Arabesque

I found trying to be truthful to a point easier. If you feel comfortable tell them you’re trying to be more conscious of your eating or just that you’re on a diet. I bet dieting is a pretty common occurrence in your staff room - was always in mine 😁. Then as you lose weight they’ll think you’re being successful on your diet & with your changed habits - which you are. You can always eat in your room on odd days - say you have class prep or marking to catch up on. I like @Bluebonnetgirl’s mindful eating suggestion especially once you’re on soft or solid foods. It does get easier because those around you start to accept the changes you’re making, your portions get larger & closer to recommended serving sizes. I still sometimes have to tell people who ask why I’m not eating or not eating much that I’ve had enough, I’m not really hungry today or these portions are huge. Good luck.

Your soft foods might be too dry &/or too heavy. As @chrissy86 suggested go back to your liquid stage for a couple of days. Though your surgeon said you are ready for soft food your tummy may not - we all heal differently & at our own pace. Maybe try pureeing your food (it’s a stage many of us are required to go through before soft foods). Yes, listen to your body. It will tell, you pretty darn quickly what you’re ready to do or not. Personally, I don’t understand that chewing, chewing thing. If your food is soft it should be fall apart tender & not require much chewing. Mash things, slow cook meats, add extra sauces, gravies, etc. Some people do struggle with beef, chicken breasts or eggs. What portion size are you eating? I was allowed 1/4 - 1/3 cup. Are you eating slowly & leaving a couple of minutes between each bite? You’re 11 days out. Give yourself time to heal & not strain or stress your poor tummy - it’s been through a lot & you have a lot of stitches & staples holding your tummy together. Yes it does get better & easier but there’s a lot of learning about how your new tummy works on the way.

So sorry your experiencing this. It can take time to work out what your tummy can & can’t tolerate after surgery - it can be pretty fussy & overly sensitive. Developing an intolerance to certain foods, especially lactose, isn’t uncommon & it’s not always permanent. (Check your shake doesn’t contain lactose. If it does look for an alternative lactose free one.) Some have trouble with eggs or chicken or beef. Record the foods that upset you & avoid them for a while. Try a plainer diet for a while so it doesn’t aggravate your tummy lining especially if you’re someone who likes spicy foods. We all heal & react differently. Some struggle with food to begin while others have few or no issues. Just one of those things Good luck & I hope this improves for you soon.

Ok breathe. You haven’t messed up. First, because a lot of nerve endings have been cut during your surgery you won’t feel full like you used to until you’re healed. Now you’re on soft food you’ll likely start to feel full sooner as soft food takes longer to pass through your tummy than liquids & purées. But try to avoid feeling full. (You don’t want to stress or put strain on your healing tummy - remember all those stitches & staples holding your tummy together.) Because it takes time for the message to get from your tummy to your head, by the time you think you’re full you’ve likely past full. Make sure you eat slowly to allow time for the message to get through. Asking myself if I needed the next bite or just wanted it was a game changer for me. I still ask myself that question. Second, portion size is very important. What portion size were you advised? Mine was 1/4 - 1/3cup. Thirdly, our weight always fluctuates. Fluid retention, constipation, eating a little more one day, etc. can cause us to gain. Plus, there are stalls. Many experience the first one at about 3 weeks - can be earlier can be later. They tend to last 1 - 3 weeks. You can experience a couple of them as you lose. Your body is going through a lot of changes & it just needs a break to come to terms with everything. They do break. Just stick to your plan.

Why not? It looks fabulous on you @Sandee29. Look at your legs & your slim figure. So good.

I had a sleeve gastrectomy so I had at least 75% of my stomach removed not just sectioned off. The section that was removed contains the area of the stomach where most of our hunger hormone is produced hence the lack of hunger. Out of curiosity why did you choose the ESG?

Honestly in the first few days after surgery, I wasn’t really interested in doing anything. I couldn’t seem to concentrate on anything & I slept or dozed a lot. We all take our own time to heal & I needed a little longer. Week 2 & 3 I was happy to potter about my house doing chores, doing my walks & rest while watching some mindless tv or reading.

Nope, I didn’t. I didn’t really like anything around my middle - not painful just a bit uncomfortable. Used to roll down the waistbands of my pants so they would sit at my hips & under my wounds. We all carry our weight in different places & if you have a larger or pendulous tummy, a binder my help support it & not strain your surgical wounds. Good luck with your surgery.

