Arabesque

You can depend upon your rate of weight loss slowing as you get further out & closer to goal. Those heady days of huge losses don’t last. I was one single kilogram (2.2lbs) from my goal at month 5 & it took me an entire month to reach it. It was like a stall. So close so far. You are eating more, closer to what your body needs to maintain your weight so you are not eating in deficit which forces your body to burn fat for energy. If you decrease your caloric intake, you may lose more but at 6 months out focusing on a healthy diet & getting closer to your required nutrients & intake is more important. The other truth is not everyone reaches their goal which is just a number. And those who do, don’t do so to an arbitrary timeline. Many factors totally out of your control affect your rate of loss & the weight you end up at like age, gender, weight loss & gain history & the biggest one: genetics. Can’t change those. Losing 1-2lbs a week is a healthy rate of loss. Celebrate every pound you lose.

I love my vegetables but mushy over cooked vegetables are the worst. Don’t understand people who boil them for ages until they’re all grey & brown. They’re fine soft if slow cooked in soups, stews & casseroles & I ate them a lot this way in the first months from soft food. I generally microwave my vegetables (in a little water & butter, toss, strain & add salt & pepper) but you can steam or stir fry too to keep some crunch. Keep the pieces small. No sauces or gravies except maybe a little soy sauce as a seasoning. You may have to do some taste test trials to see which ones you enjoy best & workout optimum cooking times. I started with shredded cabbage & cauliflower - others did not taste good at first. Then green beans. But I could eat a variety in slow cooked dishes. I often threw vegetables in omelettes too (onion, capsicum, mushrooms, etc.). It took a little time to eat more than a single cauliflower floret or two green beans. You’ll get there.

I live alone & happily eat the same meal for 3 or 4 days. I don’t have to think about what I’m going to eat on those days. All I have to do is prep a few vegetables or a salad so I’m really only cooking twice a week. The freezer is my friend. I freeze all my leftovers in single serve portions. And I deliberately prep extra so I can freeze meals. If I don’t feel like cooking or eating what’s in the fridge, I have a huge choice of meals I just need to microwave ready in my freezer & add a side. Four minutes & dinner is ready. Quicker than a takeaway. Made chicken & barley soup Monday night. I’ll eat it for a few days & I froze three serves for future meals. No waste & more economical too. I do enjoy cooking though. And I prefer it because I have control over the ingredients & how they’re cooked?

That blue & orange is a striking print & colour combination. I admire your confidence to wear colour. I’m always drawn to black first. Buying colour is a big decision for me (navy, red & white are my exceptions) & pattern can be harder. How great is that @kristieshannon. Wear it proudly, even if it is a bit big (& how amazing is that!) … & being green it’s super fashionable at the moment. Don’t have anything specific in mind to with the boots yet. With the heel height it may depend on how much standing & walking I’ll be doing. 😆😆

I was the same with squid & octopus. Just thought they were just different names for the same thing in different countries. Like cilantro & coriander. Cos & romaine. 😂

You’re experiencing body dysmorphia. It’s weird because you can logically tell yourself your weight is okay & there is the evidence on the scale, the size of your clothes, etc. But then there is a emotional side which is very powerful that tells you that’s not you. You’re still fat, etc. That is the struggle. It takes time to see how you are now. I’d walk past widows & mirrors & wonder who the slim person was. I’d even look about because the woman was wearing the same clothes as me. I remember staring at a pair of skinny jeans I’d bought because I couldn’t believe I could fit into something so small. You may think I’m crazy but I started to check the weight of actors who were a similar height to me so I would get a better understanding of my physical size. I found it helped. A friend is having surgery soon to remove her excess skin (she has a lot) & has been causing a lot of body dysmorphia issues. She has been seeing a therapist to help how she sees herself but she feels while she can physically grab hold of her loose skin she won’t see the slim person underneath. I didn’t do plastics. Many do. I don’t have a lot of loose skin. It doesn’t restrict me in my movements, cause me discomfort or limit how I dress. It’s a reminder if where I was & where I am now. It’s a personal decision whether you do have surgery or don’t.

