KarenLR75

The only person not taking accountability for their actions is him. You already demonstrated accountability by pursuing WLS and doing a dang fine job at it even though it is the hardest action to undertake out of them all. He likes to fight dirty it seems. Just let him wallow in it. I'm sure you were very distressed when he made that comment...I'd have been so tempted to say "wow, thanks, you solved it for me!. I never thought about doing any of that. I think you should write a book since you are now an expert in solving things you have no experience with". I say TEMPTED to say it as often when ppl fight dirty like that they are trying to get a reaction so often the best course of action is to give them NO reaction. So much easier said than done though! I'm sorry he did that to you though..sorry you went through it. I think life will be better off without his poor behavior in the mix.

FINALLY! Am at lowest weight in over 15 years. Don't know what we call finally getting out of the '300's and in to the '200's on the scale, but I'm going to call it 'MAGICAL'!! LOL...am barely into the '2's but I'm claiming it!! Still a slow loser but I'm just grateful at this point. I could still be continuing my eventual 'gain into infinity/death'... I'm so happy...relieved...so many other emotions...but a good jumble instead of a bad one.. Love this PICTURE!! I was so surprised as I had been stalled for past week and kept showing between a 1.2 lb gain or that I was staying the same. I got on and off the scale like 5 times as I didn't trust in what I was seeing (and my scale is weird sometimes but usually 3 tries gives me the correct #)..

Always happy to help. The cherry chewable gas-ex tablets were almost like having DESSERT in the first few weeks, and it felt so DANG good to be able to CHEW something!!

I'm on a blood thinner but also still weigh a LOT. Mine ranges from high 70's and then will spike up to high 90's but this has stayed fairly consistent before and after surgery.

It took me over 10 days to get rid of all the gas. I walked and walked and walked. Chewing Gas-Ex tablets (approved by my dr) did help some. I felt NO hunger at all for a BLISSFUL TWO DAYS. Since Day THREE after surgery I have experienced true hunger AND head hunger. Sometimes I could tell the difference, sometimes I cannot. My restriction however, always kicked in so I RARELY exceeded 1 to 2 ounces of liquid the first few weeks. Then I could sometimes hit around 2 to 4 ozs. After that, I could feel the restriction kick in hard. Some ppl CAN take in more around these timeframes but I deferred to my dr's plan which indicated I should NOT consume more than this so I didn't. I'd follow whatever your dr's plan is...and if still hungry, try drinking water (I'd read FluffyChix's post on Doing the Head Work and/or searching on this forum about how to tell if what you are feeling is head hunger (IT can be VERY VERY similar to the 'true hunger' sensation). Mainly wanted to assure you that what you are going through is normal! Congrats on getting to this part of your journey!!

I hadn't checked my Dr's nutrition info now that I'm officially past the 6 week mark (where they indicate full healing should be although I've also heard ppl in his office state 8 weeks?). Much to my shock this is the ONLY thing in the 4 pages that addresses what to do AFTER WEEK SIX: After 6 weeks from your surgery date, your stomach is officially healed and it is time for you to advance your diet further to dense proteins. Remember to focus on your meal pattern to help you reach your daily protein goal and to help you feel your best! Protein first, followed by non-starchy vegetables, then fruit or starch (if desired) NOTHING is stated about amounts, how often, calorie limit or any other macro related suggestions. I mean what ??? There is not even a reference to WEEKS 4-6 which is all about eating 1 to 2 oz up to 4 to 5 times per day and is limited to only SOFT SOFT foods. I'm a bit baffled..

