abefroman329

Yes, it does stink. I had a couple of 24-hour periods in the last week before surgery where I took a break and ate regular food. But my surgeon said that patients tell him the pre-op diet is the hardest part of surgery, and he’s absolutely right.

Thanks, that's nice of you to say.

I've been drinking it on weekends, but I really need to get back to drinking something caffeinated in the mornings to get me going. Probably tea until it's warm enough to start making cold brew coffee again, since drip coffee seven days in a row really wreaked havoc on my insides pre-surgery (and who knows what it would do afterwards!)

Huh, that’s the smartass comment I came here to make! I’m already below the weight that was on the first driver’s license I received. If I can get below the weight that was on my learners permit, I’ll be happy.

Things I brought and used: My CPAP, a nightshirt, a book, my phone. Things I brought and did not use: Several changes of clothing, my toothbrush. I wouldn’t bring too much in the way of entertainment, I found I didn’t really have the energy to read or do much besides catnap and watch television.

And to think my therapist said that some people find being underweight unattractive. I was dumbfounded! In conclusion, f*ck him.

I agree with bliz that you should perhaps not be with someone who tells you that your weight is a concern for them.

You will know, and FYI, it doesn't happen until you start wearing smaller underwear.

It’s probably going to vary plan by plan and practice by practice. That being said, if you’d been seen by my surgeon, you would’ve had to have been on a pre-surgery liquid diet for a longer period of time than someone with a lower BMI, and might have had to go in for blood work while you were on the pre-surgery diet. All plans and practices seem to require some form of supervised medical weight loss program and a psych evaluation, as well as a screening for sleep apnea if you haven’t already had one. Also, though I haven’t heard it mentioned here, my surgeon requires that patients get their A1C below 7 before surgery.

The good thing about WW is that they spend a lot of time talking about food pushers and how to deal with them, which prepares you to be like “no, I can’t eat that, it literally could kill me.” Once you’re ready to tell people, I finally told coworkers on Thursday night when we went bowling and I had to explain why I couldn’t drink beer, and the response was “oh, THAT’S what happened!”

By supplementing with protein shakes.

Other than it being a struggle to not have the tools of my personal addiction at my disposal, there aren’t any cons, provided you get a surgery practice affiliated with a local hospital and not some yahoo operating out of a strip mall. Find a good therapist and go to weekly talk therapy starting when you get a surgery date.

According to my surgeon, I’m more likely to be successful post-surgery because my stomach was disproportionately large and they removed a lot of it.

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Breakfast: 1 slice white toast with 2 tablespoons peanut butter Morning snack: Greek yogurt Lunch: 1 cup chili Afternoon snack: String cheese, protein shake Dinner: Protein and salad

Congrats! It's true, there's no such thing as a "good" time to have the surgery. I had it as late in the calendar year as possible, partly because it would be slow at work and partly because I could enjoy one last Thanksgiving dinner (although then I had to miss out on Christmas dinner...). It will be great and you'll be happy you did it.

Are they 100% whey protein? Mine need to be. GNC makes a 100% whey protein powder, 2 grams of sugar per serving, and it's about $25 for 50 servings. It's kind of a pain to not be able to do premixed shakes any more, but they do taste good, and I know I'm not consuming shelf-stable milk, so that's nice.

I think it's going to be an issue because I'm already seeing loose skin, but plastic surgery is always an option down the road. Or, if you're single and can't afford it, just have sex with your clothes on. As I mentioned in another forum, there's a gentleman in my support group who had the surgery late in life and lost 200 pounds and he has a prominent FUPA. If I get to that stage, I'll do what it takes to raise money for surgery.

I've never thrown up bile post-surgery, not even when I've thrown up from eating too much, or eating the wrong thing, etc. Does your surgeon have you on anti-gallstones medication? I'm on Actigall for the first 3 months post-surgery (about one more month to go and then that's one more medication I can kiss goodbye!)

Including the pre-op diet I’ve dropped about 4 inches off my waist since surgery. At my absolute heaviest I wore size 52 pants and now I’m a 44. How much you lose off your waist size will depend where you’re wearing your pants now. I always wore mine around my belly, but if you wear yours below, you won’t see much of a drop.

Welcome! Check with Illinois Masonic to see if they have a post-surgery support group. That hospital is in your neighborhood. The NorthShore network of hospitals definitely do, but they meet in Skokie and Vernon Hills.

It’s much better even now (I’m 35 pounds from goal) and seriously, I don’t even think it worked this well when I was 16 and approximately this weight. It’s just amazing.

Give it time, probably. You’d be surprised the difference just a week can make.

Yep, it’s like Spinal Tap sang, “the bigger the cushion, the sweeter the pushin’”

A few more visible inches AND it works the way it's supposed to! But hey, look on the bright side: Yours didn't quit working when you were overweight!