Lower blood pressure & pulse rate is a great side effect of your weight loss. Some do find the experience quite significant drops for a while & have issues on getting up with vision narrowing, doughy head & at worst fainting - postural hypotension. My BP was always 120/80 but I had a tendency for drops at times especially when I was at a lower weight. Now my blood pressure is low all the time (60/50 - 80/60). It will hit 100 if I’m rushing about. I experience narrow vision & a doughy head on & off all day long depending upon what I’m doing. My resting pulse sits in the 60s. Last hospital stay they asked if I was an athlete which was hilarious because I avoid exercise. But that’s me & a tendency to low blood pressure is common on my mother’s side so genetic. I think being overweight actually pushed my BP up to a healthy 120/80.

You won’t feel the restriction until you start solid foods. Liquids & purées to a point go through you too quickly. My restriction is still there & I’m almost 3 years. It kicks in if I eat too much, too fast, if what I eat is too dry or too coarse or if I drink too much at a time. But because I’m aware of those things it doesn’t happen very often now. Maybe people say they think it’s gone because they are consciously or subconsciously eating in a way that avoids it occurring. The goal really is not to feel the restriction especially if it’s tied to you eating too much or too quickly. Better to stop eating when you’ve had enough. Not until you are full and not until you feel the restriction. If it kicks in because what you’ve eaten is too dry or coarse or similar think of that as a warning & a protection. And you really don’t want to feel it. It’s very uncomfortable. The tightness can be quite painful because it feels like something is stuck. I often find myself thumping my chest trying to dislodge the blockage.

I was a not hungry or interested in eating person too. I’m glad it lasted for quite some time. But I knew I had to eat & did find eating to a routine helped me meet my goals. Don’t worry too much if you can’t meet your caloric goals yet. Focus on getting all your protein in first, then vegetables & then carbs & starch last if you can. Make sure you let your dietician know you’re struggling with the quantity of food at the moment. You can only eat what you can physically eat. The change to your taste buds & maybe sense of smell is temporary so things that taste disgusting now will be okay again in a few weeks. Also your tummy can be a bit sensitive & their may be foods that just don’t sit comfortably or heavily. Usually this passes too but there may be things that you will always have to avoid. I still can’t eat bread, rice, pasta (even vegetable low carb ones) & potatoes. Try some plant based proteins until you want to try meat again.

It does happen to some. Sometimes temporarily as their tummy is just still a bit sensitive. Some embrace the opportunity to explore & incorporate plant based proteins. You don’t have to give up on animal proteins just take a break & see how you go. You just might need a couple more weeks. Our tummies can be fussy at first. And there may be things long term that don’t sit as well as others. Chicken, especially breast, is one that often doesn’t. Bread, pasta, rice & potatoes still tend to sit like a lump. Tried a little mashed potato on a shepherd’s pie a couple of weeks back & groan.

You’re grieving which is very common after surgery. I really hope you will consider seeing a therapist to support you. Did you see one before surgery & discuss your worries? I’m surprised you actually were able to have the surgery if you were questioning & had so many concerns about proceeding with the surgery. Did you bring them up with your surgeon or medical team before hand. Your comment that you hope you die soon is very concerning. Please speak to someone. With a BMI of 36 you are severely obese. If you don’t have any comorbidities at the moment, they would have been in your near future. I didn’t have any but I knew it was only by the grace of God & my days were numbered until I had diabetes, heart issues, mobility issues, etc. How you are having to eat now is not your future. It’s just through your healing stage & then while you are losing weight. Most people eat a lot of their old favourites just not as frequently & in much smaller portion sizes or swap out some ingredients so it’s healthier. You may even be surprised that you start to enjoy foods you didn’t before. But again, please seek some help.