I've had this happen 4 to 5 times now in the past 6.5 weeks. I spent most of today curled almost in a fetal position on my bed with horrible cramping/aching in my abdomen area. Have had no food issues in most recent 48 hrs. Start to get really bad abdominal cramping like I'm going to have diarrhea...sometimes there is a small BM & it is not the signature 'hard/rocky' type BM, but the pain just continues on and on. Have decent pain tolerance but if I was asked to walk upright, I'd have to pause and bend over if there was anywhere to do so. In the end it is usually concluded that I was not necessarily: Constipated Experiencing a bad food/rejection/pouch issue An upset/irritated pouch that is possibly swollen I still have some medicine on hand that my doctor prescribed for abdominal pain - methocarbamol (Robaxin). That doesn't even put a dent in it! I also have another med for abdominal pain/spasms - hyoscyamine that I have not been able to find today but it has never seemed to help much either. This med is supposed to "Gut antispasmodic and anti-tremor". I wish I HAD found it today to at least give it a try as I was at 'desperation level'. Only way I can think to describe how it feels is that it feels like my lower intestines/colon are twisting themselves into knots. Is this just something that is part of the healing process/that just stops over time. It's the whole 'intense pain without a causative factor that I can put my finger on" part that is driving me crazy. This type of pain usually lasts at least 8 hrs and knocks me out of the majority of the day which is NOT good when you need to be working.

OMG, I forgot to respond to everyone's replies. I actually get this..like every 2 to 4 weeks it seems. The first 2 times was before I had healed very much (I'm...7 weeks out now?)...and I got so dehydrated I was sent to hospital for a long duration of IV fluids. They also gave me some meds for abdominal pain/cramping (I had already taken the 2 different meds my surgeon had prescribed for this and he prescribed Tramadol as well, but Tramadol does nothing for me). When the 'meds' I had at home were not enough to suffice and after hours of enduring the agony, I actually did call dr both times. That 1st hospital visit also gave me some type of pain relief but I have no clue what it was. It was not what I had on hand, nor was it a heavy duty narcotic. The 2nd time I had this kind of pain I was sent to another facility to drink soapy water (I was only a few weeks out and it was one of worst things I've ever had to try to drink, esp with being not even 1 month past operation. Scan showed no leaks, etc. The 3rd time, I was told to go back to hospital I had scan at. Was kept overnight. Was in awful pain. Scan done again and only thing they could see this time was that my esophagus tended to spasm which answered question of why I felt my throat and 'restriction' were locking down sometimes after even a small mouthful of water. Only thing the hospital offered me for pain relief was IV tramadol. I didn't even pay attention as I was so completely miserable..I just noticed that I had NO pain relief during the 15 hrs I was @ hospital, unlike 1st one i went to where they gave me something that helped. THUS, I have resolved to NOT go back to a hospital I do not let my dr know any more when I have these..episodes? It seems the ONLY test that can be run during these horrid events is just the soap drink/check your GI tract/pouch? No thank you. If I am going to spend almost a full day ((or what ends up being a full day out of commission), with no way to even take the edge off the pain..then I'll stay home and keep trying to get through it. I don't know if it is the dang opioid crisis or what, but my prescription history shows i do not take ANY pain pills as a general rule. They just are usually not worth it. They could check previous hospitalizations and see that 90% of the time I turn down heavy duty pain meds and opt for 'less powerful' pain meds (tylenol, etc. and no, not tylenol with anything added). That is why 10 days ago...on what I now see was the 4th time to have the exact same symptoms I just posted here. I should have given the backstory.... My fingers are crossed that I never have another episode again! If i do though, I'm just staying here. It hurts enough that if I could drink alcohol and IF that even helped anything, I MAYBE would do so...but that is not my preferred way to handle things.

YES!! I love them too..so so much! Our surgery dates were within weeks of each other. Hopefully one of our veterans that had a similar issue can assure us we can ONE DAY eat our beloved eggs. I have seen ppl post that they were able to eat eggs in other 'forms' like boiled, deviled....but I'm kind of gun shy right now...

My surgery was 3 days after yours so we were in the same week! I actually had this same feeling last week. When I start to get overwhelmed, I actually almost go back a phase. And....I have found for ME since I've been such a slow LOSER, that I have to be careful as I cannot eat the same things even at this phase as others...so I tend to repeat meals that I know are within my personal calorie target, protein target, and especially carb target. I have to do something that may actually not be easy, but I honestly make my meals almost boring at this point during the week as I need FAST and EASY and "I don't want to have to calculate/think about it" (and I love tracking #'s). What helps is that I know now I'm hitting my protein goals (I drink at least 1 shake a day still). So on the weekends is where I try to incorporate some of the wonderful and still easy ideas that everyone posts. However, I totally get the feeling of have to constantly monitor things. Since I've started being more active with my youngest, that has helped shake my weight loss up some...so maybe that is also where I've found a little bit more freedom from where I was at last week and the week before - exactly what you said. Hang in there, from everything I've read, it gets easier...much easier. Although our key veterans also seem to monitor what they eat, but I think it is from a much less overwhelmed perspective.

