Biddy zz 🏳️🌈

Not stupid at all - there are many recipes! I use 1/2 cup cold water, juice 1/2 lemon and 1/2 heaped teaspoon of baking sofa (NOT baking powder!). It fizzes when you add the soda - just keep stirring until fizzing stops and all the soda is dissolved. I drank it in two batches cos my tummy is still small - first half made me think I was going to be sick but instead did big deep burps. Instant relief but it built up again 2 hours later and woke me - second half, and 5 mins later the pain just evaporated! I get the leg cramps too (even without a bypass) and magnesium - Epsom salts - with 2 tblspoons dissolved in a footbath (or 1/2 cup in a bath) helps hugely...

Half way there!! Although I might just be thinking “maybe my goal should be more ambitious. Could I get myself out of the ‘overweiht’ range?” for the first time since I was 18! Am loving pulling stored beautiful work jackets and suits out of the spare-room closet, am loving wearing my old Levi’s again, am loving walking every day, from my place downhill to the beach and back up again most days. Am loving feeling good about my food choices, not feeling that kluged-up feeling of having eaten too many potato chips. Am loving people saying “you look good after the summer break, really rested”. No regrets, not a one.

No, not on CPAP. But thanks for the idea. I do drink lightly carbonated water/cranberry juice mix (hate it flat) - surgeon approved! I fizz it myself, so the bubbles ar very mild, but the night before at dinner out, I had a few sips of store sparkling water - I struggle to think it was that, but will certainly not do it again for a while... There is an open loop for the gas to theoretically get in to the dead-end tummy - they leave this stomach inside because it gives is important gastric juices etc, so there will be an opening - maybe it is small...

I bought a rotisserie chicken, and stripped the meat off and froze it into 50g juicy portions (you get maybe 15-20 off one chicken). Most days I thaw one out and have it in a salad, like: - olives, jalapeños, gpickles and onion sauce - lettuce, 4 halved cherry tomatoes, red bell pepper and feta whip/mayo - small cauliflower florets, with mayo/whole grain mustard - cucumber cubes, feta cubes - chipotle mayo and edamame beans No end to the choices really - 1/2 cup makes a tasty lunch!

Thanks for sharing your journey big overgrown dork (love that name!!) I also really struggle with the protein shakes - so sweet!! The bariatricpal stor has a range of protein souls I really love - I craved savoury within two or three days of surgery - I remember the jello on day 3 was SOOO sweet! Lovely to share this time with you. Thanks!

Hi @loveflowers Man, you weight is coming off fast! It is so great you can get the protein shakes in. Have you tried protein soups? Hot and savoury, which makes a great change from the often-sweet shakes. And yogurt is good too - some of my earliest variety was adding flavour to plain yogurt - sweet chilli, chipotle... Your surgical team will have good advice - it does come right, but sometimes takes a little time. And the diarrhoea-then-constipation is very very common! Again, it usually comes right... Nice to see you here - the support makes all the difference...

You can unfollow that thread or any others you don’t like - in your profile. I agree with @Rainbow_Warrior - the vast majority of people here are trying to help, be supportive. It is easy to get caught up in a bit of a tiff, and I have seen time when someone is misunderstood and it escalates, but it is pretty rare - I reckon it is usually a good idea to move on, for the sake of your sanity... How is your surgery going - where are you at in this journey we are all on?