I love that blue colour too @GreenTealael. So fresh. Perfect for spring. I’m always fascinated by how easy it often is to date wedding gowns. Sleeve shapes, frills, fabrics, shapes, wraps. Can’t wait to see everyone’s pxts of their gowns. Great idea @Sophie7713. How did I miss you went to Kleindfield’s @ms.sss?? Who looked after you? Disappointed you didn’t see Randy. And yes, let’s push OOTD back up on trending topics. Food before & after & OOTD are my favourite threads too. Let’s get some of the newer forum members posting. Bought these pewter stretch boots a couple of weeks ago. Looking forward to their first wearing. Love the reflective heel. PS. Waffle weave blanket twinsies @Sophie7713. I love mine & keep it on my bed all year round. It’s the perfect weight during our summer when I still feel cold.

The gurgling may continue & it may not necessarily be directly related to the diarrhoea. I gurgle & groan & rumble & squelch all the time - am gurgling now 😆. I often say I have a poltergeist in my tummy rattling chains. My young nieces & nephews think it’s hilarious. It’s just your body doing what it’s supposed to: digest your food. Diarrhoea is quite common after surgery. Can be the excess acid in your tummy, your body excreting the blood, etc. from the surgery, the liquid diet,… etc. If it persists, contact your medical team.

The garlic prawns I had for lunch the other day. Couldn’t be bothered to add anything else so just ate the prawns alone. Anyone else have meals where you just eat protein too?

You said you just ate the liquid part so you’re okay. Strained wonton soup, pho, etc. are often go to alternatives to shakes & bone broths.

It is not uncommon for your taste buds &/or sense of smell to change or become more sensitive after surgery. It’s temporary but it can make it a challenge to find foods that don’t turn your tummy. Many of us find our old favourites taste disgusting, or overly sweet or salty. A lot of us suggest you don’t buy your pre surgery shakes in bulk as you may hate the brand or flavour after surgery. It was many weeks into solid food before I could tolerate my favourite vegetables (asparagus, sugar snap peas & broccolini) again. Can also be a blessing. Finding things excessively sweet helped take away a lot of my desire for sweet food. Used to eat something sweet every day now only a couple of times a year.

Have to admit I agree with @catwoman7. Your body doesn’t store all vitamins only fat solvable ones, The water soluble ones are excreted. B vitamins are water soluble you will literally be peeing out your $300+. A lot of money for bright yellow pee. And you’d need to get that IV every day. https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/002399.htm Generally speaking I think a lot of people take vitamins & minerals they actually don’t need. I’m not saying we don’t need them after surgery & that you may need to continue to take them afterwards depending upon your surgery & how your buddy reacts to it. I’m not ignoring that some people struggle to absorb certain vitamins & need them. And as we age we lose outer ability to absorb some. I’m saying get a blood test & see what you really are lacking in & what supplements you actually need. Some vitamins actually can have negative side effects if taken in excess. Eating a balanced, nutritious diet. Drinking enough fluids will reduce the likelihood of the need for any supplements. Think of the money you’ll save. In the meantime, while you’re losing, just take your daily vitamins. That way you know you’re covered every day. I also think the ‘boost’ people feel after these IV vitamin is more from the additional fluid they’re getting & not so much from the vitamins. Do you get a boost or a high from popping a multivitamin?? And that’s my rant for the day. Yes it can be challenging to get all your fluids in to begin. I struggled, the initial swelling didn’t help, but I made an effort to be close. I added extra water to my shakes & soup. I drank during the night (still do). Set an alarm on your phone. Keep water or other liquid with you at all times. Sip, sip, sip. Dehydration can & does happen but it’s not very common.