Looking at the jerky that @Orchids&Dragons recommended now. Trying to see which one has the lowest amount of carbs even though I know jerky is something I used to eat when doing keto before surgery. They definitely sound DELICIOUS, the protein is awesome and the calories are low enough! My youngest daughter and I..even though we never exercised (well, I swam) before my WLS, are doing what we have learned is basically called 'day hiking'. I'd like to have something I can put in our little pack to take with us and I think @AngieBear also mentioned putting some type of snack like this in as she was going hiking. I need to follow this thread as it has given me so many ideas. I'm getting a little tired of the same 4 to 5 things..lol You guys are so awesome. Such amazing ideas and willingness to share!!

LOL...is that a 'bad word' to BP? I actually did invest in some pretty things...one issue now is they are starting to get to be too big! They are more 'gowns' but they are appealing ones. I just wish there was less um...cushion in a certain place.

I've used patches when I couldn't keep things down.

I am a SLOW LOSER. Have been no matter what I tried since I hit my 30's. For the image that GradyCat posted..for the starting weight of '300-400'....I've been roughly on target for the smallest weight loss of the possible 'ranges'. i.e. at 10 days out I may have even been less than projected..maybe 7-8 lbs For 6 weeks out - I was at about 22 or 23 lbs. This is with no cheating, no big calorie intake on any day and with increased physical activity. Some others that I follow that had similar starting weight as I did (or roughly similar weight at time of surgery) and are within + or - 7 years of my current age, have ALL blown away what I've managed to do by leaps and bounds. They lost more like at the high end of the ranges. I wish it was different for me, but I keep continuing to work on NOT being disappointed. Who knows, maybe with me losing more slowly, when some of my 'faster losing' friends....if they start to 'peter out a bit'..maybe mine will keep being continual. In other words, maybe 1 to 2 years out, if we stick to what we know we should be doing, our losses may match more closely (assuming similar physical activity as well). I know that the way I was going, I was staying stagnant and then gaining lbs here and there and at almost 400 lbs, I was on a fast track to what is almost...like a slow death blow to my body..bit by bit. Also, I lost 45-50 lbs on previous 15 months of keto WOL before I ever walked into a surgeon's office. Before I ever started any 'pre-op diet' and my body was VERY stubborn in shedding the weight during those 15 months even when I was HEAVY into ketosis (based on the urine strips). Decades of yo-yo dieting, etc. seem to have just turned my thermostat to 'OFF'. It is up to me to reignite it and for ME, that means I have to be more active - not just having an RNY. I had been walking with my daughter & noticed that was adding an extra lb a wk loss which may not seem like much but over a year that is 52 EXTRA lbs lost from just walking 3 times a wk.

This actually has what I call a 'small scoop'. It is from a small bag of Genepro unflavored/medical grade protein powder that I THINK i got from BP, but I may have gotten from Amazon. Will have to check. I'll attach pictures showing the scoop next to a Premier Protein shake so you can get an idea of size. A 'scoop' (small scooper) is 7.2 grams which is roughly equal to a little over 2 tsps so you can see that it is a LOT of protein (30 grams) for a small amount of "powder" although I still calculate all of the calories, etc. that come from it. Sometimes I don't need an entire '30 grams' as it is = 58.7 calories. Sometimes I do a 1/2 scoop or roughly..a little of 1 tsp. It all depends on where my calories are at for the day. However, if I am not hitting my protein or need a boost, then I don't worry about the extra 58.7 calories. There were days when I was having an issue getting any 'real food' in and then I added this stuff to diced peaches, yogurt, you name it. However, my calories were very low so the addition of the extra 58.7 calories didn't matter. For 1 scoop if you use entire amount - besides 58.7 calories, there is .3 grams of fat (negligible to me), 0.6 gms of carbs (negligible to me). 0.6 sugars (negligible to me) and 30 gms of protein. Here are the pics of the nutrition info and the baby scooper next to my premier protein drink (I do NOT add anything to the premier protein drinks as they already have 30 grams of protein..lol).