I had my 6-week post op check today - all going well, surgeon is about as pleased as I am! I thought some of you might be interested - seems his approach to eating now is more relaxed than for some of you guys in the US. His reckoning - I should work my way from 1/2 or so cup of food per meal, up to 1 cup or a bit under over next 6 weeks, strictly 3 meals a day forever. I need no longer worry about “protein first” in each meal - a good mixed balanced meal is more important now. If anything, eat well-chewed veggies first so I get in enough, then protein as it tends to not pass through as easily (my pouch is a “fobi pouch” with a silastic ring permanently set in the bottom. A “no-stretch” pouch.) My surgeon has longitudinal data on 1700 patients post RNY. Makes for great comparisons and predictions! My weight is maybe 3 pounds ahead of his estimate for me at this point - but he is right on in his predictions of when my 5 pounds a week loss dropped to 4, 3, and now to 2 pounds a week. His estimate is this will be reasonably steady for 6-10 weeks, then a pound a week average until the 9 month post op point. My current lack of interest in food, lack of hunger and food drive, is exactly as per most of his patients. His research - 1 year after RNY the average intake is 750 calories a day - which he says is fine, if the diet is balanced, and with a good vitamin supplement daily. Blood work tells us whether the food we are eating is hitting the right balance. He also isn’t as wedded to “you must have 70g of protein a day” - a reasonable amount, sure, but he said ‘your liver makes protein, and some days with less is really normal’. So, in his relaxed guidelines, we are both pretty happy with my easy progress - AND best of all I am cleared to go scuba diving in 9 weeks! Hooray!

Thank you SO much for sharing - pics like these are so fantastic for me, on the days when the scale won’t move, or my scar hurts, or I am really tired post surgery. You are my newest inspiration - you are a hero. Thank you.

Cottage cheese with sweet chilli, or with chipotle. Bariatricpal soups - the variety pack is fantastic. Yogurt smoothies - the Internet is full of fantastic flavour options. Mostly for me, variety really mattered to keep me on track... Best of luck.

Fantastic - inspirational. See you in a year? See “half of you” in a year, you mean!!

Hi there I had my band revised to RNY 6 weeks ago. I do wonder if the band has made me not so good at portion control - I seem to be lousy at recognising when I am full. So I take my lunch every day. A can of tuna or salmon or pack of shredded chicken, and a bit of fruit or veggie. I think lunch is my easiest “go off the rails” meal, so I prepare each evening - hope that helps. 40lbs! What a fantastic thing, you must be so pleased! Inspirational...

I have had something like this occur three times - I just took it very gently the next couple of days til it settled. I asked my surgeon last week - he said just what @Creekimp13 did - either the scar tissue, or possibly a small fibre of repairing muscle has sprung apart. It settles. If there is a bulge at the site, it is a hernia through a muscle gap, watch for that. Rest, no heavy lifting (or housework of any sort, I keep saying at home!!) Otherwise, all going ok?

Hi @DaleAnn I was bypassed14 December and my weight loss is now at 2 pounds a week - the surgeon said that is about right for me at this point. I do find that this weight loss is way easier than “dieting” - my urge seems to be to eat healthily. Is yours? If that persists, then relatively effortless 2 lbs a week over several months is very healthy... I am using myfitnesspal app to track my calories, and my protein intake. Maybe that might be useful? Many folk here say building up to about 1000 calories a day is a good level to just keep that steady weight loss going. I try to figh any temptation to “not eat” if I am below 800 calories at this point - don’t want to replace an overeating/stress eating disorder with a new one! 47lbs lost is amazing - you enjoying new clothes?

I am in Auckland, the big city in the north. But the whole country is hot this summer!

Happy to share. I am 5’6” tall, mid fifties. My highest weight was about 260lbs when I got my gastric band 10 years ago. That worked well for 5 years - held happily at about 175lbs. But the port was faulty, leaked, got replaced, blocked, rolled over - never made it work again, weight up to 230 and hence decision to RNY bypass). That five years, like many before the band, was an endless annual gain/loose 20 pounds cycle. My weight chart in myfitnesspal looks like the outline of the Swiss alps! I hit 199 this morning. One-derland, I have seen some call it! His weight guess timeline given my weight/past weight: 4lbs a week for 6 weeks (done), 2lbs a week for the next 6-10 (right on track), and then about 1lb a week for the next 6 months, which will then level out as steady.

Water! But fair question! I am lucky - NZ doctors don’t stress protein, pushing us instead into balanced meals even at this early stage. Lucky because I just don’t like many protein supplements. Last week I had a protein bar with 20g protein and 17g carbs and had a nasty dumping episode - pity, it was the only one I liked the taste of so far! My protein - milk in shakes, cheeses and chicken until I cluck.