Nexium is omeprazole. Just a different brand name. Don’t know what it’s like in the states but in Australia you can only buy 10mg Nexium over the counter. 10mg is fine for basic heartburn but reflux & gerd really needs a stronger dose. Here 20mg is by script & 40mg requires the doctor to fill out additional paperwork because of the strength & effects of long term usage of PPIs so they are reluctant to prescribe the 40mg. As to your surgeon. Did he describe what he would do in your surgery before your surgery? If so did he say he would do the sleeve gastrectomy as well as the bypass? As the form said he would do additional procedures if necessary, what was his justification for doing the gastrectomy? His saying it’s what we do here is not good enough because he told you you’d have bypass surgery & you did not have a gastric bypass alone. If it’s what they do there the gastrectomy aspect should have been identified on the consent form. At the very least you were provided with inaccurate & incomplete information about what your surgery was & involved. Generally, your lower BMI would indicate a sleeve would be most appropriate for you, however, your existing GERD would support the decision to have bypass. Doing both seems excessive. Just my opinion.

You may struggle with vegetables that soon out unless they’re really well cooked. I’d add carrots, onions, celery, tomato, cauliflower, mushrooms, to soups, stews, etc. anything slow cooked from soft food. They’d be very soft & mushy. In solid food I found I could tolerate a little microwaved/steamed shredded cabbage or cauliflower, then green beans. Other vegetables were too coarse or tasted unpleasant for a few more weeks. But we’re all different. You can only try.

My hunger didn’t come roaring back either. Sort of crept up with odd times I’d be hungry & thankfully usually at meal times. Along the way l’ve learnt to look at my hunger very differently & am much more aware of which is real hunger & which is just head hunger. Makes it way easier to manage - not always successfully but hugely better than I ever did. Some find their hunger starts to return in their first year. For others it takes longer. The first time I felt real hunger was 9 months out & in maintenance. Busy day, had hardly eaten anything & it hit me late at night. I didn’t know what was wrong because it was such a different feeling. Didn’t feel it again for months so my hunger didn’t really start to come back until well into my second year which was when I had my first craving since before surgery. I still have odd days or times I’m not hungry. Sometimes I wish I had more of them though 😁.

I agree 100% @Jaelzion. Besides clearer advice about portion sizes, food choices, food sensitivities or intolerances that may occur, etc., I’d also add discussions about things like stalls, hair loss, constipation... These issues can cause a lot of unnecessary anxiety. There’s enough to work through enough with the surgery, changes to our diet & lifestyle without these worries as well.

Ok, breathe. It’s ok. It’s only been four days since a pretty major surgery. You’ve had 80+/-% of your tummy removed. There are lots of staples & sutures holding your tummy together. You have been inflated with gas & had your insides pushed, prodded & pulled. You’re supposed to be in pain. Give yourself time to heal. The gas pain, surgical pain & muscular pain will reduce. Some people find improvement after 3 or 4 days while others a week. We’re all different. Even our ability to tolerate pain is different & that’s ok too. Contact your employer & see if you can negotiate a delay to your return to work or maybe a staged part time return if you think you will need it. Again we’re all different & you may need longer to recover. A friend was back after a week no problem Another needed three weeks. Me, I needed four weeks & still only returned to work part time. (My blood pressure was very low & my energy levels were zip.) You’d know if you had a leak. They’re pretty rare these days. Symptoms to look for include: Dizziness Fever Shortness of breath or fast breathing - more than 18 breaths a minute Fast heart rate - higher than 120 beats per minute Worsening abdominal pain Chest pain shoulder pain (not from the gas escaping) A general feeling of illness and anxiety Be kind to yourself & your body. You’ve been through a lot.