I hear you! I almost bought some of the calcium chews of one brand (can't remember which one) and at last minute I decided to look @ label (just like I check any 'gummy item') and was shocked at the total that taking 3 of those suckers would cost me in carbs! It was just like you said..roughly 20. So, no thank you to those. I will say if I'm having problems one day eating meat (like I made my chicken too dry) or for some reason I'm really nauseated, I do try and work in some yogurt from Kroger - the line is called CARBMASTER, I think. The carbs are reasonable, sugars are low (sugar free technically)...and the protein is ok, but I put a chunk of protein powder into each one if needed (counting the calories from the powder...still less calories for me than most things)..and stir them up. I've easily gotten 15 grams ...maybe even 20 grams of protein from just one yogurt.

I had been wondering about this. It seems to often be done with lower abdomen? Is that correct. I know it sounds maybe stupid...but I was horrifically dismayed when I realized on this forum that the excess weight in this specific area was 'not going to go away'. I'm unsure why I thought it would be different...but I was and still am fairly upset as I was hoping I would not need plastics for that. Even though as of this week, I weigh less than I've weighed in a decade, I'm not comfortable being..physical with my husband...despite the weight loss...because, well let's be real if you were as large as me or maybe wherever you are at...all the saggy skin...just not attractive on me. I'm so particularly embarrassed about this area specifically.

One thing I've found that helps bring up protein without adding so many calories is I add protein powder (unflavored) to almost everything including my shredded chicken I made yesterday which has a salsa/broth poured on top of it. I noticed when I did not add the protein powder, I ate a bigger 'helping' of chicken..probably closer to 4+ oz & generally my pouch only tolerates UNDER 4 oz's well....I have no idea why with this food item I can 'stuff more in'. The reason I say it like that is because I was following old/bad habits, eating quickly, not chewing as much..not putting down my fork. This is where I find I need to do WAY more head work. I can tell when I've HIT my restriction, I need to REMEMBER to measure/weigh as when I do NOT hit my restriction, my old 'stinking' way of 'thinking' starts to wonder..."hhmm..can I take another bites?". The question should be DOES my body REQUIRE another bite? So, I realized I had forgotten the protein powder, I went back to adding it tonight & eating MINDFULLY - something I can forget from meal to meal even ONLY 6.5 weeks out! SCARY! I know this is the honeymoon period but short of trying to ensure I get 60+ oz's of protein, I should be doing whatever I can to keep calories LIMITED (this is my own feelings) AND ontinue to try to keep carbs limited. I;m a super SLOW loser & I noticed when early into pureed stages, when I had the ONE and only helping of 'mashed potatoes'...that I was in TROUBLE. Carbs like this are a big trigger food for me and CONVENIENTLY..my 'Ms. Picky Pouch' did not signify it was full when I expected the restriction to 'kick in as normal'. It's like 'she' (my pouch) decided she could fold and flatten the dang potatoes! I decided after that to love myself enough to kick this trigger food to the curb. You will not find a trigger food in my house normally as I had been doing keto WOL for long, long time. I like your idea of smaller plates. I notice when putting my shredded chicken into my regular size 'Dixie bowl', I was constantly hesitating as it 'looked like less'. I must weigh/measure so I KNOW how much it is. I think I will buy the small..well, ppl would call them dessert plates..whatever the smallest size is, and put my food on that instead. Heck, I have saucers I NEVER use..I can use them..lol..what a CONCEPT!

Girl, you are rocking it, LITERALLY! I'm both proud and THRILLED for you!!!

