KCgirl061

I can’t help but feel incredibly blessed with this surgery. I’m 6 weeks post op and have lost 18 pounds since my procedure. . My BMI was at the low end and it’s right around what I should have lost according to that chart that’s popular here and other WLS sites. Ican fit comfortably in every single item of clothing I own! I’m not feeling too much restriction and haven’t thrown up yet. But my surgeon does have me on a very conservative diet progression and I’m just now starting puréeds. Hopefully my streak of not vomiting will continue.

Wow! Well done!!

My doctor allowed canned tuna, salmon, and chicken in the pureed stage. Find a recipe for Ricotta Bake - a lot of people rave about that. Refried beans and guacamole. Hummus. Personally I love Indian food and a lot of their dishes are in pureed form.

I personally don't use them as I dislike the idea (tried birth control patches in my twenties and hated them). But I also have felt like using them without trials to see that they actually work is taking a real gamble with your health. I'm glad PatchMD's clinical study is having good results, though. That's good news for a lot of people.

Thank you!

I’ve told everyone at my work. Everyone has been real supportive (to my face anyway)

Is your hospital one of the ones that evacuated??

38. My BMI only got up to a qualifying weight at this age. No regrets!

Good luck Liz!

My focus is on cardio right now. I get on the treadmill and go high incline low speed to make sure I don’t hurt myself while I build up endurance.

Yes it is tough! But a small part of me was grateful for it. It helped me distinguish between physical hunger and head hunger. I started to learn to ignore head hunger “YOURE NOT IN CHARGE ANYMORE!” I’m a big fan of premier. I’m sticking with it even postop, there is a good variety of flavors and I like them all.

Odds are you’ll be okay. Maybe spend the extra on travel insurance with a cancellation refund just in case. Have fun!

I don't think I could have prepared for the loss of appetite that happens with surgery. I'm not hungry, haven't been hungry since 8/5 - the day before my surgery. I thought it would be awesome not being hungry. And in a way, it is. I wasn't prepared for how its not. I hate eating right now. I don't struggle doing it, I just don't want to do it. There is no joy in it, it takes up my time, it occasionally hurts if i try to rush it. Honestly would like to take a day off and not eat anything and would be perfectly content but I know thats not what's best for my body. So I guess I'll force down the protein drinks, soups, and yogurts today. I hope this melancholy regarding food goes away at some point.

Thanks guys, I just felt like whining this morning.

I feel you @MizzNewLife . My surgery was Aug 6 and I don't feel hungry at all either. I could get away with eating only 1 or 2 meals a day but really, what you're doing isn't healthy. There is no way you're getting your protein needs by limiting yourself to only 2 meals of 3 bites of food a day. You don't want your body to go into starvation mode and that will cause stalls. You're going to stall anyways at this phase because your body is still healing from surgery. The name of the game isn't "how little can I eat" - don't strive for that. The name of the game is "can I get 60g of protein and 60 oz of fluid in" - thats your goal. Its not a fun game, I just made a post about how I'd love a break from the game but I want to do this the healthy way, so I keep eating even when I don't want to.

Maybe you can try to get it scheduled right before your Spring Break? Many people are able to return to their jobs after one week so you might be okay. I don't think youd need to take a whole semester

I guess it would depend on your surgeon but think about all the people going to Mexico to have their surgeries. They don't hang out down there and recover for 2 weeks, they hop back on the planes and head home.

I'm looking to transition from my Flintstones + Iron multi - which my surgeon recommended for the first several weeks post op. In researching vitamins I'm rather horrified to find that some contain both Iron and Calcium so they can claim to be a 'complete source' 'no other supplements required'. Iron and Calcium should not be taken together. A majority of us know this. If you haven't heard this rule, I'll quickly explain. Our intestines have all different sizes and shapes of "doors" for the nutrients to go through. Iron and Calcium have to use the same door. However, Calcium is a big bully, and refuses to let Iron go through the door, so the Iron has to move along the intestines and is eventually evacuated. One thing that also occurred to me is that our Calcium supplements aren't the only source of calcium we get. A vast majority of our protein is whey protein and includes calcium as well. I had been popping my Flintstones and shortly after having tea with milk or a Premier shake. I'm at risk for not absorbing my iron during that time if I do that. I just wanted to share my thoughts in the hopes this helps others avoid iron deficiency as well.

After weight loss surgery you should still develop a healthy eating lifestyle. Carb cycling is a good one and I’ll probably adopt it after I’m cleared for regular foods.

Hope you are doing well! Welcome!

The Vitamin C In the orange juice does help with iron absorption but I don’t know that OJ is an appropriate drink for Bariatric patients because of its sugar content. I read somewhere that if you get Chelated Iron that it is less likely to cause constipation. Im going with my multi of choice and don’t plan on adding additional iron unless my lab work indicates I need to.

I think you should absolutely write the surgeon and/or office manager. This behavior is unacceptable and they need to know about it. Don’t expect the shame and embarrassment of you catching them to alone to correct their attitude and behavior.

@RickM Thank you for your insight, I’m certainly no expert in nutrition and supplements and how they are absorbed. I’m just doing my best to avoid as many problems as I can.

Your doctor is a Healthcare Provider. Emphasis on the PROVIDER. My PCP wasn't convinced that surgery was the way to go for me either but I insisted on it. I didn't want to take diet pills - I didn't want the potential side effects and they aren't effective long term. Go in with an arsenal of information about how WLS is the most effective weight loss solution, how it is a safe procedure, how you are informed about the sacrifices that you'll have to make when you get it (no more binging, gulping, no NSAIDS, limited caffeine and alcohol) This is what I had to do. It was a 45 minutes appointment of him telling me what to do to lose weight followed by me telling him that I've done all that in the past and continued to get heavier and heavier. I told him that I had no indication that my future would look any different than my past because I'd DONE all that. I didn't want to try again only to be 10 years older and 50 pounds heavier and back to looking at weight loss surgery. He is to provide healthcare for you. He WORKS for you. Be determined. Let him know you are well informed about the healthcare choice you are wanting to make and that you need his help. Tell him straight up if he isn't going to help you with the healthcare choices you've made that you will find another healthcare provider to fit your needs better. Good luck!

My daughter is Celiac, she is 9 now but was diagnosed when she was 2. I've never had any doctors tell me that she needs to be taking vitamins! Can you educate me about this a bit so I can get her what she needs?