I didn’t really feel hungry for ages - 18 months. A couple of times in that time I experienced real hunger. Each time was late at night because I had eaten very little all day. The first time was at about 8 months when I was trying to maintain. At 26 months post surgery, I still have days or part days when I’m not really hungry or interested in eating. To combat that I try to eat to a routine, at least eating three meals & try to get close to my protein goal. I don’t mind if I don’t eat everything as long as it’s something. This morning I wasn’t hungry but I made sure I had something for breakfast at about 9:30. While it’s okay to have the odd low calorie day & day you don’t meet your protein goals, but it should be the exception not the rule. Have a chat with your dietician. They may be able to suggest some ways to still get in your protein & calories. You could try incorporating a protein shake on a no appetite day - drinking not eating.

First, congrats on reaching your goal. Woo hoo! Your sugar craving will be head hunger. Unfortunately, cravings, eating from habit, emotional eating, etc. will always be with us. We just have to learn to manage those yearnings & reduce some of their power & that isn’t easy. It’s why many seek the help of therapy. You reached your goal quite quickly after your surgery & may be this has contributed to falling back into old habits. 🤷🏻‍♀️ I mean it’s likely your past habit was lose weight & then revert to your previous eating habits & gain again - mine was - & that habit is trying to return. The changes you made to what you ate, how you ate & why you ate during the weight loss period have to become what, how & why you eat forever if you want to be successful. It’s challenging but so worth the effort. Get the temptations out of your house. Instead have healthier treats that are low sugar, low fat, low carb, high protein in your cupboards. I found doing this very helpful. I have things like freeze dried fruit (naturally occurring sugar & a little crunchy) & nuts (dry roasted & salted) for the odd days I want something a little sweet or little salty. Portion size is very important when I do indulge & I can go for weeks without needing to have any. I hope you can find ways to manage your cravings & don’t be afraid to seek help from a therapist.

Stalls happen. And you will likely experience a couple of them as you’re losing. They tend to last 1-3 weeks but some people do experience longer ones. They can be very frustrating. I thought of mine as my body taking a breath to catch up with all the changes. It’s been going through a lot Some people say increase your caloric intake, others say to up your activity. I never changed a thing & mine always broke. Though this video from Dr Matt Weiner is in response to a stall when moving through the post surgical stages (the 3 week stall) it really applies to all stalls while we are losing. (The question is a little long.)

Congratulations @STLoser. The changes amazing & I’m not just talking about the superficial though you are looking great. The improvements to your health & well being are the most wonderful achievements. Woo hoo!

Aren’t you glad they found theses things now before they became worse & caused pain or more severe health problems. Finding hernias (& gall stones) isn’t unusual during the pre surgical tests & most are repaired (or removed) during your surgery. Ask your surgeon if your’s will be repaired too. They usually remove any polyps they find when they do the colonoscopy. Did they remove yours? You will probably need to have regular colonoscopies in the future now they’ve found these.

Glad you contacted your surgery & it’s ok. Always give them or your medical team a call if something feels strange for you or you’re in pain. Better to be safe than sorry. Congrats on having your surgery.

Muscle weighs more than fat so it could be that. We all fluctuate a little. I have about a 1kg (2lb) fluctuation cycle due to fluid, constipation, slight changes in daily food intake, etc. Are you in maintenance or are you still trying to lose? Are you still gaining? Are you still tracking your food intake (calories & portion size)? I do random checks now because it can be easy to miss something you’ve added or changed in your diet or misjudge portion sizes.

Broths are the liquid from soups made of vegetables & meat. If you strain the cabbage soup you’d be having broth but if you’re allowed non starchy vegetables you should be fine to eat it unstrained. There are stacks of non starchy vegetables you can eat: salad greens, tomatoes, green beans, mushrooms, cauliflower, capsicum, … Can you have eggs? Make some omelettes. Make a pasta dish using zucchini noodles & the meat & vegetables you’re allowed. Check with your dietician if you want to be sure.

Your body is a furnace & the more weight you carry the harder it has to work & the hotter it gets. Sweating is how your body cools itself. As you get fitter your body doesn’t have to exert itself & overheat as much so you’ll sweat less. Plus you’re not carrying around as much weight. Just wait until you lose enough to start to feel the cold. Brrr. You’re losing all that fat insulation.

Liquids & purées pass through your system more quickly so you tend not to experience the full sensation. Once you get on to more solid food you’ll start to feel the difference. Plus your nerve endings have been cut in the surgery & are healing so you won’t sense things they same way. As shakes, broths, etc. contribute to your fluid goal, I just sipped them slowly until they were finished. Once on purées, soft foods then solid foods, I was told 1/4 to 1/3 of a cup. I ate from a teaspoon. But be careful, you don’t want to stress or strain your healing tummy (remember all those internal stitches & staples holding your tummy together) by eating/drinking too much & go slowly (about 20mins for 1/4 cup). It takes time for the message you’ve had enough to get through so it’s easy to overeat. I still eat slowly (30 - 60 minutes per meal) & ask myself if I need that next bite or if I just want it. Good luck.