YES! I am not even a huge ice cream fan but my husband is and before my RNY, we had been doing a keto WOL for 15 months so I looked up a few recipes for easy keto ice cream and EVEN using real whipping cream, what I made for him had less carbs, LESS FAT and less calories even then the 'retail' items being billed as 'low carb' or lower carb. I just get blown away trying to figure out where the BLEEP BLEEP BLEEP did all the 'bad numbers' i'm seeing on the nutrition labels of these products come from????

OK, I have a fairly decided variety of face care products I've used for past couple of years (due to being over the age of 40) that I like and that I KNOW make a big difference in how my skin looks, feels, etc. I spent a LOT..and I mean a LOT of money trying everything from drugstore creams to higher end skin care lines (Sunday Riley, Dr. Brandt, skin care sold in higher end dept stores), etc. and have honed it down to my 'A' list items (my 'must haves') I really do not want to nor can I really afford to...spend yrs trying to find what other lotions, tapes (silicone), etc. will be even POTENTIALLY helpful to minimize what comes from rapid weight loss. I REALIZE for the largest 'skin' impacts of rapid weight loss...that if things like an 'apron stomach' that sags and causing yeast infections, etc. - this is a whole different CATEGORY of 'issues'. I'm looking more for things that can reduce to some extent..things like: Lessening the color of stretchmarks (I have some mederma products that I use on a large scar on one arm where I had an area of malignant melanoma removed) Lessening the additional creases/fine lines that appears everywhere (leaning towards Bio Oil?) Doing anything that can be done to improve elasticity of skin short of professional treatments (also willing to consider professional intervention) -1 of my daughters is slowly working on losing weight and since she's in 20's - I'm hoping since she still has PLENTY of estrogen flowing, her skin will bounce back better than mine but she has asked about what lotions, etc. she should try. Someone had suggested coconut oil to her?? I realize at end of day these types of things are limited in what they can do, but we don't want to leave any stone unturned. For myself, since am older than 45, I know some of the things I will need help with, I will possibly be turning to plastics. My upper arms were always saggy even at 16 & I weighed 135. Had been on the swim team for years. We also lifted weights so I KNEW as I got older, that this was a hereditary issue (which of course I compounded). Any experience - positive or negative that you are will to share is GREATLY appreciated!

Thanks GreenTealael! You brought up critical points I didn't even think to mention - we (my daughter and I) are big water fans..and I know I need to keep my protein up. Thank you for the reminders that if these common health 'FOUNDATIONS' are overlooked, then you already have put yourself at an even greater disadvantage. I'm very pro avocado/healthy fats. In fact, I think I am missing fat out of my diet so I've been dicing up avocados each day but have been wondering about putting some type of the healthy oils I have in my pantry over my chicken, etc. I am a 'slow' weight loser and always have been except for one brief 2 year period in my 20's. I think it is..Sophia Loren? maybe...who attributes her skin, etc. to olive oil? I have often wondered if I can just take the 'food grade' olive oil I have and put on my skin or does it need to be formulated for skin? I've thought of doing side by side comparisons on some of my stretch marks using mederma scar stuff on one side and another product on the other side. My dermatologist was supposed to give me a sample of something he said was better than Mederma the last time I went in for my 90 day check up. I wonder if he meant the silicone tape (tape? is that right?) that I saw mentioned on the board the other day. Guess I need to do a quick search.

I personally vote for what gives you the most time with medical coverage during what can sometimes be the harder months/weeks of this journey and that is the post-op recovering and moving on through the different stages. Not saying you will have any complications, but I'd rather know my insurance was 'there' to handle such things...if I'm reading your email correctly about your insurance situation. Critical to still do prep and headwork even with or especially with a smaller countdown window

