is no way that I miss my larger self....I feel healthier, my blood pressure, A1C, and blood sugar have dropped, cholesterol dropped, pants size dropped from a 48 and really needing to upgrade to a size 50 down to a size 40 and about to drop to a size 38. EVERYTHING has changed for the better. For the first time in my life I am looking forward to summer to be able to go to local amusement parks with the family and actually fit on rides. There have been way more benefits than I have the time to list here. I love the new me and look forward to me taking the rest of my journey wherever that leads. I will have to be perfectly honest and say that sometimes I miss the "indulging" but that is something that I am able to handle and am dealing with. I understand that it is part of my illness and am doing my share to overcome it! I will not return to my prior size, I refuse to give up, and I am proud of my decision!

No, for reasons already stated my Dr does not want his patients to stay overnight. Not only that but everyone admitted for surgery and goes under automatically gets labeled as a high fall risk for legal reasons. That means that you are unable to walk or get out of your bed without the assistance of a nurse. Which also means that you do not walk around right after surgery. He prefers to send his patients home due to less rates of infection, more movement, and its generally better for the patient. I actually preferred this method because I slept in my own bed and had my swallow test and was able to eat ice chips not long after coming out of surgery. Wife and I both work in healthcare and trust me you do not want to stay in the hospital longer than you have to!

I was buck nekked under my gown, I did wear undies to the hospital they requested that I take everything off prior to surgery. It all got packed into a bag and left with the wife as she waited, once I was done with surgery and released 7 hours later I threw everything back on and went home.