Regrets are common with specially in the first few weeks when you’re on the restricted staged eating plan & so limited in what yo can eat & drink & when. In time you will be able to eat & drink a lot of your old favourites but likely not as frequently and not in the same portion sizes. Or you may eat healthier versions of them. You’ll also discover new favourites too. But that will be your choice & how it fits in with you being able to maintain your weight. Caffeine is harsh especially on your healing tummy to begin which is why we’re advised to avoid it. After it just depends on if you can tolerate it or not. I sipped a gin & tonic a couple of months after surgery. I went from drinking a very large glass of wine or two every night to only having a single drink may be once a month. Initially my taste buds changed & I didn’t like the taste. Now, it ‘s my choice but I don’t look for it & don’t miss it. The only thing with beer may be the carbonation - some struggle with bubbles in any drink. Almost three years out & I still consider portion sizes & calories. I don’t measure & weigh every day. I do random checks of things I eat regularly but check every new food or recipe I eat. I’ve worked out cheat checks of portion sizes fir when I’m eating out - compare to my palm, a fist, finger length etc. I check portion size recommendations & read nutrition panels. I make most of my own food so I know exactly what I’m eating. It’s easy to get complacent & over estimate hence my checks. I know if I let this slide I’ll end up making bad food choices, eating more than I need & be back where I started.

Welcome. It’s ok to feel scared & nervous. It’s surgery. Food likely is something you depend upon as an emotional support & that is going to change & you will be changing what & how you eat. Things like how much pain you will experience after surgery is very individual. You may have a lot of gas pain or nine at all (I didn’t after my sleeve) but there are things you can do to help the gas escape your body. You may experience surgical pain for a couple of days or a week but again you’ll have access to pain meds to help. You may have muscular discomfort & struggle to get up & down for a little while or you may have very little at all. Pre surgical diets differ a lot too. Some are two weeks, some are just a couple of days. Some are all shakes. Others 2 meals shakes & 1 meal protein & vegetables. Mine was keto so … (I have done shake diets before & for a couple of months at a time.) The first challenge to the pre surgical diet is the psychological loss of the crunch & chew comfort of solid food. This can increase your head hunger & cause a lot of emotional turmoil. The second is the withdrawal symptoms (headaches, nausea, tiredness, etc.) from cutting out caffeine & sugar. This usually lasts less than a week. These things are small & are only a couple of weeks in duration. Nothing when you consider the big picture of your whole life & your health. The surgery is an opportunity to makes big changes but you have to be psychologically & emotionally ready. Don’t be afraid to seek support from a therapist (one who specialises in bariatric patients & disordered eating are best). A lot of people have found therapy extremely helpful. Yes, you are on a low calorie restricted diet & eating small portions to begin. Initially it is to support your healing. Then to make you look at the nutritional benefits of what you eat but within a few months you’ll be eating more & a greater variety of food. By maintenance you’ll be eating the portion sizes we all should be eating (not those giant plates two & three times more than what we actually need & lead to our obesity). And you’ll be consuming only the calories your body needs to function effectively & maintain your weight. You’ll discover your relationship with food will change. I still enjoy eating & the taste & texture of food but I see it as something my body needs to function & not as something to comfort & soothe me emotionally - because I’m bored, sad, happy, angry, etc. I’m not continuously thinking about what & when I’ll eat next. It’s that maxim of eating to live not living to eat. All the best.

I didn’t use a recliner or binder either. Was sleeping in my usual slightly twisted side position almost from the beginning & had no trouble getting up & down. Your recovery is very individual. You may have lots of gas pain or no gas pain. You may experience surgical pain for a couple of days or a week. You may get around easily or experience muscular discomfort. You may have days of diarrhoea or be constipated. Make sure you have your post surgical over the counter meds at home ready before you go to hospital. Imodium, gasX, pain meds (not NSAIDS), anti nausea meds, electrolyte drink, etc. Some surgeons give you your scripts for your other meds (PPI, opioid pain meds, anti nausea meds, …) before your surgery others after. Throw in an extra set of underwear & sleepwear just in case you stay in for an extra day. It’s often nicer to be in your own sleepwear. Disposable underwear can be handy too in case you do experience diarrhoea (it can happen unexpectedly & be messy!). Have a couple of different brands & flavours of protein shakes, broths & cream soups. After surgery, some things, temporarily, just taste awful. Get in some green or herbal tea. I found warm drinks very soothing to sip. All the best with your surgery & recovery.