See - you have many victories! You can ABSOLUTELY do this. It also takes bravery to be honest on a WLS forum about cheating. I admire your honesty. I hovered on these forums since late in 2017 and didn't actively post until April of this year (2019) so I have seen many many ppl just start to give things up (cigarettes, caffeine, soda, carbs, etc.) at the start of their pre-op diets and I always feel for them as it can be a bit overwhelming especially if they start to feel what some call the low carb/keto flu. Yes, you are close to my youngest's age so age is on your side which is GREAT!! Please don't think I was giving you a failing grade on your pre-op diet or trying to judge you. The only thing that kept me on mine was being older and like I said...being scared. That does not make me better than you. And I always, always defer to a person's individual doctor unless a poster posts something that sounds hideously.um..dangerous. You WILL be ok! I do hope you can do whatever his/her directions are for the rest of your pre-op (I say this as I couldn't drink anything after 10 PM the night before (so not even 'liquids' on my liquid pre-op) as I was up first at 6 AM the next day as it will also help prepare you a little bit for post-op...without the feelings from having had anesthesia, and some of the bloating and gas pains you may or may not have to deal with. Most of the ppl that I have participated on their topics that have cheated, I'd say about 95+% of them go on to sticking to whatever their pre-op plan was and they took pride in that even though it wasn't 'the whole time'...meaning they didn't have to be perfect, they could take pride in what they did do. Focus on what you can do from here on out. No matter what happens in the next few days though, I AM rooting for you! Us women are STRONG. Whether we are 24, 34, 44, 54, 64, 74, or 84+...we are STRONG.

My surgeon explained it and so did another doctor that was originally my surgeon is that they literally have to move your liver out of the way for part/all of the surgery. BOTH surgeons expressed concerns about nicking patients with larger livers as us just having larger livers makes things much more difficult. What I want for both of you, @brandimichellexo and @NagathaChristieis is that you have successful surgeries with positive outcomes and hopefully little to no difficulties. I wish this for everyone who undergoes what I call the 'nuclear detonation option'. WLS is not for wimps that is for sure. WLS is NOT the 'easy way out' no matter how often we might all hear that. I takes COURAGE and commitment, bravery, perseverance, will power, 'higher power', power of good relationships, and sometimes literally blood, sweat, tears, puke, and many many other things. I also think fear when not used in unhealthy ways, can also help keep us on the path we need to go and when we stumble, help us get back to where we need to be. My surgeon had an UBER strict pre-op diet. I also changed surgeons late so I literally ended up doing liquid 800 pre-op diet for 34 days. I've shared though that I did actually have 1 day 'off' during the 34 days. My new surgeon told me to start on 7/5 so I had 7/4 off & I had 1/2 a hamburger, no chips & later that night 1 hot dog. I had been on liquids already for so many days, it felt surreal and weird. Prior to qualifying for WLS, I did keto for 15 mos as my health had deteriorated to point that I knew if I didn't make drastic changes and also do the headwork, I was not going to be here in 5 yrs. Ironically despite my heaviest weight, I had normal BP, NO high cholesterol, NO diabetes, etc. I knew though it was a matter of time. It was WHEN, not IF. I have other very serious health issues& realized that I wasn't ready to die any more prematurely than I needed to. I have a daughter who really really still needs her Mom. More than what most young adults do. I was TERRIFIED that if I did not commit my best to the pre-op, I would put a variable out there (my liver) that my surgeon would not be in complete control of. The 1 thing I told him & my anesthesiologist and that was "I'm at peace with not making it, if that should happen, but my wishes are that you do everything and anything to revive me as I have a child that would not make it through my loss'. So..I didn't cheat as I was terrified. Also, WAY back in my late 20's, I did the Oprah Winfrey "Optifast Diet' and drank 5 of those dang protein shakes (they were so bad back then) for NINETY DAYS. Don't ask me how I did it back then as I literally don't know!! I lost 80 lbs and kept if off for a decade. My Dad was known for having an iron will when he needed to. Likely that is what I had back when I was young. When I count pre-op& post-op diet together (in terms of liquid diet with 800 or less cals), then I roughly did over 46+ days (Dr put me on pureed food 3 days earlier than planned). This does not make me better than either of you. I shared the raw truth of why I adhered to the pre-op diet like there was literally no tomorrow. If I have an 'will' to give at all, is to spend some time on FluffyChix headwork thread....and that I wish you both nothing but the best. Love yourself (and your surgeon..lol) enough to do what you can with your pre-op diets as dictated by your doctors with the days you have left leading up to your surgery. And keep us posted!! BEST WISHES!!