Yes indeed - although hot. Record breaking temperatures, all across the country. Not so good for the farmers, but even our Southern (coldest, snow-in-winter) cities and towns are pushing 80. The sea down there - usually about 55 this time of year - right now is pushing 70. Glorious... yet worrying. But that said, recuperating in the sun is hard to fault!

I got the syntrax nectar (15 singles as a variety pack) after reading views here - ew, they were nasty!! Somehow I just don’t like my crisp apple or my lemon drink with a back flavour of milk! Man, postage to New Zealand was a killer too! I DO love the bariatricpal soups though...

You know the best thing - for now, anyway, my taste has really shifted. Dinner? 50g (2oz) rotisserie chicken meat with cherry tomatoes, a small bell pepper, lettuce, jalapeño peppers, some whipped feta with a tsp mayo. And it is heavenly! I have never been a salad girl, unless it is potato! I do hope this lasts. I read that it might, but not an atom of me believed it - imagine a life where you get a kick out of healthy food, crave a salad - this is as far from old me as I can imagine. The old gastric band just didn’t have this effect...

Hi Ashley I had a band revision to bypass. I had open surgery, not larproscopic, with incision from breastbone to navel and my rib cage cracked apart to deal with band damage, scarring. I knew this, when I went in. And I have NO regrets. No gerd, quick easy recovery, Eating is fine but just small quantities, no real food/Eating drive. I love it so far - I am 6 weeks in... Best wishes to you - I was so nervous just before I nearly backed out, but it has been excellent.......

Me too! Do yours look like small purple bruises?

Hi all I am nearly six weeks post op, and down nicely - loss is a bit slower now but mine was a gastric band replacement and my surgery was also to call a halt to the regain, so I was needing to lose ‘only’ 65 pounds or so. My observation is this: my new tummy seems to let me eat faster than others can (although I try to slow down, but I find that hard). I have been easily able to eat a pottle of protein plus yoghurt (60g) since maybe two weeks post op, but I restricted myself to half, to get my morning 20g protein in. I can eat pretty much whatever I chose (haven’t done sweets and won’t, but very lightly sweetened rhubarb went down fine). Now, I am hitting 50-60g protein daily, and calories mostly around 800-1000. The main thing I am noticing is a reasonable degree of lack of interest in eating. Occasionally I think I am hungry, but I really can’t tell if it is my tummy - 10 years of lap band, maybe I just forgot what that is like! I has a few carb cravings early on, but my partner’s carb craving (because I am cooking low carb!) is much much worse! And really, Eating is fine, I am liking the odd salad, but in general my interest in food is demonstrably less. I don’t feel like I am ‘dieting’ - getting my protein in followed by veggies is my only ‘rule’ and it is not troublesome. My question to those whose RNY is of longer standing: Does that lack of interest last??

I have seen a few posts like yours, so you are not alone! Hard to say what is up with you without a bit more detail - has it been a week, a month? Is it a brief stall and will come right? How’s your eating and exercise? Are you nearly at your goal? etc etc. But one suggestion is to haul out your post surgery papers (or look here in the food/nutrition pages) and give yourself a refresher by repeating your post surgery eating weeks - pouch/sleeve “training” my surgeon calls it. So you will go back to liquids with protein, then move on to purée - get that protein in and vitamins, and 8 glasses of water. And as you move into solids, keep a good record of what you are eating... Keep us posted? This is a great community for advice and support!

Hi i had a gastric band 10 years ago and it was fantastic for 5 years. Mine broke then (the fill port) and got repaired (New port under local) but we never got it to work again. When they work, they work great. But surgeons seem to be finding too high a percentage have problems, so many are stopping the band. One point - cause cancer? I seriously doubt there is any reputable research showing that! They can slip, get complications - mostly, though, people who have trouble can’t get them adjusted just right so they work. I did the first 5 years, but just couldn’t in the second 5! I knew what the ‘sweet spot’ felt like - but couldn’t get there. I chose the band cos it was reversible. Psychologically I needed that - I am in my 50s so life long wasn’t such a concern - but I think the research is getting pretty clear than bands do not last 40, 50 years. After 10 the percentage still working well is pretty low... sorry.