I’ve always got nauseous when taking multi vitamins even before surgery. Didn’t matter what brand. I wondered if it’s because I’ve never really needed to take them cause my blood work has always been good???? 🤷🏻‍♀️ People have mentioned iron & my dietician said it can also be the B vitamins (don’t know if it’s one specifically or a combination of them). Make sure you have something solid in your tummy before you take it but I’d probably go back to taking your old vitamins until you’re dietician calls you back. I stopped taking them once I hit maintenance with my surgeons ok. My blood work is still very good.

You’ve just had pretty major surgery. You’ve dramatically changed your diet. Your body is still in shock & consciously or unconsciously you’re probably a bit upside down emotionally as well. Give yourself time to recover from surgery physically & emotionally first & then sees what happens. Don’t stress too much about not orgasming at the moment as it will likely make it more elusive. Congrats on your surgery.

The next day they had me out of bed a few times to do laps around the ward. Did regular laps around my house & up & down my stairs from when I got home. I live alone so was up & down all day getting drinks, making shakes, etc. A friend was walking a kilometre by the end of the first week (with her husband in case she ran into problems) but she was pretty active before surgery.

For me real hunger is when I become restless. Legs twitch, feel sort of uncomfortable & as if something is wrong but I don’t know what. The first time I felt real hunger, I hadn’t eaten since lunch & it was about 10pm. Didn’t know what i was feeling until a I realised I was actually hungry. If you know you’ve eaten recently, have eaten an appropriate sized serving & have eaten properly all day, it’s likely not hunger. Could be thirst, it could also be from stomach acid which can give you those uncomfortable, crampy, rumbling tummy type feelings. Are you still taking esomeprazole? You may need to be eating something more solid than a protein shake which will help with the stomach acid too. (I never had another shake after week 2 - got all my nutrients through real food.) The shake being liquid will pass through your digestive system more quickly which throws off realising if you’re full or not. Sounds like your experiencing another stall. Some only have a couple, some have a lot of them. Frustrating though. At least you know it will break.

Oh, good point @Hop_Scotch. Were the opti slim shakes your pre surgical diet? If you don’t lose the required or an acceptable amount of weight pre surgery your surgeon can defer your surgery. Not all will but… Most definitely contact your medical team now.

It’s natural to have some concerns the closer you get to your surgery date. The thing to remember is that everyone heals & recovers from the surgery differently. Some people fly through others take a little longer. It’s a surgery so allow yourself time to heal & recover. If you have a lot of swelling post surgery, you may struggle to swallow for a few days. I did. I found warm liquids easier & more soothing to drink. I did struggle to swallow the pain meds in hospital & it was a bit painful but I was swallowing my vitamin capsules by day 4 pretty easily - just took a break between taking each one. You can crush any meds you can’t swallow at first & mix them with a little of your protein shake or soup. Yes, you have to sip slowly & often. Your tummy is healing & you don’t want to strain or stress it & all the internal stitches &/or staples holding it together while it heals. My surgeon was ok with me not meeting my fluid & protein goals at first as long as I was working towards reaching them. Remember everything you drink (shakes, broths, soups, etc.) count to your daily fluid goals. At 26 months, I can really only swallow two mouthfuls at most at a time. Take a third one & my restriction kicks in. Again that is just me. Others can guzzle fluids easily after a few months. Vomiting or the foamies (saliva not food) can happen. Eating too quickly, eating too much, food too dry or your sensitive tummy just doesn’t like a certain food (it can be very fussy to begin but it passes too). If it happens it tends to occur in the early stages but at 26 months post surgery, I can get the foamies if what I eat is too dry but that’s me & I can easily avoid those foods. You’re right, dumping isn’t very common with the sleeve. If it occurs it’s usually because you’ve eaten too much fat or sugar. Yes, you will experience periods of low energy. It passes. I found electrolyte drinks helpful but get your blood work done regularly to ensure you’re not lacking in any essential nutrients like iron or the B vitamins. I was doing all my house hold chores, grocery shopping , etc. by weeks 2 & 3. Just took it slowly & at my pace. Gerd is a possible side effect of the sleeve. I had a little reflux before surgery. I changed a lot of my diet when it was diagnosed to reduce symptoms (low fat, no spicy foods, limited carbonation, no rich creamy foods) I still have it post surgery. It manifests differently but is easily managed by meds which I take every day now versus as I needed in the past & still avoiding foods which can aggravate it for me.

The protein in the shakes is to benefit your healing & health. As @Hop_Scotch said, some plans require clear fluids the first few days or week. Whatever your plan, stick to it. The plan is in place for a reason. If it’s only been a couple of days though, you’ll likely be okay but get back on track ASAP. Congrats on your surgery